章節 37: CHAPTER 196
The pirates would've never known that Jin and his crew were pursuing them as they ran.
They stopped at a well. Like most of the island, it looked old and dried out. It seemed to be connected to some kind of secret tunnel.
The pirates threw themselves down the well.
"Hm."
The crew exchanged looks.
"You think they have a hiding place and they're waiting this out?"
"They said it as if they'd outrun the Imperial Navy, so I don't think so."
"But they didn't seem to be too bright. They might really just be hiding and still don't know why the island is surrounded."
"Good point."
Kashimir and Alisa exchanged some words, and everyone else nodded.
"We can try following them and then decide whether to swim or not. Let's hope they have something up their sleeves."
Jin and his crew approached the well. There wasn't a single trace of the pirates at the bottom. They probably advanced to another area beneath.
They each took turns jumping down the well. After reaching the bottom, they were faced with an iron trapdoor. There was no handle, and it looked hard to open without unlocking it from the inside.
Of course, that only applied to normal people.
Creeeaaak!
Jin used one hand to crumple up the iron door as if it were paper.
"Damn, you've gotten stronger. You ripped that like paper."
Murakan spoke nonchalantly, but Syris eyed the deformed metal with fear. All of them then stared down the hole.
Shiiieeek!
A dagger flew by. The aura surrounding it was roughly 3-star, but Jin just swatted it out of the air. Before anyone could speak a word, Jin dashed towards the direction the weapon came from and instantly arrived in front of the pirate.
Before the pirate could even react, Jin held him by the throat. It was one of the pirates that he chased.
"I'm sorry for startling you, but I won't kill you. Take us with you. I think you have something that we don't know abou—"
Fwoosh!
A sudden bright light interrupted him, lighting up the entire tunnel.
Some other pirates, who opened the iron trapdoor previously, lit up the lamps. They emerged from the shadows, as surprised as ever.
'How many are there?'
It wasn't just one or two goons; there seemed to be a dozen or even a hundred more. Jin found it fascinating that there were so many people gathered in such a small space.
Well, whether it was a hundred or a thousand, they wouldn't be a threat to Jin.
The pirates began to draw their weapons while glaring at Jin and his crew.
"Shit, who came in last? He left his tail dragging."
"Chikol and Velv. Those good-for-nothings."
"Thankfully, there aren't many of them. Captain, what should we do? I think we should kill them off."
While the pirates discussed their plans, Jin smirked.
"Quiet!"
One of the pirates in the crowd stepped forward. Someone Jin knew well, and the leader of the entire pirate colony. Pirate King Cosmos. The man who created the secret tunnel.
"So you're the captain."
The moment Jin opened his own mouth, Cosmos's eyes widened.
"Jin Grey?!"
"What?"
"You're Jin Grey, right?!"
"Who is that? What do you mean, you pirate scum?"
Jin tried to deny it, but Cosmos shouted with certainty.
"You think I'd forget that voice? Thanks to you, I'm still in crippling debt! It's payback time, bitch!"
"What? What do you mean, Captain? That's Jin Grey?"
"Jin Grey? Last year's champion? The one who made us go broke?"
Jin just shrugged. Despite looking completely different with his blonde wig and thick makeup, someone who knew his face would definitely see through it.
"Well, whatever. Since you know who I am, I guess we don't need introductions. Cosmos, do you know the situation outside? The Bellard Empire's navy is stretched around the island. How will you escape? I'm sure you all aren't here to hide."
Jin just asked, and Cosmos shivered.
"Whatever it is, you think I'll help you?"
"I don't think you should particularly hold a grudge against me. Why are you such a prick?"
"Shut up! Thanks to you, we're still paying money to that well-off friend of yours…!"
"My friend?"
"Beradin Zipfel, that devilish human!"
"Ah."
He remembered.
—Jin Grey! Let's gooo!!
Screaming those words, Beradin had bet a hundred thousand gold on Jin. At the time, the betting odds were threefold. And ever since Jin's victory, Cosmos had been constantly paying Beradin over the months.
Although his personality was like a bubble, Beradin was sharp with his money. Cosmos already paid back all he owed, but the late fees and interest had accumulated.
Scamming Beradin Zipfel was something that everyone had to avoid.
