Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 63 During his time on Hisaril Hill, money had been a triviality to Turan—something that either existed or didn't. Since the goods he could obtain were extremely limited, no matter how much gold he possessed, there was nowhere to spend it.
But after descending into the world, he realized money was far more incredible than he had imagined. If mana was the key to omnipotence, then money was the raw material of omnipotence. From delicious food to books, magic devices, or even magical beasts like Bije—everything could be traded for coin. Even the nobles valued it so highly that they bestowed worth upon gold and silver, minting them into currency to anchor their power.
The wealth spread before Turan's eyes now was equal to, or perhaps even greater than, everything he had earned so far combined. There were over a hundred gold bars of crude craftsmanship and roughly four hundred silver bars.
Aside from the bullion, there were piles of jewelry and gemstones clearly plundered from various sources, and among them sat a magic device.
None of the bastards I fought used something like this. Where did they get it? Did they stumble upon a hidden stash?
With that question in mind, Turan tossed a bead filled with sloshing liquid into the air, caught it, and tucked it into his pouch. The chances were slim, but it could be a trapped magic device designed to harm the user, so he couldn't afford to use it recklessly. For the same reason, he still hadn't identified the functions of the two magic devices he had obtained from the battle in the western wilderness.
Since nobles with the Enchanter bloodline could dismantle and analyze such items, he figured he could simply ask Asiz once he reached the Dakein Plains.
After scanning the warehouse, Turan turned to the woman he had appointed as the leader of the captives. "Is anyone demanding a cut?"
"A-A cut, my lord?"
"The miners. They suffered to dig up this gold and silver, so I thought they might feel it's unfair if I take it all. Also, some of those trinkets over there might have originally belonged to them."
The woman looked at him with an expression of utter disbelief before quickly trying to compose herself. "That couldn't be! We are more than grateful just to be rescued from the pirates. You even said you would provide the funds to send us home—no one would be so shameless as to make such a demand!"
Turan suspected there might be at least a few such shameless people, but he didn't catch the scent of anxiety typical of someone lying. Regardless, as long as she was managing them well, he didn't need to worry further.
"Fine then. What about the sick?"
"Thanks to your concern, everyone has improved significantly! Though it will still take some time for them to fully recover their strength."
It had only been a day, but rest taken in a state of hope was fundamentally different from rest taken in despair. Providing plentiful meals had also played a large part. And, though it was a grim truth, those whose conditions were too poor to recover quickly had already died and been cast into the sea.
"So, no one is too ill to endure the voyage?"
"Yes, likely... as long as the journey isn't too long."
"Then we begin preparations for departure immediately. Tell them not to worry about anything else; just pack food and water. Leave the pirates on the shore to me. I'll handle them."
"Shall we load all those treasures as well?"
"Leave them be."
While the woman went to deliver the orders, Turan stuffed the massive hoard of wealth into his High-Capacity Pouch. Fortunately, gold and silver were heavy but not particularly bulky, so they didn't take up as much space as he had expected.
After organizing the interior of the pouch so he could retrieve items at a moment's notice, he stepped out of the warehouse to see the former captives working feverishly to prepare for departure.
"Do we load this too? It looks like it'll rot soon."
"We can just eat it quickly. More importantly, I'm worried if this many people can even sail a ship this size... We don't have a single skilled navigator among us."
"I'm sure the Mage has a plan, don't you think?"
"Still, the sea is a different beast entirely."
Judging by the voices drifting from afar, the rescued people were anxious about the future but believed Turan would somehow provide a way.
Listening quietly, Turan headed toward the pirates he had buried in the ground. He pulled them out and asked, "Which of you can guide me to Cobinus's stronghold? Raise your hand."
The pirates glanced at each other. They were terrified of him, but they seemed even more afraid of what would happen if they betrayed Cobinus. However, these were the most craven of the lot, so they weren't difficult to persuade.
"If you're useless, I'll have to finish you off here."
"I know the way!"
"Me too!"
It was suspicious that all three claimed they could do it, but at least one of them likely knew. Turan took out some rope and bound their wrists tightly so they could never escape, then dragged them onto the sailing ship.
The former miners, busy loading food and water, quickly bowed their heads as he passed.
"Work instead of minding your manners. I want to leave quickly. Lock these bastards in a corner room and give them just enough to keep them alive."
"U-Understood!"
Turan didn't just rush them; he used psychokinesis to personally assist with loading the cargo and preparing for departure. Having learned a thing or two from the sailors back when he was on the Blue Marlin in the North Sea, he was able to do the work of dozens of men by himself.
