The moment the clown mask rolled into the woods, chaos erupted in the camp.

  “Oh my God, the captain’s mask is alive!”

  “Should... should we retreat?”

  “Mr. Charles, can I crawl into your pocket? I’m a bit scared.”

  “Silence!!” Charles’s voice cut through the panic. He furrowed his brow, glaring at his crew. “What are you all shouting about? It’s just a moving mask! After everything we’ve been through, you let this little scene frighten you like this?”

  Seeing the chatter die down, Charles glanced at his watch and declared, “Break’s over! Let’s move out!”

  The crew, now quiet, followed their captain deeper into the woods. Though they didn’t voice their concerns, their expressions betrayed their anxiety, and their grips on their weapons tightened.

  Meanwhile, Charles was grappling with the same question as his crew: why had 096 suddenly come to life? It had been near him for a while, and he had worn it countless times without any sign of life.

  “Could it be related to this island? Does it have some connection to it?” As he pondered this, he peered into the darkness between the trees but saw nothing.

  “I’d say this is a good sign. It means we’re in the right place. The stranger the place, the greater the benefits. Conversely, places without danger yield no rewards,” Richard chimed in.

  Charles didn’t respond. Instead, he turned to the doctor, who was being supported by Deep and Frey. “How’s your wound, doctor?”

  “Humph! If you really cared about me, you’d let me stay on the ship. You didn’t say I’d have to explore the island when we made our agreement,” the doctor grumbled, taking a swig from his metal flask.

  Seeing his bravado, Charles figured the injury wasn’t too serious.

  As the group moved forward, the environment began to change. The trees grew shorter, giving way to a vast area of overgrown ruins.

  This wasteland was enormous, comparable to a small town, filled with crumbling walls covered in vines, exuding an eerie desolation.

  While the crew could only see part of the ruins illuminated by their torches, Charles, with his night vision, could see much more. In the darkness, the collapsed buildings resembled spiders crouching, watching them.

  No matter how glorious they once were, time had slowly eroded all traces of humanity, leaving only remnants behind.

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  Charles paused for a moment before continuing forward. Regardless of who the ruins belonged to, time had taken everything away.

  “It sounds like there’s water. Can you hear it?” Charles suddenly spoke up. Noticing the puzzled looks on his crew, he decided not to elaborate and pressed on.

  “Mr. Charles! There really is water! My friend and I can smell it!” Lily exclaimed, bounding up to Charles’s shoulder, her little nose twitching. “And it’s fresh water!”

  At the mention of fresh water, the crew erupted in excitement, understanding the significance of this discovery.

  Following the increasingly loud sound of water, Charles soon found himself at the center of the ruins, where a heap of rusty, old machinery lay, and the sound of flowing water emanated from beneath it.

  “Give me the explosives.”

  With a loud bang, the decayed machinery was blown apart, and everyone leaned in to peer into the dark hole beneath.

  Torches were tossed into the abyss, revealing a flowing underground river.

  After eagerly tasting the water, Deep exclaimed, “Captain! It’s fresh water! This island is habitable!”

  The crew cheered wildly, their enthusiasm dispelling the surrounding darkness.

  They had risked their lives to join this exploratory voyage, all for this moment.

  A newly discovered island meant the captain could become a governor, and every crew member would rise in rank. They would no longer have to go to sea but instead live like the nobles at the island’s center.

  Charles, however, wasn’t as excited. His goals differed from those of his crew; finding a habitable island was merely a side quest.

  Watching their exhilaration, he decided to let them rest and calm down before continuing.

  While high morale was beneficial, overly excited crew members could lead to trouble.

  In a corner between two partially intact walls, a campfire was lit.

  The excited crew could hardly sleep, reveling in visions of a glorious future. Eventually, Charles had to order the doctor to sedate them to ensure they got some rest.

  Charles himself struggled to sleep. After taking a bit of the doctor’s medicine, he finally slipped into slumber.

  He didn’t know how long he had been asleep when a strange sound jolted him awake—a hissing noise, reminiscent of a gas canister releasing air.

  “Shhh…” The sound came again.

  Fully alert, Charles tensed up. That sound was unmistakable—it was the sound of a human trachea being sliced.

  He sprang to his feet and immediately spotted a small figure raising a rusty blade toward James.

  Hearing the commotion behind him, the figure suddenly turned. In the flickering firelight, 096’s pale face with its red nose loomed before Charles.

  In a reflexive action, Charles raised his gun and fired, unleashing a barrage of bullets at 096’s host.

  The small body was knocked backward by the impact of the bullets, but as soon as the gunfire ceased, it dropped to all fours and darted away like a cheetah.

  “Deep! Get the doctor to help him quickly!” Charles shouted, kicking the dazed sailor and charging after the fleeing figure.

  Watching its retreating silhouette, Charles’s expression hardened. Whatever had caused 096 to come alive, it clearly harbored a grudge against them. It had to be eliminated, or it would return.

  Amidst the overgrown ruins, two figures raced through the darkness, moving with agility and speed. To an onlooker, it would appear as if they were performing an intricate parkour routine.

  “Richard, whose body is 096 using right now? How can it run so fast even after being shot in the chest?”

  “Don’t ask me! That old man’s medicine knocked me out too!”

  Both of them matched each other’s speed, neither able to gain the upper hand. 096 quickly reached the edge of the woods and dashed straight in without hesitation.

  Clenching his teeth, Charles followed closely behind.