“<It’s me, Reiaane! Father sent me to collect you!>”

Judging by the direction of the girl’s gaze, Reiaane must be Rei’s real name.

But while she looked happy to see Rei, Rei was trembling and hiding behind my arm.

“<It’s the shadow person… Scary…>”

Rei clung to me even tighter.

So this was the person Rei saw in her dream?

“Grrr…”

“Tama, what’s wrong, sir?”

Tama was growling at the black-haired girl, the same way she’d reacted when we first met Rei.

Liza and Nana moved to stand in front of me, but I stopped them with a wave of my hand.

Tama’s reaction prompted me to activate my “Miasma Vision,” and when I did, I saw something truly frightful.

With “Miasma Vision,” the girl in front of us looked like an evil spirit.

She was completely shrouded in a black aura, and black chains of miasma writhed around her body like snakes.

There were shackle-like miasma shapes around her hands and feet, too; the thick chain attached to them faded into the mist that had suddenly risen up around us.

If she could see this, it was no wonder Rei was frightened.

Since she was speaking Hallowed Language, this girl was probably connected to the Skeleton King, so I put a marker on her just in case.

“<Listen to me, Sister! Aside from the long-lost Crimson Cane, we have gathered all the Sacred Treasures. All we need now is a large crystallized Firelight Pearl, the Box, and your key, and we’ll be able to bring Lalakie back to the skies!>”

As soon as the girl finished shouting, something about Rei suddenly changed.

The light left her eyes, which became unfocused as she looked up at the girl.

“<Lalakie must not be returned to the skies. The queen’s dying wish was for it to rest at the bottom of the ocean forever…>”

Rei spoke in a voice and manner that didn’t sound like her own.

Her tone resembled a prerecorded announcement being played back.

“<Sister? What is wrong?>”

Finally noticing Rei’s unusual state, the girl squinted at her quizzically, then saw me standing in front of her and scowled.

“<Hi there. Are you a friend of Rei’s?>” I attempted a friendly greeting, but she jutted out her chin and glared even harder.

“<Out of the way, servant. Don’t interrupt my reunion with Sister Reiaane.>”

According to the information in my AR display, her name was Yuuneia. She was level 30, with the inherent ability Foundation. She had four skills: “Ghost Magic,” “Tuning,” “Evasion,” and “Animal Training.”

Judging by her apparent race, she couldn’t possibly be Rei’s sister by blood. They were probably either sisters-in-law or simply had been raised as siblings.

“<…Can you hear me? I keep telling you to get out of the way.>”

As I raised my head to stare at her, Yuuneia sounded exasperated.

She must have told me to move a few times while I was inspecting her information.

“<Oh, sorry. I was a little lost in thought, so I didn’t hear you.>” I apologized, but it didn’t seem to be enough to calm her anger.

“<So you intend to keep blocking my way…>”

As she scowled, a gear-like ring of light appeared over her forehead.

I guess I messed up.

I should have been dodging to the side, not apologizing.

But I wouldn’t have done that even if I knew, of course.

“<Then perish!>”

SHWNESHWNEEEE!

A call like a mynah bird’s cry echoed over Yuuneia’s voice.

Wondering where the call was coming from, I nonetheless focused on using Break Magic to ward off the shots from her forehead.

Before long, twenty or so skeleton pirates rose from her shadow and attacked.

Is that Ghost Magic?

“Aaaagh!”

“Monsterrrs!”

The passersby who’d been gathered around talking about Yuuneia in a language I didn’t know all screamed and fled when they saw the skeleton pirates.

“Prepare for battle, everyone.”

On Liza’s command, the rest of the group started producing their weapons from their Fairy Packs.

Nana chose the large shield.

Despite their numbers, the skeleton pirates were only around level 10, so the girls could probably take them without my help.

Just to make sure they didn’t get hurt, I used Enchant: Physical Protection and Enchant: Magic Protection on all of them.

“They’re level ten,” Arisa called. “They have the Paralysis effect, though, so watch out for unarmed attacks, too!”

The others all shouted affirmation.

“<Can’t we talk this out, please?>”

“<I will kill you and bring my sister home, along with the key. Those are Father’s orders.>”

Yuuneia produced another gear-shaped magic circle over her forehead.

I knew it. So Rei’s key-shaped hair ornament really is an important item.

But also… “Orders,” huh?

At this point, I finally noticed that her status condition read Possessed.

That explained the miasma around her.

“<Let me help you with that.>”

I entrusted Rei to Lulu and zipped over to Yuuneia with “Warp.”

