Bullet stood up.
He had what he needed, the operation's objective, the reason behind it, the level of pursuit that would follow, and the likelihood of an ambush waiting at Crescent Bay.
It was enough.
He looked down at the agent. In those scarlet slit pupils, there was no emotion at all.
"You can go."
The leader-agent froze.
"Go… go?" He could not believe it. "You're letting me leave?"
"Go back and tell the Five Elders." Bullet turned away, giving him his back. "The Oliventa family is under my protection now."
"If you want to keep hunting them, send stronger people."
"But next time…"
He paused. Cold killing intent bled into his voice.
"I'll go to Mary Geoise myself, and have a talk with them."
The leader-agent scrambled up, nearly tripping over himself, and ran for the coast without looking back.
He jumped onto a small speedboat hidden in the bay, started the engine, and fled toward the open sea as if chased by death itself.
Bullet did not stop him.
He needed someone to carry the message back.
It was provocation, and it was a declaration.
From this moment on, the Oliventa family had officially entered the range of his protection. Anyone who wanted to touch them would have to get past him first.
And more importantly, he needed stronger enemies.
An elite CP0 squad, reserve members of the God's Knights, even a Marine Admiral, these were all high-quality "food."
His devouring evolution required the constant consumption of the strong, and the World Government could provide an endless stream of prey.
Footsteps approached from the distance.
Anna returned, burdened with packs and bundles, supporting her grandfather as she came back. When they saw the newly added bodies in the courtyard, their expressions tightened for a moment, but they said nothing.
On this sea, death was ordinary. They had long since learned how to live beside it.
"Everything's packed," Anna said. "All important research materials are taken. What's left is irrelevant."
"Then we leave." Bullet headed for the pier. "Crescent Bay."
The three boarded a two-masted ship.
Bullet raised the sails and adjusted their heading. The permanent pose had already been set to Crescent Bay's coordinates. The distance was about three hundred nautical miles. At this ship's speed, it would take a day and a night.
Anna settled her grandfather in the cabin to rest, then returned to the deck and stood beside Bullet.
"About earlier… thank you," she said quietly.
"It's a transaction," Bullet replied, calm as ever. "You help me decipher the ancient writing. I protect your safety."
"Each of us gets what we want."
"I know." Anna nodded. "But I still want to thank you."
"These past few years, my grandfather and I have been running and hiding. There hasn't been a single day we could sleep peacefully."
"Even when we made it back to the ancestral estate, we had to stay on guard for pursuit."
"Until just now… watching you deal with those agents, I finally felt, truly felt, that maybe we really do have a chance to survive."
She paused, then looked up at him.
"Are you really not afraid of the World Government?"
"Afraid?" Bullet smiled.
It was a faint smile, but it carried absolute certainty.
"To me, they're just 'food.'"
"The stronger, the better. The more, the better."
Anna fell silent.
She looked at Bullet's tall, powerful frame, at the scarlet slit pupils, the dark-gold patterns, and the strength he had displayed, a force that felt almost like something beyond human, and yet, strangely, she did not feel fear.
Perhaps the years of flight had trained her to coexist with danger.
Or perhaps, at the side of this monster, she was experiencing a warped kind of "safety" for the first time.
"When we reach Crescent Bay," she changed the subject, "what do you plan to do?"
"First, confirm whether the base is safe," Bullet said. "If CP has already set an ambush there, we clear them out."
"Then you begin deciphering the ancient writing."
Anna lifted her head, watching him closely.
"You're sure you want to know all of this?"
"Some knowledge… once you know it, there's no turning back."
Bullet looked at her. Moonlight was reflected in his scarlet slit pupils.
"My life stopped having a way back the moment I inherited Nidhogg."
"So tell me everything."
"Prophecies, rituals, taboos, even secrets that could destroy the world."
"I want to know it all."
Anna drew in a deep breath and nodded.
"Alright!"