Chapter 26: The Death of Paru and Jin

In the distance.

On the sea.

A full line of pirate ships stood at the horizon’s end, their monstrous cannons spewing crimson lotuses that streaked across the sky like falling stars, crashing into Raven Harbor…

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

…

The bustling, lively harbor vanished in an instant into utter chaos; flames rose everywhere, screams pierced the eardrums and shattered the survivors’ world.

“Pirates! Pirates are here!”

“Help!”

“Marines! The Marines are in the harbor, we…”

A glimmer of hope rose in their eyes—but it vanished completely the moment they turned to look back at the harbor.

The two warships standing in the harbor were struck before they could even dodge the first salvo; now they burned with roaring flames.

The men aboard the warships were retreating toward the harbor in disarray.

“Run!”

From the first cry of alarm, the crowd in the harbor scattered in all directions, hiding behind cover.

The once impenetrable, massive walls now seemed pitifully small against the steel flood pouring from afar, offering not a shred of safety.

The ships left in the harbor had no room to evade; within mere breaths, they were engulfed in fire.

Inside the harbor.

Flames roared; countless ships blazed with fire.

Intense heat licked at Jin’s pale face; he had just finished arranging defenses within the city and hadn’t even begun to act when Krik’s attack came ahead of schedule.

“Lord Jin, Paru… Paru is still on the ship!”

One pirate opened his mouth, unable to believe what he saw, wanting to rush onto the ship to save him—but the flames blocked his way.

He could only listen to the agonized screams from the ship, powerless to do anything.

“Who did this?”

“The Marines? No—even the most corrupt, fallen marines wouldn’t do something like this.”

“Those pirates who came with us to the harbor? But their ships were attacked too…”

The pirates exchanged anxious glances, murmuring, yet found no clear answer.

Or rather—

They had all unconsciously ignored the only possible answer.

Jin did not.

He pulled his headscarf tighter, teeth clenched.

This time, Krik’s actions were utterly incomprehensible and unacceptable to him—it was wrong, absolutely wrong. Even pirates should cherish their comrades!

Yet at that moment, a tall figure emerged from the ship’s cabin, carrying two pirates, braving the flames as he leapt into the sea…

Splash!

“It’s Paru!”

“He’s still alive!”

Everyone jumped into the water, worked together to pull the utterly exhausted Paru ashore, and then fell silent.

Jin pushed aside the crowd surrounding Paru—and his pupils shrank the instant he saw him.

Paru’s body had been transformed by the fire; his once meticulously groomed hair was now completely burned away.

Not a single patch of intact skin remained; flesh curled and peeled, emitting a nauseating stench of charred meat.

“Big Brother Jin, I hurt so much~”

A weak voice reached Jin’s ears. He raised his hand, intending to comfort his comrade as he always had.

But there was no skin left on him to touch.

“Hssss~”

Paru gasped heavily; he could barely see. His blurred gaze swept the surroundings, found nothing, then asked about the two he had rescued.

“Are they… still alive?”

Jin turned to look at the two charred, unrecognizable corpses, and said softly:

“They’ve lost consciousness, but they’re still alive.”

“Is that so?”

Paru’s lips curled into a faint smile:

“Too bad I can’t see anymore.”

“Hey~ Big Brother Jin, leave this place. Leave that man.”

“I’ve seen it clearly—he’s never had comrades in his eyes, only tools to discard at will. This time it was me. Next time, it might be you.”

“…”

Jin lowered his head in silence, nearly grinding his teeth to dust. Paru seemed to understand, and smiled faintly:

“You’re still so foolish. It’s time you lived for yourself…”

His voice faded, filled with unyielding regret as he took his final breath.

After a few seconds of silence,

Jin slowly stood up, wiped his face with his hand, and his eyes hardened with resolve:

“The captain made a mistake. We must correct him—not betray him. Action begins now!”

“Yes!”

Everyone responded in unison.

At Jin’s command, the pirates who had entered the harbor with him moved swiftly, weaving through cannon fire, clearing resistance at the pre-scouted locations.

One by one, ammunition depots exploded; countless guards had barely organized rescue efforts when they faced direct pirate assaults.

In mere minutes,

Jin had seized control of most of the city’s ammunition depots and guards. He turned his gaze toward Kelo, who had hurriedly arrived.

His twin canes spun, accelerating until they became invisible to the naked eye; with such overwhelming force, even an iron body would twist and deform if struck head-on.

“Time to enjoy today’s main course!”

“…”

Kelo glanced at Jin, then turned to his own burning warship.

Fortunately, he’d been cautious—he hadn’t suffered the same catastrophic losses as Jin, but several of his men were still trapped aboard.

The screams grew fainter, then ceased entirely. At that moment, Kelo’s killing intent reached its peak.

In over a decade of warfare, when had he ever suffered such a blow?

Especially since those aboard were elite troops trained by Gao Wen—new blood of the pirate crew, absolute core forces, each one invaluable.

To lose them so pointlessly—how could he not ache?

“I’ll flay you alive first, then kill Provincial Military Commander Krik.”

Kelo’s voice was icy, as if stating an undeniable fact. As he spoke, ten razor-sharp claw blades slowly unsheathed…

Clang!

And this time, no one would restrain Kelo from striking!

“Die!”

The next instant,

Kelo’s figure vanished from the air—but his overwhelming killing intent filled every corner.

Ssssh!

Five claw marks, rising from below, nearly split Jin open from groin to chest!

“So fast!”

Intense pain surged Jin’s adrenaline; his vision held only a blurred shape—Kelo moved with erratic, blinding speed, faster than his senses could track.

Ssssh!

Ssssh!

Ssssh!

…

One after another, the sound of blades slicing came from all around Jin. He watched as claw marks instantly appeared on the ground, walls, even human bodies.

His opponent was clearly the strongest he’d ever faced since setting sail—without exception.

With such speed alone, any normal man would be helpless to counter. Jin could only swing his canes faster, shielding his sides like a wall.

Because one misstep now would mean death!

(End of Chapter)