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‘It’s the trademark weapon of the Anatole pirates who dominated the West.’

“…What?..”

“…What did you say?..”

“…There… There… That man!..”

‘Damn it! Why did they have to be the pirates of the West..?’ 

But before Ed could conclude, he was interrupted by the sound of footsteps coming from a different alley. Part of the group turned to face the man who was appearing out of nowhere. Ed recognised him in an instant. Sergeant Sorola was running in their direction, his arrival increased Ed’s already growing headache.

‘How did that determined non-commissioned officer track me down? He’s putting his life in danger for something so insignificant, at this rate his meddling is going to get him killed. And Liloa…I don’t even need to look at her directly, from a quick side glance I can guess she must be terrified.’

As he struggled to find a way to get out of this situation, the sergeant’s panting cry broke his thoughts.

“Lieutenant… Sagastar!”

When he heard that name all blood drained from Ed’s face, as Sagastar was a name well known to Lil. 

‘It’s now or never.’ 

Ed threw the tropical fruit he was still holding with all his might. The fruit flew at a phenomenal speed and hit the sergeant’s face with a crackling sound, causing the healthy young man to go out like a light.

“…There’s another one!…”

“…It’s the Navy!…”

“…Damn it! Get this ******* first!…”

The sound of panicked footsteps rumbled the ground. Ed avoided the flying mace approaching him and skilfully broke the forearm that was wielding it. He then drew his blade and moved in search of his next opponent. Two on the right and one on his left. One of the men seemed to be heading straight for Lil. 

‘I’ll take care of him first.’ 

With some difficulty, Ed managed to cut down all the blunt weapons aimed at him from various angles, it wasn’t an easy task as he needed to keep his eyes fixed on his target; the bald man that seems to recognise him. 

‘I can’t remember where we met, but I assume he was part of the great war of extinction on the western continent several years ago. He must have avoided beheading because he somehow managed to make it to an escape route or he was considered unworthy. Whatever the case might be, he shouldn’t be spared now. As Lil said, it would be beneficial to shut them up as soon as possible.’

Ed elbowed the last guy blocking his target in the stomach. The guy’s body gagged violently and Ed moved quickly to avoid the guy’s spewing saliva. After Ed pushed the big body out of his way, he could finally reach the bald one.

“Aaaaaahhh! The Admiraaaaal!”

‘This probably won’t end with him.’

A dilemma crossed his mind. 

‘Will it be quicker to shut his mouth or to knock Liloa unconscious? Who knows what more he could utter before he dies? How annoying. Seeing him blabbing endlessly, it seems he has a story to tell about me, but I just can’t remember that face.’ 

Fortunately for Ed, the bald man shut his mouth.

“Just die quietly.”

Behind him, men who had fallen to the ground scrambled up again. However, Ed was unable to regain his momentum, as his head was buzzing due to the blazing sun.

‘I’ll have to get Liloa out of here and deal with that Sergeant as well. The western pirates won’t pass a chance to get back at the Navy. Leaving him behind like that, in his navy uniform, is basically signing his death sentence. It doesn’t really matter to me if he dies or not, but it would be problematic if the corpse of a navy officer is found in Marchand around the time the Bell Rock is still at the marina. As an investigation would probably lead to turning the dock upside down. It will be best to carry him on my back, wake him up, and explain the situation.’ 

Ed sighed in relief as he had put together a plan.

“Y… You… Mo… Mondovi Fleet.”

The bald head was so shocked that he stuttered over his words. 

‘It seems that my best option is to dodge his frontal attack and slash him from below.’

Ed fixed his stand.

“Hey!”

The voice belonged to Lil.

‘Of course, she won’t be able to stay still after hearing him say ‘Retiro’ or ‘Mondovi’. It’s safe to say she followed everything that had been going on so far.’ 

Ed calculated that from his position he would reach the bald guy faster than Lil. 

“Hey! Stop!”

When her cry was drowned out by the two colliding blades, Lil froze on the spot. 

At this point, Ed was ready to cut off the bald head’s tongue, he only needed an opening. Ed managed to overpower the curved sword that clashed with his sword. This caused his opponent’s right arm, which was holding the hilt of the sword, to move away from his body, thereby exposing his torso. Reflexively, the man raised his unarmed left arm. Unfortunately for him, pirates usually don’t carry shields and his crude leather sleeve won’t be enough to block an attack. For Ed it didn’t matter what was being used, his sword was already raised to slash the guy’s chest… But suddenly an intense pain started in the back of his head. It was a ringing kind of pain, as if he was wearing an iron helmet that had been struck with another piece of metal. 

