Chapter 11

Noble with a look of annoyance sat there.

Surrounded by numerous soldiers and knights in black uniforms, he arrogantly spoke from his lavish chair.

“How disappointing. Even though it’s supposed to be today, arriving this late shows you have no regard for courtesy when hosting a distinguished guest?”

“My apologies, Duke. How could we lowly ones know about manners? Please forgive us with your generous heart.”

“Tch… Fine. I will endure out of mercy.”

Standing nearby, a servant with a bandaged shoulder flattered him.

With a dismissive click of his tongue, the Duke gestured towards Magellan and his crew like a pig squirming in its seat.

Then…

“It’s the Duke Ocleang! Kneel and show your respect!”

The servant’s loud voice echoed.

Magellan and the Demanes crew knelt immediately.

Though their hearts weren’t in it, the fact remained that the other party was a noble.

Even if the authority was not what it used to be, at least showing respect right in front of them was a given.

Especially in a case of mission failure like this.

From a slightly distanced position, Duke Ocleang spoke with a haughty tone.

“What’s the matter? I don’t see that girl! Where is she? Can’t you just hand her over?!”

“…I must apologize. I would like to offer my sincerest apologies regarding that matter.”

“What did you say?”

At Magellan’s words, the Duke’s already displeased face twisted further.

“I’m sorry. We did our best to secure the girl, but… the one protecting her was none other than the Pirate King. It was impossible for us to handle the King of the Sea ourselves. In the end, we could only retreat like this, wounded.”

“…”

“Since we failed the mission, I will reimburse you. I am truly sorry for not being able to fulfill the entrusted mission. If you wish, I can provide separate compensation, so please forgive my slight.”

Honestly, there were many things he wanted to say.

The fact that they accepted the mission knowing the other party was the Pirate King effectively meant they were sending them into the jaws of death.

No matter how much they were being paid, it was like being thrown into a fire pit.

However, saying such things to a High Noble would have been pointless, so Magellan chose to simply apologize and make suitable compensation before retreating.

But then…

“…You’re saying you failed? How dare you fail the request of Duke Ocleang?”

“Yes, once again, I repeat—the opponent was the Pirate King. There was no way…”

-Bang!

“…!?”

A cold pain hit him suddenly.

Red blood started to spill from Magellan’s shoulder.

“W-What…?”

In a bewildering situation, he saw a knight in black uniform aiming a smoking gun right beside the Duke.

“Cough!”

“C-Captain!”

“Magellan!”

His subordinates, thrown into confusion by the sudden incident, rushed to cover Magellan, as did Elkana.

If it were the usual Magellan, he could have defended against incoming bullets with a magical barrier.

As an Advanced Warrior, he was used to piercing through hailstorms of bullets to slice enemies’ throats.

However,

Right now, Magellan’s body was not in normal condition, and more importantly, he hadn’t expected such a sudden attack at all.

Though he felt something ominous, who would think that a mere client would attack them out of the blue?

“Useless things. Just die.”

“Y-Duke? W-What is this…?”

The servant, equally bewildered by this situation, articulated his confusion.

Then, suddenly—

-Bang!

-Drop!

Before he could finish his sentence, a bullet pierced through the servant’s head.

He collapsed to the ground, dead.

Seeing this, the Duke spoke in a voice dripping with cold fury.

“You’re just as useless. How dare you disappoint me twice? Scum like you deserves to die. Join those filthy creatures in the afterlife.”

Barely finishing his words, his soldiers immediately assumed a combat-ready stance.

As they aimed their guns and magic at them, Elkana shouted in urgency.

“What is the meaning of this? Why are you…?”

“Do you really not know? You made me waste my time failing my mission. You lowly peasant dared to insult this noble of the Kingdom of Frantz!”

“W-Wait! You seriously think to kill us over such a trivial matter? I said it before! I would compensate for the mistake! So why are you trying to kill us!?”

Magellan yelled out in anger.

However, the Duke merely picked at his ears in annoyance and replied.

“It’s only natural for a commoner to die for making a noble feel bad. It’s exhausting dealing with untrained lowlifes who don’t even understand this basic common sense.”

“That… that’s preposterous…”

Magellan had met many clients and nobles before, and among them were numerous unreasonable pains.

