Levi moved quickly.
Graves had already been gone for a while, but Levi still managed to catch up with him.
Looking at the burly man in the distance, then taking in his clothes and the unmistakable design of the gun in his hands, Levi immediately confirmed his identity.
Now that he had found his target, Levi slowed down and followed from a distance, making sure he neither fell behind nor gave Graves any reason to suspect he was being tailed.
The route Graves took gradually became more secluded, and fewer and fewer people could be seen along the way.
Levi quickly activated Demon Shade, and his figure vanished from sight.
Fortunately, no one happened to notice, otherwise someone might have thought they’d seen a ghost in broad daylight.
Graves entered a secluded alley piled high with garbage, and a pungent stench immediately assaulted Levi’s nose.
Fortunately, after everything Levi had experienced in Bloodharbor, a smell like this barely registered anymore, so he quickly followed.
Just as Levi reached the corner, Graves suddenly slid out from the side, the twin black muzzles of his shotgun pointing straight in Levi’s direction.
Evelynn’s passive, Demon Shade, was incredibly powerful in this world.
Even at fairly close range, it was difficult to detect him unless someone practically got right in his face.
Graves’ sudden move startled Levi, but he didn’t panic.
He simply stood where he was without moving.
“Strange. I could’ve sworn someone was following me. Am I getting paranoid again?”
Seeing no one there, Graves scratched his head in confusion, then lowered his gun and leaned it against the wall beside him.
The sound of splashing water followed as Graves turned toward the corner and began relieving himself.
Graves let out a long breath, a look of relief spreading across his face.
He gave himself a shake, then started fastening his belt.
What he failed to notice was that the gun he’d just leaned against the wall had already disappeared.
“Come on, man. Pissing wherever you feel like it? That’s not exactly classy.”
Levi’s voice suddenly came from behind him.
Graves jumped and spun around, only to find an unfamiliar young man smiling at him.
His hand instinctively reached toward the spot where he’d left his weapon.
“Looking for this?”
The dark muzzle of the shotgun was already pressed against Graves’ nose, forcing him to take a step backward.
“Seriously, kid? You’re barely twenty and you’re sneaking up on an old man in his thirties? That’s dirty pool.”
Graves started spouting nonsense while backing against the wall, one hand slowly creeping toward his waist.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you, unless you want your head turned into a red mist.”
Levi glanced down, then pressed the gun a little closer.
“Whoa, whoa, easy. We can talk this out, man. We’re civilized people here. No need to start waving guns around. Let’s keep things peaceful.”
Graves immediately raised both hands and gave him an awkward grin.
“Relax. I just need you to help me find someone,” Levi said quietly.
“Who?”
“Twisted Fate.”
“My partner? I haven’t seen him in days. I have no idea where he went.”
A trace of worry entered Graves’ voice.
Twisted Fate had no reason to deliberately avoid him, unless something had happened.
“Do you have any leads?”
Levi could tell Graves wasn’t lying, so he watched him closely as he asked.
“None.”
Graves gave a bitter smile and helplessly shook his head.
“Wait. Why are you looking for him?”
Graves’ expression suddenly changed, his gaze turning wary as he stared at Levi.
Levi lowered the gun, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a golden card.
“That’s none of your business. Just take a look at this first.”
“Yeah, yeah, that’s one of my partner’s cards. Why the hell do you have it? What did you do to him?”
Graves immediately became agitated.
Completely ignoring the weapon in Levi’s hands, he reached out and tried to grab him.
“Are you an idiot? If I already had him, why would I be looking for you? And if I wanted to kill you, all I’d have to do is pull the trigger.”
Levi stared at Graves helplessly.
This guy really wasn’t the brightest bulb in the box.
“Oh. Yeah. Good point.”
Graves scratched his head and laughed awkwardly.
He took the card Levi handed him, but the moment he examined it closely, his expression changed.
His face darkened as his thoughts churned.
“What is it?”
“This smells like rum.”
“So? What does that tell you?” Levi asked curiously.
He had no idea why the smell of alcohol would matter.
“This is Black Pearl Rum. It’s strong stuff, brewed in a very particular way. As far as I know, there’s only one man who has this rum.”
Graves’ expression grew increasingly grim, and his voice became more serious with every word.
“Who?”
“Gangplank.”
Graves seemed to need a considerable amount of courage just to say the name.
Gangplank, the pirate king, a vicious and bloodthirsty murderer who had ruled this port city for many years.
Gangplank’s reputation was so terrifying that people said even the most unruly child would fall silent at the mere mention of his name.
Hearing that familiar name, Levi was stunned.
How had Twisted Fate gotten mixed up with Gangplank?
After the enormous explosion, most people believed Gangplank was dead.
Even Sarah Fortune, the woman responsible, thought so, but Levi knew very well that he had survived.
“Do you know where he is? Let’s go find him.”
Levi thought for a moment before making his decision.
“Are you insane? You trying to get yourself killed?”
Graves stared at Levi in disbelief.
“Do you want your partner to die?”
Levi stared straight into Graves’ eyes.
Graves clenched his teeth, stomped his foot, and finally made up his mind.
“I don’t know where he is, but I know someone who probably does. Let’s go.”
Graves took the gun Levi handed back to him and nodded.
Following a familiar route, Levi went with Graves back to the casino they had visited earlier.
When Graves entered, the old man behind the bar greeted him with a beaming smile, acting as though they were lifelong friends.
“Ol’ Lars, I need to know where Gangplank is.”
Graves wasted no time with pleasantries and went straight to the point.
“Shh! Where did you hear about that?”
Ol’ Lars jumped in fright, hunched over, and hurriedly pulled Graves behind the bar.
“Doesn’t matter. Just tell me. I know you know.”
Graves’ voice was low, but still far too loud for Ol’ Lars’ liking.
Ol’ Lars quickly motioned for him to keep his voice down, then whispered, “If you really want to know, I suppose I can tell you. But you know, Gangplank and I are practically brothers…”
Before he could finish, Graves kicked Ol’ Lars to the floor, pressed his gun against the old man’s forehead, and growled, “Don’t give me that bullshit.”
“…”
Ol’ Lars could only sigh helplessly before leaning closer and whispering a few words into Graves’ ear.
Once Graves had gotten the information he wanted, he strode outside, helping himself to a few bottles of liquor along the way, then nodded to Levi.
Watching all this from outside, Levi suddenly wondered if he’d been far too gentle earlier.
Maybe he should go back and get those silver coins back after all.