Marvel’s Shadowed Knight

"What's with this kid? Something feels off."

Driving the car, Lucy Pidel couldn't help but feel something strange about Sarah's condition. This was clearly no ordinary dream.

"It's nothing serious. Out at sea, disasters are common. From ancient times until now, countless maritime accidents have occurred, resulting in massive loss of life—and with that, a vast number of spirits. These dead linger at the bottom of the cold ocean, and under certain coincidences, they can accumulate magical energy and become what we call ghosts."

Regulus Black gently stroked Sarah Medany's wine-red hair. In her sleep, the golden-eyed girl looked so pure and serene—like a little angel from heaven.

"In the Muggle world, people like you or Sarah are what we'd call 'Squibs.' Though you don't possess the talent to become wizards, you're still spiritually sensitive. In other words, you can't use magic, but you can still sense it. So, being able to see ghosts or experience supernatural phenomena is perfectly normal."

Although Regulus Black seemed to be casually comforting Sarah, he had taken her dream quite seriously.

"The crew and the singer murdered the passengers on the ship, stole the gold being transported, and looted the passengers' jewelry. That's typical pirate behavior—especially pirates disguising themselves as a merchant ship. But the spirits that affected Sarah weren't the murdered passengers. It was those victorious pirates."

Regulus Black suddenly remembered—Sarah Medany's recurring dreams bore an uncanny resemblance to a certain movie plot he once saw.

"Boss, are you saying the ghosts are the pirates and not the passengers?"

Lucy Pidel was confused. Shouldn't it be the murdered passengers, consumed by resentment, who turned into ghosts?

"Those celebrating pirates may have all died shortly after."

Regulus Black seemed to have figured out the logic, and his expression showed it.

"I still don't get it, Boss! Stop being mysterious—just tell me already!"

Lucy Pidel had come to understand her boss and lover well. He was someone who loved to speak in half-sentences.

When giving orders, he would be detailed and clear, but when asked to explain something, he always turned it into a guessing game.

"We're almost at our lodging. I'll explain once we're back in the room."

Regulus Black answered casually, glancing at his assistant in the rearview mirror with a look that said, beg me and I might tell you.

"Boss! Don't torture me like this. Just tell me already! Please?"

Lucy Pidel played along, putting on a pleading expression—just the kind of thing to stroke Regulus Black's ego.

"Alright, here's the deal. Think about it. If everyone on a ship was killed, the first to harbor resentment would be the unwillingly murdered passengers. But when the pirates celebrated their victory, the ship fulfilled several conditions."

Regulus Black raised a hand and began counting on his fingers, folding his thumb into his palm.

"First, the pirates had a ship. Pirates are a collective, and the ship they owned together met the criteria for a magical altar. In other words, on their own turf, they could act as they pleased. Their actions could be justified because, in their minds, they were the rulers of that space, which made everything they did seem 'innocent.'"

He folded his index finger down.

"Second, the condition of a blood sacrifice was met. The passengers could be seen as sacrificial offerings. Their deaths fulfilled certain ritual requirements: they were trapped, powerless to escape, and their identities—wealthy, noble, influential—made them high-quality sacrifices. The higher their status, the greater the value of the offering."

He bent down his middle finger, signaling the third condition.

"Then comes chaotic will. Although the pirates acted as a group, they created chaos. The sacrifices—the passengers—ran in panic, which not only heightened their despair but also their frantic will to survive. Proper sacrifices should be lined up in order, ready to be slaughtered. That creates despair but not desperation. However, if they believe there's still a chance to escape, their will to live makes the ritual even more potent."

Regulus Black dropped his hand—not because he had nothing left to say, but because he had reached the final point.

"Lastly, the pirates' shallow desires. Their killings were driven purely by greed—for the ship's gold and the passengers' jewelry. Everything they wanted was within arm's reach. Their desires were so mundane, they couldn't even summon real ghosts—because reality had already satisfied them."

Regulus Black seemed lost in thought now, holding the sleeping golden-eyed girl as his mind wandered elsewhere.

"When all of these conditions are met and a ghost ship is accidentally created, then naturally, as a ghost ship, there shouldn't be any living people among the passengers. So under the weight of the murdered passengers' resentment, the crew are directly transformed into undead. Once the passengers get their revenge, their souls can leave the ghost ship behind—leaving only the bewildered pirate crew, who have no idea how they died."

Regulus Black opened his eyes and looked at his assistant, Lucy, waiting for her response.

"This is… really complicated."

Lucy Piddle had expected a simple answer. She hadn't anticipated such a detailed explanation from Regulus Black.

Now, she felt like a student listening to a lecture—completely lost, yet still expected to answer questions.

"I knew you wouldn't get it. To put it simply, Sarah's dreams are the result of receiving residual information from the ghosts of those pirate crew members. Since you have a spiritual medium constitution, you can't help but passively absorb all this chaotic information."

Regulus Black gently stroked Sarah's hair, as if he were petting a cat.

"But the fact that Sarah has been having these dreams for several consecutive days suggests that the treasure tied to those vengeful spirits sank along the route she traveled."

Regulus Black spoke with confidence, then opened his skill interface and contacted Unit [IV], who was patrolling the Great Lakes. He instructed her to pilot the Aquarius submarine along the cruise route Sarah Maidani had taken, to conduct an underwater search for the treasure.

"I still don't quite understand. How could a bunch of pirates who don't even qualify as duds create a ghost ship just by slaughtering the passengers? Undead of that scale are extremely rare—wouldn't it be difficult even for a wizard to intentionally create something like that?"

Despite having just been subtly insulted by her boss, Lucy Piddle quickly gathered her thoughts and began asking detailed questions.

"When passengers are massacred, it generates a massive amount of resentment. If this force is properly guided, it turns into a powerful curse. After it kills the perpetrators, that unresolved resentment turns on the place where they died. That's how a ghost ship is born—purely by coincidence."

Suddenly, Regulus Black realized that sending the Aquarius to search for treasure might be putting the cart before the horse. The greatest treasure was the ghost ship itself!

"Come to think of it, a ghost ship is far more valuable than any treasure. Looks like Sarah's cruise ship was targeted by the ghost ship. Good thing they didn't attack—otherwise, I would've torn them apart."

He spread his palm, forming a swirling magical field in his hand. The forces of nature, when properly guided, could be shaped with only a small amount of magic—creating tornadoes or underwater whirlpools was no problem at all.

"Boss! Judging by Sarah's description, the environment on that ghost ship looked really modern. It seems like it only came into existence recently."

Lucy Piddle had already parked the car and was waiting for Regulus Black to wake Sarah so they could get out.

"Not necessarily. It could be a case of illusion projection. The apparitions projected by ancient ghosts—if their magical power isn't strong enough—can be distorted by the recipient into something more understandable. In Sarah's case, she combined those projections with her own cruise experience, resulting in an entirely new dreamscape."

Regulus Black gently shook the golden-eyed girl awake.

"We're here, darling. This is our Hollywood base—also the headquarters of Black Star Corporation."

Sarah Maidani hadn't slept well over the past few days of travel, and it felt like she had finally gotten some real rest in this car.

Especially with Regulus Black by her side—this had been the most peaceful sleep she'd had.

Like a cat waking from a nap, Sarah Maidani rubbed her eyes and slowly came to.

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