Chapter 113

#113 Episode: Tin Knight and the Land of Sea Breeze (2)

Outside the monitor, you burst into laughter.

Franka clutched her head, wondering how timing could be this off, but to you, it felt like the most obvious flow.

I mean, we just arrived at a port city; how could the ship set sail without any problems?

Whether the weather was a disaster, sea monsters were rampaging, or even pirates were causing a ruckus, something going wrong was only natural.

In terms of the game, this was expected, totally, uh, well.

Suddenly, you looked around inside the Tin Knight.

You saw Dorothea, Adelheid, and Sophia.

You, in front of the monitor, also glanced around.

You saw a lonely room with nothing in it.

A small question arose in a corner of your mind.

Is this really a game?

Are they all just characters?

What if it’s not a game? If they all are real, then what about this situation? What about this mysterious little room? What about your state?

You felt a suffocating sensation.

The more you contemplated seriously and deeply, the more it felt like you were sinking into deep water, shackled at your feet.

You stopped thinking.

The more you acted frivolously, impulsively, according to your mood, the more that frustration faded away.

Once again, the sensation returned, as if you were dreaming, floating away.

You even forgot what you had been worrying about until now.

You decided to enjoy the adventure unfolding before you.

***

[“The Tin Knight asks who he should tackle first among the three!”]

[“The Tin Knight says since they’ve come to the sea, he wants to change his weapon to something like a pirate sword!”]

Upon hearing the Tin Knight’s words, Adelheid tilted her head.

“Do they even have weapons specifically for pirates?”

Sophia replied, “Maybe she’s talking about a cutlass? You know, the one that’s curved?”

“Ah-ha.”

Dorothea, watching the bizarre scene of a vampire sealed for 500 years explaining weapons to a modern knight’s family girl, let out a deep sigh.

When it comes to any situation, people who have already experienced it tend to respond quicker than those encountering it for the first time.

Franka couldn’t shake off the shock of her meticulously crafted plan being utterly smashed, but having gone through similar experiences a few times, Dorothea forcibly pulled Franka’s wits back together.

“Hey. Funny head.”

“…Are you talking to me?”

“We’re not on friendly terms to call each other by name. More importantly, how much time do we have left? I mean, how long until the South Witch realizes you’ve gone missing and takes action?”

Franka momentarily had a startled expression, but it seemed she realized it was an important issue, as she soon responded seriously.

“Considering the time it took to get here and how long it’d take to reach the island with the Master, at least by tomorrow morning. Even if we dawdled, we should leave by evening.”

“Is there any way to buy more time?”

“If there was, I would’ve used it already.”

“So we have to solve everything in one day, huh?”

Dorothea thought.

She couldn’t know if this was just bad luck or someone’s scheming, but one thing was for sure: wasting more time here wouldn’t be good for anyone.

“First, we need to…”

“No, never mind.”

Though Dorothea intended to split up their forces to resolve matters quickly as usual, she thought for a moment and changed her mind.

‘It’s risky to scatter when the West Witch is nearby. Who knows when that Alingd guy may strike. Considering the time limit, it’s better to stick together.’

“Pirates, sea monsters, and the weather are issues, right? Setting aside the others, wouldn’t it be quicker to just pay the ransom and get the hostages back?”

Thud! The Tin Knight looked over at Dorothea with disbelief.

[“The Tin Knight is astonished!”]

[“The Tin Knight insists he cannot succumb to a filthy hostage situation!”]

Dorothea lightly dismissed the Tin Knight’s words, while Franka hadn’t even heard them at all.

Franka hesitated but soon asked one of her subordinates.

“So, how much did those trashy pirates demand?”

“Um, that is…”

As the subordinate fidgeted while stating the amount, Adelheid gasped once she heard it.

Even Dorothea, who usually wouldn’t care since it wasn’t her money, flinched momentarily.

Sophia touched her lips and said, “Hmm, based on the prices from the books, with that amount, you could probably get two new galleons. Even accounting for the wages of several skilled sailors, it’s an unreasonable rip-off.”

Franka too revealed her displeasure, frowning, as it wasn’t a sum she would easily part with.

The subordinate bowed, appearing guilty.

“…I apologize for not managing the personnel properly, Miss.”

“Forget about it. I’ll deal with accountability later, just be ready with the money.”

***

Strictly speaking, Franka wasn’t a compassionate employer who cared that much for her men.

The reason she readily agreed to the deal wasn’t because she valued the sailors; rather, she realized that if something happened to them now, it would mess up the operation to rescue the kids.

She viewed it as an investment for her cute golden-winged monkeys.

