Fate

"Heh heh, this is the Forgotten Lands. The gods will not cast their gaze upon us." The Bloodsail Pirate at the head of the group laughed as he looked the short-haired girl up and down.

"Mosa is everywhere!" the girl declared.

But clearly, the three Bloodsail Pirates were not devout—or at least, they were not devout at this moment. "I advise you not to resist. That way, we'll be gentler!"

Gagnor, who had been observing from the shadows, stroked his chin as he considered the situation.

He still possessed a somewhat simple sense of justice, and the Bloodsail Pirates had a poor relationship with the Gray Hawk Mercenary Group. They had nearly come to blows a few days ago, so emotionally, he was more than willing to kill the three of them. He was just a little worried that he might not be able to win.

Gagnor's deliberation ended quickly.

He had noticed that the Bloodsail Pirate at the head of the group had already impatiently begun undoing his trousers while tossing his weapon aside, leaving himself completely undefended.

Gagnor immediately took out four Fletched Arrows, quickly coated them with Ryan's poison, and nocked them on the Wolf-Sinew Bow. He adjusted the angle and aimed at the Bloodsail Pirates while carefully avoiding the girl's direction.

"Whoosh—"

Guided by Swift Breeze, the four Fletched Arrows struck their targets with precision. Two Bloodsail Pirates lost their ability to fight on the spot and soon died from the effects of the poison.

Killed level 1 human, experience +50

Killed level 1 human, experience +50

The Bloodsail Pirate at the head of the group was clearly much stronger than those two. At the critical moment, he narrowly dodged the arrows while looking behind him.

The sudden arrival of four Fletched Arrows startled the short-haired girl as well, but she quickly reacted. Taking advantage of the pirate turning his head, she charged forward and stabbed at him.

"Argh—bitch!" The pirate was stabbed in the abdomen and let out a scream and curse.

Then, contrary to Gagnor and the girl's expectations, he neither attacked nor fled. He did not even retrieve his weapon. Instead, he abruptly turned around and dove headfirst into the river beside him.

With a loud splash, water sprayed in every direction.

"?" Gagnor was deeply puzzled and could not help frowning. But he quickly returned to a state of alertness. He watched the spot where the pirate had fallen into the water while drawing his bow and nocking an arrow, the Fletched Arrow ready to fire.

Several seconds later, the initially calm river suddenly began to churn. The waves grew higher and higher before eventually spiraling into a Water Elemental more than three meters tall. The faint outline of the Bloodsail Pirate could be seen encased within the flowing water.

"Fighting me in the water is the last foolish thing you'll ever do!" The Water Elemental slowly opened its mouth, its voice mixed with the sound of running water.

The next moment, it reached out and pulled the girl into the water.

The girl screamed and struggled desperately, but to no avail. She soon passed out from suffocation, after which she was thrown back onto the shore. She lay motionless, like a fish waiting to be slaughtered.

As Gagnor witnessed the scene, his expression shifted repeatedly.

There was no doubt that the ability displayed by the pirate was a blessing from the Water Element.

But this was far too powerful!

He tried shooting an arrow, using four bursts of Swift Breeze to lend it power, but it could not pierce the layer of water encasing the pirate in the slightest.

The water gently surged, and the Fletched Arrow embedded in the Water Elemental's body fell into the river.

"I can sense the power of wind, but it is too weak. Neptulon told me that I will die only in a storm." The Water Elemental spoke disdainfully as it walked toward Gagnor some distance away. "Now, I shall offer you to the Lord of the Waterways!"

Gagnor's expression shifted slightly.

Could this be related to the other party's 'destiny'?

Neptulon clearly would not specially chat with a low-level mortal. If the pirate was not spouting nonsense, then the only possibility was that he had been told his destiny when he received the Holy Name.

When he had leveled up earlier, Gagnor had noticed that many powerful blessings came with a "destiny," and these "destinies" were usually severe negative effects.

They were essentially curses designed to ruin someone's life, and there was a high probability they could get a person killed.

A storm... What a coincidence.

Looking at the approaching Water Elemental, Gagnor made his decision at once, turned around, and ran.

"You can't escape!" The Water Elemental launched into pursuit. Despite being more than three meters tall, its movements were not clumsy in the slightest.

The distance between them gradually narrowed.

As he ran, Gagnor observed the surrounding terrain, making sure to get as far away from the water as possible.

Then, when only a few dozen meters remained between them, he suddenly turned around and hurled a blue-gray orb—the Lesser Wind Orb.

At the same time as he threw the orb, Gagnor swiftly drew his bow and nocked an arrow, imbuing it with four bursts of Swift Breeze.

The Fletched Arrow shot out, overtook the orb despite being fired later, and slammed hard into it.

"Boom—"

A thunderous explosion rang out, and a storm swept across the area!

The Water Elemental was struck by the Wind Orb at point-blank range. Its form was immediately blown apart by the storm, and its body, originally more than three meters tall, was reduced to less than two.

Through the thin layer of water that was only a few centimeters thick, the Bloodsail Pirate's terrified face could be seen clearly.

At the same time, Gagnor revealed a cold smile. He moved forward while drawing his bow once again.

"No!" the Bloodsail Pirate cried out. He hurriedly turned and fled toward the water.

"Whoosh—"

A Fletched Arrow flew over. With only two bursts of Swift Breeze boosting it, it easily pierced through the layer of water.

The pirate screamed and fell to the ground, but he still rolled and crawled toward the water, seemingly muttering something under his breath.

Another Fletched Arrow shot over.

This arrow struck the pirate directly in the neck, completely robbing him of his ability to move. He could only lie on the ground and writhe while gazing desperately at the river a hundred meters away.

"Lord of the Waterways... Lord of the Sea... Neptulon... save your believer," he murmured.

Gagnor walked over and drew the short sword from his waist. "This is the Forgotten Lands. The gods will not cast their gaze upon us!"

The short sword fell, pinning the pirate brutally to the ground through the neck.

Killed level 2 human, experience +100

Experience: 455/400 (level-up available)

Gagnor was in a pleasant mood. He could level up again now.

Of course, he definitely would not level up at present. Otherwise, he might exceed the level limit of Serpent's Cut Line and be unable to leave.

He searched the bodies of the three pirates.

Three Bloodsail Pirate badges, a map, and a dozen or so silver coins... Those were roughly the only things of value. They were rather poor, perhaps because most people would not carry too much wealth into the Tidal Lands.

Gagnor then came to the riverbank and bent down to look at the short-haired girl, who was still unconscious.

The girl was not seriously injured.

Although her short hairstyle, much like a man's, made her look somewhat strange, her delicate features and wheat-colored skin still gave her a unique beauty.

It was no wonder the three Bloodsail Pirates had been so eager to take advantage of her.

Now, the beautiful girl lay defenseless before Gagnor.

If he wanted to, he could do whatever he wished.

But Gagnor was not a Bloodsail Pirate. After studying the girl's features for a moment, he reached out and patted her. "Wake up."

The girl slowly regained consciousness. After realizing that Gagnor had saved her, she thanked him repeatedly with gratitude and took the initiative to introduce herself. "My name is Casca."