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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Ruby
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Baron Amon’s sailing ship that Yuma’s group was aboard also had a magic engine device installed.
*Swoosh─*
The magic engine device added power to the force of the unfurled sails.
The direction was clear.
Toward the Resen Kingdom’s merchant ship engaged with the Dusk pirates.
The ship was advancing fiercely toward that merchant ship.
The crew member looked at Yuma with a somewhat perplexed expression.
True, the pirates’ brutality was serious.
But normally, when faced with three medium-sized ships, avoiding them would be the wise choice.
A pirate group of Dusk’s scale would surely be prepared for armed robbery.
“…Your Grace, are you really sure about this? Though the ship has protective magic devices installed, they’ll be destroyed after taking three or four direct hits.”
“Don’t worry.”
After giving this simple answer, Yuma looked at Bell.
“We’ll bring our ship alongside the Resen Kingdom’s ship. When we do, subdue the pirates who have invaded the Resen ship.”
Bell tilted her head.
“Not kill them?”
“If we find the captain and leadership, we’ll kill them all. For the rest, do as you prefer.”
Yuma didn’t want to force Bell to kill.
However, as he had just declared, the pirate captain and leadership must die.
Bell slowly nodded.
“Yeah, even to subdue them I’ll have to make sure they can’t function as people anymore.”
Bell’s eyes gleamed coldly.
Yuma went below deck and approached Cloney.
“The God of War appears! The God of War appears!”
Ignoring Hestia’s voice, he continued speaking to Cloney. Hearing Yuma’s words, Cloney’s eyes cleared and she nodded firmly.
“I understand, Lord Yuma.”
“Good.”
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“Those bastards… looks like they plan to ram straight into the Resen Kingdom ship?”
Hectos, leader of the Dusk pirates, gritted his teeth at his vice-captain’s muttering beside him.
“Of all people, it had to be Astes Empire bastards.”
The reason for raiding Resen Kingdom ships was simple.
Because they were easy targets.
The vast sea.
And Resen Kingdom didn’t have the capability to catch them hiding on their island.
And decisively, because they had discovered the merchant ship was being run by a baron of commoner origin.
The difference between those born noble and commoners granted titles was stark.
Family lineage.
Even if they killed him, there would be no backing to seek revenge.
That was what most enabled Dusk to act without restraint.
But the Astes Empire was different.
The difference in military might compared to the Resen Kingdom was clear.
They were beings who could eradicate them if they set their minds to it.
So they generally avoided provoking them.
“But since they’ve declared they’ll kill us all first, there’s no way to avoid battle.”
Hectos nodded at his vice-captain’s words.
“Yes, there’s only one way.”
A cold light gleamed on the sword Hectos held.
It was a brilliant golden aura blade.
“If we massacre them all and erase all traces, it won’t matter if it’s the Astes Empire or whoever.”
Wipe out these seemingly fearless approaching imperial forces and erase all evidence.
Hectos organized his thoughts.
“First, give them one magic cannon shot before they get right next to the Resen Kingdom ship.”
“Yes sir!”
The crew members responded loudly to Captain Hectos’s order.
Shortly after.
Something shot out from the left side of Baron Amon’s sailing ship.
It was a massive grappling hook.
*Clank─!*
The ferociously extending hook caught on the Resen Kingdom ship’s deck railing.
*BOOM!!!*
At that moment, the black magic cannon on the Dusk pirate ship about 800 meters away spewed blue flames.
This time it wasn’t aimed at the sea.
It was a shot precisely targeting the left side of Baron Amon’s sailing ship.
*SCREECH─!!*
The purple mass of magic shattered, emitting waves of various colors.
But the sailing ship took no damage.
Above the widely spread installed artifact protective barrier.
Another magic had been layered.
A transparent dome-shaped barrier.
“Well done.”
Beside Yuma who said this was Cloney, the golden-eyed magician with long black hair fluttering.
Not trusting the built-in protective artifact alone, they had Balmung relay the magic cannon’s firing direction to Cloney to block it with magic.
