Savior of the Mermaid Village
"What the hell is going on??"
Gordon Yoroki, the top executive of the Gordon Fleet and captain of the first ship, muttered to himself in disbelief upon hearing the latest news.
"Second captain, third, fourth, fifth—all four fleets out of contact?? You think that makes any sense??"
The reporting secretary said nothing, and Captain Gordon rose from his seat.
"Let's head to the temple!"
At Romuji's grandest temple to the goddess, Gordon asked the high priest.
"High Priest, any idea where our... captains might be?"
The high priest shook his head in response.
"As I told you before, I inquired with the priests across the goddess's city. They weren't anywhere to be found."
The captain spoke in a voice laced with suspicion.
"They weren't captured by the mermaids, were they?"
The high priest replied to that as well.
"I couldn't say. But if the mermaids did capture them, please let me know. Those who abduct humans... I'll petition the mayor for revenge. War."
The high priest saw this as an opportunity, and Captain Gordon found himself thinking that, at this point, it might even benefit him if his subordinate captains had been taken by the mermaids.
Arhof, the Mermaid Village
The prison in the mermaid village was already overflowing with people.
"Hmm... Leader, what do we do?"
Li Zhangwei reported that over 300 pirates were now crammed into the mermaid village's prison, with no more room left. Gisohee's report piled on.
"Seojun, the harbor's full now too."
The party had seized 11 ships, plus 3 more under repair, totaling 14 vessels. The small harbor of the mermaid village was completely packed. Namgung Seojun knew it was time to wrap things up. Only the first captain and 5 ships remained in the Gordon Fleet.
"Time to bring it to a close, right?"
Everyone wondered what would come next.
Romuji Harbor
"A large fleet approaching the harbor. Wait... those ships look familiar. Gordon Fleet vessels."
A guard scouting with a magical telescope shouted. The fleet was the 14 ships the party had captured, with the Prokho leading the way.
As soon as the Prokho and the rest entered the harbor, soldiers assembled. When the party members disembarked, spears were leveled at them.
"Most of these are Gordon Fleet ships... what? Pirates?"
"Surrender quietly and be bound!"
Namgung Seojun revealed his job title from his Status Window—Apostle Candidate of the Main God—and declared,
"No. We've actually captured pirates and come here. As challengers to the Apostle of the Main God, we've apprehended these pirates who tormented innocent other races!"
"......"
Captain Gordon and the high priest, who had come to the docks, were speechless.
Seojun proceeded directly to the goddess's temple with over 300 prisoners in tow. He made his demand.
"These are pirates. They attacked the mermaid village first and have tormented and abducted mermaids for a long time."
When he requested they be made slaves, the high priest maintained a gentle expression as he said,
"Apostle Candidate of the Main God, there seems to be some misunderstanding... These are honest sailors. Not pirates."
Namgung Seojun then presented a recording crystal.
"No. They're pirates who attacked to abduct innocent mermaids. This recording crystal I've been carrying clearly captures them initiating the assault."
Recording Crystal Evidence
Footage shows pirates initiating attack on mermaid village. Clear visuals of aggression and abductions.
Veins bulged on the high priest's face at those words. He endured as best he could and said,
"Don't do this to fellow humans."
Seojun shot back immediately.
"Fellow humans... The Main God wishes all races to live in peace together. Pirates committing one-sided assaults must be dealt with, even if they're attacking non-humans."
With the situation like this, the high priest clutched his head, instructed the regular priests to handle it, and left the room.
In the high priest's chamber, Captain Gordon exploded in frustration.
"High Priest! You're just going to let my men become slaves like this?"
"....."
"High Priest!"
"Quiet down. I told you to keep it moderate, didn't I?"
Captain Gordon was fuming, but he shut his mouth, realizing he couldn't afford to further irk the high priest.
"What I told you, Captain, was a pretext. For the mermaids to attack humans first, giving us cause to occupy their village. But you just looted for profit without going that far!"
Captain Gordon felt wronged. If the mermaids had been tormented that badly, he figured they'd fight back. But they endured silently, so he kept attacking. The high priest had never explicitly approved but had turned a blind eye—now he was saying this when trouble arose. It was infuriating.
Seeing Gordon's discontent, the high priest had no real interest in his misfortune but spoke to use him.
"Captain Gordon, you want revenge, right?"
"Of course!"
"Then..."
The high priest whispered something to him, and Captain Gordon nodded with a bright smile.
"Perfect. I'll handle it decisively."
Captain Gordon left, thinking this was his last chance. The high priest sneered vilely.
"Apostle Candidate of the Main God or not, acting like this? You'll regret it later."
He was entertaining thoughts and actions unbecoming of a high priest.
The party acquired over 300 slaves. They were sold at the city's slave shop for the highest possible prices. The 14 captured ships were also sold immediately to the harbor shipyard.
"Profits total 21,000 gold."
Namgung Seojun gathered only the regular party members and revealed the massive haul. This was even a discounted amount. In a major city, they'd have gotten 10-20% more.
