Book 6: Chapter 2 (1)

Sickness Unto Death

Our journey on the airship started without incident.

We weren’t attacked by a hoard of wyverns, our airship didn’t crash in the middle of nowhere, and I didn’t have to witness any riajuu romcom. A peaceful journey through the skies.

I spoke to the captain and he told us it would only be a few days before we reached our destination.

If things can continue like this, I might have spare time to explore the city.

Just as I was starting to feel at ease….

“Sky pirates?”

“Yes….”

I was lounging around in my room talking to Goggoru-chan when the captain came in and asked for advice. If I had to guess, I’d say he’s in his mid-forties. Despite his age, he was still an ikemen with impressive, tousled blonde hair swept back.

The words “kind middle-aged man described him perfectly.

Despite his kind appearance, the expression he wore was serious and even a casual glance could tell anyone how troubled he was. Pirates are bandits that attack ships at sea while sky pirates are those that attack airships. The captain informed us that a group of these sky pirates were currently following us.

“Are airships common enough for bandits to profit off?”

“Airships are more expensive than regular ships so they are less common, but the expense makes up for it.”

“How is that possible? Where did they get a ship of their own?”

“The earnings from a luxurious ship like this would be enough to cover any and all of their expenses.”

“I see.”

Well, one of my fireballs should be enough to deal with them.

This is probably my fault anyway due to my low LUC.

It’s scary to think what a single skill can do.

“I’ve heard from my Master that Baron Tanaka is a skilled magician. I’m sorry to ask this of a guest, but could you please take care of them for us….”

“Would it help you out if I went up to deck to check on the situation?”

“W-Would you do that for us, Baron Tanaka?”

“I’ve been loaned this airship as a gift from Richard-san. I can’t allow it to be damaged.”

“Thank you so much!”

I left Goggoru-chan in bed and headed to the deck with the captain. It’s almost like a man that leaves his woman behind after finishing the act and leaving for work. But without the sex part.

Sex is far from a reality for me.

***

I followed him outside and, exactly as he described, there was an airship trailing us.

“It’s not very big, is it?”

“The cost of such airships rises substantially in relation to its size. One of the more difficult materials necessary for the function of an airship are the magic stones that are responsible for the levitation effect. There has been much discussion about artificially creating these stones, but not much advancement has been made over the last few decades.”

“I see.”

A simple enough comment but one I learned a lot from.

So these magic stone must be incredibly valuable.

“So…umm, w-what do you think?”

“Let’s see….”

It was considerably smaller than the noble mage’s aircraft. It seemed to have been designed for the sole purpose of quick flight and lacked the capabilities to fly long distances. It’s a ship designed specifically for sky pirates.

“We have a mage on board whose sole job is to defend us from magic attacks, but we’ve received reports that the sky pirates have a powerful mage on their side. It’s unlikely our mage will last very long. Which is why I was hoping you could protect us, Baron Tanaka….”

” Understood.”

I’ll just end this quickly with a fireball.

It should be easier than taking down a dragon. I should keep in mind where their ship will be crashing, but we’re in the middle of nowhere right now and it’s unlikely there will be any collateral damage.

If magic stones are so valuable, why don’t we launch an attack and take theirs? They’re the aggressors here so their should be no problem with the victor’s taking a prize or two.

Honestly, it would be a deserved reward.

As I was weighing my options, I heard a voice call out to us from the pirates’ ship.

“Airship! If you don’t wish to be blown out of the sky, you’ll stop right now! We have an S rank adventurer on board. Our provocations up until now have been minor attacks meant to give you a chance to save your own lives. If you refuse to stop, we’ll be forced to take you down with a single attack!”

A man was standing at the bow of the ship.

He wore a tricorn hat, a white shirt with a frilly collar, a long black cloak, and a black eye patch covering his right eye. He also sported a cross shaped scar on his cheek. A stereotypical image of a pirate. I almost didn’t believe my eyes at first, but he also had a hook in place of his right hand.

He looked to be in his mid-twenties. He had shoulder length hair and a clean shaven face that accentuated his youth. Even from this distance I can tell that he is attractive. This hook guy is so cool.

“Shooting us out of the sky would destroy everything worth value.”

Our airship is luxurious and I’m sure it could sell for a good price. They’d obviously want to capture one in good condition. Why would they destroy it and everything worth value?

“I’ve never experienced it myself, but I’ve heard that the magic stones will survive a crash….”

“I see….”

So they’re not bluffing.

Then I should act first before they get a chance.

If the captain is correct, even if I shoot them down, I should be able to recover some useful items from the wreckage. I’m sure I can find a good souvenir. The mayor will be happy to see some special items added to Dragon City.

I was suddenly feeling motivated.

“Are you not listening? Stop your ship now! If you stop, we’ll spare the lives of all on board! If you refuse to stop we’ll be left with no choice but to destroy your ship and scatter your crew across the sky!”

The sky pirate was still shouting about something.

They’re nothing but criminals. I don’t care what they have to say.

I took a few steps forward and prepared my magic.

“Fireball!”

I casually fired off a massive fireball ten meters in diameter. Oh, it might actually be bigger than normal.

What just happened?

“Turn! Hard toward starboard!”

I shot my fireball straight at the bow of the ship. It was rushing toward the target when the airship suddenly turned, causing my fireball to barely graze the side. It was almost as if the ship had ducked my attack. I only managed to inflict a minor amount of damage to the ship which amounted to little more than scorch marks on the side.

What kind of pirates are they?

“Impossible! How could a ship turn like that…?”

My own captain was just as surprised.

“Was that some sort of special move?”

“That sudden turn should be impossible for that class of airship that specializes in rapid, straight line movement. There must be an experienced navigator on board. I’ve never seen such skillful maneuvering before.”

There’s much more to airships than I thought.

The captain’s tone had changed to show more admiration than fear of the pursuing pirates.

“The reason that ship has so few side wings is to allow greater speeds and improve its turning ability at high speeds. This reduces its stability during normal operations. By completely rolling the ship, the craft can avoid collisions in emergencies. But that must mean the interior is….”

The captain mumbled something I couldn’t quite catch.

Even though his life is in danger, he’s still obsessed with knowing how his opponent did that. He’s the same as the noble mage. The only difference between the two is the captain is interested in airships rather than magic. I’m sure Richard wouldn’t leave just anyone in charge of his ship.

But there’s something more important he should be watching out for.

“They’re close enough that we may be hit by the shock wave. Make sure your crew is ready.”

“Eh? B-But they avoided your fireball….”

The fireball I just shot has homing capabilities.

My fireball made a sudden U-turn and began racing towards the backside of the ship.

A loud explosion followed by intense winds rushing toward us. The flames erupted and engulfed the smaller airship. The sky was dyed a bright red as a second sun filled the sky. The ship lost speed in an instant and began plummeting out of the sky. It was dropping like a rock.

I watched it fall to the ground and waited for the sound of the crash to confirm that it was down.

“How is that…. An armored airship protected by a barrier…taken down with a single fireball….”

“Can you please take us down so I can collect the magic stones?”

“Y-Yes, right away, sir!”

It was quite an impressive crash.

Time to find out if what the captain said about the stones is true.

***