Saiyan stowaways on the Ark

"Can you not take it so seriously? Anyway, the mission to take down the Terrorfish is over. We can leave the official negotiations to the instructor. It's rare for us to get together, so why not take a stroll around the area?"

Goredia directly rejected Specter's suggestion: "Anyway, I'll inform Instructor Tomat first, and then go to the Fool's to check the situation. Although there's no need to rush back to Agor, it's important to confirm the Fool's situation. Ulpian, what do you think?"

Ulbian said, "No objection, but as I said before, I don't really recommend you go back to Agor, at least not now."

“Don’t worry, we’re just going to check the details… Searching for the Fool wasn’t part of the original plan.” Gladys made a promise that reassured Ulpian, then said to Specter, “That guy’s still alive, right? We need her to take us to the Fool. It seems she’s the only one who knows the Fool’s exact location.”

The "that guy" that Grétia was referring to was Amaya, and Ulpian originally wanted to use Amaya to confirm the location of the Fool. If things had gone smoothly, he might have already arrived.

But now there's not much difference; with a few more colleagues, the journey to the Fool should be much safer.

After a short preparation, the deep-sea hunters arrived at the port. Although they were immediately blocked by the court's garrison, Tomat and the others noticed the commotion and the judge stepped forward to find out what was going on.

"nailed it?"

"Yes, we've confirmed that no one escaped."

Upon hearing the report, Thomas nodded, while Elena, standing beside him, said with an incredulous expression:

"...So, in the few minutes it took us to reach the beach, you deep-sea hunters quietly suppressed a riot of terror fish caused by the deep-sea church?"

"Yes, the bodies are all in the square. Send some people to burn them."

Specter said casually, and judging from her expression, she seemed quite pleased with Enelly's overreaction.

“Impossible, we didn’t detect any fighting at all!” Elena continued to press.

"The only noises were the screams of the terror fish and the panicked cries of people, while you were all stationed on the crashing shore, staring intently at the tide. How could you possibly have noticed the battle that lasted less than a few minutes?" Ghost Shark said sarcastically, looking at the courthouse stationed on the shore.

"It seems you really controlled your power; you didn't cause too much of a commotion."

Thomas was also pleased with the hunters' swift action, believing they had indeed fulfilled their requirements.

“Of course!” Ghost Shark echoed smugly.

But Skadi honestly revealed the truth: "Actually, it's just because these dinosaurs are too weak and have no desire to actively attack."

After hearing Skadi's explanation, Tomat immediately looked at Specter, who had already turned her face away, sighed speechlessly, and continued:

"Rounding it up, I guess you've finished. Now I'm going to check out the Terrorfish's Nest. What about you guys?"

“The nest?” Goredia hesitated for a moment before stating their planned itinerary, “We’re going to the Fool.”

Upon hearing the mention of the Fool's Ship, all three judges paused, already wary of the hunters. Saint Carmen, leading the group, immediately pressed Greta for answers:

"How do you know about the Fool's Ship? What are you going to do there? That's an Iberian ship."

"Iberian?" Upon hearing Carmen's words, Goredia was taken aback at first, then gave a cold, sarcastic laugh. "You mean that 'little toy made using imitation Agorian technology'?"

“Agor, watch your words when you negotiate.”

Dario immediately responded in an uncompromising tone after Gladys spoke.

"Stop making a fuss here." After Tomat glanced at the group, the tense atmosphere immediately subsided. He then pointed to the fog-shrouded sea and said, "Judging from the aura, the nest is in that direction, not too far, about fifty kilometers away."

“That direction…? Wait, isn’t that the location of the Eye of Iberia?” Carmen and Dario stopped their impending argument and looked in the direction Tomat was pointing.

They knew that location all too well.

The Grand Inquisitors, tasked with lighting the last eye of Iberia, have ventured there time and again, but each mission has ended in failure. The reason is simple: the place is infested with an astonishing number of Terrorfish, making even landing an impossible task, let alone lighting the lighthouse.

