Of course, Sen didn’t let anyone do the torture.
No matter how much of a pirate they were, the Dragoness refused to carry out torture, and I didn’t want to remind Sen of her memories from the Chokugen Faction for no reason.
Sen looked like she would rip off the toenails of the Dragonkin and drive nails into them, showing a dark side that even made the guards who accompanied us flinch.
It’s really surprising how the innocent child who was hopping around in excitement just before seeing the Dragon King had suddenly transformed as if a person had changed.
Anyway, for now, the bindings have been done.
We confirmed the markings on the corpses of the pirates from the previous ambush, and it wasn’t hard to find since they matched perfectly.
So they must have engraved the markings in hard-to-see places like the soles of their feet. Pirates were known to engage in ineffective, often foolish behaviors at times.
They yell that it’s the call of the sea, that it’s romantic, but from the perspective of those around, it didn’t look all that romantic.
Anyway, now we had bound the pirates who were tightly shut up and weren’t making any excuses, while Sen, the Dragoness, and I, along with our guards, set out for a search.
No matter how I thought about it, the pirates were too few in number to make any big moves. With that in mind, we headed toward the nearby plains.
The wide-open plains didn’t seem to have anything in sight. Just some wildlife wandering around nearby or a few bumpy rocks here and there.
But Sen insisted on this place.
“Places that look empty on the surface are the perfect hiding spots. Given that someone from the Chokugen Faction is here, they probably taught some stealth techniques.”
“……”
I didn’t want to see this side of Sen again.
Though she was less intense than when we first met, now Sen seemed more like a member of the Chokugen Faction than a student.
‘If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have brought her.’
Thanks to Sen, finding the hidden pirates was made easy, but more than that, I was uncomfortable with the environment that changed her to this extent.
I thought she had completely shaken it off, but the shadow of the Chokugen Faction was hanging over her more deeply than I realized.
Of course, it couldn’t only be seen as a bad thing.
What Sen was doing could also be seen as a way to shake off the Chokugen Faction. So I couldn’t strongly oppose her.
I could only support her from behind as she moved ahead.
Even now, the search parties were gathering around her.
“It will be a camouflage technique that doesn’t use any mana. Using mana is practically leaving a trace.”
“Their stealth techniques prioritize harmony with nature. Even their breathing will seem like the wind moving naturally. If possible, carry something like a staff to tap the ground as you move.”
“If there are rocks or beasts around, search a bit away from there. Baiting enemies by making obvious places look like traps is also a strategy.”
Sen spoke stiffly like a professor giving a lecture, listing off the information she knew. If it were the usual, the dragonkin would probably dismiss her with a spat saying a little kid wouldn’t know anything.
But perhaps because of the killing intent she just displayed, they listened to Sen and began the search.
“But, are there really any there?”
I answered honestly to Eve, who was sticking closely to my side, unsure.
“I don’t think they’ve hidden only four of them. I can’t say for sure if they’re hiding in the fields, but…”
I looked at Sen’s back, taking long strides as she searched ahead.
“Because I believe in Sen, I think they’ll be here.”
Eve seemed pleased with my answer, a strange smile appearing on her lips.
“Why? Is something strange?”
“No, I just had the feeling that Daniel and Sen were like siblings.”
“Oh, that’s right. She sometimes calls me ‘big brother.’”
She calls me ‘big brother’ like a decoration, only when it’s convenient for her. It’s not an unpleasant feeling, and in those moments, Sen really feels like an ordinary little sister.
“I only have an older sister, so it strangely feels nice.”
I had mostly been dragged along because Diana has always had a strong personality since our childhood.
“I have so many younger siblings, it’s a hassle. They’re always clinging to me.”
Eve, patting her shoulders as if tired, suddenly had a pleasant smile as she seemed to think of her siblings.
“What are your younger siblings doing right now?”
“Oh, since lunchtime is over now, they’re probably studying? Even though Aios is not prestigious, there’s a private academy nearby.”
“Really?”
“I managed to get into Aios because I did well on the written tests. You wouldn’t believe how much they cried when I left for here.”
Younger siblings.
Younger siblings.
In a moment, I was about to indulge in various thoughts when I suddenly heard the shout of a strong man in the distance.
“Dieee!”
What seemed to be a place covered with gravel suddenly distorted, and a person sprang out.
Having already gotten the hint from Sen that the Chokugen Faction’s stealth techniques were highly advanced, I had sometimes used camouflage in the Forest of the Demon Realm.
But honestly, I didn’t think they would be this good.
It was camouflage that would have been hard to detect if I’d simply passed by.
But Sen, perhaps having expected this, smoothly dodged the sword, drew her dagger, and stabbed it right into the guy’s foot.
“Grrr!”
The man’s eyes turned bloodshot as blood rushed to his head.