Cloney smiled broadly.
“Since you told me the direction. Of course I had to block it.”
Right after the magic cannon spewed fire.
She had cast magic aligned with the direction she was told.
Though seemingly low in numerical level, a skilled 5th Circle magician could defeat a mid-rank Sword Expert alone.
With Cloney’s innate trait of Magic Genius, she could likely create variables far exceeding her level limitations.
5th Circle was often the endpoint for magicians with relatively less talent.
However, Cloney’s growth would not stop there.
‘She’ll easily enter the 6th Circle barrier.’
If the level standards visible to Yuma’s eyes were the same as [Loop Blood], unlike previous level standards, 6th Circle would range from level 60 all the way to 99.
The gap between 5th and 6th Circle was that enormous.
And the gap between 6th and 7th Circle was also enormous.
The fired grappling hook completely closed the distance with the Resen Kingdom ship.
*Whoosh*
Someone sprang forth like flying near the deck.
It was Bell.
*Shing!*
The gazes of all 32 pirates occupying the Resen ship rose at once.
Toward the blue-haired swordswoman who had leaped into the air and drawn her sword.
*Swish swish swish!*
A blue protective aura rose around Bell’s entire body in mid-air.
“What are you waiting for, bastards! Shoot!”
*Twang!*
A pirate quickly shot an arrow.
*Clang!*
Bell deflected the arrow with a sword swing and rolled onto the Resen Kingdom’s merchant ship.
‘He told me to handle it as I see fit.’
Bell recalled Yuma’s words.
Standard.
Bell decided to set aside the standard of whether to subdue or kill.
Don’t hold back.
She took that as his standard.
If she saw the clearest sword path, she would take it.
And Bell moving with that standard.
Was like a disaster from the pirates’ perspective.
*Slash!*
Like a ghost, the blue-haired swordswoman approached and cut off both arms of the pirate who had just released his bowstring.
“GYAAAH!”
Blood and screams filled the deck.
When arrows reached his body he deflected them with his sword.
*Crack!*
Even hits on her body bounced off the blue protective aura.
*Clang!*
This time after parrying a sword, Bell unleashed Frost Wind, the White Night clan’s main horizontal slash technique.
Two pirates’ upper bodies were swept away diagonally by the fierce wind.
“That bitch…! Her aura is master level!!”
“Fuck, it’s a Sword Master!”
Terror.
Sword Masters were always known as battlefield dominators.
And that held true on the sea as well.
“Die, bastaaaaard!”
A rushing spear.
Bell slightly twisted her body, seeing the spear’s trajectory with her eyes.
To others it looked like a hair’s breadth.
But for Bell, it was simply choosing the most efficient movement.
*Slash!*
The pirate’s head rolled across the floor.
This time pirates wielding spears and swords rushed in succession.
She avoided a spear by sharply bending her left shoulder.
Then concentrated aura on that left shoulder for an instant.
*Crack!*
Rising from her lowered stance, she shattered the spear shaft with her shoulder.
Bell raised her right foot and stomped down on the sword-wielding pirate’s knee from above.
“GYAAAH!”
As the pirate’s body with crushed bones began to tilt forward.
At that moment, a flash of blue sword light shone.
The heads of the pirates holding spears and swords rolled across the floor.
Monster.
Bell moved freely in all directions, making the pirates feel she could only be described as such.
Another rushing spear.
Bell avoided it by turning her body right, grabbed the spear shaft, and sharply pulled it toward herself.
“GYAH!”
And the pirate holding that spear was stabbed by his companion’s sword.
The sword thrust aimed at Bell’s heart had pierced his ally instead.
A flash of sword light cut through the upper bodies of both the pirate stabbed by his ally and the one who had done the stabbing.
*Slash!*
Two more bodies tilted over.
Whether they came at him in pairs or threes, they fell.
Bell instinctively read all her enemies’ movements and moved like an animal.
“Stop! Bitch! Here, I have your alliance’s baron!”
