Chapter 9: The War Begins
______
Dreams are one of the central themes in this ocean.
Due to the constraints of island living, many people spend their entire lives without ever seeing the world beyond their shores. Even though the Great Pirate Era has not yet begun, many people set sail every year, driven by their hopes and expectations for the future.
These people are not all pirates, but the World Government has the authority to label any privately departing ship as a pirate vessel.
Wealth, fame, and fortune are not just ordinary objects of desire—they can also give rise to ideas that might seem strange or even illogical to ordinary people.
Kate's desire to be "the worst" and the unique reasoning behind it was an example of this.
This was the first time Kate had ever expressed her thoughts aloud.
As a slave, she had no friends in the community because of her race, and the doctors on Zou had already pronounced her terminally ill.
In Zou's closed environment, the few available doctors held considerable authority.
Their declarations carried the same weight as priests in the Mink tribes, where a diagnosis of being beyond help was treated as absolute truth. The environment created a mindset in which patients accepted such pronouncements as unchangeable fate.
Not long after leaving Zou, Kate was captured by a slave-hunting team. Her lack of knowledge about the outside world left her unable to imagine that anyone could change her situation.
Now, she expressed her feelings because she didn't want them to disappear with her in obscurity. In her eyes, Oran still carried the label of a "good person."
"Fill your stomach first. A starving person cannot realize their dreams, let alone pursue a goal as ambitious as yours," Oran said gently.
The concepts of good and evil are defined by socially recognized moral orders and personal beliefs. Kate's idea, in essence, was to eradicate all evil in the name of absolute justice—an extraordinarily difficult goal to achieve.
Especially in this world, where individual strength is often wildly exaggerated.
After a brief conversation to confirm Kate's current mental state, the group split up again. The young and able-bodied carried supplies, a smaller group worked on earthmoving tasks, and Oran led Shaq, Kuma, and Kate to the location of his ship.
The futuristic, sci-fi appearance of the ship left the three companions in awe, but Oran paid little attention. His mood had already darkened upon returning to the ship.
"Oran, is this your ship? It's amazing! I've never seen anything like it on Fishman Island. Is it made of iron?" Shaq asked, his voice filled with admiration.
"Part of it is," Oran replied casually. "It's no big deal. When we get to Fishman Island, I'll show you an even more impressive ship. Still, I'll miss this old friend."
Touching the railing of the ship, Oran felt a pang of sadness, but he quickly let go of it.
Oran was a sentimental person by nature. He disliked discarding items he had grown accustomed to, even if they were damaged or outdated. This ship, his first major project in Piltover, had been with him on countless voyages.
"Can't you teleport it along?" Shaq asked hesitantly.
They had all witnessed Oran's method of escape and understood that teleportation was part of his plan. Moving the ship seemed plausible.
"I could," Oran replied, "but it would take too much time. Teleportation makes a lot of noise, and using it for the ship would delay the evacuation of the people. Compared to their lives, the ship isn't that important.
Let me leave a parting gift for the Celestial Dragons on behalf of this old friend. One day, I'll settle this debt with them."
He turned to the group. "Kuma, Shaq, help me pack up the supplies on board and move them out. Kate, come with me for a moment."
Oran had already resolved to abandon the ship. After all, he had the ability to build another one. Only a few precious materials, which were difficult to replicate, needed to be salvaged.
Soon, Oran brought Kate to the engine room, the core area of the ship. The holographic projection equipment that had previously concealed the ship was also housed here.
"Kate, if I remember correctly, one of the talents of the Mink Tribe is electrical discharge."
"Yes, the friction of the Mink Tribe's fur can generate special static electricity. All members of the tribe can use it."
"Excellent. I need you to try generating and discharging it so we can keep this mechanism operational."
According to Oran's plan, he needed to modify the core of the Hexgate. This required a specific electric field environment to stabilize the Hexgate crystal.
However, some equipment on the ship had been damaged during their crossing. While the backup energy system was maintaining the holographic image, the electric field needed to be powered manually.
Kate's racial talent provided a much more stable solution.
"Is this how I do it?"
Kate began generating static electricity through the friction of her fur, transmitting the current as Oran had instructed. As the equipment adjusted, electrical barriers gradually formed, and the system began functioning normally.
"Yes, that's perfect. How long can you sustain this?"
"At this level, if I have enough strength, I can keep going."
"Don't overdo it. Allow for enough safety time. The electric field needs to remain stable."
Boom!
A distant explosion suddenly echoed. A plume of black smoke rose from the central area of the Valley of the Gods. The Celestial Dragons' massacre had officially begun.
Even from afar, Oran understood the meaning of the cannon fire.
"Time is running out. Let's test this quickly. If you feel fatigued, let me know immediately."
