Chapter 10: The Lonely Tower
Pit,
very large.
It was already far away from the sea-eroded cliff, located in a patch of grass as soft as a velvet carpet.
However, in this large pit, Dick did not see the figure of the Black Beast Tadra, only a layer of meat paste unevenly smeared on the pit bottom, emitting a strong bloody smell. In the sunset’s afterglow, insects and ants lured by the bloody smell surged toward the bottom of the large pit like a black tide.
Probably by the next day,
the flesh and blood here would be gnawed clean by these insects and ants.
Returning to the sea-eroded cliff,
the emergency treatment for Farrug had ended, and Eschbach was wiping his hands.
“Hey, can’t you capture one alive for once?”
Dick, who had toured Eschbach’s handiwork, began to complain.
“What’s the problem? Trash is meant to fertilize the land.”
“The problem isn’t that. You beat him into that mess—how are we supposed to claim the bounty from the Navy now?” Dick widened his eyes. “Over a hundred million Beli! Over a hundred million! Not a million, not ten million—a hundred million!!!” He repeatedly emphasized this not-insignificant number. A hundred million Beli wasn’t much for a country, but for an individual, it was a considerable sum of funds.
Dick wasn’t a miser.
As His Highness Elus’s aide-de-camp, he had never faced money shortages. Well, he rarely had places to spend it anyway—food, clothing, lodging, and travel were all prepared for him. His salary and bonuses sat in the bank, and he didn’t know when he’d have a chance to spend them.
But that didn’t stop Dick from understanding the importance of Beli.
Moreover, His Highness Elus was still just the crown prince and couldn’t freely use the kingdom’s wealth. At a time like this, having more ample funds on hand would make anything they did more convenient and unrestrained, without worrying about constraints.
Dick had to admit, as an aide-de-camp, he was quite competent.
“······I’ll pay attention next time.”
Eschbach didn’t argue.
Over a hundred million Beli—honestly, the number tempted him. Eschbach hadn’t thought that far; he just figured that much Beli sent to an orphanage could save so many children······But if it was missed, it was missed. He’d just be more careful next time.
There was no need to specially regret it.
He wiped the blood from his hands and looked at Farrug lying on the ground. “This guy—you saved him on purpose to trade with the Navy for money too?”
“Depends.”
“What trick are you planning now?”
“Strangling Ghost Farrug is different from that Black Beast you turned into meat paste. This guy’s not the kind of beast that goes on killing sprees. I think His Highness might take him under his wing! I rather admire his backbone.” Dick squatted down and poked the unconscious Farrug with his hand,
“Of course, that’s just my personal opinion. If His Highness doesn’t want him, we can trade him to the Navy for money. No loss either way.”
“You and your schemes.”
Eschbach shook his head. He knew Dick’s erratic nature couldn’t be fixed with a couple of verbal scoldings. Besides, His Highness didn’t dislike Dick’s liveliness. “Your prey, you handle it······Also, we should head back to the port.”
He gazed toward the island’s south.
The battle at the port might have already begun.
————
However,
it hadn’t.
The fleet of over fifty warships was unstoppable.
Elus had no intention of stopping them. He had no plan to engage this Amento Kingdom fleet in a naval battle. He had brought only eight warships, and even adding the three from Whale Tail Island made just eleven—only a fifth of the enemy’s.
Moreover,
if the two fleets bombarded each other from a great distance, it wouldn’t be convenient for him to collect souls.
How this battle ultimately concluded didn’t matter. For Elus, the most important thing was that he needed enough souls to fill the Hogyoku’s void. He had prepared from the start to turn this war into his hunting ground.
Each person’s fresh soul would be his prey.
So he had his fleet sail out of the port and keep enough distance from Whale Tail Island—a distance sufficient for the Amento Kingdom’s fleet to abandon the idea of first destroying the fleet and instead attack Whale Tail Island before night fully fell.
He himself had landed on the island and settled in a tower at the port, patiently waiting for the prey to come to him.
······
“No news from Farrug and Tadra yet?”
This was the Amento Kingdom’s flagship.
Ghost Sword Venkura stood on the deck at the ship’s bow, telescope to his eyes, gazing at the town on Whale Tail Island shrouded in the orange sunset glow. No fires, no thick smoke, no panicked crowds running through the streets—instead, fully armed soldiers patrolled the streets back and forth.
He couldn’t help asking the same question for the third time.
“None, none. Those two didn’t bring a Den Den Mushi when they went ashore. We can only wait for them to grab or steal one and contact us. Otherwise, we can’t reach them proactively.” The man juggling colored balls answered the same question for the third time without annoyance.
“······Looks like Farrug and Tadra failed.”
Based on the experience of capturing Whale Head Island and Whale Belly Island, this much time was enough for the “Strangling Ghost” and “Black Beast” to stir up a storm of blood on the island. But Whale Tail Island showed no signs of chaos, and there was still no word from the two.
“A step too late? Eckmond Kingdom’s reinforcements have arrived!”
Venkura frowned.
He knew Farrug and Tadra’s strength well as the leader of this mission. One-on-one, he could defeat either, but if they teamed up, he’d have to temporarily avoid them. According to the intelligence gathered before their operation, Whale Tail Island clearly lacked the power to take down Farrug and Tadra.
That left only one explanation besides reinforcements arriving:
no other reason could explain the current situation.
“Hah!”
Venkura took a deep breath.
He glanced at the sun about to sink into the sea. They couldn’t wait any longer. Dragging it out until night fell completely—even an expert like him couldn’t claim to be entirely unaffected.
“Same old rules—firebomb the shore.”
The order was relayed.
The fleet clearly had a competent tactical commander. All warships opened fire on the shore almost simultaneously, shelling every possible hiding spot along the shore with cannonballs. After three neat volleys, the buildings along the shore were leveled—not entirely, though.
One tower stubbornly held out, unbreached by the fierce bombardment.
It stood alone amid the ruins.
