I Didn't Want to Become the Emperor of This World

Chapter 61

Ronak’s words, suggesting they go to their homeland, the ‘mainland,’ together.

The pirates were quite confused by his words. It was understandable, as Ronak, their leader, had suggested leaving the island they had built up for over a decade to go to the mainland, where they didn't know what situation would unfold.

However, it was ‘confusion,’ not ‘fear.’ Ronak and the other pirates were warriors who faced life and death several times a day, so they knew no fear.

Among the pirates, many had participated in the war against the demons, and even those who hadn't had to overcome hardships comparable to war to survive on the island and in the sea dominated by monsters. It was hard to find ‘fear’ in them. They were the ones who instilled fear in others at sea, not the ones who experienced it.

—Hmm…….

—…….

—The mainland…….

The pirates were lost in thought, each mulling over Ronak’s words. The rough breaths and murmurs of the sea men could be heard quietly.

It was then.

Ssk—.

A pirate lifted his beer mug. He was a one-eyed pirate wearing a red bandana, smaller in build than the others but looking decidedly agile.

The twin swords on his back were crossed in an ‘X,’ and because the swords were so long and thick, he looked even smaller.

However, no one thought the man was weak because he was small. Among the pirates present, only a few, including Ronak, could fight him on equal footing.

Ronak looked at him and nodded his head.

“Do you have something to say, Rollo? Speak.”

As Ronak gave him the floor, the one-eyed pirate in the red bandana—‘Rollo’—asked gravely.

“What will we do if we go to the mainland?”

“What will we do?”

“I’m asking what we’ll do to earn money and what we’ll eat to live.”

“What we’ll eat to live, you say……”

At the unexpected question, Ronak paused for a moment, then smiled faintly and answered.

“I plan to go back to my hometown and live an ordinary life.”

“……Ordinarily?”

“Yes. Farming and raising livestock like in the peaceful days before the nobles came to my village and caused trouble. I’ve always wanted to live in that place where my wife and daughter died.”

“Where was your hometown?”

“It was a mountain village north of ‘Misty Port,’ a large city in the southern part of the kingdom. It was a small, nameless village. I don’t know if it’s still there.”

At Ronak’s words, the pirates showed expressions of surprise. It was understandable, as Ronak, their leader, had just said he wanted to live as an ordinary farmer.

For the pirates, it was hard to imagine Ronak, the pirate who had been dragged away by a kraken and returned alive, farming.

Rollo also couldn't quite understand Ronak becoming a farmer.

“Unexpected. For the great pirate who defeated the kraken to go to the mainland and just farm.”

“Rollo, I didn’t defeat the kraken back then. I barely managed to drive it away. It was a miracle I came back alive.”

“No, you didn't let go of your axe even when you were bound by the kraken's tentacles and dragged into the sea. And like a true pirate, you swung your axe in the water and even cut off the tip of a tentacle. ......I was trembling with fear back then and lost an eye.”

“……”

“Anyway, I think what you’re saying now about leaving the island is rather irresponsible.”

Being called irresponsible, Ronak frowned slightly and asked.

“……Me, irresponsible?”

He only frowned. But the presence of Ronak, who had lived through all sorts of hardships, was by no means light. So, any ordinary person would have been burdened by just his frown.

However, Rollo’s presence was also formidable, and Rollo met Ronak’s gaze head-on.

“Yes, ‘irresponsible’.”

“Why is it irresponsible for me to return to the mainland?”

“The reason is simple. Ronak, if you suddenly leave this place, what do you think will happen to the brothers here? In a situation where our income has already decreased because the number of noble ships has dwindled, what do you think will happen to us, who know nothing but sailing and fighting?”

“……”

Ronak did not answer Rollo’s question, but he knew the answer.

‘If I’m gone…… the brothers will probably end up fighting each other. For money, food, necessities, whatever the reason.’

The Ingrid Island Pirates were always short on food, clothes, and daily necessities, even when there were plenty of noble ships to plunder.

It was Ronak’s role to mediate and calm those pirates. He was their spiritual pillar and leader.

If such a Ronak disappeared, it was obvious that the pirates of the southern sea of the Plank Kingdom would soon start plundering each other. No matter how good their relationship was, they couldn't win against hunger.

If that happened, it was clear that the ‘Ingrid Island Pirate Community,’ which Ronak had painstakingly built for over 20 years, would collapse.

