Chapter 231
Treasure Hunt (2)
A natural disaster descended upon the sea. The storm clouds Kairus wielded surged endlessly, constantly shifting and changing.
Towering waves and raging wind and rain. Lightning crashing down alongside booming thunder.
“The communications…!”
The telegraph temporarily went dead due to the consecutive lightning strikes. It was a problem that would resolve itself with ti, but—
The Imperial Navy had no ti.
They had sohow succeeded in turning the ships around, but—
“Put in more! I said shove everything into it!”
The massive waves surging according to Kairus’s will prevented the ships from advancing. No matter how much fuel they poured in, the turbine thrust could not overco the waves.
“Th-The Adlen is sinking!”
The flagship of the fleet rapidly checked the damage, but even that was not easy. It was difficult enough resisting the waves violently battering them, let alone confirming the condition of other ships.
And then, their end descended from the sky.
More than ten gigantic dragon spouts appeared and swept across the sea. From afar, the whirlwinds looked like dragons ascending into the heavens.
The whirlwinds connected the sky and sea together. The battleships floating on the ocean could not resist the force of the vortexes drawing up the water and were slowly dragged toward death.
Two hours later.
When the skies finally cleared once more, all that remained were shattered fragnts of warships and corpses too mangled to even retain proper human form.
“The snow crabs are going to have a feast.”
Every mber aboard the dozens of warships had sunk beneath the sea. And among the specialties of these waters were lobsters and snow crabs.
By the next fishing season, the fishern would probably be grinning from ear to ear over the crab harvest.
“I drove the military away, but…”
The work had to begin imdiately.
If Liriana really was beneath the buoy Kairus rembered, then he had to retrieve her before the day ended.
‘Because they already know I’m here.’
Unless the Emperor was an idiot, he would imdiately send people to recover Liriana and move her elsewhere.
Kairus quickly calculated the remaining output left within Veil of Plud Mist.
‘…This is a little tight.’
Retrieving Liriana itself would not be a problem at all.
The problem was that afterward he would need to fly her all the way to Bennett.
Considering that, the remaining output inside Veil of Plud Mist was cutting it dangerously close.
“Wait a second.”
After organizing his thoughts, Kairus suddenly ca up with a rather amusing idea and smirked slightly.
‘What if I just wait a few days?’
The chains Kairus had confird were extrely unusual. There was an incredibly high chance that Liriana was sleeping beneath that buoy.
Since Kairus had co here, the Emperor would naturally order her moved elsewhere. In that case, wouldn’t it be easier to just wait and intercept them instead of retrieving her personally?
“A knight captain-level expert will probably co.”
But unless they were soone on Dana Watson’s level, there was no longer any way to oppose Kairus.
The mont Dana Watson failed to kill Kairus, the Emperor had effectively already lost the battle against him.
For the Emperor to win now, he would need a miracle on the sa level as Kairus defeating Dana Watson.
‘Let’s intercept them.’
He would remain nearby while observing the situation and replenishing the output of Veil of Plud Mist. Then, if soone attempted to retrieve Liriana, he would simply wait and intercept them.
After reaching his conclusion, Kairus finished disguising himself and bribed the captain of a nearby fishing boat.
“So… you’re saying we just stay here and wait?”
“Yeah.”
Kairus answered briefly while casually tossing a gold bar into the air and catching it again. It was the paynt he had promised the fishing boat captain.
One gold bar for staying at sea for about a week.
There was no need to cast fishing nets, nor any need to retrieve the nets they had already set. There was no need to hire workers for the fishing boat either.
They only had to keep the boat floating there, and a gold bar would roll right into their hands. No matter how desperately they struggled catching crabs or lobsters, it would never earn them more than that single gold bar.
“Understood. I’ll serve you to the best of my ability.”
A single gold bar was enough to make even a rough seaman act respectfully.
“What about paperwork or reports?”
At Kairus’s question, the captain answered imdiately.
“No problems there. Starting today, this ship is officially registered as being out on a fishing operation for about two weeks.”
The ship’s registration number and na were already registered at the village harbor, so even if soone beca suspicious, they would relax once they confird there was nothing wrong with the paperwork.
“Good. You’ve worked hard.”
He had confird everything that needed confirming. Since there was not much to do aboard the ship, Kairus ended up passing the ti with sea fishing despite it not suiting him at all.
And then, several days later, at dawn.
While staring out at the sea, Kairus sensed sothing and rose from his seat. It was not certain yet. He could only vaguely tell through the shifting flow of the wind that sothing had changed.
Since he sensed sothing suspicious, he had to confirm it.
Kairus imdiately used Swift Blade to generate strong winds and adjusted the shape of his tail feathers.
‘Because I need to reduce the turbine noise.’
This was not flight right now. It was more like a kite floating in the sky.
As Kairus rose into the air, he spotted a single ship approaching the buoy.
“Hah, I guess people really do think alike.”
Just like Kairus, they seed to have bribed a fishing boat. He checked the face of the person aboard, but it was soone he did not recognize.
There was no way they would wear a uniform while doing sothing like this, so he could not infer their identity either. The only thing he could tell was that it was a man.
Maintaining a fixed altitude using the wind and his tail feathers while gliding forward, Kairus watched the suspicious man pull out a massive coffin from the ship.
‘Bingo.’
At this point, Kairus could only think of one reason for taking out a coffin here.
Now, all he had to do was confirm the chains tied to the buoy being reeled up.
