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Chapter 68

“One-Eye? But I heard she was recently in a bit of a lull with her jobs.”

Ninian was one of the strongest among the Rank B explorers and was famous in her own right, so she drew peoples’ gazes. And so did Leonard, who was walking a step ahead of her. He felt discomfited, more so from the women’s stares than the men’s.

“Wow! Which noble family is he from? I’ve never seen him before.”

“He must be a foreign aristocrat. Or maybe he’s a countryside noble. When else have you seen One-Eye Ninian quietly following someone around?”

“His clothes look a little plain for an aristocrat, though. And he has a sword. Do you think he’s a newbie explorer or something?”

“Ninian, helping out a newbie? Don’t make me laugh.”

Leonard picked up on their gossip. “Just how many people have you fought to get this kind of reputation?”

“Most of them were people who attacked me first. And if I seem weak, more people would try to lay their hands on me. So when I teach them a lesson, I do it right so that they’ll never think about harming me again.

Explorers, mercenaries, and other people in similar lines of business had many situations where they had to earn the respect of others by showing off their power, but women had it harder than men. Their physiques and appearance made it harder to intimidate people, so they had fewer options. This was especially true for the women who were particularly more beautiful and had to fight off lustful creeps.

“When a man hid in my tent, I shot him in the crotch, and when a man put drugs in my canteen, I cut off his hands. The scumbags started to behave themselves when they saw blood,” Ninian explained. Gaining notoriety for violent acts of revenge was a way to protect herself. There was a famous female explorer who had the nickname “Ball Breaker” for the same reason.

Leonard understood why she did the things she did, but he still gave her a short piece of advice. “It’s fine to retaliate with violence, and using such means to make people fear you isn’t bad either. But you shouldn’t make people you don’t even know think badly of you.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Once he taught her the basics of Yeon Family Archery, she’d let go of her suspicion and begun to take his advice. In fact, it was possible that she had started to think of him as some type of mentor.

Leonard and Ninian entered Bermuda’s headquarters and headed to the fourth hall. As soon as they stepped into Zephyros Hall, the other explorers saw them and erupted.

“One-Eye and Aquamarine’s newbie? What kind of pair is that?”

“Do you think Aquamarine is trying to recruit Ninian?”

“It’s possible. She’s money-hungry. As long as they paid her, she wouldn’t even bat an eye if she had to work for the Council or Moby Dick.”

Leonard and Ninian walked over to the counter, ignoring the chatter. As always, Clara was there, and she greeted them pleasantly.

“Welcome, Mr. Leonard. Are you looking for Miss Frances?” she asked.

“Yes. What is she doing right now?”

“I think she was using a communication device to recruit new members... but I don’t think she’s had much success.”

“Please ask her to meet me in a meeting room. You can just tell her that it’s about a new member,” he requested.

Clara’s eyes widened in surprise, but her cool expression quickly returned, and she nodded. She handed them the key to room number 3, which was the same room Leonard and Ninian had met in before.

It was likely a coincidence, but it was a very poignant one.

Ninian cleared her throat, as if recalling that meeting.

***

Leonard and Ninian waited less than five minutes before Frances and Marianne burst in.

“A new member! Leonard, who did you bring?!”

More specifically, Frances had bounded in while Marianne was hurrying to keep up with her. For a bodyguard, there was nothing more mortifying than their employee charging ahead of them.

Ninian looked at them with a skeptical expression and glanced at Leonard. Then, she let out a long sigh.

It was too late to turn back now.

“My name is Ninian. I’m a Rank B archer,” she introduced herself.

Frances grinned cheerfully. “I’m the captain of Aquamarine, Frances!”

“I am her bodyguard, Marianne.”

Ninian shook their hands one after the other and took a step back. “We have already discussed my terms of employment, so I would recommend speaking to Leonard about it. I am not very good with words, you see.”

“Wow! You sure are fast,” Frances said to Leonard admiringly.

He shook his head. “We have not fulfilled the terms of the contract yet. One of the stipulations for her official membership is dealing with the problem she’s currently facing.”

“What problem?”

“Well, what happened was...”

Leonard’s explanation was brief but captured all the main points. Frances and Marianne listened with serious expressions, and when he finished, they were at a loss for words for a moment.

Not only had a Rank A expedition team used such dirty methods to enslave Ninian’s sister, but Bermuda had permitted it without issue. It was shocking in multiple ways.

Frances, who already distrusted the organization due to the death of her father, was especially enraged. “Christopher Conrad! That bastard has crossed the line. He used to run wild because of that unbridled confidence in his skills, and now he’s using his Rank A status as a shield to run scams?! The Alliance should be ashamed of themselves!”

“Do you know about him?” Leonard asked.

“Yes! How could I not?! He recruits the worst crooks in Bermuda and roams around with his gang of scoundrels! And he’s famous for being a subcontractor for the Council and doing their secret dirty work!”

Marianne knew how true Frances’s assessment was, but she was also well aware of his strength. The reality that it seemed impossible to stop Conrad made her face darken.

She said, “He’s a rotten man, but he’s skilled. He’s a magic swordsman in the Tenth Degree External Force Tier and a Class 5 mage. It will be difficult to find anyone who can guarantee victory against him unless they’re a Master.”

“But you brought her here because you have a plan, right? I think you have more to tell us,” Frances said, looking at him pointedly.

