Chapter 31 - 031_Pirate Disturbance
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031_Pirate Disturbance
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The Water Breathing Life Light Stone that Emilia wanted is produced from the labyrinth in the central region. The Selvanui that drops the Life Light Stone is a mud doll, a humanoid form whose body is made of mud.
Moreover, because that labyrinth is in the royal family's direct domain, Rodney can explore it.
"Onii-chan, let's go!"
"No, wait. I have a situation report meeting in the capital, you know."
"Then we'll go after that!"
Once Emilia got like this, she couldn't be stopped. Rodney sighed and promised to head to that labyrinth after the situation report meeting.
"Then I must also go to the capital. Since we'll be entering the labyrinth after that."
Yulin, who wasn't scheduled to accompany them, also said she would go to the capital. Rodney knows that once it comes to entering a labyrinth, she can't be stopped or dissuaded.
In the end, the attendants who became members of the trip to the capital were Rodmel, Roxwell, and Yulin.
When she heard Emilia was going to the capital, even Mother Sharume started saying she might go to the capital too. He somehow persuaded her that it wasn't a pleasure trip, but she decided to return to Bassam while Rodney and the others were in the capital.
He would be causing trouble for the three attendants remaining in Dedel Territory—Hortus, Endever, and Kiris, who had formally taken up the post of administrator—but since it wasn't a large territory, they should be able to manage somehow.
Rodney headed to Bassam before summer. They would stay at Hacklehoff's mansion. During that time, he visited the Count Banyusas House and paid off his debt completely. With that, he was finally free of debt and felt relieved.
As thanks to Count Banyusas, he gifted him freshly made beer. This beer was the best batch yet. Count Banyusas also liked beer, and upon hearing it was the best, he smiled, his eyes crinkling.
Leaving Mother Sharume at Hacklehoff's mansion, they headed to the capital by ship.
Along the way, they encountered a pirate ship. The pirate ship was disguised as a cargo ship, but as it got closer, it was clear it wasn't a cargo ship. The captains discerned this and changed course to keep distance from the pirate ship.
The ship Rodney was on was a cargo ship with a large carrying capacity. This time as well, it was fully loaded with cargo, so its speed was quite slow. The pirate ship was catching the wind with its sails, and moreover had oars, so it was quite fast. It was only a matter of time before they were caught up to.
"Pirates in a place like this? That's rare."
"Don't pirates appear around here?"
"In the west there are many because of islands to hide behind, but around here there aren't many hiding places, so pirates are rare."
To Rodney, the approaching pirate ship looked brand new. He thought perhaps new pirates had come north.
If pirates spread like this, it would also affect the sale of Galim Syrup, so Rodney thought he should crush them here.
"Hey, Captain."
"What is it?"
The captain, with sun-tanned skin and a bearded face like a man of the sea, stood with arms crossed before the helm, intently watching the pirate ship's movements. Even when Rodney spoke to him, he didn't turn his gaze to Rodney.
An ordinary noble might have made a fuss about disrespect, but Rodney didn't mind such things.
"Is it okay to sink that pirate ship?"
"Well, it is a pirate ship. I don't mind if you sink it, but what do you plan to do?"
"I am a noble, after all. I have Source Power. Mind if I do it?"
"Don't blame me if you get hurt."
"I won't get hurt."
Rodney shifted his gaze to the pirate ship. The distance was probably about 100 rom (200 meters). They weren't within bow range yet.
On the pirate ship's deck, pirates wielding scimitars were raising war cries, and they reached Rodney's ears.
"It's about time."
Rodney focused, holding his palm toward the pirate ship. He activated the High Heat Flame Bullet with Reinforce and Enhance loaded onto it.
"Explode."
Contrary to his quietly spoken words, the High Heat Flame Bullet flew at high speed, pierced a hole in the pirate ship's sail, and set the sail on fire.
The pirates were frantically trying to put out the fire.
"The ship's rocking makes it hard to aim."
On the sea with waves, the ship rose and fell greatly. Moreover, Rodney was inexperienced in naval combat.
"Onii-chan, I'll do it too."
Emilia fired a High Heat Flame Bullet at the pirate ship. It hit the pirate ship's mast, and the force of the explosion snapped the mast.
"I did it!"
Emilia's High Heat Flame Bullet was inferior to Rodney's in power, but its accuracy was quite high. Emilia showed her genius not only in swordsmanship but also in controlling Source Power.
"I can't be outdone."
This time, he focused his consciousness on Manipulate. That High Heat Flame Bullet hit the hull of the pirate ship, which was burning with its mast broken, and opened a large hole.
"Well, that's that."
He heard the captain mutter.
Rodney's High Heat Flame Bullet had pierced through the pirate ship's hull, and seawater was flooding in through the large holes opened on both sides.
The pirate ship tilted rapidly, and pirates were thrown into the sea.
"Ah, it broke! Onii-chan, it broke. What a fragile ship."
Unable to withstand the weight of the lifted bow, the ship's hull snapped cleanly at the place where the hole was opened.
The captain gave a wry smile. It wasn't that the ship was fragile, but that the damage to the hull was severe.
"Captain, what about the pirates? Are we picking them up?"
"We'll leave them."
The captain said they would leave them as is, since rescuing them poorly and having them cause trouble would be a hassle.
This place was about 15 kentsu (3 km) from the nearest shore. If they were lucky, they might drift to shore.
Even for pirates skilled in swimming, it would be difficult to swim 15 kentsu in high waves, so many would likely drown.
