"Where are we going?" Aldred asked, curios of what was going on.
"It's better if I show you first," Rurcam replied as he walked through the cramped, dark, underground hallway.
The guards noticed the Duke and straightened their shoulders before saluting.
"Open the door."
The guard grabbed his keys and inserted one of them into the keyhole. He twisted it to the left.
Click!
The soldier then pulled the steel door as it creaked.
They entered the steel door, but there was nothing except another dark tunnel. Torches dimly lit it which was weird because people mostly use mana gem which was a byproduct of a common mana crystal. It was a cheap product for lighting, and couldn't be used to increase power.
After walking for a few minutes, they arrived at a room with a steel cage filled with pirates.
"These are the pirates that my men captured after you defeated them. Sorry about the cramped tunnel, that is intentional so it's hard for the prisoners to escape."
"They're lucky they didn't get eaten by sea monsters."
"Some of them managed to stay safe, but the majority of them died. If my men weren't quick enough, there would be nobody left."
"So, why do you bring me here?"
Rurcam did not say anything and walked towards a cell. Unlike the other cell, this one only had one person.
"Dobbs, introduce yourself."
Aldred raised an eyebrow. Wondering what this was all about.
Dobbs was sleeping on the floor, his back facing them. Then he opened his eyes and turned around. He pointed at Aldred. "Are you the one who damaged the Red Devil Skull?"
"That is correct."
Dobbs stood up, revealing his tall and muscular body. He was like a giant, and when he held the steel cage, it felt like he could rip it anytime he wanted.
"You're younger than I expected you to be."
"Do you have any business with me?"
"I was, but not anymore."
"What do you mean by that?"
"You're just a kid. What can you give me?"
"It should be me who asks that question. Who the hell are you? And what can you give me?"
Dobbs was silent for a while before he spoke: "I am the blacksmith you are looking for."
"I can find another blacksmith better than you."
"I alone fixed two motherships in less than a month, modified them to be stronger, and even reinforced the materials for the Red Devil Skull. I don't believe you can find someone like me."
"Is that true?" Aldred asked the Duke.
"My magician cast a spell on him. He does not lie."
"These lips only speak the truth, boy."
"Okay, you're valuable. How can I make you join me?"
Dobbs let out a heavy chuckle. "Let me do anything to your mothership without you bickering out a single complaint."
"That's absurd."
"Nothing irks me more than a layman, who knows nothing about my job, telling me how to do things."
Aldred frowned. If he accepted this guy, he would take risks, but judging how confident this man looked, he seemed to have a real skill.
To make sure, Aldred activated his godly eyes. That was when he saw divine energy moving around his body. Dobbs had a Gold Rank power, but this divine energy was something else. It went up to Diamond, and even beyond that.
But what was this power for?
[Divine Craftsman]
Aldred's eyes widened. He had never seen a skill, title, or status effect with the word divine before. At most, Mira was the only one who got 'holy' in her spell, but that was all.
Without no more doubt, Aldred said: "Welcome aboard. You're in the team now."
"So you will let me do whatever I want to your mothership?"
"Yeah sure."
"You sure you're not going to regret it?"
"Nope."
"Are you really sure?"
"One hundred percent."
Dobbs raised an eyebrow. "This is easier than I expected. You sure you don't want to debate with me more?"
"No need. You can do whatever you want."
Dobbs laughed. "The Duke next to you wouldn't even dare to consider that, but you're something else, boy. Fine, I will join your fleet. Your lousy fleet will be better with me working on them."
The people there could only smite bitterly. That 'lousy fleet' literally defeated the Red Skull pirate.
Aldred was happy that Dobbs accepted.
"I figure you will continue your journey after this?" Rurcam asked.
"Yes, after you give me the rewards."
"What was the reward?" Dobbs asked.
"Seventy warships, and a mothership."
"Hmmm. Just give me the materials. I will be the one who builds the ships. And I will need to destroy your mothership to modify them."
"Okay."
Dobbs was confused again. Anyone would be shocked to hear that their mothership would be destroyed because they prized it too much.
"Okay. I will begin my work as soon as possible." He pushed away the steel bars and walked out.
"Let's go."
And for the next few weeks, Dobbs was building the ships by himself. He didn't let anyone help him except the golems to move tools and supplies from place to place.
"Don't you need a shipbuilder to design the ship?"
"I can design a ship while I take a shit. Those guys can take weeks to draw a simple line on the blueprint!"
And with that, he worked in the shipyard by himself. The workers were sent home, but most of them chose to watch the man make a fool of himself.
He didn't make a fool of himself, however. Instead, Dobbs impressed them with his skill and efficiency.
Dobbs finished the ships at a record speed that any shipbuilder wouldn't dare to imagine. Even when they saw the process from day one, they still questioned how it was possible to build a ship in such a short amount of time. Not to mention the quality was far better than what they could build.
If it kept going this way, Aldred's fleet would be sailing again in no time.
Note: sorry guys, the upload timer mess up the update and it uploaded chapter 294 first before 293. I did not realize it happened until midnight. I cannot trust these timers anymore. It usually worked well, and I can trust them, but it mess up a couple of times before and this is the final fuse lol. I am done using this timer which mean I have to manually upload the chapter at 12:00.
Anyway, hope you guys like the chapter and please support the story with power stones if you do. I apologize again for this mistake. I will do my best to prevent it from happening again. And because of this stupid mistake, I have to add 100 extra word into this chapter sigh... I will make up for it with extra chapters in the near future when I am not busy. College just started so time is getting packed.
Ignore the message after this one. I have to add word count just to fix chapter list. I will make it up tho.
Ignore the message after this one. I have to add word count just to fix chapter list. I will make it up tho.
Ignore the message after this one. I have to add word count just to fix chapter list. I will make it up tho.
Sorry again, will upload extra chapter for you guys when I have the time. Hopefully I do lol.
