Chapter 1080

1080: Spirit Presence

We dashed out of Rokkars and rushed back to Bulbora as quickly as possible. Satia looked like she wanted to come with us, but she didn’t insist.
She understood that she shouldn’t interfere any further in Kranzel’s internal affairs without permission. Essentially, she was in a hostage-like position. Any suspicious moves might damage the relationship between Kranzel and Phyllius even further.
The guildmaster also asked her to stay.
After all, it’s better to have someone keeping an eye on Derrick. For a guy that important, you can never be too careful. It’s very possible Raydoss will send an assassin to silence him.
『That’s the Raydoss fleet! We made it just in time!』
「Nn!」
We found the Raydoss fleet right off the coast of Bulbora, including a Water Dragon Battleship in their ranks. Though they currently look like tiny dots in the distance, it’ll be less than an hour until they reach Bulbora.
After scouting them out from the air, we saw that there were actually two Water Dragon Battleships next to each other. However, those two were the only ships belonging to Seedran. The remaining vessels seemingly came from Raydoss.
I sensed a powerful layer of mana covering them as we drew closer. The fleet was undoubtedly protected by wards. Perhaps both battleships were even capable of cooperating to deploy an even more powerful ward than a single one.
That said, we’re well aware of the correct method for crushing Water Dragon Battleships.
『First things first, let’s――』
（Master, hold on.）
『What’s wrong?』
（Marle wants to come out.）
『Huh?』
Immediately after Fran told me to pause, a translucent female figure suddenly appeared in front of us. It was Marle in her human form.
『Whoa! I can sense her now too!』
（Really?）
『Yeah! Spirit Perception seems to be working!』
I’ve had the Spirit Perception skill for a while now, but rarely does it actually work. Probably the only other time was when I severed the connection between Weena and Rhyn.
Fran could sense spirits without the skill, while I had trouble even with the skill for doing it.
That’s why everyone says communicating with spirits is about more than just skills, but compatibility. My affinity for spirits must be pretty low, while Fran has a special constitution that makes spirits tend to like her, I guess.
But this time, I was able to sense Marle’s presence slightly, perhaps because she accepted me.
Wow, so this is what spirits are like!
「…!」
Without speaking, Marle waved her hands in an exaggerated gesture. As if she was sending a signal to someone…
I sensed a small movement in mana, though not aggressive. Was Marle doing something?
Fran and I watched over Marle for a little, but something strange happened very quickly. The strong layer of mana covering the area around the Water Dragon Battleship had vanished.
I launched an incredibly weak wind spell as a test, and would you look at that. It hit the hull without any interference.
All the wards had completely disappeared.
『Marle did this?』
「She says we should help her sisters.」
『If Marle has sisters, then they must also be princesses! Are they onboard the Water Dragon Battleship?』
「Nn. Unlike Marle, they only have slave collars.」
The translucent Marle bowed to us before fading away.
『Does Marle know where the princesses are?』
「She says yes.」
『Then let’s rescue them first before we completely crush the fleet.』
「Nn!」
Fran and Urushi descended toward the Water Dragon Battleship while cloaking all signs of their presence.
Only someone specialized in detection or a powerful magic tool would be able to locate Fran in her current state.
Well, I guess the Water Dragon Battleships are top-level instruments of war. Perhaps they actually are equipped with such high performance security.
Fran reached the deck of the Water Dragon Battleship while hiding her figure, presence, and mana with all the skills and magic at her disposal. We infiltrated the ship’s interior, and Fran navigated through the complex interior without showing any signs of hesitation.
『Fran, you know the way?』
（Marle is telling me.）
『I see.』
Fran and Marle must be able to communicate better than I thought. In the end, we arrived at our destination without bumping into anyone.
The number of sailors on board seemed small, probably to cut down the number of crew members as much as possible. There was almost no one patrolling the corridors.
Fran slowly opened the door and slipped through. We found a beautiful woman with silver hair and tanned skin sleeping in the room. No wait. Though she was lying on the bed, she appeared to be conscious.
Fran began speaking to the woman after I blocked out our voices with wind magic.
「Hey.」
「…! Who are you?」
「I’m Fran, an adventurer. Are you Marle’s sister?」
「Marle! Is she safe?! Please tell me she’s safe!」
This woman must be Marle’s sister, making her one of Seedran’s princesses. Her movements had a certain grace behind them, so she certainly appeared princess-like.
「We need to get out of here first. Marle asked me to help you.」
「I see… That’s true. I’m Serimea, Marle’s sister. But I can’t leave the Water Dragon Battleship because of this.」
Serimea touched the collar around her neck and murmured sadly. The slave collar must be restricting her actions.
「Maybe I could leave if I’m unconscious, but then I wouldn’t be able to escape…」
「Then can I just knock you out?」
「…Wouldn’t that mean you’ll have to carry me away?」
「Nn, no problem. Urushi.」
「Woof.」
「Kyah!」
Urushi suddenly appeared from the shadows, causing Serimea to scream. However, this was a scream of delight rather than fear. Urushi had read the mood and appeared in the form of a small puppy.
We allowed Serimea to become accustomed to Urushi’s presence before having him change to a larger size.
「Wow, that’s amazing.」
「Nn. Urushi can grow even bigger. He’ll carry you.」
Yeah, carry you in his mouth, but you don’t need to know that. We can’t have Serimea backing out on us.
「In that case, I’ll put myself in you care.」
「…You trust me?」
「I consider myself a good judge of character, so yes. Besides, I feel like Marle is telling me to trust you.」
「…Is that so?」
「Yes.」
Afterward, we also infiltrated the other battleship and successfully rescued Marle’s other sister, Princess Miriam. It took way longer to get her trust than Princess Serimea’s, though. And she wasn’t very princess-like. If anything, she was more like an adventurer.
Since Urushi already escaped carrying Princess Serimea, Fran had to carry Princess Miriam herself. By the time we retreated into the sky again, the fleet finally realized something was wrong.
They must have attempted to check on the princesses after the wards disappeared. That’s when they finally noticed they were both missing. Way too late though!
「Urushi, stay here and protect them.」
「Woof.」
「Let’s go free the water dragons and crush the fleet.」
『Roger that!』