Chapter 21

—Auction Day—

After spending a few days restoring power to the ship and making crucial repairs, we were finally in a position to leave Davy's Locker. Looting all the treasure and tech I could find, I took a seat in my Captain's Chair and gave the order to bring everything back online.

"It is time to get the hell out of here.", I said, ready to enjoy a warm meal and see Roxanne again, "Yamato, please fire up all systems slowly and begin final preparations to leave."

<On it boss!>

Bringing the reactors online, the ship began to hum and vibrate as power was being distributed across the ship. Giving Yamato a few moments to confirm everything was working right, I was about to give the command to take off when suddenly several alarms began blaring on the bridge. Quickly silencing them and running diagnostics on her power systems, Yamato returned with bad news.

<Well that is not good…we are nowhere near full power. Reactor One functioning normally and outputting power; Two but the output only at forty percent; Three Four unresponsive. Sorry sir!>

"Do not worry about it, I figured it would not be a simple fix. You sustained a lot of damage from your last battle and were barely hanging on when Jarvis and I found you. All the parts down here are heavily damaged or beyond repair, so we made do with what we had.", I chuckled, not worrying about it, "With the limited power we have, are you able to get us airborne at least?"

<Of course, flying out of here will not be an issue but much more than that is impossible.>

"Perfect, have a few of the Mechanic Robots on standby. If we run into any trouble mid-flight, they will need to deal with them quickly.", I ordered.

<Can do!>

Shutting off power to non-essential systems, Yamato sent everything she could to engage the engines. Watching the progress bar on the main screen quickly rise as she charged up, once it hit one hundred percent, she attempted to start the engines but nothing happened. Repeating the process two more times, Yamato began getting frustrated that her engines would not start.

<Son of a bitch, why will you not work. Do make me look bad in front the Captain damn it!!>

Recalibrating a few of her systems, Yamato charged the system a fourth, and when she went to fire the engines up, they spun up properly. Hearing those beautiful babies roar to life, I could not help but smile ear to ear with excitement. Watching the scenery outside drift away as we started gaining altitude, Yamato could not contain her happiness about leaving this place.

<See you later, shithole!! I am not going to miss you!!>

Understanding the sentiment, I pressed a button on my chair to pull up a frontal view of the ship. Quickly approaching the exit point, a large portal with a view of the world I was familiar with, I braced myself for any potential physical rebound caused by my stay in Davy's Locker. Slipping through the portal without any such problems, when we were clear, the portal behind us closed, sealing the place forever. Relieved to be in the normal world again, I was immediately drawn to a group of ships just outside the island's debris field.

<So those are the New Human airships…I am unimpressed. We had technology like that thousands of years ago. It is embarrassing to think we lost these people.>

"Before you ask, no you cannot shoot them out of the sky.", I said, noticing my father and Lucoa on one of the ships, "I have family on those ships, and the weapon systems are offline to conserve power. We just got you out of Davy's Locker, do not send yourself back immediately."

<Haha…good call.>

"Anyways, I have another matter to discuss with you. Once my business in the capital is complete, we will go to another dungeon to collect a fellow AI of yours. His name is Luxion and he holds the tools necessary to bring you back to one hundred percent again. The science lab where he is located has a Matter Fabricator onsite that is still operational.", I advised.

<Thank you!! I cannot wait to feel like myself again!!>

Having Yamato pull up alongside the Kingdom's vessels, the crews onboard began running around frantically like we were attacking them. Stepping out onto the Observation Deck, I leaned over the railing and started waving at everyone once I was certain they could see me. Noticing how small Yamato made the other ships look, as she was over eight hundred meters, I understood why they were terrified of us.

"Everyone calm down, I am not going to attack you!", I shouted, retracting my helmet, "It is me!"

"Leon, you are alive!!", Lucoa exclaimed, with a happy smile on her face, "Where have you been?! We have been searching for you since we arrived a day and a half ago!"

"It is a long story, one I am happy to share later on.", I replied, "More importantly, what do you think of my cool new ship!! Her name is Yamato, I found her after clearing the dungeon."

"She is quite an impressive vessel! I can certainly say I have never seen such an extraordinary craft in my life. This ship has quite an opposing presence about her.", Duke Redgrave said, admiring my boat, "You certainly earned it after clearing that monster of a dungeon. Did you find her fully operational or did you repair her?"

"I have spent the last two days rummaging around for replacement parts and mending her hull. When I found her, she was on her last leg and barely hanging on to life. She is still hurting, but her most critical systems are operational.", I answered, with a smirk, "Sir, if I may, can we continue our discussion back at the capital? I would like to rescue my friend, Roxanne, have a warm meal, and have a real bath after the last six days I have had."