Some would refuse to pay for the requested work, while others would cancel their request over something they brought not being to their liking.

Since Magellan’s reputation spread, those issues had decreased, but he still occasionally dealt with tiresome people.

But even so…

He had never encountered someone so utterly insane.

To kill them simply because they failed a mission, despite neither being direct subordinates nor slaves?

In these modern times, where noble authority had diminished, such tyranny could not be tolerated.

Especially now, when nobles and kings were trying to avoid the growing unrest among the people.

Considering Magellan’s reputation, such actions risked the public’s displeasure… particularly among mercenaries and hunters active on this land.

Yet, against all logic,

Duke Ocleang ordered such things with indifference.

Either he hadn’t thought about the repercussions at all,

or he didn’t even see them as people.

Regardless of which it was, being entangled with someone of such catastrophic character made Magellan regret accepting this job even more.

“If I had my way, I would have publicly executed you, but I am a benevolent noble. I will spare your lives and deal with you quietly in this secluded place, so just die obediently.”

“I can’t accept this! No matter how noble you are, this tyranny—if this comes to light, you will…”

“What are you doing? Eliminate those lowlifes immediately.”

Ignoring Elkana’s protest, the Duke issued his order as if swatting away a fly.

Immediately, gun barrels and magic began to blaze from those soldiers.

“Damn it! Everybody run!”

Countless bullets and magical attacks flew toward them.

In that moment, Magellan quickly conjured a magical barrier.

Due to his earlier injuries and fatigue, coupled with the sudden attack, his magical barrier was only about half as effective as usual, but he did what he could.

At the very least, he wished to protect…

Elkana and the subordinates behind him.

Then…

“Gah!”

“Guh!”

“!!”

A series of sharp screams followed.

Instead of the impact and agony from bullets and magic, those sounds filled Magellan’s ears, rising confusion in his heart.

“What… what are you guys doing right now?!”

Magellan shouted in fury.

The ones standing in front of him, blocking the attack…

The hunters of Demanes, his subordinates, smiled as they spoke.

“Haha… this stings a bit, doesn’t it?”

“Ugh! I seem to still have a long way to go before matching the Captain. Once this is over, I need to train more.”

As blood trickled from their lips, they spoke.

Looking at those who stood to protect him, Magellan shouted desperately.

“Can’t you retreat? I told you to leave me and run away!”

“That’s not an option, Captain. If you die here, who’s going to buy the drinks?”

“You promised! After this, you said you’d take us out for a big celebration. Go ahead and grab a tavern first.”

“You… you guys… Seriously?”

Realizing what their words meant, Magellan’s face turned pale.

This couldn’t be happening.

He could not accept it.

Rather, he would rather be the one to die.

To sacrifice his comrades…

His companions and precious family.

“Shut your mouth! I’m the Captain! Why do I need to be protected by you! I’ll hold them off, so retreat immediately! This is an order… Gah!”

As he forced himself to rise, a sudden shock impacted his head.

And just like that, Magellan could no longer form words, and his consciousness began to fade.

“E-Elk…ana… what… what is this…?”

“I’m sorry, Magellan… but we need to save you.”

With those words, Elkana lifted the fading Magellan onto her back.

Turning to face those who had sustained significant injuries while defending against bullets and magic, they smiled deeply.

“Take care of the Captain.”

“It’s fine! See you later, Commander!”

“What… Ugh…”

A brief but excruciatingly painful farewell.

Leaving that behind, Elkana forced her feet onward, fleeing with all her might.

“All units, charge!”

“Filthy noble dogs! Let’s see how impressive you really are!”

Familiar voices shouted.

The sound of gunfire and explosions followed.

And the short, resounding collisions against armor hit their ears.

With that dreadful noise as their last memory,

Elkana poured all her strength into escaping towards the port.

“Catch her!”

“It’s the Duke’s orders! Don’t let a single one escape!”

The soldiers pursued Elkana.

Yet, being the fastest among her group, she managed to shake off their pursuit and succeeded in reaching the port.

Desperately, Elkana jumped aboard the docked ship.

She cut the anchor line and set sail.

‘If I just get away like this…’

-Bang!