1056: Seizure

Leaving Urus.h.i.+ in charge of the fleet, Fran and I headed for the port of Bulbora. The damage was pretty immense. The Raydoss fleet must have concentrated artillery fire on the major facilities.

But because of that, many of the ordinary buildings and residences were surprisingly safe.

I saw a large number of people running toward us, probably having noticed the change when the bombardment stopped. At their front was a familiar presence.

Over there.

Yeah. Lets go there too.

A few minutes later, we met up with the group of adventurers.

Fran! Fran, is that you!?

Gamudo.

They were led by Bulboras guildmaster, Gamudo, a former Rank A adventurer. It seems he got through unharmed.

Well, not like getting hit by cannon fire would be enough to kill him.

What the heck happened!? And who are they?

Guys from Raydoss.

What!?

Gamudo and his followers overflowed with killing intent after hearing that the three tied up guys dragged by Fran were from Raydoss. It seems everyone was well aware that Raydoss was behind the fleet sh.e.l.ling them. They were waving their flags in the open, so thats only natural.

Fran explained all the intel she had extracted to Gamudo and entrusted him with their custody.

Can you take them?

Yeah sure, thats fine by me. But what are you doing now, Fran?

Im heading to the orphanage.

Frans biggest worry seemed to be whether or not the orphanage was safe. However, Gamudo smiled and rea.s.sured her.

Oh, theyre perfectly fine. After all, I was just there.

Really?

Yeah. I went to check up on them and everyone was safe. Amanda built a super st.u.r.dy underground bunker. That thing aint budging unless you smack it with a direct hit of the highest level magic.

I see Thats great.

If Gamudo can speak with such confidence, then they really must be safe. Fran exhaled a breath of relief.

There are still some enemy s.h.i.+ps in the harbor.

What!? Is it safe?

Nn. Urus.h.i.+ is watching them. Besides, weve sunk all of Raydosss s.h.i.+ps. All thats left are Seedrans s.h.i.+ps.

Oh, so thats how it is Maybe this will work out?

It seems Raydosss surprise attack annihilated Bulboras navy, killing a large number of sailors. They didnt have enough manpower remaining to capture and seize the enemy s.h.i.+ps.

That said, we cant just leave them floating there. Id love to get my hands on those if possible.

On the other hand, perhaps Seedrans s.h.i.+ps and crew could be incorporated to make up for Bulboras lost forces. Since no one knew Raydosss next move, they should prepare themselves for anything.

What is the new lord doing?

The guys a talented politician, but I cant say the same for the combat side Id appreciate it if he could delegate some authority to me Dunno if thats ever happening though

So not incompetent, but lacking the skills for war. They likely dispatched a more accountant-type guy as the new lord to a.s.sist with the citys reconstruction.

However, Fran could do nothing regarding such matters. We had no choice but to leave everything to Gamudo.

Fran. I know its a pain, but I gotta ask for your help capturing the s.h.i.+ps. Ill make sure you get paid.

Okay.

She still wanted to see the orphanage, but we couldnt leave the port and Urus.h.i.+ behind. This problem needed to be taken care of first. Fran led Gamudo and the others back the way she came.

Really sorry for this. I aint too great when it comes to the sea.

Oh yeah. He is a dwarf after all.

I remember hearing once that the dwarves as a whole were incapable of swimming. It seems Gamudo cant lay a finger on anything coming from the sea. Well, Im sure hes really impressive on land though.

Fran, we need to talk.

Nn?

Gamudo whispered in Frans ear for some reason. Since her ears poked out of her head, Gamudo could whisper without bending down.

The dwarfs distinctive beard seemed to be tickling her a bit.

About your rank.

? Im Rank B.

Well yeah, I know that. I mean about your rank up.

Gamudo pulled Fran a little distance away from the others. I guess this conversation wasnt one that could be overheard by other adventurers.

I hear you did super well in Gordicia. Theres a recommendation for your rank up in the works.

So my rank will go up?

