849 - 857

Two-Legged Wyverns

"Is that the item you made a deal with the devil for?" Once everything was over, Isabel walked in slowly, eyes focused on the bloody knife in Leylin's hand.

She'd known something was off about her cousin from the start, and that he was evidently hiding something. In addition, Leylin hadn't tried to hide anything from her just now. Hence, Isabel knew that Leylin's quick rise in strength definitely had to do with a devil. However, even if she found out, she had no plans to divulge it.

Part of it was because of their relationship from childhood. On the other hand, they were all in the same boat. Although demons and devils shared a completely antagonistic relationship and were two opposing forces, there weren't many differences in terms of their followers.

Isabel was rather worried, because making deals with devils usually meant giving up one's soul. On top of that, devils liked to use all sorts of plots in order to nibble away at the contractor's soul, causing them to completely become depraved.

It could be said that for those who were experienced, devils were far worse than demons. Of course, due to devils keeping to their side of the deal even more strictly, there were even more believers praying to devils than demons in the World of Gods.

After seeing Isabel's gaze, Leylin could tell what she was thinking.

"Don't worry. I didn't deal with my soul!" Leylin launched a fireball from his hands, burning the withered corpses on the ground to ashes. Though there was nothing much to hide from his cousin, it was still better to keep some things secret from his underlings.

"Be careful. The devils' cunning is famous even in the vast multiverse." Isabel went silent after the warning, her eyes now filled with some sort of determination. Once they were back to the camp, Ronald and Robin Hood, who had not been seen for a long time, welcomed them.

"My lord, the whole camp has been purged!" Robin Hood reported respectfully. It had originally seemed like he'd been demoted, and few paid attention to him. The truth was that he'd been hidden in the shadows, helping Leylin manage the true elites in his forces.

"Good! Let's go to the fleet. Things should be lively there…" Leylin's face lit up with a smile.

...

A while earlier. At the seaside, on the Black Skeletons' ship.

A teleportation gate burst into existence, and Boruj and William stumbled out pathetically.

Without high-ranked Mage Armour, William had been affected despite having escaped quickly. A large portion of his handsome hair had already been burnt off, and it was now like a bird's nest. There were burns all over his body.

"What's going on? What's that?" Terrifying explosions could be seen even on the shore. William grabbed onto the railings looking dazed, crying out maniacally. The feeling of having a brush with death left fear in his heart.

"It should be the explosions, but the power has increased by quite a bit! My men are going to be annihilated!" Boruj was completely fine, but his brows furrowed while looking doubtful, "Why didn't I find anything? Is this some sort of new concealment technique, or the effects of a large-scaled spell formation?"

"Something's off." All of a sudden, Boruj's expression changed, and a ring on his hand exploded, producing a powerful magic barrier.

Mage's Sword! A magic sword appeared, colliding with a huge metallic flying hatchet. A huge crash could be heard in the air, the resulting undulations causing several huge pits to appear on the deck.

"An enemy! Who is it? Where's Citamo? Show yourself!" William had noticed something was off too. The large explosion from before had attracted their attention, but he had not found anything strange in his surroundings.

It was far too quiet on the deck, and all the pirates who had stayed behind to guard it had disappeared.

"Are you looking for this?" A huge shark head was tossed to the ground. This was the head of a sharkman, and one that William was very familiar with.

Citamo looked to have suffered before death. The area under his neck still had blood dripping unceasingly, and it looked like his neck had been squeezed off him while he was alive.

A huge barbarian appeared in William's line of sight, his footsteps thudding on the ship's deck. He raised a huge saber, the bloody injuries on his body already healing quickly in demonstration of his astounding life force.

'It's Ogde, the captain of the Barbarians! He sneak attacked the guards who stayed behind!' William immediately guessed at something.

"It turns out that Hygar Island was just a facade. You'd already left… Everything was a trap!" It would take two days to rush here from the battlefield, but if there was a batch of elites that had set off earlier, this would be easy to conceal from others.

William's lips quirked bitterly. Most of his family's power was destroyed, and he might even be in huge danger. This would also be a huge blow to his status.

'Without our men coordinating with them, this plan would never have worked. Who was it?' William roared inside.

"Be careful! I might not be able to protect you in a bit!" Boruj's voice rang, causing William to look even more bitter.

"Hehe… Young master of the Baltic archipelago, we finally meet!" An alluring fox lady walked out from behind Ogde, with tens of barbarian warriors above rank 5 with her.

"What about those Tigersharks? Why did they come here so easily?" William was in denial that the whole Tigershark Pirates had been wiped out. After all, it was a large-scaled group comparable with the Black Skeletons, and even had a huge group of Tigersharks. In the seas, they would definitely be the king.

"You mean those little fish? I'm afraid they've sunk to the bottom of the sea. Someone provided Tears of Tigersharks to us, and the effects are pretty good!" Madam Tillen produced an exquisite crystal bottle and shook it, looking innocent and flirtatious like a little girl who had gotten a beloved toy.

William stared at her blankly, beginning to lose focus in his eyes.

"Be careful! This is a bewitching spell by a bloodline holder!"

Calm! A huge sound boomed by William's ear, allowing him to regain his senses, no longer daring to take another look at the fox lady.

"Boruj, high-ranked wizard Boruj. I will chop off your head and use it as a wine cup!" The leader of the Barbarians huffed roughly, eyes turning red as if he had seen a foe.

As Marquis Louis' leading wizard, Boruj had worked hard when expanding in the outer seas. The number of Barbarian Pirates who had died at his hand were innumerable, and the relationship between them was completely irreconciliable.

Ogde snarled, his saber emitting sparks that flew for a few meters. Looking nonchalant, he slashed at Boruj.

As the light burst out, even the deck that had been remodelled and covered with a layer of magic seemed to be plowed through by something ruthlessly, revealing huge 'bruises'.

Boruj looked solemn and serious after witnessing the terrifying offence by the Barbarian, the spell slot in his memories breaking out.

Arcane Hand! A huge magical palm reached out, clashing with the blade to form a terrifying explosion.

Once the undulations had passed, the sharp saber light cut the huge palm into several fragments, its own radiance dimming. However, it still proceeded towards Boruj.

Boruj frowned and pointed towards the ground. "Wall of Iron!" A thick, metallic wall appeared, blocking the blade. Still, there were now terrifying streaks of injuries on him.

"This can't go on!" Boruj watched the elite barbarian warriors surrounding him, especially with Tillen who could use magic and a few barbarian priests, already having thoughts of retreating.

With a shake of his sleeve, an intricate spell scroll fell to his hand. Gazing at it, a rare expression of heartache appeared, but he still tore at it.

*Bang!* A dark green mist spread above the deck, and the barbarian warriors who were affected immediately collapsed, bodies still twisting unconsciously.

"Be careful, this is a Death Cloud spell!" Madam Tillen's voice sounded. Afterwards, a few roars could be heard from within the mist, bringing a horror with them.

*Roar!* A few huge dark green monsters pounced from the mist. They looked like giant lizards that had meaty wings on their backs. Their bodies were covered by a layer of scales and they spat out bundles of corrosive fluids.

High-grade Monster Summon! Just as these few two-legged wyverns began to trouble Ogde, another even more enormous two-legged wyvern spread its wings and flew away with two people in tow.

"Ah…" Seeing the two-legged wyvern agilely avoiding the long-distance attacks by the archers, Ogde thundered, breaking the neck of a wyvern in front of him.

"Master, why aren't we teleporting away?" While on the expansive back of the two-legged wyvern, William grabbed onto a scale and made an enquiry.

"I only memorised one teleportation spell. After that, I'll need to use scrolls…"

Boruj had a wry smile, "I'm not sure if the enemy will still chase us, so we need to conserve our strength!"

"Damn it! Damn it!" Thinking back to the failure this time, William's facial muscles began to contort.

"That Leylin and the Barbarians! One day… one day… All the humiliation I have suffered will be returned to you!"

"I'm afraid you won't get that opportunity!"

Destruction

Purplish black light glinted off a blade that brought demonic strength with it as it descended from the sky in an instant.

The source was a nimble body that emitted the terrifying aura of a high-ranked Professional, the long sword in its hands beamed with the bright radiance of qi.

The sharp longsword broke through the two-legged wyvern's scales, carving down in a perfect curve.

*Boom!*

First there was a sea of blood, then the creature's gigantic head came crashing down from the horizon, like a meteor.

"There's an enemy!" A teleportation scroll appeared in Boruj's hand, ready to be used.

[Dimensional Anchor]!

At this moment, a flying black figure dove down like a falcon. The rays of light in its hands interrupted Boruj's teleportation spell with perfect timing.

"A rank 4 spell! He's already a rank 9 wizard!"

The shadow belonged to the high-ranked fighter from before, and a youthful, handsome face was revealed. It was Leylin.

Isabel's arm was covered in demonic scales. Making use of Leylin's power, she struck out with another attack in midair.

Purplish black qi slashed through Boruj's high-grade Mage Armour, resulting in a horrifying wound.

*Splash! Splash!* Boruj let out a blood-curdling screech as he fell into the icy-cold seawater together with William.

Following them into the sea, Leylin and Isabel looked like two nimble fish, easily swimming their way towards their target.

The wizard Boruj, who had always lived the pampered life of a prince, began struggling as large amounts of cold seawater entered his nose and mouth, and intense pain afflicted his chest.

