In those days, men still held covenants and oaths in extremely high regard. Upon seeing the signal flare, pirate ships immediately moved in to lend aid. Yet, the Queen Anne's Revenge and the Flying Dutchman, both legendary vessels, curiously chose neutrality, hoisting sail and gliding far away. Despite the numerous pirates rushing to assist, Captain Old Jack and First Mate Jack Sparrow of the Black Pearl failed to appear, plunging the pirates into a state of fighting on their own, leaderless. This caused the battle to devolve into sheer chaos.

At this moment, Amand also stepped onto the deck. His hand rested on the silver rapier at his waist as he gazed upon the white-haired knight holding his ground atop the Black Pearl. A ferocious glint, heavy with imminent ambition, suddenly flashed in his eyes! After the naval battle with the Spanish Armada a few days prior, Amand’s prestige had quietly settled as the foremost figure beneath the three legendary pirate captains. Seeing them now scattered and without leadership, if he could step forward, defeat the master of Port Royal, and lead them to victory, his standing afterward would, at the very least, rival—and certainly surpass—that of Blackbeard and Davy Jones!

Just as Amand resolved to issue commands, Fang Senyan took a deep, sharp breath and suddenly called out:

"Captain! If I'm not mistaken, the person on the Black Pearl is Lord Smallfoot, isn't he?"

Amand turned, a sharp glare flashing in his eyes:

"Indeed."

Fang Senyan met his gaze without fear: "Though we don't know why Smallfoot has gone mad attacking the Black Pearl, it's clear that the forces in Port Royal Castle have completely emptied out; their defenses are terribly thin!"

Saying this, a look of avarice crossed Fang Senyan’s eyes. He lowered his voice conspiratorially: "Why don't we go grab a fortune?"

Amand's heart leaped. He glanced again at the battle. At least five or six pirate ships had gone to render aid, completely sealing off the waters around the Black Pearl. The crackle of flintlock muskets sounded like popping beans, mingling with thick gunpowder smoke, and the boarding melee had already begun—a scene of chaos mingled with slaughter. If they rushed over now, the Bell and Glass would likely struggle even to approach. Attacking Port Royal Castle instead, striking where they were weakest—a strategy of besieging Wei to rescue Zhao—would be far wiser. If they could force Smallfoot into a hasty retreat, the credit would undoubtedly fall to him. Even if Smallfoot stubbornly refused to return, Amand himself would still walk away loaded with spoils!

In the final analysis: saving allies never felt as good as robbing enemies.

Though his mind had already accepted Fang Senyan’s proposal, Amand deliberately waited a moment, until his subordinates grasped the brilliance of the scheme. Their eyes shone with the green glint of hungry wolves as they looked at him with yearning anticipation before he finally declared:

"Yes, that is also my intention."

The pirates immediately let out a cheer. It was the same risk of fighting and bleeding, but one path led only to a few words of thanks from allies after risking life and limb, while the other led to easy arson, plunder, and looting. Even a fool knew which path to choose.

Amand's cunning, however, ran deep. With a simple sentence, he claimed Fang Senyan's proposal as his own, effectively marginalizing him.

"Charles, Matt."

"You two will lead the team, take our best young lads! But don't take too many, to avoid alerting the other curs and having them beat us to the punch," Amand called out their names. Then, a sinister smile touched his lips:

"The Smallfoot family has been too peaceful for too long. This time, they dared to strike at pirates first! Let them taste the flavor of blood and cold steel!"

Charles, having been named, was unsurprised. Henry, the first mate, should have led the mission, but his head injury sustained in the fight against the Armada hadn't healed. Charles leading was therefore a natural progression. But the naming of Blind Matt, the second boatswain, though seemingly unexpected, was also logical. The Smallfoot family had operated in Port Royal for a full seventy years, their wealth amassed almost to mountains. The spoils from breaking into that stronghold were indescribably vast. Without his confidant, Blind Matt, there to supervise and watch over the proceedings, how could Amand possibly trust Charles to go?

As for Amand remaining aboard his ship, that too was carefully considered. As one of the future Seven Pirate Kings, Amand was not someone easily swayed by mere wealth. Although the wealth accumulated over seventy years in Port Royal was staggering and tempting, the circumstances that night were profoundly bizarre: the Black Pearl being attacked by Lord Smallfoot, the two legendary pirate ships that should have been allied standing idly by, and at least half the other pirate ships remaining inert. In such a situation, aggressive action was necessary, but more crucial was securing the Bell and Glass as an escape route! Furthermore, Amand's perception was acute, and a feeling of imminent, extreme danger lingered in his mind. Thus, he was absolutely determined not to leave his ship that night.