“Amaya was supposed to tell me the exact location of the Fool as agreed, but now she's almost been tortured into a cripple by you. So, to find the Fool, we'll have to rely on the lighthouse, or you'll have to conduct a thorough search of the ocean teeming with terror fish…”

Ulbian said, implying that both Tomat and his group heading to the lair and the deep-sea hunters boarding the Fool's, they needed to make a trip to the Eye of Iberia beforehand.

[Event] Fool's Tale: Chapter Twenty-Four - Unity Without Harmony

Despite the existence of the Terrorfish making the sea an extremely dangerous place, the Iberians did not give up their exploration and control of the ocean. Although there was little need to go to sea, the Inquisition generally equipped each unit with sufficiently sturdy ships for maritime exploration. And now, the Inquisition's armed ships anchored in Granfalo are being requisitioned by Carmen and a group of Grand Inquisitors.

Some soldiers requested to accompany her, but Carmen refused their requests.

A small group of people will suffice for this voyage.

As the ship's horn sounded, the soldiers who were ordered to guard the coastline began to murmur amongst themselves. If a figure like the Grand Inquisitor was confident enough to venture into the lion's den alone without any soldiers, it would be understandable. But why was he acting with those guys who were clearly Agorians?

But this was not something they could interfere with. The soldiers could only watch the ships sail away and silently pray that the terrible bloodshed and sacrifice of the past would never happen again.

The last time a ship sailed out of here was more than a decade ago.

Her purpose was also to land at the Eye of Iberia, but only a small boat and a seriously wounded judge returned. She brought a photograph to prove that the Eye of Iberia did exist before she died in agony.

Many engineers, courtroom personnel, and even judges perished on this mission, so people knew how dangerous it was.

The judges were nervous, while Thomas and the others appeared calm and composed.

However, besides them, there were two other figures on the ship who theoretically shouldn't have been there.

—One is Amaya, who is bound hand and foot and dangling from the mast.

—One of them was Jodi, the young man from Agor who had spoken with Mayor Thiago in the square earlier.

The former was brought about by Specter's decision.

The latter was at Ulpian's insistence that he accompany him.

Specter felt that Amaya still had some information to reveal, and if necessary, he could easily take her out, so he planned to take her with him on the way to the Fool.

As for Jodi, Ulpian said he was a descendant of the engineer Agor who repaired the Eye of Iberia, and also knew how to maintain the lighthouse. Bringing him along would be of great help in restarting the Eye of Iberia.

Ulpian did not force Jody to board the ship; rather, Jody himself intended to go along.

After talking with the mayor, he learned about his parents' background and understood that they had sacrificed themselves for Iberia.

Having just witnessed the riot that plunged the entire town into chaos, he now wanted to do something within his power to prevent the situation from getting worse.

He also happened to encounter Ulbian, who had come to him—Carmen chose to turn a blind eye and let the young Agor board the ship.

"Let me make this clear first, I only planned to go check out the old lair because there weren't many trolls to eat near the coast. I'll help you take down that nest that we haven't been able to conquer for a long time. It's just something I'll do on the side. You don't necessarily have to come along. As for the trolls, I can handle them myself."

"Tomat said to Carmen beside him."

“Mr. Tomat is joking. It’s not that we don’t trust you, but this is an Iberian affair. We can’t just sit on the shore and wait for you to return. Even if it’s just to avenge our comrades who fell in the Eye of Iberia, we have to go with you.”

Carmen adjusted her hat, which had been blown askew by the sea breeze, her tone devoid of any hesitation or falsehood.

It's fine if we prioritize honor and purity and must expel those monsters.

Whether they prioritized emotion and impulse to slaughter those terrifying fish, the judges felt that they had to go, both morally and in terms of duty.

More importantly, Tomat's presence did give them more confidence and assurance, instead of worrying too much before taking action, as they had before.

On her first voyage, Elena leaned on the railing, her expression serious yet revealing a hint of curiosity.

Grand Inquisitor Dario patted her on the shoulder, causing her to turn around in surprise, stand up straight, and ask:

"Teacher, is there anything I can help you with?"

"...No, I just wanted to give you a few words of advice about what's going to happen next."

Dario's expression was very serious.

