A Pirate's Consent
Since I couldn't defeat the Explorer—who was a pirate, not a knight—our raid on the ruin had technically ended in failure. Still, I was satisfied. The knowledge I had gained was far more valuable than any physical reward the ruin could have offered. I had also taken Luna's virginity, but her love for me had deepened to an almost overwhelming degree, bringing a slight sense of pressure along with it.
"It was completely empty inside?"
I had told Scarlet that there was nothing in the deepest chamber. I had no idea just how powerful the Explorer was, but I didn't want to pit them against each other. Both of them had helped me, after all.
"Yes. I searched every nook and cranny, even looking for hidden passages, but I came up empty-handed."
"...Was it just a rumor, then?"
"Pardon?"
"It's nothing. At any rate, there's no reason to linger here. Let's head out."
I had worried she might insist on checking it herself, but Scarlet turned back without a second thought. She gave up cleanly, raising no suspicions. It was surprising, considering the ruin was likely her entire reason for coming to this island.
"What are you doing? Aren't you coming?"
"I'm coming."
When we stepped out of the ruin, the entire world was painted in the orange hues of twilight. Forest insects had begun their evening chorus, and the temperature was dropping. My body, still drenched in sweat and other fluids from our passionate tryst, began to feel the chill.
"We haven't prepared a camp. What should we do?"
"There was a village on the way here. Can't we just rest there?"
"Ah, right. You arrived late, so you wouldn't know. That's where the island's natives lived. It's a bit uncomfortable to use."
"Why is that?"
I explained the situation to Luna, telling her about the TS fruit and the dark history between the natives and the Empire. Even though we had subdued all the tribesmen, the thought of sleeping in their huts left a bad taste in my mouth. I couldn't shake the paranoia that if I fell into a deep sleep, some lingering native would sneak in and shove one of those fruits down my throat. It was hardly a place where we could rest easy.
"You don't have to worry about finding a bed."
"Do you have a plan? Or perhaps a hidden shelter you set up beforehand?"
"You'll see soon enough. But one thing is certain: we won't be spending the night on this island."
Scarlet stretched languidly, then began to spin her lance with practiced ease. As the weapon whirled, it ignited, tracing brilliant, fiery arcs in the air like a blazing wheel. Though the flames licked at her hands, they were forged from her own aura, leaving her flesh completely unharmed.
"Stand back."
Scarlet drew the lance back, then swung it forward with a mighty heave. A sound like a lion's roar reverberated through the trees as a torrent of flames erupted, instantly swallowing the surrounding foliage. In a single strike, she incinerated the entire eastern orchard she had been tasked with clearing. While the sudden warmth was welcome against the evening chill, I couldn't help but wonder if starting a forest fire was the wisest move—especially since her flames were a very real threat to Luna and me. But my concerns were short-lived.
"Screeech—!"
Far on the horizon, silhouetted against the setting sun, a gryphon was soaring toward us. With powerful beats of its wings, the beast closed the distance in moments and touched down before us. It immediately nudged its massive head against Scarlet, acting for all the world like a pampered pet begging for scratches. Looking closely, I realized it was the very same gryphon Scarlet had ridden before we boarded our ship.
"Good boy, right on time. Well done."
"Screeech!"
"Alright, let's get moving."
Gryphons were divine beasts, famous for their sharp intellect and fierce arrogance. Yet, in Scarlet's presence, the creature lowered its posture to let her mount with ease. It was clear she had tamed it completely.
"You two get on as well."
"Is that alright? Climbing onto a gryphon's back without its permission usually..."
"I've given the word, so it's fine."
"Can it really carry three people at once?"
"Kreeeech!"
The gryphon reared back on its hind legs, letting out a sharp shriek of protest. But the moment Scarlet gripped the reins, it instantly settled. Stroking its feathers to calm it, Scarlet explained the beast's sudden outburst.
"Don't worry, Aquila can easily carry up to five people. That little tantrum just now was his way of telling you not to underestimate him."
"I certainly didn't mean to offend him."
"It's fine. Aquila doesn't hold grudges."
As Scarlet stroked Aquila's neck, the beast let out a pleased, low trill. Their bond was clearly far deeper than I had imagined. After all, he had faithfully trailed us from the clouds during our entire voyage across the sea; without immense loyalty and affection, he would have abandoned us long ago. Reassured, Luna and I climbed onto Aquila's back. Though the saddle was a bit cramped for three, the gryphon's thick, downy feathers made for a surprisingly comfortable seat.
"Hold onto my waist! Tight!"
