Chapter 51
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: The Wharf (4)
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"Ah?"
"Gasp! Miss!"
As Annrose lunged forward like she was about to tumble over, Baran rushed to support her.
Thud thud thud!
Blake whipped around and bolted back toward the wharf at a ferocious speed.
Lindelmann, catching on to his intent, thrust out the long pole he held in his hands.
"Blake, grab it!"
Thump!
Without slowing his sprint, Blake charged straight to the edge of the wharf and kicked off powerfully from the ground.
Whoosh!
His massive frame soared into the air like a gigantic mythical bird.
"Gasp!"
Lindelmann's eyes went wide.
Making the extended pole pointless, Blake—with the demonic sword slung over his shoulder and weighed down by his hefty combat pack—leaped across a distance of over five meters in one go.
Blake, practically flying through the air, landed on the deck of the Glorista.
Boom!
The ship rocked slightly—or so it seemed in the shockwave that rippled out.
"...!"
The onlookers on the wharf weren't the only ones left slack-jawed at the sight of him touching down on one knee, demonic sword over his shoulder; even the crew aboard gaped in awe.
"Hmph."
Blake slowly straightened his knee as if nothing had happened and turned around.
His eyes met those of Gilmore Grime back on the wharf.
"Y-You bastard!"
Gilmore flinched, then gnashed his teeth and bellowed like a madman.
"Who's in charge of that ship? Dock it again! Turn that damn ship around now!"
But the Glorista only drifted farther away.
And to make matters worse, an unexpected retort came from the ship.
"This vessel belongs to the Capital River Union! These people are legitimate passengers who rented it through a proper contract! No matter who you are, you have no authority to order us around! If you've got a grievance, take it up at the Capital River Union office!"
The ship owner, a man named Rody who'd finished all departure preparations, strode to the railing and fired back in a booming voice.
"Wh-What?!"
Gilmore's eyes bulged.
No matter how influential the Grime family was, they couldn't just manhandle a ship under the Capital River Union.
"Urgh! Fine! Call our chartered ship! Daren! Where's Daren... Ah, no way!"
Mid-shout, he froze, his eyes swelling to saucer size as they snapped back to Blake.
"Th-That bastard faked taking the lady hostage because...?"
Gilmore's eyes widened to the point of tearing as he trembled and muttered.
That hulking brute hadn't shouldered Annrose to use her as a hostage to escape Elber.
If he'd fled without grabbing her, they would've already mobilized several ships from the wharf and called in their charter by now.
Not to mention sending men to the sluice gates.
What good is surrounding the ship and sealing the gates if there's no way out?
But with over a dozen swordsmen dropped in the blink of an eye and Annrose taken hostage, they couldn't.
It had all happened so suddenly that they'd been too busy chasing the guy sprinting off with her over his shoulder.
In other words, that brute had pretended to kidnap her just to focus all their attention on Annrose.
A thorough deception.
"Urgh!"
Gilmore's beard quivered with rage.
And then, as if things couldn't get worse, another disaster struck.
"Hya!"
Annrose, leaning on Baran's arm while glaring at the Glorista, suddenly bolted toward the wharf's edge.
"Huh?"
"Wha—?"
Catching everyone off guard, Baran—who'd been supporting her—and all the others could only gape.
"An-Annrose!"
"Miss!"
Thump!
Amid shouts from Albert and Baran, she hurled her slender frame forward.
Her eyes were fixed on the tip of the pole Lindelmann held out.
"More!"
Lindelmann, mouth agape as he watched her, reflexively extended the pole farther.
Annrose's hand reaching through the air toward the pole tip...
Tap!
Missed.
Her hand brushed past it futilely.
Splash!
The esteemed lady of the renowned Verniard Count family plunged into the river with gusto.
"Blub! Blubblub!"
"Lady!"
Seeing Annrose flailing in the water, Baran tried to leap in like a maniac.
But his men held him back.
"Captain, you can't jump in wearing armor!"
"H-Hey, someone!"
With his future fiancée drowning, Albert roared at the top of his lungs.
But everyone on the wharf was clad in heavy armor.
The crew who knew how to swim hadn't been allowed anywhere near the wharf.
"What are you doing? Hurry up and strip it off!"
Albert and Baran bellowed.
Even simple plate armor protecting just the chest and abdomen wasn't easy to remove quickly.
"H-Help... Glub!"
"Grab this! Grab this!"
Lindelmann strained to extend the pole toward Annrose as she thrashed her arms wildly.
But she was too far.
"We're departing now... Huh? What now? What's going on?"
The ship owner, about to signal Blake for departure, spotted Annrose sinking into the depths.
"Tch. What a hassle."
With a light click of his tongue, he started shrugging off his top shirt to dive in—when yet another astonishing event unfolded.
No, it was something beyond astonishment—something no one except Blake and Lindelmann had ever witnessed.
Shimmer!
A burst of bright light swirled up from one side of the deck, heading straight for Annrose as she sank.
