Three days later, Turan's group sailed their boat toward the island where the operation was scheduled.
Perhaps due to the influence of the storm brought by the giant sea serpent, the sky was always dark with clouds, strong winds blew, and high waves crashed.
Naturally, theirs was the only boat moving around in the area, so there weren't many spectators to see the small fishing boat gliding across the sea.
"Indeed, humans with demonic powers sail boats like this. It's almost as fast as average rfolk swimming."
The rmaid princess, Rowena, who was on the boat with them, made this quiet observation.
Arma, who was beside her, nodded and said.
"It's much faster than when I rode with them before. It wasn't this fast back then."
"That's because three of us are sailing it now. The mackerel is cooked, would you like so?"
"Thank you!"
After grilling and eating the mackerel that had been caught with fluid manipulation magic, Arma said he would notify his family of Turan's group's visit first, transford into a baby shark, and jumped into the sea.
When Turan focused his relic's senses toward the sea, he could feel a small presence quickly moving away underwater.
"Despite what you said earlier, that guy swims faster."
"Well, he's a shark. It's enviable. Being able to swim fast."
Rowena sighed as she watched Arma disappear.
According to what ca up in their casual conversation, she, who could take the form of a crab, was free to move on land but slower than her kind underwater.
That's why she planned to attack from land alongside Turan's group in this battle.
isa looked at Rowena and asked.
"By the way, how is it determined what creature you can transform into? Is it innate?"
"Sothing like that. You can guide it to so extent, but there's an innate direction. Even if I had really wanted to, I could have transford into a different type of crab... but it wouldn't have made much difference."
In the distant ancient past, there were royal rfolk who could take the form of the giant sea serpent, but that was just an old story, and now royalty who could take the form of large creatures like sharks or whales, like Arma, were considered to have high potential.
Though he was still young, Arma had quite promising potential among the rfolk.
"They must have been in a panic when he disappeared."
"Hmm? Ah, well... it wasn't that much of a panic. We assud he'd find his way back sohow."
When Turan subtly brought up the topic to emphasize his rit in saving Arma, Rowena dismissed it as if it were nothing.
Turan laughed at her attitude, which seed determined not to yield an inch even though they had agreed to cooperate, and looked at the northern horizon where the island was beginning to appear.
"Was the promise you ntioned earlier kept well?"
"Of course. There will be no one except our royalty participating in the battle and a few noble-class servants to attend to us. Actually, managing the lower classes is quite tireso for us as well."
This was one of the conditions Turan had demanded from the rfolk.
That they not bring lower-class rfolk who wouldn't be much help in hunting the giant sea serpent and would likely beco troubleso burdens.
This was to maintain balance between his group and the rfolk forces.
No matter how powerful they were as wizards, if thousands of rfolk attacked while they were fighting the royalty, they would inevitably suffer losses in terms of magical power and stamina.
"What about you? Are you planning to take that bird into battle? It looks dangerous."
"Despite appearances, it's quite sturdy, so it'll be fine."
When he stroked its head, Bize, who had been closing her eyes and enjoying it, looked at Rowena with an expression that seed to mock her.
It was as if she were saying, "How dare soone like you presu to know my worth?"
The reason Turan had considered attempting to hunt the giant sea serpent in the first place was because of Bize's existence.
Having wings that could detect danger in advance and escape made a huge difference, no matter how powerful the enemy.
Before landing on the island, Turan, as he had done before, activated his tracking magic, scooped up a handful of seawater, and slled it.
'...Good, it doesn't seem like there are many rfolk at least.'
At most, perhaps a dozen or so.
The destination island wasn't very large, so when they were about to land, activating the relic's senses allowed him to include the entire island within his detection range.
A rperson as strong as an upper to mid-tier human noble and another slightly weaker one, plus six rpeople at upper to mid-level.
Finally, a lower-tier rperson among them, probably Arma, making the total number of royalty nine.
Including Rowena who was here, it would be ten.
In addition, he sensed about ten more rfolk with much weaker power.
