As Strange looked at the heaps of dead special forces soldiers scattered across the deck, his eyes lost all focus, terror clearly etched on his face. "This is impossible. I could’ve torn through that red light easily just moments ago. How could it trap me for so long?"

From nearby, Amelia let out a soft scoff. "Pathetic. The only reason you could break The Fixing Gaze’s seal before is because you were way stronger than those twin girls."

Luna shot Strange a mocking look too. "And Kevin? His power is easily ten times yours. Keeping you frozen for two minutes is practically letting you off easy."

Strange’s jaw twitched. He still couldn’t accept it, arguing back, "Impossible. When Kevin froze my men just now, I was still strong enough to tear that red light apart with my bare hands!"

Kevin nodded seriously, then grinned as he explained, "Fair point. Last time I was holding ten people at once, so you got a loophole. This time, I’m only focusing on the two of you. The intensity naturally went up a lot."

Strange completely blanked out at that. That meant The Fixing Gaze Kevin was using now was five times as strong as before. Once that sank in, Strange’s usual arrogance completely vanished.

He glanced at Nova first, then turned back to Kevin, his words thick with warnings. "Kevin, you don’t want to mess with The Eye of Tarot. I can apologize to you and the twins for what happened today. Just let this go, and we’ll stay completely out of George’s feud with you."

Kevin just grinned. "You’re not in a position to bargain with me. Plus, you were just threatening my crew."

Without another word, Kevin’s eyes turned ice-cold. "Kill him."

At the command, the two Fish Fiends lunged suddenly, rushing at Strange from front and back. At the last second, Strange could only use his full-body metalization to block head-on. But his metal-hard body was completely useless against a five-meter elite Fish Fiend.

A screech of tearing metal echoed. The elite Fish Fiend snapped Strange’s limbs off one by one. In the end, he stood on the deck like a statue twisted into a pretzel, his eyes filled with grief and fury as he died.

George didn’t say a word the whole time. He just kept holding his walkie-talkie, barking orders to the helicopter above and the armored car on the next ship: "Damn it, what are you standing around for? Fire the rockets and blow this bastard to hell!"

But no matter how much he roared, no one answered. Kevin just watched George like he was looking at an idiot, letting him rant to himself in place. Only when George completely gave up his screaming did Kevin finally speak up. "Save your breath. There’s nobody in that helicopter or armored car. You should focus on your last words instead."

George completely rejected that. "Impossible. The helicopter’s still flying. The armored car’s engine hasn’t stopped. There’s definitely someone alive inside. Don’t even try to fool me!"

Kevin just rolled his eyes.

With a heavy crash, George’s ship and Strange’s ship drifted together. The attack helicopter hovering above began its slow descent, while the armored car parked at the stern of the neighboring ship rumbled to life, rolling steadily toward Kevin’s deck.

Seeing this, a manic grin spread across George’s face. "Hahaha! I told you there were still people inside! Kevin, you’re a dead man! You think because the Vulcan cannon and the mobile artillery jammed, we’re helpless? The chopper’s still got missiles, and the armored car’s packed with rockets. No matter how strong your two Eldritch Entities are, they can’t..."

He never got to finish. A nearby Fish Fiend bared its razor-sharp foreclaws and tore straight through George’s neck.

George clutched his bleeding throat, his eyes locked in disbelief on the just-landed helicopter. From where he stood, he had a clear view of the cockpit. It was completely empty. The chopper had touched down on the deck with perfect stability, yet zero pilots. George’s eyes bulged. He tried to gasp out a warning, but all that came out was a choked rattle.

Watching him choke, Kevin’s voice cut through the air, clear and calm. "No need to doubt. That’s my doing." He turned his head toward Leo, a mocking smirk on his face. "Your master’s intel was nowhere near accurate. Blame your useless young lord, not me."

George’s face flushed crimson with rage. But in the end, his pride was cut short. He collapsed onto the deck, dead.

Meanwhile, Leo, whose face had been blown to a bloody pulp, was utterly broken. He collapsed onto the deck, eyes wide with terror, scrambling backward on his hands and feet, desperately trying to put distance between himself and Kevin’s crew.

Watching Leo’s pathetic panic, Kevin glanced over at Stephanie, who was still tied up on the deck. Since boarding, she’d stayed silent, trailing behind Luna and Amelia. Even with George’s reinforcements, she’d never once turned on Kevin. Coupled with the fact that Leo no longer acted like a lovesick fool around her, Kevin’s lips curled into a knowing smile. So the two of them have finally fallen out.