Nodding his head in agreement, the Duke ordered his men to prepare to leave. Flying along with them, on the verge of stalling from how slow we were traveling, we made good headway and returned to the capital in around forty-five minutes. Unable to dock Yamato in the harbor, because she was far too big, I ended up mooring at the edge of the port. Switching to standby mode since I would be leaving for a bit, I asked her to have the robots do some maintenance during this downtime.

"Yamato, while I handle business in the capital, please have the Maintenance Robots look into fixing power delivery from Reactor Two and getting the other reactors online.", I requested, "If they need parts, please collect the necessary data so we can provide it to Luxion."

<Already on it. Should I dispatch a few Security Androids with you for protection?>

"Since my armor has been repaired, I think it should be more than enough to protect me. That said, I want to flex and show off some of your capabilities. Please dispatch four Security Androids, the scarier looking the better. There are two, maybe three, people that I want to make piss in their pants.", I chuckled, with a sinister smile.

<Hehe, yes sir!>

Summoning four androids to the bridge, four human-looking female androids marched up and saluted me. Arriving fully kitted, they carried plasma rifles and pistols, compact rocket launchers, razor-sharp titanium blades, and high explosive grenades. In addition to weapons, they were equipped with high-tech body armor and carried mobile shield projectors on their belts. Equipped more for being bodyguards than security, if I did not already have Jarvis, they would definitely be my go-to option.

"Uh Yamato, I have two very important questions for you. First off, do you have more of their equipment onboard? If so, I want Luxion to mass-produce them for my military forces. Secondly, why are all of them women? Given that you are a battleship, one would assume they would prioritize invoking fear over the maternal, nurturing vibe they give off.", I stated, uncertain how to explain it.

While not extraordinarily curvy, the robots were still attractive in their own way and almost had a Milfy aura around them. Unsure why these sorts of androids would be used on a battleship and not a brothel, Yamato quickly enlightened me on the situation.

<Regarding the equipment, I have plenty more onboard for Luxion to take as samples. As their appearance and sensation you are feeling, they were custom-ordered androids made my former captain. Since we usually off on long-term missions there no female crewmembers, men grew restless within weeks of being deployed. To avoid potential mutinies, his pleasure, he wanted them fulfill two different roles. Unfortunately, upper brass only combat robots so this was compromise.>

"Oh. My. God.", I said, taking a healthy step back, "Please tell me that you sanitized every nook and cranny over these androids. Just thinking about what they have seen is making me want to vomit…"

<Sir, I can assure you that cleaned them at least twelve times after every use…>

Hearing her mutual disgust for what the androids went through, I was happy to see we shared some common ground. Putting the matter aside, the five of us stepped out onto the Observation Deck to prepare to leave. Redeploying my helmet, I took to the sky followed closely by the androids who used thrusters in their heels to fly like rockets. Reaching the pier where a crowd was quickly forming, I gave the androids strict instructions not to harm anyone as we landed.

"Do not harm anyone here unless I give you clear instructions too.", I said, retracting my helmet.

Before I could get a word out to the crowd, my mother and Lucoa pushed through the crowd to reach me. Pulling me into a hug, I swore I heard my armor begin to creak under their strength. Crying on my shoulder, my mother began mumbling about missing me and being worried about my safety. As for Lucoa, she was satisfied with hugging me until she did a double take on the androids behind me.

"Hey, Leon…who are your pretty friends here…?", Lucoa asked, with a cramped smile, "You would not have happened to take your sweet time because of them, would you?"

"Yes, I would like to know who they are as well.", Luce said, noticing them as well, "You should properly introduce them to me!"

"First of all, Lucoa, as I have said multiple times…I am not old enough for that yet. You will know when Spring comes for me, trust me.", I whispered to her, before addressing the broader question, "As for who they are, these androids are part of my new ship's defense system. Please show them what is behind your faces."

Ejecting their faces, the androids showed everyone that they were indeed machines. Hearing a sigh of relief come from Lucoa, I wondered if she would have a problem with me having a harem in the future. Since the universe was a massive place, I could not promise her that it would always only be Roxanne and her. Ideally, I would love to have a harem of around seven to eight women, at least, to travel the stars with. They would need to be okay with exploring new worlds, diving into the depths of the unknown, and embracing new cultures and experiences. If they could not handle that, I could not even think of making them my partner.

