Captain Lauren was not comfortable with the situation unfolding before him.

  To be fair, there were plenty of things to be uncomfortable about. He and nine other knights — the combined force from House Elathion and House Drevaine — were crammed into a claustrophobic space where the walls were flesh and the air reeked of caustic bile.

  It was most unnatural. The warmth and humidity of it had them all sweating, not helped at all by the fact that they were all geared in full armour and weapons.

  The physical discomforts were not the primary source of Captain Lauren’s concern, however.

  It was the fact that the Young Master of his House was standing with them, ready to perform the dangerous boarding action of the enemy flagship together with him in the lead.

  “We have about three minutes before our ship makes physical contact with the frigate,” Eri instructed. “Our Biovore vessel will blast a hole through the target’s lower hull and rudder. That will cripple the ship’s turning capabilities and keep its guns from aiming at us without causing it too much damage. We will then board the vessel from the bottom and clear it as we make our way to the top. Make sure to pace yourself. We need to move fast and hit hard. If you slow down and get surrounded, you are on your own.”

  To an outsider, it would have been surreal to see a youth of Eri’s age giving mission orders to a group of knights who were all at least twice his age. Some among the boarding party were even Gold-Core Chosens, while Lauren himself was a Ruby Core. It should have been him at the front of the group, leading them.

  Yet it was Eri instead that held their command: a Silver-Core Chosen not even two decades old.

  Not a single person in the party found that strange. They were used to the situation by now, even if they shouldn’t have been. Lauren doubted there was a single knight left within House Elathion or House Drevaine who dared doubt Eri’s competence, not after so many years of the boy repeatedly shattering their expectations.

  “You should have read the schematics I sent you earlier,” Eri continued. “The ship is large; there are five decks and an estimated crew of around two hundred defenders. The situation does not leave us much room to acquire captives, but if possible, subdue the non-Chosens, especially those in charge of logistics or communication. The same goes for any enslaved crew, provided they are non-combatants. And one last thing: the admiral is mine to deal with. If they approach me, focus on keeping the other pirates from interfering. Do not attempt to assist.”

  Captain Lauren could no longer keep his silence.

  “Young Master, this is not wise,” he said. “Please rethink this course of action. You should not be with us on this boarding action.”

  Eri gave Lauren a narrow glance. “Why not?”

  The answer was obvious, yet the youth sought to test his patience. Lauren cursed the Goddess for giving him only the most reckless lords to serve.

  It was like working with a Young Master Draevan again.

  “You are the most important person on this expedition,” Lauren tried. “Putting yourself in danger is pointless. My men and I are more than adequate for the task.”

  “Do you think asking me the same questions over and over again will make me give you a different answer?” Eri huffed. “I think you know me well enough by now that I don’t change my mind so easily.”

  “Still, I must keep asking. Because you are my charge and I must protect you. I cannot do so if you keep putting yourself in the greatest danger each time we are forced into an engagement.”

  The Biovore ship shuddered. They were taking fire. No doubt the pirate schooners outside were manoeuvring to intercept the vessel as it recklessly charged towards the flagship.

  “I understand that you dislike my decision. I also understand that you are aware of how much I dislike you disliking my decision,” Eri smiled. “So, in view of our friendship, I will give you three reasons why I will ignore your concern.”

  The ship shuddered once more. This time, the impact was much harder. Lauren distantly realised a schooner must have rammed itself into the Biovore vessel, hoping to slow it.

  The ship kept going anyway. If anything, it appeared to be going faster, its hull groaning as the tentacles applied themselves more powerfully to the waves.

  “The first is that to attempt a boarding using only you and your knights alone risks casualties,” Eri said, unconcerned with the chaos outside. “You are strong, but I am the strongest among you all. There are plenty of Gold and Silver Cores on the enemy ship. My presence will vastly help improve our odds of survival.”

  It was arrogance for a mere Silver-Core Chosen to proclaim themselves greater than the combined might of ten household knights, especially in the face of the opposition arrayed before them.

  None of the knights disagreed, however.

  “The second is that my strength would be wasted staying here. Peythra is piloting the ship. Deyara is forced to stay behind to protect her, as we need a Jewelled-Ranked Chosen present in case the enemy admiral decides to perform a reverse boarding action. Dulcina and Joarris's group will deal with the rest. Given that I am not needed on the ship, it is therefore only logical that I take part in the assault, where I can be of the greatest use.”

  “But you are not an asset to be used, my Lord,” Lauren protested. “The rest of us are assets. You, however, are a vital member of the North’s nobility.”

  “Joarris and Dulcina are placed in positions of danger as well, yet you do not complain of their roles,” Eri noted.

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  “It is a matter of risk. Boarding actions are unpredictable; you can easily get yourself killed by circumstances beyond your control.”

  “Do not be obtuse. I already ran you through the briefing. The strategy is sound.”

  An explosion rocked the vessel. The knights cursed as some fell to their knees. The Biovore vessel groaned in pain. The acrid stench of smoke was present.

  One of the schooners had self-destructed against the ship’s hull. The pirates had likely set their powder stores alight and then rammed their boat into the mutated corvette.

  The vessel was wounded, but it was still going strong. They were less than a minute away.

  “Your strategy is not always foolproof,” Lauren hissed. “The unexpected destruction of the original dreadnought is evidence of that!”

  “That’s what contingency plans are for.”

