The *Blade of Vowed Revenge* was a crew built around the core of adventurers.
Perhaps the captain had other motives when first forming the team; the name "Blade of Vowed Revenge" suggested as much to some extent.
But under normal circumstances, they were fundamentally no different from the adventurer fleets in Barracuda Bay. Their cycle was "accept commission—collect reward—rest—accept commission again," sustaining the entire crew's operations through mission bounties.
Even though the members didn't seem like bad people to Xia Nan—each with their own distinct personality—and their performance during the storm had proven their reliability in combat.
However, if one were to divide them strictly by alignment, the *Blade of Vowed Revenge* as a whole would likely fall somewhere between "Lawful Evil" and "Chaotic Neutral."
Driven by self-interest, they appeared free on the surface, but in reality, they practiced their own recognized code of conduct through the structure of the team.
Lorraine had seen too many Sahuagin and was well aware of their habits, harboring a natural distaste for them. As for the fishermen on Rabbit Island, she had interacted with them before and had some acquaintance with their village chief, but it was far from being a friendship.
With this as a premise, facing the current situation where the fishmen had slaughtered an entire fishing village, she obviously could not rashly act—dragging herself and her teammates into danger—simply because of some inexplicable urge to avenge fishermen she had barely met. Furthermore, the values she had developed from spending long periods traversing the oceans were not those of a human supremacist who viewed other species as innate enemies; she would not be driven to rage simply because humans of her own race were killed by monsters.
She simply considered the current situation from the perspective of herself, her teammates, and the entire fleet behind her.
First and foremost, of course, was the threat level of these fishmen.
There were thirty-six in total. The vast majority were ordinary fishmen with a Challenge Rating (CR) of "0.5." However, the six Sahuagin currently kneeling at the front of the altar each possessed two pairs of arms and were noticeably more robust. Their equipment and armor looked less crude, clearly marking them as elite entities with an estimated CR of "lv2," "lv3," or even higher.
And the Sahuagin priest, clutching a strange conch in its webbed paw, further elevated the overall strength of the group by another tier.
This made things very delicate.
It was true that Lorraine was a lv7 professional, but professional level and Challenge Rating were entirely different concepts. A monster in peak condition typically required four professionals of the same level with proper role composition and a certain degree of synergy to be dealt with reliably.
Thirty-six fishmen might be within Lorraine's capacity to handle, but when considering the presence of a spellcaster and their location on a beach adjacent to the ocean, the actual combat scenario became ambiguous.
If she were younger, she might have just charged in.
But now, there were more things to consider.
They had come to Rabbit Island merely to maintain their ship; they had no fundamental conflict with these fishmen, and it seemed unnecessary to fight them.
However, ship maintenance took a significant amount of time. Even if everything went smoothly, the earliest they could depart the island would be this evening, and it was currently only early morning. There was an entire day in between.
Sahuagin were naturally hostile toward humans, and these particular ones were extreme—they hadn't even looted the village, leaving no survivors.
Under these circumstances, who could guarantee that over such a long period, these Sahuagin wouldn't discover the *Blade of Vowed Revenge* currently docked at the pier, less than a thirty-minute walk from the fishing village?
And if that happened, the fishmen would certainly not fight them on land as they were doing now. With the ocean as their home turf, the initiative would shift entirely to the enemy.
Given Lorraine's personality, she would clearly not let her team be exposed to potential danger based on a sliver of luck.
Since the enemy's overall strength was within a range her group could handle, she decided to strike first and nip the crisis in the bud.
"I'll stay here. Xia Nan, take Hein back first and call Sasha and the others over."
In Lorraine's view, the safest solution was to wait until all the professionals in the crew had arrived before launching a surprise attack on these fishmen.
She would have Xia Nan take the spellcaster, Hein, to the pier to call for reinforcements, while she, as the captain, remained in the most dangerous spot to monitor the fishmen below.
Her approach was certainly not problematic; it could even be called prudent.
If Xia Nan looked at it from her perspective, he likely couldn't think of a more appropriate solution, and as a temporary member, he had no intention of challenging the captain's authority.
