Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters

Bandit Gull couldn't prove to the pirates that it wasn't a treasure ship; surely they couldn't just stop and let the pirates inspect, could they?

That was the situation. Currently, Bandit Gull was a high-risk vessel on the inland sea. Usually, maybe a naval flag would be enough to guarantee safety, but now such a flag would definitely not scare the pirates away.

It seemed the two army officials hadn't even thought of immediately going ashore to let the officers disembark. And the corpulent captain also hoped the army officers would stay on board to protect Bandit Gull, so he deliberately didn't suggest this plan.

Therefore, Major General Layton, Major Moritz, and the corpulent captain unanimously agreed that Bandit Gull must not head directly for Sea Blue City now, and needed to quickly leave the main route, taking rarely traversed waters as a detour back to Sea Blue City.

Besides that, they could only pray urgently for a strong wind at sea.

Perhaps the devout prayers of the sailors took effect; by dusk, the previously frail sea breeze began to gradually strengthen.

Bandit Gull, filled with wind power, resumed its course through the waves at a speed of eight knots.

"I think the Major General's idea is correct. In the current situation, the pirates are like dogs that have caught a scent. Even if we were made of iron, we couldn't withstand another two close-quarters battles. Speeding back to Sea Blue City is the top priority," Andre said nonchalantly. He was now simply lying on the deck, seemingly intending to take a nap.

"The oarsmen are innocents, we can't just slaughter them indiscriminately, can we?" Bard clearly disagreed with Major General Layton's solution.

There was no disagreement over the order to change course; what really sparked debate was the method of dealing with the Good Fortune.

Major General Layton's solution was to kill all the surviving pirates, throw their bodies into the sea, scuttle the pirate ship directly, and have Bandit Gull return to Sea Blue City at full speed.

The problem was that Major General Layton didn't distinguish between coerced oarsmen and pirates; he deemed every living person on the pirate ship as a pirate, all deserving death.

But Major Moritz, for the first time, raised an objection to the high command. In his view, the oarsmen were in a coerced position, essentially innocent sailors who had been captured and enslaved by the pirates. Killing these non-pirate sailors would be a too shocking act and would damage the army's reputation.

"Hmph," Andre sneered, clearly unimpressed by the notion of innocents, "Who's innocent? Wasn't it their rowing that allowed Bandit Gull to be caught up to? And didn't you suffer at the hands of those oarsmen?"

Bard was momentarily at a loss for words, unaware of what "Stockholm Syndrome" was. Indeed, three oarsmen had attacked him, and he couldn't think of a reasonable defense for those oarsmen who had been incited by the pirates to attack him.

Winters, listening to the exchange, thought again of the rotten smell in the cabin, the emaciated bodies of the oarsmen, and their desperate eyes, and couldn't help but sigh, "I think that the oarsmen didn't really want to help the pirates."

"Then what did they want?" Andre had little patience for this kind of pity for the enemy.

"They just wanted to die outright."

This response left Andre momentarily speechless. He scratched his head, his lips parted several times without making a sound, before he returned to his indifferent demeanor, "Don't think too much about it. If they dare to fight against us, they deserve to die if they're killed. We're just a few low-level military officers—not even officers, just officer cadets. We have no power, and haha, no responsibility either. We just do whatever the top brass tells us to do. They'll shoulder the sky if it falls."

Winters thought perhaps it was this kind of mentality that allowed one to sleep well every night, he replied with a bitter smile, "That's right, just consider yourself a tool."

Major General Layton's solution was only half implemented. The surrendering pirates were all slaughtered, the non-surrenderers were finished with a knife, and their bodies were all tossed into the sea as food for the fish. They spared the pirate captain half his life because the Major General wanted to bring him back to Sea Blue for further interrogation.

The oarsmen were not treated as pirates and executed, which was the result of Major Moritz's ardent negotiations.

The Good Fortune was not scuttled, which was the result of the corpulent captain's insistent efforts.

We still do not know the name of Bandit Gull's corpulent captain, but he was no longer aboard Bandit Gull. Now, Bandit Gull's acting captain was its former first mate, and the corpulent captain had taken over the role of Captain on the Good Fortune Gold, leading a few sailors aboard as its new captain.

As the corpulent captain had said, at sea—at least on the inland sea—the most valuable thing wasn't cargo, but the ship itself.

Major General Layton wanted to scuttle Good Fortune, and Major Moritz actually didn't have strong feelings about it. They were both army officers, not familiar with the value or caring for such a decrepit ship.

But upon hearing Major General Layton's intent to scuttle Good Fortune, the corpulent captain firmly disagreed and, for the first time, displayed remarkable assertiveness in front of the Major General by slamming the table and glaring.

The corpulent captain then explained the situation to the two landlubber army officers, counting on his fingers:

First, although Good Fortune was somewhat old, it was a solid, functional, and sturdy vessel.

Second, even though Good Fortune was an old-style galley, most ships on the inland sea were of this type; despite having fallen into the hands of pirates, it would be a good merchant vessel again with some repairs after returning to port.

In short, Good Fortune could fetch a good sum of money! Scuttling it would be a sheer waste. This ship was now legitimate war booty, with ownership belonging to the army officers. Wouldn't it be nice to sell it and share the proceeds?

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