  “For the Goddess’s sake, please, my lord! Why do you keep placing yourself in the greatest dangers?!”

  “And that brings me to my third point.”

  There was a violent shudder. The Biovore was charging its guns for the final shot.

  “The matron once told me violence has a way of clearing the mind when it is clouded by indecision,” Eri mused. “As with most things, I agree with her. Therefore, this danger means nothing to me — not more than the opportunity to work off my anger, anyway. And after the destruction of the dreadnought derailing my plans to save Lord Draevan and the coalition, I am quite angry indeed.”

  Eri sighed. “So, to answer your question honestly, Lauren… The reason I am here is simply because I want to kill something. I want to kill the admiral of this fleet with my own hands. And I can’t do that if I sit safely behind and do nothing.”

  Lauren did not know what to say to that. There was no time anyway.

  A piercing, inhuman scream sounded through the flesh cabin. There was the muffled explosion outside as the magical bolt hit its target at point-blank range.

  Three seconds passed. Then, impact.

  The entire vessel violently shook as it rammed itself headfirst into the enemy’s flagship. Its monstrous mouth bit upon the damaged hull of the pirate frigate, as if it were a predator chewing on a wounded prey.

  The world around Lauren trembled. He had to fall to his knees to prevent himself from falling over.

  Then, everything became still. For a single heartbeat, stillness.

  The walls before him shuddered.

  They peeled open. Blazing white light shone into the cabin. Lauren beheld white flames, destruction, and screaming bodies contorting upon a devastated lower deck.

  The Biovore had breached the enemy ship. The path was open for them to board.

  As always, Eri was the first to move.

  Armed pirate crews were waiting for them. The admiral must have anticipated their intent and sent a force to meet their boarding action. Lauren saw at least half a dozen guns trained on the breach.

  It didn’t matter. Stunned and dazed by the Biovore’s earlier attack, the split-second delay in their reaction gave Eri enough time.

  He jumped onto the enemy ship, daggers flashing. Sprays of blood and choking gurgles accompanied the scene of death.

  A single second was all it took for Eri to kill all six armed pirates. Not even a shot was fired.

  “Move in! Secure the area!” Eri called out to the knights. “We will clear this ship deck by deck. Anyone who gets in our way, kill them!”

  ~~~

  Meanwhile, on the island stronghold where the imperial forces were holding up, Commanding Officer Amber stared at the chaotic scene in confusion.

  “Am I seeing things again? Why does that ship have a mouth?” she muttered tiredly to herself. Her voice was strained. Heavy dark circles were gathered under her eyes — the acclimated fatigue of sleepless nights. “I’m not sure whether we should shoot at it or not.”

  Her lieutenant interrupted her dazed musing. “Respectfully, ma’am, considering that the vessel is currently attacking the pirate flagship, and that they appear to be flying the colours of House Elathion, I highly recommend not attacking them.”

  House Elathion? Those were the noble bigshots who pushed forth this stupid coalition in the first place.

  “Last I heard, all the nobles died fighting Pirate Lord Augustus and his bullshit flying fortress, deep within the inner seas of Slaver Isles,” Amber grunted. “How did one of them end up all the way out here?”

  The imperial logistical outpost was one of many temporary strongholds set up to supply the coalition as they ventured deeper into the Slaver Isles. Amber’s was located within the outer seas — the furthest ring from the Maelstrom, closer to the coasts of the mainland continent than the heart of the West.

  It made no sense for one of Kaldreach’s ships to end up so far outside their last known location. They should have been trapped deep in the inner seas by now.

  “We had no confirmation of their deaths. It appears Lord Draevan managed to survive and found a new formidable vessel.” Her lieutenant frowned. “Although… There are no signs of his signature lightning storm anywhere on the battlefield. Perhaps it is merely his retinue commanding that ship, and not himself?”

  “Either way, I think we should shoot it.”

  “It’s flying our allies’ flags, ma’am.”

  “Kain, look at it. It has a mouth. It’s an abomination.”

  The lieutenant, Kain, shrugged. “I’ve seen worse.”

  It was true, sadly. Having been stuck in the West for four fucking years, Amber had seen all manner of weird naval bullcarp by now. First, it was flying ships with lasers. Then, it was giant floating islands that used active volcanoes as cannons. The other day, she received reports of a friendly dragon monster that eats pirate vessels and rescues sea-stranded imperial troops by swallowing them before puking them back on friendly ships, alive and relatively sane.

  That didn’t mean she should tolerate all of it. “What if it shoots us with that magic cannon after it’s done chewing up the frigate? That thing blew up the corvettes like they were powder barrels.”

  “Then I expect we will die very painful deaths. I would thereby suggest we do not shoot it, so that it will have fewer reasons to shoot us,” Kain stressed.

  “Well, when you put it that way, I can’t argue,” Amber tsked. “Tell the men to stop firing, lest we incur friendly casualties. And get them ready for a boarding action.”

  “We are finally attacking the frigate, then?”

  “That fucking ship has been bombarding us non-stop for an entire week. I haven’t slept in days,” Amber hissed. “It always stayed too far out of our cannons and intercept boats, but now it’s stuck. I want that admiral’s head on a spike before the day is done. After that, we can either thank our ‘saviours’ or get eaten by their monster ship. I don’t care.”

  “Understood, ma’am,” Kain sighed. “For the glory of the Aurelian Empire.”

  “The Empire can kiss my ass. I’m just looking forward to a good night’s sleep!”