The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 254 Crossing the Island
Encountering a storm on land feels completely different from encountering a storm at sea. The latter is more dangerous, but the former is more nerve-wracking because there is nowhere to escape on a ship, while on land, you always feel there is a safer place to go.

With these worries in mind, Natalia tossed and turned in her room, listening to the constant rattling of the windows and the occasional thud of something hitting them. Various noises poured into the room from all directions, and the sounds next door seemed particularly intense.

When she woke up the next day, she couldn't remember when she had fallen asleep the night before, and everything outside the window had returned to calm.

Natalia got up and opened the window, only to find many things blown in from who-knows-where on the ground: broken planks, branches, and even sea fish and starfish. Meanwhile, fish-men and humans were going about their business as usual, seemingly already used to the aftermath of the storm.

"..."

She also saw Eric and Kasha.

The two squatted by the roadside, in front of them was a wriggling octopus.

"He's in Wosha."

"Can it even get into such hard ground?"

"There's nothing we can do if we can't get in. We can't climb any further. Look at this slime... who knows where it came from? It's probably almost dried out."

Kasha grabbed the octopus, which had failed to reach it.

Eric stood up as well, "Wait a minute..."

Then he saw Natalia looking at them from the window upstairs.

Good morning, Your Highness. Did you sleep well last night?

"fine……"

Natalia looked at them. "What are you doing?"

Eric glanced at the octopus in Kasha's hand.

"... Beachcombing?"

Suddenly, Kasha transformed into an owl, caught the octopus falling from her hand in its beak, and flew towards the harbor.

Eric knew she still wanted to be saved, so he ignored her, washed his hands, and went upstairs.

“Last night, I don’t know how many fish or other things hit the window. Several times I thought the window was going to be smashed or blown out, but after a whole night, it was still perfectly fine,” Natalia said.

“The doors and windows here have all been specially reinforced,” Eric smiled. “If we had to replace the windows every time a storm passed, would the hotel even be able to stay in business?”

"That's right."

Natalia nodded and casually asked, "How was Your Highness's last night?"

"……fine."

Eric paused for a moment before answering, “The wind is stronger than I expected. I’m just as worried about the windows as Your Highness. I even wondered where I would sleep if the windows were blown out in the middle of the night.”

Natalia glanced at him, then looked towards the harbor, but the owl disappeared from sight after it flew away.

"If the storms are really frequent, then our plan to recruit murloc mercenaries here will be affected to some extent."

Eric nodded. “We need to establish a stable outpost first and place some reliable people there. This way, we will have a solid foundation for recruiting fishmen and for further communication and exchanges with the archipelago nation.”

Natalia responded, then sighed, "But we don't know anyone here, so we can only rely on Danvers' power for now."

"There's no way around it; sometimes dependence is necessary."

The two stood by the window for a while, and then Kasha flew back.

"Did you throw that octopus back into the sea?" Eric asked.

She nodded.

"Alive?"

She smiled. "It's alive."

"Okay, we can order a grilled octopus at the tavern at noon to commemorate it."

The three stayed on the island for three days, eating more than a dozen octopuses. The merchant Marco finally finished dealing with the goods he had brought and began running errands for them with satisfaction.

On the fifth day, Eric received news that they could go and meet the leader of the pirate gang that controlled the island.

"Which leader? Trollope?"

Marco was taken aback. "So Her Highness knows him."

He was surprised that Eric knew about the pirate leader named Trollope, while Eric was surprised that his connections allowed him to directly reach the top leader of this pirate group that occupied the main island. The wait of the past few days had indeed been worthwhile.

"I've heard of him."

Trolop, in Eric's previous life when he entered the timeline of "Thorns of the Souls", was already in a semi-incorporated state, and was considered one of Governor Danvers's men. Therefore, players could easily go to the island and then help this group of pirates to clean up other pirate forces at sea and promote more cooperation.

“We can go see him now,” Marco said to him and Natalia. “He’s been away from the island these past few days; he just got back this morning.”

Eric didn't know if he was trying to make amends for what happened a few days ago, but he couldn't care less. "Looks like we've come at the right time. Where is he now?"

“On the ship south of the main island.” Seeing Eric and Natalia’s surprised expressions, he quickly explained, “Pirates don’t feel safe on land, so their base is their ship’s port.”

Natalia didn't say anything, but Eric seemed to realize something. "Have there been other pirates threatening the safety of the main island recently?"

Marco glanced at him and quickly nodded. "Your Highness is right. There's an island called Evil Island to the southwest of the main island. Recently, a group of pirates occupied it and have been expanding their power. They've even boasted that they'll take over the main island. Trollope is having a lot of headaches because of those pirates. I heard he even..."

"—Are you planning to cooperate with Westwind City in Goddess Bay to eliminate the other pirates?"

"..."

Marco looked on in astonishment. "Your Highness is actually quite knowledgeable about the affairs of the Archipelago? Then why did you come to me?"

Eric laughed. "It's just a speculation based on the information you provided. Everything has its patterns, especially since they're just a gang of robbers. Is their choice so hard to understand?"

