Transmigrated As A Beautiful Cannon Fodder Omega To Marry An Evil God Alpha In Place of Another - Chapter 14

The night wind howled, whipping the sails and straining the rigging of the great ship, creating a rhythmic, agonizing creak. Upon the pitch-black sea, a three masted vessel cut through the waves, a skull and crossbones pirate flag fluttering defiantly from the crow’s nest.

“Belle Batella?”

A small statured Annamese pirate leader held a scimitar over his shoulder with one hand, while the other held a primitive silver bracelet. He squinted his beady eyes, baring blackened teeth as he scrutinized the name engraved on the inner band by the flickering firelight.

Several pirates held torches high, surrounding a figure in the center. The light danced across Bai Rui’s face. He was strikingly refined, he jumping flames cast a warm glow on his porcelain skin and gilded his long eyelashes.

“That name sounds familiar,” the leader sneered, his greedy gaze roaming over Bai Rui. “What a surprise. For a lady who looks so expensive, many of my men have heard of you. You must be one of us, from Hanoi in Tokyo.”

“You are even more beautiful than I imagined.”

Bai Rui slowly lifted his eyes to look at the leader. The man was barely 160cm tall, wearing wooden clogs to add a bit of height. His skin was oily, dark, and toughened with scale like textures at the edges, the skin of a man who lived on the sea. The hardening under his eyes made his gaze even colder. His physical toughness was visible to the naked eye, it was uncertain if he was truly “impermeable to blades.”

If that were the case, Bai Rui would need a different plan.

Meanwhile, the pirate was staring back with a mix of malice and lust, looking as though he wanted to pounce immediately. Bai Rui suddenly smiled, revealing perfect white teeth.

“I was merely born there. I am high-born. Do not damage the latest powder and lipstick in my metal clutch, you couldn’t afford to replace them.”

He tilted his chin up, lengthening the line of his neck. His gaze was teasing, almost haughty. Standing against the dark gunwale, his face half-hidden by black netting, his waist appeared impossibly slender. Though he was taller than the average woman, the puffed sleeves of his dress masked the width of his shoulders, creating an alluring, feminine silhouette.

The pirates were mesmerized by “her” beauty, but they noticed something was “off.”

“Ah! She hasn’t blackened her teeth!” “Heavens! Is she not afraid of God’s punishment?”

Several scrawny pirates exclaimed in their thick accents. In their culture, blackening teeth was a sign of beauty and piety, even for bandits.

A pirate wearing a headscarf and an eye patch gasped. “Is that not Belle Batella from the Gambler’s Town? She’s a celebrity there, she doesn’t need to blacken her teeth because she has already abandoned God.”

“Oh, I remember! She was with five different Sheriffs. Every single one of them loved her to the point of madness, and every single one met a violent end.”

“I heard she possesses evil powers! She brews potions. She gave every Sheriff a love potion, but the side effect was their life!”

“Oh my god, she’s a witch!” someone shouted. “The evil mistress of local aristocrats! Anyone who gets close to her dies!”

The pirates suddenly scrambled back, forming a wide circle around Bai Rui.

Bai Rui couldn’t help but twitch an eyebrow. Quite a surprise, his current “identity” was a noble’s mistress? Or, as the “Old Witch” (A-Wu) had suggested, a dangerous character who had caused the deaths of five Sheriffs.

This is getting interesting, he thought.

Keeping his composure, he crossed his arms and scanned the deck. About a dozen captives were huddled at the stern, bruised and shivering in the wind. Among them, Bai Rui recognized several faces. A woman covered in tears looked up, she was holding a child, her clothes tattered and her face marked by the whips of the Ice Badger Castle guards.

Those people had managed to escape the chaos, only to be captured by pirates. Bai Rui gritted his teeth, his fist clenching momentarily before he relaxed and elegantly tucked a stray lock of hair behind his ear.

The movement was so graceful it made A-Wu smirk. A-Wu was currently squatting to the side, wrapped in a heavy cloak. He stayed low to avoid revealing his true height, his eyes never leaving Bai Rui from beneath his hood.

