Chapter 57 - But Still (5)

"A ship is approaching!"

I spent most of my day sleeping, eating, doing light stretching, and exercising.

Two days after setting sail, pirate hunting was added to that list.

"Are they pirates?"

"I don't know. But most ships that carelessly approach in these waters are enemies."

It was a simple dichotomy. If they approach, they're enemies; if not, they're a passing ship. It was also a method of distinction born from the fact that pirates didn't exactly sail around flying a pirate flag.

"It's Bipurit!"

However, the pirate crews under Bipurit were a bit easier to recognize. It was because most of their members wore red bandanas or scarves—some kind of red cloth, anyway.

"I'm leaving it to you."

And that also meant I could just cut them down.

SLASH!

A slash poured with mana cut across the sea.

"You could just cut the ship itself, but cutting off only the masts is quite a sick hobby."

The three masts towering over the ship collapsed just like that. The sail tearing horizontally to reveal a smooth cross-section was a bonus.

Along with the falling masts, the pirate in the crow's nest screamed as he fell into the sea.

"I'll slice your ship in two."

"Please hold back on that."

Windhand joked around as he entered the captain's quarters.

I quietly watched him before turning my body in a similar manner. Unless they luckily rode the ocean currents and reached land, the destinies fated to wither and die in the open sea were left behind my back.

TAP.

My body rested on a footstool shaped like a chair.

My hand holding the Zweihander trembled slightly from nausea.

"We probably won't be seeing any pirates in these nearby waters for a while."

An adventurer out on the deck said that.

It probably wasn't an exaggeration. We had split the masts and left them adrift—one ship the day before yesterday, three yesterday, and two today.

While it wasn't enough to say we'd wiped them out completely, it definitely couldn't be called a small number. Even when I went to subjugate pirates with the city army, we had barely caught eight ships in three days.

"More importantly, four of them belonged to Bipurit. I expected as much when they said a pirate took over a city, but this is no joke."

At his words, the sailor managing the sail shrugged her shoulders.

"We didn't abandon the port cities close to Zakrati and go all the way to Gruh Telz for nothing."

She said while pulling the ropes tightly.

"Most decent ports have gangs connected to Bipurit."

"Because of that, whenever we tried to stop by the Adventurer's Guild, we'd get discovered, chased, and forced to fight. It was a mess."

The one who picked up where she left off was another sailor.

He reached his hand into a cage on the deck. A chicken was pulled out through the open door. I highly suspect it will become our lunch.

"Is it really that bad?"

"Just about every decent pirate has fallen under Bipurit. Only Boss Lahong, Blue Moon Watia, and Outlaw Chimawa are still holding out without joining."

"Aren't Blue Moon and the Outlaw privateers?"

"Right. But a lot of privateers went over too. Being a privateer means giving up a portion of your plunder in exchange for keeping your life, but that's meaningless when the cities themselves can't function."

The pulled rope was firmly secured to the cleat. Only then did the sailor step down from the railing.

"So, well, everyone's just pledging loyalty first before they get killed by Bipurit."

"And why didn't you guys do that?"

"Are you crazy? There's no way Bipurit would accept us."

The sailor looked over here with eyes that truly couldn't understand, before quickly realizing her mistake.

"Ah, you guys are landlubbers, right? Then you might not know."

"Yep, we don't know. So please, enlighten us."

DeB smoothly cut in right then. In any case, he was a guy who never missed an opportunity to gather information.

"Hmm, this is a bit..."

It must have been a tricky subject to talk about casually, as the sailor trailed off for the first time.

"Because I played the biggest role when that bastard fell."

That was when Windhand, who had gone into the captain's quarters, came back out. In his hand was a liquor bottle allocated as his share.

"I completely smacked the back of his head with a single boat."

"... Just remembering that still gives me the chills. A captain shaking off everyone trying to stop him and crawling into enemy lines all by himself."

The sailor, who had been reading the room, threw out those words carefully, but quickly returned to a casual tone. Windhand chuckled.

"It was a piece of cake compared to navigating a storm alone!"

"What are you saying? You only went there by using the storm as cover."

