The sea breeze gently blew, the campfire crackled and burned, casting everyone's faces in a warm red glow.
Chen Qi and An found a vacant table, opened a bottle of wine.
Pop!
The two clinked glasses, celebrating that both of them were alive and well at this Crack Tide juncture.
"The taste isn't bad."
Chen Qi blissfully bit into a juicy beef rib, enjoying the feeling of indulging in delicious food without having to cook it himself.
As he ate, Chen Qi kept an eye on the shipbuilder nearby.
An was a minor celebrity as a genius, just as he was as a chef.
However, at that moment, not many people came to chat with them. Everyone's attention was fully captured by the shipbuilder from Steam Hand.
A shipbuilder from the Steam Hand Company, even in the Witch Sea, was a rare existence.
Chen Qi tried hard to recall information about this shipbuilder.
His name was Bri, a Third Rank Hammer Phase mechanic, also known as Steam Ironhand, a covert member of the Ice Demon pirate crew, who had been collecting information from the inland and coastal regions for the Ice Demon pirate crew.
In the mid-game, the Ice Demon pirate crew's famously formidable aquatic juggernaut, the "Deep-Sea Giant Shark," was also born from the hands of this legendary shipbuilder.
It could be said that he was one of the strongest shipbuilders in the Witch Sea.
His appearance in the coastal waters—could it be because of Little Crow and the others? Chen Qi fell into deep thought.
An looked at Chen Qi's face and said softly,
"Qi, if you want a new boat, you can talk to this shipbuilder. I heard his shipbuilding craft is very impressive,"
But as she spoke, An's voice suddenly dropped:
"However, this shipbuilder..."
Chen Qi anticipated:
"An? Is there something troublesome about this shipbuilder's character? A bit eccentric, that even with money, you can't get him to build a ship?"
Ah? An's eyes widened.
Chen Qi had completely guessed what she was about to say next.
A feeling of being seen through… An gave a slight smile, thinking of herself as someone quite adept at hiding her emotions.
Chen Qi propped his face with his hand.
Although he had heard of the shipbuilder Bri's great reputation, he knew very little about him personally.
The only thing he knew was that the shipbuilder had an abnormal mind.
The Ice Demon pirate crew, aside from the enigmatic Palu who was earnest in his work and zealous in unearthing historical secrets, did not have a single normal person.
Seeing that she had piqued Chen Qi's interest, An continued to explain:
"I heard that this shipbuilder is the son of a top engineer at Steam Hand Company, and he's already in his thirties, but he doesn't have a wife yet and is currently being pressured to marry. Maybe you can start from there."
"Pressured to marry?"
Chen Qi was dumbfounded. Is there marriage pressure in another world too?
An stealthily glanced at her drunk father.
In Maro Town, there were many who married early, but her father was completely different, almost wishing for his daughter to become a nun, living a sober and ascetic life.
Her father believed she had the potential to become a legend!
Becoming a legend meant possessing the power to do as one pleased!
An herself thought the same, but the difficulty of becoming a legend far exceeded her imagination.
Just the first step, a Fourth Rank Occupation Card, blocked countless talented individuals.
An's Flame Skill teacher, also from a poor background, became a Third Rank Magic Master at the age of twenty, but at fifty, she still had not found a legendary Occupation Card.
Without opportunities or the support of a major family, this Flame Skill teacher might still not advance to Fourth Rank by sixty.
For someone like Chen Qi, if he had aspirations of advancing to Fourth Rank, the most reliable method would be to marry into a great family and then join their high-casualty military service, stationed at the edges of the world for three years to obtain a Fourth Rank Occupation Card.
That is also why, when Chen Qi had initially refused Old Bai Ou's invitation, An was so shocked.
An put away her complex thoughts and looked with Chen Qi towards the distant shipbuilder, Bri.
Under the onslaught of the Ghost Ship, only Bri had the skills to build ships faster than the Ghost Ship!
Therefore, these merchants all showed obsequious smiles.
"Mr. Bri, I've heard you're single, and my daughter has also reached a suitable age for marriage," said a prominent merchant, introducing his blond and curvy daughter to Bri.
The merchant's daughter had beautiful blond hair and a shapely figure; her only flaw was somewhat thick lips.