“No need to be afraid, and no need to hide so far away. I have no interest in you,” Bai Rui said. He walked toward the cabin door, his slender fingers lightly stroking a full tiger skin hanging on the wall. He turned back with a smile. “The Sheriffs’ departures are a sad story. I have a clear conscience regarding every relationship. I loved each of them equally.”

“So ‘slutty’,” the Black Dragon muttered, watching through the crystal ball. “Is that really Prince Bai Rui? Has he been with His Majesty for too long? Where is our pure, innocent Prince?”

The Black Cat shook its head. “He was never that simple. His Majesty said it himself. Bai Rui is clever. He’s doing this on purpose.”

“And His Majesty seems to be enjoying the show.”

“Hahaha!”

The pirate captain’s laughter broke the silence. “If I didn’t enjoy such a beauty falling into my hands, I’d be a fool.”

“But Captain, aren’t you afraid? She killed five Sheriffs!” someone protested, only to be met with a loud slap from the captain.

“I was born with a tough fate. If she can kill me, I’ll give her this ship as a dowry.”

Blinded by lust, the captain didn’t notice the cold, dead look in Bai Rui’s eyes. “Take her to the cabin! Tonight, I’ll see whose fate is tougher, my luck or this little beauty’s witchcraft.”

Bai Rui suddenly grabbed A-Wu, pulling him forward. “Mother, I’m scared!”

A-Wu hesitated for a second, then went along with it. He hunched his shoulders, making his tattered sleeves flutter in the wind. “Are you mad, my lady? Who is your mother? I am but your old servant! Why did you bring me here? I was supposed to escape!”

His voice was pinched and high, a perfect imitation of a wicked old crone. The “audience” at the crystal ball knew they were just role-playing, but the pirates were stunned.

“Fine, you are a servant,” Bai Rui played along. “Then you must protect me!”

“Protect you?” A-Wu sneered, fully immersed in the role. “The Sheriffs are all dead. You’re a Hanoi woman, Batella, it’s in your blood. You’re too greedy, too heavy-handed with your prey. Their bodies couldn’t handle your curses or your potions. You’re covered in thorns, anyone who touches you gets stung!”

Bai Rui was impressed by A-Wu’s acting. He quickly squeezed out a few tears, touching his temple. “I only did it for the lifestyle! We were the most respectable people to come out of Hanoi!”

It looked exactly like a spoiled daughter being scolded by a hidden mother. The captain, fueled by “protective” instincts, reached out, but then recoiled.

“Wait! I almost fell for it! You’d use your charms on me too!” the captain growled. “You witches are evil. You’re trying to flee the Plains because of the witch hunts, aren’t you? You’ve sold your souls to the devil!”

A sycophantic sailor, seeing the captain’s rage, grabbed Bai Rui’s wrist and shoved him toward the leader. He pointed at the cloaked A-Wu. “Is this old hag your mother? Are you both dark mages?”

“Old hag…”

The moment those words were uttered, the air went dead silent. The sea, previously calm, began to heave. Beneath the dark water, massive tentacles began to coil around the hull of the ship.

“Oh no,” the Black Dragon whispered. “Prince Bai Rui hates being reminded of his age.”

“He’s lived for so long and tried to die so many times… they really touched a nerve,” the Black Cat added.

Suddenly, the sailor holding Bai Rui’s wrist froze. His eyes bulged, bloodshot with strain. With a sickening thud, the bones in his arm were crushed as if by an invisible, gargantuan force, twisted like putty.

The sailor screamed in agony before hurling himself over the side of the ship into the black water. He didn’t even splash before a tentacle dragged him into the abyss.

The pirates scrambled back in terror. “It’s true! The witchcraft is real!”

The captain roared, “Don’t panic!” He stomped forward in his wooden clogs, grabbing Bai Rui’s chin with a greasy, fish smelling hand.

“Tonight, you are mine.”