Especially after he caught sight of a shadow of a soul out of the corner of his eye, their fight intensified.

Crimson rays surged out from the seabed. With frightening sharpness, the Devilblood Dagger broke through the multiple temporarily activated layers of magic defense, piercing into Boruj's shoulder.

Feeling the immense life and spiritual forces gushing out as if a dam had just been opened, Boruj could only smile wryly as he observed the calm expression on the young wizard's face.

A 16 year old rank 9 wizard with such meticulous strategies and absolute calm in battle. Marquis Louis had gotten himself a terrifying enemy.

While he desperately wanted to escape and warn his master, all his spiritual force was sealed the moment he was stabbed by the Devilblood Dagger. His limbs could only flail instinctively.

Large amounts of energy coursed through the dagger and entered Leylin's body. Its smooth and unhindered flow made him want to shout at the top of his lungs.

However, he forcefully suppressed the desire. He did not relax his grip on the dagger until Boruj turned into a withered corpse.

As a high-ranked wizard, Boruj's highest attribute was his spirit. Based on Leylin's calculations, his spirit stat should be above 15, and Leylin was conveniently getting all of it without much effort.

Pure spiritual energy was transformed by the Devilblood Dagger and greedily absorbed by Leylin. With his experience of the law of devouring in his main body, Leylin had proficiently grasped this conversion process.

Soon enough, a prompt came from the A.I. Chip.

[Beep! Host has gone through enhancement by Devilblood Dagger. Spirit +1.]

In Leylin's stats, it could be seen that his spiritual force attribute had finally reached 10. As soon as that threshold was broken through, Leylin experienced a strange transformation.

His soul ascended without limits, and it was as if he could see an even more terrifying layer of the Weave. However, his spiritual force had not reached the requirements yet, and thus he could only shrink back helplessly.

'Level 5 of the Weave? It's a pity, but I can't go in yet!' Leylin sighed.

[Beep! Host's spiritual force has broken through to 10 points. Analysis of the Weave is now faster.] The A.I. Chip's prompt sounded, as it continuously refreshed.

[Beep! Host's spiritual force has broken through. Wizard ranking has increased. Now a rank 10 wizard.] [Beep! Host has advanced to rank 10 wizard. Rank 4 spell slots increased by 1, rank 3 spell slots increased by 1, rank 2 spell slots increased by 1.] [Beep! Change in host's stats. Recalculating.]

Soon enough, Leylin's stats were being recalculated.

[Leylin Faulen. Age: 16. Race: Human, Rank 10 Wizard. Strength: 5.2. Agility: 6.5. Vitality: 6.3. Spiritual force: 10. Status: Healthy. Feats: Sturdy, Erudite. Spell Slots: Rank 4(2), Rank 3(4), Rank 2(6), Rank 1(???), Rank 0(???)] [Progress of analysis of the Weave: Level 0 Weave at 100%! Level 1 Weave at 100%! Level 2 Weave at 36.29%! Level 3 Weave at 15.50%! Level 4 Weave at 1.96%!]

'As expected, a wizard's rise in rank is useful for the analysis of the Weave.' Leylin studied his new stats and the progress of the analysis of the Weave, as a look of satisfaction appeared on his face.

[Beep! Detected that host's spiritual force stats reached threshold. Triggered reaction. Devilblood Dagger's enhancement to increase of spiritual force is now weakened!]

'So the day has finally arrived.' Leylin looked at the A.I. Chip's last prompt and could not help but sigh.

10 points of spiritual force was really the threshold. From hereon, the dagger would be less effective.

Killing a high-ranked wizard had allowed him to raise his spiritual force by 1 point. Next time, however, it might not even be enough to raise it by 0.1.

'This is just a passing phase, so I cannot rely on the dagger too much. However, I can still use it to raise all other stats to 10. I have a feeling that if I'm able to get everything to the threshold, something incredible might happen.'

Leylin had always believed in his premonitions.

On the enemy's corpse, there were a few items that were sparkling with a magic lustre. A high-ranked wizard's equipment was invaluable, and also very suitable for Leylin. His eyes shone.

After Boruj was almost completely skinned, Leylin destroyed the corpse and floated up quickly.

'Even with the power of magic, I'm no divine being. I still need oxygen.' Leylin flung off the beads of water on his hair and looked towards Isabel, who had also resurfaced.

"How is it? Everything's taken care of?"

"It's just noble trash. How hard can it be?" Isabel had a dazzling smile on her face. This expression of hers was rare after she'd demonised. After exacting revenge, at least in part, something that had been binding her down seemed to have disappeared.

"Good. William, Boruj, Crowe, and Citamo are all done for. I'm actually interested in Marquis Louis' expression after hearing this."

"That old fool won't have long to live!" Isabel declared his death.

"Exactly. What's pressing us right now is the meet up with the Barbarian Pirates and the destruction of the slaving fleet to completely destroy Louis' influence on the sea."

Leylin grabbed Isabel's hand and, as rays of a flight spell flickered, the two of them soared into the sky.

Once they were back on the Black Skeleton Ship, Ronald and Robin Hood hurried over just in time, along with Leylin's subordinates. They separated out into an entirely different group from the Barbarians.

"Hehe, we meet again, young master Leylin!" Mistress Tillen whipped her fiery-red tail, smiling as she greeted him. The previously stiff atmosphere immediately turned warm.

"I really need to thank you for the Tigershark's Tears! I never thought this kind of poison has such great effect on the schools of Tigersharks." Tillen's beautiful eyes sized him up, as if wanting to pry into his heart.

"This is a potion my master made. He has great knowledge in poisonous concoctions and alchemy." Leylin spouted lies with a straight face, intentionally or otherwise raising the status of his master.

In reality, Ernest only dipped slightly into alchemy. It would be a dream to be able to brew such high-grade poisons. Leylin, however, didn't mind labelling and giving him a more terrifying fame.

As expected, after hearing Leylin's mentor was a terrifying master of poisons, the other elite barbarian fighters had a sombre look in their eyes.

They had witnessed the scene before. Just using a Tigershark as bait made the entire group go berserk, and they even began to kill each other. Their blood also turned into a frightening poison that infected the others.

If a poison like this, that targeted species, was used against barbarians… Just the thought of it caused a chill to run down Tillen's spine.

"Based on our agreement, the Black Skeletons belong to me and the Tigersharks go to you. Any objections?" Leylin focused on the captain of the Barbarians, Odge.

Currently, Odge had less than 50 men, and there were many casualties. Leylin's 100 elite members were completely fine.

However, Odge's higher-grade military power was intact. Therefore, both sides were evenly matched.

"You are… great!" Odge glanced at Leylin, voice sounding like metal rubbing against metal.

"Let's go!" Odge's gigantic figure left first, followed by the other Barbarian fighters.

"Handsome little young master, don't forget we still have another agreement!" Mistress Tillen was the last to leave, prompting Leylin with meaning.

"Don't worry, I would never forget." Leylin watched them as they left the Black Skeleton Ship. From then on, this huge, magic-modified warship belonged to him. That was not all. The other large warships that Crowe had built with his blood and sweat were now Leylin's as well.

Loot

The flag representing the black skeletons was slowly lowered from the battleship's mast, replaced with the bright red flag of the Scarlet Tigers.

"The old Scarlet Tiger is already at the bottom of the sea, but the crew shall now give it a new life. The Black Skeleton shall henceforth be called the Scarlet Tiger!" Leylin announced this decision as he stood on the deck, which immediately attracted cheers from his men.

Compared to the previous Scarlet Tiger which had been built on top of the Black Tiger, this ship was deserving of being Crowe's flagship. Not only was it fully covered in a layer of magical armour, giving it a shocking defence, just the size of the vessel and the water it displaced far exceeded his former ship's.

Ḥowever, Leylin had benefitted at his opponent's expense. All of this was now his. "Robin Hood, allocate some of the men to start up the battleships behind as well!"

"Aye, boss!" Robin Hood rubbed his hands together excitedly. The fleet of ships under the Black Skeletons was extremely luxurious. There were more than ten large battleships, and none of them was inferior to the previous Scarlet Tiger. The Scarlet Tiger pirate crew could truly eat their fill this time.

"Drive the ships off first, then we'll replenish our manpower and depart for Hygar Island to take part in the naval battle!" After destroying two large pirate crews in one go, the remaining slaving fleet armed with military equipment was the only force that Marquis Louis was left with. How could Leylin let them off?

However, he was now facing a severe lack of manpower. After barely being able to start up the vessels, there were few people left to participate in battle.

Such a situation made Leylin laugh bitterly.

'I'm afraid that these large-scale warships have to be kept safe for a period of time. The number of men I'm bringing with me to the naval battle this time round might not take up more than five large boats…' He clearly had such huge ships, yet didn't have enough manpower. This was the predicament that Leylin was currently facing.

He even wanted to let his family's bodyguards disguise themselves as pirates, but quickly gave up that idea. After all, his adversaries this time round were different from pirates. They were a military fleet under an influential nobleman, whose name would not be revealed for purposes of secrecy. The bodyguards of his own family perhaps might not dare to take action.

It was needless to mention the effects of bringing them here. Leylin didn't want to lose them. Hence, he could only bring his own men to engage in war, but unfortunately, the majority of his subordinates had sacrificed their lives during the previous explosion.