But right now, his experiences at Crag Isle gave Xia Nan a different perspective.
"Captain, these Sahuagin seem to be performing some kind of ritual. I've seen this before."
"The monsters they summon are very troublesome. The round trip from here to the pier... the situation might change drastically."
It wasn't that Xia Nan was overthinking; after all, the scene of that shark-beast slaughtering the Silver-Claw Osprey squad was still vivid in his mind. Even he had barely managed to kill it.
The scale of this ritual by the fishmen priests was so large that if they summoned a few shark-beasts or even more powerful monsters, the *Blade of Vowed Revenge* squad might not be able to resolve it safely even with everyone assembled.
He had only just joined the team and didn't want his tenure to end so quickly.
Therefore, a warning was necessary.
Immediately following him, the words of the Druid, Hein, further confirmed the credibility of Xia Nan's warning.
"The water element energy by the shore is indeed showing signs of converging toward the altar. While I can't be certain it's a summoning ritual, that fishman priest is definitely casting a spell."
Hearing this, Lorraine frowned.
She was certainly not the kind of tyrannical dictator who would not tolerate her authority being questioned.
With both teammates speaking up, she realized the peculiarity of the current situation.
When exterminating this band of fishmen became a necessity, and returning to call for reinforcements was too slow and prone to variables, it seemed only one choice remained for the three of them.
Her furrowed brow suddenly relaxed. With a sway of her flame-red hair, Lorraine made her decision.
However, their numbers were indeed limited. Including herself, there were only three people, one of whom was an important spellcaster who required protection.
After a moment's thought, Lorraine gave Hein a meaningful nod.
"You go up first. I might not have time to look after you in a bit."
Go up?
Xia Nan was momentarily stunned, but he saw Hein suddenly take two steps back.
*Buzz—*
A flash of emerald magical radiance flickered.
The woman, with her pale skin and shoulder-length brown hair, extended her arms and rose slightly on her tiptoes.
The emerald light misting in the air compressed inward, clinging to the surface of her body.
Her features became blurred under the radiance, and her already slender arms extended outward under the effect of the magical glow, her center of gravity gradually shifting downward.
Like a piece of clay made of pure green light, her upright human form changed rapidly in the span of a breath. Within the flickering light, one could vaguely see a bird's beak becoming sharper and longer, and feathers manifesting.
*Whoosh...*
A light breeze brushed past, scattering the emerald glow covering Hein's body.
As the light particles fell, the human Druid who had been standing there vanished.
In her place was a Short-tailed Albatross, significantly larger than its kin, with snow-white feathers and brown down covering its neck and back.
As a member of the Coral Society and a Druid who had reached lv3, Hein had naturally acquired her "Wild Shape," allowing her to transform into a beast, just as the world's stereotype of the Druid class suggested.
Seeing a Druid transform before him for the first time, Xia Nan couldn't help but feel curious and studied her closely.
Hein, who usually had a steady temperament, felt a bit embarrassed. She flapped her wings, intending to fly high into the air.
Although her spellcasting ability was greatly weakened in Wild Shape, she gained the ability to fly like a bird. With the advantage of height, she no longer needed the two of them to protect her.
Looking at the massive wings of the albatross that Hein had become, an idea struck Xia Nan.
Unlike the cramped environment of the cavern at Crag Isle, the current beach was incredibly open. He could use [Fang Hunt] to shift and maneuver without restraint, fully utilizing his mobility.
However, the overly wide depth of the space also gave the fishmen ample reaction time; they would be able to see Xia Nan and the others from a great distance.
Even if he used [Fang Hunt] in advance to close the gap, he would be discovered quickly.
This made the decapitation tactic Xia Nan was accustomed to—targeting the spellcasters in the enemy ranks at the start of battle—difficult.
He had been wondering if there was another way, perhaps trying to flank them from the side.
Now, looking at this Short-tailed Albatross that was much larger than average, Xia Nan suddenly had a plan.
"Wait a moment."
"You..."
...
...
"Ga... lu..."
A low, sticky sound carried a certain rhythm. The Sahuagin priest, clutching two conchs in its hands, swayed atop the altar.
