A Barbaric Proposal Side Story 41

※Pirates and Snot-Noses※

Shellan and Dief were enduring the most difficult trial since their abduction.

It had been grueling enough when they were stuffed into sacks without explanation, or when they were dragged into that pitch-black warehouse and bound hand and foot. Even when Atil had brandished a blade before their faces, threatening to slice off bits of them, it hadn't been this unbearable.

[Dief] "I... I don't want to breathe anymore, Shellan."

He whispered through a veil of tears.

[Shellan] "Me neither, Dief."

Her eyes were equally red.

They had been moved from their initial location. Hazarro, who had left to consult the Captain, returned alone and shoved them back into the sacks. They were carried away, tied tightly, and the first thing they noticed was the change in smell.

The new location was a place of genuine agony, filled with a stench so foul it felt like needles piercing their nostrils. The air was damp and heavy, and from the dark corners came the sound of high-pitched squeaking. To them, who had never seen a rat in their lives, it sounded like the weeping of tiny ghosts.

But again, the worst part was the odor. It was so repulsive that they would have preferred not to breathe at all.

Crash!

The door swung open. The children fell silent and turned toward the entrance.

Even with the door open and fresh air supposedly entering, the stench remained; it seemed the very walls of this place were saturated with it.

[Captain] "So, are these the little snot-noses?"

[Hazarro] "They are, Captain."

Hazarro answered as the man pointed a finger at the children.

The man they called "Captain" resembled a grey bear. His ash-colored hair and beard had grown so long and wild that they obscured half his face. With a red bandana and a grimy eyepatch covering one eye, he looked as if he had stepped straight out of an illustration in a maritime encyclopedia.

[Captain] "They certainly look well-fed. Where did you say they’re from?"

[Hazarro] "Ah, well..."

Shellan fought back the urge to gag and spoke up.

[Shellan] "Nauk."

[Captain] "Nauk?"

He narrowed his one good eye and shook his head vigorously.

[Captain] "Where on earth is a country with a name like that?"

[Hazarro] "Who knows? I think I’ve heard the name before, but..."

[Shellan] "How can you say that?"

She asked, her voice dripping with disbelief. However, because she was trying to inhale as little of the stench as possible, her voice sounded muffled and nasally, which unintentionally made her seem incredibly adorable.

[Captain] "And why shouldn't I say it?"

He gave a derisive snort.

[Shellan] "How can you possibly not know of Nauk?"

[Captain] "It’s a big world! Why should I care about some place I’ve never heard of?"

[Shellan] "If you don't know Nauk, you shouldn't have kidnapped us! Where do you even plan to send the ransom demand?"

[Captain] "Eh...?"

The one-eyed Captain blinked and quickly turned to Hazarro.

[Captain] "You! Tell me. What was the plan for this ransom?"

[Hazarro] "Oh, I just did what we always do. I left the flag behind. If they care about these snot-noses' lives, they'll find their way to us."

[Shellan] "That’s exactly my point."

She interjected.

[Shellan] "Isn't it remarkably lazy of you to think you can collect a ransom when you don't even know where Nauk is or what kind of place it is?"

[Captain] "What...?"

The Captain found himself momentarily at a loss for words. He eventually concluded that they must be too young to understand what pirates were. After all, children who looked this pampered had likely never seen the harsh side of the world; it was only natural they would be as oblivious to danger as newborn puppies.

[Shellan] "Do you have any idea how many guards we brought? You said they’ll find us on their own, but shouldn't that be what scares you? Our knights are exceptionally fearless and powerful. Do you genuinely believe you can squeeze a ransom out of people like that?"

[Captain] "..."

They looked like puppies, but the more he listened, the more it felt like the girl wasn't just yapping; she was making an uncomfortable amount of sense.

[Captain] "Fine then, how many? How many of them are there? More than this?"

The pirate captain held up ten fingers.

Shellan’s expression darkened. Using fingers to count was an insult even to a two-year-old.

[Shellan] "I’d first like to ask how you could assume I would tell you that."

[Captain] "How could I assume... Gah! Why does a kid use so many words?"

Faced with a slightly complex sentence, his face twisted in frustration.

[Shellan] "You should think carefully. Is it better to let us go quietly now, or to wait for the ransom and face an unknown number of Arsak Knights? And let me tell you one more thing: the Arsak Knights have A profound sense of justice. They will never overlook a heinous crime like kidnapping a child."

[Captain] "Ha! So you're just telling me to let you go for free. Hey, you little snot-nose, do you think that makes any sense? Hmm?"

