Just to be sure, Alon asked, "What's the chance the information is wrong?"
"It seems there is none."
Hearing Evan's firm reply, Alon fell silent.
'…Why did Ladan suddenly become a pirate?'
He had sent Ladan to the port city of Raxas partly because of the boy's special talent for tracking—but mostly because Ladan belonged to the Sea God Clan.
In the game's lore, the Sea God Clan was one of the rarest existences on the entire continent. They looked human on the surface, but their true nature wasn't easy to discern unless one had deep knowledge.
Alon, who had cleared the game multiple times and studied every scrap of lore, knew exactly what Ladan was. That was why he recommended the profession of treasure hunter.
A member of the Sea God Clan could breathe underwater. Combined with Ladan's tracking abilities, finding submerged relics would be as natural as breathing. And treasure hunting—once you struck even a single jackpot—meant living comfortably for the rest of your life.
To help him on that path, Alon even gifted Ladan a relic specialized for tracking.
But instead of becoming a treasure hunter…
Ladan had become a pirate.
And not just any pirate—one of the great captains of the Seven Archipelagos.
"He's now a bigger figure than the Count of Palatio ever was…" Alon muttered.
"Indeed," Evan agreed.
The Seven Archipelagos were essentially seven small kingdoms floating on the sea, each ruled by a pirate lord. Their combined naval might was so fearsome that even the Empire, famed for its armies, couldn't ignore them.
The captains of the archipelagos were superhuman beings—on the level of swordmasters or legendary warriors. And the current generation was said to be even stronger than those of the past.
'How on earth did Ladan manage to kill one of these monsters?'
Ladan's talents were not in combat. It made no sense.
But then, Alon arrived at an answer.
'If he recovered prime relics from the old era… then maybe.'
The ocean near Raxas was filled with ancient relics of unbelievable power. Alon knew this well—he had once spent three days grinding the treasure-hunting mini-game just to retrieve one.
So if Ladan had used some submerged relics to defeat a captain, rise to the top, and claim an island…
…it wasn't impossible.
Even so, Alon pressed a hand against his eyes and exhaled quietly.
He had anticipated unpredictable outcomes when he released the Five Sins into the world. Nothing ever went exactly as planned. Still, the bitter taste lingered on his tongue.
Summer.
Past the glittering waves of Raxas—the Duchy of Corkia's greatest maritime city—lay the Seven Archipelagos.
Once, they were united under a single ruler: the first Pirate King, Kaldean T. Braven. After Kaldean died of heart disease, the seven islands splintered, each claimed by a different captain. Generations later, they had become the infamous pirate haven known across all seas.
Ladan now stood atop the cliffs of the First Island—formerly ruled by Alcryde Markney, the superhuman pirate known as "The Slayer," blessed by the Emperor through sacrificial rites. Ladan had killed him and taken his place.
A soft sigh left Ladan as he surveyed the massive island.
Despite being a pirate settlement, the First Island was strikingly well-organized. Houses spread out across the land like scales, surrounded by high cliffs that formed a natural fortress.
But Ladan's mind was far from peaceful scenery.
It was filled with unease.
'What exactly is the Great Moon?'
He had never given it much thought.
Not because he was loyal—he wasn't—but because it simply didn't matter to him. Yet he was grateful. Without the Great Moon, he would have been captured by the slave traders, mutilated, experimented on, discarded.
Without the Great Moon, he never would have met Yutia—the one who helped him unlock his abilities.
So yes, he was grateful.
But he obeyed the Great Moon only because Yutia asked him to. "Everything is for the Great Moon"—to Ladan, this was simply obedience, not devotion.
Which was why, when the Great Moon issued a direct command for the first time, Ladan had resisted internally.
Like Seolrang before him, he had believed that going to Raxas held no meaning.
Because Ladan had far too many enemies.
Revenge against the "black ones" who annihilated his clan on their nameless island. Revenge against the hunter who murdered his parents and sold him into slavery.
Becoming a treasure hunter had nothing to do with revenge. Even the relics gifted to him didn't seem useful for vengeance.
…Until he discovered the truth.
That the captains of the Seven Archipelagos were the ones who killed his parents.
He realized this easily.
Each captain wielded the power of the Sea God Clan. Though the world believed they gained power from the Emperor's blessings, the truth was far darker—they had sacrificed their own body parts in a ritual to receive strength from the sea god Claiod.
Ladan immediately ran to the central plaza of Raxas. There, on weathered and fading wanted posters, he recognized faces—not from the present, but from his memories.
The current seven captains…
…were the very ones responsible for the massacre of his clan.
His parents' bodies had been used as sacrifices.
The moment Ladan understood this, he was flooded with emotion—rage, joy, despair, gratitude, confusion.
He had never once told anyone his past. Yet somehow, the Great Moon had arranged everything, step by step.
As if fulfilling a promise.
And at the heart of everything was the relic Ladan had been given—the Goggles of Amrita, which illuminated relics hidden beneath the sea.
Some relics possessed the power to make up for the overwhelming difference between him and the superhuman captains.
Only then did Ladan grasp the Great Moon's true intention.
'Revenge… and domination of the Seven Archipelagos.'
The Great Moon had planned everything.
And had given him the strength to carry it out.
"For the Great Moon," Ladan whispered.
The words that once meant nothing… now carried weight.
"For the Great Moon."
Only now did they hold the meaning of absolute loyalty.
Three months passed since Alon learned that his "fifth son" had become something equivalent to a Somali pirate lord.
As summer's burning heat waned and the forests began to redden, Alon sat inside a carriage.
He was on his way to the grand church gathering held every two years at the Rotegre estate.
'I'd skip this if I could…'
Despite the long journey, unwillingness filled his mind.
The dark reputation of the Count Palatio family had faded after years of inactivity, but in its place came mockery—a different but still unpleasant burden.
Still, attendance was mandatory for all nobles, unless there was an exceptional reason. Missing the grand church was not allowed.
This year, Alon traveled with two eastern noble families, as was customary for safety. Bandits, mercenaries, or opportunists often targeted traveling nobles during the church season, so moving in groups helped avoid unnecessary conflict.
The day passed uneventfully.
But the trouble came at night.
"Count Palatio, isn't it a bit much to have only one guard with you? Is it a financial issue?"
"If you're short on funds, perhaps we could help you."
"Ah… I suppose you inherited your title too suddenly. Your house must be struggling."
Alon stared at them in disbelief as the two nobles openly mocked him.