“Was it really that lively back then?”

  “Oh, you have no idea. Ships were coming and going from morning till night. It was nonstop chaos. I was just a kid, but the mess hall was always short-staffed, so I helped wash dishes a lot. We bought leftover fish and ingredients from the local fishermen. I was the one who went to get them. They always threw in extras for me because I was a child. Everyone was busy, but they had brighter faces than they do now. They worked with real pride.”

  Matilda had been talking nonstop for over an hour, never losing momentum.

  She must have been holding all of this in for a long time.

  “Why did it change?”

  When Denaris asked, Matilda’s face clouded with sadness.

  “Well… a boy named Livius came to us. It was during that war. My mother took him in for some reason. He was only five and had no family left. He was wearing very fine clothes, but they were ragged. He refused to change into anything else. When I asked why, he said it was because his mother gave them to him. When I asked about his mother, he just went quiet.”

  Matilda poured herself some water and took a sip.

  Denaris listened in silence.

  “There were rumors back then. The king and all the lords had been killed. A lot of people disappeared. The insurance underwriters grabbed their money and fled first. Once they were gone, the appraisers who assessed cargo vanished too. When the appraisers disappeared, the jewelry and luxury shops closed. Then the craftsmen left. In the end, only people dealing in ordinary goods remained, and this place became just another ordinary port town.”

  These were the words of someone who had watched it happen with her own eyes.

  “You must resent the Kaios family.”

  “I do. But complaining won’t change anything. Back then, Lady Christina was still fighting for us. She must have been suffering too, but she swallowed her tears and tried to protect the people of Tricia. This country lives on trade. We import almost all our food—grain, everything. If trade stops, we starve. The lifeline that kept us alive was the insurance system Lady Christina left behind. Because it remained, trade continued and we survived.”

  She took another sip.

  “That’s why she forced the political marriage with the Kaios family. I heard she threatened them. There were documents exchanged between them. Once Lady Clarissa married the crown prince, this city was spared from total collapse.”

  It was a painful story.

  Denaris felt like he had finally heard the real suffering and sorrow the people of this city had endured.

  Lady Christina must have truly cared about her subjects.

  His view of the city—and of House Valerius—softened a little.

  Maybe it was just sympathy.

  He believed the Imperial Prime Minister’s story was credible.

  Lucius had called the seventh prince “Critias.”

  This boy Livius might be a different person entirely… or perhaps a false name. The latter seemed far more likely.

  He wanted to ask something, but the words wouldn’t come.

  “Ah, sorry. I got all gloomy on you.”

  “No, not at all. It was just… sad. I didn’t realize how much had changed. Is the insurance business still operating?”

  “It exists in a different form. But recently the Kaios family started their own. You’re not involved with them, are you?”

  “No. My family keeps our distance from House Kaios.”

  “Good. They’re dangerous. It looks like things are still running for now, but there are rumors it won’t last much longer.”

  “Rumors?”

  “Since the Kaios family cut the navy budget, only the people who couldn’t get jobs anywhere else are left. Their fleet is so weak they run from actual pirates. Right now Lady Clarissa is deliberately matching her convoys to theirs, so nothing happens. But the moment the schedules get out of sync, those ships will become pirate bait.”

  “She’s doing it out of mercy?”

  “No, I don’t think so.”

  Matilda’s eyes turned cold.

  “Sorry for talking so much to someone I just met.”

  “No, I really enjoyed it. Thank you. If we manage to have a blade made, I’ll let you know.”

  Denaris thanked her and left the port guild.

  “Listening to someone who actually lived through it… that was heavy. My chest hurts just hearing it.”

  “Yeah, but she really opened up to you. You’re good at drawing stories out of people. That might be a talent.”

  Fiona ruffled Denaris’s hair vigorously.

  Come to think of it… what was that “gift” Bastet mentioned?

  This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

  He’d have to ask her later.

  On the way back to the inn, Felix noticed they were being followed.

  “Let’s pretend we haven’t noticed,” Denaris said.

  “Why?” Bernadia asked.

  “I gave them my real name—well, my alias. If they want to investigate, they can find out anything. Knowing which inn we’re staying at doesn’t change much at this point.”

  “True.”

  By the time they returned to the inn, the sun was already half-hidden below the horizon.

  Bernadia had prepared dinner. It was mostly seafood, but seasoned in the Aristeran style.

  After two meals heavy with spices, their stomachs couldn’t handle more, so Bernadia’s consideration was deeply appreciated.

  “Hey, Bernadia.”

  She looked up, still chewing.

  “Can you find out when the ships contracted with Alexios’s company are scheduled to depart?”

  “I think so.”

  “And then what?” Liera asked.

  “We follow them. Think of it as a field investigation.”

  “But they’ll notice us, won’t they?”

  “That’s fine. I can come up with any excuse. We’re a legitimate registered company planning to open a branch in Tricia and looking for an insurance partner. They won’t dig too deep.”

  “That’s fine, but… can you tell us your full plan from here?”

  Liera’s question was reasonable.

  “Like Matilda said, the only reason Alexios’s ships are still sailing safely is because Lady Clarissa is deliberately matching her convoys to scare off pirates. What happens if we throw off those schedules and the ships get attacked? Will she just leave them? If it were me, I’d steal the cargo after the pirates hit them.”

  “You’re planning to rob them?” Liera asked.

  “Bingo.”

  Denaris gave a thumbs-up.

  “That ship won’t work for that,” Bernadia said.

  “Obviously. So we’ll just steal a pirate ship instead.”

  “That’s fine for the ship, but where do we hide the cargo?”