"Please put your faceplate back on.", I ordered the androids, before calling out into the crowd, "Guildmaster Nicholas, do you happen to be somewhere in this crowd? I need to talk to you before I head to the auction to buy Roxanne's freedom."

"I am here!", he replied, rushing to the front with several of his receptionists, "You son of bitch, you did it in less than a week!! Congratulations Leon, that is another record you have broken and one that I doubt anyone will ever beat. As promised, I will make you an S-Rank Adventurer for your achievements and hard work!"

"Thank you, I appreciate it!", I said, pulling out the gear from the adventurers I fought, "First of all, can you see to it that these fallen adventurers are returned to their loved ones? I am sure no one alive remembers them, but if there is someone, please give it to them. It was their final request."

Looking at the Guild Cards resting on the piles of equipment, a solemn smile formed on their faces. Promptly collecting the equipment, most of the receptionists he brought swiftly left to begin tracking down their families. 

"I also met the First King's Party in the dungeon, they asked me to return their equipment to their burial sites so they can be beside their wives and children.", I said, providing him with their Guild Cards, "They also gifted me everything they have in the Guild's Possession, if you still have it. Given that it has been several thousand years, it has all probably been lost or given away."

"We still have everything they deposited in the Guild, no one could claim it without their Guild Card.", Nicholas stated, examining the cards closely, "Not to doubt you, but do you have a letter or proof to back up your claim? Some people may not want to let you collect their treasures."

"Jarvis, please show him the video.", I chuckled, "You may want to stand back."

Projecting the recording of my discussion with the First King's Party, and the subsequent conversions with the other adventurers, the crowd grew silent as everyone listened intently to what they said. Hearing people tear up as the men talked about regretting not being there for their families and loved ones, by the time the video was done, many women bawled their eyes out while some men looked away as they sobbed in silence.

"I…I believe you now.", Nicholas choked up, "I am sure all of them are happy to be back with their families in the afterlife. You did them a great service that the Guild cannot begin to thank you enough for."

"I had a personal reason for doing this so please do not worry about it.", I assured, "Moving on, I would like to meet with you after the auction to review everything I brought back with me. In addition to the Boss Loot, I have a shitton of monster drops and a boatload of monster corpses like this to sell."

Pulling the Leviathan's head out of my Item Box, I was relieved that it did not immediately dissipate when it popped out. Falling to the ground with a heavy hud, several women, including my mother, fainted at the sight of the gigantic beast. Stumbling backward out of fear, Nicholas instinctively reached for his blades before I quickly got between them.

"Wait, it is dead!!", I shouted, trying to calm everyone down, "This was the Mid-Floor Boss in the dungeon, a sixty-foot Leviathan. The rest of its body is in my Item Box."

"Shit Leon, give me some warning before you pull something like that!", Nicholas sighed, with relief, "People do not usually pull Legendary Monsters out of an Item Box to show people!"

"Sorry, I was just trying to show you what to expect when I come by later today. I will sell the Guild everything but the Leviathan's head, I want to get that stuffed and mounted in my Airship Workshop when I have it built.", I chuckled, "I think it will certainly make me stand out compared to the competition."

"It will do something alright…", Nicholas thought, imagining what it would look like hung on a stone wall, "So if this was the Mid-Boss, what was the Dungeon Boss?"

"A two hundred foot Kraken.", I answered, "Also, I ended up having to fight a Bonus Boss too. Davy Jones was the Bonus Boss, he is the reason I was able to speak with the First King's party and the other adventurers. They were all trapped on his ship."

Showing him a few clips of my fight with Davy, the crowd turned pale white as they looked at his face. Having never seen anything so hideous before, I was honestly surprised none of them vomited at first glance.

"Marcey, update our information on Rank 4 and 5 dungeons.", Nicholas said to his Lead Receptionist, "We now have confirmation that Bonus Bosses do exist, and our parties need to account for that possibility moving forward."

"Understood.", Marcey acknowledged.

"You are assuming they will be around in the next five years.", I snickered, "After a short break, I am going back out there to wipe out more dungeons. With such incredible Lost Items out there, there is no way I am not going to collect it!"

"Haha!! You cleared one of the most feared dungeons in our country, and you are ready for more!! You certainly have Adventurer Blood pumping through your veins Leon!", Nicholas laughed, as the clock tower chimes began to sound, "Shit, you need to get going, Leon!! The auction is about to start!!"

Having lost track of time, I pulled the Leviathan's head back into my Item Box and grabbed Lucoa's hand. Commanding the androids to follow us, the six of us ran to the Desmond Slave Trading Company to buy our seats for auction.