"Over there!"
Lawaine raised his hand, pointing to the land where the light had vanished.
"It's hard to believe, but that harbor is Belder!"
He bit his lip deeply as he gazed at the harbor engulfed in darkness.
"Belder Harbor..."
Raon narrowed his eyes as he climbed onto the ship's railing.
'Has it already fallen?'
Belder Harbor was darker than a moonless night sky. If Lawaine hadn't mentioned it, they would have passed by without noticing its existence.
'There's no sign of people.'
Extending his aura perception, Raon couldn't sense even the faintest trace of life in Belder Harbor. It seemed as if every human there had perished.
'But the ocean's mana is flowing.'
Unlike the absence of human presence, a thick current of mana with the scent of the sea flowed within the harbor. If he could examine that energy, he might be able to definitively identify the attacker.
"Follow me."
Raon nodded to the Light Wind Palace Swordsmen and leapt from the Azure Wind's railing into the sea.
"Yes!"
"Understood!"
Led by Burren, who was right behind him, the Light Wind Palace Swordsmen jumped off the ship after him. With a thunderous sound, Raon strode across the sea using his Supreme Harmony Steps, entering the lifeless Belder Harbor. As he set foot on the gloomy harbor, an eerie chill ran up his spine.
'Is this really Belder Harbor?'
Lawaine had said Belder was a fairly large harbor with over 300 residents, but not only were there no people, there wasn't even a trace of the life they once lived.
He could see seawater flowing beneath his feet. No, water was flowing throughout the entire town. It looked as if a massive tidal wave had swept through, washing away everything in the harbor.
'Are they really all dead?'
Any hope he had deflated like a punctured balloon. It seemed they had arrived too late, despite departing as soon as they received the news.
-There's nothing here.
Wrath shook his head, also unable to sense any human presence.
-It feels like we've entered a cold, deep sea.
He furrowed his brow, seemingly deeply irritated.
'To me, it looks like a dead city.'
The port facilities for docking ships were completely destroyed, houses and buildings were reduced to rubble, and not even a small light remained to illuminate the surroundings. The harbor town, now engulfed in darkness, resembled a kingdom that had fallen centuries ago.
"Huh..."
"Is this really Belder Harbor?"
"It's completely gone?"
The Light Wind Palace Swordsmen who arrived later gasped as they saw the ruined harbor and the blue streams flowing into the sea.
"Are they really all dead...?"
Burren exhaled in disbelief as he stared into the darkness.
"There's nothing left, not even a soul."
Martha frowned, noting that not only humans but even dogs and insects were nowhere to be seen.
"Hmm..."
Runaan touched the water flowing into the sea with her palm, furrowing her brow deeply.
"It's seawater. Very cold."
She nodded, saying it was much colder than the sea outside.
"Hmm..."
Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at the water flowing towards the sea.
'It's cold seawater, as Runaan said, but...'
The ocean's mana was deeply embedded in it, as intense as its coldness. A thick current of mana with the scent of the sea flowed throughout the entire harbor. While this could be expected for a port city close to the sea, the concentration far exceeded normal levels.
'Wrath. This energy...'
Raon called out to Wrath as he shook the seawater off his fingertips.
'It's similar to the mana that wolf possessed, isn't it?'
The ocean mana flowing through this town was very similar to the energy of the blue wolf they had first encountered when entering the sea.
-Indeed it is.
Wrath nodded as he looked at the dark sea.
-In fact, it's not just similar, it's almost identical.
He wrinkled his nose, saying that while there were subtle differences, the flow, scent, and color were the same.
'Did that wolf really attack this harbor?'
He had tried not to assume the blue wolf was the culprit unconditionally, but seeing the state of this harbor, he couldn't help but suspect it.
'But I don't know what it did.'
He couldn't understand what kind of technique it had used to kill people without leaving a single trace.
'Did it not kill them, but drag them into the sea?'
Just in case, he extended his aura perception towards the sea, but all he could sense were marine life and monsters.
"I'm scared..."
Dorian trembled, seemingly frightened by the prospect of entering a city where all the people had vanished.
"There's no need to be afraid! That wolf ran away because it was scared of us!"
Krein shook his head, saying there was no need to be afraid, but even he seemed to have some fear left, taking small steps instead of striding confidently.
"Everything's been washed away by the seawater, there's nothing to see."
Burren sighed, saying it would be difficult to find any clues.
"It's a port city, I guess. Even the building debris is all rotted..."
Martha clicked her tongue as she brushed off the rust on her hands.