"…I'm sorry for that. No, I'm not sorry. Aren't you supposed to expect that kind of risk when running an underground fighting competition with gambling? If Paul Mick won, then you'd be sitting on a gold stack."
"Listen to this guy!"
"Captain! What're you waiting for? Just kill him! There's no time, so let's deal with 'em and dip."
The pirates glared and screamed at Cosmos.
'That guy must be some clan's prince or something, like Paul Mick, Jin Runcandel, or Beradin Zipfel. Also, his crew doesn't look normal.'
Cosmos still believed Paul Mick was Jin Runcandel.
Murakan and Quikantel couldn't understand what was going on at all.
"Man, I thought shit was going down. Let's just beat up some guys and take the captain hostage. Why're you just standing around and talking?"
"Agreed. Since we don't have time, we should just beat the words out of them. Just see if they have a way out of here."
Murakan trotted forward, and the pirates looked ready to attack him.
"Hey, Cosmos. If that kid starts throwing hands, you'll all die. So lemme make a deal."
"Bullshit!"
"Just hear me out. Just like you guys, we came here to escape this massacre. I don't know what you've prepared, but if you let us out, we'll relieve you from all of the liabilities."
"What?"
"You heard me. I'll relieve all liabilities and even offer you some relief money as well."
Shing!
The moment Cosmos drew his sword, Jin unleashed his energy. The pirates flinched and stepped backwards.
Murakan bolted towards Cosmos and snapped his blade in half.
Jin looked down at him and whispered, just enough so that the others wouldn't hear.
'I'm telling you this in case you refuse. I'm not Jin Grey. I am Jin Runcandel, and Paul Mick is Dante Hairan.'
Just like when Beradin saved Dante at the championship, Cosmos chose the best decision.
'…Damn, you were Jin Runcandel? Not Paul Mick?'
'Damn right. It wasn't a coincidence that Dante Hairan and I met at your arena. Neither was Beradin's presence in the audience.'
Cosmos could finally read between the lines; why Beradin helped Paul Mick, who was rumored to be Jin Runcandel. He now understood that it was all a premeditated scheme.
The other pirates saw Cosmos on the ground and panicked.
'Now that I think about it, it's probably your fault that their navy is here. I have one more request, Jin Runcandel.'
'Go on.'
'After escaping, ensure our safety.'
'You want us to cut you off from the Bellard Empire?'
'No! Make sure that you, your crew, and the Runcandel guardian knights have no business with us. Bellard ain't shit.'
Cosmos didn't know, but the Bellard Empire wouldn't be the only ones after them. The Vermont Empire, Zipfel Clan, and Kinzelo Group would search for them as well. Jin thought for a second whether he should tell him. However, he decided that he should think only after their escape.
'I swear to you with my honor and clan.'
Either way, Cosmos had no other choice. Swearing himself into this deal was pointless, since their destiny was chosen the moment Jin found out about this well.
"Tch, I accept the terms. Follow me!"
Cosmos stood and shouted, and his underlings tilted their heads.
"Cap'n! I think there was some threat or something, but don't get hooked! How can you just please them like that? I don't think they can handle all of us."
"I knew Jin Grey was something special like Paul Mick or Beradin Zipfel. Well, we got enough space."
"Will they really relieve any and all liabilities?"
Just a moment ago, they were furious and energetic. But with their captain in shambles, they had to follow.
"Anyway, Cosmos, what's the method of transport? Will it work?"
Jin asked while following the pirates, and Cosmos smiled.
'Even a Runcandel like you will be surprised when you see it.'
Moments later, at the end of the tunnel, there was a cliff. A carved stairway led to the bottom, and in the middle was a massive ship. Essentially, a ship had been stationed at the bottom of the cliff, but not off the side of the island; it was in a cave system within the isle. There were even more pirates busily moving supplies.
"The Seventh Order. We'll escape with this."
"Funny name, but how?"
"Get on and you'll see."
There wasn't a single drop of water that kept the boat afloat in the cave. With the surroundings also sealed in, how could the boat get out?
While Jin failed to understand, the pirates began to board the ship on Cosmos's command. Jin and his crew followed.
"Blow 'em up!"
The moment Cosmos shouted, the stairway exploded. They detonated the explosives they had planted ahead of time.
Splash!
Simultaneously, a massive wave of water surged into the cave.
The moment the cave walls exploded, they could see the ocean.
