svetikya Chapter 101 Hopefully it's just a coincidence
Chapter 101 Hopefully it's just a coincidence
"What is this?" The sailor had obviously noticed the unusual object as well. He got up and tried to reach out and touch it.
"etc!"
His hand was halfway out when Lorne stopped him.
"Danger!"
The sailor then remembered the most important and fundamental element of his occult course: caution.
He hurriedly took a few steps back, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
……
"What's wrong?"
"Something happened?"
A cacophony of footsteps approached, and a group of sailors rushed over. The deck erupted in commotion.
"Brando, what's going on here?" Danitz rushed over with the crowd, looking flustered.
"Nothing much? Just a bit of bad luck." Lorne shrugged.
Upon hearing the word "bad luck," Danitz frowned and instinctively took two steps back.
"Boss, it's like this..." The sailor who had been there earlier came to Danitz and told him about what had just happened.
"What?!"
The loud voice drew everyone's attention.
"Cough cough..."
Danitz quickly lowered his voice and whispered to the sailor:
"You wanted to mess with Brando, why didn't you tell me beforehand...?"
"Don't you know I'm the one who brought him aboard?"
Lorne's words in the storage room had already intimidated him. If the other party found out about this, they might hold him responsible.
Upon hearing this, the sailor stammered, "Boss, I was just annoyed by his arrogance..."
"Could it be that you and him really are...?"
Before he could finish speaking, Danitz gave him a sharp rap on the head.
"Bullshit!"
"How could I have a subordinate like you?"
Lorne glanced at the two men, ignoring their whispers, his interest in the object before him mirroring that of everyone else around him.
After a moment's thought, he spoke softly:
"I think it would be better to call your captain over to handle this situation."
……
Not long after, "Iceberg Admiral" Edwina also received the news and rushed over.
She first dispersed the sailors who had gathered to watch, and sent them back to their posts.
She then approached the object that resembled a key and examined it for a while.
A moment later, a pale blue light emanated from her hand and enveloped the surface of the key.
"There's no danger, and it's very old..." she murmured to herself.
"The ability to identify..." Lorne guessed, having witnessed everything from a short distance away.
……
Shortly after, Edwina sought out Lorne alone to understand what had happened. Lorne recounted the entire incident to her.
"That was indeed a key, and a very old one."
"But its origins still need to be studied."
Edwina analyzed, "Judging from the items in the fishing net, it's very likely that they accidentally salvaged some shipwreck wreckage."
"Shipwrecks..." Lorne asked, "Shipwrecks should be on the seabed, right? They shouldn't be caught in fishing nets at that depth."
"You're right." Edwina nodded slightly.
"The likelihood of this is low, but not entirely impossible," she explained. "Changes in seabed topography or ocean currents could cause this."
In the absence of further clues, this is the most reasonable speculation.
At this point, she looked at Lorne and smiled slightly, "You're really lucky."
Lucky... A bitter taste rose in Lorne's mouth. If he were truly lucky, he wouldn't have encountered this situation, almost getting tangled in a fishing net and dragged into the sea...
Edwina snapped out of her academic study and looked at Lorne, asking:
"What are your thoughts on who owns that key?"
So they asked for my opinion because I was the one who fished it out? That's quite democratic...
In fact, Lorne had no particular interest in the key; it was an accidental find.
Even if that key might really be related to some treasure, he has no money, no people, and no equipment, so he has no way to explore it. In his hands, this thing is of almost no use in the short term except to attract the covetousness of others.
Besides, it's not really appropriate for him to make any troublesome requests on someone else's turf.
After thinking for a moment, he spoke:
"It's best if you keep that key, Captain. If you find any results from the research, please let me know."
"If you're going to sell it, just give me a share." He paused, then added, "Danitz can hold the money for now."
Edwina didn't say much about it and readily agreed to Lorne's request.
When she offered to sign a contract, Lorne refused.
He expressed his trust in Edwina's character and said there was no need to do anything unnecessary.
Actually, more than the potential economic benefits of the key, Lorne valued Edwina's favor. The favor of a knowledgeable pirate general was priceless.
This is a win-win deal.
For Edwina, the unexpected acquisition of an ancient artifact of great research value will greatly satisfy her thirst for knowledge.
For Lorne, exchanging a pleasant surprise for Edwina's favor was a worthwhile move.
……
It is certain that on a closed pirate ship, rumors spread much faster than one might imagine.
In less than an afternoon, news of the sunken treasure had spread throughout the entire ship.
Many sailors even planned to jump into the sea, fearing they might miss the treasure.
However, this dangerous behavior was explicitly forbidden by Edwina.
Due to a lack of preparation, they only noted down the coordinates and planned to return later for further exploration once they were fully prepared.
……
In the evening, after finishing half a day of studying, Lorne went to the pirate canteen to enjoy dinner.
Because of the treasure, some of the crew members' hostility towards him lessened a bit.
Some people even approached him for drinks, wanting to inquire about the key.
Of course, before he could even take a few sips of the wine, the person who had been urging him to drink was chased away by Danitz, who had arrived at the scene.
Clearly, Danitz knew the phrase "slip of the tongue when drunk." He had drunk with Lorne before and knew that Lorne's alcohol tolerance wasn't high. If he accidentally got drunk and said something he shouldn't have, it would be troublesome.
"Don't worry, extraordinary beings don't get drunk that easily." Lorne picked up his glass and took another swig of wine.
"You asked me to cover for you, but you ended up making a huge mess yourself," Danitz muttered.
"This wasn't an accident..."
"Do you have a problem with me?!"
"No, I wouldn't dare!" Danitz replied instinctively.
"By the way, Captain, you worship the god of knowledge and wisdom, right?" Lorne asked casually.
"Yeah, what's wrong?"
"Nothing much, I just wanted to learn more about the captain," Lorne casually made up a reason.
"Hey! You don't really want to pursue..." Danitz panicked a little when he heard Lorne's words.
Although he had questioned Lorne before, and Lorne had given him some nonsensical replies, he simply took it as Lorne's wicked humor.
But now he was actually hearing such meaningful words from Lorne.
Wait a minute... he asked me to cover for him, could it really be for the captain's sake...?
Danitz became somewhat anxious upon realizing that he might become the other side's wingman.
He mustered his courage and spoke:
"Bullshit! You can't..."
"Uh... what did you say?" Lorne was somewhat displeased that Danitz had interrupted his thoughts, and looked at Danitz with cold eyes.
"No...it's nothing." Danitz lowered his head, his earlier burst of courage instantly vanishing.
As Lorne gradually calmed down, he was thinking about something else: everything that had happened today was somewhat coincidental.
This wasn't because he was overthinking things, but rather because reality forced him to be cautious.
He had previously speculated that Edwina had some official background, and judging from his observations over the past few days, perhaps being a pirate is just her side job.
"The black gloves of the god of knowledge and wisdom... Could it be..."
This world is full of gods!
Hopefully it's just a coincidence.