Rise of the Fallen Kingdom’s Third Prince

The three ships that departed from Orphen headed toward the waters where fishermen’s sightings had been concentrated.

Aboard, Buscolum spread out the nautical chart and explained the approximate route.

“They usually appear here, here, and here. In these three places. And if you connect them in a straight line, they form a maritime triangle. The residents of Orphen call this area the Cursed Triangle.”

“Really?”

Yuri had no intention of sailing straight to the New Continent.

First, he wanted to find the mysterious ship that appeared nearby, figure out who the enemy was, and then reach the New Continent as part of the countermeasure.

“Buscolum.”

“Yes.”

“Have you ever fought at sea?”

“Of course.”

He puffed out his chest.

“I can’t even count the number of times I’ve fought pirate ships. For a man of the sea, fighting is inevitable. On the high seas, no one protects me. If I don’t defend myself, I’ll just end up fish food.”

“A true man.”

“And Your Highness?”

“Never.”

“Excuse me?”

“Never.”

Yuri puffed out his chest even more.

“I mean, I’ve never fought at sea.”

“Uh…”

Buscolum’s face stiffened slightly.

No matter how much Yuri possessed overwhelming strength and had commanded unprecedented armies like the Anti-Imperial Coalition and the Murim Alliance, a land battle was very different from a naval one.

Even a genius of war on land was just a novice sailor at sea.

“Your face just withered instantly, Buscolum.”

“Ah, n-no, it’s nothing.”

“Don’t worry. I am Yuri Briol. That fact doesn’t change.”

“Yes, Your Highness…”

“You know, feeling the sea breeze gives me the impression that my true calling might have been as a sailor. I feel right at home. I think I can accomplish anything.”

“Yes…”

Luckily, none of those on board suffered from seasickness.

Naturally so — those aboard were knights of the Order of Vengeance, holy soldiers from the temple, or sailors sent from Brusen.

The knights and soldiers could protect their bodies with mana, and the sailors had been used to the sea all their lives.

Yuri crossed the deck and sat atop the ram figurehead that adorned the prow.

“Let’s go!”

“Your Highness!”

“Yes?”

“You can’t do that!”

“Why?”

“We sailors believe that the spirit of the ship resides in the figurehead. If you sit there carelessly, the Mary-Mary might get offended.”

“Mary-Mary?”

As Buscolum explained, the ship with the ram figurehead was called Mary-Mary. The one with the lion’s head was Sunny-Sunny, and the one with the dragon’s head was Turtle-Turtle.

“Okay, but… why is it called Turtle-Turtle if it has a dragon figurehead and not a turtle?”

“It was originally going to have a turtle figurehead…”

“And why did they change it to a dragon?”

“In the East there’s a legend that when a turtle cultivates the dao, it becomes a dragon and ascends to the heavens. The sculptor was an Easterner. He said a turtle looked too weak and, on his own, changed it to a dragon.”

“In that case, nothing to be done.”

He liked the idea that a turtle could transform into a dragon.

“A romantic legend.”

“Y-you think so?”

“Don’t you agree, Mary-Mary?”

Yuri slapped the ram’s head with both hands as if playing a drum, making Buscolum pale.

There were many superstitions aboard ships, and among them, touching the figurehead was one of the most avoided by sailors.

“Your Highness, if you touch the figurehead like that…”

“Don’t underestimate Mary-Mary. She’s not that sensitive.”

Yuri patted it again.

“She’s a pretty cool type. The one who seems more touchy is Sunny-Sunny. That ship needs careful pampering.”

Yuri said, glancing at the ship following behind.

Buscolum thought it was a joke and just smiled nervously.

“Yes…”

“You don’t believe me, do you?”

“I do.”

“You don’t believe me.”

Yuri frowned and unsheathed his sword.

Buscolum got startled. He never would have imagined Yuri Briol would brandish a weapon just because someone didn’t go along with one of his jokes.

But then—

[Finally, I can talk!]

Suddenly, a strange voice rang out. It wasn’t human, but it was unmistakably someone speaking.

[Hey, you! What are you staring at? If you’ve seen the great Mamago, you should greet me!]

“Looks like he still hasn’t finished his socialization training…”

[Hehe, that’s not true. I was just joking. Nice to meet you.]

It was Mamago, the sword Yuri now kept docilely in its sheath.

Since Mamago used to chatter endlessly, Yuri had a special scabbard made. That way, while sheathed, even if he absorbed Yuri’s mana, he couldn’t speak. Only with Yuri’s permission could he communicate mentally with his owner.

In that way, Yuri was hearing his voice in his mind.

As if there were some kind of affinity between objects, Mamago explained that each of the three ships had its own personality.

They didn’t have consciousness like him, but artifacts of that level harbored a certain essence.

“According to him, Mary-Mary is very cool. Turtle-Turtle is calm, and Sunny-Sunny is quite resentful.”

[That’s right. Mary-Mary doesn’t hold grudges. I like her.]

“I see…”

Buscolum just nodded.

Carrying around a talking sword — Yuri Briol was certainly no ordinary man.

At that moment, the sailors’ cry was heard.

“We’re entering!”

They had already arrived at the Cursed Triangle.

Buscolum tensed up.

Perhaps it was his imagination, but the air around them felt different.

The fresh breeze from Orphen now seemed sticky.

Breathing became difficult, the sound of the waves felt damp and heavy, and the cries of the gulls above sounded ominous.

Something strange was happening.

His instincts screamed at him that it was a warning sign.

Suddenly, Yuri, who was balancing on the ram figurehead, swung his sword.

“Haah!”

And something changed again.

“Huh?”

