Chapter 394 - 157. Popularity

Chapter 394: 157. PopularityUpon hearing Fisher’s familiar voice, Alagina, who was above, took a step forward and, to the surprise of everyone below, jumped down from her own ship.

In mid-air, her movements were light and graceful, with one hand holding her captain’s hat, and then she gently landed on Fisher’s wooden boat.

"It’s been a long time, Fisher... put on some clothes first."

Alagina decisively took off her captain’s coat and handed it to Fisher. As she removed the not-so-tight black clothing, Alagina’s feminine curves were finally outlined by the white garment underneath. Her earlobes turned red as she handed the clothing to the bewildered Fisher and then stepped back to assess the people behind him.

Fisher looked at the clothing in his hands with some speechlessness. Although the attire from Sardinia Female Country was very different from normal women’s clothing, it was still Alagina’s. It would probably be inappropriate for him to wear it,

"Maybe I shouldn’t?"

Alagina was still her usual self, with a blank expression on her face. After thoroughly examining the bare-chested man in front of her, she slowly shifted her gaze away and started to explain to Fisher,

"You just need to drape it over yourself to cover up. I just used a relic, so I’m quite cold and also..."

At this point, she glanced at her own ship, from which the footsteps of many of her crew could vaguely be heard,

"My crew has not seen a man for a long time. If they see you like this, it won’t be good for our voyage to come. I’m thinking of your reputation... and also, I don’t want others to see you like this..."

It’d been a while since they’d seen each other, and Fisher actually didn’t feel that strange around Alagina, which often made one forget she came from a country of female worship, where at heart, she liked to take care of men.

Fisher glanced at her height, taller than his own, and without being obstinate, unceremoniously put on the captain’s attire.

Afterwards, they would need to hitch a ride on Alagina’s following wind ship, and indeed all the crew on her ship were the robust women of Sardinia Female Country, so for safety’s sake, Fisher decided to follow Alagina’s suggestion.

"Thank you."

"...No need."

Watching Fisher clothe himself in her garb, Alagina’s Iceberg Queen-like face softened slightly, and the corners of her mouth curved upwards just a touch.

That slight curvature might not have been easily noticeable to the average person, but it was so obvious on Alagina’s face, attracting attention like a rainbow after the rain.

The few behind Fisher clearly saw this scene too. Isabella was still dazed, but for some reason, she and Old Jack subconsciously turned to look back at Moli, who was still soaking in the water.

Moli’s mouth was slightly open in the water, the black in her eyes swirling up again, but, like Alagina, her face showed no expression.

Ah...

Fisher really is quite popular, isn’t he? Just stepping out and bumping into another woman he has a good relationship with, how wonderful...

Haha...

"Captain! What happened? Why did you disembark? Who is that person?"

Just then, the head of a slightly overweight woman appeared from the ship, looking up it was indeed the portly Chief Officer whom Fisher had met twice before.

The Chief Officer, with a stick in her mouth, initially worried for Alagina. The moment she saw Fisher in front of Alagina, still clad in her clothing, her expression turned into one of understanding.

The next second, the Chief Officer pursed her lips, then turned back to the crew and said,

"Throw down the iron chains, get the Captain and her sweetheart on board..."

"Ah? Oh oh, it’s that man from Saint Nali, huh? This is truly like a Frost Phoenix blessing... Heh, you think of something, and it appears..."

Unclear chatter from above kept drifting down, and Alagina on the side seemed a bit unsettled upon hearing it.

She stole a glance at Fisher behind her, who had by then walked to the stern and pulled up Moli, who for some reason was still stiff in the cold water. Seeing that he paid no mind to what her crew was saying, she slowly let out a sigh of relief.

She should have known better than to drink on the ship and tell all her crew about Fisher; those blabbermouthed, rough women made Alagina somewhat reluctant to invite Fisher aboard for fear they might gossip.

The women from Sardinian Woman Country were very passionate about love and marriage, and those who spent long times at sea were even more so, wishing they could marry a man tomorrow.

With that in mind, the slightly uneasy Alagina changed the subject and brought up the affair in the storm earlier,

"...We saw a small boat shaking in the storm, so we thought of lending a hand. I didn’t expect to run into you... How did you all end up... drifting at sea like this?"

"That’s a bit complicated to explain, but just assume I am like you; I’ll probably be a high bounty target by Nali soon enough."

"A bounty target, huh..."