“So in the end, you’re trying to tell me not to leave.”

“No, Ronak. I’m not telling you not to leave.”

“You’re not telling me not to leave? Then what are you trying to say?”

“I’m just saying that since you’ve held us together until now, you should take responsibility until the end. I’m telling you to order all of us to follow you, not just you and a few others trying to go to the mainland.”

At Rollo’s completely unexpected words, Ronak’s eyes lit up with a peculiar light.

“If you want to follow me, you can just follow. There’s no need for me to order you. We’re not the kind of people who give and receive orders.”

“If you put it so weakly, there will be brothers who follow you and brothers who stay. And if that happens, the strength of our Ingrid Island Pirates will weaken. That’s ultimately a path to self-destruction for everyone.”

“……That may be so, but even still, I can't order my brothers. We are all equal brothers, so I have no right to command. Of course, if the brothers follow me, it would be a great help. I would receive a lot of help on the voyage to the mainland, and after landing on the mainland—.”

“That’s why I’m saying we should change that relationship now. You should take on the role of the official leader of our Ingrid Island Pirate community.”

“……”

Rollo’s words, telling him to become the ‘leader.’

Instead of answering, Ronak looked around at the other pirates. He wanted to see how they would react.

Ronak thought the pirates would naturally dislike Rollo’s proposal. He thought that, given the pirates’ personalities, they would never allow someone to be their leader.

Besides, the pirates were all men who had suffered all sorts of hardships at the hands of those in ‘power.’ So, they extremely disliked the very existence of a person in power.

‘But…… why are their reactions like that?’

Contrary to Ronak’s expectations, the pirates’ reactions were favorable. In fact, there were even some who were subtly encouraging Ronak with their eyes to declare himself the leader.

At the reactions of his comrades, Ronak looked at them one by one and asked reluctantly.

“……Do you really want me to be the representative?”

—Nod.

—Nod.

—Nod.

—Nod.

—Nod.

—Nod.

The pirates nodded their heads without a word, and Rollo added.

“Then it’s settled. But ‘representative’ doesn’t sound very cool, does it? We’re a large pirate crew with over 45 ships, big and small, in our Ingrid Island Pirates, shouldn’t we have a more impressive name- Ah.”

“?”

“‘Admiral.’ How about ‘Admiral’?”

“……Hey, Rollo. Admiral means a noble—.”

“So what. The head of a pirate crew that rules all the southern islands and seas is a stronger force than most nobles. If you just consider the area, it's probably larger than a Count's territory.”

“……”

The pirates agreed with Rollo’s words.

Before long, the atmosphere in the tavern had become one where it was natural to call Ronak ‘Admiral.’

This wasn’t what Ronak wanted. Ronak just missed his hometown, and if there were comrades who missed their hometowns like him, he had only intended to go with them.

But now, this situation was one where his careless words were leading to him half-forcibly dragging all the brothers and their families from the island to the mainland.

‘But…… is it my responsibility.’

As Rollo had said earlier, Ronak also knew implicitly. That he was the leader of the Ingrid Island Pirates.

‘Should I accept?’

Ronak hesitated, unable to accept readily. It wasn't that he disliked being appointed ‘Admiral’ by his brothers. It was just that he doubted whether he could take these numerous brothers to the mainland and be responsible for them.

‘Living on the island is tough. But at least we could get by. However, if we go to the mainland, we might not be able to make a living. Because we have nothing of our own on the mainland. It could be more difficult in many ways than when we first pioneered this island.’

After contemplating for a moment, Ronak let out a sigh and spoke.

“If I become the Admiral, I will truly think of my brothers and their families as my own body and take responsibility for them. I must.”

“Then you’re accepting—.”

“No, before that, I will be honest. I am not confident I can take responsibility for everyone when we go to the mainland.”

“……”

“I can take responsibility for a small number of brothers. Whether through farming or doing odd jobs, I could somehow feed them. But I cannot guarantee I can feed the entire pirate crew. Life on the mainland will surely be harder for most of the brothers than living on the island.”

At Ronak’s honest words, the pirates were each lost in thought. Some had agreed to hail Ronak as Admiral, swept up by the mood, but hearing his words, they started to think that going to the mainland might not be all that good.

In the midst of that, Rollo once again offered his opinion.

“Well, I don’t think you need to worry about that.”

“I don’t need to worry?”