She tried to fire a Foundation spear, but I again evaporated it with Break Magic.

“<Evil spirit, begone!>”

I produced a Holy Stone from Storage and put magic power into it.

Given her race, she shouldn’t be purified along with the evil spirit possessing her.

GHWEGHWEEEE!

“Aaaaah!”

As Yuuneia was bathed in holy light, a black cloud erupted from her body with a roar. For some reason, she let out a scream as well.

Luckily, she didn’t seem to be hurt, but her white clothes started contracting around her, binding her tightly.

I felt awkward seeing her like that, so I switched over to “Miasma Vision,” which revealed the cause.

The vortex of miasma around her was fading, but the miasma chains had tightened on her body. The shackles were still totally intact.

I stopped the Holy Stone at once and started to unbind the miasma around her by hand instead.

If I kept trying to banish it with the Holy Stone, it might seriously harm her.

I could just defeat the thing possessing her whenever it came out.

“<L-let me go!>”

“<Don’t worry. It’ll all be over in a minute.>”

With this absurd response to Yuuneia’s protest, I drained her magic to prevent her from trying to fight me off with Foundation.

“<Stealing my magic isn’t going to stop me!>”

Yuuneia kept struggling, so I held her up with Magic Hand while I undid the chains of miasma.

“<Nnngh… I told you—let me go!>”

I wanted to get the shackles off first, but judging by the way they were put together, it looked like I might have to start with the chains.

Ignoring Yuuneia’s violent resistance, I continued my work.

“Wh-why, you heartless… Nnngh… Aaah… Aaah!”

As I started to remove more of the miasma, a few of Yuuneia’s screams seemed to take on a borderline sexual tone, but I figured that must be my imagination and ignored it.

Meanwhile, my companions finished off the skeleton pirates with ease.

SHWNESHWNEEEE!

I heard the mynah-like cry again.

“Master, her shadow!” Arisa exclaimed.

Turning off the “Miasma Vision” in my left eye, I glanced at Yuuneia’s shadow, but I didn’t see anything.

Wait—a bird.

The shadow of a bird was sitting on her shadow’s shoulder.

There was nothing on her real shoulder, so it must have been some kind of shadow monster.

I tried stomping on the bird’s shadow as hard as I could, but it simply flew away unharmed.

“Behind you!”

“<Aah!>”

Arisa’s shout and Rei’s scream rang out at the same time.

Whirling around, I saw a shadow stalker emerging from Rei’s shadow.

At the same time, she returned from her trancelike state to her normal self.

“Take this!”

Lulu fired at it with her Magic Gun.

It seemed to be weaker than the shadow stalkers the Undead King Zen used, disappearing after only a few shots.

SHWNESHWNEEE!

The mynah bird’s cry echoed, and the shadows at my and Rei’s feet turned into a dark pool. This must be Shadow Portal, the same spell Zen used to kidnap Mia.

But this time, it didn’t feel like my feet were sinking in all the way.

“Don’t expect to get away with using space manipulation in front of a Space Magic user like me!”

Arisa grinned, her arm stretched out toward Rei and me.

She’d used her Space Magic to block the Shadow Portal.

But there were still some shadow tentacles left…

“There!”

“Take this, sir!”

Lulu shot down a tentacle that tried to grab Rei, and Pochi sped in to stab the vortex of shadows with her Magic Sword.

The shadows shrank back, the tentacles freezing in place.

“Dun-dun-duuun!”

Tama sliced through the shadow tentacle that had grabbed Rei’s leg.

“We will never surrender the larva, I declare.”

Once Rei was freed, Nana lifted her up.

Then, finally…

“No mere shadows can stand up against the Magic Spear master gave me.”

Using “Spellblade,” Liza used her glittering Magic Spear to destroy the shadows.

Pushing away the sudden urge to brag to someone about my companions’ growth, I finished off the wriggling remains of the shadows with Break Magic and turned my attention back to Yuuneia.

I’d gotten rid of about half of the miasma; possibly as a result, one of her inverted eyes had returned to a normal blue.

I reactivated my “Miasma Vision” and moved to resume unraveling the miasma.

“<Get away!>”

Yuuneia struggled desperately to escape Magic Hand, but it wasn’t so easy to shake off.

“<Nnngh! Ch-Chibi! Help me!>”

Realizing this, Yuuneia cried out for help.

SHWNESHWNEEE!

As if on cue, the mynah bird’s call echoed again.

But the bird wasn’t the only one waiting for that chance.

