Karnak, Monarch of Death

Chapter 290: Dragon’s Isle (2)

Finding a ship, however, turned out to be harder than expected.

”We don’t go to the Tapiel Islands,” the shipmaster said.

It was because of pirates.

”Pirates? There are pirates around here?” Serati asked.

The shipmaster nodded. ”Of course. When there’s cargo worth stealing, pirates aren’t far behind.”

Port Terrister was one of the empire’s main hubs for sea trade and also dealt with the Seven Kingdoms. That meant plenty of lucrative merchant ships constantly coming and going.

”There was a time when piracy wasn’t this bad, though.”

He said there had once been a major crackdown by the empire. It had launched full-scale operations and left countless pirates hanging from the gallows. But the world had changed.

He added bitterly, ”Ever since that damned Shadow of Doom showed up...”

Many among the pirates had come to possess the power of darkness. As if they weren’t already brutal and bloodthirsty enough, now they had necromancy at their disposal as well. Because of that, the southern sea of the empire had become a hellish domain where undead pirates roamed rampant.

”That’s why the regular merchant fleets travel in convoys. If a ship sets sail alone or in pairs, it becomes easy prey,” the shipmaster added.

Leven murmured in understanding. ”No wonder the harbor’s so packed with docked ships...”

And now Karnak’s party intended to venture out on their own? Moreover, to the Tapiel Islands, which was practically a pirate stronghold?

”Absolutely not,” the shipmaster said firmly.

Karnak signaled. Try it.

Varos stepped forward. Understood.

He pulled out a hefty handful of gold coins. Fifty Lacanian imperial coins, to be exact.

”Would this be enough?” Varos said.

It was a considerable amount. The shipmaster’s expression wavered for a moment... but then he shook his head. ”If the ship sinks, I’ll still be at a loss, even with that.”

Varos silently added another handful, doubling the offer. ”What about now?”

”Mmm...” The shipmaster let out a low groan.

Temptation clawed at him. At this rate, even if he lost the ship, the gold might still make up for it. But if he lost his captain and crew as well?

”I can’t put human lives on the bargaining table.” He was, evidently, a man of some principle.

So Karnak gave another signal.

—Raise it again. Let’s see how long that conscience holds.

—At this rate, our purse is going to run dry before his morals do...

And he wasn’t wrong. Doubling the offer once more would be impressive... but they simply didn’t have the funds. Even with their recent windfalls, two hundred Lacanian gold coins was no small sum.

Converted into Eustil’s Terakel, it would be around 1,400 coins. That was more than what Karnak spent when absorbing the Altas merchant guild.

”Tch... what now?” Karnak frowned in frustration. Given the current situation, he had no idea how Diogres had managed to hire a ship.

”No choice, then.” He stood up and addressed the shipmaster. ”Could we speak in private for a moment?”

Milia tilted her head. ”What are you going to do?”

”I’m going to persuade him.”

The shipmaster stood with him, chuckling wryly. ”No matter what you say, sir, I won’t be persuaded.”

He still addressed Karnak with polite honorifics, but it was clear he thought of him as just another naive youth. Does he really think having a private word now is going to change anything?

The two of them moved into the adjacent room and closed the door. A brief silence followed, and then came a strange sound.

”Per! Suade!”

Lapicel tilted her head in confusion. She couldn’t quite imagine what was going on inside.

Moments later, the shipmaster reemerged. ”Ten gold coins will suffice. I’ll take you there. Let’s go.”

This, from the same man who had refused even fifty coins just moments ago. Now he was willing to go for the standard rate.

Lapicel was amazed. Lord Karnak is really persuasive!

***

But convincing the shipmaster wasn’t the end of it. A ship didn’t sail itself. It needed a crew, and they were vocally opposed.

”To the Tapiel Islands!?”

”Are you all insane!?”

”You think we’ve got more than one life to throw away!?”

They couldn’t be persuaded like the shipmaster. The shipmaster wasn’t boarding the ship himself, but the sailors would be manning it the entire time. If Karnak tampered with their minds, who knew what long-term effects it might have?

So this time, he tried reason. ”Are you truly so afraid of these pirates?”

The crew all nodded.

”Of course we’re afraid.”

”Some of them are powerful necromancers!”

”How could we not be afraid?”

Karnak smiled. ”Good. If that’s all that’s stopping you, then we’re in luck.”

He gave a subtle signal to his companions. Milia stepped forward, and a divine glow radiated from her.

”Ah!”

”She’s a priest?”

”And so young!”

Karnak spoke in a relaxed tone. ”As you can see, we have an inquisitor who specializes in dealing with necromancers...”

At his signal, Serati, Leven, and Lapicel each drew their swords slightly. Brilliant blue and purple auras shimmered across the deck, filling the air with pressure. The sailors’ eyes widened in shock.

”Aura users?”

”And not just any... Blue?”

”Is that purple?”

”They’re on par with knight captains at least!”

Then, to drive the point home, Karnak and Varos stepped forward.

Flames flared up from both of Karnak’s hands. ”I also happen to be fairly proficient in magic.”

Silver aura surged from Varos’s sword.