They marveled at the three bags on the table brimming with gold coins.
"Whoa..."
"The gold coins... the bags are really stuffed."
"Worth two months of hard work."
As everyone exclaimed in awe, Pinara asked with a hint of worry.
"But... you know we're in danger now, right?"
It was obvious. Everyone agreed, and Captain Kang Inho said just in case,
"The whole city probably hates us right now."
It was a city of goddess worshippers. The high priest and mayor had even plotted to exterminate the mermaid village in the goddess's name. For Namgung Seojun's party to appear as saviors and crush a major fleet, they were naturally in peril.
"Should we board the ship and head straight to the mermaid village?"
Gisohee suggested leaving the city quickly, but Namgung Seojun shook his head.
"Leaving the city right now would be more dangerous."
He addressed the group.
"Stay in the city and prepare for attacks. Even if the high priest and mayor are insane, they can't mobilize the army. But organized ambushes from some factions are likely, so we'll fortify here."
Lee Guho chuckled at his words.
"Aw, really? They'd attack us inside the city?"
Namgung Seojun and Pharos shouted almost in unison.
"Yes, we could be attacked."
As the two predicted, the party was hated by the entire city. If the high priest and mayor just looked the other way, they had to brace for assaults within the city.
The party decided to prepare for ambushes at the inn.
That evening, as 10 PM struck, the innkeeper quietly slipped out. Though Namgung Seojun had rented the whole place and staff were supposed to stay for room service, he just left.
Now only the Namgung Seojun party members and Captain Kang Inho's sailors remained in the inn. Black-masked men approached.
"Toss 'em."
Dozens of smoke grenades were hurled inside on command, and molotov cocktails rained around the inn, engulfing it in flames.
Captain Gordon, leader of the black-masked men, watched with a grin.
"We shared drinks this evening, and their dinner was laced with heavy sedatives. Even street snacks would've had sleep agents. But hitting them first with hallucinogenic smoke grenades? Total victory!"
The temple had egged them on, the mayor provided support. The entire city of Romuji had set a trap for Namgung Seojun's party.
The inn's outer walls began to burn. As smoke filled the building, Captain Gordon yelled,
"Masks on, go in. They'll all be asleep. Grab everything valuable before the building burns! Kill the men, bring out the women—you can do whatever you want with them."
"Yes, sir!"
The Gordon pirates rushed in excitedly.
"Loot it!"
"Grab anything of value!"
"Kill the men! Capture the women!"
They charged in gleefully, but inside was not what they expected.
"....."
Namgung Seojun's party was unscathed. The inn lobby was fine too. Sylphs blocked harmful smoke from the group, and Garyunmi's Undine kept flames from entering the lobby area.
They hadn't eaten the food—or had only pretended for show, then received immediate healing from Pharos and Yuki. No issues.
Namgung Seojun spotted the pirates entering and shouted,
"See? Easy. Take them all out!"
"Yes!"
The party counterattacked the Gordon pirates. Their raw combat power overwhelmingly superior. In just 10 minutes, they subdued all 150 Gordon pirates and hired mercenaries—including Captain Gordon himself—as prisoners.
The next day, Namgung Seojun's party dragged Captain Gordon and the captured assailants to the goddess's temple once more. He declared boldly,
"Criminals who attacked our party at the inn. Make them slaves."
The high priest glanced pitifully at Captain Gordon, then snapped at Seojun in a slightly angry tone.
"Even as Apostle Candidate of the Main God, you stir up trouble in the city and waltz in here boldly?"
Naturally, Namgung Seojun had evidence again. He pulled out a recording orb.
"We were ambushed."
"The footage just shows combat scenes."
He produced another.
"This one shows them setting fires outside and tossing smoke grenades. And the innkeeper fleeing. Put a bounty on him too."
Recording Orb Evidence
Clear footage: Assailants ignite fires, deploy smoke grenades outside inn. Innkeeper flees scene.
Seojun had prepared ironclad proof. The high priest trembled with rage. He even considered calling in the temple guards.
But Pharos approached slowly.
"Enough now. It's over."
A whisper inaudible to others reached only the high priest's ear. His face drained of color, and he fell silent.
Meanwhile, another priest reluctantly enslaved Captain Gordon and the pirates.
The party rushed to a slave shop near the temple and sold all but Captain Gordon at a bargain price. They headed straight to the docks.
"We'll block any follow-up attacks at sea. Stay alert for ambushes en route."
Namgung Seojun issued the order just in case, but oddly felt no anxiety. His Super Sense signaled no incoming attacks.
At the harbor, they boarded the Prokho. No sabotage on the ship, thankfully. They departed Romuji Harbor immediately.
But the moment they exited—
Pwooo...
A massive ship passed the Prokho and entered Romuji. A state-of-the-art vessel with a large magic engine. Pharos eyed it with a subtle smile, and Namgung Seojun felt an odd vibe from it.
What is this...?
His Super Sense hinted this massive ship would wipe out Romuji's power structure. But he had no desire to know how.