Episode 104
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The drowned Francis Barbarossa was there.
He was a man who looked like a drowning rat.
An ‘admiral’ and pirate who commanded the continent’s greatest invincible fleet. Francis never had any nobility of birth. He was a sailor who didn’t even have a surname.
Born as a sailor in the Sahae Archipelago, he expanded his power with his unique charisma, and among his talents, he was particularly good at piracy, plundering enemies on the sea.
Before long, Francis had become a lawbreaker on the seas, a notorious figure that made the nations of the continent tremble.
That is why, when the Empire started the War of Unification, they gave the surname Barbarossa to ‘Francis’, who was a mere pirate… …and appointed Francis Barbarossa as an admiral, entrusting him with command of the entire Imperial fleet.
With a privateer’s license that ‘allowed him to legally plunder enemy ships’.
Soon after, Barbarossa became an admiral of the Imperial Fleet and achieved victory against the Invincible Armada of the ‘Old Kingdom of Britannia’, which was said to be the strongest at the time.
The crushing defeat in that battle was the direct blow that destroyed the old Britannian kingdom, and through that achievement, Barbarossa, who had been a mere pirate, was reborn as one of the ‘3rd Dukes of the Empire’ who ruled over the Four Seas Archipelago.
Saxony, Lancaster, Barbarossa.
But even after the empire unified the continent, Barbarossa did not easily give up his calling.
He was a duke of the empire and at the same time a lawbreaker on the sea, committing endless piracy, and since he had established himself on an island in the sea, at least in the ‘world above water’, not even the empire dared to do anything to him. That’s why people finally gave him the name of Pirate Lord.
Some time after that.
The pirate Francis Barbarossa suddenly led five ships across the eastern sea of the continent.
To witness for yourself the ‘end of the world’ that lies beyond the sea.
No one expected him to return alive. Even the Empire believed that the pirate had fallen to his death from the cliff at the ‘end of the world’.
But Francis Barbarossa returned alive.
Four out of five ships were sunk, leaving only the one directly commanded by the pirate master alone.
He discovered the Eastern Continent beyond the Sea of Death, and even went beyond that Eastern Continent, successfully completing the ‘first circumnavigation of the world’. In the process, countless stories told by the rich and famous decorated his tales of bravery.
For example, there is a legendary anecdote about how, when he was in the ‘Devil’s Triangle’ and the entire fleet sank and he was in danger of drowning, he made a deal with the ‘devil’ of the sea and gained immortality.
And what Dale now had before him was the very reality of that legendary anecdote.
The Drowned Francis Barbarossa.
Just like the people who say that they are always soaking wet like a mouse that got wet in the rain.
“──How did you find my heart?”
The drowned man opened his mouth. It was extremely heavy, damp, and seemed as if he would sink to the bottom of the sea at any moment.
“As I said, it’s a trade secret.”
The City Master, wearing the mask of the “Laughing Man,” answered with a mischievous smile.
At the same time, the entire black market landscape sank.
Into the darkness of the deep sea, beneath the bottomless sea.
It wasn’t a metaphor. I really felt like I was sinking underwater and couldn’t breathe.
‘The world of ideas… …?!’
However, it was unheard of for a drowned man to have magical skills. Furthermore, it was even more impossible for him to use that world as a ‘weapon’. I had no certainty. However, I could only feel it intuitively.
At first glance they look similar, but what is different?
It’s not the magical powers Dale is familiar with, but something a bit more alien and unknowable.
“… … I could just throw you guys into the abyss of the ocean and drown you.”
Right in the depths of the sea, the drowned man opened his mouth. Despite being underwater, he spoke as calmly as if he were talking on land. ──No matter how much he tried to add the power of thought to it with magic, it was impossible.
It’s hard to even maintain consciousness because of the seawater pouring down my throat right now.
It was just then.
Choaack!
The scenery of the area changed, and the feeling of suffocation disappeared. Everyone in the area, including Dale, was back on the marble of the Black Market.
“Ugh, thud!”
The water that had been pouring down my throat was vomited out, and my whole body looked like a rat soaked in rain.
Even the City Master, who was wearing the mask of the “Laughing Man”, was no exception. The mask was removed, and his true appearance was revealed underneath.
He had no real scars or wounds. He was a vague image of a man with no real personality.
The drowning man grabbed the City Master by the neck, the hem of his wet uniform coat fluttering.
“Ugh, ugh… … !”
A suffocating feeling came over me, not unlike water pouring down my throat.
“I’ll ask again.”
The drowned man continues speaking.
“How did you find ‘the box’ and where are you hiding it?”
There was no way he could get a response while being choked. After threatening him, he threw him away like a drowning man, and the City Master smiled as he regained his breath.
“Huh, huff! This is… … . At this rate, I’m starting to get confused as to who owns His Majesty’s heart.”
I straighten my clothes and leave the mask of the “Laughing Man” lying on the floor behind me.
