When Roseus returned to the tavern where the Redflowers were staying, he immediately noticed that there was a lot more commotion than before.

This was because, sitting amongst his crew, he noticed five new figures.

Roseus paused and stood before his mates. It was Silius who rose to his feet. The man still wore his glasses, giving him a distinguished look.

"Captain, I managed to find five people who wish to join the crew. They’ve been waiting here to see if you might be interested in them."

Captain Roseus looked over at the five figures who sat together. There were four men and one woman.

He let out a laugh and slapped Silius’ shoulder proudly.

"Well done," he whispered in the man’s ear before making his way over to the five.

One by one, he had them introduce themselves. Whilst he did, the other members of the crew who were present sat and watched.

By the end of the process, Roseus had accepted them all. This was because Silius was a wise navigator who knew what Roseus was looking for.

These five people were adamant about reaching the Eighth Ocean.

First was Daniel, a tanned young man with three different revolvers strapped around his waist. He was on the short, skinnier side. Having only just recently awakened, he was only a Rookie, with dreams of collecting the most powerful ranged treasures.

Second was Boulder, a brute of a man who had spent a decent amount of time at sea but left his crew after becoming a Salt Blood. He wielded a greatsword on his back that no one but Blodwen would be able to lift. He was a giant, pale-skinned and red from the sun, with a blonde ponytail.

Third was Reinland, a grown man shorter than Pip. He was stocky, with a bald head and a thick ginger beard. He once travelled with a crew but became a solo adventurer after being ridiculed and belittled for his height. He wielded a shotgun, but his main uses came from his abilities as a treasure hunter. He was a Deckhand close to becoming a Salt Blood.

Fourth was Amy, a beautiful woman with light blue hair and freckles. She was on the bustier side, which made most pirates only desire her for her body. This led to her becoming a solo adventurer, but her original goal was to become a pirate who would someday reach the Eighth Ocean, where she had heard a rumour that one could be baptised of the mistakes made in their life.

And fifth was Kailani, the only one with a Patron God. She was young, olive-skinned, and dressed very fashionably. Her black hair was extremely long and wavy, reaching down to her behind. She was only a Rookie, but was at the end of the Follower Rank with her Patron God, Pelea.

Roseus was sceptical about this sea god, but Lencho confirmed that he was familiar with the god, as it was a lesser-known religion worshipped on one of the neighbouring islands, which was where Kailani had originally come from.

These five were the new crewmates of the Redflower Pirates, alongside Lencho and Stanislava.

Roseus did not know them well at all, but he knew that having a personal relationship with every single one of his crewmates would not happen immediately. He had to trust the others to get to know them and keep them in check.

His instincts told him to be cautious. If he could, he would only sail with those who had been with him from the beginning, but he knew that wasn’t an option. Any successful pirate needed a large crew, especially once their ship reached the later tiers.

After this was done, Dawn entered the tavern.

The crew introduced the new mates to her. She paid attention, but her mind seemed to be elsewhere.

She eventually pulled Roseus to the side, and the pair went on a short walk.

The sun had long since set, and they walked through the sandstone roads of RedSand Central Town. Every now and then, carriages pulled by mules and donkeys passed by.

Dawn used this opportunity to fill Roseus in on the pact she had made with the sea god Lunarti.

She had expected to be shouted at, or for Roseus to be angered. Instead, the captain seemed excited.

To him, this was an opportunity for Dawn to get stronger, and the risks were minimal. Especially when compared to the risks he faced when making his pact with the sea gods.

He was alarmed by her inability to sleep, but if she could achieve the same effect through time spent in the Unseen Realm, then it wasn’t much of a problem.

As for that strange realm, he wanted to explore it himself.

He contemplated using the Brush of Creativity to create the Crescente Spear and use it to enter the realm. However, he wasn’t sure whether Rai’zac would be angered by this.

As a priest, he would wait until his temporary pact with Rai’zac was completed before taking such a risk.

...

Afterwards, the pair went over their time spent on the island so far.

At the moment, their biggest focus was to become stronger and also to fill up their crew with the remaining members.

As of now, they had seventeen.

Captain Roseus.

First-Mate Dawn.

Second-Mate Blodwen.

Zaliah the Ceremonialist.

Kruger the Ex-Navy.

Silius the Navigator.

Petyr the Fencer.

Jackson the Pugilist.

Adriana the Shooter.

Pip the Acrobat.

Lencho the Quick.

Stanislava the Navy Healer.

Daniel the Shooter.

Boulder the Brute.

Reinland the Dwarf.

Amy the Beautiful.

Kailani the Flamed.

Just going through the list made Roseus feel slightly overwhelmed, especially considering that this was a smaller crew in comparison to others.

He didn’t even want to think about what it would be like to have fifty crew members, or even a fleet of ships.

At times like that, it was important that the rest of the crew strengthened themselves enough to be put into positions of power.

As well as finding the final three members of the crew so that they could join Admiral Grace’s fleet, they needed to strengthen themselves and find treasures to complete their armouries.

And that was exactly how the following two weeks on RedSand Island passed.