Chapter 113
I lay comfortably in bed and checked the spoils of this climb once more.
Two items rested on my palm.
One was the white-and-pink ‘Coral of Life.’
“If this dropped, that means I’ll probably be diving somewhere, right?”
A coral that let me breathe freely underwater for one hour.
If an item like this came as a clear reward, it had to mean there was something beneath the sea.
That became even clearer when I considered the other reward.
A golden compass.
An option that found hidden locations or events.
It seemed very likely this compass could point to something deep beneath the sea.
“Should I go learn scuba diving ahead of time or something?”
I couldn’t even remember the last time I had swum.
The last thing I remembered was splashing around in the cold bath at a public bathhouse as a kid.
“A swimming pool... Not in this body.”
It wasn’t as if there were any restrictions.
My own mind was the only thing holding me back.
Wearing a tight women’s swimsuit was horrifying enough, and going into the women’s changing room was even more off-putting.
I turned my gaze back to the compass.
If I had this, finding hidden pieces would become a lot easier.
I even thought I might need to take it and go back in from the first floor.
Of course, I probably wouldn’t be able to get that many re-climb tickets.
Even so, it was a sufficiently satisfying reward.
There was still a long way to go before I finished climbing the tower.
Smiling with satisfaction, I tried to put the compass in my pocket.
“…Wait, why is there another one?”
My hand froze as it went into my pocket.
My fingertips touched something hard and cold.
It was the very compass I had received as a ‘gift’ from Teach.
For a moment, I stared blankly back and forth between the two compasses.
Two identical items.
I was a compass tycoon now.
But that joy was brief, because one thought flashed through my head.
“If I have the compass... how is Teach supposed to find his way?”
I remembered what Teach had said.
That ordinary compasses didn’t work in these waters.
Only this special compass could point to the correct course.
And I had taken that one and only navigation tool with me.
Could it be that after I left, the ship was unable to move and was just circling in place on the open sea?
“Did I take it without thinking too much?”
I grabbed it at once, thinking I should at least bring back whatever had value, but the more I thought about it, the more uneasy I became.
That ship and its crew were mine now.
I couldn’t let my precious assets drift helplessly on the sea.
Looks like I’d have to return one of the compasses.
This definitely wasn’t a thought that came to me only after I got a second compass.
“Good thing I left the flag behind.”
I let out a sigh of relief.
I remembered that just before leaving, I had left my flag on the ship.
I really am a genius.
Marveling at my own foresight in seeing the future, I used the flag’s power without hesitation.
[Consuming faith, moving to the selected coordinates.]
As I felt my strength drain away, the scenery around me distorted once again.
The salty smell of the sea stabbed into my nose once more.
When I opened my eyes, I was on the deck of the very pirate ship I’d been standing on moments ago.
“Gah!”
“W-what!”
“T-the witch came back!”
My sudden appearance terrified the pirates cleaning the deck, and they stumbled backward in shock.
Well, it made sense they’d be startled—someone who had vanished in a flash of light before their eyes had reappeared just minutes later in another flash.
I brushed off their reaction and headed straight for the captain’s cabin.
I happened to run right into Teach, who was just opening the door and coming out.
Teach also widened his eyes when he saw me.
I got straight to the point.
“Teach.”
“Yes, Captain.”
“You’re okay navigating without the compass?”
Teach’s face darkened at my question.
“That’s exactly what’s been giving me trouble. We’re moving in the direction we set at first, but there’s no way to check whether we’re actually heading straight.”
As expected, I had been right.
I had almost turned my first ship into a lost child of the sea.
I took out the golden compass and tossed it to him.
“Here, I’m giving it back.”
Teach hurriedly caught the flying compass.
He looked back and forth between the compass returned to his hand and my face, wearing an expression that said he couldn’t make sense of it.
“Then why did you take it in the first place?”
His question was entirely reasonable.
I was at a loss for words for a moment.