“As I said, the obsidian box containing His Majesty the Duke’s heart will be traded according to the procedures of the ‘Black Market’.”
Like an actor on stage, with a smile whose true intentions cannot be read.
“And once the deal is done, no matter how much you squeeze my neck, you won’t get an answer.”
“… … Do you dare threaten me?”
“I am simply fulfilling my duties as an ‘auction broker.’”
The City Master continues, extending his arm towards Dale.
“As I just said, the starting price for the auction is ‘one black chip.’”
Dale is not the only one participating in the auction here.
Ray Uris, Michael Lancaster. But only one person was able to claim victory in the fight club against them, the ‘Black Prince’ of Saxony… … and Dale was given the privilege of winning one item from the Black Market on the spot.
And the starting price of the product is just one chip.
“As the winner of Fight Club, would you like to use your privileges?”
“… … .”
After a moment of silence, Dale turned his head. He saw the drowned man staring at him with an intimidating air that made him not dare to face him.
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“I will use the winner’s privilege.”
Dale opened his mouth.
Starting price of one black chip.
“Oh, what an excellent decision.”
The City Master smiled as if he was enjoying it.
“Then, for one chip, give His Majesty the Duke’s heart to Prince Dale… … .”
“no.”
Just then, Dale interrupted the City Master, pulling out a heavy pouch hidden in his black robes.
He called out the price of the item he wanted to win on the spot.
“Eight hundred and thirty-two and nine.”
“Hoo.”
Dale bet everything he had on the ‘Heart of the Drowned Man’, which had a starting price of just one chip. The City Master held his breath as if it was interesting.
Dale and the City Master, and the Drowned Man.
The air between the three of them is tense, as if it could burst at any moment.
Ray Uris, Mikhail Lancaster, and the assassins of the ‘Shadow Court’ are just extras on this stage.
“How dare you, you little brat.”
And at Dale’s words, the drowned man opened his mouth.
“Are you trying to win my heart with that kind of trick?”
Each word carries such a weight that it feels like it’s sinking to the bottom of the ocean.
“Your Majesty the Drowned One must know this as well.”
But Dale was not so easygoing as to be cowed by his pressure.
“In this world, there is no one who would refuse a deal that holds the lifeline of the powerful in their hands.”
“And you still think your little brat will get through this safely?”
“The drowned man, are you okay?”
Dale asked calmly.
“If you guys move even one finger in that box.”
The drowned man opened his mouth.
“I guarantee that at least not a single ant in this city will be safe.”
It seemed as if everyone in this area would be drowned in the sea at any moment.
As he said, the invincible fleet that the ‘drowned man’ boasted about had surrounded the sea of Guild City, and by now his men had landed on land and were surrounding the entire city.
“You haven’t answered my question yet.”
But Dale continued talking regardless.
“I am asking if the drowned man is okay.”
“… … Are you, you little brat, trying to threaten me right now?”
The drowned man asked back.
At least we can know for sure that this man is not a coward like Cardinal Nicholas, trembling with fear for his own life.
Starting out as a mere pirate, he soon became the king of the sea with a great pirate fleet, became an admiral of the empire, and defeated the invincible armada of the Kingdom of Britannia… … A man who made the first circumnavigation of the world and made a deal with the sea devil.
There’s no way a big shot like that would tremble over his own life.
“I’m sure the drowned man would rather give up his life than give in to such threats.”
“Then you must know very well that you will be his companions.”
“I have no intention of threatening Your Majesty with your life.”
Dale said.
“Have you not realized it yet?”
“What are you talking about?”
“His Majesty the Drowned One must have hidden the box ‘in the sea where no one can find it.’”
Dale continues.
“But that box is now up for auction, in the hands of this man.”
Pointing to the City Master.
“I don’t know how he found it either.”
“… … .”
“But there is one thing I can say for sure.”
“What are you talking about?”
“No matter how well you hide it in this world, this guy will find it and Your Majesty the Duke will never be able to shake off his worries.”
Dale said.
“You know very well.”
The drowned man answered coldly.
“I will never let that heart leave my side again.”
“Ah, if it were up to me, I would like to return my heart to Your Majesty the Duke and leave safely.”
“Then give me your heart.”
Dale answered as if it were someone else’s business.
“But if we do that, everyone here will never be able to escape being a water ghost.”
“I can at least spare your life.”
“no.”
Dale shook his head coldly.
“Now that you know the secret, Your Majesty the Duke will ‘absolutely’ not let me live.”
In a voice without even a shred of doubt.
“And I, too, have no intention of dying quietly like this.”
For a moment, interest appeared on the drowned man’s face.
“So I would like to make a proposal.”
“Tell me.”
“The deep sea could not protect His Majesty the Drowned One’s heart.”
“… … .”
“But I know a place where I can protect two things: Your Majesty’s heart and my life.”
“Where is that place?”
The drowned man asked, and Dale answered.
“The Abyss of Saxony.”
