Chapter 90
Chapter 90
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: The Secret of Magic
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Choi Seong-un immediately realized what "that knowledge" Eldar was referring to.
"Magic, right?"
"Yes."
The external knowledge known about alchemists was mystical techniques—in other words, alchemy or elixir-making.
But this technology was, in another sense, "science."
Alchemists were scientists, and alchemical experiments were scientific experiments.
There were flaws, such as not being rigorously consistent with scientific principles and being mixed with mysticism, but the alchemist's attitude of gladly building upon failures resembled that of a scientist.
However, the alchemists hid even more thoroughly guarded secrets.
'That's demonic essence.'
In this land, beings like Hui, Rabina, or Muel, who had horns sprouting from their heads, continued to be born as the "cursed ones."
According to the Lost World setting, these were remnants of the power held by ancient evils, unearthed like scraps from ancient ruins or inherited through bloodlines like Hwigyeong or Rabina.
Each demonic essence was associated with diverse attributes related to powers such as electricity, fire, probability, or gravity, and those who received power from the spirits of these essences could wield such forces.
But these demonic essences were merely one-dimensional powers—little more than superhuman abilities.
According to knowledge found in ancient ruins and such, these superpowers could be woven together to create higher-dimensional forces, and that was magic.
"Magic itself can only be used by a select few. And it's separate from the societal changes brought by advancements in gunpowder-related technology. Kyle probably thought that bringing up magic would just confuse Huiwen unnecessarily."
There were other reasons as well.
"Above all, no magicians have appeared yet."
To become a magician, at least half of the ancient ruins on a continent needed to be excavated, and the resulting magical knowledge had to be gathered in one place.
In Lost World, the "birth of a magician" was on par with the Industrial Revolution in terms of scientific technology—a benchmark that defined eras.
But this time, the birth of that magician was being delayed.
'Normally, they'd appear within about 100 years of the game starting. Probably because all the players are prioritizing stable play, keeping their distance from demonic essences and magic. ...A magician might have already appeared on another continent.'
At least Choi Seong-un, who had incorporated one demonic essence into his religious system, was in a relatively advantageous position.
After all, possessing at least one demonic essence was required to learn magic.
Eldar said,
"Will Wisdom have the advantage?"
"Why?"
"Because Asbestos took the Alchemist's Tower."
"Hm, they do have the highest probability of a magician appearing."
"Isn't that something to worry about?"
Choi Seong-un pretended not to care.
"Who knows. Wisdom is probably praying that no magician appears in their territory."
─┼
The Pirate's Shame, carrying Basen Rak Orzan, leader of the Eastern Mountains Expedition Team, and Captain Thione Itimo, tasked with transporting his adventurer group, sailed smoothly and arrived at Barbrin.
Though satyrs were the main race in Danyeom, the port city of Barbrin saw an incredibly diverse array of races coming and going.
Barbrin itself was smaller than Orzan, but its harbor, filled with countless merchant ships, was comparable.
Standing on the deck, Basen said to Thione,
"There are really a lot of ships."
"It's the closest port to Orzan. Ships leaving from here keep heading west, passing through the Dark Cave all the way to Danri. Some go even further."
"Further?"
Thione turned to Basen as if wondering what he was asking.
"The Western Continent. What else?"
There was a story that the legendary storyteller Owen had ultimately gone to that Western Continent.
"Does it really exist?"
"There are no regular shipping routes, and plenty of ships set out and never return, so yeah. But it definitely exists."
"No, I mean. It could just be a huge island, right?"
Basen's doubt stemmed from the self-centered worldview of someone who might once have been at the center of a nation.
Thione thought that confidence was justified.
"Maybe. But they over there call us the Eastern Continent."
"Then what do they call their own?"
"The Central Continent."
"Why?"
"They say there's another Western Continent to their west. Not sure about that part myself."
Basen stroked his chin and said,
"Why don't merchants trade across continents? If there's profit to be made, they move, even if it's risky."
"They only go when the risk is worth it."
"Is it that dangerous?"
"You've never spent much time on ships, Captain. Pirates, reefs, windless seas, high waves, sea monsters, storms..."
"I get it. Enough."
Thione smiled and said,
"I need to do some trading, so I'll head out. You can rest comfortably on the ship, or come back by the promised time and enjoy some fun in the port."
"The ship feels cramped and stuffy, so I need to stretch my legs."
Basen toured the harbor with his attendants, checking out the exotic goods.
About half were intriguing, but the other half were things from Heukrin, making it somewhat boring.
Thinking about it, Basen realized that truly remarkable items wouldn't stop here—they'd cross the sea to Orzan. So it made sense.
'Still, no unusual signs anywhere.'
The Pirate's Shame also carried others to assist the expedition team.
Basen suspected there might be overseers among them, but no one was tailing him openly.
'Well, they wouldn't follow so obviously. Or maybe the higher-ups ordered them to show no interest.'
As Basen was about to return to the ship, he spotted a fruit stall and stopped.
There were fruits that didn't grow in Heukrin, so Basen chatted with the fruit vendor.
"So you're heading straight back to Heukrin?"
"Yeah?"
"Then pray hard to the gods to keep the pirates away."
"Pirates?"
The gnome fruit seller glanced around suspiciously, as if worried about eavesdroppers, then whispered in Basen's ear.