Stepping away from Yuuneia, I found the red point of light that had appeared for just a moment and punched it as hard as I could.

GHWEGHWEEE.

“<Ch-Chibiiii!>”

Yuuneia gave a worried cry when she heard the bird’s scream.

“<Get away from me, you fiend! How dare you do that to Chibi!>”

I didn’t see anything, but it did feel like my hand had hit something.

Shadowy feathers flew everywhere, and something appeared in my log:

> Defeated Ghost Bird: Copy!

Shoot, so it has the same kind of ability as that lesser hell demon I fought in the Muno Barony?

“<Release me at once! I shall avenge Chibi!>”

Not realizing that what I’d beaten was only a copy, Yuuneia struggled even more fiercely than before.

SHWNESHWNEEE!

“<Chibi!>”

Yuuneia’s face lit up when she heard the ghost bird’s cry echoing from somewhere.

SHWNESHWNEEE!

This time, there were seven different red lights around me.

They all attacked at once, so I got ready to fend them off with the rest of my party.

“Master, she’s gone!” Arisa exclaimed.

By the time I turned around, Yuuneia had already vanished, and her location in my marker information screen read Spirit World.

She must have escaped from Magic Hand somehow while I was distracted.

“<Wait for me, Sister!>”

Yuuneia’s voice seemed to come from nowhere.

I switched to “Miasma Vision” and looked around.

“<I’ll save you from that black-haired demon, I promise!>”

That was a strange thing to call me, but I decided to ignore it for now.

Aha.

Spotting an area of miasma that was moving a little, I shot out my hand.

“<Eeeeek! He’s coming! It’s the black-haired demon!>”

The wormhole to the Spirit World expanded around my hand, and Yuuneia let forth a fearful cry.

For some reason, I was starting to feel like the villain here.

A little disheartened, I nonetheless began to widen the fragile entrance.

“<Chibi, cut the connection! Quick!>”

SHWNESHWNEEE!

The bird let out a cry, and a few decomposing corpses emerged from the wormhole.

“Ew!”

The sight and smell made me instinctively draw back, and the entrance to the Spirit World closed, leaving behind the terrible corpses—reanimated undead monsters.

“Larva! Master, the larva has fainted, I report. Requesting assistance!”

Turning around, I saw Nana holding Rei, who’d lost consciousness.

Her condition read Fainted, and with “Miasma Vision,” I could see that a snakelike trail of miasma was wrapping around her leg.

The miasma carried by the undead monsters must have attacked her.

“Tama, Pochi, take care of that thing.”

“Aye-aye, sirrr!”

“Leave it to us, sir!”

The beastfolk girls took care of the monsters while I started working to remove the miasma from Rei.

By the time I finished, the beastfolk girls had defeated all the undead, leaving behind countless bones and rotted meat.

“Hey, you! What’s the meaning of this?!”

The sound of hooves clattered through the street, announcing the arrival of the viceroy’s army of Sutoandell.

Uh-oh. How am I going to explain this?

“Sir Pendragon, we simply cannot thank you enough.”

I thought I was being apprehended at the viceroy’s mansion, but instead I was given a royal welcome by the viceroy himself.

My companions weren’t with me, but they were being well cared for in a separate room.

“I had no idea that you were the viceroy of Sutoandell, Viscount Emerin.”

I’d first befriended Viscount Kirk Emerin, a high-ranking noble of the old capital, when he came to me on the brink of ruin, asking if I could develop some cooking methods to popularize the unsellable lulu fruit.

The reason the viscount had been so close to bankruptcy was the destruction of Baron Jeetbert’s fleet, but far from being resentful, he was simply overjoyed that some of his vassals and friends had survived.

“Indeed. Traditionally, I would have a while longer to wait before becoming a viceroy, but certain circumstances sped things along a bit.”

Oh, right. The previous viceroy of Sutoandell, Count Bobino, had been removed from his post because the former head of his family turned out to be supporting the demon lord–worshipping cult the Wings of Freedom.

“At any rate, Sir Pendragon, you need not stand on ceremony so. I believe I told you that you may simply call me Kirk.”

Why are you calling me Sir Pendragon instead of just Satou, then? I thought, but I supposed that was simply his nature.

“You saved my vassals from being stranded on a remote island. I owe you a great debt.”

“Precisely! When Sir Pendragon appeared sailing our ship that had run aground, we thought an agent of the gods had come to us.”

Sitting next to Viscount Emerin was Baron Jeetbert.

Several members of the viscount’s family were present as well, although his second daughter, Rina, who I’d danced with at the ball in the old capital, was not among them.

