Navy Marygold (9) 16. Blackbeard Lancel and the Caged Princess
“Make way! It's Lancel Dante, master of the island and new lord of the Blue Veil Pirates, and Lady Mary!”
How the hell did it come to this?
Lancel and Marygold rode in a palanquin crudely fashioned from bamboo, heading deep into the island.
At first, when they'd started picking off the pirates who attacked them one by one, Lancel figured they were just some riffraff who'd washed up from who-knows-where. But when their numbers surpassed fifty and neared a hundred, he finally sensed something was off.
“W-We lost! We've lost!”
The eyes of those who finally surrendered and prostrated themselves were filled with something like awe. They probably rarely got to see a single knight take down three figures' worth of pirates, so their shivering helplessness was understandable enough.
Things took a weird turn after that.
“Blackbeard! Please lead us, the Blue Veil Pirates! We're just poor sea vagabonds!”
“Black... beard?”
Only then did Lancel realize it had been ages since he'd shaved. A scruffy beard had grown from around his mouth all the way down his neck.
He glanced at Marygold, who'd been tidying his hair for him all this time.
“You could've at least said something if it looked that bad.”
“Lancel with a beard looks cool too.”
Love's blinding her big time, Lancel thought.
“Our base is coming up soon. We've prepared something nice—you'll be satisfied.”
The man with a bruise covering half his face grinned as he spoke. A souvenir from his fight with Lancel. Even though they'd been wielding swords just moments ago, there was no trace of resentment or thirst for revenge. In this sea where strength was law and power, Lancel's prowess had been enough to captivate them. Most of the fighters had been wiped out by him in one fell swoop anyway. Submission was their only option.
“This way.”
Soon, as they reached the depths of the jungle, the scenery shifted.
“When did they even build this...?”
“It's on the opposite side of the island—I had no idea.”
Freshly built watchtowers and spires dotted the landscape. A bit farther in, bamboo houses emerged—three stories low, five stories high. Easily enough to house hundreds.
“We've been stacking it up steadily for the past half-year.”
Lancel and Marygold had spent three years here, so this meant they'd snuck in and settled during the height of their castaway survival phase.
“The new pirate lord! Everyone, memorize their faces!”
Before they knew it, the uninhabited island had become a haven for lawless sea drifters.
“The old boss ended up fish food over some woman, leaving us in a bind. But hey, when one's gotta die, they die—can't fight fate. He was a good boss, but damn, what a moron.”
“Woman?”
“Ah...! Hey! Bring out the women the boss had!”
At the command, a hunchback scurried over.
“This way, please. We figured if the boss came back from being a water ghost, we'd return 'em, but since things turned out like this, consider 'em gifts. True to form for a guy who couldn't get enough of women—he scraped together every beauty in these seas.”
“No, Lancel doesn't need any women like that.”
“Might as well take a look.”
“Lancel?!”
Marygold panicked, but Lancel felt a strange hunch kick in. Pirates. Boss. Women. It was a combo of info he'd heard somewhere before.
No way.
Feeling Marygold poking his nape, Lancel pressed deeper into the pirate base.
“Right here.”
The door opened to a waft of sweet incense. A carpet—out of place—covered the floor. Silk canopies draped everywhere, luxurious for a pirate fort. And in front stood nearly twenty women.
Yeah. Women from the southern isles, dressed openly with barely anything covering their bodies.
“The boss flipped out if you even looked at 'em wrong, so we didn't touch a hair. He's dead anyway, so have your fun before we auction 'em off.”
Marygold pinched Lancel's arm lightly. Her profile looked pouty. Naturally, Lancel's interest wasn't in the women. He scanned the room for a familiar face.
As expected. No way it'd be that convenient.
He turned away, expectations dashed.
“Done looking already?”
“Yeah. Not interested—do what you want with the women.”
“...!”
Marygold's face lit up.
“...Just in case, wanna check this side too?”
Then. The pirate flung open a curtained-off area.
“Might as well look.”
Marygold's eyes narrowed sharply. Feisty.
Lancel followed the pirate into the hidden room.
“This is her. The woman who knocked our boss overboard. When she went up for auction, her price hit fifteen gold nyang. Rumors said she was a mermaid from legend—she's that stunning.”
The room had a teardrop-shaped iron cage, like a birdcage.
Screeeeech!
That's when Pia on Marygold's shoulder started thrashing and screeching.
“...For real.”
Lancel let out a hollow laugh.
“She can't speak. Used to be too scared to approach, but... fair warning, she scratches anyone she doesn't know, so watch out.”
Blue hair. Sapphire eyes. Cold features. Snow-white skin.
Nine out of ten. Full marks.
“Claria.”
The Third Princess Claria Arild Prisia was there.
Met 3rd Princess Claria Arild Prisia (true body).
Rescue her now!
※ Bringing the bird (Pia, red coral parrot) near the true body will restore both souls to normal.
“...”
Lancel's mind blanked.
