Harvesting the Sea Demon Stones
“Gonu. Hate. No go.”
“Must go.”
“Hate. Smells bad. Dangerous.”
Adel had sailed the ship to a rocky island a short distance from the archipelago. The barren rock jutting from the endless ocean was an uninhabited isle, devoid of any life.
“What smell? There's nothing.”
Harun looked at him and asked. He sniffed the air exaggeratedly several times at Gonu's disgusted expression, but all he caught was the salty tang of seawater.
“No go in. Scary. Gonu no go. You no go.”
“Sea folk suddenly scared of water? Something's off.”
Gonu kept shaking his head. Kasla wore a puzzled look too, having seen him single-handedly slice through waves to down a warship.
“Leave that guy be, Master. You've got me! No worries! Haha!”
Rito Yepel seized the moment, sidling up to Adel and rubbing his palms together.
“You want me to harvest those rocks under the sea? Piece of cake. Leave the ocean to us pirates!”
He rolled up his sleeves, poised to dive right in.
“......Urk?!”
“You guard the ship. If a clown like you stirs things up, we all die on the spot. Not just you—everyone here.”
Adel grabbed Rito by the scruff as he leaned over the deck railing and yanked him back.
“I-instant death? What do you mean?”
Rito collapsed onto the deck, his face draining of color as he stared up at Adel.
“You know where we are?”
“Well...... A rocky island not far from Cratel, right? No fish even live here—no one sets foot on it.”
“Why no fish?”
“......Pardon?”
“Pirates knowing the sea? That's nonsense. You lot ignore the fish swarming everywhere and just rob people to get by.”
Adel seized Rito's head and slowly directed his gaze down to the waters below the deck.
“Reading winds and plotting courses is skill, not knowing the sea. Guys who don't even scout their own backyard......”
Kugug...... Bubbles...... Bubbles......
At that moment, bubbles rose from the rocks beneath the surface, as if they were breathing.
“Wh-what's that?”
Rito peered down without Adel needing to force him, ducking his head low.
Up close, black rocks blanketed the area around the island. As the ship rocked on the waves—creek—the rocks sank to avoid touching the hull, then rose again.
“A-are they alive?”
“Not alive. Just reflex. They avoid contact on purpose. That's why you miss it unless you look underwater.”
“What are they?”
Sea Demon Stones. Normally invisible, but at certain times, they surface like this and exhale air.”
“Rocks dodging ships...... Nice guys. Hitting reefs mid-voyage is a nightmare.”
Rito gazed in wonder at the Sea Demon Stones spread across dozens of meters.
“Nice? I think the opposite. Don't touch them. Like I said, it's self-defense.”
“Why?”
“They explode. Big time.”
“......”
Rito's legs shook at Adel's words—he felt like he was standing on a bomb.
“Ex-explode?! How the hell do you harvest those?!”
“That's why I came. I know how.”
“For real? Even the Archipelago King probably doesn't know about these......”
“He doesn't. That's why it's possible. And it's not the only secret. The Garam Archipelago has more he doesn't know than you'd think.”
Adel bit his lip faintly, staring at the rocks rising from the sea's heart.
This won't be known for another ten years. Juwan, this time I'll steal your strategy first. You're the one who kills me, so it's only fair.
Juwan Regian, genius of the Ivory Tower—one of the three great magic towers. In a world ruled by God's Blessings, he was a monster who felled two high gods with magic alone.
He exploited this windless zone better than anyone. No divine power is a fatal flaw for some, but a perfect battlefield for those who don't rely on gods.
Mages, exactly.
The greater a mage's talent, the more it repelled God's Blessings. Even Julian Pader, the 8-class grand mage and Ivory Tower master, had contracted a low god of fury. But Juwan couldn't contract even a low god—proof of his genius.
“Sea Demon Stones explode on contact, but there's a way to stop it.”
“What is it?”
“Inject mana. They turn red. Harvest then. No special technique—just steady mana flow.”
Rito tilted his head at Adel's explanation.
“But Master, this is the windless zone. God's Blessings weaken, and mana too. Where do we get enough to neutralize all those?”
“Right here.”
“......Pardon?”
Adel met Rito's eyes.
“Me.”
“Yepen and Dein got hit? Not content with severing Redfeather's arm—these bastards...... They should've stayed rolling in the desert instead of eyeing my archipelago?”
The Archipelago King received word of Adel's ship attacking the two pirate fleets. He knew he couldn't let this slide.
