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Sophia and Hildegard were each trying to persuade the spirits Gabrielle and Ariel with troubled expressions.

“The ship we’re on is a regular liner. Menorca Island is way off the usual route, isn’t it? Even if we wanted to go to Menorca as you suggest, how on earth are we supposed to convince the captain?”

A regular liner, as the name suggests, follows a fixed route back and forth. It has set departure and arrival points, and it usually sticks to the planned stops. The fact that it’s a regular liner means there are cargo and passengers on board who intend to use it.

So, to convince the captain, they would need the passengers’ consent as well.

[…!]

“Alright, I get that a dungeon is opening on Menorca Island. If a dungeon opens, we’ll have to deal with it. But not right now. We can wait until the ship reaches the next port, find another suitable ship, and then move. There’s no problem with that.”

Hildegard also tried her best to persuade Ariel with all her might, but Ariel gave her a look like a abandoned cat, as if saying, “You really won’t go?”

Meanwhile, Sophia, with her divine insight, recognized that it was right to comply with the spirits’ demands. The spirits rarely gave up their stubbornness in such cases, and more often than not, they turned out to be right. So, Sophia decided to go along with her spirit’s request for now.

“Alright, how should we convince the passengers and the captain?”

[…?]

Upon hearing Gabrielle’s response, Sophia was so shocked that she started pulling on her spirit’s cheeks like sticky rice cakes.

[…!!?!?]

“What do you mean, ‘Why don’t we suggest pillaging a pirate island, and everyone will happily follow?’! Unless the passengers on this ship have lost their minds, there’s no way they’d be convinced by that!”

Hildegard, who had been watching Gabrielle’s cheeks being pulled with tears in her eyes, soon locked eyes with her own spirit, Ariel.

“Hmm, come to think of it, weren’t you about to say the same thing?”

[…!?]

Ariel, startled by Hildegard’s question, immediately covered her cheeks with both hands and vehemently denied the accusation. Whatever was happening, Gabrielle looked like she was in a lot of pain from having her cheeks pinched. Ariel absolutely did not want to suffer the same fate.

In the midst of this, someone surprisingly agreed with Gabrielle’s idea.

“Thinking about it, it might actually be a convincing argument.”

Esiocles, who was sitting cross-legged in mid-air without a chair, nodded seriously as he spoke.

“Either way, we need to get to Menorca Island, and if we do, a clash with pirates is inevitable. And if we subdue the pirates, the passengers would essentially get free money without lifting a finger. Besides, Menorca Island could have been a key transportation hub if it weren’t for the pirates. If we do this right, we might even shorten the sailing time compared to the original route.”

With so many benefits and little risk, Esiocles asked, how many people would refuse? Sophia, who had stopped pulling her spirit’s cheeks and was deep in thought, soon made a strange expression.

‘Oh? That sounds pretty convincing,’ she thought.

Intuitively sensing the change in Sophia’s thoughts, Gabrielle, with her reddened cheeks, glared at Sophia with a resentful look. Sophia, with a dismissive expression, patted the spirit’s head. The spirit struggled to avoid the hand, but it was all in vain.

Hugging the sulking Gabrielle, Sophia began to ponder how to make this argument sound convincing.

In conclusion, Sophia’s worries were completely unnecessary.

When Sophia, along with Hildegard, Esiocles, and Conra, directly proposed the Menorca route to the captain in front of the passengers and crew, she was immediately met with a wave of enthusiastic approval.

“If the Paladin knights are going to subdue the pirates’ base, of course we should cooperate!”

“What’s the big deal about pirates? Let’s use this chance to clean up the troublemakers of this sea!”

The passengers and crew, who had just witnessed two people take down an entire pirate ship, were pumped up. Watching the cruel and despicable pirates get wiped out in one go, they couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement.

In the midst of this, the captain of the St. Maria, who stood to gain a tidy profit from the captured pirate ship and prisoners, saw the passengers and crew secretly envious. So, when the proposal to pass by the pirates’ base came from the Nun Knights, how could they not be thrilled? This was their chance to get a piece of the treasure!

Thus, the passengers and crew of the St. Maria, united under the banner of “Sacco di Menorca (The Great Plunder of Menorca),” urged the captain to change course to Menorca.

From Captain Benjamin’s perspective, this was a bit of a headache. After all, the St. Maria was a regular liner with a fixed route, not an exploratory ship or a merchant vessel free to roam. If the route had to be changed mid-journey, the responsibility for that decision would fall entirely on him.

