[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Chapter 735: The Great Legacy (4)
Yugui Moga’s voyage log.
Normally, they would have gone up to the bridge and examined the log together, but that was not possible this time.
That was because this log could only be viewed inside the aberrant vessel Yorma.
Thus, Yeongwoo summoned Acting Captain Mantero through Earth, and before long, Mantero came rushing out from the bridge on the other side.
-You called for me……!
Since it was exceedingly rare for him to leave the bridge, the tension was evident on the face of Mantero, who had been summoned.
Then, moments later.
-…Huh?
He gaped when he saw the objects that anyone could recognise as aberrant vessels lying amid the ruins in front of the bridge.
Ships made from Godial, a material that could only be processed over thousands of years.
He knew all too well what sort of people travelled aboard ships of this calibre, so he could not help but feel terrified rather than merely surprised.
-S-Shipmaster? There are aberrant vessels here…….
As Mantero pointed with a faintly trembling hand at the aberrant vessel Keniscita, Yeongwoo poked his head out from inside the suicide vessel situated approximately thirty metres away.
Swish.
“Ah, that one’s been dealt with. Come over here.”
-…Pardon?
Mantero let out an uncharacteristically dazed response.
He soon came to his senses and began walking towards the place where the Planetary Shipmaster had poked his head out.
All while remaining unable to tear his gaze away from Keniscita.
Step, step.
As Mantero strode briskly across the ground of Gwangjin District and drew closer to the Planetary Shipmaster, he finally could not hold back and asked.
-Could that possibly be… Keniscita?
“Huh? How do you know about Keniscita, Acting Captain?”
-So it truly is Keniscita.
Mantero wore an expression of disbelief.
Yeongwoo shrugged.
“That’s right. But has Dorta Muio ever fought the Delsen royal family……?”
Mantero swept his eyes over Keniscita’s fearsome exterior and answered.
-That is not the case. However, records remain of a spire-shaped Godial vessel trespassing into the territory of the Kingdom of Delsen.
“Records?”
-Yes. The records are over a thousand years old, but I remember them because it was an incident in which the vessel broke through Delsen’s wide-area defences far too easily.
Mantero then turned his gaze towards empty space.
-And now I know that the vessel in question was Keniscita. Several incidents worthy of spreading its name far and wide occurred afterward.
“Sounds like it went around causing trouble fairly often.”
-It is an aberrant vessel notorious for repeatedly docking and departing without permission. It has also been sighted on numerous battlefields.
“Well, Keniscita means ‘the one who cleaves,’ doesn’t it? It must have broken through everything in its way, regardless of whether there was an encirclement or anything else.”
The more Yeongwoo heard the strange tales surrounding Keniscita, the more he liked it.
Was it not the perfect vessel for the Renaissance Bandit Gang?
“Acting Captain, do you recognise this vessel as well?”
When Yeongwoo finally knocked against the outer hull of the aberrant vessel Yorma, Mantero shook his head.
-It has an exceedingly unusual appearance. I have never seen anything like it.
“Well, seeing this thing is never a good sign. It’s a suicide vessel.”
-A suicide……?
Mantero’s pupils shook for an instant.
-And yet, I have ended up seeing one after all.
The line seemed to carry many implications.
Yeongwoo grinned and gestured towards Mantero.
“Come inside. There’s something I need you to look at.”
At Yeongwoo’s command, Mantero entered the aberrant vessel Yorma, whereupon Mushio Tare, who had been facing the pilot’s seat, turned around.
-So this gentleman is the acting captain of the planet-ship.
At Mushio’s words, Mantero, having instinctively realised many things, examined Yeongwoo’s expression before moving.
Swoosh.
He extended his right hand towards Mushio Tare and offered a handshake.
Just as Yeongwoo had offered Mantero a handshake when he had been hired as the navigator of the Earth Ship.
-I am Mantero Bis, born on Soura. I currently serve as the acting captain of the Earth Ship, and before that, I worked for the Delsen royal family.
Mushio stared fixedly at Mantero’s outstretched hand.
Although he had served a Great One and travelled throughout every corner of the universe, he had never shaken hands before.
-It appears to be a form of greeting. I have seen something similar before, but I may be mistaken, so would you teach me?
At Mushio’s request, Mantero looked at the other man’s right hand.
-This is the greeting of Earthlings and of the Earth Ship. Leave your right hand empty and clasp mine.
-A greeting signifying peace, then.
Mushio nodded and clasped Mantero’s hand before continuing.
-I am Mushio Tare. I am a lifelong navigator who was responsible for Soruon, the flagship of Lord Hizaki, the Black Flash. And before that, I was…….
Mushio hesitated for a moment.
Following the format Mantero had used to introduce himself, Mushio was supposed to recite his own notable previous experience, yet something seemed to have sealed his lips.
Sensing that there was a story behind it, Mantero spoke in a distinctly friendly voice.
-Please speak freely. If you were the lifelong navigator of a Great One, what could possibly be considered a blemish? Moreover, this is the Earth Ship. I have yet to see anyone whom our Shipmaster was unable to accept.
Yeongwoo, who had heard this, also encouraged Mushio.
“That’s right. You know your new workplace is a bandit gang, don’t you? What could you possibly need to hide here? Whatever it is, say it. I was curious about your history anyway.”
The lifelong navigator of a Great One.
But surely he had not been Hizaki’s servant from the moment he was born.
-Hmm.
At last, Mushio opened his mouth.