Scarlet snapped the reins, and Aquila surged forward. Gathering explosive momentum, the gryphon took a brief running start before launching itself into the air with powerful, sweeping wingbeats. We soared away from the burning orchard, rising high into the vast, open sky.
"I told Aquila beforehand to fly over the moment he saw the forest catch fire."
"So you had our escape route planned from the very beginning."
"Of course. How could I possibly spend the night on an island crawling with hostile natives and a frivolous man?"
There was a reason she had remained so utterly unbothered despite being stranded on a remote island. I had figured she had some sort of plan, but I never imagined she had a gryphon waiting in the wings. Thanks to her foresight, we escaped the island without a hitch, treated to the breathtaking luxury of watching the endless ocean drift beneath our feet.
"But it's going to be dark soon. Can we really fly all the way to the Yudika Kingdom like this?"
"Gryphons are diurnal creatures, so night flights are out of the question."
"Then wouldn't it have been better to spend the night on the island and set off at dawn? There's no guarantee we'll find another island before sunset."
"Why bother looking for another island? We'll just take a ship."
It sounded like a classic case of "let them eat cake." Was finding a ship in the middle of an empty ocean—with nothing but the island we had just abandoned for miles around—really that simple? I highly doubted it. And even if we did happen to spot one, there was another glaring issue.
"It's not like a crew of sailors will just happily welcome us aboard as freeloaders."
"Don't worry. We're going to board a ship where consent isn't required."
Scarlet pointed toward a spot on the twilight-drenched sea below. I followed her gaze and spotted a moderately sized merchant vessel sailing toward the island we had just vacated. Emblazoned across its sails was a golden sword—the symbol of the Carman Empire.
"Don't tell me that ship is..."
"Exactly. It's the slave ship that kidnaps and imprisons imperial citizens to trade for TS fruits. Aquila spotted it earlier, so there's no mistake."
"So, we're going to hijack it."
"Precisely. Is that a bit much?"
"Not at all. Let's do it right now!"
As a rule, I despised criminals, but right now, I was more than willing to play the pirate. Scarlet snapped the reins, and Aquila began a slow, sweeping descent. Timing our drop perfectly as the imperial vessel passed directly beneath us, we leaped.
"Whoa!"
"What's going on?!"
"P-People just dropped out of the sky!"
"What...?"
Dropping onto the deck from such a height made our entrance far flashier than necessary, but it wasn't entirely a bad thing. The commotion immediately drew the crew out from the lower decks, saving us the trouble of hunting them down.
"A-Are they pirates?!"
"They literally fell from the sky, idiot!"
"Who cares if they came by boat or fell from the sky! All that matters is they've trespassed on our ship!"
"We'll turn you into fish food!"
The hired guards protecting the vessel drew their weapons, clearly intending to slaughter us and dump our corpses into the ocean. However, a few of the non-combat crew members seemed to have sharper eyes, and murmurs of concern began to ripple through them.
"Wait! Isn't that Lady Scarlet of the Red Lion Knights?!"
"Are you blind, you idiot?! Why would Lady Scarlet be out here in the middle of nowhere?!"
"Heh, even if she's a fake, she's a looker. Once we pin her down, we can have some real fun, can't we?"
"Damn right. When else would scum like us ever get a chance to fuck a noble knight commander?"
Surrounded by nothing but sweat-stained, filthy men, they didn't even bother to hide their vile desires. Perfect. If they were complete scum, I wouldn't have to feel a shred of guilt about breaking them. It was also convenient that the ones spewing this filth were all the combat guards. I would need to keep the actual sailors alive to navigate the ship, but these bastards could be tossed overboard without a second thought.
And persuading the rest should be easy enough.
While the armed guards looked well-fed and plump, the non-combatant crew members were gaunt, their eyes hollow and lifeless. They were almost certainly being mistreated. Out here on the open sea, far from the reach of imperial law, the strong undoubtedly exploited the weak. In other words, once we swept away the trash, winning over the survivors would be a breeze.
"Die!"
One of the guards raised a sharp cutlass high. Before he could bring the blade down, I lunged forward, grabbed him by the throat, and hurled him clean over the railing.
"Aaaaargh!"
Splash! A heavy splash was followed by desperate, muffled cries for help. Instantly, the faces of the remaining guards drained of color.
"I'm the captain of this ship now. Anyone who has a problem with that is welcome to get off."
"W-Wait, please! Are you... are you Sir Alvin, the Imperial Knight?"
"...Nope." I'm a pirate. Hand over the ship.