However, there was no mercy from Sen. She twisted her body like she was swimming and drove her heel into his chin.
The pirate fell heavily to the ground.
Being in disguise, it seemed like he vanished as he collapsed.
At that moment, the ground twisted again, and more pirates popped out.
People sprang up from all directions, but they couldn’t overcome the wall created by the Heretic Inquisitor and the Cardinal, who were already tense.
“Gack!”
“Cough!”
Pirates popped out and immediately got slashed. It felt as if one were catching fish in a stream, but in reality, it was a bloody scene.
I subtly shielded Eve’s eyes and observed the situation.
Among those hidden were a few humans, but most were dragonkin.
*
“For now, we’ve bound them, but there isn’t a suitable place to hold them.”
Although more pirates were captured than expected, there weren’t proper facilities to keep them.
It would have been nice to use the prison used by the previous guards, but a large hole had appeared due to cannon fire during the pirates’ attack.
In the end, the only thing we could do was tie the pirates around a large rock as if we were tying up horses.
“It doesn’t look very effective.”
Looking at the bindings, Sen frowned in dissatisfaction. She glanced around, muttering that she could easily escape if it were her.
Smack!
“……!”
She approached and crushed the ankle of a bald dragonkin suspected of being from the Chokugen Faction. The guy looked at her with eyes filled with resentment.
But Sen shook her foot as if she had just stepped on a bug and came back to me.
“Just in case. Some from the Chokugen Faction can escape even when bound.”
Seeing Sen speak nonchalantly, I could feel my heart tighten a bit as I pointed out the astonished guards.
“Don’t worry too much; they’re being protected too.”
“……”
“I don’t like this. You need to take a break.”
In the brief moment, it felt like Sen was reverting to being extremely Chokugen-like. It didn’t look good, with the atmosphere reflecting how things used to be.
I originally intended to say something to Sen, but I felt she wouldn’t receive it positively in her current state, so I held my tongue.
After everything settled down, that would be the time to talk to Sen.
‘It’s true that pirates are related to the Chokugen Faction.’
According to the information Rin had given me in the second round, the source of the drugs used to raise successors in the Chokugen Faction was the pirates.
They formed a unique relationship where they would cooperate when in need but would ruthlessly abandon each other when it was not beneficial.
Completely devoid of emotion, as if previous wounds and battles had been forgotten, they would cooperate as long as their pockets were full.
They were likely still in a cooperative relationship with the Chokugen Faction.
As I wanted to keep Sen and the prisoners at a distance, I headed toward the accommodations while spotting the Dragoness, who was talking with Eve.
The two seemed to be having a pleasant conversation, and the atmosphere didn’t seem bad at all.
As I approached, I could hear their voices.
“Since it was revealed that there were dragonkin among the remnants of the pirates, the Elders won’t be able to carelessly bring up compensation.”
“Thanks to Your Grace, the Dragoness. Even the Oracle has been supportive of us.”
“The Elders weren’t really that broken either; without grasping the intentions of Lord Shakallim, it must feel like sailing in an endless sea.”
“That’s true. The Dragon God still hasn’t given any answers.”
Eve subtly tried to probe, but the Dragoness nodded with a sorrowful expression.
She was quite the actress.
That’s why she must have been deceiving not only the Elders but all the dragonkin while conversing with Shakallim.
I thought it was a good opportunity to jump into their conversation, but just then, Cardinal Theocender came running from afar.
With heavy footsteps contrasting against his light breathing, the Cardinal shouted urgently.
“Pirates! The pirates have appeared!”
The atmosphere shifted dramatically.
I thought one event had been concluded, but it felt like a storm suddenly rising over the calm sea.
However, when we reached the beach, all that lay before us was an endlessly stretched horizon with nothing in sight.
“What, where are the pirates, Cardinal?”
“I’m not sure. It seems it was a false alarm.”
The urgency from moments ago disappeared, and the Cardinal apologized blandly. The Dragoness, who already disliked him, sighed and shot a cold glare before turning away.
Meanwhile, Sen, sniffing around, suddenly whipped her head around with wide eyes and took off running.
“I smell blood!”
Leading the charge, we hurried toward the rock where the prisoners had been kept, but there was only a pool of blood, and no one was there.
And then, with a bitter smile, Cardinal Theocender’s voice rang out from behind.
“Now, everyone. Let’s uncover if there are dragonkin among the pirates.”
It felt like an absurd joke. Yet he was confident, believing that even if they erased evidence of dragonkin among the pirates so brazenly.
This was their land, and the ones living here were dragonkin.
The Cardinal was convinced.
In the end, everything would go as they intended.
“Cardinal…!”
The Dragoness shot a truly incredulous glare at Cardinal Theocender, while Eve and Sen sent him looks filled with rising contempt.
‘This is good.’
I thought that the situation was turning out to be much more favorable for me than I expected.