I was told that she was traveling back to the Muno Barony with Miss Karina to study as a lady’s attendant.

That seemed like a pretty big deal, since she was only around middle school age.

Still, if she wanted to become an attendant, why was she studying in the faraway Muno Barony instead of the Ougoch Duchy castle?

Well, she was a young teenager, so maybe she wanted to prove that she could get by on her own far away from her parents. Next time I sent a letter to the Muno Barony, I would have to write to her as well. And Miss Karina, of course.

There was a knock at the door, and a servant peered inside.

“Your Excellency, Baron Jeetbert’s family has arrived.”

At that, the baron half rose from his seat, looking eager.

“Is that right? Baron Jeetbert, don’t feel obliged to stay. You may go and see them.”

“I appreciate your kindness, Your Excellency.”

With a bow to Viscount Emerin and me, Baron Jeetbert hurried out of the room.

Soon, my “Keen Hearing” skill picked up on his reunion with his family.

Yeah. It feels good to help people.

“Lord Kirk, I believe this is yours.”

“Th-this is the Magic Bag I entrusted to the crew!” Viscount Emerin exclaimed in surprise.

“I found it when we discovered the sunken ships. At first I thought I should give it to Baron Jeetbert, but the contents seemed incredibly valuable, so I wanted to deliver it to you directly.”

Peering into the bag, the viscount was at a loss for words.

It didn’t contain much in the way of gold or silver coins, but there was a great deal of sculpted coral and delicate magical handicrafts, as well as large, high-quality gems like jade and agate and an amazing amount of raw ore containing more gemstones.

Though Baron Jeetbert hadn’t noticed, I’d also removed the ballast from that ship and replaced it with as many Magic Cannons as I could fit. I wasn’t able to fit extra Magic Furnaces, though.

“Wh-why, Sir Pendragon…?”

Huh? I’d expected him to be happy, but his reaction was a little strange.

“With all this treasure, you could buy yourself an honorary baron title or even a permanent one! Why would you give this to me without asking for any reward in exchange?”

“Well, it belongs to you, doesn’t it?”

When you find something lost, you return it to the owner.

Any Japanese person would tell you that.

“What are you saying? Anything found in monster territory, be it from a sunken ship or flotsam and jetsam, belongs to the person who finds it. Piracy is another story, but in this case, these treasures belong to you by rights.”

I see. So it works the same way as items found in a labyrinth.

But pocketing something knowing full well it belonged to someone I knew just wouldn’t sit right with me.

“All right. Let me explain, then.”

“Explain what?”

So I decided to put my “Fabrication” skill to work.

“I did not mention this because I thought you might find it hard to believe, but these bags and sunken treasures were given to me by the ghosts of the captains who passed away in the Seadragon Islands.”

“Wh-what?!”

I told him that we had been lost in the Seadragon Islands when the ghosts appeared, guided us to safety, and asked us to rescue the baron and his men and bring them and these items to Viscount Emerin.

With that story, I figured even Viscount Emerin would have to accept the items.

“Incredible! Such loyal vassals they were…”

“Quite so. Once I promised to carry out their wishes, they seemed to be able to pass on peacefully.”

That didn’t actually happen per se, but I did purify that whole area, so it probably wasn’t wrong.

For a few moments, Viscount Emerin closed his eyes tearfully to pray silently for his lost vassals. Then he opened his eyes again and looked at me.

“Thank you for bringing these to me. What can I ever do to repay you?”

“Well, I do have one rather impudent request…”

If I didn’t say something, I was afraid I’d get dragged into marriage talks and have to find a way out of it, so I asked for permits to buy and sell scrolls and spell books in Sutoandell.

I didn’t really care about selling them, but just permission to buy them didn’t seem like enough of a reward, so I tried to make it sound like a bigger deal.

“Are you sure that is all you desire? If you wished it, I would be more than happy to even welcome you into my family…”

That was close.

If I remembered right, his eldest daughter was already engaged, so he probably would’ve tried to set me up with Miss Rina.

Rina was a good kid, but she was barely old enough to be in middle school, so she was definitely too young for me. Besides, I had feelings for someone else now.

“If you intend to travel to Labyrinth City, I imagine you will pass through the trade city Tartumina on your land route. Perhaps I can give you some items that are likely to turn a large profit there.”

As it turned out, Viscount Emerin wasn’t done rewarding me yet.

That night, he held a ball in honor of Baron Jeetbert and me.

Viscount Emerin introduced me as a “new friend,” so at first I was surrounded by eligible young women and nobles with unmarried daughters, but Rina’s older sister helped me escape.