“Mm. We can make a good enough living on the mainland too. In the same way we survived at sea.”

“The same way…… Are you suggesting we attack and plunder nobles or wicked merchants? I’m sorry, Rollo, but that’s impossible. The Crown Prince purged all the nobles, so their numbers have decreased. The number of nobles we can plunder is absolutely insufficient.”

“I’m not suggesting we plunder nobles.”

“If not nobles, then—.”

Ronak, who had been speaking calmly and relatively kindly.

He frowned more menacingly than ever before and spoke to Rollo in a cold and frightening manner.

“Then don’t tell me…… you’re suggesting we plunder other commoners?”

***

As soon as I thought about bringing the ‘righteous bandits’ to my side, the was newly written.

I tried to read the new content. But another headache disturbed me.

Throb—.

“Ugh……”

‘My head…… why does it keep hurting so much?’

My head had been getting progressively worse for a while now. I felt like Sun Wukong, suffering from the golden fillet.

‘Let’s just bear it and read for now. It’s still manageable.’

Clutching my throbbing head, I read the contents of the diary.

The newly written content was a future ‘six months from now,’ a future much closer to the present than the ‘two years from now’ that had appeared earlier.

…….

Six months after recruiting the new soldiers.

The lords sent to each region were gradually settling in. They began recruiting new soldiers in their respective cities and territories and improving the farmlands and markets.

As time passed peacefully like that.

An urgent report came from Walter, the lord of the city of ‘Misty Port’ in the southern part of the kingdom.

「To the esteemed Your Highness Leonardo.

About 20 unidentified ships have landed on the southern coast. It has not been confirmed where they came from, but it is certain they are pirates. We are in a crisis due to the considerable scale of the pirates. We urgently request support.

I keep it short due to the urgency of the matter.

Walter, Lord of Misty Port.」

For pirates to appear near the city, it was a really big problem. So, as soon as I received the letter, I prepared the knights and soldiers of the royal capital and sent them to Misty Port.

And with the reinforcements, I also sent a letter.

「To Lord Walter.

I am sending reinforcements, so focus on defending the city rather than a preemptive strike.

However, if you judge the pirates to be a threat, you may actively launch a preemptive strike.

If they start attacking the city, there will be damage, big or small, so deal with them before they attack the city if possible. There must be no harm to the common people.」

—That was the content of the letter.

……

I continued to read the next page of the .

…….

A few weeks after I sent reinforcements to Misty Port.

Another report came from Walter, the lord of Misty Port. It was a report stating that they had wiped out the pirates with the knights and soldiers I had sent.

That’s right. Walter had preemptively attacked the pirates before being attacked, just as I had said.

Walter sent a detailed account of the situation at the time.

「We received intelligence that the pirates had entered a small mountain and ambushed them on the mountainside. And we encountered them around sunset.

The pirates were covered in blood all over their bodies and weapons, and they held various treasures in both hands. Some of them had human heads hanging from their axes.

It was truly…… a gruesome and ferocious sight. It was also barbaric.

As soon as I saw that, I judged that they had clearly plundered a village or a merchant guild.

My soldiers and I were enraged, and we immediately launched a surprise attack on the bastards who dared to plunder Your Highness' people.

The knights and soldiers bravely attacked the pirates. However, the pirate bastards were indeed as formidable and strong as they looked. Even though we attacked first, our side also suffered considerable damage.

The pirates were like beasts. Each and every one of them was as strong as a knight.

Although they were the enemy, I honestly admit they were formidable.

The damage was not insignificant.

Still, the fortunate thing is that with this surprise attack, we managed to drive them back across the sea. With the reinforcements Your Highness sent, the city of ‘Misty Port’ has regained its peace.

On behalf of the city, I express my gratitude.」

That was the end of the content on this page.

‘Pirates……. Come to think of it, the mentioned that when I eliminate bandits in the distant future, the pirates were the difficult ones to deal with.’

I didn't know if these pirates were the ones that would appear in Misty Port. But anyway, since they were ‘pirates,’ the preemptive strike was surely the right decision.

‘Good, let’s read the next page. I want to know what happened after they drove out the pirates.’

Ssk—.

I was convinced that the preemptive strike against the pirates was the right decision. So, hoping for a good future, I turned to the next page of the .

However…… the betrayed my conviction and expectations.

…….

I should not have attacked the pirates.

‘……I shouldn’t have attacked the pirates?’