It wasn't long before all ships came into visual range of each other, but surprisingly the two ships that where following broke off, and went into what looked like, either a holding pattern or an attack position as they both spread out, so if the Concordia kept sailing forwards, then it would be in-between both ships.

Captain Edward: "Raise the white, and let's see if we can get at least one customer"

Random Crewmate: "Rase the white!!"

^^^^^

-Aboard one of the pursuing ships-

???: "Captain, the unknown ship has raised a white flag, and the HMT Lee II is still closing in on her"

Captain ???: "Hmm, what do you think Jack, should we raise the white and see if we can make a deal with this unknown?"

Jack: "Maybe. What about raising the white and we send in some of our more disciplined guys on a rowboat, see what they are doing out here, and if we can either get on friendly terms with them or at least make a deal with them so they don't just sink us"

Captain ???: "Alright, go get John, Harry, Fred and George, tell them what we just discussed and that if they do this, they'll get first pick of the food and drinks for the next week"

???: "Aye, Captain, and the HMT Lee II, what should we do about them?"

Captain ???: "Keep us circling around her, and send a message to the Reaver, tell them to stay on course opposite our ship, and if the HMT Lee II breaks away, they will pursue them while we try to negotiate with the unknown ship"

^^^^^

-Aboard the Concordia- (Back with our Mc)

Mike: "Captain, looks like we have one potential customer. One of the pursuing ships has raised the white"

Captain Edward: "And the ship coming towards us, has she shown any response?"

Mike: "No Captain, she has not"

Captain Edward: "Then send her a warning shot, if she continues to stay on her course, we'll take out her masts and board her"

Mike: "Aye Captain,"

A couple of seconds after Edward and Mike finished their conversation, the sound of a cannon being fired can be heard, with the unique sound of a cannonball tearing through the air for a handful of seconds, as it reaches its target, 100m dead ahead of the HMT Lee II.

Before the splash of the cannonball is gone, the HMT Lee II changed its course, now giving the Concordia a wide birth, but still trying to stay close enough to keep the other two ships away. Sadly, for them 2minutes after the shot landed, their course did not change much as they were still heading somewhat towards the Concordia without raising the white.

Captain Edwards: "Fire the chain-shot"

Mike: "Fire the chain-shot!"

*BOOM-BOOM-BOOM*

The thunderous sound of three portside cannons firing replied, followed by a high-pitch whistle that fades into the distance as two cannonballs linked together by a chain, tear apart the atmosphere trying to reach their target. The end result being the satisfying crack of breaking wood as the main mast was hit, followed by one more crisp crack as half-way up the main mast, another chain-shot hits and smashes right through, cutting the main mast in half, and making it collapse across the deck and into the water.

Once the mast hit the ship, a grey whisp like orb flew out and into Edwards chest, much to his surprise he did not feel anything when it touched him. But before he could question what happened, the world turned grey, and everything stopped as a piece of old paper floated down Infront of him, grabbing the letter from the air, on it was written.

~Congratulations Demon Merchant Algazon Balthazar~

~You have collected your first soul, and found two hidden abilities of your race [Inventory]&[Eyes of Sin]~

Inventory: As a demon merchant, you and other [Race]merchants are able to store items, skills, beings and concepts within your own personal near infinite storage. No time shall pass inside of this storage, and no one can break into it without alerting the owner. Things that can be stored within this are items that are ownerless, skills that were traded/brought/stolen, beings that are defeated and concepts that were traded/brought/stolen(such as lifespan, emotions and other things that can fall under concepts)

Eyes of Sin: An uncommon ability of demons, to see the soul, as well as all the sins that soul has accumulated during their life, the darker the soul, the more Sins accumulated.

P.S: White/Pure souls or Black/Lost souls are a very rare find...Meaning that they can be sold for extremely high prices. You just need to find the right buyer.

Once Edward finished reading the letter, the world regained all its lost colour, and started back up again. It was only after hearing the sounds of cannon fire that he regained focus on his surroundings, and as he did, he was annoyed to say the least. Why? well it was because his ship just got hit by the HMT Lee II.

Captain Edward: "All portside cannons open fire on that ship" he said in a deceptively calm tone

Mike: "Portside cannons, open fire"

And with just a single order, the Man 'O' War let her portside cannons roar and drowned out any and all noise and sight of the HMT Lee II for a full 30seconds as white clouds of gunpowder slowly drift away on the wind. And while visibility was coming back, Edward could see a flood of grey and dark grey souls flying straight into his chest.

What was once a trading ship of the Empire, is now a nothing but a floating, burning wreck as a lot of the ship is visibly damaged, with some sections falling apart completely. But even with this Edward wasn't satisfied, as he gives out a command that would seem over kill to others.

Captain Edward: "Board her, kill any resistance, capture the rest, and obviously loot anything not nailed down even if it doesn't look that valuable, take it"

Mike: "Aye, Captain"