But on the other hand, if he unilaterally refused the passengers and crew’s wishes, it would directly affect his reputation. While he might preserve his personal credibility in the short term, damaging his reputation in the long run would be putting the cart before the horse.

Perhaps boldly riding the wave and showing his courageous side was also a strategy.

‘Let’s see. Which path is more beneficial?’

The captain briefly calculated in his head. Would the compensation for arbitrarily changing the route be greater? Or would the profits from plundering Menorca Island be greater?

After weighing the pros and cons, the captain finally made a decision.

“Alright! Let’s teach those lawless pirates a lesson!”

“Indeed, a truly refreshing decision, befitting a man of the sea. You won’t regret this decision.”

Though inwardly he might have been thinking, ‘Is this really okay?’ he couldn’t show it outwardly. Sophia, half in disbelief and half relieved that things were working out, looked at the captain, crew, and passengers, and then smirked.

‘Whatever. As long as the result is good, it’s all fine.’

And from that moment, the St. Maria’s next destination was set: the pirate island of Menorca.

+++++

South of Franquia and east of Hiberia lay the Balearic Islands, a group of three large islands.

The Balearic Islands consisted of Ibiza, the smallest island to the west; Menorca to the east; and Mallorca, the largest island, in the middle. The three islands were aligned in a row, making them a distinctive feature.

The Balearic Islands had long been a key transportation hub for ships crossing the Sea of Tethys.

Not only were they strategically located, but they were also adjacent to the territories of sea-dwelling races like mermaids, sea elves, and whale people, making them ideal for keeping evil underwater creatures like Sphiyagon and kelpies in check.

In the past, it was said that whoever controlled the Balearic Islands ruled the Sea of Tethys, highlighting their importance.

However, that glorious past had faded due to tectonic shifts and climatic changes, which forced the mermaids, sea elves, and whale people to relocate. Combined with various land-based issues that weakened nations’ influence over the seas, the islands’ former glory became a thing of the past.

Now, the islands were occupied by brutal pirates and evil sea-dwelling races like harpies, Sphiyagon, and kelpies, who had allied with the pirates.

Surprisingly, Menorca, the pirates’ base, had its own society. There were black markets where stolen goods were traded, and gambling dens where pirates who had struck it rich squandered their fortunes. The entire island was filled with a chaotic, lively energy, a sort of “order among outlaws.”

“Cheap, cheap! Freshly caught slaves for just 2,000 ducats! 2,000 ducats!”

“Aron the Sphiyagon warrior vs. Blackbeard Eduardo Titch! Who will win!?”

Overlooking the bustling island from a distance, the ruler of Menorca, Hayreddin, didn’t even bother to look back at those groveling behind him.

“Please, Hayreddin! Have mercy on us!”

“Please, have mercy!”

These were the cowards who had fled after losing two ships and all their comrades, barely escaping with their lives. Hayreddin clicked his tongue, wondering how to deal with these fools to restore order on the island.

“Alright, I’ve decided.”

“Hayreddin, please, spare our lives!”

“Hayreddin…!”

Hayreddin, the ruler of Menorca and the most brutal of them all, Amaro Rodriguez de Leon y Tenerife, bared his fangs as he decided the punishment for these pig-like cowards.

“You are piglets. All you do is squeal all day. So, you’ll have to prove that you can at least squeal properly.”

“Huh? Hayreddin, you don’t mean…!?”

“That’s right. Your punishment will be the bronze pig.”

The bronze pig punishment involved locking the criminals inside a hollow bronze pig statue and heating it until they died. The punishment was meant to make the victims scream like pigs, so Hayreddin’s message was clear: if you want to live, squeal properly before you burn.

“Please, I don’t want to die…!”

“What are you waiting for? Drag those piglets out and carry out the punishment!”

“Yes!”

At Hayreddin’s command, soldiers dragged out the pleading men. Despite their resistance, they were forcibly taken away, their eyes wide with fear as they cursed Hayreddin.

“Please, please! Ugh… you bastard! You’re not even Hayreddin! You’ll be punished! You’ll be cursed!”

Hayreddin scoffed at their curses as they were dragged away.

“Hmph, as if curses and divine punishment could touch me. I am Hayreddin of this land, unafraid even of the Celestial Gods. Do you think I’d fear the curses of mere piglets?”

As Hayreddin looked down at his city once more, a regular liner named the St. Maria was approaching Menorca Island, deviating from its planned route.

 

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