novelraw Chapter 206: This Is Just Bullying an Honest Man
Chapter 206: This Is Just Bullying an Honest Man
Leon was still worried about whether Gus would be able to move properly after getting ashore like this. Fortunately, Willy spoke up at that moment.
“We’re almost there.”
Hearing Willy’s words, Leon looked toward the bow of the boat and spotted a streak of dazzling crimson on the distant horizon, like a mass of fire burning atop the water.
As the fishing boat sped forward, Leon gradually made out the fiery shape—it was a volcano, and not a dormant one, but one spewing molten lava.
Beneath the volcano lay a stretch of dead trees and a jumble of massive boulders. It was an island, but no matter how you looked at it, it didn’t seem safe.
“Is this the island we’re landing on?”
“No. But seeing it means we’re close to our destination.” Willy shook his head. “That’s a death island, also called Lava Island. Anyone who sails the Gem Sea knows there’s no reason to go near it. Old Hans isn’t stupid—hardly anyone who’s gone ashore there has come back alive.”
“I dared to bring you out here because I know where Lava Island is. On Old Hans’s map, the treasure point is marked near it. Without a landmark like that, I wouldn’t be able to pinpoint the spot from just an ordinary nautical chart.”
“I don’t see any other islands nearby,” Gus said from where he was leaning over the rail, scanning the surroundings. Indeed, aside from Lava Island, there was nothing else in sight.
“Who says a treasure has to be on land?” Willy steered the boat around the volcanic island and finally stopped at a relatively calm patch of sea.“The marked location is roughly here.”
After dropping anchor, Willy pulled out the map from his pocket, compared the markings, and nodded.
“The seabed?” Leon frowned as he glanced at the water. If there was an island, at least it would be easier to explore—but underwater would be a lot more troublesome.
“That’s how it’s marked on the map.” Willy grimaced. “When I first saw the chart, I thought something was off. Now that we’re here, I know I was right. Old Hans really did hide it at the bottom of the sea.”
“Did we bring diving suits?” Gus asked.
“No. The seabed’s shallow here near Lava Island. We can manage without them,” Willy said reassuringly.
“Together?” Leon looked at the sunset melting into the horizon and asked.
“Sure. We’ll go down together first. Half an hour at most—we need to be back before it’s completely dark. Gus, you stay on board and get dinner ready.” Willy nodded and began stripping off his clothes.
Since they were all men, Leon didn’t mind and quickly did the same. At least both of them kept their underwear on.
Standing on deck, they loosened up with some stretches—jumping into the water without warming up was asking for trouble.
“No goggles. Opening your eyes underwater will hurt like hell,” Leon warned.
“Haha, you’ve clearly never swum in the Gem Sea,” Willy replied with a grin. “Once you’re in, you’ll understand.”
Then he added, “I’ll go left, you take the right?”
On the map, the marked circle covered a wide area in real life, so splitting up made sense.
“No problem,” Leon agreed.
“Then let’s go.” With that, Willy dove cleanly into the sea, vanishing from sight.
Leon jumped in the opposite direction.
He had worried about opening his eyes without goggles, but once underwater, he realized he could see clearly without any discomfort at all. Whether it was due to his own physique or just the way this world worked, Leon decided not to question it.
The light was fading fast, so visibility underwater wasn’t great. Luckily, the seabed here was only six or seven meters down, enough for him to make out its general shape.
Swimming forward, he surfaced for air only once every five minutes. His lung capacity surprised even himself.
The seabed was all sand and coral reefs, with small fish darting about. Pretty, but no obvious place to hide treasure. He had imagined either an underwater cave or a sunken ship—both easy to spot—but he saw neither.
As darkness crept in, visibility worsened until Leon couldn’t see the seabed at all. He surfaced, gulping in air, and spotted the fishing boat with its lamps lit.
The sun was gone. The moon and stars had taken their places in the night sky.
Climbing back aboard with the help of the fish lamps, Leon accepted a dry towel from Gus. After drying off, he noticed Willy wasn’t there.
“Willy’s not back yet?”
Before Gus could answer, Willy clambered up from the stern. “I’m back, aren’t I?”
Leon was about to ask if he’d found anything when he noticed an old compass in Willy’s hand.
Seeing Leon’s gaze, Willy explained, “Found this underwater. It’s a directional pointer Old Hans prepared. We’ll need to travel a bit farther before we reach the treasure. Let’s rest and eat first, then head out again.”
Then he went off to ask Gus about dinner.
Leon watched his back and sighed, thinking to himself that Willy was no honest man. There was no way he’d just stumbled upon that compass by luck. Either the map had some information Leon didn’t know, or Willy had some trick up his sleeve. In any case, he’d dragged Leon underwater for reasons unknown—maybe to hide something, or maybe just to keep him busy.
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