Exploring Technology in a Wizard World
Chapter 427 - 426 Rebellion on the Ship

Chapter 427: Chapter 426 Rebellion on the Ship

Richard was deep in thought when a sailor on deck was completely surprised and confused, genuinely not expecting Jack to suddenly jump into the sea.

"What should we do? Should we tell the Captain that Jack has disappeared into the sea, or should we hide it..." a sailor asked his companion, but before he could finish, he saw his mate looking at him with an expression of unbearable pity.

"What?" the sailor voiced his confusion. The next moment, he became aware of a figure approaching from behind. With a "bang," he felt a solid kick on his rear, sending him flying forward to land face down on the deck.

Struggling to stand up, the sailor turned to look at the person who had kicked him. His eyes instantly widened, and with a tremor in his voice, he said, "Cap... Captain!"

The newcomer was none other than Captain Morgan.

At that moment, Captain Morgan was as cold as frost, he spoke irritably to the sailor, "I asked you to bring down that useless Jack from the mast, not throw him into the water. Look at this fine mess you’ve made!"

"No, no," the kicked sailor hurried to explain, before Captain Morgan’s whip could strike, "Captain, it wasn’t like that. Jack jumped into the water himself. Really, he went mad just like Barth before him, spouting crazy talk about hearing God’s voice."

Captain Morgan raised an eyebrow skeptically looking at the other sailors.

Afraid of being punished, the rest of the sailors quickly agreed, "Captain, what he’s saying is true. Jack... he really seemed mad, babbling a bunch of nonsense to us. We hadn’t even realised what was happening before he just jumped into the sea himself. We couldn’t find him, so... we didn’t know how to save him."

After listening, Captain Morgan’s eyebrows twitched, then relaxed, and after a moment, he spoke, "Well then... let’s just pretend that Jack never existed on this ship. The rest of you, get back to where you came from and get to work. Don’t spread any rumors, or else... hmph, next time I’ll have you hanging from the mast to feel the sea breeze!"

"Yes, yes, we won’t talk nonsense, we definitely won’t," the sailors left quickly, quaking with fear.

Captain Morgan glanced over at Richard, but without paying much attention, he turned and walked away.

On the entire deck, only Richard was left.

Richard looked around at the beautiful sunset surroundings and then at the sea, muttering to himself, "I can’t quite understand it. Is it really just for creating an atmosphere of terror? It can’t be that simple..."

After a long while, Richard shook his head and walked back to his cabin, entering Eden.

...

In Richard’s view, the matter of someone jumping into the sea certainly had its doubts, but since Jack had already jumped, he considered it a closed Chapter. What he didn’t expect was that this... was merely the beginning.

The next morning, as soon as he finished his studies in Eden and stepped out of his cabin, he heard a loud commotion outside.

"Hm? What’s going on?"

Richard’s eyes flickered, and with a "creak," he pushed open his cabin door and stepped out to see the lower deck corridor filled with passengers from the Naru Glory Fisherman, all discussing something, their faces bearing looks of unease and astonishment.

"What happened?" Richard asked.

A man with triangular eyes in blue looked over, "What, you don’t know what’s happened?"

"No."

"Well, if you’re brave enough, go up to the deck and see for yourself. You’ll understand once you see it."

"This..." Richard’s eyes flashed, and without much thought, he headed to the upper deck. Eventually, he made his way through the various cabins to the deck.

There, at the deck’s entrance, a considerable number of passengers were gathered, each one looking slightly nervous.

Following their gazes, Richard looked towards the other end of the deck and was slightly shocked.

The first thing that was visible was the efficient and imposing Captain Morgan, surprisingly bound and laid out on the deck. Beside the captain, the First Officer, Second Officer, Third Officer, and Sailor were also tied up in succession—these were the captain’s confidants, members of the ruling class aboard the ship, now turned prisoners.

Standing behind these men, holding a Sailor’s Knife, was a figure drenched from head to toe, as if he had just been fished out of the water. Who else could it be but Jack, the very one who had jumped into the sea earlier?!

At this moment, Jack’s expression was wickedly twisted, and he was surrounded by a number of sailors who showed not hostility but deference, hinting at his control over the entire situation aboard the "Naru Glory Fisherman."

This was a mutiny, a successful mutiny!

Richard had asked a few questions of the passengers around him and quickly pieced together the scene he had missed upon entering Eden.

First off, the merchant vessel "Naru Glory Fisherman" did not sail twenty-four hours a day. Since visibility was poor at night, posing a danger, the ship generally stopped in the evening and did not resume its voyage until the next morning.

So, shortly after Jack had jumped into the water the day before, the "Naru Glory Fisherman" came to halt for rest.

Everything appeared normal, but unexpectedly, as they prepared to set sail again this morning, chaos erupted. Jack, who had jumped overboard, climbed up the deck along the anchor and, for reasons unknown, was quickly able to rile up a large number of sailors—who had long harbored dissatisfaction under Captain Morgan’s oppressive rule. Before Captain Morgan could even react, Jack had seized control of the "Naru Glory Fisherman," resulting in the current predicament.

"So, that’s how it is..." After listening to the narrative, Richard nodded and muttered to himself, "This... is rather interesting. Is it an attempt to replay the Lu Rong Fishery 2682 incident using a different approach on modern Earth? An oppressive captain, rebellious sailors... but then again, this must all be part of the Divination Woman’s subsequent tactics, huh? What will she do next?"

Richard continued to watch without showing any emotion.

Upon restraining Captain Morgan, Jack did not lay a hand on the captain or most of the people.

The only one he chose to make an example of was the unfortunate Sailor—red-haired Paul.

After all, Paul had initially resorted to violence, indirectly causing the death of his good friend—the chef Barth. Later, he had Paul strung up on the mast, and although he had followed Captain Morgan’s orders, the hatred was etched deeply in his heart. So, he had to be killed!

He had to be killed!

...

At the other end of the deck.

"Pfft!"

The gleaming knife plunged precisely into Sailor Paul’s chest from behind, then was pulled out!

"Ah!"

Paul screamed miserably, convulsing as he collapsed onto the deck, his facial muscles contorting grotesquely. His eyes bulged as he writhed like a maggot on the board, in undeniable agony. Blood "sputtered" from the wound, flowing outwards, and in a few moments, his complexion turned ashen, and he lay motionless.

Watching Paul die, Jack bore a slightly smug expression, then, waving the blood-stained knife, he pointed at the bound Captain Morgan and addressed the rebellious sailors, "Lock them up for now."

"Eh, yes."

"And you lot!" Jack, with knife in hand, turned to the gathered passengers, who quickly scurried below deck to the cabins in fright.

Jack sneered, "You have nothing to fear! I’ll tell you, though Morgan no longer calls the shots on this ship, I’m not going to cause trouble haphazardly. As long as you don’t make a fuss, I’ll ensure you’re safely delivered to where you want to go! Understand?"

"Y-yes," the passengers quickly nodded.

"That’s good," Jack said.

...