At the thought, Kevin offered Stephanie a faint, reassuring smile. The moment she saw it, her eyes lit up with unmistakable infatuation.

Leo snapped. "You cheap slut! I knew you were sleeping with him! You and your sister are both trash!" "Kevin’s a homeless loser who can’t even afford a house, yet you two throw yourselves at him! How pathetic!"

Stephanie’s infatuated expression instantly froze, then turned ice-cold. She shot Leo a venomous glare. "Compared to a bankrupt waste like you, obsessed with nothing but cash, the Captain actually makes me feel safe." "Besides, what era is this? Money means nothing out on this cursed sea." "You’re the one who lost everything now. And keep your eyes off me. I’d hate for the Captain to misunderstand."

The words hit Leo like a physical blow. He coughed violently, blood bubbling at his lips. But beneath the pain, his eyes hardened with finality and murder. "Fine... fine... you bastards... Even if I die, I’m dragging you all to hell with me."

"Don’t think my injuries over the past few days kept me in the dark. As long as humans keep consuming the flesh and blood of Eldritch Entities, their bodies and souls will mutate, granting them supernatural power."

With that, Leo pulled out a glass bottle that once held Holy Spring. Now, it was filled to the brim with a foul-smelling, dark green liquid.

He downed it in one gulp and immediately began convulsing violently.

Watching this, Kevin muttered under his breath, "Crazy bastard."

He immediately called out to Luna and Amelia, "Get back to the helm! That lunatic Leo is about to bring down the house!"

At his warning, the girls immediately bolted toward the twin-masted schooner behind Kevin.

Just then, Nova walked up to him in her heels, sizing him up from head to toe with a playful smirk. "Captain Kevin, you wouldn’t mind taking in another poor, unfortunate soul, would you?"

Right now, Nova was putting her full charm on display. Her curvy figure, bold red lips, porcelain skin, golden hair, and that captivating red dress made her every man’s dream girl.

But Kevin just shot her a quick glance, then tossed her a length of rope. "If you don’t mind being tied up hand and foot, I’ll let you board my helm."

Nova stared at the rope, her eyes widening. Her usual irresistible looks and figure had completely failed to win a shred of sympathy from Kevin.

"You... are you gay? Do I really have zero charm in your eyes?" Nova pouted, thoroughly dissatisfied.

Kevin let out a cold snort.

In his past life, he might’ve been swayed by a beauty like Nova, but after Bella’s betrayal, he’d completely stopped trusting these kinds of tricks.

"Flirting with me is useless. If you want on my ship, it’s absolute obedience, or nothing. If you refuse, I wouldn’t mind leaving you a gun to end it yourself." His expression hardened. "Just a heads-up: within three minutes, worse Eldritch Entities than anything you’ve seen in the last two days will be showing up. Decide fast if you want to live."

Nova took the rope, but her eyes narrowed with suspicion. "Aren’t you leaving?"

Kevin stepped forward, brushing past her, and spoke quietly, "Don’t get in the way. This is going to be my fight alone." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Nova’s breath hitched. She took three steps, then looked back over her shoulder, her eyes fixed on Kevin’s retreating back. A strange emotion stirred in her chest.

This guy’s back... it really is pretty impressive.

[Affection +25]

The system prompt echoed in Kevin’s mind, briefly pausing his combat-ready mindset.

What the hell? Already gaining affinity?

Women... I thought you were supposed to be aloof.

A smirk tugged at his lips. He continued striding toward Leo’s position.

By now, Leo’s body had already begun to swell. His skin erupted in festering sores, reeking of something intensely foul.

Suddenly, a long, crimson tongue lashed out from his maw. It snapped up the Fish Fiend that had been standing over George’s corpse and swallowed it whole.

Kevin’s brow furrowed slightly. "So you’ve mutated into a Frog Monster. A strength-type Grotesque... Makes sense, if your Talent is strength-based."

Muttering to himself, he gripped the Lance of Longinus tighter.

Seeing Kevin close in, Leo’s grotesque face twisted into a monstrous, Eldritch grin. "Kevin, did you really think I wanted to fight you one-on-one looking like this? You’re dead wrong!"

...