Chapter 80

After defeating the Kraken, we were aiding the rescue of the Holy Order's fleet that had just sunk.

The members of the Order were pulled up into boats by the Blue-haired Clan and taken to a nearby merchant ship, not to our Mareas.

Yuri confirmed this and said,

"Well, well. It seems everyone is safe. Even though we intended to transfer them to the merchant ship... no one wanted to board our ship, huh?"

"It's probably because it's my ship. Besides... I don't particularly want to see them either."

To the Holy Order, I, who bear the Dark Emblem, am akin to a demon. They don't want to rely on the power of such a man and his companions.

Still, by being rescued by boats, they are essentially being saved by us. I hope they feel a bit of gratitude.

"I can only hope they learn from this and stop doing such foolish things..."

Yuri nodded at my words.

"They must have been terrified... They might become afraid of going to sea. Oh!"

Just then, two figures in black robes appeared from the teleportation pillar on the ship. It was Tika and Nate, whom I had sent to investigate the Imperial Capital, Burius.

"We apologize for the delay, Lord Alex."

"We apologize, Lord Alex."

"Ah, no need to apologize. How did it go?"

Tika nodded at my question.

"Both the Imperial Capital, Burius, and Prince Ruel were as usual. Burius seemed to have just learned about the sinking of the fleet through a messenger pigeon."

"He was banging on the table, saying, 'What the hell is going on?'"

Nate, with his usual monotone, mimicked the action of banging on a table.

Burius's enraged face came to mind.

In addition to the blunder of leaving the previous Ruel behind, the Order had lost five battleships... The loss of a single battleship is said to require the wood of an entire forest, so this was a significant blow.

I looked at the countless holy books floating in the sea... the Holy Scriptures.

I don't want to kill, even if it's the Holy Order, but perhaps by reducing their assets and weapons, we can weaken their power.

Elysia smiled, looking somewhat relieved.

"Now we can head to Mirel with peace of mind! Besides, Burius's situation has only worsened."

"Yes, that's true. And..."

I gazed out at the sea from the deck.

In the water, the dragon people, hidden by their Shadow Wheel, were cutting and collecting the Kraken's tentacles.

The ship was already piled high with the Kraken's meat, which the Slimes and Ratmen were transporting to Ars's freezer via the teleportation pillar.

"With this much, we won't have to worry about food for a while... We could even sell some of it. It would fetch a high price."

Lahn, who had been involved in the recovery operation, returned.

"The recovery is going smoothly. I think we can finish in about thirty minutes."

"Thirty minutes? That's so fast?"

I was surprised. The speed at which the dragon people were dismantling the Kraken was indeed remarkable. They are experienced in fishing, after all.

And in their Dragon form, the dragon people are incredibly strong, able to carry large amounts of meat.

"Thanks to the sharp knives provided by Lady Yuri and the Blue-haired Clan!"

"You're welcome! The dragon people are amazing, but... Lord Alex's magic was also incredible."

Selena nodded in agreement.

"We could see it clearly from the ship! Your magic gets stronger every day, Lord Alex!"

Since the dragon people joined us, my magic has indeed seemed to grow in power.

Elysia, watching the departing merchant ship, murmured,

"Yes. The members of the Holy Order must have been surprised... In that case, why don't we have fresh Kraken meat for dinner tonight?"

"Agreed!"

Everyone nodded in agreement at Yuri's suggestion.

After the recovery was complete and the familiars returned, we resumed our voyage to Mirel.

At night, tables and chairs were set up on the deck of the Mareas.

The table was filled with dishes made from the Kraken we had defeated earlier. We were having dinner while enjoying the sea breeze.

"Itadakimasu! Wow, it's delicious!"

The familiars seemed to be enjoying the food.

Elysia explained the dishes to me.

"This is steak, this is pasta, risotto, and pickled in vinegar. All made from Kraken meat. And... I was a bit surprised, but..."

Elysia turned to Lahn, who looked a bit nervous.

"Don't overexert yourself. This can be eaten raw and is very delicious! Please try it with the fish sauce."

"Raw... raw seafood?"

Selena, holding a piece of Kraken meat on her fork, looked at it hesitantly.

It was a thin, white slice. It looked plump and appetizing.

"Yes. We often eat it raw, calling it sashimi. Of course, there are fish that can and cannot be eaten raw, but this one is safe. We found no parasites that could cause illness."

As Lahn said, many dragon people were eating the raw Kraken meat with relish. The Blue-haired Clan and Ratmen, seeing this, also started to eat and seemed to enjoy it.

Elysia nodded and said,

"I tried it too, and there were no issues... It's really delicious."

"Since you both say so, I'll try it too."

I brought a piece of Kraken meat to my mouth with my fork.

"Wow!"

The tender texture and the right amount of elasticity. The fat that melted in my mouth went well with the fish sauce...

Soon, Selena and the other familiars also tried the sashimi.

"It's delicious."

Selena said this and started eating the sashimi piece by piece. The others did the same.

Elysia turned to Lahn, seeing this.

"Hehe. It seems everyone likes it. If you'd like, could you teach us more dishes from the East?"

"Of course."

Lahn nodded, looking pleased.

The other familiars were also chatting with the dragon people about sashimi.

...Good. We've grown even closer on this voyage.

We continued to enjoy the Kraken meat.

After dinner, we soaked in the ship's bath, which had windows, feeling the sea breeze and gazing at the night sky. It was very comfortable, except for Elysia and the others peeking through the peepholes.

The next morning, the Mareas reached the coast of Mirel.