episode_0029

Whiiing-

Even the tightly constructed hull of the galleon was helpless against the fierce winter winds of the North Sea. Below deck, the sailors huddled together, shuddering in the cold. Though the navy seamen had thrown a few thick blankets to help ease the bitter chill, it was futile in warding off the sea’s biting cold. Maintaining body temperature through magic was no easy feat.

“Uhh… Po, poker!”

“Poker? How does that come up here!”

In a corner of the cabin, despite the cold, some were playing cards, while others were huddled, enduring the cold without a word. As for me?

“Uwaaack!”

Standing by the door leading from the cabin to the deck—being cautioned by the sailors not to grab the railing as it was dangerous—I stood waiting, ready to open the door and rush out onto the deck to empty my stomach if nausea struck. My already emptied stomach just let out a feeble liquid into the waves below.

“Waaack-!”

I emptied until my head spun, then leaned weakly against the railing. Despite numerous magical remedies on board, there was none for seasickness. Not a soul among the Marid crew, including Cler, knew of any. Unfairly, I seemed to suffer from it particularly severely.

“Hey, landlubber. Aren’t you going to die like that?”

A sailor, balancing on the rough waves as if on solid ground, remarked to me. I wondered if that was how ordinary people felt when they saw marid infantry.

“When are we reaching port, the mainland…?”

“If you consider the amount of supplies loaded on the ship, it won’t be anytime soon.”

With a disheartening response, I staggered back like a zombie into the cabin. Seeing my probably pallid complexion, Cler asked with concern,

“Marianne, lieutenant. You should lie down a bit.”

“Ugh. If I lie down, everything will just flow out because of the nausea.”

Swallowing the sour vomit, I let out a breath. Phew, that was close. It’s already been two days. The ship departed northward and then veered eastward the next day. Judging by the direction alone, it seemed correct that we were heading to Saint Margro.

“Achoo!”

The sound of sneezing echoed somewhere on the deck. As if it were a signal, sneezing spread around as if it were contagious.

While the ship’s direction seemed to be heading towards Saint Margro, considering how far north we had come, it was more likely that our final destination lay further east.

“Captain Claire, at least tell us where we’re going now, uh… Achoo!”

“I was planning to announce it tomorrow, but I started to think that Marianne might be too sick to hear it. Attention!”

There were not only sneezes but also sailors of this galleon on the deck, but Claire paid them no mind. She had already boarded the ship to the landing point.

“This is the Royal Navy’s first operation! In two days, we will land in Valtigrask, Moscovi Commonwealth, to rescue and escort the asset. Since it’s an operation within enemy territory, there should be no room for mistakes.”

The murmurs on the deck gradually grew louder and then subsided. Each squad leader was doing well. In place of me, who could do nothing, a sergeant from Unit C was calming down his unit. I gave him a thumbs-up when our eyes met.

Max, the leader of Unit B, raised his hand to ask a question. He must have been quite curious to ask a question, given his usual lack of presence.

“Captain, who is this ‘asset’?”

“I don’t know. The orders only stated that they would already be there when we arrive at the port. We’ll have to trust the judgment of the royal family.”

“So, after rescuing the asset, are we going to drop them off at a safe stronghold in our kingdom and head back to Saint Margro?”

That’s the plan for now. If things go well, we’ll be resting comfortably in a week.”

If the plan goes well… And on top of that, not knowing who we need to rescue made me feel uneasy. Moreover, since it’s an operation in a foreign country, I couldn’t help but worry that any misstep could lead to many casualties.

When the murmurs rose again, I quietly asked Claire.

“Is there any friendly force at that port called Baltigrask to help us?”

“Baltigrask. There might be a small friendly force escorting the Yoin, but it’s best not to expect too much.”

“Sigh. Captain, do you really not know? You can tell me a little.”

“If I knew that, I would have shared it with the troops earlier. Marianne, from now on, focus only on taking care of yourself. Concentrate on recovering your condition.”

Her words of concern made me feel much better. Although the sour taste of bile still lingered in my mouth, I felt somewhat relieved, perhaps due to the anger dissipating after spending a night with Jojet. I lay down near the entrance to the forecastle. As I rested, the sensation of floating in the air lessened. Yes, the sailors didn’t just sleep in a place like this for no reason.

#

Kuahhh!

Thud!

Struggling to lift my heavy eyelids, I rose from the forecastle. The damp forecastle was illuminated only by the faint light of candles and the moonlight filtering through the seams of the hull. Irritated at being disturbed from a rare sound sleep, I wondered if someone had been drinking rum and stumbled around.

Even the sailors who had been sleeping in the forecastle were already starting to stir. They were busily grabbing their muskets.

Aaah!

