"Master Zin! Master Zin—here are the list of—" The guard stopped abruptly when Zin snatched the papers out of his hands without looking at him. With a cold expression, Zin simply walked away.

"...Doesn’t Master Zin seem a little different lately?" one guard whispered.

The other guard made a shut-up-immediately gesture. "Don’t spout nonsense. You’ll get us killed."

Zin was the Vice Master of the Red Dragon Boat— second only to the Red Dragon Master. He handled almost everything that happened inside the enormous floating fortress. Even the elders bowed to him.

He glanced over the list he carried.

A list of incident reports.

It started small: a gambler found unconscious inside a restroom. When he woke up, he claimed he had suddenly "appeared" there from another place.

Then a shop owner.

Then a guard.

Next a supervisor.

Then a worker from the Information Center on the third floor...

One by one, the incidents formed a strange pattern —everyone seemed to have missing memories, strange relocations, and no traces of injuries.

Zin frowned. It looked like a chain reaction, each person connected somehow.

But the purpose? He couldn’t find the reason.

While lost in thought, Zin finished climbing the spiraling staircase and arrived at the third floor— specifically, the chamber right before the Master’s room.

He knocked.

The heavy doors opened with a groan.

A wave of heat rushed out.

Inside, dense red smoke drifted through the air, and a river of molten, blood-red liquid flowed beneath the floor like a hellish undercurrent.

Zin stepped in and immediately knelt.

On a throne made of interlocked dragon scales, a shadowy figure sat motionless.

Then—

Two burning eyes opened.

The Red Dragon Master leaned forward and laughed.

"Hahahahaha... So it was you. I wondered who gave me an ill omen these past few years... and it was you... my dear Mana."

Tears actually welled in the monster’s eyes.

Zin froze, "Master...?"

"Heh... Even a Divine Seeker can’t sense your presence. How did you crawl back from hell? How did you survive?" He spread his arms with a twisted smile. "Did you return just for me? Mana... do you still love me so much?"

The slip of paper in Zin’s hands began to tremble. Violently.

Cracks spread across it—

Shatter.

Zin stumbled backward in shock.

A young woman materialized in front of the throne, wearing a crimson dress that fluttered like flames.

Mana.

But her eyes held pure hatred.

"Long time no see," she said coldly. "We finally meet again... TYLER."

The Red Dragon Master grinned, baring fangs. "It’s been a while... Mana."

Yes.

His name was also Tyler.

┉┈ ◈ ◉ ◈ ┈┉

Somewhere near the mist-covered border of the Nox Pass, Lily gently descended from the sky and landed on the deck of a lone ship drifting between icy waves. She is now in her Temptress Disguise.

The moment her boots touched the wood, she immediately noticed something strange.

None of the crew reacted to her arrival.

They were all moving around mechanically, eyes unfocused, pupils shaped like little pink hearts. Some were scrubbing the deck with blissful smiles, others polishing cannons like they were sacred relics. A few happily hugged mops as if they were cuddling lovers.

"...They’re brainwashed," Lily muttered.

Not possessed. Not under illusion.

Just... deeply, hopelessly smitten.

"In love with her," Lily sighed, already knowing the culprit.

She didn’t walk forward. Instead, she lifted her head.

Up above the mast, Ling Tian hung suspended in the air, wrapped in an Aura Suppression Chain. His body was covered with bruises, and he swung slightly in the cold wind like a miserable piñata.

"So you didn’t kill him," Lily said dryly. "That’s... surprisingly merciful."

She slowly turned her gaze to the right.

There she stood— the woman responsible for half the chaos on the sea.

Her purple hair danced in the cold wind, her tanned skin shimmered under the sun, and her cowboy hat cast a sharp shadow over her sultry smile. Boots, short leather shorts, a tight top —her entire outfit radiated "dangerous seduction."

Manhunter— Isadora Nightkiss.

Lily narrowed her eyes. "Oh my maiden heart... looks like I just found my ex-girlfriend."

Isadora’s face twitched. "Temptress."

Before she could finish, Lily snapped her wrist and summoned her whip. Electrical arcs crackled around the weapon like tiny serpents.

"Come to Mama...!"

She lunged, swinging the electrified whip straight at Isadora’s throat.

But before it could land—

CLANG.

Someone caught the lightning whip.

With their bare hand.

The thunderous arcs crawled up the stranger’s skin, but she didn’t even flinch.

A tall, blonde muscular woman stood between them, her blue eyes glinting like a predator amused with its prey.

"Heh... your real Mommy is here," she smirked. "Name’s Masha."

Isadora placed a hand over her chest dramatically. "Masha, Temptress... both fighting over me... I’m so touched..."