In that instant, her body began rising slowly from the water, headfirst.
"Gah!"
Everyone but Blake gawked in disbelief at the impossible sight unfolding before their eyes.
But it didn't end there.
Annrose, looking baffled as if she couldn't comprehend what was happening to her, floated encased in a translucent barrier of light, passing straight over the wharf toward the deck.
Shimmer!
As her small frame gently settled onto the deck, all eyes shifted to the obvious culprit behind this miracle.
His robe fluttered wildly as if buffeted by wind confined to his immediate surroundings, his staff glowing brilliantly in his hand. It was Rubens.
"Ah..."
"Whoooaaa!"
Thud!
Annrose, eyes wide in disbelief at what had happened to her, planted both feet on the deck. Rubens, drenched in sweat, let out a massive exhale and collapsed in exhaustion.
Whoosh...
The staff's light faded, and the whirlwind around Rubens died down.
"...!"
But no one on the ship or wharf could tear their gaze from him.
The long green robe.
The large, elongated wooden staff.
The bizarre hat with a wide brim and folded crown.
And the unbelievable scene they'd just witnessed.
All of it pointed to one thing.
"A m-mage!"
Everyone stared at Rubens in shock and half-doubt.
At that moment, Blake gave them the confirmation.
"Mage, why'd you pull the woman over here?"
"Pardon? Oh, that... Heh! No choice. Huff! Pulling her toward me takes way less effort than pushing her away. Gasp!"
Rubens panted raggedly.
"Hmph."
Blake narrowed his eyes slightly and glanced at Annrose, who stared at Rubens with round eyes.
"What's your game, woman?"
"...!"
Startled by the icy tone, Annrose hesitated for a moment but soon bit her lip and shot back defiantly.
"To confront you, obviously! On the honor of the Verniard Count family, I won't forgive you."
"You're insane. You pulled all this for something so trivial?"
Blake's already impassive gaze turned even colder.
"Hmph! Think that'll scare me?"
The memory of him turning Grime swordsmen into bloody messes made her flinch inwardly, but she forced a composed expression.
"Enough nonsense. Get off this ship. I don't have time for a madwoman's games."
"How rude. No way! And this ship is passing the sluice gates, right? If you keep being rude, I'll tell the gate guards you kidnapped me and forced me aboard. Then you and this ship won't leave Elber."
Even under a gaze cold enough to freeze her solid, Annrose wrung out her cloak nonchalantly.
"Hm..."
Blake turned to ship owner Rody as if questioning the claim's validity.
Rody shrugged and confirmed.
"The lady's right. They can't block us without cause, but if there's a reason, they can. Especially if a passenger claims kidnapping—they won't open the gates."
"..."
Blake's cold eyes shifted back to Annrose.
Then, in a low voice to the triumphant girl, he said,
"I can just gag you and toss you with the deckhands. Or right here, simply..."
Annrose cut him off swiftly.
"Hmph! You won't. Harm me, and you—and this ship—become targets for every city guard along the Bran River. How's that sound? Not what you want, right? If it is, I'll scream right now."
Receiving a glare that would make most men's hair stand on end, Annrose finished her piece and turned her head away.
"Miss! Are you okay? Just hold on! I'm coming! You bastards, stop that ship!"
"Daren, where are you? Charter ship! Call the charter! Hurry!"
Where her gaze turned, Knight Baran and Gilmore Grime raged and shouted.
'Trouble.'
Blake sorted his thoughts.
Absurd, but she was right.
If she screamed for help now, he'd be a kidnapper who'd snatched the heir of a count family.
He couldn't imprison or kill her either.
That would make him a real criminal, hunted by imperial guards across the entire Bran River region.
Only one option left.
"What do you want?"
Impressed inwardly by his quick assessment, Annrose replied promptly.
"Now you're talking sense. Two things. First, confirm if the letter you have is really from Prince Henrik. And show me its contents."
"The commander gave it to me, yes. But the second—no way. Keep pushing, and I won't hold back."
"Th-Then I'll change the second condition."
Even without the earlier glare, she switched gears instantly.
Instinct told her Blake wasn't bluffing.
From experience, men like him decided fast and acted without hesitation.
"Second... where's this ship headed?"
"To the capital."
"Then I'll go there too."
"Wh-What?!"
Lindelmann, tending to the exhausted Rubens, freaked out at her words.
"Fine."
But Blake, who'd anticipated it, nodded without pause.
He jerked his chin toward the wharf, eyes still on Annrose.
Understanding, she cupped her hands to her mouth, straightened up, took a deep breath, and parted her small red lips.
"Barraaan! I'm fiiiine, so don't follow meee! That's an ordeeer! Go to Alteria separatelyyy! One more timeee! I'm okaaay! I'm going to the capital with Prince Henrik's kniiiight! Head to the capital nooow! Alteria depaaaart! We'll meet in the capitaliii!"
"Whaaaat!?"
Baran's shocked cry echoed like a scream from the wharf.
(To be continued)