"You don't know about the Yabun Pirates?"
"...No idea."
"Of course. You're from Orzan. There's a pirate crew that dominates the waters around Barbrin. They mainly target merchant ships leaving the port."
"And Danyeom just watches?"
"As if. But they're a massive pirate fleet coming up from the south—it's not just one or two ships. They're still heading up to Barbrin waters, so soon even Heukrin's coastal seas might get dangerous, right?"
Basen thought that if true, it was a serious issue.
'Danyeom's soldiers aren't weak by any means. For pirates to reach a major port city like this from some unknown backwater village means there's a problem.'
Basen decided that when Thione bought lime and went to resell it in Sashian, he should send a letter to Kyle.
Kyle might already know, but repeated information only grew more valuable.
And of course, Basen told Captain Thione of his own ship about it.
"The Yabun Pirates?"
"Heard of them?"
"Not at all?"
Thione laughed and said,
"Harbor merchants are all the same. They make up stories or exaggerate to keep you lingering at their stalls. It's a sales tactic."
"I know that. Orzan, where I grew up, was a port city too."
"Didn't you just stay in the palace?"
Basen debated whether to admit he'd spent more time outside the palace carousing with thugs or stay silent to save face.
Thione seemed to take his silence as affirmation.
"By the way, they asked to load as much cargo as possible from the palace, but the amount I want arrives tomorrow."
"You'll wait until then?"
"No. We'll load the remainder from the warships. We'll head out first."
"Then we won't have warship escorts?"
"We have a lot to unload, and we need to load food in Sashian too. Departing a day early will actually save time."
"But..."
"Time on the ship costs money—fresh water, food, crew wages, everything."
With that logic, Basen had nothing to say.
After all, ship matters were entirely up to Captain Thione Itimo, right?
"Guess we'll pray we don't run into pirates."
"Don't worry. I've heard the stories, but I've never actually encountered pirates."
─┼
The next day, off the coast of Barbrin, Thione stared at the horizon and screamed.
"P-Pirates!"
Basen, standing beside her with arms crossed, sighed.
Thione was visibly panicked, but she quickly ordered the crew to dump sandbags for balance, along with fresh water and provisions they wouldn't need immediately.
Finally, she commanded the crew to arm themselves with their makeshift personal weapons.
There were three ships that looked like pirate vessels.
Basen wasn't entirely convinced they were pirates, but Thione was certain from their hull shape, speed, and obvious pursuit. The other crew seemed to agree.
"Can we escape?"
"The Pirate's Shame was even used as a pirate ship before. It's made of relatively light wood with large sails that catch the wind well. ...But it's not enough."
The pirate ships had the same advantages.
The difference was that they'd likely carried no cargo except minimal provisions.
"What about the lime?"
"We're going there to transport it, aren't we? If we dump it all, I'd rather jump overboard myself."
"Still..."
Thione said with a grim face,
"Pirate ships are modified to float with all unnecessary structures stripped. We'll get caught anyway. Dumping even a little cargo buys time for the warships to catch up. If we're lucky, they said they'd load lime this morning, so the gap might only be half a day. If the wind picks up stronger here..."
Thione clasped her hands, closed her eyes, and prayed.
Basen stared at her intently.
Thione cracked one eye open and glared at him.
"What are you doing? Pray quick!"
Basen sighed and awkwardly mimicked her.
Unfortunately, Yacheon couldn't heed their prayers, as Choi Seong-un still lacked the subdomain of sea winds.
Soon, the smallest and nimblest pirate ship drew alongside the Pirate's Shame.
The pirates' shouts reached Basen.
"Brother! Look at that. They're loaded heavy—they can't even maneuver!"
"Hahaha! Lads! We'll drink hearty tonight! Our prayers to the White Spider God have paid off."
"How about we board quick before the others arrive?"
"Hm, hold on. Not yet..."
As they drew close enough to hear voices, arrows flew between the ships.
But the pirates' high deck hindered accurate shots, and the archers on the advantageously positioned Pirate's Shame had poor aim.
'White Spider God? I've heard that name somewhere before.'
Basen's pondering didn't last long.
Book study embarrassed him to admit, but he was confident in hands-on learning.
Basen drew Heukrin's famed composite bow and leaned his upper body out over the deck railing.
Whish!
The arrow sliced through the wind and struck a pirate between the eyes.
The rowdy pirates fell silent.
Basen had no hobby of pitying others.
Another arrow embedded in the temple of a stunned pirate.
Only then did the pirates roar in fury.
The archers fired a volley at Basen, but he had already ducked behind the mast.
The leader, who looked like an astacidian, shouted,
"Bring the ships side by side! We're boarding now!"
Grappling hooks flew, wrapping around the Pirate's Shame's railing and securing it.
The other end was fixed too.
The ship tilted as pirates climbed the ropes.
But the crew on the Pirate's Shame stood frozen.
It wasn't just fear.
Even Basen, about to stand and return fire, paused to watch what unfolded on deck.
"Which bastard shot Little Brother?!"
The pirates scrambled aboard via the ropes.
But standing before them wasn't Basen—it was a large, dark shadow.
"First-Class Devastator, Pirate Silta."
"...Gasp!"
"Pirates... off the ship."
With one kick from the ogre, three pirates flew into the sea.