Marco looked on with admiration. "As expected of Her Highness the Saintess."

Natalia glanced at Eric, who raised an eyebrow.

Marco continued, "In short, Trollope and his men are currently living on the ship. We need to cross the main island to find him in the bay on the other side. I have prepared the horses. Which prince will come with me?"

The main island is long and narrow from east to west, but much narrower from north to south, especially in the middle. It takes about one or two hours to cross from one end to the other on horseback.

“Why can’t we go together?” Natalia asked.

“Because there are only two horses, Your Highness,” Marco replied. “Horses are hard to come by on the island; I had to pull some strings to borrow these.”

The two exchanged a glance, and Eric said, "Then I will ride the same horse as Your Highness."

Marco paused for a moment, looked at Natalia, and then nodded. "That works too."

Arriving at the foot of the inn, Eric saw the two skinny horses tied up to the side and truly understood Marco's words about how difficult it was to get horses on the island.

"Horses are hard to come by on this island, but there must be plenty of wild grass. Look how thin these horses are."

"Your Highness, it's no use telling me this; you have to tell them to their owners."

Eric mounted the horse, rode it a few steps, and roughly estimated the horse's carrying capacity; it should be able to carry him and Natalia.

In front of outsiders, Eric showed Natalia considerable respect, always speaking formally, "Your Highness will have to make do with this."

Natalia took his outstretched hand, mounted her horse, sat behind him, and naturally put her arm around his waist.

Kasha naturally wanted to travel with them, and she chose to transform into an owl and follow them in mid-air.

"You lead the way."

“Yes, Your Highness.” Marco looked up at the owl in the sky again, then rode ahead on his horse.

Eric quickly caught up, keeping a little distance from him.

Natalia suddenly thought of something and leaned forward. "Your Highness can ride Miss Kasha's reindeer to get there, right?"

“If it were only a short distance, it would be fine…” Eric tilted his head slightly, “It’s too far, she can’t run.”

Natalia didn't say much, looked up at the owl in the sky, and then looked ahead.

The two horses galloped one after the other. They were skinny horses, carrying two people. Marco, who was running in front, was quite considerate of the feelings of the horse behind him—if the horse fell over, he would be the one to give way—and the speed was neither slow nor fast.

As they traveled along the island's roads, which were sometimes clear and sometimes narrow, the terrain was often undulating, causing the horses to bounce. To prevent being thrown off, Natalia had already wrapped her arms around Eric's waist.

Through his robes, she felt a slight discomfort at his waist; she knew it was from the light armor he wore underneath. Her gaze moved from his neck to his profile, lingering for a moment before turning to another bay in the distance, seemingly approaching but always remaining in the distance.

"Is the bay on the other side of the main island dangerous? Why do ships coming from the mainland all stop in the northern bay?"

“Probably.” Eric tilted his head. “Even if the pirates say this place is safe and they haven’t attacked any ships docked at the main island in recent years, it’s still too challenging for captains to dock their ships directly in the pirates’ lair.”

“Stability is the foundation of prosperity.” Natalia gazed at the southern bay. “If that pirate captain really intends to cooperate with Westwind City and actually does so, then future ships might not hesitate to dock there.”

Eric smiled, his hands still gripping the reins tightly. "Perhaps our current step can push this possibility forward."

Natalia turned her gaze to his face. "I've always felt that Your Highness has an inexplicable sense of trust in the pirates on this island, especially their leader. Is it because Your Highness has been paying attention to this area for some time now?"

“If I said that Yera told me this as well, would Your Highness believe me?” Eric countered.

Natalia paused for a moment, then muttered, "That Yera is focusing on a rather remote area..."

"What did His Highness say?" Eric didn't hear clearly.

“It’s nothing.” Natalia took a breath. “I just wanted to ask how much longer this mountain road is. If it keeps going like this, I might get horse sickness.”

"Don't vomit on me."

"..."

Natalia instinctively pinched his waist, only managing to pinch a layer of smooth fabric—under which lay a layer of light armor.

Eric glanced down, smiled, and then said, "I'll try to be as steady as possible."

Natalia didn't say anything.

Two skinny horses rode up and down the mountain for half a day, finally arriving at the other side of the island.

Looking at the map, the main island of the archipelago nation resembles an inverted U-shaped letter, and the bay in front of us is right in the middle of this inverted U, sheltered from the wind and waves, making it an excellent natural harbor. At this moment, however, only some dilapidated pirate ships are moored in this harbor.

Before the horses even entered the bay, they were stopped by several pirates on the outskirts.

Marco explained his purpose, and the pirates told him to tie his horse outside. He turned around to persuade the two princes, only to find that they had already dismounted.

“Perfect.” Eric glanced at the hillside behind them. “The horses can stay here and graze on their own. Otherwise, I don’t know how long they would last on the way back.”

"That's what His Highness said."

Marco took out a few silver coins from his pocket and asked the pirates patrolling the perimeter to keep an eye on the horses so they wouldn't run away.

Led by another pirate, the three walked toward one of the large ships moored by the sea.

Kasha fell from mid-air and landed on Eric's shoulder.