Oran focused on his work inside the cabin, conducting his experiments, while outside, Ivankov and Ginny also heard the sound of artillery fire.
"Hurry up! The Celestial Dragons' massacre will begin in an hour. This is our last window of safety!"
Ivankov, his face wrapped in cloth, waved a gun as he directed the craftsmen forward like a bandit. However, many of them had their families in tow, slowing their progress.
Despite this, some semblance of order had emerged. From the moment the Celestial Dragons announced the start of their activities, the island descended into chaos—a lawless zone.
The first act of the Celestial Dragons was to kill the island's king, fostering fear and panic. The once-unified Valley of the Gods fragmented almost instantly, and its people scattered like broken pieces with nowhere to go.
Yet, a small group of survivors began to coalesce around Oran. Though their organization wasn't precise, it was functional.
The holographic device repositioned itself, projecting screens at both ends of the canyon and above, temporarily obscuring the view of distant onlookers.
An observation post had been set up on a nearby mountain, keeping watch for anyone approaching. If a threat was detected, they would sound an early warning.
Meanwhile, Oran explained blueprints to the craftsmen, and a large-scale assembly project began in the canyon. With Kate's assistance, Oran worked on modifying the Hexcore.
The atmosphere was heavy, laden with fear and desperation. Facing the looming threat of death, the group clung to this last hope with everything they had.
As the sun rose and fell, the massive machine slowly began to take shape. However, the mood in the canyon grew increasingly grim.
The breaking point came when blood began flowing from the water source in the cave, pushing the oppressive atmosphere to its peak.
"I say, can that man really get us out? It's been a few days, and I haven't seen him since he explained the details of the blueprint."
Two men carried a massive beam toward the flying door frame, which was already starting to take shape.
The people living in this sea were generally much stronger than ordinary humans. Workers accustomed to heavy labor could carry heavy loads with their bare hands, even without lifting equipment. This naturally sped up the project's progress.
However, their hearts were still heavy with worry about the uncertain future.
"Do you think he'll just abandon us and run off by himself?"
"Shut up! You're working in shifts. Mr. Oran hasn't slept in days. If he wanted to escape, why would he waste his time on you people? He even gave up his own ship for you nobodies!"
The group did not respond to this, but angry scolding could be heard nearby.
The people here had been brought together in a hurry. Though they all shared the same goal, there was little trust among them.
Those who had joined later and had not seen Oran in days were becoming increasingly suspicious.
However, those who had been saved by Oran earlier trusted him implicitly. They were the ones maintaining order here, keeping the fragile unity intact. Shaq was among them.
He could never forget the first human who had genuinely praised him, and as a result, Shaq made it his mission to protect Oran.
"Alright, enough talking. Hurry and get those materials delivered. That section is almost done!"
The group pushed the doubter along to keep him from arguing further with Shaq, but it was clear the man wasn't fully convinced. Just as Shaq was about to pursue the matter, Kuma, who had been drawn by the commotion, stepped in.
"Shaq, this isn't the time for arguments. Oran told us we can't afford to fight amongst ourselves right now."
Whoosh.
Before Shaq could respond, the sound of a tree falling echoed from the nearby mountaintop. Both Kuma and Shaq froze.
The fallen tree was one of the warning signals set up by Oran. Its collapse meant that the Celestial Dragons had breached the area and were closing in on the gathering place.
"I'll go and distract them. I've got the highest bounty here—I should be able to draw their attention."
"Kuma, you—"
"I don't want to see anyone else die in front of me. Pass the message on to Oran and Ivankov."
Kuma put down his materials and prepared to act as a decoy, but just as he started moving, Ginny appeared, running toward them.
"Kuma! Good news! The pirates have finally arrived! Once they start causing chaos, we can take advantage of the situation and execute Plan Two to steal the prizes!
Have you seen Brother Ivan? Oran has been working non-stop—it's time for us to act too!"
Ginny, who had been monitoring the Den Den Mushi communications, had rushed over the moment she received the news. But she couldn't find Ivankov. At that moment, both Ivankov and Oran arrived.
"Hey, I've got some good news for everyone," Ivankov announced cheerfully. "Oran has completed the core transformation. As soon as the framework construction is finished, we can finally get out of this hellhole!"
The Celestial Dragons were approaching the canyon, the pirates were preparing to land, and the Hexgate core had been successfully modified. All of these critical developments were happening simultaneously.
Facing the imminent chaos, Oran chose not to stay idle.
"Well, it seems I don't even need to go looking for a Celestial Dragon—they're bringing themselves right to my doorstep. Isn't that convenient?
Alright, everyone, let's get moving.
It's time for our stage to begin."