I put out his fire

Chapter 10 The first appearance of the water disaster

Out of habit, Rhodes can always keep the lightest sleep on board.Even the slightest sway of the boat can make him open his eyes instantly.

He was the kind of man who could wake his eyes instantly whether he opened them in the morning or in the middle of the night.

He was awakened by a violent vibration and the sound of footsteps.

Rhodes subconsciously touched the long sword and sat up like a full bowstring.He scanned his surroundings vigilantly, his eyes were as merciless as ice swords.

Nero was sleeping on the opposite bed.He was still sleeping peacefully, his face was covered by a quilt, only a pair of ears were exposed, like a small beast living in a secluded cave.

Rhodes opened the curtain with the tip of his sword and looked out.

A group of masked men rushed onto the deck.They all wore greasy sackcloth and carried light-colored rusty knives and axes, running around like a bunch of ants scattered by the water.

Rhodes suddenly wanted to laugh when he was familiar with it.

He has seen this kind of battle of pirates seizing ships countless times.

He stepped over in one step, tore off the quilt, grabbed Nero's ear and shook him awake, "Don't sleep! You have met a pirate!"

Nero murmured twice, his eyes were sleepy, and he rubbed his eyes in a daze.He was still dazed, rubbing his head between the pillow and quilt twice, and said softly, "What pirate..."

Rhodes didn't have time to explain more.

He put a cloak on Nero and walked out almost holding his collar.

Nero clung to his arm half asleep, stumbling all the way, like a pet held in the arms of its owner.

The two rushed to the stern, where a small wooden boat was tied to escape.

However, the ship has already been boarded by Quentin.

"I'm sorry, but my boat is too small to accommodate the two of you!" Quentin stood in the middle of the boat, his cheeks puffed up like puffed dough, and he gave Nero a sly smile.

There were two guards standing behind him, quickly letting go of the boat rope.

Nero suddenly woke up.

"Please let Lord Domitius aboard." Rhodes said calmly, "I can stay."

Nero couldn't help but hugged his arm tightly, looked at him in horror, his lips trembling slightly.

"Oh! What a loyal guard!" Quentin sneered, "It's just that this ship has no place for him from the beginning!"

Rod paused, the corners of his lips tightened as if stuck in glue, and a dangerous bright color shot out from his eyes.

Quentin lowered his chin, and rolled his round eyes twice, as if nailed to a pool of flowing fat, giving people a slippery feeling.

"Thanks to you not going to bed tonight, you just ran to the deck to flirt with your guards and told me the source of the goods." He smiled slyly, stared at Nero and said, "I can let my pirates advance Boarding... You know, I have been waiting for this moment for seven days!"

Nero was stunned, and after waking up, he became sullen.He lowered his voice, squeezed out words from deep in his throat, and said angrily: "Despicable thing!"

Quentin laughed and whistled at him, "Sorry! That Indian businessman is mine now!"

The two guards untied the boat rope at this time.The wooden boat was released and drifted away.

Nero turned around with a gloomy face.At this time, the ship was in a mess.

There are so many pirates, coming up from the dilapidated pirate ships, bringing a fishy smell, like a pile of decaying moths.They carried out all the wheat and meat in the cabin, and tied all the slaves together one by one.

Those who resisted had already been beheaded, their heads hung high on the mast, dripping blood all over the ground.

Nero had never seen anything like it.His breathing was disordered, and he hugged Rhodes' arm in panic.

He had a premonition that something bad was going on for him.

"Their target is me..." His immature and inconspicuous Adam's apple rolled, and his palms were sweating, "I think I'm going to die..."

"What are you afraid of?!" Rhodes turned his hand to hold the sword, and glanced around scribbled.He brushed his hair back, and a little unruly smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

He took his shoulders and assured him confidently, "I'll keep you safe and sound!"

Nero raised his head nervously, and those calm black eyes bumped into him suddenly, like a black reef sitting firmly on the bottom of the sea.

He feels inexplicable peace of mind now.

Rhodes looked at him and smiled easily.When disaster came, he never panicked.

The pirates were closing in, their leader pushing his way through the crowd.

His clothes were shabby, and he wore a heavy bronze mask, with strands of dirty hair hanging down in front of the mask.

"You are Nero." The leader laughed lowly, his voice hoarse like a mess of soot, "Oh...the offspring of a great man!"

Nero pursed his lips, clutching Rhodes' sleeves tightly, his face pale as if bleached.

