Although Arthur was played and humiliated by the Black Pearl, the outcome unexpectedly granted him a one-time use of a Faceless Man's ability.
However, the situation where his life was held in another's hands with no ability to resist still annoyed him greatly.
If the Black Pearl and the Faceless Man had truly intended to kill him, he might have already died in a seemingly plausible accident.
Reflecting on it the next day, Arthur concluded that besides becoming complacent due to his recent successes and letting his guard down, his brain had been clouded by alcohol and lust.
He also felt that his lack of life experience contributed to falling into the Black Pearl's trap step by step.
So, for the next few days, Arthur decided to "suffer" a little. While enjoying the delicacies and wines from all over the world in the Sealord's Palace, he strove to appreciate the various vigorous performances.
While enriching his life experience, he made sure to fall for every trick he was supposed to fall for.
The Mermaid Queen's vigorous dance, the Poetess's melodious songs, Moonshadow's eerie sword dance, the Nightingale's mournful tunes on a bone flute.
Falling for it, falling for it hard!
As for the Black Pearl, that petty, well-connected wicked woman, Arthur maintained a respectful distance. If I can't afford to provoke you, can't I avoid you?
However, Arthur found that his distant attitude only made the Black Pearl more eager. In the final days of the Masquerade, she abandoned her socializing and sat beside him, using every trick in the book to seduce him.
Having been through the wringer, how could Arthur be fooled again? Facing the Black Pearl's seduction, he truly had no other thoughts, occasionally rolling his eyes to express his disdain for her tactics.
Besides enriching his life experience, Arthur also met with the loan officer arranged by the Sealord.
The officer signed a loan contract with him personally for a total of 100,000 Gold Dragons, with a repayment term of five years and an annual interest rate of 15%.
The officer told Arthur he could use the 100,000 Gold Dragons freely during the five years; it didn't need to sit idle in the Iron Bank.
'The Iron Bank will have its due.' That was the confidence behind the officer's words.
Finally, the officer enthusiastically asked about Arthur's plans for the 100,000 Gold Dragons, offering help and resource introductions if he needed to purchase any services.
Happy training times were always short. The ten-day Harvest Feast and Masquerade of Braavos ended with the Titan's tenth roar, signaling the arrival of night.
In the Sealord's Palace, and throughout Braavos, everyone threw their masks into the air amidst the roar, marking the successful conclusion of this major annual festival.
In the courtyard where Arthur stayed.
"Tonight is the last day of our agreement." The Black Pearl's exquisite face, now unmasked, showed no emotion, but her violet eyes held a trace of resentment.
"Smith, do you truly not want anything to happen between us?"
Arthur was training his swordsmanship hard in the courtyard, swinging the Valyrian steel sword 'Zhanlu' with the [Ice Sword] effect. Feeling the complex emotions in the Black Pearl's gaze, he shivered and stopped.
Worthy of being a fourth-generation courtesan, Arthur thought. Truly a seasoned actress.
Even at the end, she remained so dedicated, acting the part perfectly. Her eyes, expression, even her tone seemed entirely natural; he couldn't find a trace of performance.
"Beautiful lady, thank you for your company these ten days. The services you provided far exceeded the value of my dagger. How could I dare ask for anything more?"
Arthur found a towel to wipe the sweat from his forehead, expressing regret with a look of pity.
"Such a shame. If I hadn't promised the House of Black and White not to forge similar shapeshifting weapons, I would definitely add time—add time until the end of the world."
"Arthur Snow, I will remember you!" A rare look of anger appeared on the Black Pearl's charming face. She glared at Arthur and walked away without looking back.
Watching the Black Pearl's retreating figure with its exquisite curves, Arthur clicked his tongue. With acting skills like that, she'd at least win a Best Actress award back in my previous life.
After the Black Pearl left, Arthur called Weiss, asking him to go back first and gather Zaren, Victar, and the others in the meeting room, as he had an announcement to make.
