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chapter 16
“Your gaze is so fierce it burns, Rinka. Anyway, help me fasten this.”
Before she could even squeeze her eyes shut at the sudden closeness of his face, an arm was thrust out toward her. A cufflink, set with a sapphire the color of his eyes, landed in her palm.
That gem looks more expensive than my entire house…
A sapphire as clear as if it reflected the sea. It almost seemed like something inside it was rippling.
“Don’t stare at it.”
Long, elegant fingers covered the jewel for a moment, then lifted away. Rinka quickly moved her paused hand and fastened the cufflink onto his sleeve.
Just now… what was that?
She had been entranced, staring at the gem as if under a spell. Expensive though it looked, she had no particular need for jewels and wasn’t even especially fond of them.
The captain, watching as Rinka tilted her head in puzzlement and pulled her hand back, brushed against her fingertips in passing before turning away.
His touch was neither hot nor cold, just a lukewarm warmth.
Rinka blinked slowly, still mulling over the faint sensation.
Just then—
“Miss Rinka.”
“Ah—yes! Oh, Mr. Deloem.”
It was Deloem, the sailor who wielded the great sword, standing by Digory’s side. Rinka had thought she was only going with Digory, but apparently Deloem was accompanying them as well.
Other sailors were hauling down the jars that had been filled with the blood of the octopus monster they had caught before.
At the time, they hadn’t even planned to sell it, but now… it looked like they really were going to.
“Are you going to sell that…?”
Rinka’s uneasy expression made Digory chuckle softly.
“There are items that can be crafted from a monster’s blood. It has many uses—but pirates usually use it as bait.”
“Bait?”
“You’re wondering what kind, right, Marybell?”
“Well, I am a little curious.”
After checking that the last jar had been loaded, Digory stepped onto a small boat. Once Rinka and Deloem also boarded, the boat began gliding toward the island. It was probably propelled by magic.
“Monster blood has a unique scent. Humans can’t smell it, but other monsters can.”
“So… using the blood as bait means…?”
“That’s right. Processing it draws out monsters from the depths of the western sea, luring them to the surface.”
Dragging monsters up here on purpose?
Rinka couldn’t understand it. Those creatures were dangerous enough that even approaching the coast made them difficult to kill.
“The highborn, you see—they hate danger but love rare, expensive things.”
“Well… that makes sense.”
Mecard Cather had been the same.
He had been fascinated that Rinka Marybell wasn’t from Cather, and he loved hearing foreign stories from Soinya.
But the moment he discovered Rinka’s unusual ability, he turned on her, even sending knights to seize her.
She had been a harmless girl—did he think she would be an easy prize to capture?
And Mecard Cather…
What would he have done with me if he caught me?
Digory noticed her downcast gaze but said nothing.
Rinka soon shook off her thoughts and asked again,
“Then with this, those highborn people can get what they want?”
“Exactly. Some of the creatures attracted to octopus blood have horns or bones worth a fortune.”
Horns or bones.
She could guess what they were used for. Among the swords stored in the ship’s hold, some looked as if they were carved from horn.
Many people knew how to fire magic guns, but she had wondered why the sailors carried swords instead. Now she knew—they had to capture the monsters without damaging them to fetch the highest price.
“I see. That’s fascinating.”
“Ah, Deloem’s great sword is also made from monster bone. Ask him to show you later.”
“Yours too, Mr. Deloem?! Wow.”
“It’s nothing from a remarkable beast.”
Even under Rinka’s curious gaze at his weapon, Deloem remained calm. The sword was sheathed, so she couldn’t see it anyway.
“Do others use monster-made swords too?”
“A few. Anything taken from the monsters they captured, the captain lets them keep.”
Though he hadn’t named him, Rinka knew exactly whom he meant.
She glanced toward the captain’s back, visible aboard the boat that had set out first.
And suddenly she thought again of the cufflinks. Just what were they?
Lavanto.
The island of pirates.
“This is… incredible.”
She had guessed from afar that it was a large island, but up close…
From the harbor, rows of shops stretched out with lavish decorations. The roads leading inland were filled with splendid monuments.
When the sailors had said that every pirate must visit Lavanto, she had thought it was a joke.
But now, it didn’t seem strange at all to think that pirates from around the world gathered here.
“Ah, no wonder it’s more crowded than usual.”
“Seems word spread that the Dark Merchant is coming. The captain’s going to have a hard time.”
Rinka half-listened to Digory and Deloem talking while her eyes drank in the sight of Lavanto’s harbor.
Having lived only in Cather for as long as she could remember—apart from the sea itself—this was her first time seeing such a new world.
A paradise!
As she gazed in wonder, wide-eyed, a familiar hand suddenly touched her shoulder.
“Rinka.”
“Wah—ah, oh, Captain!”
She turned quickly, only to find his face right before her.
Realizing how close their eyes were, she instantly looked down and stepped back.
“Y-you startled me.”
“What are you so jumpy about? More importantly, Rinka—”
“Yes?”
Now that some space separated them, he fastened a brooch onto her chest. It was crude but valuable-looking—a dark blue gem set on a leather strap.
Its color was almost identical to his cufflinks.
“It marks you as a crew member of the Ghost Ship. Don’t lose it. And if anyone offers to buy it, don’t sell.”
“Of course I won’t! But… what if someone tries to steal it?”
“They can’t. It’s enchanted… The process is complicated, so I’ll spare you the details.”
The captain sighed, glancing off into the distance, his face uncharacteristically troubled. The subtle furrow in his brow gave him a different kind of charm—
No, that’s not the point right now!
Rinka shook her head to chase away the stray thought.
“Rinka Marybell.”
“Yes?”
“Listen carefully. Lavanto is technically neutral ground. Fighting is forbidden. But—”
But?
“There are always fools who’ll pick a fight anyway. Stay close, don’t wander.”
His gaze was more serious than ever before. Rinka couldn’t brush it off with a lighthearted reply. She only nodded.
Satisfied, a faint smile curved his lips as his hand gently brushed the top of her head.
“Here, take this too.”
“Hm?”
He placed a leather cord with a fragment of silver attached into her palm.
“This is…”
“Exactly. A scale fragment from Leviathan. Wear it around your neck.”