But then…

“What an exquisite aroma! Whatever could it be?”

“It resembles the freshness of new leaves but with a faint trace of sweetness. How delightful.”

This time, she and her friends surrounded me instead.

They seemed to like the cologne I’d received as a parting gift from the brownies.

“I have never seen this particular fabric before, either.”

“It has the luster of jade silk, but it’s not quite the same… It’s almost like the legendary fairy silk.”

The fairly plain-looking young noblewoman’s guess was correct. Her face was a little too close for comfort, though.

“The way it gives off a jade-green shimmer when it catches the chandelier light is so beautiful.”

“Indeed. Perhaps I shall ask you for a dance?”

“If you wish, milady…”

I agreed to Rina’s elder sister’s request and wound up dancing with her and her friends.

Once I’d humored all of the rather young women, they finally released me.

“How would you like to try some spirits from the Saga Empire?”

“Certainly, thank you.”

As if waiting for his chance, a Saga Empire merchant jumped me as soon as I left the dance floor.

I used this as my opportunity to start chatting with the nobles of Sutoandell, captains of foreign merchant ships, and other guests.

I didn’t gain any new information about Lalakie, but I did learn more about the Kingdom of Sorcery Lalagi, where the descendants of the skyfolk might reside.

“The king there can’t get enough liquor.”

“Yes, he even invented titles to give people for offering him rare drinks, like Liquor Baron and Liquor Knight.”

According to this man, a liquor baron was considered the same rank as other barons in Lalagi, while a liquor knight was a low-ranking form of nobility.

Even nobles from other countries often sought these titles. The reason being…

“The only real responsibility is to give rare liquor to the king if you happen to find it, and being a liquor baron is useful for trade.”

Basically, the title came with certain trading permissions and privileges.

I also spoke with a weaselman captain and a Saga Empire captain, who gave me information about certain sea routes, rare recipes, and special products that turned a high profit in some places.

However, apparently, they weren’t just sharing that information out of kindness…

“The route to the Bolenan Forest?”

“I-indeed. I know it is a secret, but even a hint would be appreciated.”

“Is it true that you get there through the Seadragon Islands?”

The captains seemed to want to trade with the elves in Bolenan Forest.

“I wasn’t especially told to keep it a secret, but I was teleported out via the elves’ special techniques, so I’m afraid I don’t know the route back to the Bolenan Forest.”

The pair had gotten excited when I said I could tell them a land route, but they lost interest as soon as they heard “cross the Black Dragon Mountains.”

I still felt like I owed them something for all that information, so I decided to give them a few small casks of fairy wine and dried yellorange fruit before I left the harbor.

As for the viceroy’s soldiers who took care of the aftermath of the battle for us, I sent them a few barrels of high-quality ale and delivery from a high-class restaurant.

“Get outta here, kid.”

As soon as I set foot in the tavern where most of the visiting sailors reportedly gathered, I was met with this corny line. It came from a suntanned sailor near the entrance.

I was here to gather information: I wanted to ask the sailors about Lalakie and its successor, Lalagi.

I’d gotten most of the details from Baron Jeetbert, his men, and the captains at the ball, but I thought people who had just come back from that area might have different information.

“Noble or not, no brats allowed here.”

“This is where we men of the sea come to take a load off.”

More sailors jeered at me from farther into the tavern.

“Do I not look like a sailor?”

I was wearing a shirt and trousers instead of my usual noble garb, but I guess I still looked like a noble to them.

“’Course ya don’t. What kinda sailor would go around smellin’ like fancy perfume with nary a wrinkle in his shirt?!”

The man grabbed me by the scruff of the neck and scowled.

I must have still smelled like the cologne I’d worn to Viscount Emerin’s ball.

“Not to mention, yer skin and hair look like ye’ve never felt the sun nor the sea breeze in yer life.”

“Kid’s either a noble or some merchant’s boy.”

True enough, I’d been protecting myself from the harsh sun and winds using magic, so they weren’t wrong.

Still, if they were going to object to me this much, I wouldn’t be able to gather any information.

As I wondered what to do, I caught wind of a conversation in the corner of the tavern.

“Whaddaya mean, ale? What kinda sailor don’t drink rum?!”

“C’mon, can’t a man drink what he wants when he comes back to dry land?”

Two of the sailors were arguing over drinks.

Seeing them, the man holding me smirked and winked.

“We don’t got none of yer hoity-toity booze here.”

“Yeah, go on home.”

