Chapter Twenty: The Doctrine of Conduct Responsibility and Lenient Sentencing

For everyone aboard this vessel, the doldrums were shrouded in mystery and the unknown, but after witnessing the first colossal sea king, that mystery and uncertainty had transformed entirely into something far more tangible—fear, an absolute terror that their lives might be snatched away at any moment.

Yet, even so, not a single person faltered or wished to turn the ship around, for when weighed against each other, the fear of imminent death paled in comparison to the dread of a lifelong existence at the bottom. In truth, their insistence on continuing this route could not be attributed to exceptional courage, but rather to the deep-seated revulsion and disgust for their former lives, which propelled them forward. Thorns lay ahead, an abyss behind; even if they were to die amid the thorns, none wished to fall back into the abyss. That was all.

Moreover, this journey of terror was, in itself, a journey of hope. If only they could endure for three to five days, both the road ahead and behind would be utterly transformed.

The doldrum seas were undoubtedly the most tranquil on this planet; not even the bravest adventurer would dare venture here, and across the wide expanse, only the Giant sailed... That was only natural—if they were to spot another ship here, it would be more horrifying and uncanny than seeing a sea king.

Thus, the sounds of oars and the hull cutting through the water seemed jarringly loud aboard the Giant. Even after encountering the first sea king, the crew had unconsciously begun to row with greater gentleness, yet in such silence, no matter how softly they moved, as long as there was any sound, it carried far.

The oarsmen aboard the Giant changed shifts every three hours, day and night without pause. This was a severe test of endurance and willpower—physical strength aside, fortunately, willpower was never lacking among the crew. If their stamina failed, they had only their spirit to compensate, and this was no superstition; no one could say how much strength might be wrung from such frail bodies.

By now, since their first sighting of that gigantic worm, the crew had already rotated once. During that time, the Giant had glimpsed the silhouettes of other sea kings in the distance, but luck held, as no sea beast had approached closer for now.

Still, no one felt the slightest sense of safety. This voyage, entirely at the mercy of fate, left the crew without a shred of confidence. This constant state of anxiety would last several days, and it was easy to imagine that even if they survived the doldrums unscathed, some might emerge with stronger hearts and minds, while others would see their lives shortened by ten years from the mental strain. Brushing shoulders with death so often surely invited the reaper more swiftly.

At this moment, in a cramped cabin aboard the Giant, Autumn White was conducting an interrogation so ruthless it could be called "bear-torture." Working alongside him was Airen, who wanted to know how the toy bear had become a real one—if the polar bear had changed, would the black bear and the panda bear follow suit?

Having realized that sea kings could appear at any moment, Captain Grisha clearly had no patience left for such matters. After confirming that the bear posed no harm, he left Autumn White to it, devoting his attention to the sea—far more important than the fate of a single bear.

As for Aen, she knew Autumn White's methods, and had no desire to get involved.

…

Autumn White rapped the heavy wooden desk before him, the hard sound snapping the exhausted white bear's attention back to him.

"Name."

He had undoubtedly slipped into a role-playing mindset, so whether it was a trick of the imagination or not, his tone was rigid and devoid of emotion.

What was this—trying to frighten a bear?

"Why? How many times have I answered this question? Why start again?" The bear, named Peibo, shouted in agitation. Compared to humans, his voice was perfectly clear; he used the common language of this world, understandable to all.

But it had been over three hours now, and Peibo didn't know how many more times this man would repeat the same question.

"Suspect, please state your name."

"Name, name, name!"

Autumn White was unmoved, and had an echo in Airen, who chimed in as well... These kids could drive a bear mad.

"Peibo..."

Peibo could only comply once more. Having tried to resist earlier and been swiftly slammed to the floor by the red-haired man in muscle-bound fashion, he had no choice. "Man is the knife, I am the meat"—that was the situation. The only advantage, after countless rounds of torment, was that Peibo's fear of humans had eased a little.

No matter how much a chatterbox tried, it rarely conveyed "authority"; verbosity and dignity were inversely related.

"Gender?"

Yet even so, Autumn White's questioning proceeded smoothly.

"Male."

"Age?"

"Seven."

"Race?"

"Furfolk."

"Be more specific!"

"Furfolk, polar bear clan."

This explanation was absolutely forced upon Peibo by Autumn White; "Furfolk, polar bear clan"—certainly not a phrase used back home.

"A seven-year-old polar bear, and that's all you’ve grown?" Autumn White then mocked the bear for the Nth time, his eyes saying, "You really bring shame to polar bears."

Peibo nearly bared his teeth again, but he had to restrain himself... Impulsiveness is the devil.

Though his physique was indeed small, one couldn't compare the growth rate of Furfolk to humans or real polar bears; when the time came, he would grow swiftly... He had explained this before, but it hadn't made a bit of difference.

Because the red-haired man only accepted his own version.

"Place of origin?" Autumn White asked.

To ask such a high-level question of a bear—who could possibly understand? Yet Peibo did, having been bombarded with the same question countless times.

"Zhuowu, the Fluffy Principality."

"And in what year, by what method, and for what purpose did you stow away on this ship?"

"I told you! I was hooked aboard by this kid! No purpose at all; I only pretended to be a toy to avoid causing a commotion!"

In fact, he had hidden out of fear of humans.

"So... did you accidentally fall off the giant elephant called 'Zhuowu' and end up in the sea, unable to get back? Don't polar bears know how to climb?"

"…"

Another round of mockery, but Peibo endured once more.

Repeatedly tormenting this bear—was it torment for torment's sake? Autumn White wasn't so bored... Well, actually, he was. Ahem! But that wasn't the point. In this repetition, he had a legitimate aim.

First, it was clear from conversation that a seven-year-old bear (Furfolk) possessed intelligence far beyond a human of the same age.

And Autumn White's repeated "bear-taming"—to speak plainly, it was a form of "training," but at a higher level... it was "brainwashing."

After N hours of misery, Autumn White finally made a summary:

"According to the principle of behavioral responsibility, suspect Peibo the bear must bear full responsibility for attracting sea kings and plunging the entire ship into peril. However, since your attitude has been proper, we will be lenient in sentencing. Here is your punishment:

First, confiscation of all property.

Second, deprivation of political rights for life.

Third, restriction of personal freedom.

...Or to put it simply, Peibo, citizen of the Fluffy Principality, will serve as the personal property of Autumn White, the chief target on Whale Island, for the foreseeable future."

"…"

Peibo was dumbfounded—this, this was leniency?

Well, his mind couldn't keep up.

The real question was... where did Autumn White get the authority to enforce the law?