"Don't revert to human form," Eric whispered. "Just stay here."

Eric didn't know how the pirates would react to a bird suddenly turning into a human, but he wanted to avoid trouble if possible.

Kasha gave him a light peck on the shoulder as a sign of agreement.

Following the pirates, the three men and one bird arrived at the beach, boarded a small boat, rowed to the bottom of the large ship, and then climbed up using a rope net.

Once aboard the ship, Eric saw a group of pirates gambling on the deck. He immediately recognized the man in the middle as Trollope, the leader of the pirates.

"Marco!"

Trollope shouted at the merchant, "My men got diarrhea after drinking that case of wine you sent last time, and you still dare to board my ship!"

"Captain, you're joking. That's five gold coins a case of fine wine. I wouldn't even drink it myself."

The two looked at each other and laughed.

Marco and Trollope seemed quite familiar with each other, and Eric was wondering when the two had developed such a close friendship when the pirate captain's gaze fell on them.

"This girl and this boy, who's just as pretty as her, are these the gifts you gave me this time, Marco?"

Marco paused, a look of surprise and confusion flashing across his face, before quickly asking, "Captain, who are they...?"

"No need to say more!" Trollope interrupted him. "First mate, strip them naked and throw them into the sea to wash them."

"Yes, Captain!"

Another pirate responded, and several pirates stood up together and surrounded Eric and Natalia.

Is this a show of force...?

Eric didn't move an inch, looking at the pirate leader, "Don't waste your time, Trollope. We're here to help you make money and solve your problems along the way."

Trollope seemed not to hear, his head bowed as he counted the remaining copper and silver coins from the gambling game on the table.

The pirates surrounded him, and Eric sighed, drew his sword, and swiftly pierced the ear of the pirate who seemed to be the first mate.

"what!"

The first mate covered his ears and screamed in pain. The other pirates looked at each other and then turned to look at Trollope.

“Marco,” Eric spoke again, “didn’t you tell him who we are?”

“I’ve already mentioned it!” Marco looked at Trolop. “Captain, they are the Imperial Princess and the Church’s saintess I was talking about!”

Trolop looked utterly astonished. "The Saintess is a man!"

Marco started explaining in his own language, while Eric wiped the blood off his sword, exchanged a glance with Natalia, and whispered, "It's alright... These pirates are a bit too much, they had to pull this stunt."

The surrounding pirates retreated, and Natalia released his arm.

"It's a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding!" Marco returned to their side. "It's all a misunderstanding, Your Highnesses!"

Eric stared at him for a moment, and Marco's gaze shifted slightly. He quickly turned to the pirate captain, "Captain, this is the Holy Maiden of the Church of Yela, Princess Eric. And this is the Grand Princess of the Empire, Princess Natalia."

Trolop strode over. "I'm sorry, it's all Marco's fault for not explaining things clearly beforehand. There was a misunderstanding, Your Highnesses."

“I know it was a misunderstanding,” Eric smiled. “So I just pierced your first mate’s ear.”

Trollope turned to look at the first mate, who was covering his ear with a bloody hand, and waved his hand, telling him to take care of his wound himself.

"Ahem, Your Highness is quite skilled..."

Trollope dismissed his men and gestured for the two to sit down where they had just been gambling. "I heard from Marco that you plan to recruit merfolk to fight on land."

“That’s right,” Natalia said, “but the main island is under Captain Trolop’s control, so we should at least greet the captain first. If it’s convenient, we can cooperate in the future.”

"How do we cooperate?" Trollope asked.

“We will set up a recruitment point here, and then ship the soldiers to the mainland. The recruitment point and the transport ships will need Captain Trolop’s men to maintain security. In return, we will pay you gold coins or the supplies you need.”

Eric looked at him. "Besides, I have a good relationship with Governor Danvers of Cuth. I can ask him to provide the funds and manpower to help you deal with the other pirates who have been causing trouble lately."

Trollope was silent for a moment, his gaze shifting back and forth between the two men, and he even glanced at the owl on Eric's shoulder.

"I can consider it... but I'd like to know, who's really in charge here?"

Eric smiled. "Of course, it's Her Highness Natalia's decision. I'm just her bodyguard, secretary, and groom here."

Trolop laughed, "And a lover in bed?"

Seeing the two expressionless faces, his laughter quickly stopped, and he looked slightly embarrassed.

"Ahem... That's pretty serious, huh. So..." Trolop scratched his stubble-covered chin, "You guys said you'd give me money, how exactly?"

Natalia said coldly, "For every hundred merman mercenaries you recruit who come ashore, we'll give you one gold coin, or corresponding supplies."

“One hundred soldiers for only one gold coin, isn’t that a bit too little?” Trollope said quickly.

"If the captain feels it's not enough, we can talk..."

Eric pointed behind him without turning his head, "Could you ask those people hiding in the cabin to put their weapons away first?"

"Haha, don't mind me, safety first! Who knows if Marco took money from someone else to frame me?"

Trollope laughed at the two of them and then roared.

"Get the hell out of here, don't hide them anymore!"

(End of this chapter)