“Or are you gonna show us how manly you are by knocking back some rum?”

The soldier who’d been winked at grinned back and poured a full glass of rum in front of me.

The strong smell of alcohol assaulted my nose.

Rum was a kind of liquor made from sugarcane, with a high alcohol content—at least, it certainly was on Earth.

Expecting me to choke, the men all sneered at me unpleasantly.

“Well, if you insist…”

With that, I brought the glass to my lips.

Whoa.

This was very different from the rum I knew.

The taste and smell were incredibly aggressive, so strong it practically numbed my mouth with the first drink.

But it was good.

The rum still retained a bit of the sweet molasses taste of the sugarcane, perhaps due to imprecise brewing. It would go great with a bitter, salty snack.

I drank the rest down in one gulp.

“One more, barkeep!”

The men around me all stared in surprise as I called to the bartender.

“Another glass?”

“I’ll take a tankard!”

All at once, the bar was filled with crude laughter and the sounds of tankards being slammed down on tables.

“Good one, boy!”

“Ye’ve got the making of a real sailor-in-training!”

It appeared that I’d earned their approval.

I drank with the sailors for a while, and they taught me all kinds of things about ships and sailing. Unfortunately, I didn’t get any information about Lalakie, my original goal here.

“I dunno about no legendary sky cities, but I do know of a legendary pirate.” One of the men said, pointing at the wall.

Looking closely, I saw a board of wanted posters with drawn faces and their respective bounties. Most of them were grim-looking male pirates, but there were a few women in the mix, too.

The most faded, timeworn wanted poster bore a drawing of a skull. I guess the Skeleton King had a bounty, too.

“Urgh, don’t call that disaster a legend!”

“Yeah, what if talking about ’im brings ’im around?”

“Heaven and hell forbid!”

I gathered that the Skeleton King appeared every few years, unpredictably attacking island countries, trade fleets, and the like and pillaging their treasures.

“My gramps who was a sailor said that he first heard about the Skeleton King from his gramps.”

Hmm. If that was true, then the Skeleton King had been around since the ancient times when Lalakie fell.

I’d assumed he showed up because I broke the anti-magic spell on the city-rock island, but maybe it was actually only an unlucky coincidence.

“Aye, and the sailors he kills are forced to work in his ghost fleet for all eternity.”

“If ever ye find a drifting ship without a crew, turn round and run for all yer worth. It’s a sure sign of a Skeleton King attack.”

“Be wary of storms, too. They say the Skeleton King’s ghost fleet brings dark clouds and fierce winds wherever it roams.”

“Storms are never a good thing anyway, moron!”

Wow. So the Skeleton King was basically on par with a natural disaster.

I’d destroyed his ghost fleet, though, so hopefully he’d stay quiet for a while.

“Oh, don’t look like that, boy. As long as ye stay away from Lalagi, the Kingdom of Sorcery, ye’re hardly likely to see ’im.”

As I was lost in thought, one of the sailors appeared to mistake my reaction for fear, so he clapped me on the back reassuringly.

“S’right. I hear he oft shows up in years when the Skydea Festival is held.”

“Why? To check out the festival?”

The men around me burst out in raucous laughter.

“Yer a funny little noble, kid.”

“If the Skeleton King were such a fun-lovin’ sort, nobody’d be so afeared of ’im.”

Once they’d wiped away the tears of laughter, the sailors explained the real reason.

“It’s a war, see. Once the Skeleton King’s strengthened his ghost fleet, he attacks Lalagi.”

War?

That was strange. Why would the Skeleton King, the companion to the final queen of Lalakie, attack a kingdom where the descendants of the skyfolk—the people of Lalakie—lived?

Did they have some mysterious enmity or something?

“C’mon, I told ye—don’t make that face. The kingdom of Lalagi’s got mighty powerful magics, so you oughtta go check it out at least once. You’ll see how they’ve staved off the Skeleton King’s ghost fleet all this time.”

The soldier smacked my back heartily again, then loudly shouted for another drink.

From there, the topic changed to the Skydea Festival, from the different parades to which shopgirls were the cutest.

Some of the sailors also knew that the royal family of the Kingdom of Sorcery Lalagi were called “skyfolk,” so it didn’t seem to be a big secret.

“Well, there is a place kind of like Lalagi at the very end of the sugar route.”

“The end of the sugar route… Y’mean Ishrallie?”

Oh, that was a new name.

“Ishrallie?” I echoed.

“Aye, the maritime nation. Rumor has it their royal family is descended from some kinda flying castle place, too.”