"Exactly! Moving out of sight of Bipurit's bastards was easier than crossing a storm!"

Then, he held out the liquor bottle, as if offering everyone a sip. Those around him took turns taking a swig.

"Anyway, that's why we can't. That Bipurit bastard is the type who would gladly chop my head off and put it on a pike if I went to pledge loyalty."

"Ah, then it can't be helped."

I refused. I've hated alcohol ever since a university senior made me drink until I puked.

Of course, I would have to drink some within a few days. Water spoils very easily on a ship, and even someone who hates alcohol like me would choose it over rotten water.

But that time wasn't now. I had packed plenty of water in my inventory in preparation for the water spoiling.

"But... is that all?"

"What else is there?"

Feeling a sense of incongruity, DeB subtly tried to pry further, while I debated whether to get up. It was because the smell of alcohol made my seasickness feel even more nauseating.

They say it's good to look out at an open space for seasickness, but I felt it would be more comfortable to just collapse onto a bed and get a good night's sleep.

"So, well. We're counting on you."

However, just as I was about to get up, Windhand looked right at me and spoke.

"Please save my life... and the lives of my brothers. Because we've bet everything on you."

It was a somewhat evasive tone, but the answer was already set.

"As long as I've received the price, there will be no failure."

I shut myself in my private room to escape the smell of alcohol.

* * *

⌈Sir Windhand is rushing us, so we're heading to Zakrati first.

Please contact me. I figure the Archmage should know a way to reach us.

As for this request, you can decide whether or not to join us. But I don't really recommend it.

P.S. If you're going to follow, bring some troops and supplies. That way you'll be less likely to get stabbed in the back along the way.

P.S. 2. It seems Sir Knight is going to leave without taking his reward, so could you collect it for him? I can't stand watching him suffer like a dog and not get paid for it.⌋

The Inquisitor curled up her body as she chewed over the words (transcribed into a letter) left behind by the Thief.

Yabad and Zakrati. Although she had never been there, the names of the regions she encountered almost every time she studied the Temple's history and doctrines made her feel helpless.

"You seem to have a lot on your mind."

The one who approached her was the Priest who had handled a few matters on her behalf while she was unconscious and helped her with many things after she woke up.

"Ah, Sister."

The Inquisitor stood up and welcomed the Priest. After all, the debt she owed her was no ordinary one.

"What could I possibly have on my mind? You've helped me with everything, Sister."

Take a look at the mountain of work that crashed down on her the moment she woke up.

From reporting the deaths of the Priests to the Temple, to pacifying the Lord who was appalled after belatedly hearing that the ship was ruined, to dealing with the Magic Tower's unreasonable demand to hand over the dragon's carcass for research since there were casualties.

In the midst of that, she had to write a full incident report and ensure compensation reached the bereaved families of the deceased. She also had to secure the reward rightfully owed to the Demon Knight, just as the Thief had requested, on top of requesting personnel to analyze how the dragon ended up like that and what would happen to the sea going forward.

To make matters worse, the parties who knew the incident best had either disappeared due to personal circumstances or were unconscious. She herself had been too focused on maintaining the barrier to know the situation.

If that Priest hadn't helped her, she would still be getting dragged this way and that.

"It was only what I ought to do."

Even so, the Priest humbly deflected the credit. The Inquisitor's gaze softened slightly.

"More importantly, do you truly not have anything on your mind? From what I can see, there seems to be a thing or two weighing on your heart."

"That's..."

"Word has arrived that the Archmage will wake up soon, so it can't be about him... And since we've somewhat secured the reward for the Demon Knight, it shouldn't be about that either... Is it because of the party that left first?"

"...!"

At the question that pierced right to the core, she couldn't bring herself to say anything. That was indeed her biggest concern.

"I've heard some of the story. About something happening in Zakrati."

"... Yes."

She absentmindedly crumpled the letter she was holding in one hand. She hurriedly smoothed it out afterward, but the crumpled marks wouldn't disappear.

"... I want to go help them. But..."

Forty years ago, there was a time when a large-scale demon summoning occurred in the Yabad region.

However, many were parasitized by demons at the time... and many who didn't even realize they were parasitized clung to the Priests. Begging to be spared, to be saved. Shouting that the demons were swarming them.

