Chapter 21: My ears hurt because I was doing something pretty barbaric.

All the dead spirits within sight had collapsed.

"In case you're wondering, these are all just corpses that were just moving. Well, I guess the youngster doesn't care."

However, Tomochika's guilt was somewhat relieved by her words.

It must have been tragic when there were so many dead bodies, but still, Yogiri hadn't killed the passengers who were just being manipulated.

?Are those the manipulated people Takato-kun was talking about?"

"I don't know but I don't think so."

"I wonder if now is the right time to look for the pirates…"

"Hmm. But there is nothing else we can do. Let's head to the bridge. There was a strange broadcast just now, but I think it was the voice of the pirate leader."

There was no way to be sure that it was the voice of the leader, or even if it was coming from the bridge.

However, it was better to set a goal than to just look around the room without much of a plan.

Tomochika and the others decided to head for the bridge.

On the way, the spirits of the dead attacked them several times, but Yogiri easily defeated them.

"Are spirits of the dead stupid? Don't they ever learn?"

"All they have is a craving for life and jealousy. They don't know how to think."

"What about you, Mokomoko?"

"I've risen to the level of a divine spirit. There is no problem with the persistence of memory or thinking ability."

After walking for a while, they reached the Bridge in the center of the hull.

Inside, they found a woman dressed as a man lying on her back.

There was no one else in the room, so the sailor must have escaped.

"That's her, the pirate boss."

He was pretty sure she's the woman the pirates called Okaashira.

"You seem to be conscious."

Yogiri crouched down to look at her face and glared at her.

But her body seemed to be paralyzed and she couln't move.

"What the hell are you guys doing at…?"

"We're passengers. We're having trouble with this situation. We'd appreciate it if you could clear out and get the ship moving."

"Huh. What am I supposed to do?"

"Mokomoko, do you know what's going on?"

At Yogiri's urging, Mokomoko, controlling Enju, confirmed the pirate's body.

"I don't know. The only thing I can tell you is that there are no external injuries. Did they do something to you?"

"Well, you know. A strange kid came in and I found myself in this situation. I can't move, but just now my body moved on its own and I was saying things I never thought I would say."

The female pirate was surprisingly straightforward. Since she couldn't do anything about it, she must have decided that there was no point in disobeying.

"I wonder if she was manipulated. If that's the case, maybe there's some kind of parasite inside this person."

"What the hell is that? That's disgusting."

The others seem to have been set free by killing the parasite.

"Can you do it?"

"No, I don't know. It's not like they're trying to kill me. It's not a sure thing."

"Go ahead. When I get my sh*t together, I'm gonna run like hell."

"One more thing. I need you to deactivate my powers."

?... will do."

After some thought, the female pirate accepted her release.

'You have to kill the one in your head. There might be some side effects, you know?"

"I don't care. There's nothing I can do about it."

"I'll give it a try."

Yogiri placed a hand on the female pirate's forehead, and after a few moments, he released it.

"It's pretty easy, isn't it?"

"I tried to treat it like a virus or something."

Yogiri was automatically killing any kind of virus that came near him.

In doing so, he doesn't judge whether or not they intend to kill, but treats them as dangerous in their own right.

So, he thought the same way about the thing inside the female pirate.

"What's with that deodorizing and sterilizing mood ability ...?"

When Tomochika was dumbfounded, the female pirate twitched.

She slowly raised his upper body, flexed, and then stood up. Yogiris care seemed to have succeeded.

"Just so you know, if you attack us, I'll kill you.

Yogiri warned the female pirate as she picked up her fallen sword.

"I'm not going to do that. Even pirates have some honor. We're leaving as promised."

"Then the ship will be back to normal ...! But it won't work without the crew!

"What do you mean?"

Yogiri briefly summarized the situation to the female pirate.

"Really? What's with this ship?

"Is it possible that Mokomoko can pilot this ship?"

"I can handle a cruiser, but I don't think I can handle a large ship like this by myself."

"Then it's no good!"

"That's why I asked you to deactivate it. You can build a ship with the tentacles, right?"

"No. Why don't we just have that tentacle thing take us to safety?"

"Pirates, huh? They're criminals, you're not supposed to go with them, are you?"

"Is that what it is?"

"I kill and rob people too, depending on the situation. But that's not the same as being friends with a pirate."

?That being said, ..."

Tomochika thought it was a good idea, but her senses seemed to have gone numb.

"I've been doing a lot of barbarian things when I was alive, so it hurts to hear you say that. "

"…My ancestors were ..."

"Let's save the depression for later and just get moving. The corridor that leads to this place is a straight road. If something comes along, it's a pain in the ass."

There was only one way in and out of the Bridge, and if they were held up, they would be stuck there.

Tomochika and the others rushed out into the hallway, but they were a step too late.

"That's him ... the one who did that to me."

The female pirate said with a snarl.

The end of the corridor was blocked off with people.

Among them stood the boy who had called out to Tomochika earlier.