There were many pirates in the world.
Their numbers were countless, making it impossible to capture them all.
Because of this, the admirals of each fleet, after much deliberation, began placing bounties on a select few particularly notorious pirates. It was meant to instill fear.
However, contrary to the admirals’ expectations, fear did not take root. Instead, the bounty amounts became a symbol of status and vanity among pirates.
And where ranks emerge, rulers naturally follow.
Whenever people gathered, they would debate over who the king of the pirates truly was.
“Obviously, it’s [God’s Spear] Ilbi!”
“Oh, come on. You have no clue. Just look at the nickname—doesn’t [King of the Sea] Teren fit the title best?”
“Hmm… I’ve heard that entire fleets have sunk by the blade of Teren’s sword. But still, when you think of a king—”
Whenever these debates began to escalate, someone would always say:
“No matter what you say, if we’re talking about a king, isn’t it ‘him’—[The Arbiter of Salvation]?”
At the mention of [The Arbiter of Salvation], people fell silent.
A brief stillness lingered before another man, who had been quietly listening, scoffed.
“[The Arbiter of Salvation] is an exception. Can we even call him a ‘pirate’ in the first place?”
“If the kingdom itself calls him a pirate, then he is one. Haven’t you heard the rumors that he recently wiped out an entire fleet? They say he’s ruthless and cruel.”
“Hah! And what has the kingdom ever done for him? If anything, they’ve only taken from him…”
The hesitation in the air cooled the once-heated discussion.
Losing interest, the onlookers dispersed, disappointment on their faces.
Beyond the scattering crowd, a wanted poster came into view.
Among the many pirate faces plastered on it, one stood out—his face shrouded beneath a veil.
Beneath it, the bounty amount read 30 million Dylans.
A man with his hood drawn low—Hymen—stood alone, quietly repeating the name to himself.
“[The Arbiter of Salvation]…”
Hymen stared at the wanted poster with an unreadable expression. Then, suddenly, with a rough motion, he tore it from the wall.
The letters spelling [The Arbiter of Salvation] were jagged from the tear.
Yet, uncharacteristically for him, he folded the poster neatly and tucked it inside his coat.
Then, without hesitation, he strode forward and entered a tavern.
As soon as he pushed the door open, the rowdy noise and shouts inside flooded his ears.
“Why hide such a pretty face, huh?”
“Hey, it’s your turn to drink this time!”
On one side, a group of rough-looking men were harassing a woman, while on the other, drunken patrons seemed to have started a brawl.
No matter where he looked, the place was filled with men drinking far beyond their means.
And among them, his gaze landed on a woman wearing a hood.
Her attire was simple, yet she did not look shabby.
There was nothing particularly striking about her appearance, yet—for some reason—she caught his eye.
Even as she remained still, the men surrounding her continued their advances, grinning slyly as they spoke.
“I know a place much better than this tavern, you know.”
The woman turned her head.
She seemed to be scanning the men encircling her.
For a brief moment, Hymen felt as if their eyes met.
A glint of scarlet flickered in her gaze.
“Must be my imagination.”
It had been such a fleeting moment that he brushed it off.
Before he could think further, a loud voice suddenly rang out.
“Hey, miss! You can hear us, can’t you? You’re not mute, so why are you ignoring us?”
“Huh?”
“Not you. Or wait, do you wanna join in? We can make room for you.”
At the man’s words, his group burst into laughter.
Hymen, momentarily considering leaving because of the racket, ultimately decided to take a seat.
“It’s especially noisy today.”
Lately, every gathering place had been chaotic due to the revolution that started in Harenta.
But today, this tavern felt particularly out of control.
The tavern owner silently placed the drink Hymen always ordered in front of him before walking away.
Normally, the man would make small talk, so this unusual silence struck Hymen as odd.
Before he could turn his gaze toward the owner, another loud voice called out.
“Hey, you—hooded guy!”
A faint irritation stirred within him.
The sound of liquor filling his glass was drowned out by the surrounding noise.