However, Bri did not even glance her way and shook his head:
"Ladies and gentlemen, please stop trying to set me up with potential matches. My standards are quite high; I only like mature older women, and I have no intention of getting married at all.
As for building ships, I will take some new orders once the Ghost Ship incident is over."
Chen Qi downed a cup of wine.
"Mature older women?"
An and Chen Qi both crossed their arms, furrowed their brows, and then shook their heads at the same time.
Damn it!
Neither of them knew any mature older women.
Seeing the gloomy expression on the faces of the two, the Deep Sea Water Elf No. 1 poured them some grape wine.
Discover more stories at empire
An wryly smiled and said,
"Chen Qi, it seems like we're out of options. You should know, that merchant's daughter is famous far and wide for her beauty."
"..."
Chen Qi fell into contemplation.
He indeed needed a good ship now.
If he could get this shipbuilder to do the work, then his ship would have the capacity to sail the Crack Sea!
But to get the shipbuilder to act, one must touch upon his psychological sore spot.
"Is there any way to threaten, or hoodwink, this shipbuilder?"
The first person Chen Qi thought of was the pirate crew of the Ice Witch, the capricious captain Palu.
In the gaming forums, it was mentioned that the Ice Witch pirate crew took great pride in their image, especially that of their captain and their crew.
No matter what, Palu was one of the four emperors.
But their captain was too indecorous, not only dressing up as a woman but also often doing servant's work.
These things were stains severely tarnishing the image of the Ice Witch pirate crew!
If they could find Palu and take photos of him in women's attire, perhaps they could threaten the sailors of the Ice Witch pirate crew with those photos!
Alas, Palu wasn't around, and with his current status, doing such things would be tantamount to suicide.
"Troublesome..."
Chen Qi muttered.
An sensed Chen Qi's distress:
"Chen Qi, don't worry. In our Witch Sea, there are many impressive shipyards. When the time comes, I'll help you inquire and finding a small houseboat with full power won't be an issue."
No, An, what I want is a large houseboat capable of carrying a Ghost Fire core!
And this requires a top-notch professional shipbuilder... Chen Qi drank another glass of grape wine:
"I'll go and give it a try first."
"Ehhhhh?"
An bit her tongue, clenched her fists, and looked at Chen Qi incredulously!
Do you actually know a mature big sister? When did that happen?
Before An could interrogate him, Chen Qi picked up the grape wine, walked over to Briley:
"Mr. Briley, I may have a way to point out a clear path for your marriage troubles."
The shipbuilder Briley, who had been single for many years, shook his head:
"Gentlemen, why can't we just eat properly? I am the kind of man who stays true to one. If I can't find my ideal match, I would rather stay single till death. Sadly, the woman of my dreams doesn't exist in this world."
Briley had had enough of everyone's nagging.
He had come here just to have a meal cooked by the owner of the Water Elf Restaurant and to inquire news about the Black Whale pirate crew.
Now, he hadn't even had his meal or heard any news.
Yet there were a bunch of people fussing over his marriage for no reason!
Chen Qi swirled his wine glass:
"The world is vast and full of wonders, Mr. Briley. Why not describe your ideal type for us? With so many of us here, someone might just know her."
The others echoed Chen Qi's suggestion.
Briley bowed his head, looking at the people present:
Impossible, even his captain could not become what he wanted!
Chen Qi said in a tempting voice:
"What if? Mr. Briley."
"..."
Briley hesitated for a long while.
"Alright, but let me be clear, this is the perfect woman in my mind and none of you are to spread this."
He took out the drafting pen from his knapsack and began to draw his ideal woman.
After a while, Briley put down the pen, a smile curling on his lips:
"This is the mature woman of my dreams."
Chen Qi took the draft paper and examined it closely.
The woman in the drawing was immensely tall with robust bronze muscles, eighteen well-defined abdominal muscles, smooth and strong body lines, and pale torchlight flickering in her eyes!
Besides that, she had a sharp-angled, square face and was exuding hot steam all over her body.
She was also wearing light combat armor that matched her skin tone.
Briley excitedly rubbed his nose:
"How about that? The ideal woman in my mind. Isn't she mature? Isn't she beautiful?"
Chen Qi's brow furrowed tightly, unable to resist making a retort.
You call this a mature big sister, and not a Gundam?