Chapter 116 - The Battle at Sea and Strategy Session Two (Part 2)
As the battle raged on at a distance, our ship broke its defensive formation and cut loose the galley on our starboard side. We then pulled the galley that had run aground back into the water, tied it to our stern, and began to tow it as we started down the river.
"Are you sure you don't want to join the fight?" the captain asked me.
"Do you want to? Your crew must be exhausted after fighting since morning."
The captain wore an awkward expression. My journey would end once we reached Heilong, but the captain and his crew made their living on this river. Even if the reinforcements had been slow to arrive, he probably wanted to put them in his debt somehow. But I had no intention of letting us get dragged into a battle for such a reason. Looking at the situation, our allies were in the process of taking control of the galley's deck. Reinforcements seemed unnecessary. We'd had the freed slaves move over to the towed galley, but our own ship's deck was still swarming with crewmen, and the cabins and hold were packed with prisoners. It would be best to disperse them onto the towed galley at the next settlement.
"You should discuss it with Claire and Mercedes."
I decided to leave the matter entirely in their hands. Just then, a commotion broke out at the stern of the ship. I looked over and saw a pair of figures hanging from a balloon, flying straight towards us. The crewmen were already taking aim with their crossbows.
I hurriedly stopped them. Takemura landed gracefully on the deck. He had a woman with him who looked a bit younger than him. Her curly brown hair was tied up in twintails.
"This is my partner, Komachi," Takemura introduced her. Komachi gave a little salute and a grin. She had a very casual air about her.
"I'm Mash. Was that cannonball from earlier your doing?"
"Yep. My special skill, the 32cm Canet Cannon."
So this was the woman who had fired on our ship. It was a strange feeling, but since there were no casualties, I managed to suppress my anger.
"...You fired a cannon that big, and it didn't affect the galley's hull?"
"It's not like the gun mount is attached to the deck," Komachi answered with a carefree laugh. So it was designed not to affect the deck or its surroundings. I didn't get it, but then again, I didn't understand the logic of Racshell appearing just by chanting "Summon Goddess," so I decided to let it go.
"So? What's your business on this ship?" I directed the question to Takemura.
"We'd like passage to Heilong."
Just as I was about to nod, Fam stepped between us.
"Absolutely not. If you want to go to Heilong, you can take your balloon."
I couldn't help but be impressed by Fam's perfect retort. But I wondered just how far they could travel with that balloon. As I was thinking, I noticed Takemura looking at me pleadingly.
"W-wait, please. Whenever the people of this world see me flying in the balloon, they just start shooting arrows at me!"
"That's because you spend your days committing piracy and other wicked deeds. You reap what you sow. You're the one who gave balloons a bad name."
"Ugh, you're right, but I intend to quit being a pirate until I find out the truth about what you said—about only being able to live in this world for ten years."
"Don't be ridiculous. You're planning to go back to being a pirate? I have no intention of partnering with someone like that, and I can't let you on this ship. If you want money, you can just be adventurers and explore dungeons. You have special skills. You should be able to become high-ranking adventurers."
I, a bottom-of-the-barrel F-rank adventurer, was the one saying this, despite also having a special skill.
"...We used to be adventurers once. We explored dungeons as a team called 'Neko no Ko Koneko.' There's a deep reason why we stopped."
Takemura's expression turned grim and serious. Fam and I instinctively glanced at each other. We decided to wait for him to continue.
"Komachi's special skills are the 32cm Canet Cannon, a 28cm howitzer, and an Armstrong gun."
In our original world, those were all grand, romanticized cannons that had become relics of a bygone era. Why would she choose three cannons with such similar properties?
"Because they were all so cool, I couldn't pick just one."
As if reading my mind, Komachi mumbled without a hint of apology. Was she some kind of history buff? She might get along with Hyakka.
"Most monsters move faster than you can aim the barrel. Plus, you can't fire them in rapid succession, and the interval between shots is ridiculously long. On top of that, if you fire one in an Area Guardian's room, the sound of the blast and the impact messes with your ears, and there's a limit on ammunition. Once you're out, you can't fire for several days. They were useless in dungeons."
So there was no deep reason at all, just a ridiculously trivial one. It wasn't my problem, but since I'd been the one to suggest they become adventurers, I was at a loss for words. Beside Takemura, Komachi was scratching her head and sticking her tongue out with a little tee-hee. It was irritating, but somehow, I couldn't bring myself to hate her for it. So, on top of the long firing interval, there was an ammo limit too?
"But they were convenient for piracy. We could use them for intimidation, and if it came down to it, we could sink an enemy ship."
"...And people died because of that, didn't they? Don't you feel anything?"
"It's been four years since I came to this world. That feeling… it's gone now."
