Displaying weakness?

Extending goodwill?

Or perhaps it's a trap?

The gingerbread vendor set down the telescope in his hand, lost in thought.

He subconsciously gulped down a mouthful of rum, this time not spitting it out, but swallowing it with a gulp.

Then, he suddenly realized what he had done. His face changed, he retched a few times, and violently threw the bottle of rum into the sea.

The simulation scenario had only just begun over ten days ago, and everyone was cautiously hiding themselves, seeking development.

It had to be said.

Paul's behavior was indeed abnormal, even more so than Black Magic Hand's.

The key word for Black Magic Hand might be something like slaughter, necessitating high profile actions, but each time he made an appearance, he left no survivors, thereby being inconspicuous in another way.

But this Paul, was truly arrogant.

Even if his keyword was chaos, there was no need to make himself into such a glaring target in less than half a month...

Unless his keyword wasn't chaos?

If not chaos, then what could it be?

Enticement?

Or simply being high-profile?

Glistening?

Or the center?

If I went over, would I be walking right into a trap?

If Paul forcefully broke through, all our pirate ships would definitely surround him; no one would let him leave with the witch. Yet Paul boldly announced the slogan of sharing the witch, so no one would attack.

The Sea God Scepter was tied to every pirate's ambition; no one wanted to give up this chance for sudden ascension!

That damn guy, disrupting all his plans...

...

"Captain, shall we still fire the cannons?"

The gingerbread vendor's fierce and conflicted expression caused the original captain to panic. Watching him remain silent, he couldn't help but interrupt the other's contemplation.

Even without the Sea God Scepter, no one wanted to kill a witch.

After all.

There were too many rumors about witches, and in all the tales, those who killed a witch never met a good end.

The gingerbread vendor snapped back to reality: "What's your name?"

"Ace Bar," said the captain, cautiously.

"From now on, you are still the captain of this ship, and I am your second mate," said the gingerbread vendor, glancing at him, "Remember, my name is Sheldon Gis, I've always been your second mate, and there has never been a bloody incident on board, understand? Later, when I come aboard, we'll go see what tricks Paul is up to. It's mainly up to you to negotiate with Paul..."

"Are we really going to board their ship?" The captain swallowed hard, "There's no honesty among pirates. What if they open fire?"

"Are you stupid?" the gingerbread vendor glared at him, "They have five ships, we have eight, and there are more coming non-stop from Herd Island. If he fires at us, it's declaring war on everyone. Can he fight off so many? Even if he breaks out of the encirclement, Antonio's ship is still blocking the way outside. Where can he run?"

"I think taking He Ya the witch already counts as declaring war on everyone," Captain Ace said sheepishly.

"In these past few days, Paul has never killed a single person, be it the Dufei family or the royal navy, he's just been forcing them to dance. So, there's no need to worry about your own safety," the gingerbread vendor said with a trace of mockery on his lips. "Besides, don't you want information about the Sea God Scepter? I possess great strength and martial skills, and you have your own pirate ship. Together we're definitely capable of taking out other competitors, placing you on the throne of the Pirate King."

"You don't want to become the Pirate King?" the captain asked, stunned.

"No, I just want to eradicate the heretics of this world," the gingerbread vendor snorted, impatiently, "In short, don't reveal my identity. Paul won't kill, but I will."

...

Paul had abducted the witch, but as the gingerbread vendor said, he had also cornered himself.

After all, Antonio had blocked off the entire shipping route, and his few ships couldn't break through.

So.

Everyone believed that Paul's proposal to "share the witch" was a sign of weakness.

If they had known this would happen, why did they do it in the first place?

Wouldn't it have been better for the witch to just stay on Herd Island?

Indeed, everyone who had dealt with Selma was missing a screw in their head...

When the Snow Dragon's captain, Ace Bar, was the first to move closer, the other pirate ships also followed without hesitation.

Although they were unfamiliar with each other, they were united on the issue of the witch, in an unspoken pirate agreement, just as they would naturally band together when encountering the navy.

This time.

Antonio's blockade of the Herd Island shipping route took pirates lightly; it wasn't his first time doing this.

In a few days, Mahamadu and Safra would attack Antonio from behind. At that time, all the pirates trapped inside, as long as they coordinate to break out, this blockade will also come to nothing.

At most a few unlucky fools will die.

If Antonio had that much capability, the royal navy would have cleared out the pirates long ago.

...

Gowned in pink dresses, the royal navy danced at the ship's bow, while the decks of the Smile Angel were laden with rum, as someone had to be responsible for sailing.

So.

Duge's pirate group, capable of combat, numbered less than eighty. With them spread across five ships, their numbers were even fewer.