Chapter 15: Making Moves on Site

Komer also wore a warm smile. He never expected that Katrina, the red-haired witch who was invincible across the Central Seas, was not only famous in the pirate world but also a skilled practitioner of mental magic. Just from the first move she had used against him, Komer deduced that she had surpassed the power of mere mages and reached the level of true magi. Mental magic practitioners had to meet different requirements compared to other magic users, as they needed greater control over their mental powers. To some extent, mental magi placed more emphasis on self-mental training, which also carried greater risks.
No wonder this red-haired witch could dominate the Central Seas. As a mental magician, she had a natural advantage in maintaining loyalty and unity among a pirate group. It was no surprise then that even with the Magic Mirror and Magic Gunpowder he had provided, Gray Skull couldn’t completely defeat Katrina’s fleet in the Northern Central Seas.
“Miss Katrina, I’m just a wandering bard. I’m very interested in your legendary reputation in this region and would like to interview you to learn about your extraordinary life experiences, so as to gather material for my compositions. I was wondering if you might be willing?”
Komer’s polite demeanor surprised Katrina even more. Things were getting increasingly interesting—there was a bard who wanted to interview her for material to turn her glorious deeds into stories to be sung everywhere. Didn’t he know what she did? Katrina couldn’t help but smile. She realized this bard was no ordinary person, but it didn’t matter. On her own territory, she was confident she could control the situation, no matter who the other party was. Moreover, her intuition told her that he didn’t seem particularly hostile.
“Oh? Interview me? Sure, I welcome it. I wonder what aspects you’d like to know about? I’m happy to cooperate. After all, my Katrina Fleet also needs someone to enhance its reputation.” Leaning her elbow on the chair, Katrina grew more relaxed. Her left leg, propped up, displayed the intricately embroidered black dragon pattern on her pants, while her suede boots covering her calves added to her bold appearance. She seemed quite interested in Komer’s request.
“Um, I’d like to learn about various aspects. I plan to stay here for a while to observe the daily life of the Katrina Fleet that dominates the Central Seas. At the same time, I hope to use this understanding to better portray and highlight your great image. I was wondering if Miss Katrina would agree?”

With a smile at the corners of his mouth, Komer nodded in acknowledgment. This female demon queen was truly patient—still having the energy to argue with him. He was determined to see how long she could keep up this nonsense.
Feeling frustrated mixed with a hint of fear, yet maintaining a calm exterior, Katrina activated her mental detection skills on Komer for a long time. However, the various signs emanating from him left her uncertain. The chaotic fluctuations in his magical energy rendered her detection skills useless. Apart from confirming his immense magical power, she could only conclude that he also possessed strong mental strength, leaving her puzzled. Could this be a top expert sent by his opponent to confront her head-on, aiming to control her by first taking down her leader?
Growing increasingly uneasy, Katrina focused her combat energy while secretly elevating her mental power to its highest level, though she appeared composed and calm on the surface. This only amused Komer, who was already well aware of all the changes occurring in this female demon queen’s body.
Having returned from another world, the dark magic within him had reached a terrifying level. The magic left by Kenifer III was finally fully unleashed during this life-or-death battle that unlocked Komer’s infinite potential. Not only were Kenifer III’s magic and memories fully transferred to Komer’s body and mind during this clash, but the mental control powers that had previously not been absorbed by Komer also gradually merged into his psyche during this interdimensional struggle.
The ten days of solitude on Zogo Island also benefited Komer greatly. He, who had initially struggled to control the sudden surge in his magic, used this time to train diligently—meditating by day and reflecting by night. During these ten days, he sorted through and absorbed both Kenifer III’s past memories and the knowledge from the legends of the treasures hidden in Damorlensk Fortress. Now, although Komer couldn’t claim to have been completely transformed, he no longer feared facing Lorenzo or Noyora.
This female demon queen, whose strength continued to grow, might far surpass him in martial arts, but her mental magic power paled in comparison to his. It was clear she had realized he was no weakling, but she still didn’t understand his true intentions.

Looking at the opponent’s ambiguous smile, with arms crossed in an arrogant manner, Katerina felt a chill in her heart—truly a peerless master! Facing her own combat energy that was almost taking tangible form, he showed an utterly indifferent and bold attitude. Of course, Katerina didn’t believe he could be unaware of the combat energy slowly emanating from within her. To maintain such composure, aside from having absolute confidence in his own strength, she couldn’t imagine why he would act so unafraid.

The sword in its sheath glided into the air in an instant, its movements fluid and free of any unnecessary hesitation. As it flew, countless light spots appeared around it. The surge of combat energy caused the sword to suddenly grow three feet longer, its bright light flickering erratically. The combat energy bursting from the sword rushed through the air, creating a harsh screeching sound due to intense friction with the air. A storm of sword energy swept across the sky, with dense clusters of light spots forming a complete light network that sought to envelop Komer completely.

With a slight finger movement, a silent dark shield appeared before Komer. He also wanted to test to what extent his strength had grown after surviving the ordeal of the otherworldly void. His powerful dark magic allowed him to wield it effortlessly without even needing any spells—a thing that was unimaginable before.

