It was clear that Drake's threat was remarkably effective.
Even though Asterios was practically itching to charge over and send Drake flying with a single blow, he had no choice but to stay put, gnashing his teeth and glaring at her with a fierce yet ultimately harmless expression.
"Despicable! Unreasonable! Crude! You… you overdeveloped, ugly woman!"
Euryale's pretty little face flushed bright red as she mustered every ounce of her vocabulary to hurl insults at Drake, who was using her to threaten the little bull.
"Uh, has anyone ever told you that you sound like you're pouting when you swear?" Drake scratched her head. "Besides, we're pirates, you know. Everything you just said sounds less like an insult and more like a compliment to us—except for that last part, which I do take a bit of issue with."
"Hmph…" Euryale was left fuming, but with her limited repertoire of curse words, she could only puff out her cheeks and glare at Drake in frustration.
"Tch, don't look at me like that. At least use a fiercer glare, will you? The way you're looking at me makes me feel like I'm bullying a child." Seeing Euryale like this gave Drake a headache too.
"...I really don't think we need to be so hostile," said Lin Qi, having caught his breath. He placed his right hand in front of him, showing the Command Spells on its back to Euryale.
…
After listening to Lin Qi's explanation, the atmosphere between the two sides finally began to ease.
"...So, after all that, you're not actually with that disgusting creep after all?" Hearing this, Euryale suddenly understood.
"Disgusting creep?" Drake was somewhat confused.
"That would be Blackbeard. Compared to a woman like you, big sis, he prefers a young, girlish goddess like Euryale. When he encounters Euryale, he tends to act… rather perverted," Lin Qi explained simply.
"Not 'rather' perverted, but extremely perverted! I've never met someone who made you feel uncomfortable just by them breathing an extra breath!" Recalling Blackbeard's previous behavior, Euryale couldn't help but hug her shoulders and shiver. An expression of utter disgust surfaced on her face.
To this, Lin Qi could only think that Euryale had never seen some of the outrageous comments online, or she'd at least have a bit more resistance.
—But then again, most people in real life generally aren't as unrestrained as Blackbeard either.
Moreover, Blackbeard was quite adept at using his… unique physical advantages, liking to use his over-two-meter-tall frame to strike all sorts of simpering, coquettish poses. Just the sight of it was enough to make one's scalp tingle.
"Enough, let's not mention that disgusting thing anymore. What are you planning to do next?" Euryale shook her head, as if physically trying to dislodge the thought of Blackbeard from her mind, then abruptly changed the subject.
"I remember you said you were attacked by Blackbeard and barely managed to escape here. So, what are your plans now?"
"Of course, we're going to fight back! Damn it, getting beaten so badly by that bastard… if I don't fight back, I might as well give up sailing the seas!"
Drake swung her fist forcefully, speaking through gritted teeth.
"And we have to help out Little Lin here, too. He's busy saving the world, after all. The Holy Grail that Blackbeard has is absolutely necessary."
Drake pointed her thumb at Lin Qi behind her, letting out a hearty laugh: "Besides, Little Lin was really impressive in the last fight. If it weren't for him, my crew would have suffered heavy losses, right?"
"Plus, he calls me 'Big Sis' now. How could I not help him?"
Hearing Drake's words, Lin Qi scratched his head somewhat awkwardly, a faint blush appearing on his fair-skinned face.
"So, how about joining my ship? With just the few of us, we're really no match for that bastard Blackbeard."
Drake finally revealed her true intentions, extending a hand to invite Euryale, her face wearing a completely unembarrassed smile—even though she had just been holding a gun to this very goddess's head moments ago.
"You really are both insatiably greedy and incredibly bold, to think of inviting a goddess onto your ship."
Looking at Drake's unruffled demeanor, Euryale let out a soft sigh.
"So, what is the goddess's answer?"
"Well now, while I'm not opposed to boarding your ship—after all, Asterios's Labyrinth was more or less destroyed by you all by accident—I, as a goddess, might not be as powerful as you imagine. I can't even beat some ordinary Servants, you know?"
Euryale feigned distress as she spoke.
"But I recall your Noble Phantasm has a special attack effect against males, right? If used well, that should still produce some decent results,"
Lin Qi suddenly interjected.
"Huh? You know about my Noble Phantasm too? Are we actually quite familiar?" Euryale blinked, looking at Lin Qi with suspicion. She was sure she hadn't revealed her Noble Phantasm.
"No, this is definitely our first time meeting. I just… saw it with my eyes. You can assume I have a high-ranked Clairvoyance, for now," Lin Qi explained offhandedly.
"Clairvoyance? If it's a high rank, then it's certainly not impossible…"
Euryale nodded in understanding and didn't pursue the matter further, instead shifting the topic again: "What about Asterios? Are you going to invite him onto the ship too?"
"Ugh…?"
Hearing his name mentioned, Asterios looked up blankly.
"Of course! Right now, we're desperately lacking in capable, strong combat power in every sense. A big guy like him? Even if you hadn't mentioned it, I'd be dragging him onto the ship!"
Drake stated matter-of-factly.
The previous battle had already proven that their combat strength was completely insufficient; they had only managed to escape unscathed thanks to Lin Qi's desperate struggles.
If they could recruit two suitable combatants now, Drake would be laughing in her dreams.
"You know just what to say… Well, you heard her. So, will you come aboard with me? They seem pretty decent," Euryale turned to look at Asterios.
"Where you go, I go," Asterios rumbled in his deep, muffled voice.
His mind didn't deal in twists and turns. He listened to whoever was good to him, and Euryale happened to be the one who was best to him right now.
"Then we'll be in your care, Captain?"
Understanding Asterios's thoughts, Euryale nodded satisfactorily, then winked at Drake.
"No problem! Leave it to me!"
Drake declared without hesitation, thumping her chest.
Asterios's Labyrinth wasn't like the in-game Noble Phantasm that could reduce even Goetia's attack power to almost nothing. It was simply a maze that made it hard for people to find their way.
Never mind whether laying a sufficiently long thread could solve it; just using an A-rank or so beam-type Noble Phantasm would be enough to smash his Labyrinth to pieces.
This was more or less confirmed by the Golden Hind's crash landing from the sky.
So, for Euryale and Asterios, this Labyrinth couldn't really be considered safe either. Cooperation was the most suitable choice for both parties.
'Whew, it seems I didn't need to say much more…'
Seeing that the situation was getting back on track, Lin Qi breathed a sigh of relief.
"So, what do we do next? Set sail again?" Euryale looked around at their surroundings.
"Heh heh, of course—it's time for a banquet!"
Drake, glancing at the darkening sky, deliberately drew out her words before suddenly raising her voice.
"Huh?" Euryale was clearly still confused by Drake's logic, her face a picture of bewilderment.
"Hooray! A banquet!"
But the other pirates were already expertly cheering.
"Wait a minute, didn't we just have a banquet yesterday, and only set sail this morning?" one pirate spotted the incongruity.
"Idiot! We have a banquet after a victory, we have a banquet when new people join, we have a banquet after a successful escape! Basically, whenever we're happy, we have a banquet! That is what you call wholesome!"
"Understand?"
"Oh~! I get it! So we're having a banquet no matter what, right!" The pirate looked immensely pleased with his own deduction.
"…"
"Are they always like this?"
Euryale pointed at the pirates who had already descended into a frenzy, asking the only normal person present, Lin Qi.
"Uh, pretty much, I guess. It's pretty fun, anyway," Lin Qi shrugged.
…