Chapter 116: The Tin Knight and The Land of Sea Breeze (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 116: The Tin Knight and The Land of Sea Breeze (5)
Having secured the necessary crew to sail the ship, turned the meddlesome sea serpent into an escort, and even ensured clear weather, there was nothing left to stand in the party’s way.
That evening, Franka ordered their immediate departure.
“If we leave now, it will be pitch-black night before long. Why not depart at dawn instead, Young Lady?”
“Just go. We’re leaving now.”
Despite the advice to wait, Franka pushed for their departure.
According to the original schedule, the group was supposed to leave the city quietly without even announcing their arrival, and the departure time had been set accordingly.
Thanks to Dorothea’s party resolving the issues with lightning speed, they were only delayed by about half a day. But since they had caused a commotion in the city and made their presence known, there was a good chance that news could reach the Witch of the West through some unexpected channel.
For the sake of the captured children, Franka had to hurry, and the same was true for Dorothea and her companions.
After all, a surprise attack is half-failed the moment you start dawdling.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ assesses that the ship is cozier than expected!]
The vessel Franka had prepared was a single caravel.
It wasn’t very large, manageable by about twenty people besides Dorothea’s group, and its exterior was far from ornate.
The party’s gazes all turned to Franka.
From her skirt, puffed out like an open umbrella, to the dazzling accessories dangling all over her body.
As they stared blankly at the woman who was the very definition of flamboyance walking among them, Franka seemed to notice their looks and twitched an eyebrow.
“What? What’s with that look?”
“Oh, nothing. It’s just a strange mismatch.”
Dorothea’s words were, if anything, a compliment, with a nuance closer to, ‘So you’re not just obsessed with looking flashy after all.’ But Franka seemed to take it the other way.
“I have my own personal ship, you know? It’s much bigger and more magnificent than this! This is just a plain one I prepared so we wouldn’t stand out to my master. Don’t get the wrong idea!”
“…Ah, right. That suits you better.”
“Good. As long as you understand.”
Franka wore a strangely satisfied expression, while Dorothea simply shook her head with a look that said, Well, if you’re happy with that, I guess that’s that.
Watching the two of them communicate without really communicating, the rest of the party let out a wry smile.
And so, the ship set sail.
*
Just as they had been warned before their departure, night fell quickly.
Sailing in the dead of night was an incredibly dangerous affair.
Without a powerful lantern, you couldn’t see what was right in front of you, which was obviously dangerous. And if you did have a lantern, you became a target for all sorts of magic beasts.
However, the crew didn’t have to worry about the latter.
“I’ve been a sailor for decades, but I never imagined I’d see the day we’d be escorted by a sea serpent.”
While it might have lacked the reputation to be called the strongest creature in the sea, the sea serpent was, at the very least, the regional champion.
With such a creature exuding an ominous aura as it escorted their ship, few fish were bold enough to challenge it.
Dorothea usually avoided using necromancy where there were many eyes, but this time she had no choice.
On the unstable footing of the sea, relying solely on the Tin Knight was risky. If he happened to fall in, it would be irreversible.
The sea serpent was necessary, not just as an escort, but as an insurance policy.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ is impressed, remarking that this is a wonderful experience in its own right!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ wonders, if they were just going to ride on its head like this anyway, couldn't they have just brought Adelaide, Sophia, and Franka up here too?]
“…You could have said something sooner.”
Dorothea shot a resentful glare at the Tin Knight, but she didn’t swing her staff as she usually would.
Beating up the Tin Knight while it had its arms wrapped around her waist was a rather difficult maneuver.
Besides, it wasn’t really the Tin Knight’s fault this time.
“Hah, forget it.”
Dorothea shook off the thought.
In truth, doing as the Tin Knight suggested wouldn’t have changed much. The effort and time spent rescuing the crew hadn’t been that significant anyway.
How long had they been sailing?
Suddenly, a loud shout came from the ship.
“Witch! There’s a ship ahead!”
At Adelaide’s voice, Dorothea frowned and stared ahead.
But she couldn’t see anything.
“Tin Can, you see anything?”
The Tin Knight was silent for about five seconds.
Then it answered.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ reports that a ship resembling a ghost ship is approaching!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ reports seeing a one-eyed man, an octopus head, an eel-haired person, and a skeleton!]
For a moment, Dorothea wondered if she had misheard.
But that was impossible. The Tin Knight’s messages weren’t heard with her ears.
A short while later, the ship that Adelaide and the Tin Knight had seen came into Dorothea’s view as well.
It was a bizarre vessel.
It was massive, dwarfing the caravel they were on, and its hull was pitch-black.
In stark contrast to the gloomy hull, the sail hanging from the mast was spectacularly brilliant—it was a golden sail.
And it wasn't merely painted that color; it was a distinct gold, as if molten gold itself had become fabric, fluttering in the wind.
What’s more, various jewels were embedded across the sail, forming the shape of a Jolly Roger in place of ink. The same was true for its flag.
In the darkness of the night, the existence of a pirate ship flying a golden flag was utterly surreal, and utterly bizarre.
The ship wasn’t the only strange thing; its crew was just as peculiar.
While those aboard the low-lying caravel couldn’t see, Dorothea and the Tin Knight, perched atop the sea serpent’s head, had a clear view of the figures on the deck.