How was I supposed to explain this?
If I said I just hadn’t thought it through, my authority as captain would take a hit.
But I soon realized I didn’t need to give any detailed explanation.
Question the captain, will you?
Any insolent bastard like that gets thrown off our ship.
“I got another one. Somehow.”
I flaunted the new golden compass shining in my other hand.
“Huh? There’s no way...”
Teach said with a face that showed he didn’t believe me at all.
“There are only a few of these compasses in the world. They aren’t something a person can make.”
“And what if you don’t believe me?”
“Of course I believe you. Faith, love, and hope. Aren’t those the greatest virtues of a pirate?”
[Coward! Coward!]
“Scram, you annoying bird!”
The irritating parrot squawked above my head.
No matter how I looked at it, that parrot seemed smarter than Chohogi.
Just as Teach was about to say something else,
Wooooong-!
the new compass in my hand began vibrating wildly.
“What is this?”
I was flustered by the sudden phenomenon.
Then the rapidly spinning needle stopped, pointing in one direction.
It was the captain’s cabin.
“There’s something inside the ship?”
Without hesitation, I ran in the direction the compass indicated.
Teach, alarmed, hurried after me.
As soon as I entered the captain’s cabin, the compass’s vibration grew even stronger.
“Where is it?”
The compass wasn’t pointing at Teach’s desk or the treasure chest.
The needle was aimed at a massive bookshelf filling one side of the room.
No, more precisely, it was pointing to a single book among the many lined up on that shelf.
“A book...?”
Without hesitation, I pulled the book out.
It was an old book with a thick leather cover and no title written on it.
When I opened it, strange characters packed densely across the pages came into view.
Characters I had never seen before.
Naturally, I couldn’t read a single letter of it.
“What kind of book is this?”
When I asked, Teach, standing beside me, frowned as he peered at the book.
“I don’t really know what it is either. I got it at some port a long time ago. It’s written in ancient script, so I can’t read it either.”
“Then why are you even keeping something like that?”
“Every book is like a treasure map. You can’t tell what value it has just by looking at it, but sometimes a path to a real treasure is hidden inside.”
“Could you at least act a little more like a pirate?”
“Isn’t finding hidden treasure the most pirate-like thing there is?”
His shameless answer was so ridiculous I snorted a laugh.
The compass still in my hand was telling me this book was no ordinary object.
I closed the book and said to Teach.
“I’m going to borrow this book for a bit. That okay?”
[Thief! Pirate!]
“…Of course, Captain. Do as you please.”
[Coward! Coward!]
The parrot that had followed us into the cabin started squawking again.
Feeling embarrassed, I added,
“Ahem, I’ll definitely return it later, so don’t worry.”
[Liar! Liar!]
“...”
“Y-yes, of course.”
Teach answered in a tone that showed he didn’t really believe it.
No, I gave back the compass right away, so why didn’t he believe me?
Though I felt wronged, I carefully tucked the book inside my robe.
Unintelligible letters.
One person’s face came to mind.
Sharon.
She had read the characters written on the black magician’s scroll as if it were nothing.
Maybe Sharon would be able to read this book too.
‘An unexpected haul.’
I came to return the compass and ended up getting a new item.
As expected, when you live kindly, good fortune comes looking for you on its own.
Was this how Heungbu felt after fixing the swallow’s leg?
‘Come to think of it, I should test the coral too.’
Back on deck, I took the white coral fragment out of my pocket.
The Coral of Life.
An item that let me breathe underwater.
With items like this, you can’t be sure how well they work until you actually use them.
If it failed to work properly at a critical moment, that would be a disaster.
I decided it would be best to test it in advance.
I lightly bit down on the coral fragment.
It was small enough to fit right into my mouth, but I didn’t bother putting the whole thing in.
I just held the tip between my lips.
Like Sherlock Holmes with his pipe.
“Ahem.”
I cleared my throat for no reason and lifted my chin slightly.
