Following Lavender’s declaration of piousness, there were a few moments of silence.

Roseus wondered whether it would work. Her words were true after all, so why shouldn’t it?

However, the problem was that Lavender was not the captain. They would wonder why it was a random crew member professing their beliefs, rather than him.

Eventually, the helmeted man stepped away from the railing. He left them alone for a few moments, but the riflemen never stopped eyeing down their crew.

Then, the helmeted man returned. With a rough voice, he shouted:

"Our captain welcomes the faithful. He wishes to meet your captain. You can board with a few of your men."

Roseus rejoiced internally, as did a few of the other crew members. It was only then that he realised something that wiped the smile from his face.

Can they be trusted? No... if they wanted us dead, wouldn’t they just shoot us down?

It was a logical worry for a captain to have.

The helmeted man seemed to notice this, and spoke again.

"Don’t worry, we will do no harm to a fellow believer. You are even welcome to board with your weapons. The captain does not mind."

The still-hesitant Roseus remained standing in place for a few moments. Then, he heard footsteps come up beside him.

He looked and saw Lavender. The pious girl nodded at him.

"I believe them, Captain. I truly believe that they will not do us harm, as long as they believe that a follower of the Church of Civilisation is a part of our crew. I understand that it’s hard to fathom, as you aren’t a religious man yourself, but I think this is a safe decision to make."

Roseus took in her words, then looked over at his First-Mate, Dawn. The blonde-haired woman looked back at him for a moment before nodding her head.

It was a stern nod that suggested she would be by his side during the entirety of the meeting. With Blodwen beside him too, Roseus thought that he could confidently meet their captain. Of course, Lavender would be there too.

So, with that, Roseus gave his answer.

"We will meet your captain!"

Not long afterwards, by use of a longboat, a single Templar sailor sailed over to the Redflower ship and collected the members that wished to board.

The fact they had only sent a single Templar in the longboat was a sign of trust itself.

After the short sail was made between the two ships, they were hoisted onto the deck using a pulley mechanism.

...

Roseus, Blodwen, Dawn, Lavender, and Kruger landed on the deck, and immediately they felt the eyes of the entire crew on them.

Now that they were aboard the ship, they saw just how outnumbered they were. Roseus guessed that there were roughly fifty Templars spaced out across the ship, each with a dangerous look to them, and armed.

As Roseus walked, dressed in his more traditional pirate outfit consisting of his father’s black coat and his father’s hat tied to his waist, he was given many stares by the Templars.

Although they were currently "allies", they couldn’t help but be filled with curiosity.

Bright red hair was uncommon, so when they saw it, they tried to guess who this insignificant-looking captain was. However, the look of the captain himself didn’t match the inferiority of his ship.

The golden-black sword on his back, and the terrifying shark carcass draped over the back of his Third-Mate, was enough to make them second-guess their initial thoughts.

Eventually, the helmeted man led them to the ship’s cabin and knocked on the door.

They were soon called in by a distinguished voice.

"Send them in."

...

The Redflower Pirates entered the room, and no Templars followed in behind them. Not only that, but there was only one man in the room, sitting behind an oak desk.

He was a man in his late thirties, with blonde curly hair and a shaved face that revealed a chiselled jawline. He wore a black waistcoat over a white buttoned shirt with black sleeves, black pants, and pointed shoes.

No one would have guessed that he was a religious man, if not for the necklace he wore around his neck. The pendant was the symbol of the brain tree, and it was made from silver. The pendant itself was the size of a man’s palm!

The man smiled at the Redflower Pirates as they entered.

It was a warm smile.

"Welcome to my ship," the man said with his arms outstretched, as though he was hugging his entire crew. "I am Captain Lionheart, Third-Mate of the Templars. I hear you are worshippers of the God of Knowledge?"

Roseus was taken aback for a moment. The man in front of him did not have the look of a captain. He almost underestimated him.

However, there was something about that pendant around his neck. He couldn’t stop looking at it, and the more he did, the guiltier he felt. It was as though he was being filled with a desire to confess his sins to the man in front of him, revealing that he, in truth, hated the orthodox gods.

One glance at Dawn, Blodwen, and Kruger, and it seemed that they felt something similar, but they were all trying their best not to reveal it.

Then, Lavender stepped forward. She wore a slight smile on her face, and was not affected by the pendant at all.

"Yes, Mister Lionheart," she spoke earnestly. "I was once a sister of the church, but decided to sail with these gentlemen to spread the word of God. They are still new to this, but I can assure you that my devotion is true."

Roseus felt himself holding his breath. Until this segment of the meeting was over, he felt that he truly could not relax.

He looked at Lionheart, but the man had his green eyes piercing through Lavender.

"A sister?" he repeated. "Then I assume you would not be afraid to venerate my pendant? I hate to be so wary, but you must understand the situation out at sea today. There are many liars who sail on ships."

Lavender didn’t hesitate for a moment.

"It would be an honour."

She stepped forward, and Captain Lionheart held out his pendant. The purple-haired woman placed her lips onto its surface, whilst the man watched her carefully.

As she removed her lips, he saw that she was not affected at all. In fact, there seemed to be a faint glow surrounding her body.

The captain smiled and kissed his pendant.

"Praise God," he said.

"Praise God," Lavender echoed.