After hearing another scream, I roughly grasped the situation. Irritation vanished, replaced by tension. I could sense people on deck moving about in confusion through magical detection. We were in battle! Could it be a mutiny on board?

“C Platoon, is everyone up?”

“Yes, sir. You’re the last one, sir.”

I scratched my head at the innocent grumbling. It must be because of seasickness, so I muttered a plea for understanding and called out to Mia.

“Mia, wake up the remaining sailors in the back. Is the Master Magician awake? If not, wake him first.”

The three newly arrived platoons seemed to have no one awake except for their platoon leaders. It would be best to take one from our side to wake them up faster.

“C Platoon will go out first. I, as the platoon leader, will take the lead, and Wigo will follow behind. Secure the defense formation tightly.”

“Captain, there’s no need to spell it out. We’ve been through this a couple of times.”

Emma grumbled. Yeah, the C Company soldiers all have more combat experience than me. Maybe it was just pointless nagging. On the deck, things were still bustling.

I took a deep breath, pushed open the deck door, and dashed out. Through my well-adjusted eyes, the chaos on the deck came into view. It was a battle between sailors and what seemed to be monsters. They weren’t like the mermaids I had seen in the Delpine River. These strange creatures had tentacles extending in all directions from a round central body, like an octopus. The spines of sea urchins had turned into these tentacles, which were about a hundred times larger, enough to engulf a person. Fortunately, it seemed there was only one of them.

The battle didn’t seem to have been going on for long. The sailors on guard duty were responding well, and surprisingly, there were few casualties among those who had fought the monsters.

Moreover, they weren’t using firearms at all, yet they were handling the tentacles quite effectively with naval cutlasses. Do sailors fight better than soldiers?

“Company, fire! Non-mages, fall back!”

I didn’t expect anyone from another unit to heed my command, but not a single sailor retreated. And as the waves rocked the ship when the cannon was fired, all shots missed, creating a frustrating situation. I felt the urge to go back to the cabin where I issued the order.

However, the monster, perhaps unaware of my thoughts, extended its long tentacle straight towards me. I twisted my body and narrowly avoided being touched by the sticky thing.

“Ikik!”

The C Company members spread out in a wide fan shape around the monster and fired another round of cannonballs. This time, they hit their mark. Three cannonballs, excluding mine, precisely pierced the center of the monster’s body.

“Huh?”

They didn’t pierce it. What I thought was a round body was actually a cluster of numerous tentacles. As the cannonballs tried to hit it, the tentacles themselves opened up gaps, allowing the cannonballs to pass through. At this rate, it seemed that the only way was to shoot high-powered cannonballs.

“Do not do something stupid! Are you trying to lose your stomach?!”

With rough words, the shock of being struck on the back of the head caused the magic gathered in the magic stone to scatter. For a moment, there was a dizziness akin to magical fatigue. It was a phenomenon that occurred when the magic being gathered was forcibly dispersed.

The person who had struck me was wielding two cutlasses and charging straight toward the monster. He wore a sophisticated coat over his triangular hat. It was Captain Georges Bruno, whom I had seen when boarding the galleon.

He skillfully and succinctly began to calmly parry the monster’s tentacles with precise movements, almost mechanically slicing through them like a chef preparing octopus sashimi. Seeing the blue magic overlaid on the blades of the cutlasses, it was clear that he was using them in a manner similar to Cler’s.

I couldn’t just stand by and watch, so I drew my gunblade. It felt like it had been ages since I last used the gunblade. Even without my command, my squad members were already providing support to the marines with their own gunblades. It was quite challenging to use magic bullets on the deck battlefield. Increasing the output was not an option, and aiming was not easy either.

Even the C Platoon, who boasted considerable combat experience, found themselves limited to merely supporting the marines in ship-to-ship combat. Even with a sense of balance through magic, body enhancement techniques, constantly focusing on one’s footing during battle was exhausting.

“Hap!”

As Georges executed his technique, the monster’s tentacles were all finely sliced as if they were being prepared for sashimi. I couldn’t help but think that such a display was necessary to become the captain of a galleon, resembling a martial arts master from a Hong Kong film I had seen in a past life. Although combat prowess didn’t seem like a necessary skill for a captain.

The shattered tentacles soon turned into black dust and scattered into the night breeze, disappearing. Captain Georges patted my shoulder and spoke as we entered the captain’s quarters.

“I’m sorry for hitting your head earlier. I saw you about to do something incredibly foolish.”

My head might have a bump. As I touched the sore spot on the back of my head, a small bump was palpable. Still, I couldn’t retort to Captain Georges. If he hadn’t stopped me, and I had fired a high-powered magic bullet, I could have pierced the hull and we would have all become water spirits.

After the battle was over, I saw Claire and the mages slowly emerging from the trenches. It felt like a blow to the back of my head just seeing them. “What are you doing coming out after the battle is over!”