Chapter 163: To the East!(3)

"What a headache..."

"Are you all right, brother?"

"Do I look like it?"

"...No."

"Haa..."

Luke then massaged his head before slumping down on the couch. They are currently in Mira's mansion's living room. Luke and the others went down and gathered in the living room after putting Klein to bed and allowing him to be checked by mermaid healers.

While being stressed, Erdene casually sipped his tea and looked at Luke straight in the eyes.

"I heard you're going to see the pirates?"

Luke remained silent for a brief moment before nodding. Marina and Trent then clenched their fists and frowned.

"Pirates..."

"Those damn savages..."

Luke looked at Marina and Trent, both of whom were clearly murderous. Luke then looked at them, perplexed.

"Have you two perhaps encountered pirates before?"

Marina gave a nod.

"Yes, we met them while patrolling the area and receiving reports such as countless large ships sinking, destroying coral reefs, and killing fish."

Luke nodded as if he got it. He then drank his tea and paid closer attention to what Marina had to say.

"We tried to approach them, but we were stopped by strange weaponry and bombs defending every side of the ship."

Luke paused his drink and raised his gaze to Marina. What Marina just said piques his interest.

"Strange weaponry, you say?"

Marina gave a nod.

"We've never seen anything like it before; we can't approach it because we don't know what it is. So, in the end, we just went back and told Mother everything we saw. We have yet to receive orders on what to do about those pirates."

Luke nods and places his tea on the table. He then took out the papers he had been reading since this morning and read them once more. His gaze was then drawn down to the information about the princess. The paper contains both her information and a photograph of her.

Luke examined the princess's shiny, curly vermillion hair in the photograph. Her skin is tanned, and her eyes are bright orange. Luke received the most recent picture of her three months ago; she was already with the pirates at the time. Luke then read the basic information beneath her image.

[Name: Valerie Ardenclaire I

Age:22

Description: The daughter of the Eastern Continent's first Empress. Currently missing, last seen on the decks of a ship belonging to the notorious pirate group known as the 'Swiss Pirates.' It is widely assumed that the aforementioned pirate group kidnapped the princess and is now being pursued by the Empress's knights.]

Luke sighed and set the paper down before turning to look at another piece of paper. The paper contains information about Marcel's mercenaries' perceptions of the pirate ship's usual routes. Luke looked around the paper before focusing his attention on a specific area of the paper. Luke knitted his brows and stood up, drawing the attention of the others. Mira then inquired, her eyes wide with confusion.

"What's the matter?"

"I need to go now, the pirates are near here."

Then Liam's eyes widened.

"Wait, are you sure?"

Luke nodded, sighed, and brushed his hair back. He had not expected to be moving so soon, but here he is. Luke then turned to face Nash and Snow, who was approaching him. He then patted each of their heads.

"Snow, please stay here with the others and look after Klein while I'm away, okay?"

Luke smiled as Snow nodded in response. Luke then raised his head and looked at Marina and Trent, who were both concerned.

"Young Master, how will you even approach them?"

"They have unidentified weapons, which is dangerous."

Luke was deafeningly silent as if he didn't know how to respond to his sibling's questions, causing Erdene to frown.

"If you planned to dive on their deck and get killed, forget it; I will destroy that ship myself and return the princess to her mother."

The others looked at Erdene, slightly surprised. Erdene frowned as he looked at them.

"What are you looking at?"

Mira then looked at Erdene with a frown.

"You're far too aggressive, Dene."

"Look who's talking."

Mira rolled her eyes before looking Luke in the eyes.

"Hey brat, if you want to save as many lives as possible on this mission, I recommend you to not go with a suicidal plan, but rather a homicidal plan. Just kill them all."

Mira then raised her thumbs towards Luke with a serious look on her face. Luke was speechless because she was so serious. It's the same for the others; they've all just stared at Mira in disbelief or are completely dumbfounded. Luke simply frowned and massaged his temples. Erdene and Mira are ancient beings, but they don't behave like it. They're far too violent. When Luke heard Liam speaking beside him, he turned his head.

