There was a commotion.

On board was a White Scavenger identical to the one Saint had recently fought. It battled Arlen ferociously, though surprisingly, only a few people were present to witness the fight.

The Prince stood watch, alert, while Thor appeared to boost Arlen's strikes with his power. It was new to see Thor use his True Ability that way.

Hazard with chains in hand, waited patiently nearby, as if biding his time for the right moment.

Halo burst outside to find those four dealing with the White Scavenger. The battle's intensity alone had the whole ship shaking.

Unlike when he'd faced Dark Saint, he could actually watch this fight unfold. His training helped, but only somewhat. The real reason was how Arlen fought.

Halo remembered her being blown away by a simple gesture from Leto, but now the White Scavenger's attacks appeared completely ineffective against her.

This White Scavenger was undoubtedly more powerful than Saint's opponent. Though physically identical to the others, the destruction it left in its wake and its overwhelming strength made the difference clear.

At first, Halo assumed Thor was helping Arlen withstand the creature's assault, but closer examination revealed that Thor was instead amplifying the power of Arlen's strikes.

Her True Ability was entirely defensive. Attacks seemed to lose all force upon contact with her. It suited her listless nature perfectly, though right now she appeared more alive than Halo had ever witnessed.

It was refreshing for Halo to watch a battle from the sidelines for once. That didn't last long, though, he soon found himself in the crossfire.

After faking an attack, the White Scavenger swung at the air, sending a powerful blast of wind that struck Halo and Arlen, slamming them to the deck.

But the instant that happened, Hazard launched a chain that wrapped tightly around the creature. In perfect sync, Prince rushed in and seized the White Scavenger by the head.

"Sleep!" She commanded, and the creature was out cold.

Halo was confused by the whole situation, but he forced himself up anyway. Why were they capturing the White Scavenger instead of killing it? And how had its attack bypassed Arlen's defenses this time?

In the heat of the moment, he turned to Arlen to see her fast asleep. In fact, she was snoring as though she'd been out for ages.

Prince reached him before he could get up and pulled him to his feet.

Halo sneered.

"You do realize this won't make me hate you any less, right?"

Prince sighed in disbelief.

Hazard and Thor pulled the creature away from the main deck, and once Halo regained his footing, Prince moved to Arlen's side.

Halo frowned.

"Hey, Prince, what's going on?"

She turned toward him, and even through the thick fog, Halo could see her lazy look.

"You can call me Lyra. And if you must use my title, it's Prince of Order. 'Prince' on its own feels odd."

Halo didn't care.

"What's going on?" He asked again.

Lyra rested beside Arlen and turned to him.

"As long as one White Scavenger is with us, the others won't attack. They know they're immortal. If we release it too soon, a stronger one will replace it, so we should capture it and let it go only when we're ready to leave this sea."

Halo looked disappointed. Such powerful creatures, and their pride was their weakness? Still beyond the White Scavenger, there were a lot of bizarre circumstances.

"I thought Arlen couldn't take damage. And how were you able to command the Sinner to sleep? Was that how you controlled StoneHaven?"

Lyra sighed.

"I didn't control anyone… they just respected my decisions." She turned to Arlen.

"Arlen's True Ability is Zero. She can reduce the force behind any physical attack to nothing. But as you saw, she's too lazy to learn how to defend against manipulative abilities… she hasn't even learned how to use it offensively either."

Halo understood now. Leto's attack and the White Scavenger's blast were the same, compressed air, not physical strikes. That's why they'd affected her.

"What about you? Do you specialize in manipulation or something?"

Lyra looked displeased at Halo's comment, though she maintained her calm.

"My True Ability is Command. It allows me to transform anything I touch into whatever I desire. I can't control an entire land as you assumed, but I can command an ordinary blade to become a legendary weapon. At my current strength, however, the effect is temporary and must be reapplied."

Halo didn't need to overthink this. She was definitely what Kysa had sensed. But judging by her words, she seemed unaware of her True Ability's strength. Did her Flaw cause that?

Halo shrugged it off and joined her on the floor.

"Can you command yourself? You could become a god… maybe even immortal."

As soon as Halo asked, the mood shifted a little.

"That's what I use on myself to look manly. Guess you saw through it anyway. But I can't command anything my body or mind can't endure, it would destroy me."

Halo frowned, shocked.

"Are you sure no one noticed? I mean… it was pretty obvious. You were trying a little too hard to be manly."

Lyra sighed.

"I know now, but I will still act like a man regardless."

She spoke well enough, though uncertainty lingered beneath her words. Someone had obviously told her that strength required being a man. Halo had understood this since their time in StoneHaven.

"You know what? In this world, no one casts the stone. You can be whatever you want. But know this—you can be who you truly are, too, and no one would care. Just let things flow naturally. Don't force yourself, it's hard to watch."

Halo's words hung in the air for a moment.

Lyra grabbed Arlen and put her on her shoulder.

"It's too cold out here, I will speak with you later."

It had little to do with the cold.

Halo sighed. His body had adjusted somewhat to the cold by now, but worse still, the temperature dropped further each day.

His body shivered.

'Whoa… I need some heat.'

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