But these were all trivial matters. When news of the Scarlet Tiger destroying the Black Skeletons and Tigershark Pirates spread, there would be plenty of pirates pleading to join him. The two fleets started to part ways, while Leylin hid in the captain's room and looked through his gains.

Crowe's cabin was very spacious, and had all kinds of vibrant oil paintings and other artworks on the walls. They were evidently accumulated over his long life as a pirate.

"Crowe's private treasury is just a small matter. After all, most of his riches are on the magical battleship under my feet. What's truly valuable is the wizard's equipment!" Leylin unabashedly occupied the golden seat embedded with precious jewels that once belonged to Crowe. He sized up several items on the table with bright eyes.

The first thing that came into his line of sight was an old-fashioned leather pouch.

"A Bag of Holding!" Leylin's eyes brightened. He had been envious of this legendary piece of equipment that was standard for high level wizards. It was a pity that it was hard to purchase one even with the Faulens' current financial resources.

But now, Boruj had actually taken the initiative to deliver it to him. A personal Bag of Holding would definitely have curses and other mechanisms on it, but they could not hide from the A.I. Chip's scans. Leylin easily broke them.

The Bag of Holding was close to ten cubic metres in size, which pleasantly surprised Leylin. In a corner of the space was a messy heap of gold coins and gems that he estimated to be worth tens of thousands of gold kronas, but it was actually the pile with the lowest value.

"So many… So many high level spell-casting materials… and wizardry books…" Leylin's smile became wider. These were all items that couldn't be bought with money. When his eyes paused upon a few ancient-looking scrolls, his smile was the brightest it could ever be.

These scrolls were adorned with complex designs, and the scrolls themselves were made using leather from some sort of animal. There were even traces of its scales on the surface. As Leylin gentle caressed the scrolls, he could sense a subtle layer of mental deterrence.

'This is the power of a dragon! Dragon skin was used to make these few scrolls!' Leylin's eyes glistened as he slowly opened the scrolls.

[Beep! Spiritual energy data detected, initialising scan.]

The scrolls contained a multitude of magic circuits and strangely-shaped writing. This was a way of storing information that allowed a huge amount of characters and resources to be stored within the relatively small scroll. Although there were still other kinds of encryption on it, Leylin felt that they were not worth mentioning.

The A.I. Chip immediately prompted. [Decryption complete. Transmitting to memory…]

Following the A.I. Chip's voice, Leylin first saw a row of words: "Re: Structure of the magic circuit within the low-level wizard tower…"

'As expected, are these the materials that Boruj prepared for his own wizard tower?' Leylin scanned through the next few scrolls. Apart from techniques to construct a wizard tower, there was also information about defensive golems and methods of manufacturing their bodies.

'Who would've thought that Boruj was also a master of golems? But what a pity… Everything he had prepared now belongs to me.' Leylin was full of ambition. As a wizard, the benefits he could reap from the assistance of a wizard tower on his path of advancement would be unimaginable.

'Speaking of which, there still seem to be large quantities of raw materials on the Baltic archipelago that Marquis Louis had prepared for the wizard tower, especially mithril and pure gold. It's practically priceless!'

Leylin secretly made a decision. He quickly stowed the Bag of Holding away, and looked over a few other items. The radiance of the Identify spell kept flickering on Leylin's palm.

'A magical staff that stores enchanted missiles, and an anti-detection cloak? Not bad…' Leylin evaluated the items one by one, and his gaze finally fell on a black ring.

After the Identify spell flashed, the relevant information was revealed and digitalized by the A.I. Chip before being presented in front of Leylin's eyes.

[Name of item: Wizard Ring. Weight: 11 grams. Materials: Obsidian, wizard alloy, dragon blood. Effects: Addition of one spell slot allocated to all spell slots below rank 5 (exclusive to wizards). Description: This is a ring that possesses formidable magic powers, and will likely be coveted by other beings. A brilliant smelter could possibly strengthen the material.]

"This ring might just be Boruj's best piece of equipment!" Leylin sighed. "It's definitely a far cry from the legendary Lich Ring, which allows a single addition to all of the wizard's spell slots, but it's still a godly tool for a lower-ranked wizard!"

Leylin estimated a high price of five hundred thousand gold coins for just Boruj's equipment. It showed how affluent wizards were, especially the high-ranked ones. Any of their equipment chosen at random could be sold at a sky-high price!

'This ring!' Leylin gently stroked the surface of the black ring. He could feel faint traces of spiritual energy from it.

"Dragon blood was added to this ring when it was forged, but it seems to be mixed with something else as well…" Leylin muttered to himself. "If matched with other precious materials, it does indeed have room for improvement. However, my current wizard rank is inadequate…"

After a few rounds of scanning and verification, Leylin wore the Wizard Ring on his left hand. At that instant, his statistics changed. [Leylin Faulen. Age: 16. Race: Rank 10 human wizard. Strength: 5.2. Agility: 6.5. Vitality: 6.3. Spirit: 10. State: Healthy. Innate skills possessed: Robust, erudite and multi-talented. Spell slots owned: Rank 4 spell slots (3), rank 3 spell slots (5), rank 2 spell slots (7), rank 1 spell slots (???), rank 0 spell slots (???)]

To a wizard, every increase in spell slots meant a significant upgrade in terms of strength. Leylin could imagine the trouble he would face if the existence of this ring was discovered by other wizards.

"Perhaps I should add a form of concealment to it. It can't emit such a strong halo of magic light at least, it's practically asking to be a target…"

...

The setting sun was painted blood red.

Numerous tattered and fragmented remains of a ship were drifting across the surface of the sea in the vicinity of Hygar Island.

Dozens of floating corpses belonging to the mariners of Baltic archipelago were strewn everywhere. Some of the dead bodies had been immersed in the seawater for so long that they had inflated, and appeared extremely terrifying.

A flag that represented Marquis Louis' influence was slowly bobbing up and down in the water, and a big part of it seemed to have been burnt off at the edges.

After taking a while to rest and reorganise themselves, Leylin and Odge had brought their men, taking their main battleships to fight the military fleet.

Dealing with the Pirates' Tide had already been a problem, but with the addition of Leylin and Odge the situation on the battlefield changed drastically. Under attack from both sides, the military fleet was instantly defeated. Even the commander-in-chief was hit by an artillery shell, and he died on the spot.

Numerous ships were attacked and they sank one by one. Countless mariners of the Baltic archipelago were either dead or injured.

The two pirate crews raised their flags bit by bit in the afterglow of the setting sun, and left the battlefield one after the other. Next, they would pillage the territories and harbours belonging to Marquis Louis separately. They could make up for their losses this round, and conveniently strike it rich.

"Our honeymoon period with the Barbarians has already passed…" Leylin exhaled deeply as he stood on the deck, watching them leave.

Storm and Capture

Following the complete fall of Marquis Louis' men at sea, remarkable changes immediately occurred to the situation offshore.

Leylin and the Barbarians originally had no choice but to ally in their fight against Marquis Louis' oppression. However, with the Black Skeletons and Tigershark Pirates destroyed, that pressure had completely vanished with the sinking of the military fleet he'd painstakingly built. Now, a rivalry formed between the two crews.

As there was still a gigantic cash cow right in front of their eyes, the conflict between both sides certainly hadn't escalated to a great extent. Still, it was already impossible to prevent future fights.

Leylin had long prepared for this.

"Set sail! Let's go to the Baltic Harbour, straight into the base camp of that old fox!" Leylin's order was accompanied by cheers from his pirates. They started up the Scarlet Tiger, which was like a gigantic creature of the sea as they headed towards the Baltic Archipelago.

...

*Thump! Shatter!* The sharp and clear sounds of glass and chinaware falling onto the ground could be heard, occasionally interspersed with bellows of rage.

The maids and subordinates in the marquis' residence did not even dare to breathe heavily, fearful of becoming the target of his fury. Ever since news of William's death had made its way here, Louis had sunken into a state of complete hysterial. Several servants had been dragged out and beaten to death, including a few personal female servants that Louis once favoured greatly.

Under such circumstances, it was understandable that the servants were being silent out of fear. For some reason, Tim was secretly very elated upon seeing the situation. He was even filled with the rejuvenating pleasure of someone having taken his revenge.

'Has that damn William been completely fed to the fishes?' Tim laughed maniacally inside, yet did not dare to show it. 'If that old fellow knows about this intelligence report, will he get so angry that he'll breathe his last?'

"Father! We have the latest news of our family's fleet!" Tim's voice was a mix of unease and apprehension, as though he was a criminal waiting to be executed.

"Come in!" Marquis Louis' voice came from the within the room as he tried to repress his anger. Tim sneered secretly, and entered.

The marquis' study was currently very messy. Shattered glass and porcelain shards were strewn across the floor. On the desk lay a dead body, totally void of life.

It was a young and beautiful female servant. Her eyes seemed to show a longing for survival, and her body was covered with traces of abuse, particularly the bruises on her neck, which were the main culprits that led to her death.

"Someone, tidy up this place!" Marquis Louis adjusted his shirt collar. With his order, an expressionless butler entered with a few maids, and they quickly cleared up the entire study room.

When the door closed, only Tim and Marquis Louis were left. Seeing that the marquis had seemingly regained peace after venting his anger, Tim suddenly felt a chill in his heart for some reason.

