The whole Red Titan was partying in a bar. The tavern air hung heavy with smoke and the stench of stale ale.

Cain sat numbly amid the chaos. Marko danced wildly, swinging Rose back and forth. Thomas slammed empty mugs down with a savage grin as Connie matched him drink for drink.

Lancey was sitting next to Cain as they talked.

"I can't believe you freed the Captain. Honestly, we didn't have hope, but I guess luck was on your side. You even got a contract in your favor!"

Cain replied with a disinterested tone, "Nothing is worth losing your freedom. The only reason I did was to repay you all."

Lancey took a sip of beer. "I suppose you did technically take her place... thank you."

Cain had no energy to continue the conversation and simply continued to sit in silence. He was too focused on his mindscape.

The raucous laughter in the bar died down as Cain drifted into his inner world.

In the middle of the infinite space was a giant piece of paper with words, the very same words on his contract. Semi-transparent chains were wrapped around it and branched out, disappearing into the air.

'I might have a way to break the contract after all. Who knew it affected the soul...'

He continued to stare at the contract as he thought of ways to break it.

'Well, if I were him, I suppose the best way would be to test contracts on other people and enter their minds to experiment... but that would hurt innocent lives and cost money... I'll have to come up with something during the mission, I guess.'

Cain stopped focusing on his mind and opened his eyes to Connie with reddened cheeks. He then started to remember the bad memory of when Connie drank.

"Cain!"

She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him with all her might. Cain let out a grunt as he felt his eyes were coming out of their sockets.

"You saved me, you saved me, you saved me! Kya! I'll make sure to pay you back for the rest of my days! I'll always be here for you!"

She then pulled him in closer, and he was now in between two soft objects. Connie's face then got really close as she whispered seductively.

"And more if you want, tehe."

The groggy giant let him down before falling on her back and passing out. Cain then heard a drunk Marko.

"Damn it, Captain! Get up, we have to party more!"

...

The next day, six ships sailed from port and into the open sea.

The crew of the Red Titan kept their promise and decided to journey with Cain on his dangerous mission to the center seas.

All the while, Cain kept thinking of ways to free himself from his contract.

"Hey Marko, what exactly is at the center of the ocean?" Everyone was sitting around a table eating breakfast. The one who asked this question, Thomas, asked with good reason.

No one on the ship had been to the deep sea. However, the response was not the one he wanted.

"Ask Lancey; he's the knowledgeable one, fatty."

Before Thomas could come up with a comeback, Lancey had already begun explaining, and the crew was hanging on his every word.

"From how I understand it, the deeper you head into the ocean, the fewer islands there are and more pirates inhabiting these islands. Even deeper, to where we're going, is the territory of the Deep Ones."

This time, another crewmember spoke. It was Jaxith, he was a lookout. He sported dark brown hair and bright hazel eyes and was younger than 30, though he didn't even know his actual age due to his parents abandoning him when he was young.

"Lancey, what exactly are the Deep Ones?"

"Well, legend says they are creatures that have been here before man inhabited these islands. They are creatures of the deep with differing sizes and forms. It's said the Deep Ones can drive a man mad just by their gaze. Make him see things...horrible things..."

Lancey's face stiffened, his eyes haunted by the knowledge he had gained. "And their cries...like a living nightmare you can't escape.

Once we stop seeing islands, we'll see sea stacks where the smaller ones will climb on like lookouts. That's when you know you'll run into a horde of them."

"Scary. Will we run into any Deep Ones?"

"Most definitely. Our goal is around there or even deeper." The one who spoke was Dolion; he was the leader of the Trading Company's ships escorting them and Cain's second in command for this mission.

Cain had only met him briefly, but he was the commander sent by Meiers. He was on the Red Titan to convey Cain's orders to the other ships due to a device in his throat that could project his voice.

Dolion had a warm welcome, but many stayed away from him due to his affiliation and his habit of always jotting in a notebook.

"We should pass the first line tomorrow; from then on, we'll be in pirate territory until we hit the territory of the deep ones."

...

The next day, Cain awoke to sunlight streaming into his cabin. He took time to stretch before heading up to the deck, only to hear the shouting of an argument already in progress.

Stepping into the daylight, he immediately heard arguing. Upon seeing the commotion, he sighed to himself and headed back under deck.

The Red Titan was close to another ship of their fleet, and the crews of both ships were conversing. Unfortunately, it somehow turned into a screaming match between the two sides.

"You bastards think you're special because you're highly liked by the young master! All because you have that Huogg bitch!"

"Say that again! Come over here, bastard. I want you to say it to my face!"

The crews' shouting escalated into a barrage of slurs and creative threats.

In the Trading Company, Connie was treated like a black sheep. Because of her race, she was hated.

Other than her 'slave' contract, she was treated quite well by Meiers. However, because of this, people made sure to tarnish her name all 50 years she was in servitude.

Not many people knew, but when Connie first came to the Archipelago, she was harassed by many slavers who tried to capture her many times.

Huoggs were an exotic rarity and were never seen before like other races. The slavers in the Archipelago were supported by both nations and had information from other lands.

Which meant that Famous and wealthy Slavers knew Huoggs well. A young Huogg like Connie was a perfect slave, specifically due to her reaching 100.

She was at the period where her body could become malleable, and it was perfect for 'modifications' that these sick bastards wanted to use on her to create the perfect 'product' to satisfy even sicker men.

The only way to escape this was to have a backer, which forced her to work for the Fume Trading Co.

She was never mistreated, but her contract bound her to them and in the end, it wasn't worth it. But because of her situation, her fellow 'comrades' took advantage of her and tarnished her reputation inside the company, which remained strong even until today.

Finally, Dolion ended up hearing the ruckus and stopped the fighting. He yelled at the men on the other ship, even telling them he was going to reduce their pay.

If only all conflicts could be ended with just a bit of yelling.

A few moments after this, Jaxith screamed from the crow's nest.

Three hulking shadows grew on the horizon, sails like beating wings. The ocean brine mingled with a stench of unwashed bodies and foul intentions.

"Pirates! Three big ships coming from the starboard side! Coming in fast!"

Dolion looked behind him and saw three ships in the distance. He let out a sigh before he raised his voice. It was so loud that even people below deck could hear it.

"Get ready! PIRATES!"

Dolion's voice boomed, rallying the crews. Men scrambled to prepare the cannons and grab weapons. The air filled with tension.

Soon cannon fire would erupt and plunge the sea in splinters and corpses.