"It's true that building exteriors corrode faster near the sea due to salt and humidity, but..."
Raon approached Martha's side and examined the debris of the building she was looking at.
"It doesn't corrode this quickly all the way to the inside. This is a recent phenomenon."
It's true that buildings near the coast deteriorate faster than inland structures due to salt, wind, and humidity. However, it's rare for the corrosion to affect not just the exterior but the interior as well.
'Could it be...'
Raon entered the building to his right and examined the walls and floor.
'It's the same here.'
Not just the area Martha had examined, but many other buildings and house sites were also decayed due to salt.
'This means it wasn't simply swept away by raising waves.'
Whether it was magic or sorcery, it was clear that some special power had been used.
'I should look for other clues... Hm?'
Just as Raon was about to look around elsewhere, furrowing his brow, a massive surge of mana rose like wildfire from the depths of the sea, pressing down on his shoulders.
"What the-!"
As he turned around, he saw a massive wave rising as if to touch the sky, and within it, the face of the blue wolf appeared.
'What is this...?'
Raon's fingertips trembled as he looked into the blue wolf's eyes.
'It changed in the meantime?'
The blue wolf had grown larger and contained stronger mana than before. But there was an even greater change beyond that.
'Its malevolence has intensified.'
If the blue wolf he had seen before stood between a spirit and a monster, the wolf that appeared now was closer to a monster. Judging by the scent of blood, it seemed to be growing stronger by consuming humans.
"Doggy..."
Runaan bit her lip thinly as she looked at the blue wolf.
"It looks like it wants to cry..."
Despite feeling the chilling energy reaching here, she pitied the wolf.
"I, I can't read the wolf's mind..."
Dorian clasped his trembling hands together.
"But it feels like it's sad."
He tugged at his hair as if he found it hard to believe his own senses.
"What nonsense! It's glaring at us with killing intent!"
Krein shook his head vigorously, saying he couldn't even look the wolf in the eye.
"Whatever the case..."
Raon drew his Heavenly Drive and advanced towards the sea.
"We can't leave it like this."
As he leapt into the sea using his Supreme Harmony Steps, the wolf disappeared into sea foam and bubbles, just like during their first encounter.
-It's running away again?
Wrath blinked, not understanding why it was retreating.
-What is that mutt thinking!
'I don't know either.'
Raon frowned as he looked at the foam and water trails that had become redder than before.
'Did it judge that it couldn't defeat me? Or...'
Did it have something to say to me?
***
Raon let out a heavy sigh as he sat at the bow of the Azure Wind, cutting through the blue waves.
'I thought we could resolve this quickly...'
But there was no answer. For ten days after the fall of Belder Harbor, they had searched the surrounding coasts, but the wolf hadn't appeared again, and no other harbors or villages had been attacked.
'This doesn't mean it's resolved.'
Lawaine and the Light Wind Palace Swordsmen said the blue wolf seemed to have fled in fear of him. If that hypothesis was true, it was obvious that it would reappear as soon as he left, so the problem remained unsolved.
-That's right.
Wrath nodded calmly.
-The moment you disappear, that mutt will start hunting again.
He twisted his lips, seemingly thinking that the wolf had run away because it couldn't defeat him yet.
'Let's organize the information we have.'
Raon leaned against the railing, looking up at the clear sky.
-Is there anything to organize? Villages attacked by the blue wolf are left with nothing, and that wolf gets stronger the more people it eats. That's all.
Wrath waved his hand, saying it was simple.
-The fact that it's become more evil is proof of that!
'It might not be so.'
Raon shook his head calmly.
'We didn't actually see the wolf attacking.'
At first, he too had suspected the creature when he sensed the blue wolf's energy in the ruined Belder Harbor and it appeared behind them as if it had been waiting. But the words of Runaan and Dorian, who were known for their keen senses even among the Light Wind Palace, and the wolf's disappearance without fighting, made him think it was too early to be certain.
-So you're going to let it go again?
Wrath clicked his tongue as if thinking it was stupid.
'That's not it. I won't kill it right away, but next time I'll definitely confront it,'
Raon said he wouldn't let it escape next time, then shook his head.
'But the wolf needs to appear for us to do anything... Hm?'
His aura perception, spread out to search for the wolf, picked up the presence of many people.
'To the west?'
Focusing his eyesight to the west, he saw four large sailing ships approaching. Judging by the skull flags fluttering on their sails, they seemed to be pirates.
"Pirates! Pirates are coming from the west!"