“This is why I hate cheap taverns.”
For a moment, he considered switching to a different tavern.
But there wasn’t anywhere else suitable to go.
In any case, his mission on this small island would soon be over.
Hymen was certain—he would never have a reason to return to this pathetic little island again.
Even aside from that, he preferred these cheap taverns over the grand banquets and salons of nobles.
The tavern owner brought out a plate of food.
Unlike earlier, when he had simply plopped down the drink and hurried away, this time he muttered with a worried expression:
“Shouldn’t you help? Given your profession and all.”
“Who knows.”
It was a pointed remark.
Hymen responded briefly.
Clearly, the tavern owner didn’t like the commotion happening inside his establishment.
But Hymen had no intention of interfering.
“Bringing up public order to a navy officer? Does he not know the difference between the military and the local patrol?”
Annoyed, he silently sipped his drink.
A crisp, nutty flavor lingered in his mouth.
The men harassing the woman—he didn’t find the sight particularly pleasant.
Still, Hymen assessed the situation calmly.
“Keeping order on land isn’t my job. If I interfere carelessly, it’ll only backfire.”
Even so, he couldn’t just sit back and watch until this minor disturbance turned into an incident.
But judging by the quality of those men, they didn’t seem foolish enough to cause trouble in such a public place.
“I’ll step in if things escalate.”
Even as he thought this, his eyes kept drifting back to them.
Despite the men yelling at the top of their lungs, the woman continued to drink her liquor, completely unfazed.
No matter what they shouted, she didn’t even acknowledge them.
Normally, when a group of men that large raised their voices, most people would at least show some fear—but not her.
“That woman’s got some guts.”
Hymen picked up a piece of sausage with his fork and continued observing.
The men’s words grew increasingly crude.
At some of their particularly vulgar remarks, his usually composed brow furrowed slightly.
Clearly, their pride had been wounded after being ignored for so long.
Their next words, spat out in frustration, made that even more obvious.
“Who else would even bother playing with you, huh?”
At last, the woman—who had been silent all this time—raised her hand.
All eyes in the tavern shifted toward her lifted fingers.
“Tsk.”
Her middle finger was clearly raised.
The tavern fell into a hush, and muffled laughter spread among the onlookers.
The big-nosed man, the one who had been hitting on her the most, visibly bristled.
He tried to laugh it off, but the way his lips twitched in irritation made it obvious.
“Who the hell does she think she is, acting all high and mighty? Let’s go, guys.”
His words were dripping with resentment and pettiness.
For the first time, the woman flinched slightly.
Hymen, without realizing it, had become completely absorbed in the scene.
“Is she going to cry?”
From behind, her slender figure trembled slightly.
That thought had barely crossed his mind when—
Swish!
Thud!
Something whistled through the air and slammed into the seat between the big-nosed man’s legs.
Had it gone just a bit further, he would have lost something important.
Hymen immediately recognized the object lodged there—a knife.
The big-nosed man didn’t even have time to scream.
The raucous tavern fell into an instant, dead silence.
The woman turned around.
At some point, her hood had fallen away.
Only then did her face come into full view.
The first thing that stood out was her striking pink eyes, the same ones he had glimpsed earlier.
Though soft like watercolors, their intensity was unmistakable.
Her hair, in contrast, was a brilliant shade of gold.
It was loosely braided, yet messy strands escaped, refusing to be tamed.
She was, without a doubt, a beauty that would turn heads anywhere.
“Y-You… you…!”
Only now, the big-nosed man finally processed what had happened.
His hand, trembling with anger and fear, pointed at the woman.
But she merely smiled, unfazed.
“Oops. I meant to hit your lower half.”
For a moment, the tavern was silent.
Then—laughter erupted.
Even those who had been holding back burst into chuckles.
The first to snap out of it was the tall man standing beside the big-nosed one.
He stood up abruptly, drawing his sword.
The sight of the blade flashing in the dim light seemed to jolt the big-nosed man back to his senses, and he fumbled for his own short sword.
