Roseus woke up and immediately frowned. His sleep last night had been poor due to the loud thunderstorm, and from Dawn’s mood that morning, he guessed she felt the same too.

She woke up and washed herself in the public bathroom before returning with her blonde hair matted to her head, gently rubbing lotion onto her scarred eye.

After Roseus cleaned himself up, the crew headed down to the main floor of the tavern and ordered breakfast. It was smoked fish served with hard bread and honeyed ale.

Since the crew was large, they all had to space themselves out across numerous seats. There was no one else in the tavern for breakfast, probably because they had heard that pirates were currently visiting.

As Roseus finished his meal, he noticed the old tavern keeper approaching his table, where he sat with his First Mate and Second Mate. The man treated them nicely since they had paid for all their meals and food without trying to haggle.

"I’ve come with some information that you might want to know," the man said.

Roseus’s brows rose. He had planned on speaking to the man anyway.

"Oh? What is it?"

"I’m not sure how long you’ve been at sea, but your bounties have been posted in The Fresh Bounty Weekly."

The man retrieved a folded piece of paper that had been torn from a magazine and handed it to Roseus. Dawn and Blodwen leaned in to have a read.

What he read made his eyes go wide, and a smile curl onto his lips.

The Fresh Bounty Weekly was a newspaper printed on the main Continent and sent through specific courier ships whose jobs it was to deliver these newspapers to all islands worth travelling to. It highlighted the newest pirates who had just started making a name for themselves, exceeding the standard bounty that was already placed on all pirates’ heads.

Amongst a few other names, Roseus saw his own, alongside a sketch of his face with a small paragraph beneath it.

It read:

Son of Redeye. Captain of a new crew whose name is yet to be known, though it is suspected that he sails with Dawn, daughter of Stellar, and Blodwen, a thought-to-be-retired pirate whose bounty is now sitting at 50,000. Captain Roseus not only fought and escaped from a patrol ship, but he is also believed to be the cause behind the creation of the Mother’s Sea. He has slain Lieutenant Ulysses in battle and is currently located in the Maze Sea.

Bounty: 15,000H

...

Roseus couldn’t believe what he was reading. Just from this newspaper alone, there was so much to take in.

First of all was his bounty. 15,000H was far beyond what he had expected. However, after listing off his feats, the bounty seemed to make sense.

The newspaper knew that he was sailing with Dawn, and even Blodwen. The green-haired man’s bounty itself seemed to have risen to 50,000 as well, likely due to the fact that his existence had been rediscovered.

It also mentioned the Mother’s Sea, which Roseus could only assume was the location where he had summoned Nammon’s wrath. Such a name was fitting, and he wondered whether the mother’s body was still floating there, and what might have happened to his brother.

The death of Lieutenant Ulysses had also been correctly credited to him. This was likely known due to the fact that Roseus had been seen wielding a blade that could create lightning, which was the cause of Ulysses’s death.

Finally, the newspaper currently placed him in the Maze Sea. Although this would likely change with the coming week, it was good to know that they currently had him located in the wrong place. Any adventurers who might be seeking him out to claim his bounty would inevitably end up in the wrong location.

Blodwen smacked Roseus heavily on the shoulder before pushing the mug of ale closer to him. Some of the contents splashed onto the table.

"There you go. You’re a real man now," the man said with a grin on his face. "Now drink."

Dawn couldn’t help but smile too, as well as the others who heard from the nearby tables.

"He’s right, Rose, drink. This is a big moment. Haha, only us pirates would celebrate becoming wanted men and women."

The tavern keeper, who was still standing by the table, watched as Roseus accepted his praises and drank. As he did, the man reached into his pocket and pulled out another folded paper, which he handed to Dawn.

The one-eyed woman looked at him, confused.

"Don’t celebrate yet, lass. You’ll be needing a drink as well."

Realising what the man was hinting at, Dawn hurriedly unfolded the paper and scanned it with her good eye. There she found her face, with a paragraph beneath it.

It read:

Daughter of Stellar. Believed to be the second-in-command of the Redflower Pirates, and the reason behind why the crew was established in the first place. Was present during the Battle of Mother’s Sea. Was responsible for the theft of their current ship, and has a long history with thievery dating back to her childhood.

Bounty: 10,000H

"Well, would you look at that!"

As the others read the paper over Dawn’s shoulder, they all started giving her well-earned praise.

Although she hadn’t done much during their time out at sea, Dawn was being recognised for the work she had put in before they had even set sail. After all, if it wasn’t for her, then the Redflowers would have never existed. She was the person who stepped up when Roseus didn’t feel like he was able to lead.

As they were all celebrating the captain and second-in-command earning reputations for themselves, Roseus used the opportunity to talk to the tavern owner, who still lingered by the table.

"What’s your name?" he asked him. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"Marcuss. Or you can call me Marc."

Roseus nodded his head before getting to the matter at hand. "Marc, have you ever heard of a woman named Zaliah? If so, what can you tell me about her?"

Marc’s brows rose slightly, as though he had just heard the name of a ghost.

"Aye, everyone knows Zaliah. You can find her in the hut on the mountain. I should warn you though, she doesn’t accept visitors."