C197 - Escaping (2)
"We shouldn't fly!"
Jin shouted out of reflex.
But the ship was already running into the sea like a cannon.
"Don't worry, the Empire's magic doesn't work on this."
The ship had no wings and was not a living creature. Besides, Order 7 didn't actually fly, so Cosmos knew they wouldn't be detected by the Great Red Entanglement Barrier.
Flying on a ship was an unusual experience.
Not even Jin, who was from the great Runcandel family, Kashimir, who was once a member of royalty, Alisa, who once belonged to the special operations unit, including Siris, who was the heir to the Hidden Palace, and also the dragons who had lived for thousands of years, had experienced this.
Kaaaaaaaah!
Although the water pressure from the stream blocking the wall only temporarily blew them away, the group could not keep their mouths shut.
How could a simple pirate prepare something like this?
That's what Jin and his companions were thinking. Cosmos had pre-planned a ship underground on the island so they could escape at any time in case of emergency.
"Hahahahahahaha, it's for this kind of thing that we created ships like Order 7!"
So, Order 1 through 6 had probably been used in the same way.
His companions could barely hear Cosmos' boisterous laughter. They were experiencing incredible pressure such as they had never felt before as the ship shot up like a projectile.
On the other hand, it seemed familiar to the pirates. Like excited monkeys, they all screamed with joy and enjoyed the incredible speed of the ship.
Jin's cheeks puffed out in the wind. If he opened his eyes while facing the wind, his eyelids would be inverted, not to mention that his hair was already a mess right now.
Looking down, he could see other ships.
They were the fleet of the Bellard Empire, laying siege to the island, and the men on their decks looked up, dumbfounded, as if in disbelief.
Order VII (Order 7) flew past them like a bird. After flying past them, it flew on for a while longer, plummeting into the ocean in the distance.
It was an unreal scene. The fleet commanders could not direct their weapons or magic against Order Seven.
They simply stood in awe, wondering how the hell they did this.
"Hahaha, now we're going down, hold on tight!"
Before Cosmos could say that, Jin and his companions had already dug their fingers into the cracks in the deck.
It was doubtful that the ship would survive the impact. If the sea didn't hold, the Order 7 would shatter.
But the only doubters were Jin, his companions and the Bellard Empire fleet.
Boom...!splash...!
Water surged everywhere like a tidal wave.
It was the result of the ship falling into the sea, and at the same time a sound of something breaking was heard. It was the sound of the ship's components breaking apart as the ship shook.
Debris flew out. So many fragments of wood flew that it seemed unbelievable, and the deck broke completely and bounced upwards.
Despite everything, the pirates were busy laughing and chatting. "Looks like it went much better this time." Even those words could be heard.
It really was all smashed up.
Surprisingly, when the rising jet of water subsided, Order 7 moved forward nonchalantly and gracefully. The keel was in perfect condition.
"Phew..."
Jin sighed without realizing it. When he turned back, the island and the fleet looked the size of a beanstalk.
"You know how we pirates survive among monsters like you? It's because of things like this. Neither the Empire, nor the Imperial fleet, can chase us at sea."
"It seems the ship is quite damaged, I also heard a rumbling sound from the direction of the keel. The deck is completely destroyed, how can we escape the pursuit on this ship?"
Cosmos patted Jin on the shoulder and laughed.
"Well, the sea loves us. Don't worry, when the emergency repairs are completed, those guys will be at a point in 30 minutes and won't be seen for an hour. Repairers, begin your work! Crewmen, take over!"
The pirates, who had been laughing their heads off at Cosmos' words, ran to their posts in unison, leaving only Jin and Cosmos standing with nothing to do.
"Unbelievable, how did you do that?"
"It wouldn't be good if you knew our trade secret."
"But anyone who experiences something like that can only ask."
"Hehe, something even Runcandel can't do. That's why I'm the pirate king."
The others were still in shock.
'Why on earth would someone with this kind of ability become a pirate?'
He wanted to ask, but held back. He seemed to take great pride in his profession as a pirate, and now it was time to say thank you.
"Well, thanks anyway, you got me off the island in one piece."
"Hmph, that's a bit of an exaggeration, you wouldn't have escaped if it wasn't for me. Keep your word, you took an oath, and I need to be able to trust you."
"As long as my companions and I make it safely to shore, I'll have no problem keeping my promise, what's our route?"
"We will sail undeviating to the neighboring kingdom of Zane, and then replenish our supplies on the island of our nearby allies. It will only take two weeks. Get off there and be on your way. How much money will you give?"
"More than you can imagine. It will be as much money as you make in those clandestine tournaments you do."
Even if I gave him more money, he wouldn't mind.
In the midst of the chaos, running away in Murakan or Quikantel was the worst option, but then came Cosmos. Not only that, thanks to Jin participating in the Cosmos tournament last year, he met with Beradin and Dante, and got a map of the Colon archaeological site.