And Dorothea realized that the Tin Knight’s description had been completely literal, without a hint of sarcasm or metaphor.
There was a one-eyed man in a horned helmet, whose frame made even the Tin Knight look small.
There was a bald man who looked as if someone had stuck an octopus where his head should be and then haphazardly added a human form.
There was a grotesque creature with writhing eels growing from its head instead of hair.
And there was a golden skeleton, adorned in a neat uniform and flashy accessories, who himself shone with a golden light.
Behind them, she could see other crew members, each with some part of their body warped and twisted.
For a moment, Dorothea thought, Necromancy?
But she immediately dismissed the possibility.
It felt similar to necromancy, but she couldn’t sense the aura of death from the crew before her.
Amazingly, they were living beings, just as they appeared.
However, to say they were completely unrelated to Dorothea’s specialty would also be incorrect.
A curse. And a tremendously powerful, tenacious, and vile one at that.
Just as Dorothea frowned, the golden skeleton at the forefront of the group opened its mouth.
Contrary to his appearance, which suggested he should be spewing some eerie curse, his voice was clear and full of life.
“Welcome, welcome! My dear little friends. Your ship is so adorable and cute, I almost didn’t notice you and ran you right over! It would have been a disaster if not for that easy-to-spot long fellow next to you!”
As the golden skeleton burst into a hearty laugh, his subordinates around him joined in as if on cue.
Dorothea was perplexed.
They looked like they should be screaming about death and plunder at any moment, yet they were addressing her with such a friendly attitude that she found it difficult to decide how to respond.
It was Franka who helped her make a choice.
From the deck of the ship, she could see Franka desperately shaking her head.
Franka’s face, scrunched up as if she’d bitten into a bug, seemed to show just how dangerous she felt this situation was.
“Hm?”
Noticing Dorothea’s gaze shift toward the caravel, the golden skeleton made a quizzical expression.
If you were to ask how a skeleton could make an expression, one could only say that the golden bones twisted and moved in a bizarre fashion.
The golden skeleton shouted.
“Hey! Lower us a bit!”
At his command, a bustle of activity could be felt from within the giant ship.
A moment later, their ship actually began to sink slowly, until it was level with Franka’s caravel.
Naturally, this was no ordinary feat for a ship.
Spotting Franka, the golden skeleton exclaimed in admiration.
“Oh! And who might this be? If it isn’t our dear witch’s apprentice. What brings you out here in the dead of night, young lady?”
“Hmph! Do I need your permission, Cap’n Bill, just to visit my master?”
Franka put on a confident air, as if her earlier anxiety had been a lie.
It seemed she and the golden skeleton knew each other.
“But of course. My duty is to keep the riffraff from entering this island.”
“Are you calling me riffraff?”
The golden skeleton, Cap’n Bill, shrugged with an exaggerated gesture.
“Of course not. But while you may pass, young lady, the others may not. Especially those riding that long fellow. They reek of danger! Whether it’s the sexy but still green young lady, or that scrap iron knight that smells of so much blood I can’t even fathom it! Oh, for heaven’s sake. In all my life, I never imagined I’d meet a monster that stinks of more blood than I do!”
Singing “how dreadful, how dreadful,” Cap’n Bill asked Franka.
“It’s strange enough for the apprentice to be out here in the middle of the night, but to have a whole host of unfamiliar companions with you… As someone who must protect the safety of our Witch of the West, this is too grave a matter to overlook.”
“My master is strong enough without you protecting her.”
“Oh, I know that, of course. I’m well aware. But that Witch of the West is the only one who can end this damn curse. I’ve been playing this pathetic watchdog role for 99 years, clinging to that fragile hope. In just one year, one more year, this hell will be over. Is it not natural to be sensitive to the slightest risk? Hmm? Ah, damn it all, just talking about it brings a tear to my eye. Even though my tear ducts dried up long ago!”
Dorothea unconsciously gripped her staff tighter.
Although Cap’n Bill maintained a comical and cheerful demeanor, she could glimpse other emotions flashing beneath his smiling facade.
It was a colossal anger, a terrible lamentation, and a sickeningly intense longing.
“So tell me, apprentice. You, the youngest of all the disciples our dear witch has raised. Who in the world are they?”
At Cap’n Bill’s question, the gazes of everyone present focused on Franka’s lips.
Everyone realized it.
Depending on how Franka answered now, the situation could take a fatal turn.
Franka wore a deeply troubled expression.
They were certainly not friends, but she couldn’t reveal Dorothea’s true identity either.
A single drop of cold sweat trickled down Franka’s forehead.
And then, an answer came.
Not from Franka, but from Sophia, who stood beside her.
“Why, they are the young lady's new servants, of course.”
It was a testament to the patience Dorothea had cultivated thanks to the Tin Knight that she managed not to scream, ‘What kind of bullshit is that?’
Cap’n Bill’s gaze shifted to Sophia.
The golden skull contorted again, forming a new expression.
It was one of ‘admiration.’
“Oho, and who is this stunning beauty? Might I ask your name?”
“I am Sophia Hubris, Cap’n Bill.”
Smiling sweetly, Sophia added.
“Personal servant to Lady Franka Aglaia.”
In that moment, Dorothea’s party and Franka all had the same thought.
Wait, since when?