Fen exited through the doors of the Adventurers' Guild after finishing his business.

"What's wrong? Something big happened?"

Seeing Li Site's agitated state, Fen couldn't help but think this way.

Li Site was the kind of ruthless character who wouldn't even blink when surrounded by a dozen pirates in Heaven's Port. Yet now he sat trembling in his chair while smoking, his gaze unfocused and distracted—an extremely rare sight. The last time this happened was when he got caught having a secret rendezvous with a big shot's daughter in Heaven's Port.

Li Site extinguished his cigarette upon hearing this.

"Did you buy the newspaper?"

Li Site wanted Fen's opinion. Having moved in upper-class circles on the Western Continent, Fen understood better the impact steam trains would bring.

"You mean the steam train thing? I overheard adventurers discussing it inside. A friend of mine actually considered this invention before, but didn't publish his paper due to current circumstances. He also couldn't figure out molds for iron ore refinement. Never thought someone actually made it work now. That 'blessing from the Eternal and Timeless Dragon' nonsense is ridiculous."

Fen didn't take it seriously, though he felt slightly regretful. This "friend" was actually himself—his obsession with spells far outweighed his interest in inventions. It had just been an amusing thought experiment.

Li Site remained silent for a while before slapping his forehead. Right, it was just a steam train. He'd been a pirate too long—his brain was rusting.

This didn't signify much. Upon closer consideration, it merely meant slightly more developed transportation. Widespread application remained distant—just one route had opened. The Western Continent's area dwarfed all seven continents combined, and its terrain was anything but flat, filled with terrifying natural barriers, towering peaks, and biological danger zones. Infrastructure would take decades.

He just wondered what other surprises that traitor might cook up.

"Why are you so worked up over this?"

Fen couldn't understand, adding: "I've got a better idea. Soon—preferably within six months—we should go plunder the Arlan Empire. Since freight trains just started, they might trial passenger trains on those tracks. The first riders would surely be novelty-seeking nobles. We could rob them."

Stroking his chin, Fen considered this an excellent plan—they should strike before others thought of it.

Li Site made a face like he'd swallowed a fly. How could the brilliant General Fen suddenly turn brain-dead?

"How exactly? Our whole crew's wanted—how do we board? Chase it? Race the train?"

Li Site had momentarily fallen into modern thinking patterns.

Now Fen looked like he'd swallowed a fly. How could the clever Li Site suddenly turn stupid?

"Maybe we could have Ox—that freakishly strong fish-man—haul some boulders, seven or eight hundred pounds each, to block the tracks. When the train stops somewhere remote, soldiers won't arrive in time. We rob everyone aboard, kill who needs killing, preferably kidnap some high nobles for ransom. The profits from this job... unimaginable."

Fen had also lapsed into pirate thinking patterns, hard to imagine he'd once been nobility.

"You've awakened this dreamer! Your words surpass ten years of study!"

Li Site had an epiphany. Truly, General Fen's plan surpassed even the casino heist's triple profits.

Fen also bought a newspaper from a newsboy to examine himself, planning to show it to the illiterate crew later.

Piracy had many drawbacks—information isolation being a major one. Once they'd plundered a huge haul worth over nine hundred gold dragons. The crew stayed in Heaven's Port half a year, indulging in feasts, brothels and gambling, even foolishly investing in local real estate until they'd nearly squandered their lifetime savings and ruined themselves. By their return to the Western Continent, the entire landscape had changed.

Scanning the paper beyond the train news: recent East Bank murders—all tiger-man victims. Authorities suspected a tiger-man-hating serial killer, though these were actually crimes committed by Sven.

Notably, a necromancer in northern Beima Principality was recently slain by an Honor-rank adventurer team. Fen had briefly met this necromancer during his Tower Alliance days—how unpredictable fate could be.

Other items were just adventurer gossip—which Hero-rank hooked up with which woman, who slept where—these brain-dead editors clearly scraping for content.

You'd never find refugee crisis reports here. These Adventurers' Guild-published newspapers avoided local politics entirely. Operating platforms in others' territories meant paying taxes and keeping quiet.

As Fen folded the paper:

"Captain! Captain! You're here too? Need to tell you something."

A shifty-eyed informant spotted Archer drunkenly wailing about atomic bombs nearby, recognizing Li Site too. He eagerly approached—Li Site had sought him out weeks ago to inquire about East Bank and Linden City's situation, whether any pirates competed with Black Sails.

Li Site recognized the man vaguely after a moment.

"Oh, you. Spit it out."

He considered asking about the Thieves' Guild but reconsidered. These informants sold to both sides—inquiries might draw unwanted attention.

If the Thieves' Guild hadn't connected Black Sails to their crimes yet, they wouldn't be scouring the East Bank. Once their agents reached Linden City and questioned informants about who'd been asking after them... that'd be disastrous.

The newspaper confirmed the Guild was still murdering randomly—that was enough.

Sven had participated in the Blue Bay Port job without showing his face. The biggest clue was whether they'd uncover Sven's connection to Fen. But the Thieves' Guild's intelligence network dwarfed the Adventurers' Guild—it was only a matter of time before they traced back to Black Sails, since Fen was officially Black Sails' first mate.

"Need more crew? I've got a lead."

The informant forced a smile. Despite ragged clothes, his teeth were well-maintained—professional pride for talkers.

"Oh?"

Li Site grew interested. Informants playing both sides was taboo—payment from one party sufficed. Probably some desperate fugitive needed immediate passage, pushing this informant for quick deals.

"No."

Li Site refused. Might just be passengers—uninteresting. Plus with their current precious cargo, they wanted no major criminals aboard.

"Captain, this guy..." The informant glanced around, lowering his voice. "He's offering five gold dragons just to take him and his men aboard. Pays you to join."

Li Site froze. That made it worse—bringing his own men? Were they Thieves' Guild assassins?

Fen grew wary too.

"Where are they? Take me."

Better safe than sorry—Fen decided to strike first. Ordinary thieves stood no chance against their trio.

Reading Fen's intent, Li Site grabbed the informant's collar, smirking coldly. Black Sails' full crew waited at Secret Port—Morrison and Ox weren't pushovers.

"Did they specifically ask for Black Sails?"

Li Site considered skinning this informant later.

"Sir! Wrongfully accused!"

The informant knew these pirates would murder in broad daylight. Had he touched a nerve? He'd been careful—though client confidentiality was professional ethics, he spilled everything now. "They're ex-military! Their leader's a knight! Escorted some Arlan Empire official's son to Beima Principality, but the young master had preexisting conditions—died en route from sudden illness. Can't report back, so they fled here."

Li Site judged the informant wasn't lying.

"Check it out?"

Li Site sought Fen's counsel.

Fen nodded, warning the informant: "Think carefully. If you come clean now, we might spare you. But if things go south there... you know what happens."