Is That A Wisp?

"There, there, there. There is more than enough still." Krune smiled as the baby began to drink the liquid he fed it. It was the extract he had taken after squeezing a piece of meat after filling it to the brim with his healing ability. Normally, he was only able to emit the healing effect through his Neon Radiance. 

But now, by focusing it on the piece of meat, he allowed the energy to heal the muscles forming the piece of meat, revitalizing its individual cells. This way, he soaked it up full of the healing effect. After that happened, he squeezed it dry, obtaining some liquid. 

It was in a concentrated form, barely amounting to 10 milliliters. He then drank a bit first, finding that it tasted better than he had expected. It was fully nutritious, and once consumed, it began to circulate through his body, alleviating the slight tension in his body. 

"This is better than I had expected," Krune muttered in surprise as he gave it to the Seamstress, allowing her to sample a little of it as well. Upon tasting it, she could feel its effects, nodding with widened eyes. 

"This is truly great, you know? When you're free, make some and store them in a container. It would prove to be useful later. It can be used for nourishment during the time we can't find any fish. Better to use this when there's a surplus," she spoke in a string, watching Krune listen to her in silence. 

Krune then diluted the extract using the ocean water that he had filtered and fed it to the baby in little quantities, watching the baby smile happily while drinking it. "It seems that he likes the taste."

All along, the boat had been traveling through the ocean, being pulled by the Motor Fish at the front. The Seamstress was rowing it by using the oar. On top of that, using her passive ability, Bubble Touch, she was able to sense the direction the bandits were heading towards.

All this time, they had come across numerous people floating aimlessly on the ocean with distraught expressions. Whatever they had saved up over the months while adrift on the ocean and the items from the Checkpoint Turtle they had bought with their accumulated Godly Points, all of them had been snatched by the bandits. 

Moreover, she focused on their foreheads, frowning when she was no longer able to see the dots on them. 

Upon noticing the same, Krune cursed, "So, the bandits are stealing their tablets as well? Quite despicable."

He then expressed his curiosity as she asked her, "Do you wish to save them?"

"If by saving them, you mean to shelter them on the boats I have, then you're mistaken. I won't do something like that." The Seamstress shook her head, causing Krune to look at her in surprise. "After all, it's not like surviving is easy for even me. All I will do is ensure the bandits don't steal their hard-earned items. As for the rest, it's all up to them. If they wish to reclaim what is rightfully theirs, they have to stand up for it. Despairing as pieces of rocks is not what peace amounts to."

"I thought you would try to return their items back to them once you defeated the bandits? Could it be that it wasn't the case?" Krune expressed his doubt.

"Now that we're all humans, I can say something with assurance. There's no end to human greed. If I hand them over to these people, there's a good chance they would turn out no different to the bandits. After all, they've experienced loss and despair once already. Whether they like it or not, they would try to project it onto others." The Seamstress vented as she continued, "And, those who aren't such a type wouldn't have remained standing while the bandits snatched everything from them."

She let out a deep sigh after that. "Peace dulls the hearts and minds of people. It makes them appreciate less of what they have. Even if there are no wars fought or life and death battles that are waged, people would still fight for money, resources, men, women, if nothing else, pride."

"The peace I wish to attain and spread around isn't anything that would create even complex situations and create an even greyer world." She looked forward to this future of hers as she continued, "When seated on a grass-filled plain, hearing the flow of water while watching the setting sun, the breeze that makes a gentle tune in your ears, your state of mind in that situation is exactly the peace I wish to bring about."

"So..." Krune gazed forward in the darkness, setting the baby comfortably on the bed to rest as he noticed a faint light far away, "Our objective is to destroy the enemy ship and scatter the items all over the ocean. Without killing the bandits, we just have to make them helpless."

"That's the only option." The Seamstress nodded. "If it was the previous me, I would have been able to affect their thoughts so that they would live as honorable men. But now, we have to drill that notion into them slowly."

'No, that's the option that seems like the most pain in the ass.' Krune thought as he spoke, "Well, you do whatever you want. However, if they try to kill me, I won't pull my punches." Those words coming from a wisp seemed quite weird in Krune's mind...but he decided to ignore them.

"I won't force my ideals onto you." The Seamstress nodded. "I know how absurd and troublesome they sound, but that's my way of life."

"So you do realize they are absurd." Krune laughed and adjusted the baby's position, tying it up a little to ensure it wouldn't roll over when the boat rocked during the ensuing fight. Upon seeing that the baby was sleeping peacefully, Krune chuckled as he muttered, "He's one tough guy."

Krune then thought of something, asking the Seamstress, "About that Water Essence you spoke about…relating to your Coral Wave. Have you finished forming it?"

"Almost." The Seamstress nodded before asking, "Why do you ask?"

Krune slipped his hand into a pocket and took out a Blood Essence Crystal, giving it to her before explaining, "Consume it only when necessary. It would give you a slight boost to your physique and abilities and lasts around two to three hours. But, once the duration ends, your body would be severely exhausted. You have to immerse your body in the ocean water for a couple of days after that to heal all the damage."

The moment she looked at the Blood Essence Crystal, the Seamstress looked at Krune with curiosity. "Who the heck are you? How come I never heard of you before?"

"I had troublesome karma that always put me in dangerous situations. So, for most of my life, you can say I was living under a rock." Krune chuckled. "Only after I managed to solve it did I emerge out in the open. Well, it hasn't been long since then, less than a decade, I think."

As they spoke, their boat approached closer to the bandit ship as the other party spotted them immediately. They had been looting a group of people and were in the process of loading all the goods in their ship.

Krune could immediately spot a pile of tablets in front of Gajor. Upon noticing his gaze, Gajor smirked as he ordered his men to leave the rest behind. Their ship took off immediately and sped forth. 

When they gave chase, Krune realized that his opponent's speed was greater than his boat as soon after, they had sped far beyond his range. Even while using his Sonic Radar, he wasn't able to find them any longer. 

Krune hadn't tested the limit of this ability yet, so he wasn't sure how far they had gone past. Nevertheless, it was at least beyond a kilometer. Before they had fully vanished from his Sonic Radar's range, he remembered that at the front of the bandit ship were eight Motor Fishes. 

They were apparently due to the specialized cages that held them. He cursed immediately, "Just how did he manage to get more Motor Fishes in this short duration?"

He looked at the Seamstress, asking her, "Do you know anything about this?"

"No, this is the first time I'm witnessing such a change as well. I never knew they had a method to replenish their Motor Fish reserves. If they were able to do it…" She frowned, immediately using Bubble Touch to see where the bandit cove was, frowning. "Their cove is still in the same place. Then, how were they able to transport them so quickly? Judging by the distance, it shouldn't be possible."

"There's a good chance they have individual boats rowed by the Motor Fishes as standby." Krune frowned. "They might probably have a larger net than we had thought. In the place of the two boats you had detached from their ship were two new boats. They were possibly the reinforcements that were roaming farther beyond our reach and had quickly come to their reinforcement when needed."

After some thought, the Seamstress finally spoke, "It seems they managed to figure out the secret to this layer already."

"Do you still wish to pursue them?" Krune asked after a moment.

"Of course," the Seamstress replied like it was a matter of fact.

"If our lives are threatened, I'm pulling out."

"That's for sure. I am not reckless, you know."