Jack looked at Theo in surprise.
“T-The ruler?”
The boy’s reaction was good for his age, but he wasn’t lucky today. Randolph and Theo both instantly read the falseness in Jack’s voice.
The war hero, Alfred Bellontes, was well known for his ruthlessness when it came to interrogations, and the memories Theo inherited allowed him to see that Jack was hiding something.
However, it was too early to startle the snake in the bush.
“Is the question that surprising? This is like a village, so wouldn’t the Pirate Archipelago have a boss? I don’t think the pirates would tolerate a democracy.”
So Theo took a step back. Their guide was just a boy, and probably wouldn’t respond well to forced means. It was better to gather clues from the story he would tell than pushing through haphazardly.
Jack slowly relaxed. “Oh, that’s what you meant.”
“It is my first visit, so I have a lot to ask you. This is yours if you answer me.” As Theo spoke, he pulled out two five gold coins, making Jack’s eyes shine.
Jack’s worries didn’t last long. This was the Pirate Archipelago, an island of outlaws who ignored law and ethics. In this place, the most important thing was power. Those who had more power, either through violence or power, would have the upper hand. Ten gold was absolutely fascinating for a boy who had grown up on the Pirate Archipelago.
Jack’s lips parted slowly, “… Should I tell you?”
Jack put on an exaggerated expression, as if he was breaking a great confidence, and looked around.
When Theo nodded, the boy started to whisper, “There are a few people on the island who act like kings. Weren’t you guided by some pirate ships when you came to this island?”
Theo nodded again. “Yes.”
“Did you see a man with one eye wearing accessories made of human skulls?”
As soon as Theo heard the description of the skull ornaments and eyepatch, he recalled the man who had been chatting with the captain of the passenger ship. Jack noticed his expression and nodded.
“‘Captain’ Virtus, that’s what the islanders call him.”
Jack grew more excited as he started to expand on his story. There were four people on the island who were in positions of power. There was the captain who led visitors here, but also the ruler of each zone of the island.
Red Light District’s Queen Bee, ‘Queen’ Maeve.
Godfather of the Casino, ‘Gold Toad’ Todd.
Stolen Goods Big Spender, ‘Thief’ Lupian.
Each one was responsible for one axis of the Pirate Archipelago. They had thoroughly divided their roles and areas, so they didn’t get into conflicts with each other. It was a fairly orderly structure for a lawless zone. Well, if this order hadn’t existed, the island of criminals would’ve already collapsed.
“How interesting,” Theo whispered before flicking one gold coin toward Jack. “But that isn’t all, is it?”
Jack caught the coin. “Huh?”
“The people you mentioned are the present. It would’ve been strange if there were no conflicts when the four organizations were being established.” As he rolled the remaining gold around between his fingers, Theo met Jack’s greedy eyes. “Is there perhaps someone on top of those four people?”
Theo had invested nearly thirty minutes of listening to a useless story for this answer. The story of the four criminals was good, but it wasn’t what he needed. From the very beginning, Theo had been wondering about the identity of the person who had created a barrier around the islands and forged this criminal paradise.
“T-T-That…” Jack followed the moving gold coin with his eyes before closing them. Perhaps he didn’t know, or couldn’t tell. “I-I don’t know.”
It seemed this was the limit of Jack’s greed. Theo was about to put away the gold coin when…
“B-But! I will tell you everything that I do know!” Jack called out half a beat later, in a desperate attempt to stop Theo’s hand.
***
“One gold for a single room and two gold for a double room per day. If it is a special room, one gold is added to each price.”
The innkeeper looked at the two people greedily as he rubbed his palms together. It was a few times more expensive than accommodations on land, but this was the listed price for the Pirate Archipelago. Anyway, it wasn’t that overpriced for visitors. Randolph’s eyebrows twitched at the absurd amount, but Theo handed the gold coins over without any objections.
The two of them were able to get two rooms, where they would be staying for the next ten days. Randolph took off his heavy armor in the room and spoke first, “So, Young Master, what are you going to do now?”
“I’m not sure.” Theo smiled wryly and sat down on the bed.
It might’ve cost ten gold, but the information he got from Jack was worth the cost. It might not seem like it to Jack, but both Theo and Randolph thought so. He had told them of a legend that the four zones and rulers of the Pirate Archipelago had in common.
“It is a problem if there really is a ‘sea god.’”
Sea god… If a church had heard him, Theo might be accused of blasphemy. Jack had never been there, but the island at the center of the Pirate Archipelago was rumored to have a temple dedicated to the sea god. In the end, it was nothing more than a rumor. Nevertheless, both of them sensed it at that moment.