The leader quickly pulled out a knife and deliberately twirled it in his palm.He maliciously let the bright white blade flash past Nero's eyes as a demonstration.

"Someone bought your life for 30 sesterces." The leader compared the numbers with his short, fat fingers, "The blood of Augustus is indeed very valuable!"

Nero suddenly held his breath, a trace of vicious emotion stirred on his face.He asked sullenly, "Who wants to kill me?"

The leader waved his knife, as if trying to scare him deliberately, "According to pirate rules, you must never reveal the name of your employer. However, since you are a child who didn't even take off the amulet, I will tell you now... "

He leaned forward stickily, leaned close to Nero's ear and said: "She is Claudius' wife, that is, the queen who competes with prostitutes to pick up guests. On the day I went to see her, she had half breasts｜ The room is exposed..."

The pirates around laughed, their voices were wretched.

Nero remained silent.

The leader picked up a rag, spit on it, and polished the blade with it in a leisurely manner, "Actually, I don't want to kill you, but I can only follow orders. You'd better be honest with me, I will consider giving you a good time." !"

Rhodes took a step forward, covering Nero behind him.

A teasing smile appeared on his lips: "It's only 30! Your employer is too stingy!"

"Shut up!" The leader was dissatisfied, and said in a stern tone: "I will cut off your head first!"

Rhodes is not afraid.He approached slowly like a heavy dark cloud, and said contemptuously: "If it were me, if the hiring fee was less than 100 million, I wouldn't be bothered to be stained with Augustus' blood..."

"Hmph!" The leader snorted, "You're overthinking yourself!"

Rhodes smiled.He boldly stretched out his hand, flicked the rusty bronze mask on his head, and made a clang.

"It seems that you are at the end of your rope! Maybe even the keel of your boat is loose? Can your sails still push the entire hull?!" He questioned.

The leader froze for a moment, then shouted irritablely, like an enraged rooster: "Who are you?! It's not your turn to speak here!"

Rhodes pointed to the pirate ship not far away, and smiled mysteriously: "I am a person... who knows what you need most right now."

The leader sneered: "We need money most!"

"No." Rhodes shook his head, "You need a new boat most, preferably with two sails, the oars are light iron wood, the cables are not easy to embroider, and the mast is bronze that will not be broken by the wind. The deck is enough It is big enough to hold more than a dozen lifeboats, and it is also equipped with speed and depth measuring equipment. The sink is independent, and there are kitchens and compartments in the cabin, which can prevent epidemics.”

He stared at the leader closely, his eyes contained strong perceptual power, "As the leader of the pirates, what you are most afraid of is the contagious disease, right?"

The leader was stunned, staring in disbelief, and said in astonishment: "You bastard..." He almost sighed.

"30 sesterces definitely can't buy such a ship! But..." Rhodes said, "I can get it for you, and it will be very fast!"

He lowered his voice and said, "As long as you let us go!"

The leader snorted lightly, "I'd rather believe that the sun rises from the sea than people's promises made in desperation! Do you think that I, who have experienced strong winds and waves, can agree to this ridiculous request of yours?"

"So I need two days!" Rhodes remained calm, "Two days later, a merchant ship full of cargo will pass through this sea..."

He patted the leader on the shoulder, and said bewitchingly: "As a pirate who makes a living by plundering, you should know what this means..."

The leader's eyes brightened quickly, like two polished gold coins, "Merchant...merchant ship..."

"The routes of merchant ships are very hidden, but the guards are very loose. As long as you find them, you can easily rob them." Rhodes said, "Counting the cargo and ships, you will make a lot of money, definitely more than the 30 sesterces !"

The leader stared at him in bewilderment for a long time, and after thinking for a long time, he said: "It seems that you are very familiar with pirates! If you weren't wearing this damn leather armor, I would have thought you were my colleague! Or the one with the most experience. kind!"

Rhodes ignored it, and continued: "Just use this merchant ship for our lives. How about it?"

The leader nodded: "Yes, it's just a short two days. If things are as you said, I will let you go. But if not..."

He threatened: "I'll hang Nero's head on the mast, and let his flesh be dried and roasted!"

"Yes!" Rhodes replied.

He reached back, grabbed Nero by the neckline, and easily pulled him over, as if he was showing some merchandise.

Nero was like a frightened sheep, leaning against half of his body listlessly, his fluffy silver hair shaking along with his shoulders.

"It's not just him..." Rhode stroked his hair soothingly, "Don't forget to add me too!"