It was an answer I hadn't wanted to hear. Their actions made me sick. But if I abandoned them here, they would just go back to being pirates. Still, I had to wonder... would a day come when I, like Takemura, no longer felt anything at the sight of death?
"Fine. Swear that you will never engage in piracy or pillaging again. I'll ask them to take you as far as Heilong. After that, I don't care what happens to you."
"W-wait. You told me to cooperate, so I betrayed my comrades to come to this ship. I can't go back to being a pirate now. If what you said is true, we want to join you as allies beyond Heilong."
"Betrayed?"
"The current leader of the pirates is a transfer student. He calls himself Barbaros. There used to be another guy named Isaac, but I haven't seen him around lately."
Suddenly, the amount of information spiked. The other members of Levante gathered around, encircling Takemura and his companion. Seeing the change in our expressions, he raised his hands in a panic.
"Wh-what's wrong?"
"Isaac caused a major incident in the city of Nielen—you could call it terrorism. We're hunting him down. He should have more information about the transfer students than we do. Have you not gotten any information from Isaac or Barbaros?"
Takemura and Komachi looked stunned by my words. They must not have been told anything. It was the same setup as with Mii and his Men in Black. They put other transfer students on the front lines while they pull the strings from behind. The moment they sense danger, they abandon their pawns and flee. But right now, the concern was Barbaros. That was the name of a man from our world who rose from a pirate to an admiral. To take that name himself, he must have been transferred to this world for the express purpose of piracy. If he was still on that pirate ship, there was a chance he could use a special skill to turn the tides of a losing battle. I had to contact Joe and the others immediately and warn them.
"Do you know what Barbaros's and Isaac's special skills are?"
"The thing is, we've never seen them use their special skills."
Takemura and Komachi exchanged a look.
"Barbaros is on the galley they're fighting right now, right?"
Takemura nodded. Barbaros could potentially use a powerful special skill. I had to tell the captain immediately. As I turned to go, Komachi rushed up and threw an arm around my shoulder.
"You know, our hobby is swapping. If you're ever in the mood, just let me know."
She whispered into my ear. What a ridiculous pair.
It was time for another strategy meeting. The battle between Joe's group and the pirates continued to intensify. The clang of swords and the roar of battle cries echoed all the way to our ship. The fighting was taking place on the enemy's galley. The situation remained unchanged, with Joe's side maintaining the upper hand. The galley appeared to be listing. It seemed to be taking on water from the ramming attack. A single pirate galley carried two hundred men. In contrast, excluding my ship, our allied vessels had about fifty crewmen each. With four of our ships against two enemy galleys, we were fighting an enemy with nearly double our numbers, and by now, the ambushed pirates would have had time to regain their composure. We couldn't let our guard down. The pirate ship was moving its oars frantically, trying to detach from the sailboat. If they succeeded, those who had boarded the galley would be left behind. They were trying to press their numerical advantage. But what could they possibly do, isolated and on a ship with a hole in its hull?
"So, you're saying there is someone on the enemy ship with a Divine Blessing on par with the power Lady Racshell wielded?"
It was just a possibility, but I nodded in response to the captain's question. He seemed perplexed by my sudden shift from being reluctant to join the battle to actively pushing for it. I still harbored distrust over how long it took for Joe's group to provide aid, and I didn't want to fight. But I couldn't just abandon our allies either.
"I'm against it. The crew has already relaxed. We've achieved a sufficient victory. If we join the fight as reinforcements now, we won't be able to maintain morale. Furthermore, I absolutely cannot allow Lady Marmie to be exposed to any more danger."
A dissatisfied look crossed Marmie's face at Wake's words, but she didn't say anything. She seemed to trust Wake, likely leaving tactical decisions to his judgment in battle.
"I'm against it as well. Mash, your job is to escort the caravan to Migul. Don't forget that," Avea said, placing a hand on my shoulder.
"You're just an adventurer. Don't try to carry the world on your shoulders," she whispered.
Hearing their opinions, the captain's face soured. The crewmen beside him, however, looked relieved. It seemed the captain was the only one eager to rush to the rescue. It was true that rejoining the battle in our current state would be difficult. I had wanted to meet and talk with Barbaros if possible, but I would have to give up on that.
"In that case, how about we just relay the information via signal flags? We can also confirm if they need assistance," the captain suggested. I couldn't imagine Joe's group asking for reinforcements while they had the upper hand. It was likely that the spoils from the first battle with the three galleys would be considered our ship's victory, while the spoils from the current battle would be theirs. If we joined the latter fight, their share of the rewards would decrease. By showing our willingness to help and letting them refuse, we'd have an excuse to leave the battlefield while also fulfilling our duty. We could also warn them about the transfer student. It seemed like a good idea.
