"The Kidnapper" [Seeking Recommendations]

Stowing his musket, Liam threw a handful of sand at Zank's face as a matter of habit. Such a trick was useful against someone like Arthas, who lacked experience in the underworld, but it was not to be expected to work on an old hand like Mr. Zank. Liam, however, never intended for this move to secure a victory; it was merely a casual distraction.

As expected, Zank flicked his staff, and a flash of azure light swept out. A gale whipped up shards of ice and snow, blasting toward Liam like a massive, horizontally spinning tornado. The sand was blown aside instantly, failing to have the slightest effect.

Knowing he could not easily close the distance, Liam pulled a chain forged of refined steel from his inventory. He had specifically commissioned this from dwarven smiths during his few days in Lordaeron, and it was infinitely better than the homemade rope and grappling hook he had used before.

Facing the incoming Frostbolt, Liam threw his grappling hook, aiming not for the mage, but for the ship's railing behind Mr. Zank.

With a pull, Liam did not retreat from the hurricane of the Frostbolt; instead, he surged forward, flying directly toward Mr. Zank.

While in mid-air, he retracted the hook and drew a longsword in each hand. He slashed down with his right and swept across with his left, striking at the mage before him.

Zank had not expected to encounter a rogue who ignored conventional tactics, and he was caught off guard, allowing Liam to close in. He instinctively wanted to use Blink, but forced himself to stop; given his magical expertise, using Blink on a ship was not a wise choice.

With no other option, Zank raised his staff to block the downward strike, while his left hand instantly condensed a mass of frost. Ignoring the sword sweeping toward his waist, he slammed the gathered freezing energy into the deck beneath his feet.

Liam's blade successfully struck Mr. Zank's abdomen. The Frost Armor emitted a crisp shattering sound, and thin trickles of blood seeped out from the dense web of cracks.

Yet, at the same moment Liam landed the blow, the frost energy in Mr. Zank's hand slammed into the deck. In an instant, a massive flower of solidified frost bloomed beneath their feet, enveloping both of them in a burst of intense, freezing air.

An ice flower was indeed beautiful, but for Liam, who was caught in the middle of it, it was far from comfortable.

Sacrificing himself to take a hit, Mr. Zank unleashed a Frost Nova to break free from Liam's reach, though this exchange allowed him to gauge Liam's true strength.

Although the two longswords were merely common steel, they had shattered his Frost Armor in a single blow; the force behind that strike was not to be underestimated!

Even though Mr. Zank was more than a tier higher than Liam, he felt it was not worth the cost to trade blows with a rogue capable of breaking his defenses on a sinking warship where they were forced into close-quarters combat.

Most importantly, within his line of sight, all the escort ships were already engulfed in flames, which basically signaled that the phoenix would return at any moment.

Thinking of this, Mr. Zank turned and ran without hesitation, leaping from the side of the ship into the sea. While in the air, he waved his staff repeatedly. A massive blue magic circle flashed and vanished, and a Water Elemental appeared beside him, lifting Mr. Zank and swimming rapidly toward the distance.

The proficiency of Mr. Zank's escape routine left even Liam, a rogue himself, stunned, and the speed at which the Water Elemental glided over the water made Liam look at it with newfound respect.

So, a Water Elemental can be used as a boat? And looking at that speed, it's much faster than an average ship. This thing seems quite practical; I must find a way to get a few.

Thinking of his cards, a bold idea took shape in Liam's mind.

However, no matter how many ideas he had, he could not execute them now. Liam looked around and finally understood why he hadn't felt the cold when the Frost Nova hit him.

The hull, originally seven or eight meters high, was now less than half its size due to flooding, and the pirates who had been running about to fight the fire had abandoned ship. All Liam could see now were the thick smoke and raging flames surrounding him.

No wonder he ran faster than a rabbit!

Liam maliciously guessed why the mage had turned and run, naturally linking that behavior to the spreading inferno.

Being immune to the flames on Coral did not mean he could resist ordinary fire, and Liam now felt his entire body being steamed and scorched. Realizing he could not delay any longer, he blew his whistle and summoned Coral.

Leaping from the railing amidst the encroaching fire, Liam reunited with the returning Coral, preparing to flee the battlefield.

But before Coral could flap her wings and take to the sky, a very familiar voice reached Liam's ears: "Hey! You, don't even think about running away this time!"

The crisp voice made him freeze, and he couldn't help but turn toward the direction from which it drifted.

"I don't care. Try running if you want, but I've already memorized your face. Let's see if a full-scale bounty across all of Kul Tiras can catch you."

Looking at Jaina, who stood before him holding a recording crystal with "threat" practically written on her face, Liam felt a throbbing pain in his temples.

Liam had no idea what kind of scheme this girl was cooking up, but he knew one thing: if he really left her here, his wanted posters would be plastered all over Kul Tiras by tomorrow.

"Listen, big sister, I don't even have a place to go myself. What's the deal with you following me?" Liam felt helpless. He was usually the one acting like a rogue, but this time he had run into someone playing the same game—and a pretty young woman he couldn't easily rough up, at that. He was completely out of ideas.

"I think you're a security risk to Kul Tiras. Nothing good ever happens whenever you show up, and I have to make sure you aren't here to cause trouble." Jaina sounded righteous, though she probably didn't even believe her own excuse.

"Well, look for yourself, I can't take you with me." Liam pointed at Coral, his meaning clear.

"I have Bobo, he can carry..." Jaina patted the round Water Elemental beneath her. She had chased him here riding this creature; it was the first elemental being she had summoned from the Elemental Plane of Water, and they had been together for quite some time.

They say young animals are all cute, but he hadn't expected a small-sized Water Elemental to look so adorable and silly. Those big eyes, paired with its round, chubby frame, lacked any of the ferocity it would have when fully grown.

"That ball of yours? How long would it take to swim to the shore?" Liam slapped his forehead, speechless.

"..." Jaina simply pursed her lips, remaining silent.

"Hey, what are you doing!" The silence didn't last long before it turned into a shriek.

The reason, of course, was not that Liam had done anything lewd, though the reality was perhaps even more brutal.

Under the astonished gazes of the many sailors on the Mist of the Maiden, Liam, who could no longer tolerate this paranoid little girl, pulled out the chain he had just used and wrapped it tightly around Jaina.

Then, that unscrupulous "kidnapper" simply hung their most precious princess beneath Coral's claws and flew off into the distance toward the mainland...