Not long after he sensed them, the lookout on the mast lowered his telescope and shouted that pirates had appeared.
"So they were pirates after all..."
Raon let out a short sigh.
"They're called the Kusar Pirates, and they're the strongest and most brutal among the pirates in this area."
Lawaine nodded as he looked at the four pirate ships that had appeared.
"It seems they were about to attack the harbor ahead of us when they encountered us."
He frowned, saying that these pirates had been continuously encroaching on their territory in Alice's absence. From what he heard, they were villains who wouldn't be missed if killed.
"Then we should repay them."
Raon nodded with a cold smile.
"Prepare for battle now..."
"There's no need for that. We have some friends over there who are itching for a fight."
Raon sliced through the magic cannon fired by the Kusar Pirates with his Heavenly Drive and jerked his chin.
"Go. Bring the captain back alive."
Raon told the Light Wind Palace to wipe them all out as he pointed his sword at the four pirate ships.
"We obey your command!"
Led by Vice Palace Master Burren, the Light Wind Palace Swordsmen leapt from the Azure Wind's deck into the sea. They strode across the waves as if on solid ground and jumped onto the pirate ships.
'This should be a good opportunity for them to gain experience and achievements.'
The pirates were martial artists specialized in naval combat, and there were even several Masters among them, so it seemed like a good chance for the Light Wind Palace Swordsmen to gain experience. However, he had made a significant miscalculation.
With a thunderous roar, Martha, who had grown irritable after ten days at sea, split one pirate ship in half. Trevin sliced the second ship into dozens of pieces as if practicing his swordsmanship, and Runaan completely froze the third ship behind it.
"What, what is this..."
The captain remaining on the last pirate ship gaped at the unbelievable sight.
"Retreat! Fall back!"
But the swordsmen who hadn't even drawn their swords yet leapt onto the last pirate ship like madmen, not wanting to miss their prey.
"Huh..."
Lawaine blinked blankly, as if he knew the Light Wind Palace was strong but hadn't expected such overwhelming force. Raon briefly smacked his lips as he felt the explosions and blasts coming from the fourth pirate ship.
"It's hard to even give the kids experience now."
He had thought the pirates would be enough, but the swordsmen had become too strong for it to be meaningful.
-Kids?
Wrath pointed at the fourth pirate ship, which was starting to sink, in disbelief.
-How are those kids! They're just mad dogs!
He shook his head, saying they were becoming more and more like rabid beasts.
***
"This is the one."
Martha threw a middle-aged man with an eye patch wearing a red uniform in front of Raon.
"He says he's the captain."
She frowned, saying he was too weak for a captain.
"Yeah. It was too easy..."
Runaan also nodded, saying it wasn't fun.
"That's why I told you to hold back!"
Burren stomped his foot, saying the other swordsmen couldn't even properly swing their swords because of them. He seemed to be the only one who had understood Raon's intention.
"Your name?"
Raon stepped on the shoulder of the one-eyed middle-aged man and jerked his chin.
"It's, it's Paros."
The one-eyed middle-aged man trembled, seemingly frightened by Martha and Runaan's overwhelming power.
"What were you crawling here to eat?"
Raon asked, bringing his Heavenly Drive to Paros's neck.
"We, we didn't come down here because we wanted to..."
Paros shook his head, swallowing hard.
"What do you mean by that?"
"The, the harbors and villages in our territory have all been destroyed. We needed to make a living somehow, so we had no choice but to..."
He clasped his hands together, saying they came looking for the territory where the Pirate King had disappeared because all the villages and harbors they had been protecting were destroyed.
"Don't tell me..."
Raon frowned as he looked at Paros.
"Your side was destroyed too? Without a single person left?"
"That's right. Four harbors we were protecting were completely destroyed. Not a single person was left, and all the buildings were ruined..."
Paros nodded, saying they couldn't make a living anymore.
"It's the same."
Raon met Lawaine's eyes as he listened to Paros. What Paros had experienced was exactly the same as what had happened in Belder Harbor.
"Did you see the blue wolf too?"
Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at Paros.
"I, I saw it. It appeared after that ship passed by and the harbor was destroyed."
Paros nodded heavily, as if he had seen everything.
"I see... Huh?"
Raon stared at Paros with wide eyes.
"After that ship passed by? Not the wolf destroying the harbor?"
"What? No. The wolf comes out after the village is destroyed. The one that destroys the harbor is..."
Paros trembled as if even mentioning the name frightened him.
"The, the Ghost Ship."