Chapter 113 - The Battle Onboard and the Sinking Ship
As we climbed the stairs to the deck, we saw that the freed slaves had stopped in front of the door.
"What's going on?" I asked the man at the front. Was it Fam and the others holding them back?
"There are people fighting on deck."
"What?"
I moved past the slave to see the situation on deck for myself. The fire was still burning, just as it had been before we went below. Fam, Maira, and Aira had a man surrounded. All three had their weapons drawn; it was clear they were in the middle of a fight. Their opponent was a tall, lanky human with long black hair, wielding a massive cleaver. A black cloak with a crimson lining billowed behind him.
It should have been too early for enemies from the pursuing pirate ships to have boarded with weapons drawn. I drew my katana.
"Mizuki! I don't know the situation, but Fam's group is fighting. I'm going to help them. When you see an opening, lead these men to the sailing ship."
"Wait!" Mizuki tried to say something, but I didn't wait to hear it. I burst onto the deck.
I'll end this instantly.
I took the man by surprise, closing the distance in a flash and bringing my blade down in a diagonal slash.
"Gah!"
He let out a cry and collapsed unceremoniously to the deck.
"Who is this guy?" I asked, glancing at Fam.
"Master, watch out!" she yelled.
"?"
I looked around. Fam, Maira, and Aira seemed uninjured, but they still had their weapons aimed at the fallen man, their faces filled with fear. The man looked to be in his mid-twenties. I'd felt the solid impact of my blade when I struck him. He shouldn't be dead, but there was no way he could still fight.
In the distance, I could see the two enemy galleys. They were still too far for arrows, let alone a boarding party. The cannon fire had stopped, too. Looking up, I saw a huge, conical magic shield pointing towards the enemy ships. It had to be Marmie and Cecily's work. It was cone-shaped to deflect cannonballs, I guessed, and was transparent like glass, reflecting light in a rainbow of colors.
"Master! Behind you!" Fam screamed again.
I spun around. The man I had just cut down was back on his feet, his massive cleaver raised high.
"Dieeee!"
I wasn't going to make it. Just as that thought crossed my mind, Fam charged in and blocked the blow with her shield. It was a heavy strike; she couldn't stop it with one hand and had to use both to hold her ground. The man swung his cleaver again in a wide arc. Fam met it with her shield once more, but the force sent her flying back. I rushed to catch her. Maira and Aira feinted attacks to keep the man at bay, and he clicked his tongue, backing away to create some distance.
Fam's shield was split clean in two. She unstrapped it and let it fall to the deck. We regrouped and faced the man.
"Attacking someone out of the blue? That's pretty cowardly, don't you think?" the man said, readying his cleaver. The wound I had just inflicted was completely gone.
"Who are you?" I demanded.
"You should know, shouldn't you? I'm one of the transferred." He smirked, revealing long canine teeth. He was a handsome man, with a long, well-defined face.
"Are you with the guy who's been blasting away with those cannons? Tell him to knock it off, he's disturbing the peace."
I subtly signaled Mizuki, who was still hiding by the door. She nodded and began ushering the former slaves toward the sailing ship.
"Are you the one who summoned the goddess?" the man asked.
"I am. Name's Mash."
"Then you're my enemy. I am Takemura. And the one firing the cannons is not a man."
"Your girlfriend?"
Takemura just laughed, brushing back his hair, ignoring my question.
"Why are you playing pirate?"
"It's simple. To kill other transferred people. And to take that elf girl over there for myself."
"So you're working with the Demon Kingdom?"
He ignored my question and just raised his cleaver.
"You think you can win against this many people?!" I yelled as I dodged his strike and slashed at him. Fam followed up, swinging her scimitar. Takemura skillfully dodged our attacks, but he couldn't avoid Maira's mace as it slammed into his torso. As he staggered, Aira brought her mace down on his head.
There was a sickening crunch as Takemura's skull shattered, and he collapsed.
"That... might have been overkill," I muttered. I'd wanted to get information out of him, but that was impossible now.
"Mash, stay sharp!" Aira shouted.
And then, impossibly, Takemura's shattered head reformed, and he rose to his feet. His eyes were glowing crimson.
"A special skill... immortality."
With his pale face and fang-like teeth, it made sense. "So you're a vampire..."
"That's right! I'm invincible!" he declared.
"And for the record," Takemura added with a fanged grin, answering my unspoken thought, "sunlight, crosses, and garlic have no effect on me."
What are Avea and the others doing? I wondered. They should have come to help by now. The galley was taking on so much water that its waterline had dropped, forcing us to look up at the sailing ship. I couldn't see what was happening over there.
The enemy galleys were closing faster than I'd expected; they'd be in arrow range soon. At this distance, their cannons should be able to hit us with pinpoint accuracy. The only reason they weren't firing was either because they were wary of Marmie's magic shield, or because they didn't want to hit Takemura. And our ship still hadn't reached the shore. There was no sign of the allied fleet that was supposed to be coming up behind us.
Mizuki returned, having delivered the slaves.
"What's the situation with our allies?" I asked her.