"Father…" Tim tried his best to make his voice appear more sorrowful.

"Speak… Have those bunch of morons been completely wiped out?" Marquis Louis sat on his soft armchair, his expression without a hint of grief or delight.

"Yes. Our family's military fleet was besieged by the Scarlet Tigers and the Barbarians, and has confirmed to have been totally defeated near the Baltic archipelago."

What Tim did not expect was that Marquis Louis' expression did not change much after hearing such earth-shattering news, as though he had long predicted it.

"I know… After the Black Skeletons and Tigershark Pirates were destroyed, our family's fleet walked down the same road as well? Heh heh… From today onwards, the Gold Thornblossoms' authority over the Dambrath seas will be thoroughly destroyed…"

The marquis' eyes seemed unusually bloodshot. It was the pain and insanity of having his life's work ruined.

However, Tim actually felt more at ease after witnessing this. He would be assured only if the marquis was in such a state.

"Give instructions to prepare to leave this place!" Marquis Louis said to Tim.

"Leave? To where?" Tim seemed rather puzzled.

"Return to the mainland, the Dambrath capital. It's no longer safe here with the great loss we've suffered in our strength. Those pirates will frantically pounce on us like starving dogs. We must leave as soon as possible while their mind is still on the other ports and wealth."

Marquis Louis explained indifferently as he gazed at Tim with a gentle look in his eyes. "Tim, you're now my only adult son. As long as we live, the kingdom will not let the Baltic archipelago have a change of ownership."

The delayed trust made Tim feel as though there were two hot streams crashing into his eyes. He pouted, but said nothing in the end.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!* Muffled cannon blasts sounded in the study, interspersed with the whistles of pirates. No matter how good the sound-proofing was, the noise could not be blocked out.

"What's going on?" Marquis Louis ran to the window and opened it. The sounds became clearer, and he could see many clouds of black smoke. There were even silhouettes of hordes of pirates.

"How could they intrude so quickly? What about the fort and sentinel points that the team of guards had set up? Why aren't they of any use? Could it be…"

Marquis Louis could finally smell conspiracy. Although he had lost his soul after his beloved son died in battle and after his maritime fleet was entirely wiped out, the marquis who had endured the test of battle immediately reacted at this critical juncture, but it was all too late.

He suddenly turned around, and immediately met with a pair of eyes resembling a wolf's!

...

"Kill!" "Heh heh… Charge!"

Numerous pirates roared wildly. After destroying the battery and several guard assembly points, the other pirates spread themselves out like maniacs. They charged towards to the refined stores and enormous mansions like wild dogs.

Smashing sounds could be heard everywhere, and lone pirates with luxurious silk hung around their necks and their pockets stuffed with huge amounts of jewelry and gold coins could be seen scuttling across the streets from time to time.

Of course, there were bound to be massacres and death, and even little children could not run from their fate. Women were being disgraced in many dim corners, as they let out sorrowful cries.

Restraining the pirates like they were a military troop would be a joke. These pirates were excited by the tremendous amount of wealth here after they had abruptly broken into the place. They were like rats that had fallen into a rice vat, and had exposed the most despicable side of humanity.

In order to cause the greatest amount of wreckage, Leylin had even lowered his standards. He'd recruited a huge bunch of inferior pirate vassals, and brought them here. These were the scum of all scum, and they instantly displayed their powerful destructive abilities.

One could see that the entire harbour wouldn't regain its popularity in the next few years after this ended.

On the largest battleship equipped with magical armor—the Scarlet Tiger— Leylin put down the telescope in his hands as he revealed a satisfied expression.

"Excellent. That's right, kill them all, rob them all, burn them all! When we depart, all I need is to see a wasteland!" Leylin was now wearing a silver mask, and so was Isabel.

They were still noblemen after all, and naturally had to be mindful. Otherwise, they would meet with trouble in the kingdom if they left some magical image behind. Even though the mask covered his expression, Leylin was now like a respected devil of the underworld. His aura made other pirates retreat one by one, their faces filled with panic and fear.

The Baltic archipelago was the feudal land of the kingdom after all, and Leylin could not brazenly occupy this place openly. Thus, he wanted to completely destroy everything here, and turn this beautiful and wealthy archipelago into a purgatory. It would never be able to contest for the spot of an offshore trading centre with Faulen Island henceforth!

"You will see it!" Isabel's eyes were rather bloodshot. Her aura once again began to rise sharply.

Such slaughter and chaos were evidently a demon's favourite. If she was able to conduct a ritual before they pillaged the place, perhaps they would reap even greater profits.

But Leylin wouldn't let her do that, of course. Once devils and demons were involved in something, it would definitely attract the attention of the church. He was still unable to contend against those colossal beings.

"Tim's map of the port's defences shows that there are still some forts, and also the residences of several people in authority and their strength. It can't get any easier to raze this port to ruin." A harbour was completely different with intel on it than without. Tim had an extremely high status, which was of huge benefit to Leylin as a spy.

At this moment, Robin Hood came forward to report to Leylin. "Boss! The troops stationed here have already been completely wiped out. Ronald is currently bringing our men to attack Marquis Louis's mansion." His body was covered with many bloodstains, and there were even pieces of meat and other items hanging from the blade of his sword.

"Marquis Louis must die here! The others don't matter."

Marquis Louis was an old fox after all. If he escaped, there might be other troubles that would ensue. Leylin wasn't that idle to fool around with him.

"That Tim…" Robin Hood seemed like he wanted to say something but stopped himself.

"Depends on his luck. Marquis Louis has a few other children who are not of age yet anyway. We just need someone to succeed the Gold Thornblossom family, so that their feudal land will not be confiscated by the kingdom."

Leylin waved his hands. "Come with me, there are even more important things to do!"

To Leylin, two places here were the most important sources of wealth. One was the official residence of the marquis, and the other was naturally where Boruj gathered the materials for his wizard tower.

Assassination

Boruj was a high-level wizard who led a luxurious life and had a respectable position across the entire Dambrath Kingdom. The only reason he was following Louis in developing the outer seas was because the marquis had promised to construct a wizard tower for him.

This was a wizard tower, something all high-level wizards needed to conduct more profound research into other planes. It was how they raised their ranks. High-level wizards with the protection of a tower were miles ahead of vagrants with nothing to their name.

Given the many advantages, there was no doubt that the construction of a wizard tower was just as horrifying in its expense. Even the cheapest one costed more than two million gold coins.

Leylin was sure that Marquis Louis had invested close to half of his trade profits into this wizard tower which was still under construction. For him, this was equivalent to a gift from heaven. If he could completely plunder these supplies, it would be much easier for him to build a wizard tower for himself in the future.

Leylin had already found the construction blueprint unique to the wizard tower in Boruj's bag of holding, but the base materials were also very precious. Marquis Louis had spent a endless amount of money and manpower to transport them from remote parts of the distant mainland.

He brought his men to the designated location for the wizard tower by following Tim's map. There were already several camps here, and a simple foundation for the tower had already been laid.

"If we really had let him build his wizard tower, we absolutely wouldn't have been able to break through the port's defence today. It's even possible that we'd have suffered a total defeat," Leylin said with a lingering fear to the people next to him, as he saw that the project had just begun.

However, the camp was now in chaos. Many corpses were strewn messily across the place, and it was filled with pirates in a killing frenzy as they dashed from one room to another.

"Stop them!" Leylin waved his hands. He didn't have a twinge of mercy for those random pirates who went crazy with bloodlust and lacked discipline.

Robin Hood brought his men over and started hacking frantically at the other pirates right away. When several of the pirates who were roaring away were beheaded, the remaining few finally came to their senses.

"Put down the things you robbed, or you will die here." Leylin spoke indifferently, looking as terrifying as a devil to them.

Under the threat of death, most of the pirates obediently threw out the items in their hands, and rushed towards the port. There was also an endless amount of wealth there, and giving up their lives here was not worth it at all.

However, there were still a minority of the pirates who coveted and could not let go of the riches in their hands. With a wave of Leylin's hand, Robin Hood and his men immediately went towards those stubborn pig heads.

"Open the storehouse!" Once they were done purging the entire area, Robin Hood grabbed a person who seemed to be in charge. Using his blade that was covered in fresh blood, he forced him to open all the storehouses one by one.

In that split second, Leylin's men were immediately dazzled by a colourful radiance.

"Diamonds, ironwood, the core for configuring puppets, and so many wizarding alloys… Not bad, not bad, these are all goods that aren't available overseas, and are necessary to build a wizard tower."

On top of that, Leylin had even found a tiny warehouse after cracking a tiny mechanism, which stored copious amounts of mithril and pure gold. These two metals could absorb magic very well, and were precious materials required in many wizarding items.

'These are probably only a part of it!' Leylin sighed sorrowfully. "Slave trading is indeed the most profitable business!"

This was undoubtedly the reason why his family didn't engage in the trade of refined sugar and fish floss for long, or else they would have been able to accumulate an unimaginable sum of wealth.

"Organize the men. Move all of this onto the Scarlet Tiger, and specially assign people to guard it!" Leylin instructed Robin Hood. Then, he brought Isabel and the others next to the marquis' residence which had already been besieged.

Ronald was now launching a violent attack with his men, but the people inside were resisting tenaciously. What Marquis Louis had accumulated over the decades wouldn't be destroyed so easily. Even if they had already gotten rid of most of his men at sea, there would still be faithful officials appearing at times like this.

