“Newcomer, you can apply to Vice-Captain Raymond for a partial martial arts technique. This is a benefit for new recruits, but you cannot apply for another until you have reached the ‘Proficient’ level with the one you receive. Remember to choose the technique that suits you best. Don’t pick one as haphazardly as you did with your weapon; that was practically reckless.”
“Newcomer, there are no private baths on this ship. Everyone washes up in the public bath in the second level area before dinner. We are all men, and you are the first woman to join our Sea Dragon Pirates. To be honest, it’s a mess. Chief Molly wants you to go to her cabin at dinner time; she will handle your bathing situation.”
“Newcomer, please make sure to memorize the faces and identities of every companion on this ship in a short amount of time. You need to know whose orders to follow, and you cannot be disrespectful to the big shots. I have portraits of the crew here, as well as a simple map of the ship.”
Jia Yi took two rolls of parchment from his belt, handed them to Baiya, and gave her a few patient instructions. He carefully considered whether he had missed anything, and feeling satisfied, he left. Guiding the newcomer was only a temporary duty assigned to him by Molly; he had his own work to attend to.
Baiya found a shaded spot on the deck and sat down, feeling the sea breeze. She used the sunlight to read the two scrolls in her hands. Jia Yi was right; she did need these materials.
‘Ara ara, ara ara,’ Baiya thought as she read. She was still thinking about having to rely on Molly to wash her body. She really hoped Molly would spare her, but she also understood that Molly’s approach was correct.
In terms of resources, Molly wouldn’t open a separate cabin as a private bathroom just for her. Baiya was only a newcomer and was not entitled to any special treatment. In terms of common sense, the appearance of a private bathroom dedicated to her would not be a good thing. It would become a catalyst for desire, and her situation would become quite dangerous.
Molly was a responsible leader. She would not allow Baiya to ruin the relationship between her companions, and she truly could not rest easy if this sensitive element wasn’t bathing right under her nose.
Setting aside the fact that Molly occasionally teased her with water currents out of whim—which was acceptable if she just endured it—Baiya was worried that Molly would see through her identity. Her identity as a Slave Girl.
Baiya tucked the two scrolls into her collar, her fingers inadvertently touching the links of a silver-white necklace. That was the Heart of the Recluse.
Before boarding the ship, Baiya had searched the looted market. she hadn’t found many useful things. The pirates hadn’t even spared the belongings on the corpses, leaving her not even a single copper coin.
Later, she found the castle where Liuyiong lived. There, she found an accessory that was likely the Heart of the Recluse. She went to the forest on the back mountain to experiment on a few weak magical beasts, proving that the silver necklace in her hand was indeed the Heart of the Recluse.
Only after obtaining the Heart of the Recluse did Baiya dare to board Molly’s pirate ship. The Heart of the Recluse was a special accessory specifically used to mask the alien aura of a Slave Girl. One had to know that as soon as a magical beast caught the scent of a Slave Girl’s alien aura, it was like a perverted lolicon seeing a soft, cute, and easily-pushed-over loli. They would hunt the Slave Girl like madmen and would not rest until they had devoured their target. Without the Heart of the Recluse, she wouldn’t be able to move an inch.
There were two ways to identify whether a girl was a Slave Girl. First, if she was a Slave Girl, there would be a brand of the alien race she represented on her chest, just above the heart. The brand would be inscribed with the title of the Slave Girl. Second, the Heart of the Recluse. Only Slave Girls would wear the Heart of the Recluse, as it was originally a special item invented specifically for them.
Baiya knew that the first method would not work on her. Unfortunately, her brand was currently obscured by a burn. Unless she activated her racial talent, [Singer’s Holy Sword], and caused the brand to glow, it would be difficult for an ordinary person to discover the fact that she was a Slave Girl using that mark.
That left only the second method. This, Baiya admitted, she had no way to escape.
When Molly had summoned her to the cabin earlier, she had unfastened the Heart of the Recluse and hidden it in her palm. When Molly used the water to wash her body, Baiya had pretended to be very sensitive and desperately blocked herself with her arms to make the clenching of her fist look more natural.
The entire process had been grueling. If Molly saw the Heart of the Recluse and recognized her as a Slave Girl, she would doubt Baiya’s intentions and be on guard. If she were lucky, she might be exiled to a deserted island and perhaps even be allowed to take a little food. However, Baiya had always believed her luck was quite poor.
Currently, on this pirate ship, it was not yet time for her to relax.
‘Grinding favorability while ensuring my safety… to be honest, this is quite a challenge.’
Baiya sighed. Her pirate life had not been smooth from the very beginning.
“The three-month time limit is also far too short,” Baiya muttered a few times. She walked off the deck and took her cleaning tools back to her cabin.
From this day on, she would spend the next three months as a cleaner for the Sea Dragon Pirates.
At noon, after memorizing most of the locations on the ship, Baiya arrived at the first level area. The cabins of Captain Molly and Vice-Captain Raymond were located there. Baiya was going to visit Raymond to apply for a partial martial arts technique.