He glared at her, trying to intimidate her.

[Captain] "We aren't running a charity here! Where do you get off talking such nonsense, you little pea-brain?"

[Shellan] "If my head were actually the size of a pea, there would be no wars on this continent, because everyone would be able to live comfortably without any effort. Besides, in business, one should never be certain of a profit. Sometimes you have to account for unexpected accidents or disasters. And that is exactly what this is."

[Captain] "Enough!"

He let out a roar. Honestly, he understood about half of what she said, but the other half made his head spin, and listening to her was becoming a form of torture.

[Captain] "Stop giving me a headache and shut up! You, gag them."

[Hazarro] "Uh... should we?"

[Captain] "What do you mean by 'should we'? Just do it!"

[Hazarro] "Yes, Captain."

Hazarro thought the children were quiet enough that a gag wasn't necessary, but a pirate’s duty was to obey the Captain.

[Hazarro] "Let’s see, a gag... Ah, this will do."

He rummaged through some wooden crates on the floor and pulled out a long, grimy strip of cloth.

[Shellan] "Aaaah! No!"

[Dief] "No, stop!"

As he turned back, they began to scream and thrash their heads in desperation.

[Hazarro] "Quiet! Shut your mouths!"

[Shellan] "That’s so dir—mmph!"

The mere thought of that filthy rag entering her mouth brought tears to Shellan’s eyes. Once her mouth was blocked, she would be forced to breathe through her nose, meaning she would have to endure the stench until her senses went numb.

Despite their desperate resistance, Hazarro had no trouble gagging them.

[Shellan] "...Mmmph-haaa."

Gagged and helpless, Shellan’s eyes filled with tears. Her eyes, which had been deep blue in her infancy but were now fading to a lighter shade like Black’s, momentarily flashed like sharp blades.

I will have my revenge. I swear it.

Only now did Shellan fully understand and support Fermos for his desperate attempts to take a vacation. She forgave him completely. These pirates undeniably belonged to a breed that needed to vanish from every sea in existence.

[Shellan] Mmm-err-mmm...

Sir Fermos will definitely come for us. These pirates are so stupid that they won't even see it coming.

She just had to wait. She just had to endure this horrific stench a little longer.

As if confirming her thoughts, a muffled, thumping sound echoed from outside.

[Shellan] "Mmm-urr!"

Finally!

It was the signal that Fermos had arrived.

---

[Captain] "What? What did you just say? The ship's wheel is gone?"

Chaos had erupted on the pirate ship.

It started with Atil. He claimed he saw someone as quick as a flying squirrel lurking around the ship. He had chased the intruder, but the person was so nimble that they vanished right before his eyes.

The pirates didn't know it, but the intruder was a runner from an information broker. Although the runner hadn't seen the children himself, he reported that they were likely aboard. He had witnessed the pirates—who usually spent their time drinking at a tavern—suddenly boarding their ship.

That information was quickly sold to Fermos. Now, Randall and Ashker were charging toward the ship.

At first, the pirates saw only two men and laughed at the absurdity of the attack. But as the fight began, they realized they stood no chance. Instinct screamed at them to flee.

While a few men tried to block the path, the rest scrambled onto the ship. But once they were on deck, they were met with an unbelievable sight.

The ship’s wheel was nowhere to be found.

It was the ultimate humiliation—being robbed blind while standing right there. The pirates, who had spent more time drunk than sober, hadn't even realized their ship had been sabotaged.

[Atil] "W-what do we do now?"

[Captain] "In all my years... what kind of low-life bastards steal the ship's wheel from a pirate ship?"

The answer was: those "crazy bastards" currently attacking them.

[Pirate] "Aaaah! Captain! They’re coming up!"

A pirate on the forecastle screamed.

Below the ship, a chaotic mess of pirates and "crazy bastards" was entangled. Some were trying to board, others were trying to stop them, and some pirates were climbing ropes to escape the lethal blades of the knights. But the knights were simply ripping the pirates off the ropes with brute strength and hurling them aside as they climbed up themselves.

The Captain had to make a split-second decision.

[Captain] "Cut the lines!"

[Hazarro] "Pardon?"

[Captain] "I said cut them!"

Hazarro turned pale as he hacked through the ropes with an axe, sending both his comrades and the knights plunging into the water.

Splash!

[Captain] "Get this ship moving! We’re getting out of here!"

And so, the ship without a ship's wheel unfurled its anchors and began to drift away.

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