However, their pointless resistance dissolved into nothing after Leylin appeared. With just a few fireball spells, the entrance to the marquis' mansion was completely blasted open, revealing the interior of the building in all its dazzling and glorious splendor.

Isabel dashed in like a valkyrie, her black magical longsword taking in its fill of hot blood. She didn't have any mercy whatsoever towards these foes who had caused her family to perish.

Leylin called Ronald over and gave him a grim order, "Ronald, tell those pirates that the entire marquis' mansion and a few of the other important storehouses are ours. Anyone who dares to covet them will be killed right away!"

He wasn't some kind of saint; he had gathered all these miscellaneous pirates here only to strengthen his influence. He was already kind enough to let them plunder the place wilfully, how could he give them the greatest benefits?

"Yes, young master!" Ronald was brimming with enthusiasm and vigour. He, too, had a burning hatred towards Marquis Louis' family. Now that he had gotten his revenge, he was full of so much admiration towards Leylin that he would kneel at his feet.

The entire process was going rather smoothly. While Ronald was directing his men to empty the stores, Leylin had already obtained a battle report from Isabel.

"The entire mansion has crumbled completely. Other than Tim and a few others, the rest have been arrested, and even Marquis Louis was found dead in his study, is that alright?"

"It's enough, let's go!" Leylin sneered as he scanned the city centre. A few places were still rather tranquil, and were even radiating light—that was the location of the church!

Even a bishop would be unable to obstruct the tsunami of pirates, and could only passively rely on the powers of the god in their church to strengthen their defense.

Leylin certainly wouldn't be so foolish as to let his men attack the church. As for the other miscellaneous pirates who had already lost their minds, he naturally didn't have to bother about them anymore.

Moreover, Leylin's attack this time was achieved by catching the marquis off guard. If the other churches reacted and even colluded with each other, it would be very troublesome for him.

"Yes, young master! The other pirates?" Ronald saluted with his right hand on his chest.

"They came for wealth, and will now die here because of wealth. Isn't it perfectly normal?" Under the influence of a crazed atmosphere, there would only be a handful of pirates who would eventually discover danger, promptly wrap up their business here, and leave. Besides, if they could achieve this, then they would naturally have the right to continue living.

The Scarlet Tiger and a few battleships departed the harbour, which had already degraded into a living hell. They even lit up a few large fires, yet it did not attract the attention of many pirates. Those soaking in madness and slaughter would always have a relatively slow reaction towards the outside world.

A few rays of holy light obstinately shot out from the flames, even protecting the surrounding civilians. It was just that there seemed to be a few shadows within the rays of light emitting from the church.

"Heh heh… The church of the God of Murder? We will settle our debts one day…" Leylin smiled sarcastically. The look in his eyes was serene, yet it seemed to contain a devilish glint.

...

"Respected bishop, all the pathfinders have assembled, and are ready to set off any moment!" A young female priest looked across the refugees in the plaza of the church, her face flushed red with indignance and her gaze filled with pity.

"Those damn pirates! The light of our God will purify them completely one day!" The young female priest said, aggrieved.

The elderly bishop's eyes seemed to contain the entire world, yet they were also brimming with a soft luster. He slowly started to pray to the sculpture of Ilmater in the centre of the church.

"Dear god, take pity on the common people! Alice, you have to understand that our forces are unable to contend against all those pirates outside. We must wait for a suitable opportunity…" The bishop's voice was aged but resolute, yet seemed to have some sort of calming powers that allowed the young female priest to attain peace within her heart.

At this moment, a figure hurriedly ran in. "Sir! A priest of the church of Lathander is requesting to meet you!"

"Very well, invite him in quickly!" There was a glimmer of joy on the bishop's face.

Lathander the Morninglord was a deity with a formidable occult force. He bore an intense hatred towards all kinds of evil and sordid behaviour, and his priests were unyielding towards cracking down on dark forces. With the assistance of his pathfinders in quelling the entire harbour, there would be hope in restoring peace!

"Respected bishop!" A priest with lustrous golden hair, clothed in a Morninglord priest gown entered with quick steps, an extremely resentful expression on his face. "Our church will dispatch all the forces we have on hand to attack those vicious people. I hope we will be able to receive your help!"

"But of course, we will not shirk our duty. I- Eek!" The bishop turned to look at his chest, stunned. A black dagger had been thrust into it, the blood like a blooming rose as it spread under it unceasingly.

A malicious curse immediately invaded the wound, one that even a divine spell couldn't dispel.

"You… You're not a Morninglord priest…" The bishop slowly collapsed. In the final moments of his life, he saw the priest's face change weirdly, and it eventually became the face of a sinister person. He started slaughtering everyone around him as he laughed maniacally, and the young priest Alice fell into a pool of blood.

"Shadow Jump!" After assassinating the bishop, the assassin who was above rank 15 immediately mobilized a high-level technique and vanished into thin air. With the convenience of the shadow plane, he had arrived somewhere else when he reappeared.

Change in Events

"My lord, Ilmater's bishop has fallen!" The high-ranked assassin respectfully reported to the people next to him.

"You did well!" Beside him was evidently the bishop of the God of Murder at Pirates' Cove. At some point in time, he had come to the Baltic archipelago and hidden himself in the shadows, killing the regional bishop of the God of Suffering.

"Master, please accept this offering from your humble servant!" Seeing a broken ray of light amidst the sea of fire, the bishop of the God of Murder flushed as he knelt and began to pray. This light belonged to the church of suffering.

A pair of powerful eyes focused on this area, strong enough for even the high-ranked assassin to sense. This was the strength of the god that he believed in, of Cyric the God of Murder!

His eyes filled with elation, and the radiance of divine force flickered into existence.

'Grace of the Gods! It's the grace that will raise his ranking permanently!' The high-ranked assassin saw the light shining on the bishop's body, as well as the increase in his aura. The bishop's eyes burnt with more fervour as he began to pray silently, "Dear master Cyrik, you are…"

...

The unrestrained acts of the pirates continued for several days. The Scarlet Tigers and Barbarians acted separately, conducting surprise attacks on all of the Baltic archipelago's ports and cities. There were also other 'fake' pirates mixed in, following their bosses as they wreaked havoc while robbing all that was in front of their eyes. This was a feast for pirates!

Cyric's priests seemed to be acting from the shadows in these outrageous events, apparently with the God of Murder's divine force mixed in. It made it seem like there really was a conspiracy afoot.

It was even said that the chaos and massacre here had attracted the attention of demons and devils from the abyss. Someone had personally witnessed their marks on the ruined corpses from the calamity.

This immediately caused concern in the Dambrath Kingdom. An investigation team formed of elite priests and paladins of the God of Justice Tyr swore to find the main culprit and punish them.

Accompanying the investigative team was a special envoy sent by the king, responsible to confirm the survival of the descendants of the Together with this investigative team was a special envoy sent down by the king. He was responsible for confirming the survival of the descendants of the Golden Thornblossom family, as well as the cause of Marquis Louis' death. Of course, that was all a front. What truly attracted one's attention was the Baltic archipelago, and the fertile territories on the seas.

It was a pity that they were destined to be disappointed. After the pirate attack, the Baltic archipelago had lost over 50% of its population and much of its amassed wealth. The other ports and cities were burnt to nothing, turning into dead regions no merchants were willing to go to.

Trading in the outer seas had begun to shift towards other noble families' islands. The Faulen Island obviously got the most out of it, and began to develop rapidly. It even began to try taking over the spaces that Marquis Louis had left behind, laying its hands on the slave trade.

Leylin had now assembled his subordinates on the Scarlet Tiger ship, announcing a decision.

"I plan to leave for a while, I plan to travel the continent." Leylin looked solemn as he saw his trusted aides in the captain's room. This was a decision he had made after careful deliberations.

There was no way around it. He had gone too far this time, and it was necessary that he hide it out for a while. In addition, the outer seas were now gaining even more attention from even the gods. It was truly an unsuitable area for him to continue keeping a low profile.

"After I leave, the Scarlet Pirates will be under Isabel's command. You must listen to her as you do me, is that understood?" After all the members left, Leylin made Isabel stay behind.

"Are you really leaving?" Isabel gazed at Leylin's handsome face, looking reluctant.

"I've no choice! While everything might seem great with us now, we still need to be cautious!" Leylin's eyes were on Isabel as he began to instruct her, "I've already completely broken off relations between the Scarlet Tiger pirates and the family. I've even killed off all the disloyal ones, so it should be fine for you to take over. As long as neither of us are caught, it's impossible to get real evidence!"

The only connection between the Faulen Family and the Scarlet Tigers was Leylin. Without him there, the investigators could only watch helplessly. The churches and the kingdom naturally still needed evidence to act openly.

"And though the Barbarians have parted ways with us, I'm not worried about them. We have power on the surface!"

"Power on the surface?" Isabel looked doubtful.

"Yes. After I get back, I'll suggest that Father build a military fleet of our own. This is something pirates will never be able to do." Leylin's eyes flickered with extraordinary intelligence.

"There are only two sides of the outer sea, the light and the dark. In the dark, there's the Scarlet Tiger pirates contending with them, but they can't do anything against us in broad daylight. After all, commerce will never be able to match up to the power of nobility! With this advantage, we'll definitely be able to suppress them, turning into the next Marquis Louis and gaining supremacy in the outer seas!"