  “We don’t hide it—we sell it. If the departure schedules get messed up, Alexios will have a mountain of contracts with payout obligations. The amounts will balloon until he can’t pay. He’ll come looking for a loan. That’s when we’ll need the money.”

  “And what do we buy with that money?”

  “The ownership rights to Tricia from the Kaios family.”

  Everyone froze.

  “I think Lady Clarissa wants the same thing. That’s why she’ll make the insurance payouts so huge that the Kaios family can’t cover them alone.”

  The group stayed silent.

  “Then we leak information to the other lords: ‘Don’t lend money to the Kaios family—they’re in trouble.’ We guide them to the only place they can turn. Then, just like my sister said, Alexios might come to me with a marriage proposal and ask for money.”

  It wasn’t a bad plan.

  What to do with Tricia’s ownership rights could be discussed with House Valerius later.

  They could settle everything together with the princess’s assassination.

  After all, if that had succeeded, the thing House Valerius wanted most would already be in their hands.

  “I think it’s a good plan. I’ll get the teacher’s approval, okay? Buying ownership rights… we have no idea how much that’ll cost.”

  Liera began contacting Lunaflare.

  “But can we really handle pirates with just us?” Felix asked.

  “I’ll crush them with magic. Snap their masts and it’s over. I’ll make the pirates jump into the sea.”

  “Are you sure your magic is ready? Even if it means killing people?”

  “I don’t want to kill anyone. So I’ll threaten them. With everything I’ve got.”

  “The teacher gave the okay. She said she’ll make the money even if she has to use the capital’s moneylenders. Go for it.”

  “As expected of my sister.”

  With that, their plan was set.

  After hearing Matilda’s story, Denaris’s resolve had hardened too.

  If they left this city to the Kaios family, it really would collapse.

  Foolish lords should just be thrown out.

  He suddenly remembered his old job.

  He had hated pressuring people to buy barely profitable products as a sales rep, but he also hated the middle managers who screamed at everyone while doing nothing themselves—and the higher-ups who just sat back and watched.

  He hated people who could only control others through their position.

  Killing and stealing was not something a king should do.

  It was no different from being a bandit.

  If you steal from others, you have no right to complain when it’s stolen from you.

  Denaris stepped out into the garden.

  The moon was a thin waning crescent.

  There were no ships near the coast.

  Liera watched him from the garden as he gazed at the sea.

  At that moment, a flash of light split the sky, followed by a deafening roar as a massive bolt of lightning struck the ocean.

  Everyone rushed out to the garden.

  “Lightning? In this season?”

  Bernadia said.

  There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky.

  “I’ll show those pirates a sight they’ve never seen before.”

  Denaris muttered.

  ◇

  Once the plan was decided, all that remained was to act.

  The next morning, Bernadia checked the departure schedules of Alexios’s contracted ships.

  Ships heading to various ports were scheduled to sail in groups, protected by escort vessels. Upon reaching their destination, they would escort contracted merchant ships back to Tricia.

  Because of this, changing one schedule affected everything after it, making adjustments difficult.

  They found that a group heading to the imperial port of Portoera was scheduled to depart in three days.

  There was also a group heading to southern Arseheina departing tomorrow.

  After discussion, they chose the one leaving in three days.

  The reason was simple—they needed time to “borrow” a pirate ship first.

  They couldn’t commit crimes using a Moon Mountain vessel.

  They immediately boarded and picked up twenty extra crew members in Ternova, forming a fake pirate crew of thirty.

  They needed enough people to sail both this ship and the one they were about to steal.

  Following Bernadia’s guidance, they sailed toward waters where pirates were likely to appear—dangerous reefs far off the southern route.

  Before long, two ships painted pitch black with tar appeared and flanked the Moon Maiden.

  They slowed down just enough for the pirates to catch up and waited to see what they would do.

  The pirate ships pulled alongside. Men in surprisingly clean clothes nocked arrows and ordered them to stop.

  They raised the sails and dropped anchor.

  “Which one do you want?” Denaris asked Bernadia.

  “The one on the left looks cleaner.”

  The pirate leader was already swinging across on a rope, trying to board.

  The moment he was mid-air, a huge explosion erupted on the right ship’s deck. The mast snapped cleanly in two and several pirates were blown away.

  The leader’s eyes widened. He mistimed his landing, swung back toward his own ship, and fell short—plunging straight into the sea.

  “Everyone jump into the water right now. Or I’ll sink you. Do you want to swim while bleeding?”

  Denaris’s voice rang out.

  With their leader gone, the pirates hesitated, bows slackening, eyes darting.

  In these waters, blood in the sea meant instant death by sharks.

  They knew that better than anyone.

  “I’ll say it again. Jump into the sea immediately. Or I sink the ship. Do you really want to bleed in the water?”

  Another explosion on the right ship and the pirates began leaping overboard one after another.

  For good measure, they looted the right ship’s hold—five hemp sacks stuffed with gold, plus cases of liquor and dried meat. The meat looked questionable, so they left it.

  The left ship had gold and supplies too.

  They gratefully accepted everything.

  Ten men stayed on the Moon Maiden while the rest transferred to the captured pirate ship.

  Bernadia said five people were enough to sail this kind of vessel.

  If they sailed day and night they’d need shifts, but otherwise five was plenty.

  “We might have to buy a new ship,” Bernadia muttered.

  “Why?”

  “We just made enemies of some pirates.”

  They might get targeted now.

  “Sorry about that.”

  “It’s fine. It was about time we replaced it anyway.”

  “Then should we turn this one into a pirate ship too?”

  “Absolutely not!”

  “But a female pirate crew sounds kind of fun…”

  Bernadia giggled.

  Her sun-tanned skin and natural charm made her look almost childlike when she laughed.

  Thank you so much for reading! ??

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