"Fly, my child!"
Now surrounded with water, the Seventh Order flew towards the ocean.
章節 38: CHAPTER 197
"You're not supposed to fly through!"
Jin reactively shouted.
However, the ship already shot off into the sky and towards the barrier.
"Don't worry. This won't get caught by their little magic!"
The ship had no wings and was not an organism. The Seventh Order was not technically 'flying', and Cosmos apparently knew that the Crimson Chain Barrier wouldn't detect it.
Riding a flying boat was not an everyday sight. Even for Jin of the Runcandel Clan, Kashimir of the Vermont Imperial Family, Alisa of the Special Forces, Syris of the Hidden Palace, and the dragons who had lived thousands of years. Although it was in the air for only a short amount of time—from the water pressure tossing the ship into the sky—Jin and his crew were flabbergasted.
'A normal pirate did this?'
From underneath the entire island, Cosmos had prepared an escape route.
"Kuhaha! I made the Seventh Order for this!"
'Seventh'. Which probably meant that there was a First to Sixth. No one particularly heard Cosmos's laughter.
They felt like their soul was leaving their body, and the boat soon began its descent. On the other hand, the pirates looked like nothing happened; they just enjoyed the ride while screaming and flailing their arms like monkeys. The wind violently brushed their cheeks, their hair blew to a mess, and their eyelids were about to flip inside out.
Looking down, Jin saw the ships. All magicians aboard the Bellard fleet surrounding the island just looked up in astonishment.
The Seventh Order just flew by like a bird beyond the flurry of ships and further down the horizon.
A jaw-dropping sight for anyone on the planet.
"Heheheh! We're descending. Hold on!"
Before Cosmos even said that, Jin and his crew had been holding on for dear life. The boat just had to survive the impact of landing. If the water did not embrace the ship, the Seventh Order would explode.
However, it didn't seem like Cosmos was too worried.
Sploosh…! Crack!
A massive wave was sent in all directions, and simultaneously, a loud crash resounded.
Something definitely broke on the hull of the ship. Wooden debris flew everywhere; so much so that wooden planks surrounded the entire ship.
Despite this, the pirates were busy chatting. 'This is better than last time', 'Nice landing', and all kinds of compliments were exchanged.
As the water settled, the Seventh Order began to sail forward, as if nothing happened.
"Huh…"
Jin let out a sigh. The island behind him looked tiny.
"How do you think we pirates survived throughout the ages amongst you monsters? Because of these things, no empire can chase us at sea."
"The boat looked and sounded kinda beat. Didn't you hear anything from the hull? Most of the framing is broken as well. Can this boat really outsail them?"
Cosmos slapped Jin's shoulder and laughed.
"Oho! Of course. The ocean loves us. Do not fret. Once they make some minor repairs, those ships will look like beans. In an hour, you won't even see 'em! Sailors, get to position!"
On Cosmos's command, the giggling pirates frantically got to their stations. The ones with nothing to do were Cosmos and Jin's crew.
"I'm pretty impressed. How'd you do it?"
"Learning our secrets would be problematic."
"Well, whoever experiences this can't do anything else but ask."
"Kuhaha! It's something that the Runcandels can't replicate. I'm not the Pirate King for nothing."
Some of the crew still looked shocked.
'Why is he a pirate when he's able to do this kind of engineering?'
Although they wanted to ask, it seemed that Cosmos took a lot of pride in his occupation, so offers of gratitude would be more appropriate.
"Thanks, I guess. We got out of the island pretty comfortably."
"Hmph. Is this some auto-generated response? If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have escaped. Just keep your side of the promise. I know you swore to follow through, but I still have my doubts."
"As long as my friends and I make it to land. What's the route?"
"We will proceed to the Zhan Kingdom without following a particular route, and then we will resupply in an allied island. It'll take exactly two weeks. Once we get there, y'all can leave on your merry way. How much are you giving?"
"Beyond your comprehension. The arena money will look like spare change."
Giving much more wouldn't be wasteful at all. Escaping on Quikantel and Murakan was their worst option, and swimming out would have put everyone's life on the line. Faced by those adversities, they fortunately met Cosmos.
Not only that, Jin also met Beradin and Dante thanks to Cosmos's competition, and he obtained the map of the Kollon Ruins. Realistically, the pirate helped him greatly throughout his trials.