Screeeeech! Screeeeeeeeech!
Bird. Pia. Red coral parrot. And the Soul Flower.
Screeeeech!
“Hold on, Pia, why are you trying to run?”
For some reason, the moment it saw the Third Princess's true body, it started flailing to escape.
“Mary, borrowing her a sec.”
“Huh?”
Lancel grabbed Pia with both hands and strode straight to Claria's body.
Screeeeech!
Without a second's hesitation, he shoved the terrified bird through the bars of the narrow cage.
The next instant—
“I don't wanna!”
The Third Princess Claria's mouth opened.
The hunchback pirate guide's eyes bulged in shock.
“Th-that woman... she's talking! Human speech!”
“Send me back! Send me baaaack!”
Ignoring the stunned reactions, the Third Princess Claria wailed from her prone position.
The former “Pia,” the red coral parrot, merely cocked its head and flapped its wings.
“I don't wanna! Nooooo!”
What the hell kind of reaction is this?
17.
“You didn't say where exactly around here?”
“Yes, Lord Rocks Ruin. The island's just a bit farther.”
Rocks Ruin fidgeted impatiently at the helm of the galleon.
I have to find her first no matter what. Can't look more incompetent to Father. If I hear I'm worse than my little brothers, I'm done for.
The moment news of the Third Princess reached him, he'd set sail faster than anyone, skipping prep time—supplies were barely stocked.
Find the 3rd Princess. Earn the title of imperial hero. Become heir to the barony. Enter the capital. Join the palace. Become the princess's fiancé. Empire's consort?
A goofy grin spread across Rocks Ruin's face as his fantasies soared. He didn't see it as delusion. If he actually rescued her, it could become reality. At least, that's what he believed.
“Better to court the 3rd Princess than that damn Iceford lady anyway.”
Until recently, his target had been the Iceford lady who'd been hounding the navy for three years. Horrible personality or not, she was daughter to a court count house and the imperial chamberlain's pampered jewel. Even dukes treaded lightly around them—a top-tier match. Empire's top three beauties, rumors said, if you ignored her dogshit attitude.
That's why the Ruin family had spent three years flattering her, providing every convenience.
But if the target became the Third Princess?
Iceford lady, I'll make you grovel at my feet and toy with you!
Rocks Ruin ground his teeth. Resentment toward the Iceford lady, who never fell no matter how much he wooed her, had piled up.
“Lord Rocks Ruin! There! I see it!”
“What? Where!”
“Southwest! Island sighted! Pretty big one!”
“Bring that pirate!”
“Yes!”
Soon, the captured pirate was dragged forward.
“This the island you mentioned?”
“Y-Yes, that's it.”
“And the woman you talked about was there too?”
“Y-Yes, the boss's favorite—I remember clear as day!”
“Good. If it's a lie...”
He raised his knife to the man's throat.
“Eek! It's true! Why would I lie in this mess! Please, just spare my life...”
“Of course I'll keep you alive. Gotta feed you to the octopuses if it's bullshit, right?”
Rocks Ruin smirked. His gut feeling was good.
“Close in! Everyone disembark and search the island!”
18.
“Pia... Princess...?”
Marygold had been in shock for hours now. She couldn't accept that the bird she'd raised for three years was actually a princess.
For reference, the red coral parrot—Pia's true form—was now happily bobbing its head in a small cage.
“Mary, you won't hate me, right? You're all I have! Please take me with you! You're my only friend, my only family—please!”
“Pia, no, Your Highness...?”
“Call me Pia, Mary. Special permission just for you! Call me Pia! Pet my head like always, kiss me, sleep together like before, Mary!”
“H-How could I dare?!”
“It's fine! I permit it! Specially for Mary!”
For some reason, Third Princess Claria was clinging to Marygold, begging desperately.
What the hell is going on?
Lancel glanced around warily, in case anyone outside heard. The moment the princess's mind returned, he'd chased all the pirates out. Not a scene for prying eyes. The dumb brutes had muttered something like, “Already getting your fun, eh?” as they left.
“First, explain what happened, Your Highness.”
Lancel finally cut in.
The Third Princess's glare sharpened.
“I hate Lancel. You're gonna steal Mary from me.”
“...”
“No way, Pia! Don't be rude to Lancel!”
“...! So mean, Mary...! Better than some guy like Lancel!”
“If I have to choose one, it's Lancel.”
“E-Even when I'm begging...?”
“No means no. Now answer Lancel's question, Pia.”
Was this really a princess and navy soldier talking? Lancel's head spun at this reversed dynamic, unseen in centuries of life.
The Third Princess shrank, head bowed. Then grumbled.
“...If I go back to the palace now... my siblings will kill me.”
Her face paled.
“I just ran away to survive. Turning into a bird was unexpected, but meeting Mary... I thought, this is fine. I can live like this.”
The villainous princess who'd sneered at everyone was long gone.
“No place for me in this crumbling empire. I'm just a pitiful loner.”