A short while later, as the pirate ship finished its preparations and unfurled its sails, Turan used wind magic to push the vessel. It was a method he had tried on the Blue Marlin, but back then, he had deemed it too inefficient to maintain for long.
However, the current Turan had more than twice the mana he had back then, plus the Arabion bloodline ability—which, though incomplete, allowed him to command the wind with far greater ease.
"Whoa, the wind?"
"It's a tailwind! No, at this rate, it's practically a gale. I hope the ship doesn't fly away..."
Despite the concerns of a few, the ship cut through the sea smoothly. Its destination was the stronghold of the Red Whale Pirates: Anik Island.
*
Just as one of the miners had predicted, Turan ended up shouldering almost the entire burden of operating the pirate ship. The women were out of the question, and even the men who had worked as miners had only ever handled small fishing boats or worked as low-level deckhands; none of them knew how to sail a large vessel.
The decisive problem was that no one knew exactly where their target, Anik Island, was located. Even the pirates only knew the name and didn't know the exact direction from their current position. Turan solved this hurdle with a method that was as simple as it was certain.
Just as he had done when searching for Parayan Island, he stopped passing ships or visited islands to ask for directions. Only this time, he did it in a much faster and more direct manner.
"It's a Golden Eagle! A magical beast is coming! There's a person hanging from it..."
"E-Everyone, lower your weapons! Now!"
Turan sent Bije into the sky to scout for nearby vessels. Whenever a passing ship came into view, he flew straight to it and projected his mana.
Upon sensing him, the knights stationed on the large ships—usually one or two per vessel—would immediately shout for their subordinates to abandon any thought of resistance. They felt the presence of a Great Mage, someone who could easily trample even their own House Heads, someone they might not see even once in a lifetime.
Aware that they were facing a powerhouse who could sink their ship with a single gesture, they didn't dare act stubborn.
"O descendant of the great and mighty gods, I am a knight of the Razvet family, protecting this ship under the orders of my master—"
"Which way to Anik Island?"
"Pardon? Ah, Anik Island... Navigator!"
"It's, uh—south! Probably..."
"Thanks."
Having confirmed the direction, Turan would toss a silver coin onto the deck and return to the pirate ship on Bije. The knights and sailors would stare blankly at his departing back, half-dazed, recording the event in their minds as one of those absurd stories they would tell for years to come.
He repeated this process several times over three days. Confirming that the target island was near, Turan stopped the ship to recover his mana and checked on the condition of the people, which he hadn't been able to do while moving so busily.
"A few people are complaining of seasickness, but other than that, everyone is fine."
"I'm glad it's just that."
Since he had been forcing the speed by constantly blowing wind, the ride couldn't have been very comfortable. It might have been better if he could have steered properly to catch the currents, but the sailing skills Turan had picked up were strictly at a "crammed" level, so that was beyond him.
After a final check on everyone's condition, Turan steered the ship toward Anik Island, which was visible in the distance. As they approached, two sailing ships of similar size came out to meet them, likely to intercept.
"Hey! Where do you think you're from? Stop the ship!"
"Keep coming and we'll sink you!"
Regrettably, there were no mages among the pirates who came out, so Turan simply reached out and caused a moderate amount of seawater to surge up and drench both ships. The pirates, now looking like drowned rats, trembled in fear.
"I have business with your captain. Go back and tell him."
At Turan's words, the two ships fled back to the island as fast as their sails could carry them. A short while later, news that a powerful mage had invaded must have spread, as the ship that returned carried someone with mana equivalent to a noble.
Standing at the bow was a massive man with red hair and a red beard, holding a long harpoon in one hand. Recognizing him as the Red Whale, Turan immediately projected his mana.
The man let out a short groan, then shouted in the crude manner typical of a pirate.
"Who the hell are you, bringing that kind of power to a place where children play! No, wait, your face looks young—you're not actually a brat, are you?"
To maintain such an attitude even after sensing Turan's power... it was hard to tell if the man was ignorant or just had nerves of steel.
"Are you the Red Whale?"
"That's right!"
"I've come to ask a favor. First, I demand to be treated as a guest according to custom. You may be a pirate, but as a noble, you should know the protocol."
"Uh..."
The Red Whale wore a blank expression for a moment. His face practically screamed, What the hell is that?
Despite being a noble, he was a pirate at his core; perhaps his ignorance was unavoidable. Turan clicked his tongue lightly and gave a quick explanation of the customs of hospitality typically practiced by continental nobles.
Upon hearing this, the Red Whale nodded vigorously and shouted, "Ah, of course, of course! I knew that already! I, Tasan, a man who inherited the blood of the gods—how could I refuse to host one of noble blood!"