As the veteran sailor explained, I searched my Storage for information.

“If ye’re a real man, ye’ll aim to make a real fortune out there.”

“Ye mean by finding a Heaven’s Teardop in Ishrallie?”

The men crashed their tankards against one another and roared with laughter.

“Oi, don’t tell the kid to go to Ishrallie. It’s all prospectors and pilferers out there.”

“There are tons o’ pirates in those waters, not to mention the bullet tuna and monster fish…”

“Aye, I’d steer clear. Might be a different story if ye were as strong as the Eight Swordsmen of Shiga, but for the rest of us, it ain’t worth the danger. Only gamblers and fools with a death wish dare travel to that place.”

“It’s still safer than treasure-hunting in the Seadragon Islands, though, eh?”

“True that. Not even gamblers go there.”

As I sat searching in silence, the men around me explained everything they knew about Ishrallie.

The Heaven’s Teardrop in question was a particularly high-quality gemstone that could be found only in Ishrallie.

It was highly sought-after, especially by well-to-do nobles living in the royal capital of the Shiga Kingdom, who would pay a fortune for it.

Wait, forget about that.

I heard something much more important just now.

“There are tuna there?”

“Huh? Y’mean the bullet tuna? Aye, they appear time ’n’ again there.”

The sea captain seemed a little taken aback by my sudden enthusiasm.

All right! We’ve gotta go there!

First, I would have to make a knife that could properly cut tuna. I know! I’ll make a tuna knife out of orichalcum.

“I hear the battleships and speed ships alike that go after the monster-fish fins disappear into the depths of the sea…”

“Not like ye can just bring a battleship into a trade area anyway.”

“’Course not. Ishrallie’s Dragon Cannon would send ye up in flames, ship and all.”

Monster-fish fins were an important material for skypower engines, but I had seven enormous giant monster fish in my Storage, so I wasn’t interested in that.

“Are you really planning to go to Ishrallie, boy?”

“Yes, my interest is certainly piqued.”

In the tuna, that is.

“Then ye better buy some silk. I doubt ye can afford jade silk, but I hear all kinds of silk sell there for several times the amount in the old capital.”

“And glasswork for Lalagi, right?”

“Oh yes, ye’ll sell plenty of glasswork there. But unlike in the old capital, transparent glass is valued higher there—at least, according to me captain.”

As we drank together, I learned more from the sailors about sales and trade.

I didn’t particularly need to turn a profit, but I wound up writing down buy glasswork and silk on my to-do list on my menu anyway. I couldn’t resist the allure of a phrase like making a killing in trade and all the exciting images it brought to mind.

In a good mood now, I declared that I would pay for everyone’s drinks as thanks for all the information, and we wound up drinking together until dawn.

I’d already stopped by the magic store to buy the scrolls and spell books I couldn’t get earlier in the day, so it was no big deal.

There were some establishments with pretty ladies, too, but those would have to wait.

“So you drank until morning, hmm?”

“Mrrr.”

When I returned to the viceroy’s castle, I ignored Arisa’s and Mia’s complaints and asked the maid to send for their regular tradesman.

“Are you going to order something?”

“That too, but I wanted to see if they could send some articles of the deceased to their respective families.”

For those who were related to people I knew in the old capital or their retainers, I had the items delivered directly. I sent the rest of the old capital deliveries to Tolma; for those who couldn’t be identified, I sent the items to Sara at the Tenion Temple to donate to the old capital museum.

Foreigners often visited the museum, so that way a relative of the deceased owners or a researcher might find them. It was certainly better than letting them rot away in my Storage forever.

My excuse for having the goods was that I acquired them from a trader friend who bought them off pirates at a black market.

“You must really trust Sara and Tolma.”

“You could say that.”

They couldn’t be more different as people, but I was confident that neither of them would misuse someone else’s belongings. Despite his generally lax attitude, Tolma actually had a very strong sense of duty.

For items that belonged to deceased people from outside the Ougoch Duchy, I kept them in Storage for now, thinking that I could give them to someone trustworthy when I visited the royal capital.

Miss Nina, the competent consul of Baron Muno, was coming for the kingdom conference, so I could also potentially give the items to her to help the Muno Barony form stronger ties with the rest of the world.

A butler asked if he could do anything else to help, so I requested that he send some small casks of fairy wine and dried yellorange fruit to the two captains from the previous evening.

I didn’t want to leave anybody out, so I sent some to Viscount Emerin, too.

While I was at it, I gave the staff of the house some simple baked sweets as thanks.

