Even the Sea is Made of Water - 5
Gu Gangwang's fleet passed Hangzhou and anchored at the Zhoushan Archipelago. No issues up to this point. To head south along the Zhejiang coast by sea, they had to pass through Zhoushan anyway, so it made sense they'd stop here for a brief rest before continuing southward.
But the moment I spotted Dong-gu Wang's fleet already docked at Zhoushan, I realized something was seriously off.
*Already merging fleets?*
Cold sweat prickled my skin. Armies were monsters that devoured money just by existing, and the costs skyrocketed astronomically when they mobilized or lingered elsewhere. I'd assumed Dong-gu Wang would drop me off in southern Zhejiang before moving out, but his fleet was already here too? Were they planning to cart me around with a battle-ready armada? No way in hell.
Gu Gangwang might have a prickly personality, but he wasn't that thoughtless, and Dong-gu Wang wasn't the type to tolerate reckless behavior.
*You con artist.*
My teeth ground together. I felt utterly scammed by Gu Gangwang. We'll drop you off in southern Zhejiang on the way, he'd said. No need to worry about getting dragged into any fighting, he'd promised. He'd sweet-talked me endlessly before I boarded, and now that I was on the ship, he was sailing off without a care?
"Gu Gangwang."
But I couldn't very well confront a king outright. I glared at the back of his head with a heavy heart—until Dong-gu Wang, who'd arrived first, showed up at the harbor.
"Hm? Why's the Left Vice Inspector General here?"
Even the ever-busy Dong-gu Wang paused at the sight of me. Yeah, exactly—why was I here...?
"I brought him along for a bit. Was planning to drop him off on the mainland originally, but things got urgent. We'll send him off on a separate ship later, so don't worry about it."
Relief washed over me at Gu Gangwang's words. Okay, good—if they were just detaching a few vessels from a fleet of hundreds, that wouldn't count as any real loss in strength.
"No, if things are that urgent, why not just send him overland?"
"I promised to ship him down myself—can't back out now and tell him to go by land. A real man doesn't go back on his word!"
Dong-gu Wang's gaze flicked toward me at the brazen declaration, his eyes full of pity, like I'd gotten tangled up with a madman.
"...Fine, whatever. You're handling his transport, so that's on you. Let's check out the prisoners first."
"Right. Let's hear what these bastards have to say."
Dong-gu Wang's words sent Gu Gangwang striding off aggressively. He'd been fuming even before we reached Zhoushan—about how these pirates had dared move faster than Great Song's forces, how they'd invaded sovereign territory. I worried he'd just start swinging the moment he saw them.
*They're the respawn type anyway—probably fine if a few die.*
Come to think of it, pirates were like water bandits: monsters that popped up relentlessly across eras. Killing a handful of prisoners wouldn't cause much fuss.
"Tsushima's been one of the pirate bases for ages. How about we turn it into a barren wasteland while we're at it?"
"Your Highness is right. To kill weeds, you don't clip the tips—you uproot them."
"Knew you'd get my drift, Han Un."
Gu Gangwang wasn't content with just sweeping the seas—he was vowing to raze their home base on Tsushima outright. Hitting the island would net them hundreds, maybe thousands of prisoners. Sure, these captives could provide intel on the pirates and Tsushima, but honestly? This was a punitive force with hundreds of ships and two Hwagyeong masters. They could invade Japan's mainland without breaking a sweat.
*Biggest mobilization since founding?*
The first major expedition since the dynasty unified the Central Plains... to exterminate pirates. Bizarre, but at least it proved the barbarians weren't all bluster about kneeling the foreigners.
Dong-gu Wang had secured ten prisoners in total. Even for a small-scale raid, the initial catch had been larger, but most had been caught in Botamun's "sincere beatings" and sent straight to the Buddha—or Yama, given they were pirates.
"These are the ones. We caught the ones who passed out or tried to run."
"Sturdier than I thought. Figured at least one would be broken."
"The ones hit hard enough to break died ages ago."
Dong-gu Wang delivered the chilling line casually, but the pirates didn't understand Central Plains speech, so they stayed calm. Good thing—otherwise, they'd be frothing in terror.
"More importantly, these are the ones who escaped from Goryeo?"