The dense clusters of light struck the dark shield, causing intense vibrations. The violent collision of forces distorted the air waves strangely. The dark shield shattered after barely holding out for a few moments. But before that, Komer had already unleashed his blinding spell in an instant.

Shocked, Katerina quickly retracted her sword and summoned a magnificent light barrier to protect herself entirely. She knew she had been careless this time—she never expected a bard to be a hidden master. Although her intuition told her he seemed uninterested in targeting her, relying on intuition had never been Katerina’s style; she preferred to control others’ fates.

Her opponent’s sudden disappearance made her realize she was dealing with an unfathomable magical powerhouse. Although the blinding spell wasn’t a highly sophisticated technique, its ability to be cast instantly without any sign of preparation filled her with unease.

When Komer reappeared from another angle, several thunderous roars followed the appearance of several giant figures. The spinning cross-spiral blades emitted shrill, eerie howls as three rotating discs clashed violently around Komer’s figure. Amidst the howling sounds and shifting lights, these were close-range, highly lethal weapons derived from the dwarves’ flying axes—especially effective in group battles, with their intersecting attacks being deadly in nature.

Komer hadn’t expected his opponents to react so quickly. Before he could launch an attack, the cross-spiral blades of several giants already wrapped around him. Using a graceful Dragon Soar technique, he dodged the combined attacks of the three blades, but the colliding blades immediately spun back around and charged in the direction he had dodged.

“Hey!” The earth elemental giant, who had missed his target, rushed forward. Its heavy, earthy body allowed the three cross-spiral blades to sink deep into it.

“Miss Katrina, your subordinates are quick to react. But it seems you misunderstand my intentions. If I truly had malicious aims, do you think you’d still have a chance?” As the earth elemental giant was torn apart by the three cross-spiral blades, their force was exhausted due to the earth element’s resistive power, yet Komer remained calm.

Waving his hand to stop the remaining giant warriors from attacking, Katrina tapped her sword thoughtfully as she sized up Komer. “It seems you’ve come with a purpose. Who are you exactly? What do you want from us?”

Komer pondered how to respond. His current identity seemed awkward. He still didn’t understand how he, who had fallen into a dimensional black hole, ended up on the altar of the Gigantia Temple. But it was certain that it was related to his purification of King Canifer III’s powerful dark magic. Perhaps it was King Canifer III’s immense power that had pulled him out of that dimension.

Now that he was back in this world, how should he face what had already happened? Although Komer wasn’t yet aware of the details in the Caucasus, he hadn’t heard any news of major upheavals along the way. Whether it was the Light Church blocking the news or it simply not having reached the south remained unknown. For some reason, Komer felt he didn’t want to contact the people in the Caucasus for now. Perhaps he needed some time to sort out his thoughts and relax.

“As for who I am, I think I’ll tell you only when necessary. For now, it needs to remain a secret. But you just need to understand one thing: I have no ill intentions toward Miss Katrina. As for why I’m here? It seems I didn’t come here voluntarily. It was Miss Katrina’s subordinates who brought me here—probably because they found me suspicious. But personally, I really wanted to see the famous Red-Haired Witch of the Central Seas. Well, she’s not too disappointing.”
There was an unmistakable hint of mockery in Komer’s words, which enraged the giant warriors who had lined up in formation. No one dared to be so insolent in front of their leader. Their copper clubs were clenched so tightly that marks were forming, and their blazing anger almost melted Komer.
Katrina also showed a rare look of seriousness, though her mind was filled with doubt. Arrogance doesn’t mean stupidity. Although she had broken the dark shield cast by her opponent using her combat energy, the dark power still made her realize the opponent’s immense potential. Could he be a Dark Priest? From some secret sect or the Charm Sect? The only well-known dark powers in this land seemed to come from these two groups. But she had always kept to herself and never interfered with them. What was their purpose here?
From what she knew, they seemed to disdain focusing on power struggles at sea. For them, the faith of the people seemed to be their eternal pursuit, and their constant goal was to fight against the Northern Light Church. Could something have changed?
“Let’s not beat around the bush. Since you’re here and we’ve already met, there’s no need to hide anything. Just spill it all. Let me, Katrina, figure out what you really want. A bard—what a nice title. A bard who knows dark magic. Surely you’re not expecting us to believe you really intend to write a biography for me, Katrina?”
Though uneasy, Katrina didn’t fall behind in terms of momentum. Her aggressive tone seemed ready to attack Komer.
The spearmen and archers in the side room had already taken their positions, and the three magicians in the fleet also raised their wands, silently chanting spells to prepare to cast magic. But Katrina knew that for this guy, these attacks might work on others, but for him, even if they could only delay or distract him, it would already be fortunate.

“Miss Catrina, I have already made it clear that I bear no hostility toward you or your fleet. My purpose in coming to Grande Corsica is to see just how strong Catrina’s fleet really is. Perhaps we may have opportunities to cooperate in the future.” Komer took some time before speaking slowly, “There’s no need for you to worry unnecessarily. If I had other intentions, with just my own strength, you and your men wouldn’t be able to cause me much harm.”