"The battle that follows will be far more brutal than you can imagine. It is not comparable to the attacks of the scattered terror fish you usually see. This is a den of demons that even the Grand Inquisitor could not escape unscathed."

"So you need to learn to prioritize your own safety in this battle, instead of thinking about cooperating with me or others. Your primary concern is to avoid dying, understand?"

Elena replied in surprise, "Yes, yes, teacher, I understand, but..."

As she spoke, she looked at the hunters nearby.

“I know what you’re trying to say. Those hunters are very strong. Even the weakest one among them, the one carrying the anchor, is no weaker than me, let alone Tomat himself. And they’re traveling with us.”

Meanwhile, Ulbian, who was far away from them, standing at the stern gazing at the sea, twitched his ears slightly and his expression turned quite grim.

"Does it seem ridiculous of me to say something like this?"

Elena immediately shook her head in denial, saying, "No, teacher, I wouldn't think that!"

Seeing Eleanor's somewhat flustered expression, Dario continued, "The great power belongs to them, and it is true that they can easily do what we cannot. But remember, their power does not belong to us. This time, we must also participate in the battle, and we cannot rely on them to protect us at all times—use your own power to do what you can, and that is enough."

Elena straightened her chest: "Teacher, please rest assured, I will live up to my name as a judge, and I will live up to the sword and the lamp. Even if the difference in strength is great, I will let them see the courage and strength of an Iberian."

Before Dario could comment on her statement, Specter interrupted their conversation, staring intently at Elene with an expression as if she were examining a cute little animal, and then said:

"That's quite courageous! Keep it up, little bird! But if you shout for help loudly enough, I'll be right there to help you!"

"You...you shouldn't look down on me! Agor!"

Such a mocking tone naturally enraged Elena. After all, the Agorians usually treated her with respect and distance, and this was the first time she had encountered someone like Ghost Shark.

However, Specter Shark ignored the other party's strong reaction and calmly said:

"That's true, though. The instructors are here for meals, you're here for responsibility and duty, and we're here to find the Fool. Everyone has different goals, and while everyone's doing their own thing, you can't expect anyone to drop what they're doing to help you."

Even among peers, the strong seem unwilling to become the ones who are relied upon—while the "weak" with enough self-respect are equally prepared not to expect others to lend a helping hand.

[Event] The Fool's Tale: Chapter Twenty-Five - Immeasurable Merit

The ships used by the court were usually specially reinforced at the bottom and equipped with a ring of lighting around the outside, similar to the lanterns carried by the judges.

In theory, they could be just as effective as the mental health facilities found throughout the coastal cities of Iberia in repelling the infestation of the dinosaurs.

Even so, in the past few voyages, the ships have still been fiercely attacked by the tarantulas.

Perhaps the sea monsters are more powerful than those on land, or perhaps they have begun to adapt to the light.

So, not long after setting sail, the judges prepared to repel the terror fish that tried to board the ship as a warm-up before landing.

—But now, almost an hour after setting sail, there is still no sign of the tarantula.

To be precise, they all saw the dinosaurs, but the dinosaurs fled on their own, or rather, they even dispersed their groups to make way for the passing ships.

Like an icebreaker crashing into an ice floe, or a carnivorous fish rushing into a school of sardines, the shadow cast by the dinosaur beneath the surface of the sea was clearly divided into two before the ship rammed its horn.

This was a scenario the judges had never encountered or even imagined.

"They...are they running away?"

Elena stood at the bow of the ship, her hands gripping the railing tightly, taking in everything before her eyes, while the lamps at her waist flickered continuously.

“It’s because they’ve concluded that ‘anyone who approaches this place without permission will bring annihilation to the entire race,’” said High Inquisitor Dario, who was also present, looking at this incredible sight. “Just like when we discussed ‘solutions’ before, these guys who only fight ‘battles they can’t lose’ don’t feel any chance of winning right now.”

Needless to say, both of them knew who was responsible for this incident.

The culprit at that moment was sitting on the edge of the boat, holding a fishing rod, casting his line into the open ocean while the boat continued to sail.