#13 - Chapter 13 Patrolling the South China Sea

"Phew~ I'm stuffed!"

Jin An exhaled a long breath and rubbed his bulging stomach.

In his other hand, he held a stack of documents, which he used to fan his face.

One day prior.

Jin An received materials sent from the Marine Headquarters, detailing the well-known officers in the South Sea Marine branch.

Originally, he thought that old man Sengoku was treating him quite well, tasking him with investigating the competition.

However, after getting his hands on the materials, he realized that his name wasn't even on the list.

Someone as handsome, dashing, suave, rich, and powerful as him wasn't even listed.

Instead, three people were highlighted as the main candidates for this assessment from the Headquarters; all three were Colonels.

This was more than he could bear.

So, amidst Kuzan's resentful gaze, he entrusted all the affairs of the base to him.

Jin An dusted off his pants and took a vacation, asking Kuma, who was with Ginny, to use his abilities to bring him to this island.

This island was the base managed by one of the Colonels, and it seemed to be managed quite well, almost on par with the Sorbet Kingdom.

Jin An propped his chin up, lost in thought, but suddenly perked up when he heard the people around him talking.

"Did you hear? People have mysteriously disappeared again in the village to the east."

After saying this, the person looked around, and after noticing nobody was paying attention, continued chatting with their friend.

"That thing? Someone was talking about it just now..."

"Shhh..."

The restaurant owner walked out of the kitchen, put a finger to their lips, and signaled them not to discuss the topic any further.

"Don't you know that loose lips sink ships... This kind of thing isn't really suitable to be brought up."

The crowd was confused: "Weren't you happily chatting about this before? Why are you..."

The owner looked mysterious: "I heard something from my uncle's wife's uncle's son..."

The people lost interest upon hearing this; every time the owner spoke in this tone, it meant they were about to start boasting.

"Hey! What do you mean? What I heard this time is really important news," the owner said, getting anxious.

Seeing that they were serious, people's curiosity was piqued: "Then tell us..."

"The Marine Headquarters is sending someone to inspect the South Sea..." the owner said, "Colonel Charlie is spending money to grease the wheels, hoping to get through this inspection smoothly."

"Tch..."

The restaurant was filled with boos.

Inspections like this happened once or twice every year; everyone knew about it, yet the owner was making it sound so mysterious.

"If you keep this up, we won't come here to eat anymore," a customer who was familiar with the owner joked.

The owner's eyes darted around; originally, they just wanted to use the events happening on the Marine side to stop these customers from talking about those sensitive topics, but now they felt a bit unconvinced.

Their eyes widened: "Don't rush, I haven't finished speaking yet."

"According to the information I received, the missing people are suspected of being sent to the east..."

"......"

Jin An's eyes narrowed; this matter was interesting, a serial kidnapping case...

Then, he took out the money for the meal from his pocket and placed it under the bowl, slowly leaving the restaurant.

Based on what he learned today, the entire island's Marine force was in cahoots; their main goal right now was to safely pass this inspection and hand in a report that would satisfy the higher-ups.

They didn't want any unfavorable comments to appear and had been controlling public opinion these past few days; the owner from just now was an example.

Those people also knew that if any mistakes were made, they would, at best, lose their uniforms, and at worst, lose their heads; most of them would be implicated and imprisoned.

What the island's Marines didn't know was that he was also secretly acting during this inspection.

He also didn't know if there were any upright Marines on the island.

He was completely unfamiliar with this place, and he could only try to find the answers bit by bit.

"The east side of this island... What's there?"

Jin An rubbed his forehead, deciding to go there first to take a look.

......

On the east side of the island, Jin An circled around twice, but didn't find anything unusual.

This seemed to be a slum; the clothes on people's bodies were patched up, they looked listless, and their eyes were somewhat vacant.

"Is it hidden well, or is that information wrong?"

"Moreover, this place is really strange......"

There seemed to be many pedestrians on the street, but there was always a sense of disharmony.

Right... In the places he passed, people's eyes revealed numbness, as if they had been stimulated by something.

"Who are you? I've been following you for a while."

A young Marine walked in front of Jin An, pointing his sword at him, his eyes filled with hostility.

The scene of the two confronting each other was seen by the passersby.

Upon seeing the clothes worn by the young man, they pretended not to see anything, quickly averting their gaze and continuing with their own affairs.

They knew that people wearing these clothes would only bring them misfortune...

The young Marine clearly felt those gazes, his body trembled slightly, lowered his head, and didn't dare to look at those people.

He adjusted his breathing, trying to calm his mood: "Answer me quickly!"

Jin An ignored the young Marine's words, took a step, appeared behind him, and gently patted the boy's shoulder.

"Are you the Marine in charge of this area?"

He liked this boy's character, firm and pure, revealing a kind of "foolishness."

He dared to rush forward without even knowing the opponent's strength.

Just like a student who hasn't been exposed to society, full of curiosity about everything, and a passion that hasn't been worn down.

"I asked you first..."

The young Marine didn't even see the other party's movements, and fear slowly rose in his heart.

But he still didn't choose to back down, turning his neck to the right, his eyes fixed on the man behind him.

Looking at the boy's earnest gaze: "I'm just a merchant passing by here, doing market research."

Jin An was indeed a merchant, and he was also passing by this island to investigate, so these words were indeed true.

The young Marine looked at the hand on his shoulder, with an expression that said, 'Are you kidding me?'

"Cough..."

Jin An coughed lightly: "You know that pirates are rampant in this world, and you must have a skill to survive."

The boy thought for a while, revealing a look of realization.

"So that's how it is..."

Seeing that the boy was so easily fooled, Jin An himself couldn't believe it; was this kid missing a screw in his brain...?

"Alright, put the sword away first."

The Marine boy silently put the sword back into its scabbard; in front of someone with great force, even holding a sword was useless.

Jin An wanted to see what the boy looked like, but unfortunately, it was blocked by the military hat.

"What's your name?"

"Fire Fist," the boy replied.

Jin An was thoughtful; the future Vice Admiral Fire Fist? He was actually here in the South Sea.

In that case, the South Sea was really full of talent; Sengoku, Kuzan, and now Fire Fist.

Fire Fist looked at Jin An in confusion; what was this person thinking about again? The world of adults was really difficult to understand...

But the question Jin An asked next made his face change drastically.

"Where have the children of this place gone?"