Fortunately, the so-called Inspection Fleet truly lived up to its reputation. In less than half an hour, they detected the battle taking place and arrived swiftly. Two pirate ships approached in a pincer formation, encircling the scene upon the sea.
Unable to capture the merchant ship after a prolonged assault, the raiding pirates cursed angrily before hastily retreating, fearing being caught like fish in a trap.
The survivors aboard the ship burst into cheers of relief. Even Miss Carla, who had been hiding in the cargo hold, rushed out with light, hurried steps. She bypassed her father's open arms and instead dove straight into Liam's embrace.
Ah, the burden of having 14 points in Charisma what a blissful kind of trouble. Feeling the warmth and softness in his arms, Liam silently gave thanks for this world's technological backwardness. Truly, underwear was humanity's most evil invention!
But whenever Liam felt like he'd finally reached the peak of his life, a spoiler would appear.
"Who's in charge here?"
A coarse voice thundered across the deck as a massive figure, easily two and a half meters tall, built like a small giant leapt aboard. The ship rocked beneath his weight.
The surviving sailors and passengers froze in terror, retreating a step as if someone had pressed a pause button. The newcomer had the head of a shark with rows of razor-sharp teeth and cold, predatory eyes that made it very clear he was no vegetarian.
Knight Bart stepped forward, his weapon and shield angled low, ready to spring into combat at any moment. "The captain fell in battle," he said calmly. "I am in command here now."
How could such a heroic moment happen without me?
Liam gently pushed Carla back into the crowd behind him, then stepped up beside Knight Bart, straightening his back. "And me!"
The shark-headed giant gave a curt nod, then turned aside, revealing a narrow boarding plank connecting the pirate ship to their own. From across it, a tall, elegant woman slowly made her entrance.
Liam instinctively gave her figure a perfect score, she was tall, graceful, and radiated confidence. Yet he couldn't help but feel a pang of pity at the deep scar that marred her otherwise flawless face, and the cruelly severed stumps where her ears should have been.
"I'm truly sorry that in my waters, you all had to suffer losses you didn't deserve," the disfigured beauty said, her voice rich and magnetic. "To express my apology, those pirates who attacked you will be executed at sea, in the most brutal way possible."
"Your kindness is appreciated," Knight Bart replied with dignified calm. "Had your fleet not arrived when it did, we might not have survived this ordeal. We do not seek revenge, we only wish to reach port safely."
The shark-headed brute bared his teeth in a grin, terrifying the nearby survivors into trembling and crowding together. But one sharp glance from the scarred beauty made him instantly retract his grin and stand obediently behind her.
"My name is Cersei Lannister," she declared, her tone proud and regal. "The ruler of these seas. My children call me Mama. My enemies call me the Light of the West."
Knight Bart's heart sank. He could feel the situation turning sour.
"You've killed many pirates in my waters," Cersei said, pointing her slender finger toward the blood-stained corpses on deck. "Though they weren't my men and though they deserved to die. They should have died by my hand, and mine alone."
She let that same finger sweep slowly across the faces of the survivors. "These people will be witnesses, they'll spread tales in the port of how pirates were defeated and humiliated. That, I cannot allow. You two must pay the price."
Bart said nothing. He knew that words were useless now.
Liam, however, felt an overwhelming urge to slap himself.
The Light of the West elegantly seated herself on a luxurious chair that had been brought over from her ship. She leaned back gracefully, one leg draped over the armrest, swirling a glass of red wine as if she were preparing to enjoy a performance.
"Fangtooth," she said lazily to the shark-headed brute beside her, "what kind of price do you think they should pay?"
The giant scratched his scalp with one massive finger. The sound of his rough, scale-covered skin rubbing together was grating like metal grinding on metal as he strained to think.
Behind Liam, the women among the survivors began quietly weeping. He could even hear Carla praying softly to the gods. Only the solid, unflinching presence of Knight Bart beside him kept him from falling apart.
"I've got it, Mama!" Fangtooth suddenly exclaimed. "Let them duel to the death!"
Cersei chuckled softly and patted the shark-headed brute's skull. "Well done. You're finally starting to use that head of yours. I like the idea."
Then, turning her sharp eyes on the two heroes who had just saved everyone's lives, she declared:
"The duel will end when one of you dies. The victor will be allowed to escort the others safely to port. The loser's life shall serve as a sacrifice to me and in return, I will forgive you."
"No!" cried Carla Rosetti from the crowd and the poor girl fainted on the spot.
"Or," Cersei added with a cruel smile, taking a slow sip of her wine, "I can simply toss everyone here into the sea." The crimson liquid ran down the corner of her lips like blood as she waved her hand dismissively. "This is your only choice. Start soon, before I grow bored."
Her pirates formed a rough circle around the two men, beating the ends of their weapons against the railing and deck in rhythm. The tempo grew faster and faster, echoing like a drum of impending doom.
Liam's mind raced. He felt his brain heating up as he tried desperately to find a way out of this situation but every path led to a dead end.
"Come, boy," said Knight Bart softly, exhaling a heavy sigh as he readied his weapon. "Pick up your sword. Take care of Carla for me… And if you ever make her cry, I'll crawl back from hell itself to deal with you."
"What are you doing?!" Liam raised his shield in panic to block Bart's sudden swing. The old knight's words threw his rhythm into chaos. "You're insane! I'm not going to fight you take care of your own daughter yourself!"
As a soldier once trained under the harshest discipline, Liam had no problem killing enemies in cold blood. But as a player who grew up in peaceful times, he couldn't bring himself to kill an NPC he had spent several days with and who'd fought beside him, one who felt almost real.
"Keep your shield angled!" Bart barked, ignoring him entirely as he struck again, his blows landing heavy on Liam's defense. "Always tilt your shield, you'll use less strength that way!"
Instinctively, Liam followed his lead, absorbing the impact while simultaneously learning the knight's shield techniques.
"You don't understand," Bart said between strikes, his voice steady but full of sorrow. "I'm not worth your sacrifice! You must kill me! Take care of Carla yourself!"
Liam wanted to explain that he could revive, that his death wouldn't truly mean the end but such words were automatically censored by the system.
With no other choice left, he stared at the incoming blade, took a deep breath… and instead of blocking, he tilted his neck forward — directly into the sword's deadly arc.
(End of Chapter)