No, it aint that simple. Your case is a tad special.

Fran was simply too young, and she had worked as an adventurer for less than two years. Though she was undoubtedly strong, many claimed that she was given too much special treatment. In particular, essential aspects such as Frans character and apt.i.tudes were not given proper consideration.

Furthermore, it seems many doubted Fran actually performed as well as reported. The events in Gordicia occurred on a battlefield with Rank S adventurers and members of the Seven Sages, some of them without third party witnesses. They found it hard to believe that Fran could truly contribute in such conditions.

Also, Izarios report avoided mentioning my existence, which generated some suspicious blank spots where Fran would normally have s.h.i.+ned.

Someone promoting to Rank A needs visible achievements and approval from multiple countries. To be frank, I think you aint pa.s.sing this time.

I see.

Fran nodded her head in response, and there didnt seem to be much disappointment on her face. Gamudo also noticed this.

What, you aint frustrated? I certainly am. You wouldnt lie to us. Its all true, right?

Nn. But Im not ready for Rank A yet.

Fran

Rank A adventurers are awesome, and I havent caught up to them yet. Its still too early for me.

Fran shook her head at Gamudo. To her, Rank A was something to aspire for. Amanda, Forrund, Hilt Strength was not the only virtue these adventurers held.

Amanda ran several orphanages, rescuing countless children throughout the world. Despite his usual tone, Forrund was capable of negotiating, even with royalty. He also traveled all over the country taking all kinds of requests. Hilt inherited the Dimitris school and was responsible for training many disciples.

Call it contributing to society or what not, but these are the best adventurers with a myriad of abilities, virtues, and experiences other than strength. Only they are allowed to become Rank A.

Rank S is pretty much outside of human limits, so its not something you can just become. In a sense, Rank A was the highest you can go on your own efforts. Maybe thats why it was so special to Fran.

I see. If you say so then. As a former Rank A, I have to say I think youre up for it.

Even so, Im not ready yet.

That so? Well, Ill make sure you get promoted regardless on your next achievement. And when that happens, you better accept it, alright?

Nn.

As we were discussing all of this, we arrived at the port. I could see the faces of the adventurers tensing up as Urus.h.i.+s huge body drew near.

Had Fran not informed them of her servant ahead of time, they might have fled at the sight. Urus.h.i.+ was standing guard in battle mode to ensure no s.h.i.+ps escaped, and his aura was that intimidating.

Gamudo was pretty much the only one unaffected. This man belonged to a team specialized in dragon hunting, so even the current Urus.h.i.+ was not enough to scare him.

Fran, can you tell the s.h.i.+ps to come over this way?

Youre letting them into the harbor?

Yeah. Then well hop on board and overpower the sailors.

Okay.

However, the port of Bulbora and surrounding area was currently in no condition for sailing due to the wreckage of the sunken battles.h.i.+ps.

So we decided to start by cleaning up all the wreckage. Just broke it all down and shoved it into storage.

After the sea was mostly clean again, we boarded the surviving vessels directly and told them to enter the harbor one after another.

I thought there might be some trouble, but the Seedran sailors ended up being very obedient. Come to think of it, they had seen Fran and Urus.h.i.+s power up close. That must have erased any desire to resist.

The fleet should still have a good number of combat-ready soldiers for their planned landing, but none of them dared to disobey us. Though it took a while, we succeeded in seizing 11 s.h.i.+ps.

The best s.h.i.+ps were slightly damaged, while the worst s.h.i.+ps were completely incapable of movement, so Fran and Urus.h.i.+ had to literally pull them into the harbor via brute force.

Well, they should work after getting fixed up. s.h.i.+pwrights capable of using Repair on boats exist after all.

So tired.

Arf.

I guess this is the end of our business at the port. Might as well eat some food before we head to the orphanage.

Nn! Curry!

Woof woof!

F-Fran? Whats this all of a sudden?

Woops, looks like we surprised Gamudo. You can have some curry as an apology. Straight from the Curry Master!