Blue Lord of the Salacia Sea
"Hoo... haa..."
After spending the entire day turning the island upside down, we finally found the treasure chest. I wondered if someone had buried it on purpose... but most of it seemed to have just been covered by layers of soil and debris over long years. Who would ever think it was buried not in the dirt, but in solid rock? In a stroke of luck, we flipped over some stone rubble near the bedrock, and there it was—a dented treasure chest shyly revealing itself.
Aside from the minor incident where Hyacinth lost his mind upon seeing it, kicked the chest, clutched his foot in agony, and tumbled down the rock pile, no one got hurt.
"So that thing just now was an elf's wind spirit, right?"
Kidd grumbled about how there was no satisfaction in slashing it with his harpoon. As he dragged out the treasure chest, he talked about the wind spirit we'd encountered on the island earlier. It had no physical form—just natural wind gathered into the shape of a living creature. If an Invisible Stalker had a visible form, it might look like that.
Hyacinth's bullets didn't work on it, and even Kidd's harpoon wrapped in mana didn't seem to deal any real damage. It felt like a being made of nature rather than mana, and at first sight, I had no idea how to even fight it. For Circe, though, it was less than a bug.
She explained that she hadn't even used rune magic—just channeled mana into her fingertip like a sword and sliced. To demonstrate, she lightly swiped her index finger through the air—shk—and a tree was bisected, toppling backward. Imagining her swinging ten invisible blades with all her fingers sent chills down my spine. I couldn't even begin to grasp just how strong a Master really was.
The king controlled by the succubus lord had been a Master too, but that fight had hinged on specific conditions that let my stats skyrocket endlessly. I'd overpowered him with sheer force and speed rather than skill, and I hadn't even landed a decisive blow. If the succubus lord had ordered him to kill me outright, my head would've been gone before my stats could ramp up.
Against a Master, unless I controlled the field, I'd lose nine out of ten times. Even assuming I could behead them in a surprise attack before they knew what I was capable of, thanks to the Bopal Weapon's power, I'd still come out on the losing end.
Monsters aside, this world was full of things I didn't know. Even the locals didn't know much about them. You absolutely couldn't judge strength by appearances. It was the chronic issue the Saintess had pointed out: "Good judgment and strategy, but weak in decisive moves, prolonged battles, and facing numbers." I needed to figure out how to fix that.
And even if I solved all that, I still couldn't beat someone with overwhelming power. 'Problems just keep piling up every day.' It'd be nice if one or two could be solved easily.
"Oh, jackpot."
As I mulled over my usual worries, Kidd marveled at the treasure chest's contents. Inside was metal of all things—smooth emerald-colored mithril ingots. They must've harvested all the root vegetables and fruits growing on the island and left this behind. Sure enough, the place was teeming with edible plants.
Riko insisted we stay anchored for three days, grabbed a basket and hoe, and dragged Hyacinth off to forage.
"I knew the history, but mithril isn't that heavy. Abandoning this is surprising."
Maybe they hid it under the rock to prevent misuse? Mortis said the rock face hadn't collapsed naturally. The captain confirmed my guess while inspecting the ingot. If treasure hunters came looking and turned it into a weapon for evil, Captain Eagle had buried it in a spot only those with his map could find—tough even then.
The more I thought about it, the more he seemed like a total eccentric.
"I hope the Empire doesn't claim ownership."
Mortis voiced her concern. Come to think of it, I'd never asked what the Empire was like. The mercenary we'd met before said they did anything for money, but beyond that, it seemed like an absolute monarchy with a single king.
Trust Union had kings too, but anyone could be one, and they didn't wield much power. The Empire fit my idea of a classic king-led realm. When I asked Mortis how it came about, she tilted her head, remembered I was a hero, and explained.
"The Empire's founding emperor was Captain Eagle's son. His retainers who built the nation had followed Captain Eagle. It was the first civil war after Trust Union's founding. Though now outside the walls, that land was originally Trust Union's territory. These days, the Empire conquers kingdoms to expand. I don't know the original ideals... but now it's just a hostile power. Even as an old man, the current emperor was once called the strongest monarch in Empire history—and it seems true, as their territory rivals Trust Union's. Peak prosperity."