Leylin shared his complete development strategy, "Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"We just have to make our foundations stable?" Isabel was intelligent.

"Yes, it's all about stability! Once we completely take over the outer seas, the churches won't be able to do anything even if they know about our actions."

"What do you mean?" Isabel was astonished.

"It's power!" Leylin waved his hands, "As long as the outer seas are under our control, the churches can't put us on trial even if they know we've sinned. They have to spread their own faith as well."

With his abundant life experience, what could Leylin not see through?

"Look. Even if Marquis Louis was involved in the sinful slave trade, with his hands dipped in blood, he had control over the profits in the outer seas and had close relations with the kingdom. Even a priest of the God of Justice couldn't put him on trial!"

Leylin's eyes blazed with ambition, "As long as we're superior on the outer seas, those churches will only be able to lower their heads to us!"

Obviously, Leylin had failed to mention something. At the beginning, they could learn to do what Marquis Louis had, but after that, there had to be changes. He already had a plan for that.

In order to control the outer seas, his own strength was also vital. He believed they needed a Legend in charge at the minimum, but if everything went according to plan it was still feasible. By the time his family had gotten to that point, he'd have become a Legend himself.

This was the realm of Legends, people who had a say in the entire World of Gods! After all, the gods couldn't descend to the prime material plane in their own bodies, only able to do so through incarnations that weren't much stronger than high-ranked Legends.

Of course, Leylin only had the guts to do this in the outer seas, where the gods' organisations were frail. Otherwise, he would just be seeking his death!

"With those pirates in the middle being scapegoats for us, the churches won't go after us right away. Our Scarlet Tiger pirates must be aware of this!" Leylin estimated that the Barbarians would not grow hostile to them right away. Instead, they would absorb the surrounding pirates and increase their strength.

For this reason, however, they would attract even more attention, and unknowingly take the brunt of it from the Scarlet Tigers. Meanwhile, the Scarlet Tigers would keep a low profile and amass more power, waiting for an opportunity to rise.

Only after his plans were completely explained did Leylin leave, feeling at ease. Seeing Leylin's figure flying in the horizon and turning into a black spot that eventally disappeared, Isabel turned with an icy look on her face.

"Gather all the leaders. We are to hide in the deep seas for a period of time!"

"Understood!" Ronald shrank back. He had a feeling that after the head left, the "Scarlet Witch" that struck the outer seas with terror would return.

Ronald was aware that she would not make allowances for anyone else, destroying anyone she caught. He did not dare complain and jogged away from the deck.

With Isabel pressurising them, the Scarlet Tigers pirates carried out Leylin's plans exceedingly well, hiding in the deep sea.

Dambrath only held a small portion of the outer seas, and the further out one went the more dangerous it was. It was rumoured that there was a country of aboriginals at the depths of the sea, protected by the gods. Of course, this was just a rumour.

The Scarlet Tigers' actions wisely allowed them to evade a round of unrest. The organisations of the outer sea and the enraged nobles of the Dambrath Kingdom combined forces with the church, beginning a new round of purging the outer sea pirates. Even the navy was employed.

The priests and paladins of the God of Justice could be seen roaming around at this point. The pirates that had just started to get arrogant were put in a tough spot as they were stabilising themselves. Many were exterminated, and even the Barbarians suffered huge losses with no choice but to do things on the sly.

Whatever it was, the sea was vast. The Dambrath Kingdom had no way to maintain the huge expenses of the navy, and this could only terrorise the region for a while. After the navy left, this would still be the pirates' territory!

The reshuffling from this new round continued. The Faulen Family would make use of their status as nobility, trading their two profitable goods into becoming the hub of the outer seas. Of course, that was all in the future.

Emon City

Emon was a port city along the coast of the Dambrath Kingdom. It relied on the flourishing trade of the outer seas to develop, and at one point had over ten thousand free citizens making up its society. The lights never went out at night, and it created the image of prosperity.

However, the Pirates' Tide in the outer seas, especially after the ransacking of the Baltic archipelago, stopped the sea trade for a while. Many small merchants had even committed suicide in the sea out of bankruptcy, leading to a further decline in prosperity.

This was all until one day, when a young man in grey robes came to the city gates.

"Entry fee is a copper coin!" As they had been standing guard here for a long time, the two guards had developed great insight. Noticing that this young man was not to be messed with, they did not create much trouble. After handing over the fee, the young man entered Emon City.

The city's roads were desolate, with guards patrolling everywhere. Since this was a port on the sea, there was a theoretical chance of pirate attacks, and those timid aristocrats and nobles were scared stupid by the Pirates' Tide, increasing the city's security. Most of them had probably hidden themselves further inside the mainland by now.

"I'll probably need to go the Mercenary Guild later!" After finding an inn, the young man slipped his hood off, revealing curly hair that was as dazzling as gold and a handsome face.

This was obviously Leylin. After taking care of all the matters and handing over all sorts of materials to Ernest, causing him to go giddy in his ecstacy and begin construction of a wizard's tower, Leylin openly left Faulen Island, taking a ship to the continent.

Of course, this was in the name of travel and learning, something that was a matter of course for wizards. He currently held a recommendation letter from Ernest in his lap, something that would allow him to train in the capital's Wizards' Guild for a while.

Leylin had intended this trip for a while, there was nothing that Ernest could teach him anymore. And with Boruj's bag of holding, he could now move about with more ease. 10 cubic metres of space was huge, and he could put his tent, rations, and essentials inside it, making things less difficult for him.

After getting on the coast, Leylin was like a drop of water that disappeared into the river of people. Things were rather sensitive right now, and he did not want to cause any trouble.

Travelling at this point was a very troublesome matter. If he lacked proof of free citizenship from the city hall or some other documents like that, he'd be treated like a runaway slave or indentured farmer. The rest of his life would be spent in jail or bankruptcy.

Of course, if he showed his proof of nobility, all cities would leave their doors wide open for him. But he wasn't foolish enough to do that.

If he became a mercenary, he would be able to move about with no obstruction in most areas, though the guards would roll their eyes at him. Mercenaries who broke order were one of the most headache-inducing issues for security officials.

The Mercenary Guild was located by the Warriors' Guild, one of their requirements was that one was a Professional.

Of course, this wasn't too hard. If he trained for many years, could use a few weapons proficiently and had a certain amount of experience, he could easily be certified as a rank 1 fighter.

Leylin entered the Warriors' Guild that was guarded by two burly warriors, in the distance seeing shrines to the gods of warriors and war. There were even a few resident priests in the guild, overseeing everything. They were in charge of healing injuries, even though it obviously came with a price.

Behind the Warriors' Guild were a few bigshots. Without their support both on the surface and in the shadows, it would have had no chance to spread throughout the continent. Since warriors were the most common Professionals amongst the many races, becoming one did not require much talent.

"Is this Mister's first time here?" After seeing Leylin's entrance, a maid welcomed him while watching him with a strange look.

After all, most warriors were muscled, and it was rare to see people like Leylin.

"Yes. I would like to apply for the fighter test!" Though the Wizards' Guild was more suitable for him, and being a wizard would gain him more respect, Leylin was here to stay out of trouble. He naturally wouldn't do that. He was not even planning to use the recommendation letter Ernest had given him.

"Please come with me!" The maid brought Leylin to the second level of the guild. There were many little rings here, where warriors were fighting hand-to-hand or battling it out. While they were using wooden swords, people would still get injured.

At this moment, a priest that had been waiting at the side would be useful.

"Please register first. May I know which rank would you like to take the test for?"

As if afraid that Leylin did not understand well and because of his face, the maid explained to him enthusiastically, "Our tests here are conducted based on varying levels of strength. You'll need to fight against a similarly-ranked or two lower-ranked opponents for a period of time to be able to pass the test, and there are often casualties…"

"Thank you for your good intentions. I'll do what I can!" Leylin came to a counter and put in his particulars, filling up the form.

"Let's see. Your name is Ley, you're 18, and you want to take the test for a rank 5 warrior?" Sitting at the counter was a withered old man. He lifted his glasses and looked at Leylin, who was outside, "Young man, don't try to push yourself too far. A rank 5 warrior can already use their qi, and some have even grasped battle techniques. You could maybe try rank 3…"

"What? You're choosing the rank 5 test?" The maid looked astonished, her sharp voice causing surrounding people to gather around and watch.

"Why didn't you listen to me?" The maid stamped her feet, pretty flushes appearing on her cheeks.

"I've already made up my mind, I'll do this!" Leylin furrowed his brows. While he had lied about his age, this was still shocking.

Of course, it wasn't that bad. It was much better than being a 16 year old rank 10 wizard, and he then nodded, "Please accept this application."

"The application fee is 10 copper coins!" After Leylin paid up, the old man sighed helplessly, "Teenagers these days…"

"Interesting! I haven't seen such an interesting kid for a long time! Let me be his opponent!" A forthright voice sounded out, and immediately after a burly man who was two heads taller than average pushed the crowd away as he walked over. His upper body was naked, the muscles solid like granite. There were several scabs from blades on his face, emanating red light that made him seem more menacing.

"It's the Bone Shatterer, Fafnir. This guy's in for it!"

"It's rumoured that he's a savage person who likes to pinch and shatter his opponent's bones. Why's he suddenly causing trouble for a kid?"