"SHUT UP!!"

Lily and Masha shouted at the same time.

Isadora pouted. "Ehhh? No fun."

Masha stepped forward, cracking her knuckles. "Why are YOU here?"

She swung a full-powered punch at Lily.

Lily leapt into the air instantly— the force alone shattered the section of the deck behind her, splinters exploding outward like fireworks.

Lily rolled midair, landing gracefully on a mast. "You could’ve killed me!"

"You dodged, didn’t you?" Masha grinned.

Lily flicked her whip again, electricity crackling along its length. "I didn’t come here to fight you idiots."

"Says the girl who started the fight," Masha retorted, pulling back her fist for another punch.

But Lily’s expression turned serious.

"My captain met your clone... and told us to join forces with you."

Masha’s fist froze. "Impossible. I didn’t order any of my clones to do that. Especially not to help your captain—the one who killed my brother."

"It wasn’t a normal clone," Lily replied. "It was your future self. According to her, we’re supposed to enter Nox Pass together."

Isadora snickered. "Heh. You just want our Orion Cube Fragment."

"Oh, relax," Lily smirked. "Your future self already gave one to my captain."

Masha’s fist paused mid-swing.

Isadora’s eyes widened ever so slightly.

Even the pink-hearted crew glanced up for a moment, confused.

Lily loosened her grip on the whip.

"That’s why I’m here. Something will happen. And whether you like it or not, the three of us need to talk."

Masha cracked her neck. "You expect us to believe that?"

Lily shrugged. "Believe it or not, it’s reality."

Isadora stepped forward, leaning her chin on Lily’s shoulder. "Well well... looks like destiny is bringing my two beauties together."

"Get off me," Lily said calmly.

Masha punched Isadora in the back of the head. "Don’t flirt during plot discussions!"

"Ow?!"

Lily sighed.

"This is going to be a long day..."

The waves crashed against the hull as three beauties stood on the ship.

Nox Pass... was about to get even more chaotic.

┉┈ ◈ ◉ ◈ ┈┉

At the Same Time — The White Pearl

Tyler, on the deck of the White Pearl, suddenly closed his eyes.

He was trying to sense Mana’s soul connection.

On the other side of the Red Dragon Boat, two random ships were locked in a sea battle. Energy cannons blasted back and forth.

One of the captains suddenly slapped the cannon operator.

"ARE YOU INSANE?!"

The entire crew jumped.

The captain screamed, "I don’t care if you kill that bastard enemy ship—but if even ONE SCRATCH lands on the Red Dragon Boat behind them, WE ARE DEAD! Our entire lineage will be erased! Our SOULS will not survive!"

"Aye Captain!!!!" everyone shouted.

Then—

BOOOOM!!!

A massive explosion erupted from the top floors of the Red Dragon Boat.

The captain’s jaw dropped.

Even the enemy ship stopped firing.

"What... what idiot bombed the Red Dragon Boat...?"

Everyone froze in sheer terror.

---

Back on the White Pearl

Tyler’s eyes snapped open.

"Mana’s connection has been cut," he said with a grim expression. "I can’t sense her at all."

Darla gasped. "Just now, we saw a blast at the top of the Red Dragon Boat..."

Mathilda folded her arms, surprisingly serious.

"That idiot... she’s been caught."

"She underestimated a Loose Immortal’s divine sense," Tyler said. "We can’t wait for Vice Captain Lily. We’re moving with the backup plan."

Tyler glanced at Tuman and Darla.

Both nodded solemnly.

Without hesitation, the White Pearl began retreating.

At the same time, dozens of ships in the area were also fleeing— no one wanted to be anywhere near the Red Dragon Boat when its master was angered.

Rain clouds gathered suddenly above the white Pearl, heavy and unnatural.

Rain poured down violently, forming a dense mist around the White Pearl. It concealed The ship.

Celestial Rain Domain.

The ship sank into the water , more like into its shadow, disappearing into the deep ocean fog.

Hidden.

Untraceable.

But—

Through the mist, after the White Pearl vanished, a single lonely shadow of a shop drifted toward the Red Dragon Boat.

Silent. Steady. Unseen.

Someone... who wasn’t afraid of the Red Dragon Master.

The Phantom Pirates are here.

┉┈ ◈ ◉ ◈ ┈┉

Author here:

Due to some unexpected issues, I wasn’t able to release Threads of Magic and Fate, the story featuring the siblings Dawn and Dusk.

But the new contest theme is Cyberpunk and Supernatural, so I’ll be shifting gears and entering with a story in one of those genres instead.

Stay tuned — something exciting is on the way!