"Yeah. After you left, I looked into pirate movements. Thought they'd been wiped out at Huangshan, but a few slipped away."
Pity they fled all the way here. Dong-gu Wang chuckled dryly and beckoned an official behind him.
"You lot are rebels who illegally invaded the lawful and rightful territory of Great Song. Had you been honest fishermen or merchants adrift, we'd have shown mercy. But you're pirates disrupting the world's peace. Mercy has no place here—only the majesty of the law."
The official behind him swiftly translated. The pirates' already grim faces darkened further. They knew their karma well enough to guess what awaited captured pirates.
"Disrupting the realm and oppressing the common folk—you deserve decapitation, dismemberment, or boiling in oil, and that wouldn't even be enough..."
Dong-gu Wang gave them time to absorb the translation, then locked eyes with them, radiating peak-master pressure. Must be maddening for the pirates. They'd expected death, but hearing gruesome executions like waist-chopping or lingchi tossed out so casually? With an untouchable expert crushing them with aura? They could foam at the mouth and faint without shame.
"But if you fulfill your human duty, I might grant a sliver of mercy."
"D-Duty... you say...?"
One pirate ventured a timid question at the first hopeful note.
"Tell us everything you know. Your main bases and numbers, command structure, supplies, key leaders—everything."
The pirates exchanged wary glances at the demand to turn informant.
"Then I'll grant you a peaceful rest instead of agony. If the intel's valuable enough, I might even spare your lives in exchange for labor."
"W-We’ll talk!"
"We’ll tell you everything!"
The conditional mercy ended the staring contest in seconds. Hesitate too long and risk Dong-gu Wang's ire—straight to the execution block, mercy be damned. And even if they spilled, value dropped if another prisoner already had. Peaceful death was baseline; push for survival in this game of chicken, and the pirates' desperate cries filled the air.
Whether the interrogations proceeded or not, I prepared to head to the mainland on one of Gu Gangwang's ships.
Word would come soon enough that Tsushima was a sea of flames.
"Tough trip getting out here, Han Un. I'll put you on our fastest ship specially—don't feel too slighted."
"Not at all, Your Highness. How could I resent a journey for the realm's peace and the seas' tranquility? If I've caused any delay, that would trouble me."
I bowed politely at his promise to release me on the mainland. People sure changed their minds easily. I'd hated his guts when we first arrived at Zhoushan, but now that he was letting me go without fuss, I couldn't be more grateful. I knew it was a slave's mindset, but what could I do? He was a king; I was a crown prince.
"Just might have to wait a bit. We rushed straight from Gugu without rest, and now prepping to sail again? The troops'll grumble."
"Of course, Your Highness. The soldiers' fatigue comes first."
It made perfect sense, so I nodded. A pirate-hunting fleet needed rest. But detaching a ship mid-rest to ferry a crown prince? The men would curse up a storm.
"While you wait, enjoy the sea views, check out Botashan. A landlubber like you won't get to Zhoushan often."
"Thank you, Your Highness. I appreciate the consideration."
With that, I slipped from Gu Gangwang's sight. Lingering might prompt something like, Since you're waiting anyway, wanna help with a chore?
Heading to the lodging assigned to Ak I-yeon and Jo Wi-cheo, I spotted something odd by the shore.
*What the...?*
A golden rock-like lump, etched with regular patterns. Unlike the other beach stones, it was soaked through. And upon closer look... it was inching toward me, away from the water.
*A moving rock?*
I stared blankly at the unprecedented sight. If it were a small pebble, maybe wind? But that thing was fist-sized—I'd need both hands to lift it. No storm could move it naturally.
Yet it was moving. The golden rock drawing nearer.
*Gold?*
The thought flashed. Self-moving gold would be freakish, but it gleamed so brilliantly—like pure gold from some hoard, sunk in the sea and washed ashore by waves.
*...Gotta check it out.*
I stepped toward the sluggishly approaching lump. If it was treasure, pocket it. If alive, identify it. If some venomous sea critter, deal with it fast.
I drew my sword from my belt for the first time in ages—just in case.
—Ppiae?
"What the hell."
Up close, the golden lump was beyond imagination: a turtle shining head to toe in gold. Encased in unmistakably tough shell.
*Millennium Turtle?*
Among longevity symbols, the longest-lived turtle had appeared.