The seventh sea, the Dream Sea, shouldn't have been the most difficult to cross. In fact, compared to the monsters lurking in the rest of the seas, the seventh sea was practically a mercy.

Everything showed they were near the Ashen Ages. The sun was now twice the size it had been in Halo's world, and yet it shone barely the same.

Yet the positioning made it far from a safe haven. After going days without blinking or sleeping, anyone would crave just a gentle rest, even for a moment. That was exactly what the Dream Sea offered. But the slightest drowsiness meant death.

Even so, the crew now faced something that kept them sharp. The lullaby still hummed in their ears, making their actions sluggish and imprecise, but the obstacle was annoying enough to override any thought of sleep.

In the distance floated a ship they'd encountered countless times on the seven seas, yet it never failed to impress. How exactly they'd managed to survive this long was beyond comprehension, but it was a clear sign: never underestimate pirates.

The pirates relentlessly fired cannons at them, but without any visible equipment. They must have been launching them with their bare hands.

Part of the NeverLight was heavily damaged, but they had no intention of stopping. They fought with brutal rage, as if they weren't the aggressors.

But unlike when they'd last met on the Lava Sea beneath smoky skies, this time the sky was brilliantly clear. Without the tempting lullabies, this sea would have been indistinguishable from any other.

Halo watched with boiling rage as those bastards relentlessly fired at them. Those were the fools who'd trapped him in the Imitation Sea.

He snarled and cursed at them, irritation blazing across his face. He wished he could fly to their ship and beat them senseless. The assault on their own ship hardly registered.

Everyone stood on the main deck except for Hazard, Jihriel, and Thor. Even Leto was present, looking half dead as his seasickness returned. Nothing angered him more than those cowards, as if they were somehow responsible for his misery.

The others were being scolded by Omega. She was doing her best to keep them awake, though that was proving difficult with how sluggish Brave, White, and Arlen looked.

Halo, on the other hand, was fully alert. The kick in the balls from Light had been more than enough to erase any trace of sleep.

Lyra walked to the rails, standing beside Halo, Kysa, Saint, and Light. Her masculine attire was loosened now, buttons undone down to her chest, revealing the curve of her breasts and making it impossible to mistake her gender up close.

"What's our plan? They'll destroy the ship before we can stop them, and my True Ability won't work at this range."

Halo shrugged his shoulders. None of them could fly or walk on water, and the pirates knew it full well. They were milking that weakness for all it was worth. He had to give them credit for persistence, though.

"To be precise, we're the reason they took to the sea in the first place."

Saint narrowed her eyes in her black and golden mask.

"I saw fragments of their minds last time. Someone paid them generously to ensure we don't survive."

Lyra's expression darkened.

"The Northern Mist sent them?"

Saint struck a nonchalant pose.

"They don't know who hired them. Only that Sin Fragments were involved.

"It's not the Northern Mist—they want us alive.

"So yes… we're not short on enemies."

The instant Dark Saint spoke, a cannonball shot toward Kysa. She stood watching in disbelief, as if thinking it couldn't possibly be coming for her. She didn't move until it was inches from her mask, then caught it casually.

"You idiots! Do you have any idea who you're messing with?!"

She began fuming like a puffing train.

Light gave her a lazy look. "But you could've just dodged it."

"Shut the fuck up, Light."

She leaped onto the rail, her powerful aura fluctuating as she turned to Saint.

"Hey, help me get to those idiots?"

Dark Saint wasted no time. Pissed off like this, the pirates were already dead.

Kysa launched herself onto the sea without thinking, running as Saint materialized black mirrors beneath her feet. They met each step with perfect resistance, making it look like she was sprinting across invisible platforms.

The pirates threw everything at her, arrows, fire, cannonball after cannonball, but it only fueled her rage. Kysa swatted them away barehanded, sprinting faster and forcing Dark Saint to mirror her pace.

Panic seized the bastards as they realized they'd angered the wrong person. They tried to run, but it was already too late.

Kysa vaulted onto the ship and caught one by the throat. Others dove into the sea, but the Eternal Knight clearly had no intention of letting them escape.

Within seconds, she'd broken the neck of the one she held. She violently summoned her sword, Star Seeker, and the moment it appeared, even the NeverLight crew knew they were in peril. The aura it gave off was overwhelming.

She struck in a flash. The ship lingered for one suspended moment, almost cartoonish, then vanished completely, leaving barely a scrap of wood behind.

The impact split the sea cleanly in two, the rift vanishing into the distance, impossible to tell how far it reached. The NeverLight crew held on desperately as massive waves sent their ship flying at breakneck speed.

Even those who'd been drifting off to sleep jolted upright, grabbing hold of something, anything, praying they wouldn't get swept away.

Kysa, however, content with her vengeance, became a shadow and skimmed across the waves at unimaginable velocity, reaching Halo and resuming her form.

"Don't you think you went too far? Really? Your sword?"

Halo muttered, clutching the rail while water repeatedly splashed across the deck. Kysa just stood there looking cocky, as if to say she was the strongest knight and could stir up trouble whenever she wanted.

After hours of blazing speed, water constantly drenching the deck, and exhaustion so total they'd gone beyond feeling it, they finally glimpsed something meaningful, greenery. The shore at last.

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