章 83: Withered Star Vine!

[Black Rose], in the dimly lit captain's cabin of the old galleon.

Ryan, Freni, and Cecilia stood in a tight circle, the creaking of the ship blending with the muted thrum of the sea outside. There was a palpable tension in the air, the kind that weighed on the chest and thickened the atmosphere.

Freni broke the silence, her voice a grave echo in the compact cabin. "We've received troubling news from Santas."

Ryan's brow furrowed. "What's happened?"

"An uninvited guest has landed on the Whirlpool Islands."

"Three black knights, to be precise," Cecilia added, her tone unusually serious. "One of them is the twelfth-ranked Black Knight."

Ryan's heart sank. He knew of the Black Knights, merciless, relentless fighters. Though he and Freni had faced one before and survived, the news of these knights, particularly a ranked one, unsettled him. "How strong is this twelfth-ranked knight?"