Seeing the beautiful women’s serious expressions melt at the scent of the pastries was well worth the trouble.

“You’re departing already? Why not stay a little longer and rest?”

“Thank you, but I recovered more than enough energy at last night’s ball.”

Viscount Emerin seemed disappointed that I was leaving so soon, but he saw me off kindly nonetheless.

On top of that, he even gave me a large supply of silk, jade silk, and transparent glasswork. Evidently, one of Baron Jeetbert’s subordinates had been at the tavern the night before.

The rest of the group besides Rei had already set out, so the viscount’s vassals generously carried these supplies to the harbor for us.

Rei still wasn’t back to her usual self, which was why she was leaving late with me.

It was also a precaution against another attack from Yuuneia.

“Oh, I almost forgot.”

I reached into my pocket and produced a replica of Rei’s hair ornament.

I’d used my “Forgery” and “Metalworking” skills to make it, so it was virtually indistinguishable from the real thing, even up close.

I’d added a little bonus feature to it, too, but that wasn’t too important.

“<Rei, I made this…>”

As soon as she saw the fake key, the light left her eyes, and she stopped in place.

“<…Rei?>”

I called out her name, but she didn’t respond.

Then her mouth opened, her face expressionless.

“<The key to Lalakie… The controller that activates Lalakie’s heart.>”

She spoke rapidly, in the same tone she’d used when we ran into Yuuneia.

“<The proof of royalty that has been passed down by the queens of Lalakie for generations…>”

When she finished, the light slowly returned to her eyes.

“<Are you all right?>”

“<Yes… I’m fine.>”

Speaking in her usual manner again, Rei blinked a few times.

No, maybe not quite usual. Her hesitant pauses hadn’t changed, but her pronunciation was more fluent than before.

“<Did you remember something?>” I asked, wondering if her memories were returning.

“<No…>”

Rei shook her head.

On further questioning, she remembered that she’d been speaking, but she couldn’t recall what she’d actually said.

Seeing Yuuneia again must have jogged her memories a bit.

It didn’t seem like the kind of thing I could rush along, though, so I went back to the main point.

“<It seemed like Yuuneia was after your hair ornament, so I made a fake one just in case she manages to steal it.>”

Rei touched the key-shaped hair ornament on her head as she looked at the one in my hand.

“<It looks…the same.>”

Her eyes widened in surprise as she compared them.

“<You can put the real one in this pouch and keep it around your neck so you don’t lose it.>”

I handed her a small Fairy Pack–style pouch, which I’d made with the interior of a Magic Bag from the salvaged goods.

Judging by the information she had just unknowingly spoken, it was increasingly clear that her hair ornament was extremely important to anyone connected to Lalakie.

“<Satou… Thank you.>”

“<Don’t worry about it.>”

I smiled at her and fixed the fake ornament to her hair.

The barrette glowed a faint blue for only a moment.

It was meant to absorb the excess magic coming off Rei and use it for purification, which should reduce her chances of getting attacked by miasma again.

It might not have much of an effect on Yuuneia, but it should work against the Skeleton King or the ghost bird Yuuneia called Chibi.

It could even communicate with certain other magic tools like a walkie-talkie, but it would work only within a thousand feet and absorbed a great deal of magic, so I had that feature turned off.

When I brought her to the harbor and passed through the crowds of people, I found the rest of my companions getting ready to set sail.

“Master, all cargo has been loaded on board, I report.”

“Here is the inventory list, master.”

The vanguard group, who’d left early, had brought all the goods delivered to our temporary warehouse onto the ship.

“We haggled ’em down—don’t worry.”

“There were some good bargains, too, so we purchased them like you said, master.”

“Satou.”

Arisa, Lulu, and Mia, who’d gone to pay the merchants, returned from the chamber of commerce.

Mia rushed through the throngs of people and wrapped her arms around my waist.

“Mrrr.”

Noticing that I was holding Rei’s hand, Mia puffed out her cheeks and started rubbing her face against my side.

She seemed to be the jealous type.

“Mia.”

I held out my free hand to her, and she accepted it with an “Mm” and a happy smile.

It goes without saying that when the rest of the group saw us, I was forced to take turns holding hands with everyone and doing laps up and down the deck.

Waving good-bye to Viscount Emerin, Baron Jeetbert, and the others who’d come to see us off, we left Sutoandell behind us.

They had offered to send gunboats along to escort us to the border of the neighboring Ganika Marquisate, but that seemed inappropriate, so I politely declined.

I appreciated the thought, but if we had a guard with us, then we could hardly use the ship’s flight mode.