I reign supreme in the Western fantasy world for eternity.

Ji Tian stopped in front of the parchment, his gaze sweeping over the scribbled handwriting on the paper before shifting away after a moment, turning and walking toward the bar as if he were just an ordinary adventurer casually browsing a notice board.

As soon as he sat down, a burly, red-faced man next to him, who was chugging beer, turned his head and glanced at him.

"You look unfamiliar. Are you new to Baiou Port?"

Ji Tian was dressed in light, dark clothing, with a seemingly ordinary sword at his waist. It was clear at a glance that he was a novice adventurer who had heard stories of heroes since childhood and had a natural yearning for swords.

"Yes, I just got off the ship."

"Here to make a living?"

"Pretty much, I'm looking for a job."

Ji Tian casually gestured towards the notice board.

"There's a job posting over there for boatmen, the destination is unknown, pay is negotiable, and there's no signature. Is this kind of work reliable?"

The other people at the table exchanged glances, and then someone laughed.

The burly man put down his wine glass, a grin spreading across his face. "You're asking about that one? That's Old Hei's information."

Ji Tian knew how to handle things. He bought drinks at the bar and shared them with the people around him before asking:

"Who is Lao Hei?"

The burly man laughed as he accepted the beer Ji Tian offered, took a swig, and then began to explain:

"A middleman who specializes in introducing people to ship owners who don't want to go through the formal channels. The jobs are usually long voyages, off-the-beaten-path routes, and cargo that's inconvenient to declare through customs."

Ji Tian then gave a knowing look.

"Isn't that smuggling?"

"Why put it so harshly? This is called 'free trade.' Anyway, the money is right, and no one checks your background. It's a pretty good option for someone who's just arrived at the port and has no connections. But... it's probably not your turn now."

"Why? It's still hanging up, how come it's late?"

Another adventurer who also accepted the wine glass explained:

"Because those people we hired are probably no longer needed. Do you know 'Anchor' Valencia?"

Ji Tian remembered that Captain Evelyn of the Sea Sparrow had introduced this Sea Lord at sea, and knew that he was a military officer who often robbed the rich to help the poor.

"Is this the same sea lord who stole the pirates' loot and distributed it to the fishermen and poor people along the coast?"

Another slightly older, bearded adventurer chimed in:

"That's right, it's him. As soon as Valen showed up, they fled to distant islands like they'd seen a ghost. Most of the pirates in this area have already left. Why would those guys need to hire shipwrights?"

Ji Tian inquired about the recent events in Baiou Port and learned that apart from the assassination of William's second son, nothing major had happened.

Ji Tian noticed that when the topic of the Second Young Master's assassination was brought up, some eyes were subtly cast his way.

Just as he stood up to take his leave, the burly man called out to him again, "Hey, young man, if you really want to try your luck at sea, you could go and take a look at those islands to the north."

Why?

"It's said that Warren recently appeared near those islands to the south, scaring away the pirates in the area and making those empty shipping lanes safer."

Ji Tian came from the southern islands, but he never expected that he would not encounter any pirates on his way back, thanks to Valen.

He thanked them and then headed to a nearby tavern to try his luck.

Surprisingly, the taverns here were rather deserted; I visited several but didn't get any useful information.

Ji Tian saw many people inquiring about whether there were any skilled lightning magic users at sea recently, and he knew without a doubt that it was the work of the William family.

Could it be that the pirates who used to drink here have been scared away, while adventurers usually drink at the Adventurers' Guild?

Ji Tian then began to head towards the direction where the Haique was docked at the port.

Most of the elves on the Seagull, except for the captain, went to buy supplies, while the head chef, Elena, and others remained on the ship to cook.

When we returned to the dock, a light was on on the deck of the Sea Sparrow.

Lilith was squatting by the ship's side, scaling fish with a knife in her hand. There were already seven or eight shimmering silver fish piled up in the wooden basin next to her.

"Master, what do you think is the most delicious fish in the world?" she asked without looking up when she heard footsteps.

"Live fish."

"Nonsense! I'm talking about the variety!"

"What you like is the best."

When it comes to food alone, Ji Tian is quite confident in Lilith's taste.

Lilith thought about it for a while and found it made a lot of sense, so she stopped asking and continued scraping the scales.

Ji Tian entered the cabin and saw Elena and Ophelia preparing dinner together. Upon seeing him return, Elena put down her spoon, approached him, and softly asked:

"Honey, have you discovered anything?"

"Most of the deals for the new artillery were made through intermediaries and shipwrights, and the recent appearance of 'Anchor' Warren has brought their operations to a standstill."

Elena wiped her hands, untied her apron, and thought seriously for a moment. "Valen? I heard people mention him at the docks today."

"He has a good reputation in this area, and the fishermen support him and are willing to provide him with clues about pirates. With him nearby, those ships that secretly transport weapons will temporarily go out of the way."

"So how do we investigate?"

"We will still investigate, just in a different way."

Ji Tian sat down at the low table in the center of the cabin and briefly reviewed what he had seen and heard at the tavern and the Adventurers' Guild that evening, arriving at a clear conclusion:

On the surface, White Gull Harbor appears calm, but the William family's influence has permeated every aspect of life.

"I gathered a lot of information from the Adventurers' Guild, but it was all just gossip, with very few details that were actually useful. Who is the middleman 'Old Black'? Who's behind him? What exactly is the transport route for those cannons? Nobody knows for sure."

Elena sat down opposite him, holding a cup of hot water in both hands: "So?"

"So I've decided to change my approach and stop hiding. Tomorrow morning, I'll officially enter the port as a hero."

Lilith poked her head in from the side of the ship, holding several scaled fish in her hand.

"Master, didn't you say to inquire discreetly first? Why are you being so high-profile now?"

"That was just a preliminary assessment, and that's all done. Now I'm going to appear as the hero and see whose expression changes."

"Oh, I see. So the big investigation is finally about to begin?"

Ophelia was putting fish pieces into the pot when she heard this. She relaxed and tensed up, not even looking up, and said:

"I can use divination to see which line will reveal their weakness."

"No rush, let's talk about it after I make my appearance tomorrow. Besides, if I can meet the William family, it'll be a good opportunity to find out more about them."

Lilith thought for a moment, then placed the scraped fish into the wooden basin:

"Should I change my clothes tomorrow too? I don't look like I belong in the Hero Squad right now... Second Senior Sister, could you lend me a cloak?"

Ophelia took out a dark gray cloak from her storage ring and handed it to Lilith. Lilith took it, held it up to her eyes, and nodded in satisfaction.

"So the cloak Master gave me was from my second senior sister... Shall we still travel together tomorrow?"

"Okay, let's go together."