──After Captain Eagle and Trust fought and died, his son gathered followers and waged war on the Union Trust founded. It started as drawing lines and founding the Empire, but later generations revealed ambitions to invade under nonsense pretexts like avenging their hero ancestor or claiming true hero lineage. Now, they were outright enemies on the surface.
Except for covert trade via merchants, relations were irreparably broken. They had a king, nobles, and unlike Trust Union—which enslaved only criminals—slave trading too. The fantasy world I knew matched the Empire.
Could I stomach seeing people bought and sold? ...Was freeing all the oppressed slaves even possible? We'd tangle with the Empire eventually. To reach Maou territory, we'd have to cross it anyway.
"The Empire looks glamorous on the surface. But nobles wield power openly with greed, letting the common folk die."
"Because the king is old?"
"That's part of it. He lacks his old strength, but his power persists. Nobles squeeze the people with privileges like immunity, tax exemptions, confiscate wealth to hoard riches, and indulge in luxury and hedonism with arrogant entitlement."
"...How do you know so much about the Empire?"
"Merchants trade. Trust Union's luxuries sell high to Empire nobles. They buy ornamental holy swords they'll never wield. Flaw of nobility, but they don't grasp it's all squeezed from the people's blood and sweat."
"Then it could collapse anytime? Revolution from the masses?"
"Nobles have private armies. And everyone fears death. If unrest stirs, they'd burn villages and sell survivors as slaves."
...A bit shocking? Mortis asked. But the nobles in my history or fantasy stories were mostly like that—no big surprise. It felt natural that old-money nobles had rotted. Trust Union was unusually clean. Like it gathered only good folk.
Was the reason Trust and Captain Eagle fought still unknown? No... the Empire hadn't fought the Union until Captain Eagle's son's generation, when it was founded. He must've known the truth. But his heirs couldn't accept it and started warring. No point saying it now—I just sighed and shook my head.
"The Empire lacks Trust Union's strict laws. Even if they exist, no one enforces them. That's why they have horrors like chemical weapons and corpse legions—Trust Union hesitates to fight. They'd win, but at huge cost—"
"They couldn't handle elves, Holy Eagle Kingdom, or Maou remnants after?"
"Exactly. Frontline skirmishes stay small. But with the old king dying, rumors say the crown prince successor is a hardliner who might start war."
An era thick with war clouds...? My summoning timing was ironically perfect. Mortis was certain war would erupt when the king died.
"So... why would the Empire claim ownership?"
"It's Captain Eagle's treasure. They demand everything related to their hero returned to the rightful nation. Trust Union ignores due to bad ties, but if we found the New Gear and they learn, they'll hunt us across these seas."
"Getting caught digging for New Gear headaches?"
"Yes. And with Pirate King stirring Empire navy too, worse."
Mortis said rumors spread from retired pirate Zan de Radgerda returning for treasure in a sea tavern. They'd dismiss as old pirate comeback, but Pirate King likely eyed us. With Empire and elves confirmed moving, no telling the mess it'd become.
"Hornigold won't have bandwidth for us. Can't fight Empire, elves, Holy Eagle Kingdom, and us."
"What'd they steal?"
"Who knows... Maybe excuse to smash Pirate Kingdom, seize seas, plunder supplies for navy. Holy Eagle lost holy relic... Elves? No clue. But that's the biggest issue."
I voiced doubt. Wasn't there only one elf seafaring? More maybe? But Mortis firmly denied, drawing the line.
Elves' arrogance made Empire nobles unworthy foes. Grim-faced, she explained the stolen elf goods.
"It means Pirate King has power to slaughter an elf ship's crew and loot. Owner of this sea's invincible fleet no one beats."
Mortis worried Pirate King might hold "overwhelming force" even against elf hordes.
".....Then wouldn't elves call reinforcements? One enough?"
"Elves killed by mere lizards aren't worthy of the name—treated as vermin. Survivors demoted to slaves. This elf's at least warrior class. Handles spirits—major powerhouse. Two for a lizard king? Overkill."
"......I see..."
I thought Empire nobles trashy, but elves were beyond imagination. What awaited on this voyage... Worst timing to sail. Or maybe because I was a hero.