“…Stop! Why aren’t you listening to me?!”

Lil’s words didn’t reach him because his hearing was getting numb. Ed was falling over, clutching his painfilled head as a half-eaten apple was slowly appearing in front of him. He felt incredibly helpless when his body collapsed alongside the piece of fruit. He seemed to be losing consciousness while the top of his nape was about to explode. His vision became blurred and he blackened out repeatedly. 

‘No! If I hit my head like this, the damage might be irreparable.’ 

In a desperate last attempt, Ed tried to raise his other arm to break his fall.

 – Thud – 

A huge vibration struck his entire body when he collided with the ground.

***

———- Flashback  ———-

It seemed like all the clamour of the world was blended together, creating a buzzing sound in his head. He heard people whispering and the countless roars of beasts. A voice echoing in his ears started weak but grew louder and louder.

‘…Being able to sense it, is definitely a good sign…’ 

Ed was lost in his thoughts, when a particularly clear voice woke him up.

“Sir Edgar. I didn’t expect you to come so suddenly.”

Ed sat on a comfortable sofa in the duke’s mansion and looked up at Mireille, who clearly just received the news of his arrival and came in a hurry. Around them, servants were busy preparing a welcome for their unexpected quest. He watched Mireille’s embarrassed smile as the duke was unable to blame Ed for his rudeness.

“I haven’t finished my meeting with the Viscount of Guilloren yet…”

“Perhaps you thought that when I received your letter, I would carefully write a reply specifying a date and then wait patiently for your reply. If you’re going to finish your work with the Viscount now, I’ll head back. I only stopped by on the way, Duke, as I’m leaving for Mondovi as soon as possible.”

“No, wait.”

Mireille dissuaded Ed, who was about to rise, and sat down opposite him with a friendly smile. Ed stared straight into his eyes, skilfully concealing his annoyance. He had no desire to stay in the mansion longer than necessary and immediately brought up the main subject.

“I read that you have something I could be interested in.”

“Indeed.”

“I suggest you’d better hurry. I’m very busy, you know.”

“I heard you have a hobby of collecting certain things, a wild variety of things that is…”

“…”

When Mireille started his vague introduction, Ed made a face clearly stating his boredom. Before he continued the duke waved his hand, as if showing that the following content was very important. The busy servants quickly withdrew.

“I would like you to find something.”

“…”

Ed rose from his seat without hesitation and strode towards the door.

“I heard you’ve studied… Animals.”

“I never did.”

“I’m talking about a rare race of humans.”

“…”

His footsteps came to a halt.

“You studied the Ruwa tribe of the western continent, right? Their beauty is said to be breathtaking.”

“…”

Ed turned around slowly. When the duke didn’t hear the sound of the door opening, he assumed his words worked and picked up his teacup in a relaxed manner. Ed only realised that he had drawn his sword when the sharp tip of his sword rose in the middle of the unsettling scene. It was a disgust so deep-rooted it became his first instinct. His own expression reflected on his blade felt unfamiliar, Ed stared at the representation of emotions inside his brain.

“There’s another breathtaking human that I believe will pique your interest. After all, isn’t your interest in humans so deep that you’ve even been compelled to collect cadavers for dissection and study?”

“…”

Ed walked towards the Duke, still holding his unsheathed sword.

“It’s worth the search because it’s a human from a particular lineage. If you think about it in a different sense, it could be seen as a kind of mutation. Aren’t you drawn to rare things?”

“…”

Ed passed the Duke and sat down again. The Duke looked at the blade he was holding with a puzzled look and smirked as Ed put it into his sheath as if it had never happened.

“I only want one thing. Bring that woman to me. She has a stubborn personality and just like a beast, is difficult to handle, so the pursuit will be amusing. I’ll pay you with a rare jewel you can’t find anywhere else in the land. The only thing is, she has that jewel on her at all times.”

“You think you can just buy my services by offering me some rare gem? Besides, I’m the one tracking down both. Why would I hand either of them over?”

“Because the information I’m about to give you is sure to be of interest to you. Just think of the girl as payment for that information.”