"I see. I wanted to know the background connections, but I'll follow your judgment, Captain."
"Background connections? Do you think there's a noble supporting the pirates?"
"I just thought that since there aren't many hiding places, there must be a port where pirates can dock. Don't worry about it too much."
"I see... In that case, shall we rescue two or three and ask them the location of that port?"
"They might cause trouble."
"If it's just two or three, we'll beat them into submission."
The sailors on this ship weren't pirates, but they were men of the sea. They were roughnecks who wouldn't hesitate to punch and even kill pirates without fear.
Accepting the captain's proposal, they rescued three pirates.
Stripped of their belongings and bound with ropes tied to the mast, the pirates initially blustered and threatened Rodney and the others.
"You have no intention of talking, do you?"
"Who the hell would talk!?"
The pirates responded to Rodmel's interrogation by spitting.
"Very well. You don't have to talk. But don't talk until the end."
The expression on Rodmel's stern face vanished.
He had the domain soldiers hold the pirate's head down and carved "pirate" into his forehead with a dagger. The pirate screamed, but still wouldn't talk.
"Something like this is nothing!"
"This is just the beginning. The fun starts now."
Rodmel flashed a villainous smile and cut off one of the pirate's fingers. As if not hearing the pirate's screams, he pressed a hot iron to the wound to cauterize it. This stopped the bleeding and ensured the pirate wouldn't die quickly.
"K-kill me!"
"That wouldn't be fun. Since you're pirates who are allowed to be tortured to death, at least entertain me."
Rodmel looked so vicious that even Rodney was taken aback.
"S-stop... stop it, please."
As if not hearing that voice, Rodmel cut off the second finger.
"GYAAAAAAH!"
Even when the pirate said he would talk, Rodmel paid no attention and cut off all the fingers of his dominant hand.
"Gah-hahaha! What a fine scream! I'll torture you to death too, so wait your turn."
The two pirates watching the torture turned pale and trembled violently.
"D-do you think this is allowed?"
"You are pirates, and I am a noble. Pirates are evil, and I, who have subjugated them, am good. Moreover, killing pirates is not a crime. That is the law of this country."
Rodney showered the two with words of despair.
"But I'm not a demon. If you cooperate and answer honestly without causing me trouble, I'll order Rodmel to stop the torture."
"Really!?"
"I don't lie. But if you don't immediately become cooperative and say you'll tell everything, you understand, right?"
He shifted his gaze to Rodmel, who was cheerfully torturing. He was simply saying that the same would happen to them.
"We'll talk! We'll tell you anything, just don't torture us!"
"What do you want to know? Tell us!"
The two became very cooperative.
The captain and sailors watching the scene took their hats off to Rodney and Rodmel's skillful use of the carrot and stick.
I can't let Emilia and Yulin see this sight.
Rodney didn't want to see it either, and Rodmel, who was doing it, didn't want to do it. But to extract information from pirates, instilling fear was the quickest way.
If they were in Dedel Territory and had time, he would have used other methods, but now they were on a ship heading to the capital. They had to extract information as quickly as possible.
The pirates were talkative.
Whenever they hesitated even a little, Rodmel would grin. That alone made them speak everything they knew smoothly.
"We were told to kill you because there's a low-ranking noble named Forbas on board."
"Oh? Kill me? Who ordered it?"
"It's, it's a guy named Menisas. He prepared a hidden port and even gave us a new ship."
Wait, Menisas? That's Baron Menisas, isn't it? What the hell is that guy doing?
"You're saying you received support from Baron Menisas?"
"Y-yes. The captain said so."
The pirates had been engaging in privateering with the support of Baron Menisas.
Finding it odd that pirates had appeared in the north, where there were no hiding places, he investigated and a serious story came out.
If this was true, the Menisas House would definitely be punished. Above all, the Count Banyusas House would not remain silent. Depending on how things went, it could lead to a civil war.
Unable to leave Baron Menisas alone, Rodney decided to hand over the pirates to the domain soldiers at the next port of call.
That port was still in Zabalujeen Territory, ruled by Count Banyusas. This story would likely reach Count Banyusas's ears soon.
Rodney wrote a letter to Count Banyusas and handed it over to the domain soldiers along with the pirates.
Count Banyusas would probably investigate this matter as well. If there really was a hidden port in Baron Menisas's Deldo Territory, he would not be able to talk his way out of it.
If the hidden port was destroyed because the pirates didn't return, the evidence would disappear.
"But why order me killed? It's Count Banyusas who's severed ties with Baron Menisas, right? I don't think I have any connection with Baron Menisas other than debt."
"That's how you earn grudges without knowing it. Something trivial that doesn't even remain in Lord Rodney's memory must have displeased Baron Menisas."
"Rodmel, do you also hold a grudge against me?"
"Hahaha. I do. Two of them, in fact. Do you want to hear them?"
"...I suppose I'll listen."
He had some idea, but he wanted to resolve the grievances of his chief attendant, Rodmel.
"First, please stop entering labyrinths with such a small party soon. If it's the first or second floor, I won't say anything with Yulin present, but the sixth floor is dangerous."
That was a natural request from a retainer. Rodney understood that, so he said he would do his best.
"I feel like I know the second without hearing it."
"If you know, then it's simple. Get married soon. That is the wish of all your retainers."
Rodney listened with a feeling of "I knew it." However, he understood his retainers' feelings. But that didn't mean he could do something about it immediately.
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