”And this guy isn’t someone who gets beaten up easily, either,” continued Karnak.

The sailors stood frozen, their jaws agape. ”Si-silver knight...?”

Someone who had reached the level of silver aura wasn’t merely above average. They were monsters capable of tipping the fate of an entire nation. Their attitudes flipped on the spot.

”Let’s go!”

”Time to teach those pirate bastards a lesson!”

***

The evening after Karnak’s party set sail, the harbor tavern was as bustling as ever with sailors. Each man cradled a mug of ale, boisterously chatting away. Their topic tonight? The strange group of outsiders who had come through just a few days earlier.

”Were they really aura users?”

”Not just any aura users. There was silver aura, apparently.”

”Silver’s just below martial king, right?”

”What the hell was a master like that doing in little ol’ Terrister Port?”

Excitement buzzed in the air. They’d been suffering under the threat of pirates for ages, but now powerful aura users, a mage, and even an inquisitor had shown up.

”Those pirates are finally gonna get what’s coming to them!”

”They were nobodies before. Then they stumbled on some dark power and started acting all high and mighty!”

In high spirits, the sailors drank and laughed the night away. Which is why none of them noticed that some of the other patrons were watching them with keen interest. It was a group dressed like ordinary travelers, easily mistaken for just another crew passing through.

But if anyone had known their true identities, a wave of terror would’ve swept through that humble tavern. They were none other than an elite squad from the Church of the Black God, handpicked from among the most deadly.

”A mage, and...”

”An aura user at silver level?”

Twirling their glasses, the cultists exchanged subtle grins.

”We’ve found Diogres Kolon.”

But one of them tilted his head, confused. ”Wait a moment...”

”A couple days ago?”

According to their information, Diogres had set sail days earlier.

”The timeline doesn’t quite add up, does it?”

They exchanged uncertain looks, but quickly dismissed the thought.

”Still, there’s no mistake.”

Whatever the case, silver knights were extremely rare. Even across the vast empire, only a handful existed.

One of them said with a chuckle. ”No way there are two silver knights hanging around this backwater port.”

***

Azure waves glimmered under the afternoon sun across the open sea. A sleek sailboat cut through the waters. It was the vessel Karnak’s group had hired. It was named the Osprey’s Roar.

”Do ospreys even roar?” Lapicel asked, frowning slightly at the odd name.

But no one else paid it much attention. After all, ship names were the owner’s prerogative. Whether it roared or spat fire didn’t really matter. In any case, it was a rare clear day. The blue waters of the southern sea sparkled beautifully under the sunlight. It was truly a picturesque scene.

Two figures stood watching the view while retching their guts out. It was Karnak and Milia. Both were suffering terribly from seasickness.

”Ugh, I’m gonna die,” Karnak complained.

”Was seasickness always this awful?” Milia chimed in.

Serati offered a wry smile as she gently patted their backs. ”You two have it rough, huh?”

Milia grumbled in protest. ”I’m not the only one on a ship for the first time! So why is everyone else completely fine?”

Karnak replied with a jealous tone. ”Because aura users have ridiculous physical endurance. Things like seasickness don’t bother them.”

It made sense. Aura users could roll and leap in combat for hours. If they were vulnerable to motion sickness, they wouldn’t be able to fight at all.

In contrast, mages and priests had to move only their hands and mouths. For them, seasickness was a death sentence.

Looking back at Karnak, Milia offered a strained smile. ”Still, it’s a bit comforting to know you’re suffering too, captain.”

”Funny thing is, I feel the same,” he responded.

Karnak had been on ships before. He’d expected seasickness to hit him this hard. What he hadn’t experienced before was someone else suffering right alongside him. Even if he was miserable, having someone to commiserate with somehow made it feel a bit lighter.

So this is what empathy feels like, he thought.

He was becoming more human by the day. It made him happy, but it also annoyed the hell out of him.

”Still, we haven’t run into any pirates. Are we really going to reach the islands without a single fight,” Karnak muttered while gazing lazily across the sea.

Suddenly, a shout rang out from the crow’s nest. ”Contact! Pirates sighted!”

”Tch. You just had to jinx it, didn’t you?” Serati scoffed and turned her gaze toward the distant horizon.

Truth be told, she was a little excited. This would be her first time seeing a real pirate ship. Before long, a mysterious vessel appeared beyond the waves, and her expression quickly twisted into something unreadable.

That’s... a pirate ship?

A battered, tattered ship slid smoothly over the sea’s surface. Green mist clung to its hull, and a wall of black clouds loomed behind it. Moreover, spirits howled around it, shrieking with unnatural noise. It was, by every visible cue, a ghost ship. And today, of all days, the weather was unusually perfect.

”Wait, why is a ghost ship sailing around in broad daylight?” Serati’s voice trembled in disbelief.

The sailors around her shuddered.

”We told you!”

”All the pirates nowadays are tainted by the Shadow of Doom!”

”That’s what pirate ships look like now!”

”The world’s gone completely mad!”

Karnak pulled a magical wand from his coat and gave a dry laugh. ”No wonder the shipmaster was so damn reluctant.”