Leonard simply responded by telling them the plan to take down Santa Maria. Frances and Marianne, who were already wide-eyed, dropped their jaws. When he was done telling the story, they looked conflicted.

Frances closed her eyes and began to ponder. In contrast, Marianne shouted in disagreement.

“That’s absurd! Is the Aquamarine that expendable to you, Leonard?! How could you suggest that we risk the entire team just to recruit one member?!”

He cut her off. “It’s not just one member.”

“What nonsense are you—”

“We’ll also recruit Ninian’s younger sister, Vivian, once we rescue her from the Santa Maria expedition team. She is a high-rank wind spiritualist, so this is an opportunity to recruit two members who are close to becoming Rank A explorers.”

“Please! You can’t equate the Aquamarine to just two people!”

Just then, Frances raised her hand to interrupt their argument. “Marianne.”

Her bodyguard felt nervous when she saw her interrupt. “My lady! Leonard’s plan is—”

“I heard everything too. So you want to use my ship as bait so that we can pillage that delinquent and his crew?” Frances asked, her voice sounding more somber than usual. This wasn’t a conversation she could have with her usual cheerful mask, so she put it down, revealing her true self. She looked at Leonard with a stony expression. “My role is definitely the most important, right?”

“Yes.”

“So we will be gambling the Aquamarine in exchange for a high-rank spiritualist and a Rank A team’s permit that will allow us to explore the Fifth Sea District.”

The cold hard facts took precedence over her feelings. She had to do a cost-benefit analysis first. If they gambled and won, they would be saving themselves the years of work—no, even more—that it would take for them to restore their Rank A status.

We could expand our power safely, but if we continue to grow stronger, the Council, Pablo, and Bermuda will try to keep us in check. And if we have to face them head-on, it will cost an enormous amount of time and money before we break through.

Leonard’s proposal clearly offered great rewards if they won. A high-rank spiritualist who would be very powerful at sea. An archer who would soon become Rank A. Santa Maria’s Fifth Sea District expedition permit, which was no different from a Rank A status symbol.

The last one is the most important. If we restore our Rank A status with such a method, not even the Council will be able to object. On Bermuda’s end, since Aquamarine and I are still on good terms with many other expedition teams, once we become Rank A, not even Moby Dick will be able to touch us.

The problem was the aftermath.

“Even if we win the gamble and are promoted to a Rank A expedition team, we can still have our status revoked due to the lack of manpower,” she pointed out.

Insufficient manpower was why they’d been demoted to Rank B. There was no guarantee that the same thing wouldn’t happen again.

However, Leonard had already thought everything through. “I believe we will be given a considerably long grace period. That’s the reason I asked Jack Russell to be an official witness.”

“Atlantis’s Magic Tower... indeed, they are essentially the only organization that doesn’t have anything against us. We can’t trust the Council or Bermuda, so they are likely our only option,” Frances said.

She made her decision.

Even with her discerning eye, she hadn’t been able to unveil his secrets, nor did she know his true character. Despite this, she decided to trust him anyway.

“Leonard. In order to carry out your plan, I have to bet the Aquamarine, which is no different than my life. Can you say for sure that we’ll win? Can you say for sure that this is a game that doesn’t depend on luck and is a guaranteed victory?” she asked frankly.

Leonard raised his hand in a smooth, steady movement like flowing water. As he did, he released the power he’d been suppressing and let the energy of his Sixth Degree External Force Tier radiate.

Marianne, who’d been on edge ever since he began to lift his hand, looked astonished. Even Ninian, who’d been aware of the extent of his power, was breathless and took a step back.

Five Elements Sword Qi

Augmented Assimilation

Thousands—no, tens of thousands of threads of light shot out from his sword like spiderwebs and condensed into the shape of a blade.

It was completely different from the one he’d made on Galapagos Island. In less than a second, he created a flawless sword energy, flaring his energy like a fire filling the room.

Marianne was the first to realize its level of refinement and had to sit down.

“A-An Aura Blade?”

The radiant light shone before her eyes, just like the Aura Blade of the Swordmaster from Aquamarine’s golden days.

“I don’t know how powerful Christopher Conrad is, but he will not win against my sword.”

Leonard wasn’t even showing any signs of exertion, and he was calm as he maintained the Aura Blade. Then, he swung the brilliant pillar of destruction.

It had the power to vaporize everything it touched.

Frances, Marianne, and Ninian could only follow the blade with stunned faces. The captain was the first to break from the trance. She flipped on her cheerfulness and burst into laughter.

“Ahahahaha! So you had a plan after all!” Frances laughed.

Who could have imagined that someone in the Sixth Degree External Force Tier could use an Aura Blade with such ease?

So what if Christopher was an outstanding magic swordsman? Not even someone in the Transcendence Tier could imagine such lofty power in a lower Tier.

In the same way that lower Class mages couldn’t block a high-level spell from a Class 7 mage even as a group, augmented sword energy would be like paper in front of an Aura Blade.

“There’s nothing better than gambling when you know you’ll win!” Frances declared, clapping her hands together and grinning.

She was certain that Aquamarine’s biggest stroke of luck was finding Leonard floating in the middle of the sea.

The genius of the Cardenas family. He was a monster. From his martial arts to his plans, there was always something more. He would make a terrifying enemy, but as an ally, no one was more reliable.

Frances spread out a piece of parchment and lifted her quill. “Now then, why don’t we lay our bait?”

It was time to set the trap to catch a con man.