Buscolum’s eyes widened.

The ominous pressure on his chest vanished, and that suffocating feeling eased as well.

Something had definitely happened.

“Your Highness…”

“They were playing a trick on us.”

“Excuse me?”

“Black magic.”

Yuri looked back, and Buscolum also turned his body. The holy soldiers had already come up on deck to keep watch on the surroundings.

“Just as I suspected. They’re the type who investigate black magic. Look how quickly they react when it appears.”

“Then that ominous feeling from a moment ago was also because of black magic?”

“That’s right.”

Yuri turned his gaze toward the far horizon again.

“They’ve spread a black magic barrier in this area. We can’t just let those guys be.”

He gripped the ram horns on the prow.

“They’re the ones disturbing the order of the sea. Mary-Mary, are you angry too?”

At his words, the hull suddenly tilted and shook slightly. Maybe it was coincidence, but Buscolum felt as if the ship had actually responded.

Buscolum stared, stunned, at Yuri Briol’s smiling profile.

Even though he had barely met him, it was more than clear he wasn’t an ordinary man.

“As expected, Your Highness is incredible…”

“This is no time to admire me.”

“Huh?”

“It looks like there will be a battle soon.”

At that, Buscolum glanced around and then looked up toward the lookout post on the mast.

The soldier with the spyglass was constantly scanning the surroundings but said nothing.

“If you don’t want to get hurt, head below.”

“I… I’m the captain. Whatever happens, I must take responsibility for this ship.”

“Well, not bad.”

Up to that point, Buscolum still didn’t understand what was going on.

Then, belatedly, the lookout at the top of the mast shouted.

“Ship sighted! Unknown ship ahead! The enemy has appeared!”

***

Yuri, one foot braced on the ram statue of the prow, watched the ship approaching head-on.

It wasn’t very big.

According to the fishermen’s testimonies, there wasn’t just one type of enemy vessel. Some spoke of huge ships, but others swore they had seen smaller ones.

“It’s moving with black magic.”

To Yuri’s eyes, the flow of energy propelling the ship was clearly visible.

The dark smoke drifting around it was residue from black magic.

“Jared.”

“Don’t you think that ship looks strange?”

“Yes.”

The vessel had no sails or oars to serve as a source of propulsion. Yet it glided across the sea as if it were a living being.

“That ship has no energy source. And it still moves? What does that mean?”

Jared narrowed his eyes.

The three ships under Yuri’s command were moving quickly thanks to exorcist soldiers generating wind with magic.

But that ship didn’t even have sails.

Moving like that should consume even more energy.

The fact that they insisted on doing so could only mean one thing.

“They have power to spare.”

“Exactly.”

Yuri didn’t elaborate on what that phrase implied.

Having power to spare meant, in other words, they had enough fuel.

And everyone knew what the fuel for black magic was.

Jared cursed under his breath.

“Damn bastards…”

It seemed the enemies had also noticed this vessel wasn’t just a fishing boat, as they were approaching slowly without attacking.

Soon after, from the darkness surrounding the enemy ship, an obsidian arrow cut through the air.

Yuri swung Mamago and deflected it.

“Your Highness!”

“I’m fine. Everyone hold position. Until I give the order, no one moves.”

“Understood!”

Yuri rested the sword on his shoulder and shouted.

“Hey! Let someone from your side come out!”

His voice, charged with mana, boomed powerfully. Fish beneath the surface fled in panic.

“If you don’t want to die!”

As he kept calling out, someone finally showed themselves.

It was a man with a staff.

His appearance was strange—he wore something like a wooden shell covering his body, decorated here and there with feathers. From both shoulders hung human skulls. Red tattoos on his face looked like painted blood.

Yuri muttered in disgust.

“Mamago, translate.”

[Understood. Mamago simultaneous interpretation function initiated.]

As Yuri spoke, Mamago translated his voice and amplified it.

[Hey, who are you?]

The man’s eyes widened in surprise, and he stared intently at him before answering.

[And who are you?]

[The intruder should introduce himself first, don’t you think?]

[Wrong.]

The man smirked. The tattoo at the corner of his lips stretched as if tearing open.

[The weak are the ones who must introduce themselves.]

On either side of the man, soldiers appeared holding bows.

The obsidian arrowheads, coated in darkness, reflected not a single glint, even under the midday sun.

Soon, black smoke began to pour from the man’s staff.

A pressure of black magic so immense it even surprised Yuri rose into the air.

“They had this much power?”

It was far beyond what Yuri had expected.

Deep and refined.

“I definitely can’t leave them like this.”

Yuri gave a short laugh.

The way they had said “the weak,” the way they used black magic, and their concentration.

They didn’t seem the type to just intimidate and retreat.

And besides, he himself had no intention of letting them go.

“Well, let’s begin.”

The moment he murmured that, dozens of obsidian arrows flew toward him.

A dense tide of corrupt magic aimed for his throat.

Yuri swung Mamago.

Not being used to being wielded as a weapon, Mamago let out a sharp scream.

But that sound was so piercing it resembled a ghostly wail.

[Kyaaaaaaah!]

The Cut of the Soul and the Heart cut even black magic.

The trail of his sword formed a barrier, pulverizing not only the obsidian arrows but also all the dark mist.

For a moment, the enemy faces twisted in confusion.

“Your Highness, should I throw the hooks?”

Jared asked.

If they threw the boarding hooks and linked the chains, the knights could use them as a bridge to storm the enemy ship.

“No.”

Yuri gauged the size of the enemy ship and rested Mamago on his shoulder.

“I’ll take care of it alone.”

And immediately, he leapt from the ram statue of the prow.