Screams rang out from all directions.
In their rage, the two men even shoved aside their own companions.
Some of their friends tried to stop them, only to have blades pointed in their direction as well.
Then, as if they had never been scared in the first place, they shouted boldly.
“You crazy bitch!”
“You better wait right there. We were gonna go easy on you—”
The tavern owner, panicked, rushed over and jabbed Hymen repeatedly in the arm.
Hymen shook him off irritably.
“Guess it’s time to wrap this up.”
With a sigh, Hymen rose from his seat.
“That’s enough.”
Only then did the two men turn toward him.
For a brief moment, they were startled by his height and build, as he was noticeably taller and more muscular than the tall man.
But then, as they took in his well-groomed face, their expressions shifted to mocking grins.
“And who the hell are you? That woman’s boyfriend?”
“Damn, you’re a pretty boy. Wanna join us?”
Hymen glanced at his pocket watch.
This pointless commotion had already wasted ten minutes of his time.
His voice, laced with irritation, came out flatly.
“I don’t have that much free time.”
The two men stiffened.
Just moments ago, he had looked like nothing more than a pampered noble’s son.
But the pressure radiating from him now—this wasn’t something that could be faked by status alone.
As if to confirm their instincts, Hymen spoke again, his voice cold as ice.
“I will not tolerate any further disturbances.”
At those words, the two men visibly lost their confidence.
Even so, the big-nosed man stubbornly clung to his pride, unwilling to back down.
Perhaps he sensed that this was his last chance to save face.
“…And what exactly will you do if we refuse to comply?”
At that question, Hymen did not get angry.
Instead, his expression grew even colder than before as he answered:
“Who knows.”
Judging by his demeanor, those words weren’t empty bravado.
The tall man, belatedly realizing something was off, scanned Hymen carefully.
At first glance, Hymen’s attire seemed ordinary, but upon closer inspection, there was an unmistakable air of nobility about him.
The tall man, having served under a rather infamous pirate, wasn’t afraid of nobles.
After all, strength mattered more than the law, and he understood that well.
The real issue was the sword hanging at Hymen’s side.
At first, it appeared plain, with no extravagant gemstones or embellishments.
But the closer he looked, the more certain details and a distinct shape stood out to him.
Then, like a bolt of lightning, it struck him.
‘Why the hell is a navy officer here?!’
That sword—it was a naval officer’s sword.
A cold sweat broke out on the tall man’s back.
And in that moment, the situation took a sharp turn for the worse.
“Do you even know who my boss is?”
“It’d be a real headache if I had to find out.”
The big-nosed man, about to explode with anger, was suddenly pulled back—by none other than the tall man.
If their boss’s name was mentioned here, it wouldn’t just be trouble for the boss—they themselves wouldn’t make it out unscathed.
“This isn’t just some patrol unit or noble’s brat—this is a goddamn navy officer! If we lay a hand on him, we’re finished!”
The tall man had encountered naval officers before—too many times to count.
They were hunters, trained specifically to take down pirates.
They wielded their authority ruthlessly, tracking down their targets with terrifying efficiency.
Even the mere memory of them made his stomach churn.
Lowering his voice, he muttered urgently:
“Drop it.”
“Why the hell are you backing down? We should teach this bastard a lesson!”
The big-nosed man, oblivious as ever, was still fuming.
The tall man, growing increasingly frustrated, grabbed him by the arm and yanked him away.
Even as he was being dragged off, the big-nosed man failed to grasp the change in the situation and kept shouting.
Finally, the tall man leaned in and hissed into his ear:
“That bastard is navy, you idiot!”
“…What?”
“Look at his sword, dammit! His sword!”
As the tall man whispered urgently, Hymen’s gaze flicked downward—toward the sheathed blade at his hip.
A seemingly unremarkable sword, yet marked clearly with the navy’s insignia.
Only then did the big-nosed man’s face go deathly pale.
─── ･ ｡ﾟ✧: *. ꕥ .* :✧ﾟ. ───