The sea god was the true ruler of this island.
If the sea god created that fog… we can’t afford to go against it.
Theo had encountered several master class and legendary brings in the past, so he guessed it easily. There was only a little bit of power left in the fog, but he had felt goosebumps all over.
The sea god controlled the sea. He couldn’t even imagine how strong it was. It was an ability that was the exact opposite of a magician, who produced results efficiently. This was a limitless power which could twist reality.
“… It’s just a guess, but I don’t think the opponent is a human.”
A human with such power wouldn’t use it in such primitive ways. Just the fog covering the Pirate Archipelago was beyond the capacity of an elder class magician. Even Theo wouldn’t be able to pull off something half the size of the fog he had passed through. In order to maintain the fog so naturally that it was like breathing, a minimum of eight circles would be needed.
Randolph accepted Theo’s assumption without questioning it. “I think so too. I have seen a few of the empire’s Seven Swords from a distance, but the presence on this island is on another level.”
“The whole island seems to be its realm, so the environmental conditions are disadvantageous to us. It isn’t something we can face, even if we combine our powers.”
“Right. Then what do we do?”
Theo shrugged. They hadn’t come here with some unreasonable mission of subjugating the Pirate Archipelago. It was just a coincidence they had encountered while running from the Orcus Company. There was no reason to recklessly make an enemy out of an unfathomable opponent.
“Our top priority is hiding from the Orcus Company. I don’t think they can chase us to the Pirate Archipelago. Well, anyone who does chase us will be blocked by the fog.”
If he looked at it differently, this island was a fortress. Uninvited guests would be stymied by the fog, so there was no need to reveal their identity. The presence of the being which ruled the island was scary if it was an enemy, but it was reassuring for those in hiding.
“It’s a rational choice. I understand.”
Of course, Randolph might be tempted to call Theo’s choice cowardly. However, Randolph was a mercenary, not a knight. He would rather step back and wait instead of risking his life in a meaninglife battle. Just like the case with the Elder Lich, there was no point gambling if there was an easier path. After all, he didn’t have a hobby of crawling toward death.
.
The two men finished their meeting and entered their rooms.
Theo, whose mind had been busy racing, started breathing calmly. Now that the choice of fighting the sea god was dismissed, what should he do with this time?
My goal of escaping the Orcus Company’s hands has been accomplished.
At least, as long as they stayed in this Pirate Archipelago. It would also take some time for the next cruise ship to arrive. Jack had informed them that the cruise ship usually stayed for around ten to fourteen days before leaving for the original destination. Theo thought about what he could do during this break.
“Gluttony.”
This was a chance to find out more about the Transmission feature.
– You called.?
As always, the voice came from the hole in Theo’s left palm.
“You spoke to me last time about Transmission.”
–?Mhmm.
“You said the process I went through with Alfred was not the exception rather the norm. If I remember right, you mentioned a process of gradually assimilating the soul or something.”
Gluttony had only quickly mentioned it, but Theo’s extraordinary memory had captured every word without missing a single detail. In the end, Gluttony answered the question. 𝙚𝙙𝙤𝒗𝒆𝒍．𝒄𝙤𝙢
– Yes, that’s right.
“Teach me how to use Transmission. This is a question regarding your function, so it doesn’t count as a question and answer.”
– … Okay.
Theo carefully listened while inwardly suppressing his delight.
– First, Transmission is my 4th?stage function. It was designed as a means of using Overwrite more efficiently. Once the author’s soul is loaded, you can use that ability to absorb the soul.
Theo was aware of this much already. He had suffered terrible pain after using Transmission on Alfred and absorbing his soul. If Pride had not attacked him, Theo’s ego might have collapsed and he could have died. Soul fusion was a dangerous and unstable act.
However, according to Gluttony, Theo had chosen a particularly dangerous path.
– As you’ve experienced before, mixing the souls directly involves great risk.So, there is a separate process in Transmission.
“Process?”
– Yes.That process is called a Quest.
As Theo rolled the word ‘quest’ around in his mouth, Gluttony continued explaining.
– Users can talk to the authors of the devoured original books and absorb the fragment of soul by removing the desires that they’ve left behind.
“… In other words, do something for them?”
– That’s right.If you want, you can ask them their wishes right now by calling out ‘Lee Yoonsung’ or ‘Satomer.’
– Who do you want to call first??
Theo only considered for a moment before replying, “The author of [Battle Song], Lee Yoonsung.”