“Huh. So he was from the Capital Security Corps?”
What Kairus witnessed next was the man’s forearm muscles swelling massively before turning a polished jet-black color. That was not battle gear but a procedure.
The Imperial Order of Knights preferred battle gear, while the Capital Security Corps preferred procedures.
Considering that, there was a high probability the man belonged to the Capital Security Corps.
‘It’d probably be better to deal with him here and now.’
He would have to clash with the Capital Security Corps eventually anyway. To reach the Imperial Palace protected by Denver Hudson, he first had to break through the primary defensive line known as the Capital Security Corps.
Since they had t by chance, it was better to eliminate him while the opportunity existed.
How many minutes had the man spent pulling on the chains?
At last, the tal coffin wrapped in chains was hauled onto the fishing boat.
“Damn heavy.”
The man muttered while admiring the pitch-black coffin.
It seed the coffin also served as an anchor, judging by its trendous weight. During the retrieval process, the ship had tilted noticeably.
“…This is definitely the right item.”
It matched the appearance described in the orders he had received. Finally, the man tore away the seaweed clinging beneath the coffin and even checked the serial number written there.
“Hey, we’re heading back.”
“Yes sir, understood!”
At the man’s command, the captain turned the ship around without a single complaint.
A captain normally held a position of so authority aboard a vessel, but the passenger currently on this ship was soone who could casually ignore that status entirely.
[Rapid Response Team Leader of the Capital Security Corps. Razul Caroline.]
Every common citizen of the Empire feared the Security Corps by default. But among them, the Capital Security Corps inspired even greater fear.
The captain of this ship was no exception.
‘One of my acquaintances got dragged away by the Security Corps for questioning once. After he ca back, hearing a chicken crow was enough to make him panic and piss himself.’
Even now, recalling how completely broken that man had beco sent chills down his spine.
Consud by fear, the captain hurriedly steered the ship forward.
Before long, they arrived at the village’s tiny harbor.
“Good work.”
Razul Caroline gave the captain a brief remark before hoisting the coffin onto his shoulders. The weight was impossible to carry while maintaining a human shape, so Razul once more altered his body.
The mont he stepped off the ship carrying the coffin, Razul sensed sothing and stared into the darkness ahead.
“…Who are you?”
Kairus grinned and answered.
“A robber.”
He was disguised, but once they started fighting, Razul would figure out Kairus’s identity anyway. There was no reason to hide it.
“I also work part-ti as a traitor.”
Shing, the mont Kairus drew his sword, the faint sound of a turbine began echoing out. It was still a faint noise for now, but if Kairus wished, it could turn into thunderous roaring at any mont.
“!”
The instant he heard that sound, Razul imdiately activated every procedure implanted into his body and swallowed drugs ant to suppress the recoil.
“Kairus Featherwing….”
He had already received warnings from the Security Captain that he might encounter him. In the first place, the reason they were moving this massive coffin was because information had co in that Kairus had appeared nearby.
That was why he had also prepared plenty of suppressants to control the side effects caused by the procedures.
“We’ve never t before, but you know my na. Well, I am ridiculously famous throughout the Empire.”
No matter what Razul was thinking, Kairus slowly approached him without a care.
“I already knew you would co here.”
Beneath Razul’s skin, his muscles twitched as though they were about to swell at any mont.
“Really? Then I guess there are plenty more people waiting nearby besides you.”
Instead of answering, Razul pulled out a flare gun.
“The mont I pull this, everyone waiting nearby will co rushing here!”
At that confident shout, Kairus smiled.
“And who’s waiting? The Guardian of the Nation?”
There was no way Denver Hudson had co here. The Emperor, who valued his own life above all else, would never send Denver Hudson this far away. If Philip IV really had sent Denver Hudson here?
‘Then I’d imdiately fly straight to the Imperial Capital.’
There was no way for Denver to catch up to Kairus while he was flying. Even the Emperor understood that much.
Denver Hudson was not here.
“I’m asking what kind of experts are waiting nearby. You should answer.”
“…”
Razul did not answer Kairus’s question. There was absolutely no reason to. Why would he reveal the forces they had hidden to an enemy?
“You’ll find out soon enough!”
Suddenly, Razul pulled the flare cord.
“Huh…?”
But nothing happened. Razul pulled the cord again and again, but there was still no response whatsoever.
Without saying a word, Kairus rely let the turbine noise rumble threateningly around them.
The only difference was that the sound had grown sowhat louder.
“What do you think a flare needs in order to ignite?”
Air.
Kairus had not allowed air to enter the flare. While the flare remained useless, Kairus swung his sword.
The unlit flare split cleanly in half from Kairus’s slash and rolled across the ground. Now there was only one option left for Razul.
‘I need to make as much noise as possible and call them here!’
He had to gather every nearby unit waiting in reserve.
The instant that thought crossed his mind—
“Well then….”
Kairus vanished from sight.
And before Razul could even reveal the true power of the procedures he had received, his head was severed.
Kairus lightly kicked the severed head upward and t its eyes.
“There’s sothing I learned from that dead Captain of the Scarlet Leaf Order.”
No matter how strong soone was, if there was a cowardly thod to win easily, then that was the best option. It was one of the lessons Dana Watson had taught Kairus.
Having finished what he wanted to say, Kairus casually hurled Razul’s head toward the sea.
Splash.
The head fell into the ocean.
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