Onward to the Sea
"Circe, let me peel some fruit for you. Huh? You just want it whole?"
I'm tired...
Circe's tastes were excessively refined. Riko blamed me for that. The golden fruit infused with the power of the World Tree carried the essence of the constellations themselves—it was no ordinary elixir, something most people couldn't even digest. But for a master sorceress like her, it was a forbidden tonic that dramatically boosted her mana reserves. Being able to obtain something like this without any cost, almost semi-permanently, was an incredible boon. If word got out, she could get kidnapped and locked away in secret, Riko had warned. And right now, because of Riko, she was locked in the room.
During the time I'd lost my arm, when her body was barely clinging to life, powerless, it was this fruit that had restored her vitality. And considering it came from the hero who found her arm and slew the evil god that had bound her for ages, it was only natural she'd fallen head over heels for him. I wondered if people were reading too much into eating something from a human body, but Riko insisted the effects were absurd and the taste heavenly sweet—just a single drop on her tongue was enough for her to judge. As for me, since it came from my own body, I had no idea if it even worked on me.
Wasn't it unfair that fruit from my body had no effect on me? Riko told me to think positively since it made the party stronger, then crafted one elixir, packaged it neatly, and entrusted the box—along with a letter from Hyacinth checking on the bustling party members back at base—to the sea dolphins for delivery.
"The witch sister in that port city I mentioned before will receive it and pass it along through her network," Riko said. She added that a reply might come the same way. She stored the vegetables received from the dolphins in one corner of the room with runes for preservation. As a vegetarian, she grumbled that the sea was a tough place to eat and survive. She wanted to fly freely on her broom, but witches were terrifying legendary figures to sea folk—getting caught wouldn't end well.
"A witch's existence must remain an absolute secret. You've probably heard, but Lady Circe is the unique princess of the Vurrages clan, blessed by the gods as the heir to the royal bloodline of the maritime kingdom that rules the Montagu seas. If they learn about witches, they'll start prying about Sea Witch Circe too. And with her around, pirates will get all pesky."
"Understood."
Beautiful witches who raid seafaring pirates, plundering their essence and treasures. I'd heard the legends before—landlubbers might not know them, but every sea person did. With her around, we didn't even need a treasure map. If we needed gold from relics deep in the sea, she could just fetch it.
"So why are you traveling?"
Circe asked why I was traveling the seas now that the sea's evil god was defeated—didn't the hero have no reason to venture out? She scooted right up beside me, pressing close and looking up. Ignoring her hand curiously kneading my ear like always, I explained I was just out to gain experience.
"Anytime you want a treasure, tell me."
She opened her subspace and dumped gold and jewels onto the floor like trash. Living at base, we never lacked for money. Just in case, I asked if she could make pages for a memorize spellbook. After pondering, she shook her head, saying it needed parchment or special materials. When I asked if processed wood would work,
"It is possible with a tree with magical powers."
Wood infused with mana could be carved into pages, even better as disposable magic tools, she said, pulling out a wooden stick. After engraving a rune, she snapped it and tossed it into the air—flames erupted from the rune, flared, and vanished. My memorize spellbook had only 30 pages, and with no idea how long the voyage would last, this was perfect timing. I made an identical tree using Lemon tree leaves for a sapling, grew it with the forest's blessing, and shaped it into sticks. She deemed them sufficient and began carving with a mana-forged rune knife.
"Come to think of it, has Circe ever met a hero before?"
She pondered, then shook her head. Back then, contracted to the evil god and warring alone against the elves, she knew nothing of continental events. Seeing her gloomily recall her fallen kin, I tore a mint choco ice cream ticket and handed it over.
She blinked, gripped the stick end, and licked it.
"Better to eat than poison."
"Better than poison," she rated it, thanking me childlike as she licked the ice cream.
"If you need disposable magic tools, I'll help. I'll make potions too, just in case."
"Got enough materials?"
"Lady Circe's subspace is overflowing with them."
Riko laughed that whoever held Circe's heart ruled the seas. No worries about the ship capsizing mid-voyage—go explore, she said, letting me who wanted out. As I headed for the door, she stopped me with a gleaming trident infused with blue light. Circe called it the Sea Triton's Trident, saying as princess she'd grant me full ownership, overlapping our hands.
"Can't your devoted wife get a hug? I gave you a gift?"