However, there was one thing she hadn’t expected.

“─Why, are there only half the people?”

Criminals don’t get moved when victims respond ‘sincerely’—instead, they take advantage of the situation, thinking they’ve got a good mark.

With a voice suppressing anger, Franka confronted the pirates who were boasting about their deeds.

“That’s because the market rate has changed since.”

“From our side, we asked for a ransom right away, and yet you dragged the negotiations along with your nonsense!”

“During that time, we had to feed, clothe, and shelter your subordinates, so we need to compensate for that, don’t you understand?”

Franka’s subordinates were livid.

“Don’t talk nonsense! Didn’t you say before that if we simply brought the agreed amount, you’d release them without any conditions?”

“Even if you mention food costs and whatever, how much could that be within just a day or two?”

Moreover, it was evident they hadn’t bothered to care for the hostages’ health at all when you looked at their pitiful state restrained by ropes and gags.

“Ah, enough with the chatter. With that amount, I can only free half of them. For the rest, you’ll have to bring the same amount again to release them. You’ll need time to prepare the new funds, so let’s meet back in about three days.”

But the pirates were brazen.

Their confident attitude carried even a sense of leisure.

“Just a heads-up, you’d better not entertain any foolish ideas. If anything happens to us, the remaining half of the hostages back at our base won’t be safe!”

No matter how strong Franka and her subordinates were, they couldn’t reach out to hostages situated elsewhere.

Of course, if they managed to free those hostages, they could find themselves in real danger…

‘If we don’t run into these guys again, we’ll be fine.’

From the start, the pirates never intended to conduct a proper transaction.

They were just pretending to extort more money using half the hostages, making the other side believe they’d get a second chance.

By doing so, whether out of concern for the safety of the remaining hostages or the thought of wanting to catch them next time even if they let them go now, they’d generally manage to pass the buck without issues.

However, once they let any of them go, that would be the end of it.

By the time Franka and her group realized they had been tricked, the pirates would have already fled far, far away.

At least, in the way of deceiving people, they were pretty decent at it.

However, what they hadn’t accounted for was…

[“The Tin Knight says that if they’re pirates, they should at least know how to handle a ship!”]

[“The Tin Knight asks if they can’t just capture those guys and make them work for us!”]

A witch watching the situation unfold with a discontent expression perked her ears up to a lunatic’s bizarre idea.

And as previously mentioned, the necromancer, who had little interest in the safety of the hostages, immediately shouted “let’s do it!” at the suggestion.

Then, the Tin Knight started going wild.

Click!

“What, what’s that?! Where did this guy pop out from—cough!”

“You bastards! I don’t care what happens to the hostages right now!”

“Ki, kiiiii!”

Though the Tin Knight was rampaging bare-handed without even drawing his sword, it was enough of a disaster for the pirates.

The violent force emanating from a full-body metallic figure standing over 180 cm tall was something that mere low-level thugs wouldn’t dare handle.

Watching the pirates being subdued one by one, Franka began issuing orders to her men.

“Bring me some wood and metal sheets.”

Her subordinates swiftly carried out the command, and soon wooden planks and metal sheets were delivered.

Before the subdued pirates kneeling, Franka reached for the prepared materials.

The items touched by Franka’s hands were chopped and merged in any way, transforming into a rectangular plate about the width of a person’s shoulder.

In the center of the plate was a hole for a person’s neck, and there were mechanisms on the edges for closing it.

Upon Franka’s signal, her subordinates fitted the plate around the pirates’ necks.

Before the pirates’ eyes, Franka inserted a long piece of wood into the hole of the plate.

And then, she snapped her fingers.

Swish!

A blade installed inside the plate moved, and the wooden piece was split right in half.

The color drained from the pirates’ faces.

“Anyone who doesn’t obey my orders or causes trouble, watch out. I’ll warn you beforehand: my patience is not very high.”

[“The Tin Knight is satisfied with this proper outcome!”]

Beside them, Adelheid gave a skeptical expression.

“Uh, is this really going to work? It feels like there’s something else we need to worry about…”

Sophia replied, “With not one but two witches here, isn’t this a bargain considering the price?”

“Still, what about the remaining hostages?”

“If we’ve secured the pirates, then perhaps Franka’s subordinates could handle them.”

“Ah, in that case.”

Adelheid accepted it.

Maybe due to past experiences, she was surprisingly ruthless when it came to thieves.

Hostage situation: Rescued (1/1)

Rampaging Sea Serpent: (0/1)

Weather Calming Ritual: (0/1)

First mission: Complete.

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