"AAAAAHHHHHH!" The Pirate King’s scream of agony echoed through the ship. The combined pressure of the Mercenary Queen’s foot on his shattered spine and the brutal pull on his neck was beyond anything he had ever known. His body trembled violently under the relentless force, every muscle locked in excruciating pain.
RIP
RIP
"HAHAHAHAHA!" The Mercenary Queen’s laugh was cold, mocking, and full of dark satisfaction, perfectly matching with the madman’s unsettling cackle. Their shared laughter rang out, echoing across the ship, as the sound of tearing flesh filled the air.
With each brutal pull, the Pirate King’s neck began to rip apart under the Mercenary Queen’s unrelenting grip. The skin, no longer able to withstand the force, tore open, revealing the raw, bloody muscles beneath.
As the Mercenary Queen tightened her grip, small bursts of blood began to spurt from the Pirate King’s neck, throwing crimson droplets everywhere. The intensity of her pull only increased, each tug sending fresh, warm sprays of blood cascading down.
Only the Knight Commander turned his face away, unable to watch the scene any longer. His eyes were hard, but even he couldn’t mask the discomfort rising within him.
"AAAAA...AH...HGUGH...GH," the Pirate King choked out, his voice barely a whisper as blood gurgled and frothed in his mouth.
"HAIYAH" With a shout and the triumphant pull, the muscles, arteries, and veins tore apart, sending a geyser of blood spraying in all directions. The sheer force of the Mercenary Queen’s leg strength caused the spine to snap and separate from the back, following the head in a gruesome display of raw power.
"HAIL THE QUEEN!" the madman shouted, his voice wild with exultant joy as the Mercenary Queen raised the severed head of the Pirate King high into the air.
The Pirate King’s final cries faded into silence, his face frozen in an expression of pain and anguish. His severed head was held aloft, the spine dangling grotesquely beneath it.
The madman summoned his spear, his eyes gleamed with a twisted satisfaction. With a swift, powerful swing, he severed the dangling spine.
THUD!
The spine landed heavily on the headless form of the Pirate King, the sound of it striking the body reverberating across the ship. That single, grim noise seemed to resonate through the air, echoing the death of a legend in the most humiliating and brutal manner possible.
The Mercenary Queen casually tossed the severed head of the Pirate King toward the Duke, the bloodied trophy spinning through the air with chilling precision.
"Here!" she declared, her voice sharp and unwavering. "That completes half of the contract."
The severed head of the Pirate King, still spinning in the air, suddenly vanished mid-flight. The Head Butler had sent it to another space.
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"For the remaining half of the contract, your wife must be on that ship, if this thing works correctly," the Mercenary Queen said, her eyes scanning the orb that the Duke had handed her. The orb pulsed with a soft, eerie light, tracking the location of his wife. Her gaze then shifted to the Pirate King’s ship which stood still from the start of the fight.
A collective sigh of relief swept over the ship as everyone heard the news—the Duchess was indeed on the ship. But in that instant, the Head Butler’s expression shifted. His brow furrowed deeply, his sharp eyes narrowing as he focused intently on the ship in the distance. Something was wrong. The subtle shift in the mana, a change too minute for most to catch, pricked his senses. His gaze sharpened further.
Suddenly, his eyes widened with realization, a flash of panic crossing his usually calm face. Without hesitation, he shouted, "HEAD INTO THE SHIP!". Before anyone could react, the Head Butler placed a firm hand on the Duke’s shoulder. In a heartbeat, they both vanished leaving behind only the faintest ripple in the air.
The Mercenary Queen’s instincts kicked in. Without questioning the urgency of the Head Butler’s warning, she followed his lead. Behind her, Cassius and the madman followed suit. They, too, knew that something was amiss. The last to join the rush was the Knight Commander. His gaze lingered briefly on the body of the Pirate King and then with a powerful thrust, he shot into the sky.
As the Knight Commander descended onto the deck, the full extent of the carnage became horrifyingly clear. The ship was a scene of utter devastation, with the lifeless bodies of pirates strewn everywhere. Some had their heads cleanly severed while others bore large, gaping holes in the center of their chests.