These were probably the noble-class rfolk who had co to attend, with flas similar to ordinary humans, like Arma when they first t.
Turan used wind magic to discretely relay this information to Solif and isa.
isa asked with a aningful expression.
[Ten royals... though that child is hard to count as combat strength, so nine. If we fight, can we handle it?]
[Easily. Though rfolk are generally stronger than nobles of the sa tier, that applies to us as well. Just rember, we absolutely must not beco weaker than them during or after the battle.]
The most important thing in this battle was to rember that the rfolk were allies who couldn't be trusted.
They had to prepare for the possibility of being ambushed if they depleted too much of their strength in hunting the giant sea serpent.
"We've arrived, let's get off."
==
While they had been secretly talking, the boat had landed on the island, and Turan's group disembarked with Rowena and headed inland.
Since the island wasn't very large, it only took a few minutes to reach where the rfolk royalty were staying.
"Oh, are those the humans?"
"They all look young, are they really that strong?"
"I'm sure sister Rowena has made a proper judgnt."
The rfolk royalty they first t all had casual speech patterns, which felt different from what he had expected.
He had expected them to be like Arma or Rowena, who used sowhat awkwardly stiff speech patterns, but perhaps those two had just learned strange ways of speaking.
Among them, dressed in clothes that seed to be made from seaweed, the unusually small Arma greeted Turan.
"That gray-haired one is the kind demon, Turan, who saved , and he's really strong! Strong enough that sister Rowena couldn't even use her strength and lost!"
Rowena smiled with twisted lips as if her pride was hurt, but she didn't protest.
After all, it was true that she had been one-sidedly beaten.
Hearing Arma's words, the rfolk royalty looked at Turan's group with even more interest.
"Hmm..."
"We heard she lost, but to that extent?"
"If they're that strong, they must be among the most powerful demons on land. Little one, you were lucky."
As they were chattering, Turan's gaze turned to a rfolk noble who was standing respectfully behind the royalty.
He was staring at Turan's group and drooling from his mouth.
"Oh."
"Hey, Yacon. I told you to control yourself. How undignified."
"I apologize, Prince..."
The noble quickly wiped away the flowing saliva at the royal's rebuke and apologized respectfully.
He had clearly heard that the noble-class rfolk had quite a bit of self-control, if not as much as the royalty, but to be like that...
He could imagine what level of self-control the lower-class rfolk, whom they despised, might have.
Turan narrowed his eyes as he watched the rfolk excitedly chattering toward them.
'It would have been good if I could read their emotions too.'
Though he couldn't know the exact principle, Turan could sowhat read human emotions through sll.
This even applied to most ordinary beasts, but unfortunately, rfolk were an exception.
Whether it was because of the fishy sll they gave off or for so other reason, he didn't know.
At that mont, Rowena took off the human clothes she had been wearing, put on the seaweed-type clothes characteristic of rfolk, and said quietly.
"Then let's start by introducing ourselves." Discover exclusive content at My Virtual Library Empire
"I'm Turan. These are Sol and Misha. Please take care of us."
When he closed his mouth after revealing just that much, one of the rfolk who heard this asked with an incomprehensible attitude.
"Hmm? Is that it? Don't you humans have things like family nas?"
"There are those among humans who wander without such things."
The rfolk made curious expressions, but perhaps because no one knew much about it, they all shrugged and seed to accept it.
Next, the rfolk introduced themselves, and surprisingly, they were all children of the current rman king.
One older brother to Rowena, four younger brothers, and three younger sisters.
Add Arma to that for a total of nine.
Turan, who had been listening quietly, imdiately voiced his question.
"No other relatives?"
"Hmm?"
"I an, your father, the rman king, must have siblings too, so what about their children?"
Judging by the numbers, the reproductive capabilities of the rfolk royalty didn't seem to be lacking, and if such people were included, their forces would rival any major human house.
One of the rfolk answered as if it were obvious.
"Of course, they're all dead."
"...How did that happen?"
"We sent them off by our own hands. There's only one king in the kingdom, and only his bloodline can flourish."
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