"What are you afraid of! Even if he is powerful, we outnumber him!" shouted a leader who appeared to be the head of the group, drawing his sword.

"Attack! Charge at him!" he commanded.

However, the people around just exchanged looks and none of them moved.

"What are you all doing! Why hesitate! Attack now!" the leader, sensing something amiss, lowered his voice.

"Leader, you go ahead... that guy lifted someone off the ground in an instant, his strength is no joke, and look at how thin he is, and his clothes... he looks more like a mage, this..."

"What if he looks like a mage? Nowadays, being a mage is a profitable occupation, don't you know? Wearing mage robes increases the chance of making money! Got it?"

"Leader is wise! Leader is right!" echoed the surrounding pirates.

"If you know I'm right, then hurry up and go challenge him!"

"Got it!"

I don't know why a lame joke could stir up the morale of these folks; it's probably some kind of telepathy among goofballs.

Seeing the pirates wielding their swords and charging at me, I could only sigh, then draw my greatsword and forcibly push back the encircling pirates, disarming the ones in the front.

"Tsk tsk tsk, can't you all handle it without me even trying?"

I chuckled at the pirates surrounding me.

"You... you wield a Greatsword while wearing mage robes! What's your game?"

"Hey hey hey, as a pirate, do you have the right to criticize what others wear? Aren't you a bit too idle?"

"Well... the situation on the field became tense. The pirate leader seemed conflicted, probably feeling embarrassed by the direct retreat.

However, the issue lay in the fact that despite these guys being stronger than the bandits on the Lost Continent, they still fell short compared to me.

Initially, I just wanted to inquire about something from them. We’re all strangers here. You see me and think I'm an easy target, come bully me, I could understand. We're all just trying to survive, mutual understanding is key, right?

But these pirates, I don't know what's wrong with their brains. One of them suddenly ran behind Aliyah and held a knife to her neck.

"You think you're tough! So what? Your girlfriend is in my hands now! If you dare make a move, I'll kill her!"

He finished with a proud look on his face.

The other pirates nearby seemed to approve, with expressions of 'well done' and 'this kid has potential,' leaving me baffled.

However, Aliyah kept her head down, lost in her own thoughts.

"I advise you to let her go, or the consequences will be dire. I'm not trying to scare you."

Looking at the pirate's foolish expression, I couldn't help but feel sorry for him.

After all, being that clueless, he was already at a disadvantage, and running into us further demonstrated that not only was he clueless but also extremely unlucky, right?

And he chose to threaten Aliyah, out of all people. If it was Oyado, you wouldn't even have a chance to threaten her, she is so much quicker.

But Aliyah was different; she belonged to the DPS type, equivalent to a DPS character idling around while you don't engage them.

Isn't that seeking death?

"Hmph! Now you're scared? Hand over all your valuables! We'll make a quick buck and leave this worthless place. Hurry up, drop your weapons, or your girlfriend is done for."

This guy still didn't realize his imminent demise, continuously blustering.

Didn't he realize his knife was changing color?

"Huh? Why is it getting hot?"

The pirate looked around in confusion, noticing his companions' eyes had switched from admiration to fear.

"What's wrong with you guys? What's happening?"

Just as he asked in curiosity, a clang was heard as his knife snapped off from the heat radiating from Aliyah's body, falling to the ground.

As he picked up his knife to inspect it, Aliyah suddenly turned and seized him by the neck, lifting him up.

"You... you... you!"

Aliyah raised her head... but there was something peculiar in her expression.

Normally, she would look angry, but... why did she seem strange today?

In a fight, even if her whole body was ablaze, she wouldn't blush, but now she seemed to be blushing hard.

Is she running a fever?

"You dare call someone's girlfriend stupid just now! Had enough!"

With that, Aliyah threw him out as if he were a sandbag, knocking down a row of pirates beside him.

Not only was he thrown out, those who got hit were also sent flying several meters by Aliyah, some falling to the ground, feigning fainting, or perhaps actually passing out.

The pirates were left dumbfounded, looking at each other and then at Oyado.

...

Oyado was smiling warmly, dagger gleaming coldly in her hand.

"My word, these people are all monsters!"

Suddenly, a pirate burst into tears, turned, and ran away.

Other pirates, as if spurred on, some discarding their weapons, followed suit in a coordinated manner, all fleeing in different directions, making it impossible for us to catch all of them at once.

Honestly, we greeted them with goodwill, and yet they came to compare the sharpness of their blades with us, inviting their own doom.

Now we're left to bear the loss.

Of course, it's their loss, not ours.

But we can't let them escape; I have many questions left to ask. Such as why this city suddenly turned into what seems like a ruin after many years, where all the people went, and so on.

So, I sprinted straight up to the man who seemed to be the leader just now.

He was still running ahead, but when he saw me suddenly beside him, he tripped over himself, tumbling to the ground clumsily.

"Please, please be lenient~" I said with a smile.

"Don't run so fast; we mean no harm, just want to ask a few questions."

"I, I, I, I... I don't know anything... I'm just an ordinary man..."

"Huh? I thought you guys were pirates? Why then the pirate attire with the robbery knives?"

"Well... we just... thought the garb looked cool."

"...a clever answer, but I'm not buying it."

This time, I pulled out Blood Moon, holding it close to his face.

Seeing the red blade of Blood Moon, the man turned pale with fear, looking at me with dread.

"So, since you claim to know nothing, what use are you?"

"Huh?"

"To save on food and reduce air emissions, I'll just take you out to protect the environment, okay?"

Seeing the smile on my face, tears streamed down the man's face.

He hurriedly clutched my leg, pleading.

"No, no, no, I know! I know what has happened here, please spare me! I'll do my best to answer your questions!"

"Oh, come on, wouldn't it have been easier to do this from the start? After all this posturing, do you think I'm not tired?"

I sheathed Blood Moon and asked, "I..."

"Alright, no more nonsense. Oyado, tie this man up."

"Yes, brother!"

Oyado bounced over and, in a second, tied the man up.

...

That speed... well then.

I looked at Aliyah.

"Um, calm down a bit, you see, the floor is almost scorched."

"Yeah..."

Her reactions are too extreme... what kind of being is she?

I just can't figure it out.

Aliyah nodded, and the flames on her body vanished.

Thank goodness for the quality of her clothing; otherwise, it would've been burned up.

"Let's go... let's go ask that guy some questions!"

After some time, Aliyah finally calmed down, then walked straight to the pirate leader's side, dragging him along to a nearby table.

Oyado and I exchanged glances, shrugged, and followed suit.