-Mushio Tare. I am also the fourth-ranked wanted criminal of Milcotax. You should still be able to find my name on its list.
“…Huh?”
Yeongwoo tilted his head, having understood none of the words that had just come out, while Mantero, in contrast, unknowingly released the hand he had been clasping.
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
-Did you say that you are number four on the Milcotax list……?
“Why? What’s Milcotax?”
-Milcotax is a public bounty company. It operates separately from the police bureau’s wanted system… and most importantly, its bounties are funded through public contributions.
“What exactly does ‘funded through public contributions’ mean?”
-It means precisely that. Those who wish to see a wanted criminal captured pool their money together to establish the final bounty.
“Ah, so it’s similar to crowdfunding.”
-The problem is that single-digit wanted numbers are royal bounty numbers. The royal families provide the reward money.
“So, since Mushio’s wanted number is four, which is a single digit… does that mean he’s a criminal being pursued by royal families?”
After understanding this much, Yeongwoo found himself puzzled.
“Why is that a problem? Technically, you’re also being pursued by the Delsen royal family, Acting Captain.”
Mantero immediately drew a clear distinction.
-My name is not on the Milcotax list.
“Why not……?”
-Even if a bounty has been placed on me, it is not particularly large. The reason the Milcotax list is famous is that it only displays those with the highest bounties among wanted criminals in each category. Furthermore, Milcotax possesses information on wanted criminals spanning two neighbouring galaxy clusters.
Two galaxy clusters.
That meant an area comprising thousands of galaxies.
“Then Mushio’s wanted number being four means…….”
-Yes. The single-digit entries carry bounties funded by royal families. In other words, only numbers one through nine exist, and the lower the number, the higher the bounty.
“Then are you saying the bounty on this goblin is the fourth-highest among all wanted criminals across two galaxy clusters?”
-Among those wanted by royal families, that would be correct.
Yeongwoo could not help but ask.
“Then how much is it? The bounty.”
At this question, Mantero silently looked at Mushio Tare, and Mushio soon spoke in a heavy voice.
-I am Mushio Tare, the Forgotten Pirate King, with a bounty of 140 billion placed upon me by Milcotax.
“What?”
* * *
Mushio Tare.
The Forgotten Pirate King.
There were probably countless pirate kings throughout this vast universe, but Mushio’s case was somewhat different.
Did the bounty of 140 billion placed on him by several royal houses not prove his worth?
“If I take you and hand you over to that Milcotax or whatever it’s called, I’ll receive 140 billion in cash?”
As Yeongwoo blinked in disbelief, Mantero stared at Mushio with eyes that had already turned cold and spoke.
-The bounty has most likely increased by now.
Being a single-digit wanted criminal on Milcotax meant that Mushio had committed all manner of crimes against royal families, so Mantero, who had once served royalty, could not help but feel an instinctive hostility towards him.
For Yeongwoo, however, this was an even greater problem than the bounty worth over a hundred billion.
“Come on, Acting Captain. You were shaking hands on such good terms just a moment ago. Don’t be like that. Either way, you’ll both be long-term employees of the Earth Ship.”
At Yeongwoo’s words, it was Mushio’s turn to look surprised.
-Are you truly going to hire me? My name is still on the list…….
Yeongwoo waved his hand and cut Mushio off.
“Stop going on about that damned list. I’m sick of hearing about it. My name is also sitting at the top of some list, so I’ll be in trouble soon enough.”
And Yeongwoo’s reason for hiring Mushio was extremely simple and straightforward.
“You must still have been a pirate king when Hizaki captured you, right? And even back then, your bounty must already have been around a hundred billion.”
-…That is correct.
“What does that mean? Doesn’t it mean that, in the eyes of a Great One, keeping you at his side and making use of you for the rest of your life was more profitable than selling you for a hundred billion?”
-…….
“So even if someone offered to pay me two hundred billion immediately, I wouldn’t sell you. I’m not trusting my own judgement. I’m trusting the wisdom of the Great One Hizaki, who was, at least once, far greater than me.”
-…Shipmaster.
Mushio looked at Yeongwoo with eyes that appeared deeply moved.
“So don’t even dream of fighting with each other. If your pathetic little conflict causes any problems aboard the Earth Ship, I’ll send both of you back to where you were originally supposed to go.”
He meant that he would hand Mantero over to the Delsen royal family and sell Mushio to Milcotax.
-I shall keep that in mind.
Mushio was the first to bow his head and accept the warning, after which Mantero slowly closed his eyes before opening them again.
-If you regard that man merely as a bounty, Shipmaster, then he is nothing more than a pirate. But if you have decided to bring him aboard the Earth Ship… then from that moment onward, he becomes a fellow crewman sailing on the same vessel.
He then extended his hand towards Mushio Tare once more.
-Mushio Tare. No one could possibly dispute your navigational skill. I firmly believe that you will become a tremendous asset to the Earth Ship. Welcome aboard.
Mushio, who had now properly learned how to shake hands, firmly clasped Mantero’s hand.
-It is a pleasure to meet you, Mantero Bis of the Earth Ship. I, too, shall serve wholly for the safety and well-being of the Earth Ship.
Yeongwoo silently watched the two wanted criminals exchange a passionate handshake before drawing the Bastard and pointing it towards the pilot’s seat.
Shiiing!
“You bastards, it’s time to work! Starting now, both of you will analyse the voyage log. Repay me for not selling you off.”
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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