Raymond was one of the only two Diamond-rank powerhouses on the ship. He was tall and fierce, and with the added coolness of his sunglasses, he appeared even more majestic. He might have some connection to Molly, as they both hailed from the Twin-Ring Demon Sea. He did not seem like an easy person to get along with.
The reason Baiya reached this conclusion was that she discovered Raymond’s favorability toward her had dropped to zero. It was displayed in a gold-bordered box like this:
[Favorability toward Baiya: 0 (Dangerous fellow!)]
As soon as Raymond saw her, he showed strong hostility. When he understood the purpose of her visit, he sneered and struck up a conversation with a nearby pirate, ignoring her completely.
Baiya thought calmly for a moment. Telling herself she was hungry, she left Raymond’s cabin and headed for the cafeteria located in the second level area.
“He who does not work shall not eat!” The pirate chef distributing the food sneered when he saw her. He swung his ladle and knocked over her iron bowl.
Then he continued to dish out meals to the other pirates. Baiya stood there and thought for a moment. She picked up her iron bowl, put it back in its original place, and left the cafeteria without looking back, returning to her cabin.
‘The favorability is all zero. I can’t even see a single one. There’s no doubt that under someone’s orders, I am being isolated.’
Baiya lay on her hard wooden bed with her right hand on her forehead. She stared blankly at the wooden boards with peeling paint on the ceiling, talking to herself.
“Ah, I’m hungry. I really want to eat something.”
***
After the sun went down and she finished bathing at Molly’s, Baiya immediately rushed to the cafeteria. However, she was still met with a cold shoulder.
“Don’t you understand that he who does not work shall not eat! Get lost!”
The pirate chef waved the silver spoon in his hand like he was shooing a fly. Baiya dodged reflexively, and he didn’t hit her once.
At this time, Baiya did not intend to remain silent. She explained to the pirate chef that she had spent the entire afternoon cleaning the fourth level area until her hands were sore. She didn’t know how clean it was, but the term “one who does not work” could not be applied to her.
“Get out of here! You filthy whore!” Her explanation was met with a few curses instead.
‘Well, fine. It’s changed to “filthy whore.” Is the way to get rid of this label to prove I’m a virgin?’ Baiya didn’t want to do that at all.
“This isn’t what was agreed upon. I have worked. I have fulfilled my duties and haven’t slacked off, so please give me food.”
Baiya spoke calmly while taking a step forward to present the iron bowl in her hand.
“I’m hungry.”
The pirate chef was a bit dazed by this move. He heard the snickering of the other pirates, which was a mockery of his incompetence. He suddenly became so angry that his small mustache twitched, and his face turned incredibly red.
“Don’t look down on me! You filthy whore!”
The pirate chef raised the silver spoon high and swung it fiercely toward the arm Baiya used to hold the iron bowl. At that moment, his expression became as hideous as a demon’s.
Vice-Captain Raymond wanted them to find every way possible to make things difficult for Baiya and never let her have an easy time. They would never recognize such a woman as one of their own. ‘Scum! Whore! Get off the ship!’
“Whore… No, no, no. I’m actually quite clean. It’s impossible for me to like men. My sexual orientation is perfectly normal; I like women.”
Baiya gradually widened her crimson right eye and cast a cold gaze at the pirate chef.
[Sword Skill Talent — Mind’s Eye Blade Activated!]
Baiya shifted her body slightly, barely dodging the silver spoon’s attack.
“Don’t… don’t get cocky! You whore!”
Having failed his strike, the pirate chef was unwilling to give up. His expression became even more ferocious. Using the silver spoon in his hand as a weapon, he launched several relentless attacks at Baiya!
“Idiot! Still want food! Eat trash!” The pirates watching the show mocked Baiya. They also hated this woman and wanted her off the ship.
But soon, their laughter died down. They had expected to see Baiya in a miserable state, but instead, they witnessed a scene that stunned them.
Baiya swung the iron bowl in her hand and smashed it into the pirate chef’s face. The sudden pain caused him to stop all movement, and he subconsciously let go of the silver spoon.
The silver spoon fell to the ground, rolling a few times and making a loud clatter on the wooden boards.
The watching pirates fell silent. Baiya was completely unharmed! She was like a ghost; the chef hadn’t landed a single effective strike on her!
But the thing that shocked them even more was yet to come. While the pirate chef was reeling in pain, Baiya took a step forward and quickly pulled an object from her shirt.
It was a flintlock, and she aimed it right at the pirate chef!
“I’m hungry!” Baiya said only those three words. Her index finger rested on the trigger, motionless—or rather, ready to fire.
Fear spread from the pirate chef’s heart to his very soul. He didn’t even care about the pain as he frantically shoveled food from the container into Baiya’s iron bowl.
A moment later, Baiya put away the flintlock. Holding the iron bowl filled with food, she ignored the stunned pirates around her and walked straight to the cafeteria door.
“Who… who are you?” The pirate chef still couldn’t control the trembling of his body. He clutched his chest, his teeth chattering as he asked.
“My name is Baiya. You can also call me White Madman, but you can only call me that once in your life. Mmn.” Baiya took a bite of the dry bread from the iron bowl and continued to speak indistinctly, “The food ithn’t bad, Muthtache.”