Chapter 25: Simple and Brutal
Fear is that simple.
Everyone has the desire to survive. If there is no hope of defeating the enemy and escape seems impossible, they will be mentally crushed by fear in just a few minutes. Even soldiers with firm faith will surrender in a war with no hope of victory. Soren’s strength has already instilled fear in them, having killed two or three dozen people in just a few minutes, and even their leader, the Narwhal, has been killed. Below the pirate ship are the wandering orcas; jumping into the sea to escape would just feed the whales.
Fear arises not only from slaughter but also from the terror of the unknown!
These pirates do not know how strong Soren truly is, how many methods he has, or who he is; they know almost nothing about the existence before them, only that he slaughters them as if they are mere ants. The opponent is a fearsome being accustomed to killing, and a person like this can reap lives without even blinking. If he wished, he could k*ll everyone on this ship with a smile, as easily as wiping away a bit of dust.
“Charge!”
“k*ll them all! The Narwhal is already dead!”
The warship behind gradually approached, and the lackeys spurred on by rewards were eager to act. Unfortunately, by the time they got close, the battle was basically over. Soren’s emaciated figure stood at the ship’s head, cloaked in a dark red cape, gently cleaning the bl**d from his curved blade, while before him was a large group of enemies who had thrown down their weapons and knelt. This scene left others in shock, and even Adele found it hard to believe, as it had only taken about ten minutes from start to finish.
She encouraged the morale of the ragtag group and gradually brought the ship closer, marking the end of the battle here.
“Get those guys in the sea!”
There were still pirates begging for mercy in the water, and Soren did not let the orcas he controlled k*ll them. Adele began instructing others to throw down the ropes while she watched Soren with astonishment; this man’s strength was greater than she imagined. Others came aboard one after another, and it seemed some were a bit unscrupulous, as they crouched down to search the corpses, hiding a coin pouch as if trying to pocket it without being noticed.
Soren’s expression grew dark, and his eyes narrowed slightly.
“Get out of the way!”
He suddenly shouted, startling everyone around, and even Adele took two steps back in fright.
Soren picked up a spear and directly threw it at the sneaky guy.
Bang!
bl**d splattered.
That guy was pinned to the deck by the spear, having only penetrated his abdomen, so he was not dead yet.
Soren approached with a cold expression and pulled a coin pouch from the man’s pocket, casting a murderous glance at the others, which made them tremble and step back. He then said in a deep voice, “All loot must be turned in and will be rewarded after the battle! For sneaky behavior, there will only be one outcome!”
Soren showed no mercy and did not listen to the man’s pleas, cutting off his head with a single stroke.
bl**d gushed forth.
The severed head rolled away, causing the others to retreat in alarm.
Soren then looked down at everyone in front of him and growled, “I don’t care who you are! I don’t care what your previous rules were! You are my subordinates now, and you must follow my rules! I will not skimp on your deserved rewards, but anyone who dares not to obey my orders will face unimaginable punishment!”
Soren casually tossed the coin pouch to the Half-Elf First Mate beside him, then said in a deep voice, “Let them clean up the battlefield and give them half of the spoils! Soon we will attack Snake Island; anyone who dares not to fight will be slaughtered and fed to the fish!”
The Half-Elf First Mate’s eyes seemed to glisten with a hint of excitement; he nodded silently and began assigning people to clean up the spoils.
This was a true figure capable of rising among the pirates of the Southern Coast!
While he acknowledged Adele’s strength, her methods were nowhere near as cold and domineering as this nobleman before him. He could sense that this noble was not simply aiming for a little power; he could possibly become a Pirate King and might even surpass the legendary Three Pirate Kings.
“Submit to me. Swear loyalty to me.”
Soren walked up to a bearded pirate kneeling on the deck and said in an icy voice, “Serve me, and I will give you your deserved rewards.”
Hesitation, silence, terror.
The bearded pirate in front of Soren seemed to hesitate; although he had surrendered and given up resistance, he had not yet considered quickly siding with the enemy.
Pirates have their own rules.
Just a moment ago, they had drawn their weapons against each other; now they were supposed to submit to the other side?
He visibly hesitated.
