The Unyielding Pursuit of the Cursed Pirate

"Wouldn't it have been better to just give it to him?" Cain asked with a dubious look. For some reason, this made Tae-hyun look like the bad guy.

But Tae-hyun shook his head ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠without a single shred of hesitation. "No. It's his fault."

"..."

"If he needed it this badly in the first place, he should have bowed his head and said, 'I have my reasons, so please lend it to me. Here is an item to pay for it.' Wouldn't that have been better for both of us?"

His words made sense. Of course, there was no way such logic would work on the enraged Gardu.

"I will tear you into a hundred pieces and feed you to the sharks!"

"Did you hear that? His hearing is ridiculously good."

"You bastard!"

Splaaash! The sea churned violently, and the waves transformed into sharp spikes, surging toward Tae-hyun.

"Retreat! Retreat! Get into the fog!"

"Do not engage Gardu's fleet directly! He is a monster!"

The pirates began to retreat, shouting at the top of their lungs.

Creak, crack— The bodies of Gardu's subordinate pirates began to twist and contort, just like Gardu's. They, too, were cursed beings.

"Gardu... I've only heard rumors, but he really is cursed! Just what on earth did he do to deserve this...!" Kada muttered, his face pale with shock.

Seizing the opportunity, Tae-hyun asked, "Does he have any weaknesses?"

"Rumor has it that he has a weakness because of the curse."

"Oh, what is it?" Tae-hyun asked, his eyes gleaming.

"They say if his head is cut off, he dies..."

"..."

Tae-hyun almost smacked him on the spot. Who doesn't die when their head is cut off?

"Is there anything else besides that?"

"Well, there was a rumor that he can't step foot on land due to the curse."

"...!"

Come to think of it, that made perfect sense. Whenever Gardu chased Tae-hyun, it was always on the open sea. He had never actually invaded Tae-hyun's territory on land.

Wait, but wasn't he gathering forces this time to burn down my territory? Was he planning to stay on the water and send his subordinates instead? What's the deal?

If he was trying to gather other pirates because he couldn't step on land himself... and since Tae-hyun had already disrupted that gathering, couldn't Tae-hyun just slip away? If he just fled to the land...

Can I just run away?

Unaware of the thoughts running through Tae-hyun's mind, Kada spoke boisterously.

"Do not worry! No matter how strong Gardu is, we have this fog and Skull Island on our side! We will never lose!"

"Ah, right. By the way, could you tell me the escape route here? Just in case, you know. Haha."

"Wait, why on earth are we doing this?" Crawford asked, staring at the quest window in bewilderment.

They had come to rescue Chairman Yoo, not to clash head-on with Gardu.

"Look, Kim Tae-hyun. I usually think highly of you, but this is ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠going too far. I can't participate in this quest."

Crawford was cold and calculating. As a ranker, he had to strictly distinguish between quests he should join and those he should avoid!

"Well, if that's how it is, I can't help it. Safe travels. I won't see you off."

"...You're not saying that just because we don't have a ship to leave on, are you?" Crawford asked, dumbfounded. Surely the infamous Kim Tae-hyun wouldn't resort to such a cheap trick?

"Ah, of course not."

"My class is a Mage. Do you really think I can't get out of here just because I don't have a ship? It's a waste, but if I stay here any longer, I'll really..."

"..."

*Rip, rip, rip—* No matter how hard he unrolled the scroll, it wouldn't activate. Tae-hyun stared blankly at Crawford.

"Didn't you say you were leaving?"

"Uh, well, that is, you see..."

"Then why don't you get off my ship?"

"...I'll participate in the quest..."

"I knew it. You know how things work."

Tae-hyun patted Crawford on the shoulder with a pleased expression. He looked exactly like a swindler who had just pulled off a successful scam.

"The rest of you are joining too, right?"

"..."

"..."

The rankers nodded with dubious expressions. Normally, they would have just turned back, but how on earth did they end up participating in a quest that didn't suit them at all?

Is it because we got greedy? No. No matter how I think about it, it's definitely because of Kim Tae-hyun. Evangeline thought to herself.

*Boom! Bang! Kaboom!* Gardu's massive fleet approached from the distance. The pirates of Skull Island fired magic cannons at the oncoming armada. Fireballs flew through the air and struck the water, sending massive pillars of water erupting into the sky.

"Aim a little higher! Conserve the magic shells!"

"They can't get through the maze anyway! Fire at will!"

Ah, this is making me really anxious.

The more confident the pirates grew, the more anxious Tae-hyun became. He looked back. Skull Island was massive, almost the size of a kingdom's capital city, but its defenses were pathetic. There were no grand castle walls, nor was the harbor fortified... They seemed to be relying entirely on a single magical fog.

And defenses like that were bound to collapse utterly once breached!

"Boiling Wrath of Lava!"

"Nice one! Go, Crawford!"

"Crawford, fighting!"

Currently, Tae-hyun's ship was carrying the rankers, members of the Power Warrior Guild, and pirate NPCs. Thanks to the rankers, their combat power was second to none.

"...Just ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠shut up."

"Yes, sir."

"Sorry."

The Power Warrior Guild members who had been cheering for Crawford quickly shut their mouths.

*Crash! Crunch!* Gardu's fleet continued to advance, taking the magic cannon fire head-on. Even as several of his ships were torn to shreds and his subordinates were blown into the sea, Gardu did not care.

"You dared to act insolently before me, relying on a mere fog like this? Clear it away!"