"It should be for a woman, right? He's been interested in Nina for a long time!" This immediately caused the maid to blush beet red, "Fafnir, what are you doing?"

"Nothing much. I'm a rank 5 warrior anyway, so isn't it normal for me to be an examiner? Am I wrong?" Fafnir watched Leylin, a malicious smile on his face.

"What about it?" He looked at the old man at the counter.

"You can give up on this test and come back tomorrow," The old man sighed. He probably did not want to see a young man like Leylin having such a great setback.

Leylin was speechless inside. He hadn't expected to meet such a vulgar person.

"It's fine, he'll do." Wait till tomorrow? He didn't have that much time to waste.

"I won't worry about you anymore!" This nonchalant attitude resulted in Nina leaving while fuming in anger. Meanwhile, a crisp explosion could be heard produced from Fafnir's hands.

"Kid, you're dead meat. I want to pinch and shatter all the bones in your body bit by bit. Hope that you won't hurt bad enough to call for your mother…" While brushing past him, Fafnir looked at Leylin and made a gesture as if slitting his throat.

"Don't worry. Isn't there a priest? I actually hope you brought enough money…" Leylin rolled his shoulders and picked up the long sword used for the testing.

As it was wooden, the handle was very light. However, there was a layer of metal on the blade that made it seem more durable.

The two slowly walked into the ring, and the judge then waved his right arm downwards. "Ready? Begin!"

"Destroy him, Bone Shatterer!"

"I'm supporting you, kid. Hang on!" The other bored warriors immediately began to jeer, and a few got the bets going, on how many moves Leylin could take from Fafnir.

Nina reappeared in the audience, watching the centre of the site anxiously.

"Kid, repent in hell!" Fafnir yelled as he charged.

This speed and technique was far from what Jacob had at the beginning, and Leylin could only shake his head inside. However, he did need to conceal his strength too, and he only dodged 'by a hair's breadth', sword swinging onto his opponent's shoulder.

"Stop wasting time! I've things to do!" A faint layer of qi emanated from Leylin's body.

"It's qi! This guy's already activated qi!!" The onlookers exclaimed.

"This kid's not bad!" Fafnir immediately began to get serious, and he wrapped himself up in these rays as well. An opponent who had already activated qi was not so easily defeated.

"Battle technique: Shatter Bones!" He accelerated, charging towards Leylin.

Mercenary

"Fafnir actually used a battle technique!" The audience all exclaimed.

"How boring!" Leylin slipped past the opponent's slashing while his wooden sword pierced forward.

"Battle technique: Charge!" An immense force struck Fafnir, causing his huge body to fly like a sandbag. However, Leylin's attack hadn't ended yet. He seemed to turn into a gust of wind, sticking close to the hulking man who was in mid-air.

*Crack!* *Crash!* Terrifying sounds of bones shattering were heard. When Fafnir fell, his arms and legs were all twisted at strange angles, and he even fainted.

"How is it? Did I pass?" Leylin looked at the judge, who seemed dazed.

"Oh. I announce that Ley has passed this test!" He finally said, as if he'd woken from a dream. The surrounding crowd began to make a ruckus.

Leylin cared little about this, and he went to the counter. This time the crowd opened up a path automatically, respecting the strong.

The old man chuckled as he asked, "Hehe… I don't often make mistakes! Kid, any interest in learning here for a period of time?"

"No thanks. I still have something urgent to do!" Leylin had seen that this old man was about rank 10 as a warrior. This was pretty good, but he'd almost killed a dozen high-ranked warriors himself on the outer seas.

"Alright! Sigh, young people these days…" The old man lethargically flung a copper badge to Leylin, as well as a piece of parchment, "Take it. This is your warrior badge and verification. That'll be two silver kronas."

This was slightly too expensive and seemed to be on purpose. However, since he was very efficient, Leylin paid the bill and quickly left.

After walking out of the warrior guild, Leylin went to the Mercenary Guild next door. The gold behind the counter revealed a professional smile, "Welcome. May I know if you are here to issue a mission or to apply for remuneration?"

"I'm here to apply to be a mercenary!" Leylin stated his purpose.

"Please go to counter number 3!" Applying to become a mercenary was very simple, and only required proof of one's Profession. After seeing Leylin's rank 5 fighter badge, the person in charge of counter 3 happily helped him with the proof of being one.

As a newbie, Leylin had no choice but to become a copper-grade mercenary, which was the lowest rank. Only after completing multiple missions could he advance. However, being verified as a mercenary and Professional. He would be able to enter the large cities in the future.

For Leylin, who looked towards becoming a god, focusing on raising his mercenary ranking was a joke.

'Since my path is now decided, next is go to the Dambrath Kingdom and study at the Wizards' Guild… Or should I go to another country… It's said that Moonlight City in the north has a whole set of information on magic. The city owner might even be someone chosen by the Goddess of the Weave, and many of their advanced wizard spells can be compared with the elves. I can consider training there for a while…'

Information on high-ranked spells in this world was highly confidential, and if Leylin wanted to gain this knowledge he would have to enter some large organisations to be acknowledged.

Of course, he could also ignore that and focus on raising his wizard ranking first. However, his battle might would then be pitiful. If a high-ranked wizard only grasped a few spells, that would be a disgrace to all of the same rank as him.

'Come to think of it, I wonder if the spell models of varying ranks in the Magus World can be modified to be used in the World of Gods? But the amount of time required for that would be too terrifying…'

Leylin had a tentative plan to make the path of Magi available to the World of Gods. It was an all-inclusive path that centered around the truth, and of all the paths to power it was very flexible and adaptable.

It was plausible to conduct research into producing Magi in the World of Gods, people who could cast spells without the Weave. However, that would require a great deal of processing power. Most of the A.I. Chip's resources were focused on the analysis of the Weave, and in a situation where it had no spare time to run simulations in this area he could only shelve his plans for now.

'Research on casting spells without the Weave is definitely a huge taboo in the World of Gods. I'm afraid I'll only be able to do something in that field after I become a Legend.'

Leylin stroked his chin, 'But if I'm able to get information on this, even if incomplete, the A.I. Chip's rate of analysis will be increased by a great amount… I'm sure there were many Magi participating in the Ancient War who had the same thoughts as I do now…'

While thinking this, Leylin entered the mission hall in the Mercenary Guild. Numerous large fireplaces were blazing in the place, making the hall seem cozy. The many mercenaries were split into their own cliques. Some were drinking and making merry, while others were gazing at the huge mission board at the centre of the hall, discussing things amongst themselves occasionally.

The aroma of strong rum, coupled with that of roasted meat and bread, lingered in Leylin's nose.

"High-grade mission: Purging ogres! Only mercenary groups that are gold-ranked and above may take this on." This mission was on the top of the board, written in huge bold font. The great rewards caused many mercenaries to drool at the sight, but few dared to go forward.

"Yeah! I heard that a bunch of ogres migrated towards one of the main paths to the capital. They've already attacked numerous caravans and passersby, it's no wonder that the rewards are so plentiful!"

Hearing the surrouding mercenaries whispering amongst themselves, Leylin had a better understanding of the mission.

'An ogre tribe? No wonder it's a high-ranked mission!' Leylin nodded inside. The classification of mercenaries was very simple. The lowest was copper, followed by silver and gold. Gold mercenaries were already high-grade and possessed immense experience, and were usually powerful Professionals.

Above gold-rank, was said to be Mithril and Platinum. However, in general, they would not be in such people a small city like Emon City.

Gold-ranked mercenary groups were powerful troops with numerous gold-ranked mercenaries. Only this level of strength would be effective against an ogre tribe.

Leylin looked at the bottom of the mission board. There were many missions to clear ogres out here and there, from the lowest ranked to powerful ogre shamans. All that one was required to do was bring back their ears as proof, and the difficulty was lower. Once in a while, a few mercenaries would go over to discuss before taking on the missions.

"A large-scale ogre tribe has more than 200 ogres. The shamans will have bloodlines, with abilities similar to magic. On top of that, the ogres themselves are resistant to magic…" Leylin muttered to himself.

"I won't be able to handle this myself unless I take the long route. However, that'll consume a lot of time, and I'll need to pass through a few dangerous regions, and the danger isn't all that different from the ogre tribes. There are even drake tribes there…"

"Seems like I'll have to wait for some large-scaled mercenary groups to complete missions or join some caravan…" Leylin mumbled to himself. He was preparing to go the capital, and even without Ernest's recommendation letter, he had enough power to enter the Wizards' Guild. Over there, he would be able to obtain the newest intel and the like.

"On top of that, even if I were to prepare to travel to the north to train, I'll definitely need to pass through the Dambrath Kingdom…" Leylin sighed. He went to the front desk counter near him belonging to the guild, "Give me cider. Are there any missions soon that will take me to the capital? The best would be those with large groups. I want something safe!"

As he said this, a silver krona appeared in his hand, emitting a tempting light in the air.

"Do you have urgent matters to attend to in the capital? That's no problem at all. A large caravan is going there soon, and they're recruiting people because of those wretched ogres!" Seeing the light in Leylin's hands, the attendant gulped and then responded. A tyrant like Leylin obviously gained more abundant and specific details.

After setting a time with the attendant, Leylin headed to the entrance of the Mercenary Guild. The streets of Emon City were very desolate, probably having to do with the double blow with the sea trade and the ogres.