A desperate cry rang out across the deck.
A pirate had his sword pressed against Baron Hans’s neck.
Bell’s left hand moved quickly.
Toward the knife holder at her waist.
*Swish*
What she grabbed in her left hand was a throwing dagger from the imperial palace.
Her left arm moved like lightning.
─*Thunk!!*
The pirate’s body with the dagger embedded in the center of his forehead tilted backward.
All 32 were either incapacitated or dead.
The enemy’s main force wasn’t the pirates who had invaded the Resen ship.
Three ships.
Enemies still remained.
“Kill them all!!”
“Shoot!”
*Ratatatatatata──!!*
Yuma faced the rain of arrows pouring down like a heavy storm.
Each and every arrowhead was magic arrows imbued with aura.
Looking like at least 40 arrows.
He gripped Balmung again while watching this imposing sight painting the sky.
Time began flowing slowly.
Limited to Yuma, the skill’s caster.
Ordinary person.
Though merely ordinary, through accumulating achievements, his stats raised through achievement completion had reached the level of those entering Master class.
Strength, agility.
That was enough.
-Ah, again I can taste this technique with my body.
The pleasure rises.
After all, Yuma was originally a being far transcending the ordinary category when it came to parrying.
‘I should stuff this into the spatial pouch when this battle ends.’
Thinking this, Yuma swung Balmung.
*Clang! Clang! Clang!*
Twisting his body, he deflected the arrowheads, the parrying points of the arrows.
*Screech! Screech!*
Perhaps due to the magic contained in the arrows, sonic boom-like waves occurred with each parry.
After 30 seconds of Bullet Time ended.
The reversal began.
*SWOOOSH──!!!*
*BOOM──!!*
The arrows reversed back at the pirates who shot them.
No, spiral spears of aura disguised as arrows struck the pirates directly.
*SCREECH!*
*BOOM─!*
Not even corpses remained.
*SPLAT!*
Wet sounds of flesh tearing, blood, and chunks of meat soaked the deck.
“Ugh… GYAAAAH!”
A pirate collapsed and screamed.
We picked the wrong fight.
That thought alone filled the pirates’ minds.
And to the eyes of Baron Hans and the remaining 20-some merchant ship crew members, Bell and Yuma appeared as war gods worthy of worship.
“Thank you. Thank you.”
So they first expressed their gratitude to Bell before them.
The Dusk pirates had numbered 141 total across three ships.
Currently those still able to move properly: only 57.
Even when all pirates had given up, Dusk’s captain Hectos had not yet lost hope.
That was the driving force that had made the current Hectos.
“Tch.”
Hectos brushed off pieces of his subordinate who had been caught and killed as collateral by the spiral spear of aura.
“I’ll handle that bitch myself.”
Hectos said while standing on the deck railing.
“You lot quickly recalibrate the magic cannons and fire a full volley at that Astes Empire ship.
Target the ship! The ship! Sinking it is our only path to survival! And if you can target that bastard too, do it.”
No pirate failed to understand who “that bastard” Hectos referred to.
It was Yuma.
Due to that unidentified attack just now, the ship’s magic engine device had become useless.
Currently only 5 out of 8 magic cannons could operate normally.
Hectos kicked off the railing and leaped onto the Resen Kingdom’s merchant ship.
And let golden sword energy flow from his sword.
“Let’s have a go, girl!”
Bell gripped her sword with an expressionless face.
Signs of impending battle swirled around the bodies of the pirates manning the magic cannon batteries on the three ships.
Their captain was right.
Since these enemies seemed to have no intention whatsoever of letting them live, their only path to survival now was sinking that Astes ship.
The 5 pirates manning the magic cannons on each ship gripped them with sweaty hands.
“Fire all at once!!”
The pirates manning the cannons simultaneously pulled the trigger mechanisms attached to the ends of the cannon barrels.
*BOOM!!*
And 5 magic cannon shots were fired simultaneously toward the Astes sailing ship.
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