Spending a quarter of an hour packing the items acquired over the ten days, Arthur left the Sealord's Palace guided by a guard.
When Arthur returned to the mansion, the meeting room was full. Everyone looked haggard, worn out by wine and women, clearly having enjoyed themselves immensely over the ten days.
"My Lord, how were the Black Pearl's skills?" Pate asked with a lewd smile. "An unforgettable experience of a lifetime, hahaha..."
The room erupted in laughter, everyone looking at him ambiguously.
You guys are truly damned! Arthur thought, feeling the sentiment: I want my brothers to live well, but I don't want them driving supercars.
On the surface, Arthur feigned calm, smacked his lips, raised an eyebrow, and gave a look that said those who know, know.
Seeing they were about to ask for details, Arthur coughed twice and changed the subject with a serious face.
"Look at you all, haggard as ghosts. I was only gone for ten days, and you've become like this. How can I entrust important matters to you in the future?"
"Starting today, no more women! I'll lead by example. No one is allowed to fool around in brothels anymore."
Everyone looked at each other in dismay, then turned their questioning gazes to Weiss.
Weiss scratched his head, spread his hands innocently, his wooden expression revealing a clear ignorance.
"Alright, I called you here for serious business." Arthur took the items from the Sealord's Palace out of his bag.
"Two things. First, the Sealord intends to arrest and try a group of insurance merchants who are competitors of Sabel Kaffi."
"On what charges?" Zaren became serious; he cared most about the insurance business.
"Colluding with pirates, trafficking slaves."
"Braavos just finished its festival. If they are tried on the charges Ar... Arthur mentioned, it will be hard for those arrested merchants to survive," Victar explained.
"Braavos loathes everything related to slavers."
Zaren shook his head continuously. "If they all die, it's not good for us."
"Not good for the captains either." Arthur took out the contract signed with the loan officer.
"The second thing is actually related to the first."
"I borrowed 100,000 Gold Dragons from the Sealord and reached some understanding and consensus with him regarding the insurance business between White Harbor and Braavos."
"The Sealord lent you 100,000 Gold Dragons?" Zaren was astonished. "Doesn't he know about our wrecking business in the Three Sisters?"
"Of course the Sealord knows. But what we do is far milder than those insurance merchants hiring pirates for raiding and human trafficking. At least we didn't cross his bottom line." Arthur sipped the peach wine Vickon poured for him.
"The Sealord also knows Sabel Kaffi's greedy nature. He knows that letting him monopolize the insurance business between White Harbor and Braavos would likely result in him squeezing the captains dry."
Victar sighed.
"I think the Sealord also intends to break up our cooperation with Sabel Kaffi. Now that we control the islands along the route from Braavos to White Harbor..."
"If we continue to partner with Sabel Kaffi, with him providing intelligence and no other insurance merchants to restrict us, the Braavosi captains wishing to sail this route would have to obediently cooperate."
Victar and Sabel Kaffi were both Braavosi who had climbed from the bottom to their current positions. He understood the hardships Kaffi had faced were perhaps no less than his own.
Victar had hoped Sabel Kaffi would change after losing an eye to greed, but instead, he had doubled down, becoming even more extreme.
"Pity he is too greedy, unwilling to share even a sliver of profit with us, while constantly raising insurance prices to squeeze the captains." 'Ledger' Pate had never liked Kaffi.
"If we let him continue like this, and Braavosi captains refuse to go to White Harbor, it will be a loss for us too."
"Each of you, keep an eye on the movements of those captains, the Sealord's officials, and Sabel Kaffi for the next week." Arthur announced.
"This is a rare opportunity. We aim to kick the others out and seize the insurance market share of the Braavos-White Harbor trade route before I leave."
"Also, every one of you, write me a proposal for the use of the 100,000 Gold Dragons. I will budget and evaluate your proposals.
"Whoever has a good plan, I will adopt it and provide the corresponding funds to complete it."