Seeing the many stores that were closed, Leylin was about to return to meditate in his inn when a grey-robed person blocked his way.

"Mister, please whip me ruthlessly!" In front of Leylin was a young female in grey robes. She was pretty and was clad in coarse sackcloth clothing, and there were also many scars at her neck and cuffs.

Currently, she was standing in front of him with a look of anticipation, two hands holding a thorny whip. The numerous tiny thorns looked extremely sinister on it.

She looked pure and holy, ready to die for a just cause, and had a resoluteness that only belonged to crazed followers. There was even a hint of anticipation.

"What's with this… a trap?" Leylin's eyes went past the crazy woman and landed on a little girl next to her. She was holding a donation box of the church, and after noticing his attention was on her, she especially shook the box such that the coins inside made sharp and crisp noises.

Leylin saw a strange holy emblem at the little girl's chest.

"So you're a priest of the Mistress of the Whip!" Thankfully, Leylin had seen much in the world and recognised her identity.

"Yes! Please help with our praying ritual and allow my soul to obtain redemption through suffering!" The female answered seriously, and then thrust the whip into his hands.

"I… I… I…" Leylin was completely speechless now. He wanted to escape, but the passersby thought nothing of it. Some even looked over with knowing smiles.

Misunderstanding

The Goddess of Weeping, also known as Mistress of the Whip, was called Amyter. She was a kind-hearted goddess, and her teachings included having her followers redeem their souls through suffering.

It was like when a forest was larger, birds were all the same. In the World of Gods, a few exotic gods existed, and this crying female was one of them.

The God of Suffering, Ilmater, taught his followers to suffer and endure the pain, but Amyter was different. She even requested that her priests and followers abuse themselves and obtain redemption through suffering!

Oh Gods! Even if Ilmater requested his followers to endure, he never wanted them to actively abuse themselves!

Hence, in simpler terms, Amyter's followers were a bunch of insane people who abused themselves, especially the priests.

Whenever there was a huge celebration, Amyter's priests and followers would gather, using lashes, wooden cangues and even red hot brands to 'pray'. This would earn themselves favour from the goddess, and amongst the divine spells the goddess granted were some that raised one's endurance of pain.

Gods like these had no market amongst regular commoners and were rarely seen. Leylin had almost not recognised her at the beginning, though she seemed to be welcomed by some exceptional enthusiasts.

This priestess of the goddess walked along the streets, praying for passersby to bestow pain on her to gain donations. This was an event that their church retained.

"I apologise, but I believe in the God of Knowledge, Oghma… This is just…" Leylin knew he was no pervert and immediately used an excuse.

"The goddess taught us not to mind the identity of the person inflicting pain on us, because they give us the redemption that is in suffering. We need to be grateful towards them… Please help me with my prayer!" The priestess looked resolute.

"I…" Leylin was rendered speechless. In addition, an increasing number of people were gathering, and he wanted to escape as soon as possible.

Just as Leylin tossed a gold coin to the little girl's donation box and raised the whip, as if preparing to finish it in one go, he suddenly felt his hair stand on end. It was like he was being stared at by some terrifying beast.

Knowing something was off, he dodged, evading a frightening qi slash.

*Crash!* The powerful qi blade of light swept the area Leylin had stood at and smashed the limestone behind him to smithereens, revealing the strength of the person who had launched the sneak attack.

Along with this attack came the dainty call from a young girl, "Ah… Such despicable behaviour of bullying women is just an insult to my way as a knight. I, Rafiniya, won't let you off!"

"Which moron is it?"

Leylin turned back furiously. It was bad enough being requested to abuse someone by their request, but he was now being treated as a thug who was bullying the weak. Even with his thick skin, he was beginning to get ashamed.

"You dare do this but not admit to it? Everyone on the streets saw your violent behaviour, you despicable bastard!"

The person who had attacked him was a young and beautiful female knight, her wine-red long hair tied into a ponytail. Her pretty cheeks were now flushed in her anger, eyes fixed on Leylin and shooting out hatred. It was as if she could not wait to bite off a piece of flesh from Leylin.

"A high-ranked knight? Have you even made sense of the situation yet?" Leylin looked at the way this knight was dressed and the tall warhorse behind her, rather surprised.

Though they were still a physical Profession, knights were far removed from warriors. Not only was their armour extremely expensive, but a warhorse that one could ride into battle was not so easily obtained.

A warhorse was worth over ten times as much as a regular one, and on top of that it needed a specialised groomer and other service Professionals in charge of it. In exchange, it allowed a knight's destructive power to be far ahead of a warrior's.

In addition, high-ranked ones could, after affirming their faith, turn into knights of gods, learning to cast spells. Such Professionals were the ideal prince charming in the hearts of many young girls.

'To be able to become a high-ranked Professional at such a young age, this doll must have a pretty good background. She should be nobility…' Leylin sized her up. Through the attack just now, he could estimate that she should be at or above rank 10 as a knight.

'A.I. Chip, scan!' He commanded on the inside.

[Beep! Mission established, beginning scan…] The A.I. Chip loyally carried out his instructions, and soon enough, a passage of information was relayed.

[Name: Rafiniya. Gender: Female. Strength: 10 Agility: 6 Vitality: 7 Spirit: 5(Estimate). Rank 10 Knight. Abilities: 1. Abilities increase from 11-19% in power when mounted. 2. Armour: Full body knight armour has increased physical defence, but led to a similar decrease in resistance towards magic.]

'As expected of a high-ranked Professional, She even has a boost from her mount!' Leylin nodded inside. However, brazenly sizing her up was only making her more angry.

"What's wrong with this city? How can these hoodlums commit such evil in broad daylight? Has this place turned into a city praying to the devils and demons?"

The female knight's chest bounced up and down. The teasing gazes of the passersby only made her more infuriated.

"Please withdraw your unfair allegations!" At this moment, the priestess of Amyter stood out. "Our Lady Amyter, opposes all evil! In addition, you need to apologise for interrupting my prayer ceremony, else you'll be profaning our Lady!"

"Huh! What? W- Why?" Rafiniya's mouth widened slowly, and she looked stunned.

Following that, a patrol guard separated the crowd and came up to them, staring at the female knight with malicious intent, "You've destroyed the appearance of the city. Based on city hall law number 329, you must pay a fine of 10 gold kronas, or else we'll have to place you in prison…"

...

"Oh God of Justice! This actually happens? There's no such person at my old place…" After the ruckus, the surrounding crowd, patrolling soldiers and the priestess quickly left, leaving Leylin and the female knight Rafiniya behind.

However, her face was like a huge red apple. This was her shame. However, at the mention of the goddess's name, the girl immediately halted. No matter how preposterous and strange this goddess' style was, she was still a goddess! She needed to show respect at least on the surface, or she'd risk being put on trial by the other churches.

"You must be from another area, right? This goddess really doesn't have a great reputation, but it's best to find out about stuff like this before leaving on travels. The consequences of doing something taboo will be dire…" Leylin gravely reprimanded her, controlling his urge to laugh.

After the fine had been paid, the priestess of Amyter had requested a very strange compensation of Rafiniya— she wanted the knight to whip her ruthlessly!

Leylin 'kindly' handed his share of this matter over to the girl, getting her to do it as an apology. It was obviously humiliating for this knight who seemed noble and refined to lash a weak person like a scoundrel.

Thankfully, everything was soon over, or else Leylin reckoned Rafiniya would probably commit suicide.

"I understand!" She went over to the side of her war horse, showing her back to Leylin to hide her embarrassment, "I apologise for what happened just now. I shouldn't have treated you that way before making sense of the situation!"

As a knight, Rafiniya still did as should be based on the code of honour. At the very least, she had done well upholding justice, and was willing to change after learning that she was in the wrong.

"My name is Rafiniya, and I'm a travelling knight. Nice to meet you!"

"Mm. My name is Ley; I'm a mercenary." Leylin scratched his head.

A travelling knight? That was practically a joke! It was well-known that knights had huge requirements when it came to logistics. Without a professional groom and someone maintaining armour as well as weapons, a knight was useless.

Leylin looked at the warhorse behind her sympathetically. As expected, it was already looking dispirited and showed signs of malnutrition.

'It's already strange that a noble lady is training to be a knight. She's even travelling alone. How open is her family? Or is this perhaps one of those people who are escaping marriage?'

Being eyed by Leylin, Rafiniya lowered her head, slightly ashamed. She abruptly got onto her war horse, elegant and speedy, showing the results of bitter training, "Though there was a misundering in our meeting, things thankfully ended well. May I know the way to the Mercenary Guild?"

"Head east, and you'll find it quickly!" Leylin was speechless at this young girl, who looked like she'd been brainwashed by stories of knights.

"Thank you very much! Someday, under the guidance of fate, we'll meet again!" She naturally urged her handsome horse forward, and the mount snorted as it darted away.

"But that's the west. You're going in the wrong direction…" Leylin watched the direction in which she had left, but she had already disappeared.

"High-ranked knights who are directionally challenged are really quite rare. Sse didn't prepare much and is adventuring. Hopefully, she won't get attacked by ogres or gnomes and become jerky…" Leylin silently prayed for her and then returned to his inn.

For him, all that had happened today was merely a fun event in the long journey that was life. It was not worthy to ruminate over.