When in reality, the demons had dwelled within their own bodies.

"There's no way they would accept us."

... The person who taught her said that a very large number of people died back then. A truly, truly massive number of people.

Those who couldn't believe their families were parasitized by demons killed the Priests, and the Priests killed them to survive, ultimately going as far as burning down the entire land, civilians included... That was how the earth turned black and the sea was dyed red.

"Do not blame yourself. That is not your fault, Inquisitor."

"... But."

Even so, spilled blood doesn't disappear. Their disgust, their built-up hatred, and their anger wouldn't dissipate either.

"... I can't just stay out of it like this."

Perhaps forever.

"Inquisi—"

CRASH!

"...!"

At the commotion ringing in their ears, both of their heads turned simultaneously without either being first. What entered their field of vision was a panting apprentice cleric.

"The, the Archmage has awakened..."

"Has he finally awakened!"

"B-But a problem has occurred."

"...! Is there, is there some problem with his health..."

"N-No, that's not it, the Magic Tower says they've found the reason why the dragon was corrupted!"

"...!"

"But they say that corruption wasn't natural!"

The faces of the Inquisitor and the Priest stiffened into stone.

* * *

Just as we were dangerously close to running out of water, land began to appear. It was the Yabad region, the island where Zakrati was located.

"Bipurit's bastards are coming from both sides!"

Unsurprisingly, the ones circling the waters near the island like a patrol weren't much of a problem. The ship was split in two by my sword and began to sink.

"You cut the ship this time?"

Out on the open sea, just dealing with the masts would leave them with no way to chase us and cause trouble. Rather, they'd just have to pray to the ocean currents.

But we were near land here. There was no guarantee they wouldn't use small boats to reach the shore. In that case, the probability of them becoming a future threat was extremely high.

So I just made sure of it, just in case. I couldn't risk the lives of the landfolk just to give those bastards a little bit of a chance.

"It became a hassle."

But there was no way I needed to give such a long-winded explanation!

I took care of the remaining ship by drawing up mana with HP. Since I'd gotten a decent feel for the exchange rate between HP and mana through Life Force Conversion while on the ship, my HP was only reduced by a little bit.

Of course, it was absolutely not my fault that losing that little bit caused blood to rise up my throat.

"I smell blood coming from somewhere."

'... That freakishly sharp bastard!'

I inconspicuously swallowed the blood welling up from inside and placed the Zweihander into the mount on my back. Life Force Conversion was all well and good, but every time I consumed HP, blood rose up from my insides.

Thanks to that, I almost got caught several times by DeB, who was sensitive to the smell of blood.

Unless I was already injured, I probably needed to refrain from doing this in front of him. Though I didn't exactly have a choice this time.

"The smell of blood? Isn't it coming from the sea?"

"... It doesn't seem like it."

I don't know. I don't know anything about that.

Feigning ignorance like that, I sat down on an empty crate nearby.

We ignored the people whose ship had sunk and hurriedly approached Zakrati.

The request's objective was elsewhere, but the suggestion had come up to do some maintenance first, so we set Zakrati as our initial destination.

"C-Captain!"

And just as the scenery of Zakrati was beginning to show its outline, the sailor in charge of keeping watch in the crow's nest screamed.

As the voice mixed with fear and panic pierced the tension enveloping the ship, people's expressions stiffened.

"Speak!"

Windhand urgently pressed the sailor. But the next words didn't easily follow from the crow's nest.

"Damn it, what the hell did you see?!"

As a result, some of the sailors clung to the bow, while others grabbed the rigging and tried to climb up to the crow's nest. Relying on my raw vision, I just casually glanced at the city from the center deck.

"A m-monster."

Had the vague image of the city finally come into focus? The sailor in the crow's nest stammered out the rest of his sentence.

"A monster is... the city..."

"... What?"

The moment my eyes spotted the monster destroying the city walls was the very next second.

「Patchwork Golem│A monster born when a demon possesses a patchwork construct woven from human bones, muscles, and flesh. It is said that its birth requires dozens of lives, but its death requires hundreds.」

It was a demon.