Unfortunately, Soren was not interested in waiting for him to think it through. The cold flash of a blade swept across, and then there was a severed head rolling on the ground, a large spurt of bl**d soaking the deck. He didn’t even look at the corpse, moving directly to the second person and saying in a deep voice, “Submit to me, swear loyalty to me.”
He couldn’t be bothered to say anything more.
The guy seemed stunned; a bloody head fell to the ground, and bl**d sprayed all over him.
It seemed he didn’t fully react in time.
Thud!
At this moment, Soren’s patience seemed very limited. A blade flashed in his hand again, and the second head rolled.
The headless corpse collapsed onto the deck, the stench of bl**d growing very strong.
“Submit to me!”
Soren’s words became less frequent, and his expression grew colder, resembling a terrifying Demon God who could k*ll everyone on this ship at any moment.
“I!… I am willing to swear loyalty to you!…”
The third pirate finally wised up a lot, stammering out his response, drenched in cold sweat. It had only been about ten seconds; the first was beheaded for hesitation, and the second was killed for being a beat slow to respond. He didn’t dare to think any longer and chose to swear loyalty without hesitation. He was even sure that if he took a few seconds longer to answer, his head would be instantly severed.
“Very good.”
A smile finally appeared on Soren’s lips as he walked up to the fourth person.
The following process became much easier.
Soren gave everyone three seconds to respond; if he didn’t hear the answer he wanted, it would be met with a merciless flash of the blade. In just three minutes, he turned all the captives into his subordinates, while the others had already become corpses thrown into the sea. Perhaps these people had little loyalty to speak of, but Soren didn’t care much, as he did not need their loyalty right now; he just needed them to understand what fear and respect were.
“The original crew is assigned to the First Mate; you will lead these guys.”
Soren glanced at Adele before him, whose eyes seemed to brighten slightly, with a hint of fervor in her gaze, mixed with a strange emotion. This group of surrendered pirates was stronger, and Adele must personally command them; Soren did not want to waste too much time on the pirates. He just needed these pirates to understand that behind Adele stood a man like him, and the thought of his existence would evoke fear.
This is the simplest, most brutal, and most effective management tactic in a short time!
“Give them weapons!”
Soren cast a calm glance at the others and said in a deep voice, “The other half of the spoils will also be awarded to them; we will go directly to take Snake Island.”
After saying this, he approached the Half-Elf First Mate and watched him, asking, “What is your name?”
The Half-Elf First Mate appeared a bit excited, with both fear and fervor in his expression as he said softly, “My lord!… My name is Casa!…”
“Very good.” Soren nodded lightly, “Casa. From now on, you will command this ship.”
“Head for Snake Island!”
The pirates on the ship hurriedly began to move, collecting the spoils of war, and Soren didn’t give them much time to think. Adele turned the Narwhal’s corpse over and took the tungsten-steel armor and other items from it, presenting them to Soren with a respectful expression, saying, “My lord. This is what I found on the Narwhal; some of it is quite useful.”
Soren glanced at it briefly.
The items from the Narwhal were good, but the most valuable was that tungsten-steel armor, which could almost be exchanged for a manor. Unfortunately, Soren couldn’t wear armor. As a Wanderer, to maintain flexibility, he could only wear leather armor at most; wearing this kind of tungsten-steel armor would affect his combat and spellcasting. Since he acquired the Stone Skin Spell, he seldom wore even leather armor. He looked at Adele, reached out to take the Dimensional Bag, and said in a deep voice, “You wear this armor; tally up the other things and check if there are any goods in the cargo hold!”
“Yes.” Adele nodded respectfully.
This series of thunderous actions not only stunned the pirates but also gradually made both the original crew and Adele understand respect and obedience.
Soren glanced at the others and then lightly jumped onto the massive orca.
He reached out and gently caressed the huge creature, then poured a healing potion into its mouth. The ocean creature seemed to possess a certain level of intelligence; it was struck by a crossbow bolt during the recent battle, which necessitated treatment. Soren did not want to see it bleed to d*ath, as he might need it in the future.
Soren’s time remained tight.
His plan was to help Adele rise on the Southern Coast within seven days, so he had to hasten his steps.
The next target was Snake Island!
………………(To Be Continued ~^~)