"The pirates we captured found out the other two galleys were coming and started a revolt. They're having trouble quelling it."
"Why aren't they heading for the riverbank?"
"This is just my guess, but there's a sandbar in the middle of the river, so the channel splits. The deeper water is probably closer to the sandbar, and it's too shallow near the banks for the ship to get close."
It was true. The boundary between the forest and the river was a wide gravel shore that reflected the light. It seemed to stretch far downstream. I'd figured we could just run the galley aground since we were abandoning it anyway, but that would mean wading through the water to get to shore. And there was a chance the water would be too deep. We were in a worse bind than I'd thought.
"...Alright. Mizuki and I will take down Takemura. Fam, Maira, Aira—I need you three to get back to the sailing ship. Once you're there, cut this vessel loose. Fam, Maira, protect Claire and the others. Aira, I need you to guard Cecily."
"What?!" the three of them cried out in protest.
"This ship is about to sink. I can't have anyone who can't swim stuck here."
"That's unacceptable!" Fam shouted. "Besides, I just remembered the ancient dog-eared swimming technique passed down through generations: the 'doggy paddle'! I'm sure I can do it!"
She was talking like one of those kids who think they can do anything if they just try. Maybe with practice she could, but I'd seen her nearly drown trying to save me the other day. I couldn't agree to that. Still, Takemura's confidence was unsettling, and the thought of fighting him without the support of Fam's special skill made me uneasy.
"If you're worried about us, send Doris over," I said. She'd mentioned she could swim, though she hadn't said how well. Maira nodded at my words.
"Mash, he flew to get onto this ship. Be careful," Maira warned, before taking the still-protesting Fam with her. Aira followed.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," I said to Takemura, readying my weapon again.
"So, you were trying to escape to the shore after all," he noted.
"Mizuki," I said, ignoring him, "no matter how many times we cut this guy, he won't die because of his special skill. Let's see if he's still immortal after we drain his mana."
"So that's your partner, huh?" Takemura said.
Instead of answering, I closed the distance and slashed. Takemura dodged with ease, but Mizuki, who had moved in even closer, landed a cut. His body wavered, but he recovered instantly. The wound was already gone.
"It... it really vanished!"
As Mizuki stared in shock, Takemura's cleaver came swinging down. She deflected it with her shield and struck back. Takemura took the hit while swinging his cleaver in return. The blow tore through her leather chestplate.
"Hey! Slashing her clothes won't do you any good! She's wearing a swimsuit underneath for protection!"
"Hey! What are you talking about?!" Mizuki yelled.
I circled to her opposite side and attacked Takemura. My foot slipped as I lunged, but my blade still managed to slice into his shoulder. He grimaced in pain, and Mizuki seized the opening to bring her sword down. I swung my katana up from a low stance.
"Gah!"
Struck by both of us, Takemura's body slumped. But by the time he hit his knees, his wounds were already healed. He swung his cleaver wildly, forcing us back.
"Not bad," Takemura laughed. A chill ran down my spine. His special skill seemed like a superior version of Mizuki's [Super Save]. Her ability could prevent a fatal blow, but she still took damage from normal attacks. He, on the other hand, could heal any wound. I wonder how his immortality holds up against Mizuki's [Super Kill]?
I held my katana in a ready stance and slowly advanced on him. Mizuki moved to my opposite side to create a pincer attack, but Takemura shifted to avoid being trapped between us.
"Look, you have to know you can't beat us. Why don't you back off?" I offered.
He answered by wordlessly raising his cleaver. I dove into his guard and swung my katana. The blade bit into his stomach and stopped. Takemura took the blow and brought his cleaver down on me. Mizuki, closing in from behind, deflected the strike with her shield. I kicked Takemura to dislodge my blade. As he staggered, Mizuki followed up with several thrusts. I was about to join in and turn him into a pincushion, but he escaped into the flames.
"Mash, this is pointless," Mizuki said, panting.
"I know. But I think I'm starting to understand."
We faced Takemura through the curtain of fire. As we watched, the cuts and burns on his body healed.
"Understand what?"
"That Takemura is still human. Maira said he has a flight skill, but he isn't using it to attack. He probably can't use immortality and flight at the same time. The same likely goes for a third special skill. We're overwhelming him in this fight, yet he's not using anything else. His real goal is just to cause a commotion and tie us down here."
Just like my experience boost and Mizuki's three skills, he couldn't have them all active at once.
"He's stalling, trying to run out the clock?"
I nodded.
"But what's the point of that?"
"Who knows. Shall we ask him?"
I turned my gaze back to Takemura.
"You just don't get it," Takemura said. "You don't understand the depths of the human race's faith in the goddess Racshell."
"And what about it?" I shot back.
"Think about the campaign against the Demon Lord a hundred years ago. An agitator claiming to be the goddess's envoy whipped the Empire into a frenzy. A massive army was formed, and it crushed the Demon Kingdom. There is no way the humans would ever abandon an envoy who has the power to manifest their goddess. As long as you don't return, they will never leave this place."
Thank you for reading. To those who have liked, bookmarked, and rated this story, your support is a great encouragement. And thank you for always pointing out my typos.