The Knight Commander followed the faint trail of destruction, guiding him deeper into the heart of the ship. Descending the stairs, the Knight Commander found himself in the Captain’s quarters. The space was vast, and ornate. At the center of the room, the Head Butler stood, his hands raised with the fingers slightly spread apart. A swirling, grey-colored mana circled between his palms
The room was tense, and the figures of the Mercenary Queen, the Duke, and the rest of the group stood five paces away from the Head Butler, each of them looking grim. The Mercenary Queen was staring intently at an orb in her hands, its once shimmering light now dim, almost lifeless. The Duke, as usual, was calm but seemed preoccupied, rubbing one of his rings, while staring intently at it.
As the Knight Commander took a step forward, the silence in the room stretched thin, tension building with every passing second. But before he could speak, the madman broke it with his usual irreverence.
"You came?" The madman’s voice was laced with a mocking tone, his smirk playing at the edges of his lips. "I thought you got lost somewhere midway since you took this much time."
The Knight Commander paused, his gaze narrowing slightly, but before he could respond, the Mercenary Queen’s icy glare shot across the room like a blade. It was enough to silence the madman instantly, his usual bravado dissolving into an expression of feigned innocence. He stepped back, suddenly much smaller in presence like a timid cat caught misbehaving in front of its owner.
The Knight Commander made his way over to Cassius, the only person he felt was level-headed enough to ask about the situation. He glanced over his shoulder, catching a glimpse of the Mercenary Queen and the Duke, who seemed engrossed in the Head Butler’s actions. His gaze lingered on the madman, who was now sulking in the corner like a scolded child, and he knew there was no point in asking him.
The madman’s loose tongue and unpredictable nature were well-known, and asking him would only lead to more sarcastic response.
The Head Butler, however, was entirely absorbed in his task. His eyes were shut tight, his expression serene yet focused as the grey swirling mana intensified.
The room was thick with tension as the Knight Commander leaned closer to Cassius, his voice barely a whisper, yet loud enough for everyone present to hear. "What happened?" he inquired, his tone urgent and laced with concern.
Cassius, his face grim, provided a swift and detailed explanation. "A pirate used a Teleportation Scroll and teleported with the Duchess the moment we arrived. At this moment, the Head Butler is analyzing the remnants of the space elemental mana to pinpoint the coordinates of their destination. He’s working to open a portal to the place."
The Knight Commander’s mind raced with questions as he tried to comprehend the situation. ’How did a pirate get his hands on a Teleportation Scroll?’ These scrolls were exceedingly rare, coveted treasures within the magical community. The intricate process of creating them was known to be incredibly arduous, and even the esteemed Mage Tower could only produce a mere five scrolls in an entire year.
"But doesn’t that scroll take about half a minute before it activates?" he began, but then realization struck him like a bolt of lightning. The Pirate King’s whistle—that had been the signal for the pirate to start the scroll’s activation process.
The Knight Commander cursed the dead soul of the Pirate as his expression turned grim similar to the others.
The room fell into a hushed silence as all eyes turned to the Head Butler, who was meticulously extracting the grey-colored mana from the surrounding air.
Finally, after some time that like an eternity, the Head Butler broke the silence with a low, resolute tone. "Found it!"
"Sire! I won’t be able to help you any further than opening a portal. The destination of is an isolated space and breaking in there is all what I can do with the remaining mana, I have." Said the Head Butler in a dejected tone.
The cube he created to create an arena for the two Ascended took more mana than he had anticipated, and it turns out the place they were headed was also an isolated space, an space free from spatial interference until the permission is granted by the owner of the space.
The Duke merely nodded in agreement, his expression grim. With the command given, the Head Butler responded immediately. "SPACE BREAK!" he intoned, clenching his fingers tightly around the sphere of gathered mana.
In the blink of an eye, the space in front of him began to shatter like fragile glass. Through the broken shards, a clearing with wild weeds came into view, illuminated by the eerie glow of the portal.
"GET INSIDE! IT WON’T LAST LONG!" the Head Butler shouted, his voice urgent. Without hesitation, the Mercenary Queen plunged into the portal, followed closely by the man. The Duke was next, his expression resolute as he stepped through.
As Cassius approached the portal, the Head Butler leaned in and whispered, "Take care of the Duke." Cassius gave a solemn nod and then stepped into the portal.
As soon as Cassius stepped inside, the spatial tear sealed shut, and the space returned to its usual state.
"Um! What about me?" asked the Knight Commander, his voice tinged with uncertainty.
"Stay with me. We have matters to attend to here," the Head Butler replied, his tone firm yet reassuring.