One could vaguely see the mucus secreted on the surface of its dark blue scales, which helped it maintain moisture and survive outside the ocean environment for short periods.
An elite Sahuagin, arriving late, casually tossed a human corpse—which had been dragged all the way from the village and had completely lost all signs of life—into a pit already nearly filled with carrion.
Then, relying on a body stronger than its kin, it squeezed into the closest spot in front of the altar and knelt prostrate.
Just as it wanted to follow the priest's chant with devout fervor and join the ritual...
The low voice of the priest in front of it suddenly stopped.
The Sahuagin instinctively looked up.
The fishman priest, who had been fully concentrated on the sacrifice, had now ceased his movements.
A pair of fish-eyes stared into the distance.
There, at the boundary between the beach and the jungle, a tall figure was leisurely strolling forward.
Flame-red hair swayed gently on her shoulders with every movement, and her pointed leather boots left clear footprints in the sand with every step.
*Crackle.*
Sparks exploded in the air around her.
A sharp scimitar, its surface shimmering with flame-light, was gripped tightly in her hand.
"GA-LU!!!!"
The shrieks of the fishmen suddenly erupted across the beach.
The Sahuagin, who just a few breaths ago had been kneeling as devout believers, now acted like sharks smelling blood, roaring as they charged in a swarm toward Lorraine.
Lorraine, however, showed no sign of panic.
Her expression was calm; she even took the time to light another cigarette.
As her full red lips parted, a pale white mist of tobacco drifted out.
*Whoosh.*
A flash of crimson fire vanished as quickly as it appeared.
In an instant, the [Scale-Fire Scimitar] in her hand completed a rotation in the air.
A speck of ash fell from the cigarette at the corner of her mouth, and simultaneously, the Sahuagin charging at the front of the pack was sliced into upper and lower halves by the fire.
She didn't even need to use any combat skills. The exaggerated physical attributes brought by a professional level as high as lv7 were enough for Lorraine to crush ordinary fishmen through pure strength and agility.
To some extent, the term "monster" used by the world to describe these fishmen was more appropriate when applied to her.
Facing this human who had interrupted the ritual, the naturally brutal Sahuagin fell into a state of total rage due to the flickering fire in the air, their rationality gradually consumed by fury.
The encirclement they had formed around Lorraine using their numerical advantage suddenly broke as they threw themselves at the woman like moths to a flame.
A subtle curve appeared at the corner of her mouth.
Lorraine took a half-step back.
And the moment her heel hit the ground, a scorching crimson current of air suddenly erupted from the [Scale-Fire Scimitar] in her hand.
Centered on the scimitar, a circular area with a six-meter radius was formed.
As the flame-current dissipated, the temperature soared!
Even the air began to warp faintly due to the extreme heat.
In a single step, the violent temperature difference—as if moving from polar cold to a desert—caused plumes of white steam to spread rapidly across the beach with a "sizzling" sound.
[Searing Temperature Domain], Mastery.
It could be seen that any fishman daring to rush into this high-temperature zone had the mucus on their body evaporate in an instant, and the edges of the scales on their skin gradually charred, curling upward like potato chips.
The scorching air they inhaled with every breath was destroying the bodies of these monsters from the inside.
Meanwhile, Lorraine, standing at the very center of the domain, was completely unaffected.
She simply stood her ground, her chin slightly raised.
Her reddish-brown eyes, reflecting the fire, looked up toward the sky with interest.
Against the backdrop of the vast, cloudless blue sky, a Short-tailed Albatross, much larger than its kind, was soaring above.
The snow-white feathers on her belly made her look like a fast-drifting white cloud.
But it was now obvious that her wing-beats seemed strained, and her flight was unstable.
As for the reason...
It was naturally because of the pitch-black figure currently gripping her bird-claws tightly, suspended in mid-air.
While Lorraine drew the enemies' attention, Xia Nan—using [Gravity Control] to minimize the gravity acting upon himself—had used Hein's albatross Wild Shape to fly over the fishman guards and arrive directly above the altar.
The next second, he let go.
*Awoooo—*
A deep, high-pitched wolf howl echoed through the air.
(End of Chapter)