For Amand, as long as he held command of this ship, any pirates sent out, even if they returned laden with treasures, would ultimately have to return to the Bell and Glass—a guaranteed return on investment. And should any unforeseen risk arise, Amand could immediately hoist sail and flee. Given this ship's superior speed, unless the Black Pearl and the British flagship The Dauntless arrived, escape was certain! Therefore, Amand's decision to stay behind was a display of extreme astuteness—a move equally strong in offense and defense.

Time slipped by quickly. Nearly two hours passed, and the fight on the Black Pearl raged on. During this time, several pirate captains friendly with Amand managed to transmit fragmented bits of intelligence:

One report claimed that at five in the afternoon, the steward of Port Royal Castle had extended an invitation for Captain Old Jack and First Mate Jack Sparrow of the Black Pearl to attend a banquet, supposedly to negotiate this year's sugar quotas. Only Old Jack attended; First Mate Jack Sparrow did not.

Another report mentioned sighting First Mate Jack Sparrow on the west side of the island.

The last piece of intelligence suggested that Port Royal Castle had intercepted news that the pirates were about to turn on the port for a massive raid, and thus decided to strike first preemptively.

This information was disorganized, clearly a mix of truth and fabrication. Even the shrewd Amand fell into deep thought, trying to sift the true narrative from the tangled surface phenomena, a difficult and thankless task. He also had to consider: Fang Senyan was not the only one who realized Port Royal's defenses were thin at this moment. Fang Senyan's ability to react instantly to the chaos stemmed from his prior psychological readiness for such a scenario—indeed, it could be argued Fang Senyan himself had ignited this storm sweeping Port Royal. Thus, contingency plans and scripts for every reaction had already been cycled through his mind countless times, explaining his coolness under pressure.

By now, several pirate ships at sea had already raised their skull and crossbones flags, dispatching men holding knives and torches to charge into the port along routes too familiar to count, screaming wildly—the only difference was their role had shifted from consumer to brigand. The merchants running businesses in the neutral port were no saints themselves, and in a short time, the thriving Port Royal descended into bloodshed, smoke, and fire.

Amand stood ramrod straight at the bow of the Bell and Glass. With his hands clasped behind his back, he gazed toward the chaotic Port Royal nearby, his expression growing increasingly grave. Fang Senyan, standing behind him, also inhaled deeply, letting the faint, smoky breeze of the Caribbean fill his lungs, seemingly worried about something, yet smirking coldly within.

"Things are unfolding exactly as I predicted..."

For Fang Senyan, who had orchestrated the entire situation, he could easily guess what worried Amand—it had to be the plundering party he had dispatched under Charles and Blind Matt. Based on the elapsed time, if that team had been successful, they should have signaled their return by now. Their continued absence suggested two possibilities:

Possibility A: They successfully entered the undefended Port Royal Castle and secured massive wealth. Possibility B: They encountered difficulties in Port Royal Castle and suffered heavy casualties.

If Possibility B held true, then those pirates should currently be en route back to the Bell and Glass. But the chaos in Port Royal now seemed utterly out of control. Those pirates, already screaming and blinded by greed, seeing the considerable wealth carried by Charles’s numerically insufficient team, would be fools not to realize what they would do! Charles's team would inevitably be surrounded and suffer devastating losses!

Whichever scenario occurred, the dispatched plundering party would suffer immense losses due to their limited numbers! This was precisely what Amand wished to avoid. The Bell and Glass had already lost too many key members recently. If anything happened to that dispatched team, the strength Amand commanded could not be described as merely wounded—it would drop a full tier, not even counting the loss of the massive plunder they might have brought back if successful!

For a moment, everyone sensed Amand's hesitation and distress, but no one dared speak. The situation devolved into an awkward silence, broken only by the gentle lapping of the sea against the hull. Amand gazed at the Port Royal night sky, stained red by the firelight, his right hand instinctively reaching for his sword hilt, gripping it tightly, then releasing it, gripping again—clearly struggling to make a decision.

At this point, Fang Senyan took a deep breath.

The night was vast, the sea gently rocking.

Fang Senyan stood by the ship's rail, his entire being seeming to merge with the deep, boundless ocean, possessing an ineffable mystery and strangeness.

His breath seemed to synchronize with the ocean's tides. After a long moment, he spoke a single sentence.

This sentence was spoken while Fang Senyan looked directly into Amand's eyes.

It was delivered with profound sincerity, seemingly from the heart.

But only those who knew everything understood the extent of the shamelessness embedded within that sentence! It was a sentence long-planned, meticulously crafted, and born from excruciating effort. Yet, it was the very statement that would reveal the final piece of the puzzle from his entire preceding scheme!

.............

Hahahaha, I'm saving this sentence until 11:30 PM tonight! We haven't played an interactive game in ages. Once this sentence is out, over half of Little Fang’s prior blueprint will be unveiled!

Come on, guess what Little Fang said.