“Captain!! We fighting or not?!”
“Let's go rip those pups' heads off!”
“Fight!!! Let's go!!”
His four assembled fleets totaled nearly as many ships as nearby kingdoms' navies. Excluding his own ten pirate ships, each leader brought two.
“Battle time after so long!!!”
“Hang their heads from the mast for the gulls!”
Waaaaaah—!!! Waaaaaah—!!!
Nearly a thousand pirates crowded the harbor, turning it into chaos as expected from such disorderly scum.
“This is 'cause you let that white shark go, bro. Pirates of the archipelago looked down on? Unbelievable!”
Aboard the largest ship moored in the harbor—the Archipelago King's flagship, Ghoul—the pirate captains of Garam Archipelago gathered.
“Shut it, Junk. Unless you wanna die. Fish head of yours forget already? I saved your ass when she nearly had your neck.”
The Archipelago King, lounging in the captain's cabin, waved off the sharp-featured captain irritably.
“W-well......”
“Outfitting status?”
“Almost done. Once Bucket Knight finishes, we can sail immediately.”
Another captain beside Junk answered tensely.
“'Knight' my ass......”
Junk snorted in disdain.
“Only noble in the archipelago. Gotta treat him right.”
“Bullshit. Fallen noble's still noble?”
“But the Serpent family's handy with tools. Their cannons let us roam easy.”
“Yeah, credit where due. Guy sacrificed his own son to a kraken to save his skin.”
“Kekeke......”
“Kukukuku......”
The captains snickered at Junk's jab.
“This overkill? Just one ship. Stole Rito's, and Yepen's are lightweights anyway.”
“Few cannons too.”
“Surround and blast—sinks easy.”
“Not far. Sail now. Send Serpents to salvage Yepen's wrecks.”
The pirates itched for blood.
“Smells fishy.”
“......Pardon?”
“Stinks bad. Real bad.”
“You bastards, that's why wash up! No wonder pirates get no respect!”
Junk barked at the captains flanking him.
Thwack—
He ducked as a sword whistled over his head.
“Where are they?”
“Whale Rock Cave. You know, the uninhabited rocky island.”
“Why there?”
“......Pardon?”
“White shark's prepping to hunt kraken as declared. Think one ship hits me without her?”
He scoffed in disbelief.
“Plotting something for sure. Digging a trap right in my waters.”
Clang—
The obsidian ring at his neck swayed as if in answer.
“Don't know his game, but the sea's mine. No waves block Ghoul's path.”
“Ooooooh!!!”
“Hear that?! Bro's parting the seas!!”
“Victory's ours!”
“Let's go!!! Sail out!”
The pirates raised their weapons, roaring at the Archipelago King's words.
“Done. Ready.”
“Good work.”
“No more. Twice bad. Scary here.”
Gonu hauled himself onto the deck, hollow-eyed, and slumped in exhaustion.
“Agreed. Twice is my limit.”
“......”
Gonu looked up but said nothing.
“Hah!!”
Harun and Kasla clambered aboard, panting hard. They wore the same drained expressions.
“A-Adel...... You okay?”
“Yeah, didn't die. Tougher than I thought.”
Harun and Kasla couldn't hide their shock at Adel's sunken, pallid eyes—like he hadn't slept in days.
You're one crazy bastard. Pouring mana across the whole island? Even with the Dragon Heart, who knew you could wield it like this.
“Told you. Seen it done. Not by me, but I watched.”
Learned just by watching? Talent in itself. How'd a guy like you only awaken to archery so late?
While the three shattered the Sea Demon Stones, Adel had continuously poured mana into the sea. No formal magic training meant his technique was crude, but his experience controlling divine power let him cycle mana smoothly.
For Adel, who'd handled countless gods, mana circulation was child's play—beyond any mage.
“Hoo......”
But it wasn't easy. Sustaining mana was like sprinting flat-out nonstop.
“Humans miss chances because of their situations. Me too—no opportunity to pick up a bow.”
Adel caught his breath slowly.
That's what makes life fun.
“Wasn't fun. Especially on the receiving end.”
Not anymore, right?
“No. Not anymore.”
Adel gripped a Sea Demon Stone pulled from the depths.
“Now's the time to seize.”
Thud!! Fsssh......!!!
“Archipelago King.”
The red Sea Demon Stone crumbled, bursting into fierce flames.
“Come cleave the seas to me. Offer that key with your own hands.”
Everything unfolded exactly as he planned.