Fisher explained this way, and Alagina did not ask him what he had done right now, but merely nodded blandly. Yet, beneath that bland expression, a beautiful vision of "fugitive lovebirds" had already started to emerge.

"It’s okay, our ship can’t be caught by the Nali Official..."

Fisher smiled ambiguously, but looking at the massive "Iceberg Queen" before him, he still harbored some doubts, wondering why they were here.

Because the ship’s characteristics were too conspicuous, even though this area was close to Schwali merchant ship routes, without a sense of maritime rights at the moment, this area was actually still within the Nali Military’s patrol routes. If she were discovered, it would still be very dangerous.

"What about you, why are you rushing towards Saint Nali? I thought that since you stopped cooperating with Nali, you’d develop elsewhere in other oceans..."

"That’s right, we haven’t been back to the Southern Ocean for a while, and the Northern Ocean has become somewhat dangerous because of Schwali’s issues. But there’s more than one pirate ship after all, and where there are more people, there’s always a way... As for why we came this way..."

"Today, I just found out that there seems to be serious unrest in Saint Nali, and even the Golden Palace is having trouble... Just so happens we had business nearby the Southern Ocean, so we wanted to come over... to see about your safety."

Towards the end, Alagina seemed to feel some embarrassment, so even the volume of her voice lowered a bit.

"Shush!"

While they were talking, a sharp whistle suddenly erupted on the ship, interrupting their conversation. Many crew members leaned against the railings above, looking down at the Captain below, each one a tall woman with peculiar appearances and attire, displaying their hearty smiles as if watching a show.

However, once Alagina turned around with an icy look, the quick-witted Chief Officer hurriedly nudged the person beside her to get back to work,

"Go on, go! What’s the spectacle? If you’re capable, go and find one to marry yourself..."

"Hey, we’re still at sea..."

"At your command, at your command."

As the crew members above dispersed from their spectacle-watching, dark chains were thrown down. Alagina grabbed a chain first, and then was hoisted up onto the massive vessel before her.

Old Jack, with three small Mouse-men in his arms, glanced up at the vast vessel above, and then turned to Fisher beside him,

"People from Sardinian Woman Country, or pirates...could it be..."

"Yes, she’s the Iceberg Queen, Alagina."

"...You have quite good connections."

Old Jack was so startled he struggled to speak, managing to squeeze out only this simple observation.

Normally, he knew only that Fisher Benavides was a Magic scholar, a classmate of his son, and like his son, had an extraordinary interest in demi-humans. But he hadn’t expected that he would also know someone like Alagina...

However, if Alagina was a friend of Fisher’s, then it likely meant that they were secure, and wouldn’t be slaughtered mid-journey.

Considering this, even Old Jack would probably believe if you told him now that Fisher was being hunted by Princess Elizabeth and had fled Saint Nali...

"Yeah...really good connections..."

But at Isabella’s side, Moli was murmuring something inaudible, and by the time Isabella looked over curiously, Moli’s expression had returned to normal.

Old Jack, shouldering a double-barreled shotgun, glanced at the frozen storm around him, quickly donning his bartender’s uniform, understanding the customs of the people from Sardinia and deciding it was better to be on the cautious side.

By the way, he tossed over the Book Knight, who might have fainted from being soaked in the water, to Fisher. Taking custody of the Book Knight, Old Jack then grabbed the chain before him, hauling the curiously filled Mouse Lady with him.

"Click, click..."

As he firmly gripped the chain, the next second, Old Jack too was pulled up by the chain onto the deck of the Iceberg Queen, with Fisher and the others following suit up the chain.

The small wooden boat below seemed to sense that Fisher and his party had left, and like a breeze on its own, it slowly drifted back the way it had come.

Hauled up by the black chains, Fisher reached the deck of the Iceberg Queen in just a few seconds, surprisingly finding that the pirate ship, shunned by all nations, was cleaner than he expected.

Many crew members sat on the stairs next to the deck, curiously huddled together to scrutinize the man who had boarded the ship, with many sailors rushing below deck after their inspection, presumably to notify one of their good sisters.

"I’m glad to see you again, Mr. Fisher. I forgot to introduce myself back in Saint Nali..."

As Fisher and his group were examining the legendary Iceberg Queen, a chubby, short-arm suddenly reached out beside them. Turning to look, the plump Chief Officer beside Alagina said with a smile,

"My name is Pahetz, the Chief Officer of the Iceberg Queen."

"Welcome aboard!"