Chapter 4: The Return Journey – Part 2
For centuries, the Ipos pirates have been rampant, and no cargo ship was spared their terror. They were the greatest obstacle to trade between the eastern and western shores. It is said that in ancient times, there were countless followers of the Gate of Truth who joined them. There were rumors that only ships blessed by the Gate of Truth could navigate the seas unimpeded, even those of the Holy Church’s clergy were not exempt.
The pirates never paid heed to the church’s authority. If they ever did encounter them, they might raid with even more fervor.
The sixth knightly order of the Holy Church, responsible for maintaining maritime order, mostly turned a blind eye to pirates appearing outside the Silgaya territorial waters. They would adopt a policy of non-interference unless directly confronted. They usually dismissed condemnations and complaints from various merchant guilds with cold indifference.
In essence, the sixth knightly order was the “naval legion” of the Holy Church. Their jurisdiction extended beyond just Silgaya’s coast; the eastern coast of Ethenbel and the northern coastal regions of the Valen Empire were also under their watch.
However, most of these areas had little to do with commercial transportation. Only the frequent往来频繁的航线集中在Silgaya和Nogai海港之间，因此海盗们也盯上了这片肥沃的航路。这使得每年往返两岸的商船都提心吊胆，因为一旦遇到这些海盗，打不过就只能听天由命，没有人会赶来救援。
到了那个时候，满船的货物被抢，再加上赎船赎命的钱下来，几年的辛苦付诸东流不说，如果运气再差一点，遇到那些没有底线、嗜杀如命的海上红狗，就得连船带人一起，全部被沉尸海底，提早去见海神大人了。
而在这些“红狗”中，有一个以手段极其残暴著称，任何商船都最不想遭遇的海盗头目，名叫伊米尔。
他自称伊波斯公爵先生，以名为“嗜血公爵”的三桅战船为首，爪牙遍布梅特群岛周边海域。凡是被他的人洗劫过的船只，男性无一幸免，女性财物都被掳走，然后一把火烧掉，扔下一面骷髅旗帜，以此炫耀他的凶悍。
这几天，船上的人之所以感到紧张，除了突如其来的寒风之外，更重要的是航线已经进入了“嗜血公爵”的狩猎范围——但值得庆幸的是，海盗头领伊米尔近年来早已不再劫掠中小型商船了。像“卡利维尔号”这样的小吨位货船，大概还入不了他的眼，“红狗”只盯着“大货”。
这些事情，我也是从帆缆长他们闲聊时听说的。
几天后，寒风停了。“卡利维尔号”逐渐驶离梅特群岛海域，一路畅通无阻，拦路的“红狗”一只也没有出现。
Encountered.
The day before, in the vast sea on the horizon, we had seen the wreckage of a Norwegian cargo ship that had been attacked and burned by pirates.
It seemed to be a convoy of merchant ships, but it was impossible to determine their origin or number. The burnt and broken hull floated on the tumultuous sea, with countless dead bodies floating up as well. The entire sea was polluted with blood and oil, turning it into a shimmering brown, with a flag bearing a skull standing alone on the largest piece of wreckage. The惨烈 scene seemed endless, sending chills down one’s spine.
Among those pirates, there should have been more than one person capable of using Order Powers.
And at least one of them was very powerful.
Otherwise, in an era without gunpowder cannons, it would be absolutely impossible to tear such a large ship apart at sea with just the power of swords, bows, and arrows. Even someone with slightly weaker Order Powers wouldn’t be able to do it.
“The Callivere sailed around the edge of the wreckage later. During that process, everyone on the noisy deck fell silent, staring at that hellish scene, becoming increasingly fearful and uneasy. Even after the merchant ship sailed far away and the night grew deep, that atmosphere lingered for a long time.
“Logically speaking, such inhumane acts should be regulated by the Church…”
That evening, the boatswain drank quite a bit of wine. After it got late, he returned to the cabin with several crew members and saw me gazing out the porthole at the night景色. For some reason, he came over and started chatting idly with me.
“But it’s said… only rumored, the Sixth Knight Order is quite dark. Their legion commander colluded with the Bloodthirsty Duke behind the scenes, they were all in the same boat. They not only allowed the Red Dogs to grow stronger by burning and plundering at sea, but also turned a blind eye to their raids along the coast. Every time, they couldn’t catch them, and chasing them out to sea was just a farce. In reality, they deliberately let them escape. The knights profit immensely from the pirates each year…”
“If the Church really put in the effort to clean things up, a bunch of small-time pirates, do you think they could cause much trouble?”
The man probably thought I was shaken by the scene earlier that day, and might be feeling uneasy, so he silently watched the night scenery. He later comforted me, “Don’t be afraid. I don’t mean anything by this. The Red Dogs’ territory will soon pass, and we likely won’t encounter them. Even if we do, they wouldn’t bother with such a small ship. I’m just reminding you to be more careful. Once we reach West Continent, don’t trust those Church knights too much. They’re very hypocritical.”
“A knight, isn’t he supposed to be a hero protecting the people…”
I casually asked him, not really interested in these topics.
He was no longer interested, but somehow, when Aletheion City flashed through his mind, those countless prisoners from the Third Knightly Order who had turned and charged toward the blades, their shouting and falling figures in the pool of blood, could not be erased.
“Hero?”
The boatswain sneered at my words, “These are the fools in the West Continent who have been brainwashed by the Church. We in the East Continent have never thought this way. Humph, what nonsense about heroes… A hero would ask for a fee from merchant ships? We give every ship money every year, once for each visit to the West Continent, or else you wouldn’t even be able to unload your cargo…”
“Rumors, just treat them as rumors… They say that two years ago, the Gate of Truth invaded Mosli Coast. The Sixth Knightly Order should have been defending the coastal line with the Third Knightly Order, but guess what? They lost at sea once, and then they withdrew completely, allowing those lunatics from the Gate of Truth to land smoothly. It’s said that they massacred the entire Southern Territory of Silgaya, leaving nothing alive… Do you know why?”
“…Why?”
“There are several versions. The most widespread one is that someone in the Knightly Order accepted benefits from heretics. Ha! To be honest, if this were true, I wouldn’t be surprised at all. They are just a bunch of greedy scoundrels…”
“…”
“But there’s another version, the most far-fetched one. No idea who was bold enough to spread it. It says that the invasion war was actually a grand scheme set up from the very beginning by someone in power to eliminate their rivals… a shocking grand scheme.”
Under the hood, I slightly furrowed my brows.
The boatswain’s rough face had a slight flush; he was indeed quite drunk, and his words were full of alcohol: “Do you know who the Third Knightly Order served? Of course, it was Cardinal Saint George, but later, Yanbao reported that it was because of the immoral actions of the Saint George Bank that led to the downfall of the Third Knightly Order…”
“Hmph, who do you think is a fool? Anyone with half a brain can figure out that whether it’s the Saint George Bank or the Third Knightly Order, they were both once the foundation of the Williams family’s status. How could they possibly…”
That night, the man chattered on with me for a long time. The next morning, after he sobered up, perhaps feeling some regret, he came to find me specifically, and whispered, “What I said last night was all nonsense from being drunk. Don’t take it seriously, don’t tell anyone, or you might bring trouble upon yourself.”
“Okay.”
I naturally nodded obediently.
Afterward, he was still worried and reminded me several more times. As he left, he mumbled softly, “Why drink so much… really… saying such things to a naive little girl… I’m such an idiot…”