Riko prompted from behind, but I didn't want to toy with a woman's feelings. Even if Circe felt gratitude and affection toward me, her fervent, proactive expressions of love made her seem like a pure young princess, devoid of the venom from our first meeting. The goddess of magic had asked too, so I thanked her and returned the hug.
"Riko, can't you tell her to find a proper man? I'm dragging around how many women already..."
"Any problem? Captain Eagle had wives in the triple digits. You're only single digits, hero. Plus you saved her arm, slew the evil god, send World Tree fruit daily. You're basically a seahorse prince. Reject her and she'll curse you? A witch's grudge runs deep."
Why was I getting threatened? We'd respect Circe's wishes. I'd write Larirure about it later. Pocketing the Sea Triton's Trident, I stepped out. It seemed too big and cumbersome to carry—then it morphed into a bracelet coiling my arm. An ego weapon with a will, obeying my desires. I grew anxious over what extravagant thing Circe had given me this time. Basically, her dowry.
On deck, Mortis and the captain were enjoying the sea breeze. Kidd was there too; the captain was introducing him to Mortis.
"Hey, you're here. Hm... what should I call you?"
"Radamu Dice. Call me whatever."
"Right, Radamu. Heard you already had a go? Looks like the vice-captain wannabe tried flexing discipline and got schooled! Haha! A fish-catcher thinking he can beat a life-risking adventurer? No chance. You're just not cut out for the sea, kid."
"Don't knock it till you try it, you hag! I'll prove it this voyage—I'm a man worthy of the sea!"
The energetic Kidd yelled at the captain, brandishing what might be his returned harpoon. She dismissed him to do as he pleased. Lighting her pipe tobacco, she watched.
"You two look alike," Mortis murmured softly, eyeing Kidd.
The captain caught it, gave a wry smile—"Yeah, huh? Same damn personality,"—grumbling as she exhaled smoke from her mouth. "Swinging a harpoon don't make a captain. Prove it? Start by scrubbing the deck." She kicked his shin.
Grousing at her irritation but obediently grabbing mop and wax, Kidd went off to clean. As he left, she turned to me with a smile. The thick tobacco scent carried a strange melancholy.
"Whew. So, Radamu. Where to start... This Salacia Sea already has a man called the Pirate King."
The invincible fleet's captain who built a pirate kingdom amid these vast waters: Golden Beard Hornigold. Recently, he'd lost 15 ships battling the evil god, weakening his forces. But he wasn't hailed king for nothing, she said, asking me:
"If you were a greedy pirate hero... how'd you plunder?"
"...Raid passing ships?"
"Right. Pirates, not adventurers, do that. Empire ain't without ships—if they were, they'd just get plundered helplessly. Holy Eagle Kingdom too. They trade goods by sea. Even elves. Seas are vast, easy for transport, with routes."
Neutral kingdoms or merchants act as middlemen for trade—even hostile nations buy and sell via merchants. Complex money matters, she explained. Empire, elves, Holy Eagle Kingdom, Trust Union, even Pansinjeon—all enemies, yet he plunders freely, hiding and defending his pirate kingdom against them all.
"That's him: Pirate King Hornigold, lording over these seas. Claims the whole world, seas included, as his. Confidence to crush any challenger, and the power to back it. His loot includes holy relics, cursed weapons, all sorts of dangers."
Plus, rumors he ate an immortality elixir, eternal youth. Searching for the divine armor would inevitably clash with his forces, she warned. Even without him, monsters abound, anomalies pop up—brace for tough sailing.
"So why does that Pirate King crave world conquest?"
I asked if he sought revival of the maritime kingdom. Puffing her pipe, she pondered, chuckled—"It's nothing much."
"When he was a greenhorn, a storm flipped his ship. Drifting, a woman saved him—he fell for her."
"...Huh?"
"He's rampaging to rule all seas for that treasure, become an unbeatable sea king. Still hunting the legendary divine relic Sea Triton's Trident, said to be Neptune's gift. Claims he'll claim legendary Sea Witch Circe too."
"..."
"Man's romance. Pirate stubbornness. Betraying comrades for his dream. He's nearly done it—except no one knows the witches' island. Haha!"
With Sea Witch Circe and the trident, that man could truly self-proclaim Pirate King. She'd burst laughing. A fool building a nation for a savior crush becoming sea king? History would mock it—funny in its way. But unsmiling, she tossed her cigarette into the sea.
"Voyage ahead gets rough. Mark my words—brutal waves and storms. The sea witch's wrath."
"...I see."
Regrettably, no storm came. Because today, I'd been appointed sea king.