I didn’t have a mirror to check, but somehow I felt like I looked pretty cool right then.
Like a charismatic pirate captain.
It was a nice prop that could at least make up a little for my youthful appearance.
“And what is that supposed to be?”
Teach, standing beside me, pointed at the coral in my mouth with curious eyes.
Instead of answering his question, I gave him a grin.
One action is more powerful than a hundred words.
Without hesitation, I threw off my robe and climbed onto the ship’s railing.
Then I hurled myself straight down.
Splash!
With a cool spray, my body was sucked into the sea.
***
The deck was pure chaos.
“What was that just now?”
“The new captain just committed suicide!”
“Then is Teach captain again?”
The crew stared at the white spray breaking apart with dazed expressions.
Their reaction was only natural.
Because this sea was anything but safe.
Like the fish-men who had attacked earlier, no one knew what dangers lurked beneath the surface.
“That’s the end of her. Once you fall into this sea, even sailors like us have a hard time coming back alive.”
An old sailor muttered.
Another sailor nodded in agreement.
“And how is she supposed to swim wearing that cumbersome outfit?”
“She’s dead, right?”
“Even a witch can’t do much if she falls into the water, can she?”
“Then is this robe and staff ours?”
“What about this sand pet here?”
“What? A pet?”
Everyone turned toward where one pirate was pointing.
Sure enough, looking more closely, there was a sand creature crouched on top of the robe.
“That’s fascinating. If we sold it to a circus, it’d make a pretty penny.”
One pirate reached out a hand.
At that very moment.
Swish!
“Aagh!”
The pirate screamed and clutched his hand.
A tiny hole had appeared in his finger, blood seeping from it.
“This little thing stabbed my hand!”
“Honestly, what kind of man whines over something that small...”
The other sailors clicked their tongues at him as if he were pathetic.
Chohogi was already back on its feet.
In its hand was a tiny toothpick that looked like it had been carved from rock.
Chohogi glared at the pirates, looking furious.
“You little runt, how dare you come at us?”
The pirate who had been attacked marched up to Chohogi, his face red with anger.
Smack!
The pirate struck Chohogi on the head with a finger.
Chohogi’s tiny body was knocked backward helplessly.
“Ha! Serves you right.”
“Tch, what a pathetic bastard...”
The other pirates shook their heads at the sight.
The pirate reached for the robe again.
That was when it happened.
Chohogi, who had fallen to the floor, stood up while brushing off the dust.
Its round eyes narrowed.
“Huh?”
Sssssh.
The sand spread across the deck gathered together in one place.
The sand began to be absorbed into Chohogi’s body.
“W-what is this...”
The smiles vanished from the pirates’ faces.
Chohogi’s body began to swell.
Its fist-sized body grew to the size of a child in an instant.
But the growth didn’t stop there.
One meter, two meters, three meters....
In the blink of an eye, a giant at least twice the pirates’ height stood there.
“......”
A massive shadow fell over the pirates’ heads.
Slowly lifting their heads, they saw an enraged sand giant looming down at them.
“Run!”
The deck turned into a madhouse in an instant.
The pirates scattered, screaming.
But Chohogi moved far faster.
“P-please, spare me!”
Chohogi lightly grabbed the pirate who had hit it by the collar with a giant sand hand.
Then, as if throwing a ball, it hurled him high into the air.
“Aaaagh!”
Splash!
The pirate flew in an arc and splashed into the sea on the opposite side.
Chohogi didn’t stop there.
It began grabbing and throwing the other nearby pirates one after another.
A spectacle of people flying across the deck unfolded.
“What’s all that noise?”
“Nothing much, former captain.”
The noise was coming from behind.
Teach tilted his head in confusion, but soon let it go.
That was just the pirates’ everyday routine, after all.
Right now, I wanted to focus on the flag bearing an hourglass design in front of me.
“No matter how I think about it, there’s something strange about this flag...”