The figurehead mounted on the bow of Gardu's flagship began to emit a sinister light, sucking in the fog.

"N-No way...!"

"This is impossible! No one should be able to bypass the fog!"

Are these guys really pirates?

Cain was dumbfounded by the pirates' behavior. For pirates, they cared too much about honor and rules, and they had absolutely no backup plans... No matter how he looked at it, Tae-hyun was far more of a pirate than they were!

"Why are you looking at me?"

"Ah, it's nothing."

Cain avoided Tae-hyun's gaze. Now was not the time to worry about other things. The fog was thinning!

"Bring the ships... alongside!"

Swoooosh! A massive wave surged around Gardu's fleet, completely obscuring them from view. Seeing this, Chairman Yoo cried out in shock.

"That! That's a teleportation skill!"

"What kind of broken skill is—"

Before he could even finish his ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sentence, Gardu's fleet materialized once more. They had bypassed the fog, appearing right in front of the defenders' ships!

"..."

"..."

"Waaaaaaah!"

"Wipe out the Red Sea bastards! Let them suffer the eternal curse!"

"This is insane..."

Gardu had easily cleared the obstacle and immediately brought his ships alongside. Although the number of ships seemed roughly equal, Gardu's pirates looked far stronger in close-quarters combat. They literally looked cursed and powerful.

"Aaargh!"

"Ugh! Retreat! Retreat!"

"Get onto Skull Island!"

Terrified, the pirates scrambled backward. They fired cannonballs indiscriminately as they backed their ships away.

"I see. Since they can't step on land, we're retreating onto Skull Island first?"

If they bombarded them from the sea, the buildings on Skull Island would be destroyed, but at least they could save their lives.

"Kim Tae-hyun! Help us fight!"

"Huh? You guys are doing fine on your own. Keep up the good work."

"Hey!"

Gardu's fleet targeted the ship Tae-hyun was on first, charging straight at them.

"The map... hand over the map!"

"That map does not belong to a wretched creature like you!"

"...??"

"What map?"

Evangeline and Alcott instinctively turned their heads to stare at Tae-hyun. In this situation, there was only one suspect.

But Tae-hyun simply shrugged and replied.

"I have no idea what they're talking about."

"..."

"Die, you living wretch!"

"Ugh, disgusting!"

Alcott recoiled in disgust as he severed the pirate warrior's tentacles. It was some kind of octopus-like attack.

"Mr. Alcott, be careful. These guys are no joke."

"Who do you think you're talking to?"

When Smith offered his concern, Alcott retorted as if it were absurd. No matter how numerous or high-level they were, he was a ranker. To think he would struggle against these trash mobs...

*Swish—*

*?!?!?!*

Alcott had been caught off guard by a bastard who suddenly crawled onto the deck! Though dumbfounded, his body reacted instantly.

"Escape Binding, Double Slash, Triple Slash, Furious Sprint!"

*Slash, slash, slash!* Aura erupted around Alcott as his sword whipped through the air in sharp arcs. The pirate warriors trying to drag him down instantly turned into gray ash.

"Mr. Alcott! That's why I told you to be careful..."

"Shut up! Shut—huh?!"

While replying to Smith, Alcott accidentally took a wrong step. It was a mistake he would normally never make! As a result...

*Splash!*

"...?"

"What was that? Did someone fall in?" Tae-hyun turned his head in confusion. To think someone among them was clumsy enough to fall into the sea.

"Was it a member of the Power Warrior Guild?"

"We're all safe!"

"We've been hiding in the back from the start!"

"Ah. Right..."

"Mr. Alcott fell in. We have to save him..."

"Really? That's unfortunate. Let's pray for Alcott's soul and retreat!"

"..."

"Crawford! Set some fires!"

"Can't you phrase that a bit more elegantly?"

Though complaining, Crawford immediately began pouring fire magic ahead. The oncoming pirates hesitated in the face of the blazing inferno.

"Kim Tae-hyun... Kim Tae-hyun...!"

The sound of Gardu grinding his teeth could be heard even from this distance. It sent shivers down their spines despite how far away he was.

*Creaaak—* Gardu's flagship turned its bow directly toward Tae-hyun's ship!

In the midst of this, Crawford suddenly remembered something and asked.

"A whistle back, when we were heading to the Prica Continent, Gardu suddenly ambushed us, right? That wasn't even a route where Gardu usually appeared. Don't tell me that was because of you..."

"Retreat! Retreat! Full speed ahead!"

The pirates' ships were faster than expected. Thanks to that, they managed to retreat to Skull Island without suffering too many casualties. Scrambling onto the land, the pirates shouted as they prepared their defenses.

"They can't step foot on land! Prepare to shoot them down from here!"

"Bring the magic cannons! Gather all archers and mages!"

Evangeline asked Tae-hyun anxiously.

"Wait a minute. If we get surrounded here, aren't we going to be trapped here forever?"

"Haha. Of course not. We'll find a way before that happens. Don't worry."

"What kind of way?"

"Well, that's..."

Since he hadn't actually thought of anything and was just trying to brush her off, there was no way he had a plan.

"Did you think you would be safe if you crawled onto land like rats? I am coming up!"

"What?"

"I thought they said he couldn't step on land?!"

Ignoring the panicked pirates, Gardu's massive fleet slowly advanced.

"Stepping on land causes me excruciating pain... but if it means I can crush your heart, it is more than bearable!"

"..."

Evangeline stared blankly at Tae-hyun.

Can't we just hand this guy over to him...?

"Let's not look at each other with those kinds of eyes."