In fact, Cosmos was practically Jin's only benefactor.
Jej, Cosmos laughed.
"We only took you because we had no other options... We don't trust the way Runcandel does things. Don't they kill everyone when they feel safe? There's even a chance you might kill us, since we're not even customers, just pirates."
"Is that what you want me to do?"
"It's just a figure of speech. Unlike us, you seem to take the oath very seriously, so don't change it now. Haha, it's exciting. Remember that you have to pay the debt and the reward for this job separately."
"Of course, you did a great job."
* * *
The peerless benefactor, Pirate King Cosmos, wasn't worried at all.
That is, even when he was informed of the possibility of persecution not only by the Bellard Empire, but also by the great forces of Vermont and the Zipple wizards.
"Anyway, they chase us all the time. And they don't catch us, like now."
"Maybe they'll send a dragon, this time. No matter how fast Order Seven is, it can't outrun a dragon."
"Do you think we're fools? We're going to hide for years with the money you send us. There are so many islands in the world, how could they possibly check them all? So don't worry and just send the money."
June 18, 1797.
When all his companions were together again in Tikan, Jin's first act was to send the Pirates of Cosmos the gold bars.
He also wrote them a letter. As long as you do nothing improper, if you behave yourselves, I will someday give you a home in Hufester, and you should consider rehabilitation.
"Young Master."
Gilly's eyes narrowed as soon as she saw Jin. It had been an agonizing wait for her, from her departure for the Great Mithra Desert to her involvement in the compass-stealing operation upon her return.
But she didn't make a fuss. As a soldier before she was Jin's nanny, she recognized him at a glance. The fact that Jin was really strong now.
"You've grown up and got what you wanted."
Gilly smiled as she held out the golden compass to Jin.
"Turns out everyone said goodbye to you because of this."
"While you were gone, I worked with the turkey team to figure out how to use it. Just like any other artifact, it works by injecting magical power into it. There are many other things to tell, but you may want me to start with this one, right?
"Yes, I can't wait to check it out, and I'm craving some of Gilly's food after all this time."
"I'll have them ready as soon as we're done."
Grabbing the compass, Jin calmly began injecting magic into it.
Ding, Ding Dong, Krick...!
The components inside the compass began to rotate and the next moment, the magic reflected on the surface of the compass drew a map in the air.
"This is... the continent?"
At first glance, it looked like an ordinary travel artifact map, except that it was a bit larger and had a more intense color.
But what made the group startled were the red dots scattered all over the continent.
Those red dots were concentrated in the lands of Vermont and Zipple, and in Luther's Magical Federation. Some could barely be seen in Hufester's Union and others were scattered in other areas.
"Could it be that they are all contractors...!"
"I suspect so, Lord Kashimir, and almost all of them are gathered on the Zipple and Vermont side."
It was not a map showing the exact location of the contractors. The red dots were just marks indicating the number of contractors in each region. All of the dots only shone in the center of each area.
It did not show the appearance or status of contractors. But if there were red dots in a region, it meant there were contractors there, which was enough for a force like Zippel.
They could scout and find anything with their limited resources and manpower.
In particular, it would be very easy to search if the land was small and had only one red dot, like the Mamit Lawless Zone shown on the compass.
On the other hand, large places with several red dots would seem difficult to find even with a compass.
"I looked at it several times before you came, but the position of the red dot changes subtly every day. Maybe it's because the contractor is moving."
She got goose bumps.
"Good thing Enya, Euria and I left Tikan half a year ago. I don't know what those Zipples would have done if we'd stayed."
Zipple must have been aware of the fact that there were 'three' contractors in Tikan from the beginning.
The free city of Tikan is an island. Therefore, unlike other places, if the red dots were present, there would be no need to limit their scope. The same would be true for one or more dots.
"If we had continued like this, there would be three red dots on Tikan. Like now... um?"
Jin paused, looking at Tikan on the map.
For some reason, not a single red dot was glowing on Tikan. Even though all three contractors-Jin, Euria, and Enya-were there.
"No way... is this fake, why isn't there a red dot on Tikan?"
At Jin's words, all his companions looked in the same direction.
"That's strange. It seemed like there was a function to search for a contractor. After a red dot appeared in Shucheron Kingdom three days ago, today morning a small news appeared that someone who made a contract with the Shell God appeared in Shucheron Kingdom..." (Note: He can also be called Clam God)
"The Shell God, was his name Olmango or Olungo? Anyway, are you saying that even those lesser Gods are marked with a red dot? That friend is so incompetent he's not even worthy of being called a God."
Murakan snorted, but the others remained stone-faced.
"Something is wrong. If Gilley's words are true, the object is real, but why are there no contractors on Tikan?"
Quikantel, who had been watching, looked at Jin and Murakan as if something had occurred to him.
"You two, step outside for a moment."
"Why so suddenly?"
"Go outside."
"Where to?"
"Outside Tikan."