"What is your strategy, brother?"

Luke rubbed his chin with his palm before turning to face Marina, who flinched when he looked at her.

"Is there anything you need, young master?"

Luke spoke as he licked his lips.

"Marina, do you happen to have a small boat here?"

"Huh?"

Marina tilted her head, puzzledly looking at Luke; the others did the same; they have no idea what is going through Luke's mind right now. What would he use a boat for?

"If you have a boat, then fantastic. I also need a worn-out robe that makes me look like a beggar."

The rest simply blinks a few times while staring at Luke, who is spitting out confusing words. Luke then frowned as he observed their reaction.

"Did I not say it clearly enough?"

Marina rose to her feet and shook her head.

"N-no! I could hear you clearly! I will get what you need right away!"

Marina then bolted from the mansion, leaving the others behind. After that, the living room fell silent; no one dared to speak as they all stared at Luke with blank expressions. Mira appeared to have had enough of the silence and questioned Luke in a perplexed tone.

"Hey brat, what exactly are you thinking?"

"It's difficult to explain."

"Is it difficult to explain, or do you have no idea what you're doing?"

"A mix of both."

"My god you are hopeless."

Luke frowned at Mira, who shook her head. When he heard footsteps approaching the mansion, he turned around. He then noticed Marina running with a ragged black cloth in her hands. She's fast.

"All right, young master! Here you go! Exactly as you requested! The boat is ready up at the surface."

"Thanks."

Luke then looked over the cloth that was passed to him. The cloth has stitches and its edges are ripped, which is exactly what Luke expects. Luke then nodded and unbuttoned his pricey coat and other accessories. Marina and the others are simply staring at what Luke is doing. They then saw him wearing the ragged cloth. They were all stunned as they watched him do shady things in front of them. When Luke had finished wearing the cloth, he extended his arms to the sides to show off his ragged clothing.

"How do I look? Do I look like a beggar now?"

Erdene then responded truthfully.

"You look like an expensive house mop."

"...Excuse me? A what?"

Luke stared at Erdene in disbelief, then flinched when he noticed Mira, Nash, and Snow nodding in agreement.

"He still looked like a decent guy even in ragged clothing."

"I think it'll take more effort to make him look like a beggar."

"Dad is just too good-looking that even ragged clothes look good on him."

Luke frowned, then looked at Liam who was standing beside him, hoping that Liam would make a good observation, but he frowned even more when he saw Liam nodding in agreement with Nash. Luke then massaged his head.

"Do I need to cover my face with coal or something?"

"... I think you're fine."

When he heard someone speak, Luke abruptly turned his head. He then looked around and locked his gaze on Trent, who is looking at him with a concerned expression.

"Trent, is what you just said is true?"

"Y-yes, I think you look like what you aimed to be, young master."

Luke's eyes twinkled as he looked at Trent. Trent simply sighed and averted his gaze. Luke ignored the response and stood tall.

"See? I could easily become a beggar; I don't even need a lump of coal to cover my face for this!"

The others just stared blankly at Luke before slowly turning their heads towards Trent, who is nervously avoiding their gazes while sweating. Trent only said those words to make Luke feel better, they all know. Luke doesn't look like a beggar at all. Mira simply sighed in defeat.

"All right, brat, do what you want."

Erdene then turns back to drinking his tea.

"We'll keep an eye on you from afar in case you need assistance."

Snow and Liam agreed with a nod. Because Luke must travel alone, they are both aware that they will be left behind.

"Yes, I'd like to check in on Dad every now and then."

"As his knight, I must always keep an eye on him, even from afar."

Nash's face lit up and he landed on Luke's shoulders.

"I'll accompany Dad!"

Luke nodded contentedly when he noticed that all of them already knew what they needed to do. Luke then turns around and walks towards the mansion's exit.

"All right, let's get started."

Nash then excitedly wagged his tail. He has no idea what Luke is planning or what will happen, but he is excited about what is about to happen because he is here to protect Luke at all times.

"Yeah! Dad, let's go!"