"Can you convey detailed information with signal flags?"
"Yes, but a long transmission runs the risk of being deciphered by the enemy," the captain answered my question. It seemed their signal flags used code, not plaintext. The longer the communication, the more clues the enemy would have to break it. In a world without computers, they probably couldn't use very complex encryption, making it easy to decode.
"It doesn't matter if they read it. In fact, wouldn't it put more pressure on the enemy if they knew we were aware of their internal situation?" Wake proposed. The captain nodded in agreement with his words.
One of the galleys seemed to have successfully detached itself from Joe's ships. However, in doing so, it began to take on even more water. The ram had been plugging the hole. As the ship began to sink, people started jumping into the river one after another, scrambling to save themselves. One of our allied ships moved in to clean up, spotting pirates from the deck and finishing them off with crossbows. With each shot, the river stained a little more red. It was a gruesome sight I didn't want to watch. The other ship had latched onto the remaining galley, and now three ships had it surrounded. As expected, the signal from Joe's group confirmed that no assistance was needed. There was no reason for us to remain in these waters, but we stayed back as a reserve in case of an emergency. The crewmen kept a vigilant watch over the water's surface, crossbows at the ready to prevent any pirates from latching onto our ship. Fam and Mizuki were beside me. Cecily seemed to be drained from creating the magic barrier earlier; she'd gone to rest in her cabin upon learning there would be no more fighting. Maira and Aira were with her, looking after her.
"Master, what do you intend to do with Takemura and Komachi?"
"What do I intend...?"
"Aren't you going to punish them?"
"I have no intention of punishing them, but there might be others on this ship who do."
"No, there aren't."
"How can you be so sure?"
"I'm no Maira, but I can tell. You, the Goddess's emissary, said you would shelter them. No one here can defy that. Therefore, Master, you must act in a way that considers everyone's feelings."
"You seem to be able to defy me just fine, Fam."
"Hmph!"
I was just teasing, but she was right. Depending on Takemura and Komachi's behavior, I, the one who forgave them, could end up being resented. I decided to lock them in a cabin until we reached Heilong, just like the other captured pirates. Then I would trade two of the prisoners from my share for them. That should appease those who couldn't voice their opinions to me. Of course, it was all for show, so it wouldn't appease Fam.
"By the way, there's something I want to ask you, Mizuki."
It was rare for Fam to ask Mizuki a question instead of me.
"What is it?"
"What is 'swapping'?"
"Pfft!"
Mizuki and I both choked at the same time. She must have clearly heard what Komachi said to me earlier. It was a question completely unsuited for the current situation. I tried to casually distance myself from them, but Mizuki grabbed the hem of my shirt.
"That's something you should probably ask Mash. Okay? And make sure you do it secretly, when it's just the two of you."
"...So it was a naughty word after all. The only conversations Master has with women are lewd ones."
What a terrible accusation. But since it was true, I couldn't say a word.
"Who was Mash talking to?"
"Komachi."
"..."
Mizuki shot me an icy glare.
"I-It wasn't me! Komachi just said it out of the blue!"
"So who are you planning on swapping with?"
Of course, I had no intention of swapping with anyone. The mere thought of Fam or Mizuki being held by someone else was enough to make my head explode. Just then, Maira joined the conversation.
"Hmph, trying to do something without me again, were you? I'll volunteer, too!"
"...Seriously? You're into that kind of thing?!"
It wasn't just me; Mizuki was recoiling, too.
"So, what should I do?" Maira asked innocently.
"I told you, it's swapping, right?"
"What's swapping?"
Please stop looking at me with those clear, innocent eyes. I couldn't help but avert my gaze.
"Mizuki, Master is trying to dodge the question. Please tell me."
Fam pressed Mizuki for an answer.
"...Well, it's, um, when two couples exchange partners to... do lewd things."
"Huh? I don't really understand what you're saying."
"It means you trade lovers! Like, Mash and Komachi, and Takemura and Maira would do lewd things together!" Mizuki blurted out, sounding desperate.
"...Huh?"
Maira's face turned beet red.
"M-Mash, I-I could never... d-do something like that!"
Maira stammered, her chest heaving in her panic.
"Don't worry, Maira. I couldn't either."
It was a ridiculous conversation to be having on a battlefield. But to me, it felt irreplaceable. The ship's sails were unfurled. There had been a flurry of communication via signal flags, but it seemed our role as a reserve was no longer needed. We began to pull away from the battle-torn waters and head for our next stop. I wondered if Joe and the others had managed to capture Barbaros, the pirate leader and transfer student.
Thank you for reading. And thank you so much for pointing out typos. Starting next time, there will be a three-part special feature. The main story will resume with chapter 120.