His words were awkward to the point of being theatrical, but his subordinates behind him cheered and praised him, calling him magnificent. It was a truly pirate-like scene.
*
The residence of the Red Whale, Tasan, was quite large and grand, but it fell far short of continental nobles in terms of elegance or luxury.
Leaving the rescued people on the pirate ship, Turan formally met with Tasan in the largest hall of the residence as a guest. Tasan's subordinates, the officers of the Red Whale Pirates, were lined up behind him. Although Turan was alone, it was the other side that was overwhelmed by his presence.
It was only natural, as Tasan, the strongest among them, had less than half of Turan's mana, and the rest were merely at the level of knights.
"So, you have a favor to ask? I don't know which family you're from, but someone with your skills must be quite famous on the continent. Is there something you need from us?"
"Regardless of how strong I am, I only have one body. That's why nobles bother to build families and raise knights. Unfortunately, I'm someone without a family to belong to."
Tasan's eyes were full of suspicion; he didn't seem to fully trust Turan's words. Turan shook his head lightly and got to the point.
When he told the story of the island four days to the north and the people who had been kidnapped to work there as miners and sex slaves, Tasan let out a thunderous roar.
"Cobinus, that son of a bitch!"
Along with the booming shout, his massive harpoon slammed into the floor with a heavy thud, piercing through the wood. Turan knew Tasan didn't order his men to kidnap people, but he hadn't expected such a violent reaction to the crimes committed by another pirate.
After huffing and puffing for a while, Tasan looked at Turan and asked, "So, are you asking me to join you in subjugating Cobinus?"
"Since you operate relatively close by, you must have seen how much mana Cobinus has. How does he compare to me?"
At Turan's question, Tasan tilted his head and went, "Hmm..." before answering. "Well, I'm not very good at measuring power, and it's been a long time since I met Cobinus. I think you're probably stronger, but I'm not entirely sure."
"Is that so?"
It was strange, considering Turan's mana was currently at a level where he had no rivals among mages with a single bloodline. Was the man perhaps an illegitimate child of a Great House?
Actually, while unexpected, it wasn't enough to disrupt his plans. With his exceptional magical skill and the Soul of Fire, Turan was confident he could easily defeat even a mage of the same rank.
"He's one of the strongest among the pirates here in the Southern Sea. I pride myself on being quite skilled, but..."
Tasan's sudden shift from hot-headedness to a timid attitude was so abrupt it felt like he was switching masks. Had he been badly beaten by Cobinus before?
"Anyway, what I'm asking is not that. I want you to return those kidnapped people to their homes. I'll pay the passage fee."
But for some reason, upon hearing Turan's words, not only Tasan but all the officers of the Red Whale Pirates stared at him as if he were a freak.
Tasan asked on behalf of everyone, "Why?"
"Why am I paying? Well, if I just threaten you into doing it, I don't think you'll do it properly—"
"No, I mean why are you bothering to do such a thing? What do you stand to gain from it?"
"At the very least, it'll make me feel good."
Turan didn't mention how pleasing it had been to see the "lambs" praising him when he said he'd send them home, nor did he say he didn't want to see them disappointed and despondent. That would be exposing too much of his inner self.
Tasan's face hardened as if he were angry, and he waved his hand toward the back. A moment later, a subordinate brought out sugarcane liquor, the same kind Solif had given him.
"You said your name was Turan, right? Did you investigate me before coming here?"
"I only looked into the reputation that you're a relatively moderate pirate who only plunders merchant ships without kidnapping or slaughtering civilians. If it were any other bastards, they'd just sell them off again instead of sending them home."
Tasan stared at Turan suspiciously for a long time, but since Turan was telling the truth, he had nothing to hide. After a while, Tasan held out a glass and spoke.
"My parents were fishermen. My father drowned when I was eight, and my mother was kidnapped by pirates when I was ten."
In other words, Tasan was a possessor of noble-rank mana born from commoners. Though extremely rare, such cases happened because even if the probability of a noble being born from commoners with diluted blood was low, the sheer number of children being born meant it happened occasionally. If one traced back a few generations from Tasan's parents, there was likely an illegitimate child of a knight or noble somewhere.
"Because of my lowly birth, I somehow ended up as a pirate, but for that very reason, I have never kidnapped a person in my life, even if I raided merchant ships. But you... you say you're doing this just because you want to. It makes me feel ashamed of myself. Based on what you said, from this moment on, you are my brother! Drink with me!"
Faced with the demand of a middle-aged man with a scruffy beard, Turan had no idea what kind of expression he was supposed to make.
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