Cosmos smirked.
"I let you on because I had no other choice… but you're pretty soft for a Runcandel. Isn't the Runcandel way to wipe out people all the time? I'm not a businessman, just a day pirate."
"You want me to?"
"I'm just saying. Since you take your solemn swears more seriously than we take ours, let's not do any take-backs. I'm looking forward to the money that's about to flow in."
"Don't worry. You'll earn as much as you contributed."
* * *
Cosmos didn't flinch.
Even when Jin told him about the pursuers that would come for him.
"They were going to chase us anyway, and they'll lose us this time too."
"They'll send dragons this time. No matter how fast the Seventh Order is, it can't outsail dragons in air."
"You think we're stupid? We're going into hiding with your money first. Do you even know how many islands there are on this planet? How're they gonna search through every single one of them? Don't worry, and just send the damn money."
June 18th, 1797.
The moment everyone reassembled at Tikan, the first thing that Jin did was send Cosmos the gold bars he had. He even sent a handwritten letter, stating a small offer of a residence in the Huphester Alliance if he avoided any illicit actions.
"Young Master."
Gilly looked as if she were about to cry. For her, it was a long and painful wait since he embarked for the Great Mythra Desert. She didn't complain too much, though. As Jin's nanny and former knight, she knew that Jin had gotten much stronger.
"You've grown and obtained what you wanted."
Gilly lent the golden compass to Jin and smiled.
"We almost kissed our lives goodbye for this damned thing."
"While you were gone, we already found out how to use it. It's very similar to any other artifact. Just exert some mana, and it should work. I have some other news to tell, but would you like to take a look at this first?"
"Sure. I'll take a quick glance, and I want to have you cook something for me again."
"I'll prepare it on your call."
Jin steadily exerted mana into the glass of the compass.
Cling! Chching! Klick!
The gears inside the compass spun, and the mana reflected off the glass face, forming a holographic image of a map in the air.
'This is… the continent?'
At first glance, it looked like a normal travel map artifact, excluding the strong colors and finer contrast. It had red dots throughout the landmass, which astonished the crew. The dots were gathered around the land ruled by the Vermont Empire, Zipfel Clan, and the Lutero Magic Federation. A few were located in the Huphester Alliance, and the rest were scattered.
"So these are all the Contractors…!"
"It seems so, Sir Kashimir, and most of them are bunched up at the Zipfel Clan and Vermont Empire."
However, it didn't track the Contractors with dead accuracy. The red dots only signified how many there were in the area, occupying the center of each defined sovereign nation. It didn't even show the Contractors' appearance or status. Nevertheless, just the knowledge of their existence was enough for the Zipfels.
With their insane manpower and warpower, they could narrow down and search for a Contractor very easily. It was especially easy when one dot landed on the Mamit Lawless Zone, a particularly smaller area.
Still, for larger nations with several dots, it would be more challenging.
"I've been observing it before you arrived, and it seems that the location of the dots constantly changes. It's probably because the Contractors move often."
A chill ran down Jin's spine.
"Thank god Enya and Euria left Tikan. Had they stayed, who knows what would've happened here."
The Zipfel Clan probably would have known that three Contractors gathered in Tikan.
Tikan was a Free City upon an island. Unlike most nations, if it had many red dots, narrowing down the search would be beyond easy regardless if there were only one or many.
"If we stayed, then there'd be three shining on Tikan. Just like now… Hm?"
Jin's eyes flicked back and forth on the map. Then, he stopped mid-sentence when he found Tikan.
"Wait… Is this fake? Why's there no dot in Tikan?"
Everyone in the room stared at the map.
"Strange. It looked like it had the ability to search for Contractors. Four days ago, a red dot appeared in the Schucheron Kingdom, and then the press reported a Contractor who contracted with the God of Shells…"
"God of Shells? Was the name Olmango or Olongo? Well, it marks up on those as well? That fella is too useless to even be considered a god."
Murakan snorted, but everyone else looked dead serious.
"…Something's off. If Gilly's right, then this thing is the real deal. But why aren't there any markings on Tikan?"
After a brief silence, a thought occurred to Quikantel, then she looked at Jin and Murakan.
"Can you two leave for a while?"
"Why?"
"Just do it."
"Where to?"
"Out of Tikan."
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