NOVEL NEXT Chapter 79: It Was a Pirate Ship
===A Certain Undead With Communication Disorder===
Half of a day had passed since the departure of the ship.
「…Bored.」
I had no choice but to stay in my room since I couldn't risk my identity being leaked out.
On the other hand, the female Holy Knight was killing time by strolling inside the ship and enjoying the outside scenery from the deck.
「The inside of the ship is really big, spacious, and intricate like a dungeon! You can even do light sports on the deck!」
「Bring the feed for the seagulls! They'll come to eat directly from your hand! They're so friendly and adorable. You can go fishing too! I tried a little bit and managed to catch a splendid sea bream!」
「They even have an exclusive massage room for special guests. Their massages feel really good! It feels like I'm reborn!」
…It seemed she was really enjoying this trip.
After talking happily for a while, she finally calmed down.
「Uh… S-Sorry. I ended up enjoying the tour of the ship even though you can't leave the room… It’s just, I was really happy since this is the first time I’ve gone on such a luxurious ship…」
「Don't worry about it. You should enjoy the trip too.」
Staying in the room was the best choice for me after all.
「You're right. By the way, I happened to hear quite an unsettling rumor.」
「Unsettling rumor?」
「Yeah. It seems the pirates around this region of the sea became more active as of late. They've been capturing the passenger and merchant ships as of late.」
Oh, that must be the reason why the captain was talking about the defenses of the ship when we just embarked.
It was to ease the worry of the passengers.
And, it seemed we got a visitor.
When I opened the door, it turned out to be the vice-captain, Pein.
「Excuse me. I brought black tea.」
「I never asked for it though?」
「It's part of our service. Since this is a rare black tea imported from a faraway country, we like to offer it to our dear special class passengers.」
While saying this, he brought the tea set into the living room.
Next, he prepared two portions with extremely experienced hands.
Moreover, he even prepared snacks to go along with the tea.
「It smells really nice… Uh, delicious.」
「It's an honor for us if you enjoy it too… our dear guests.」
He even urged me, who wore my hood, to drink it too.
Well since it really couldn't be helped, I had no choice but to drink it.
…Yeah, it was definitely delicious.
「Well, I shall excuse myself then.」
The vice-captain left the room after he confirmed that I drank the tea.
「Nevertheless, he's quite polite, eh.」
I was smiling wryly at such friendly treatment while taking one of the tea cakes.
On the other hand, the female Holy Knight was yawning. She was most likely tired.
「Fwaa… this pastry sure is delicious. Let's send a letter of gratitude to the Hero King later.」
The moment I thought so…
I heard an extremely shrill noise resounding inside our room.
It was the kind of sound that would make your limbs itchy.
That annoying sound kept going on for around thirty seconds.
『Everyone, my apologies for disturbing your rest. We discovered an unknown ship approaching right from the front a moment ago. This ship has been equipped with twelve cannons and exclusive adventurers for this kind of emergency. Thus, rest assured and don't panic. We'll take care of the problem. And for your own safety, we wish for you to return to your own cabins immediately.』
Eh?
How could I hear this voice inside this cabin?
And it was an announcement for all passengers…
What kind of magic was this?
「Unidentified ship, eh? Since the captain went as far as to remind us to stay in our cabins, I guess that ship must be a pirate ship. But it's really unusual for them to be this brave.」
The female Holy Knight didn't seem to be confused by that announcement voice just now. Was this something common in this era?
「Uh? Ah, you're wondering about the voice just now, huh? It's a magic tool that amplifies your voice and spreads it over a wide area.」
「I see…」
「I mean, we already have magic tools to transmit voices over long distances too, you know?」
「Eh?」
Was that the reason why the news about me spread so fast?
「…The world is scary.」
「Well I guess I shall take a look at the situation for a bit. I'm a Holy Knight after all. I might be able to help in the worst case.」
Although looking sleepy, the female Holy Knight left the room with a spear wrapped in cloth in her hand.
◇◇◇
===A Certain Female Holy Knight===
I, Limule, was leaving the room, going against the flow of the passengers who went to hide in their own rooms.
The adventurers made their preparations and looked vigilantly toward the sea.
To be exact, they looked toward the ship heading in our direction.
It was a pirate ship.
Going by size, that pirate ship was only as big as half of this ship, but it was still quite big for a pirate ship.
The moment I thought so.
A thunderous explosion resounded with a boom.
…Which was then followed by a tall water column rising right before the pirate ship.
The first sound followed by the second, and then third.
「So they planned to drive away the pirate ship before it got too close.」
The cannon balls didn't reach the pirate ship since the distance was a bit too far, but the volley of the cannons could be enough to scare the pirate ship.
I mean, there was no way a ship of that length would survive continuous bombardments from this ship.
Normally, the pirate ship would escape at this moment.
「That pirate ship… Are they insane?」
But the pirates just stayed in that place as if observing us.
「Hmph, the likes of pirates actually dare to look down on us. Hey, sink their ship as soon as we get close to them.」
I heard the enraged voice of the captain.
The ship then advanced even closer toward the pirate ship.
And then, I felt the same vibration as before.
「…?」
At that moment, I realized that something unusual was happening in my body.
My body felt light… and sleepy.
As a Holy Knight, it was normal for me to undergo training.
If I was in normal condition, this kind of vibration wouldn't be able to make me fall.
「Is it… the accumulation of my fatigue? But I shouldn't be able to feel sleepy in this kind of situation…」
Long marches during the night were part of a Holy Knight's severe training.
But even the sleepiness during that time was blown away by a spirited yell.
Before I noticed it, the pirate ship was already in front of us.
But there was no sign of another bombardment after the third one.
「What's happening… to the bombardment units?!」
And just like that, the ship crashed against the pirate ship amidst the enraged roar of the captain.