Unedited chapter. It will be edited soon.

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The ocean was gigantic, practically encircling the world and reaching every continent. Seen from above, this world was like an island, but of gigantic proportions.

The territories of these Dukes were just on the other side of the Dusk Mountains. There were only two ways to reach them. The most viable option recently was to skirt the entire mountain range. Going from the Capital to the territories of the Duke of the South, then entering the part of the southern continent recently conquered by the Queen and Duke's troops, to finally be able to skirt the entire mountain range.

In doing so, you would enter the territories of the Vampire Duke, another of the territories that border the southern continent.

Now, doing that would take too long; it is a route that most merchants take, but it is not viable in this case. Circumnavigating all of that would take a month or more.

There is another route, which involves traveling along one of the most dangerous roads in the world, the Cursed Road of the Winged Pirate.

It is located between two mountains in the mountain range. Initially, it is a safe road, but once you enter a tunnel approximately 189 kilometers long, the situation becomes complicated.

The Winged Pirate is a mocking name given to a group of pirates who operate in this area. The name has nothing to do with flying, as they actually operate from underground. They are the most bloodthirsty and dangerous group of pirates around, as they are Cursed Walkers and possess great strength.

It is said that the Winged Pirate himself could be a demigod, a bloodthirsty one who enjoys dismembering his victims.

The only people who pass through there are those with too high a status, such as the King or the Duke of the South.

Well, there's a third group passing through there too.

"Are we going to take the Cursed Road?" Garner asked from outside.

Alaric simply replied with a yes. "It's fine. Just keep driving. Once we pass the road, wave my family's flag and that's it," he replied casually.

Garner frowned, worried. Without the king, passing through here was like tempting death, and he was protecting a prince.

He had to be on high alert.

Even Ryan and Cecily frowned.

"Will it be okay to pass through here?" she asked. Even her family didn't want to mess with a troublemaker like that pirate.

Alaric looked at Ryan before answering.

"They're not as bad as they're made out to be."

"They're not that bad?" Ryan raised an eyebrow in protest.

God, even in the novel, that pirate was quite troublesome.

But he smiled as he nodded.

"They're pretty good when you get to know them," he replied.

They both looked at him, perplexed. Good people?

Did this young teacher have a distorted perception of "good," or what?

"Why do you think so?" Ryan asked carefully.

"Because I know them," Alaric replied plainly.

Ryan waited for him to say something else, but seeing that he really had no intention of talking further, he had to ask the question.

He almost forgot that this boy was as quiet as he was taciturn.

"What makes you think that?"

Alaric thought about it for several tens of seconds before answering.

"They live here because no one wants to give them a place to live. No one gives them work, and they have to survive because there are so many of them. They used to rob merchants to get raw materials for planting, but now they plant crops and charge a small toll to pass through here. They won't hurt you if you don't attack them," he assured him, speaking much more than he usually did.

Ryan blinked a couple of times. Was this boy really defending them?

Cecily couldn't believe it.

But Ryan felt that something in his words made sense, after remembering the novel.

Although these pirates had a deadly reputation, it was true that they did not usually attack on their own. There was always a mission that set out with the intention of gathering information about them and killing them, which meant that news of a massacre caused by that group would once again hit the kingdom.

But...

"What about the killings and entertainment with their victims?" Cecily asked suddenly. "I'm sure I heard that they once displayed the heads of their victims..."

Alaric smiled. "It's a poorly told story. In fact, it's news spread by those who want to kill Lord Maxwell. The reality is that all those 'victims' were wanted criminals who were fleeing to your lands and wanted to kill the pirates to take them over. They displayed them for a while and then sent the heads to the king, not as a sign of mockery, but to deliver the bodies of the criminals."

"How can you be so sure of that? It could be that..." Cecily tried to reply, but Alaric, for the first time, dared to interrupt.

"I was there at the time, Miss Larsen. Have you forgotten who it was who brought the heads of those criminals?"

Cecily tilted her head, confused. But then Ryan smiled.

"I see. Those heads were delivered by you, because they sent them with you. Now I understand. And to think that everyone in the kingdom considers you the one behind arresting those criminals." He smiled.

Finally, Cecily realized what it was. Somehow... it made perfect sense.

She nodded gently. "I see. I hadn't thought of it that way," she replied.

Alaric nodded. "Lord Maxwell is a kind man, I assure you. If we're lucky, we'll see him soon."

The journey continued.

Through these mountains, it would take about four days to reach the territories of the Royal Dukes, and from there they would only have to travel south for another two days to reach their destination.

Thanks to the horses' stamina, they were able to travel quite a long way, taking turns sleeping inside the carriage, which was quite large and comfortable.

The journey continued uninterrupted for most of the way, where they could enjoy beautiful snow-capped mountains on either side. The cold hit them, then the sun came out, and then night fell, until dawn broke on the second day.

It was around 1 p.m. when the carriage began to slow down, gradually reducing its speed until the horses were just walking.

There was a toll booth ahead, a few kilometers before the large tunnel.

Alaric was asleep at the time, but Ryan and Cecily were staring intently ahead.

"It's the pirates," Cecily said, frowning.

Honestly, he would like to avoid fighting, since he didn't bring many people. Still, if he had to fight pirates, it would be interesting.

"Something's wrong," Ryan said suddenly.

There were many pirates on the road, and there were even bodies scattered along the way, bleeding. Many were dead.

When the pirates saw the carriage approaching, they stepped into the middle of the road to stop it, so the carriage drivers stopped.

"Is there going to be a fight?" Cecily asked, pulling her scepter from behind her back, but Ryan stopped her.

"No, wait..." He looked more closely.

Two of the drivers quickly got out of the carriage and ran toward the pirates...

"What happened?" The first man approached one of them and grabbed him by the stomach to hold him up, as he was about to fall.

Seeing how badly he was injured, he immediately gave him a potion to drink.

He realized that many of those present were in a sorry state, so he was shocked and quickly threw several potions at them.

"Take these quickly, they're top-notch!" he shouted.

They didn't hesitate and immediately drank them.

Then he looked again at the man he was holding. "What the hell is going on? Why are you all hurt?"

The man, pale, squeezed his arm. "Sir... the Royal Dukes are working with strange people to kill us... they want us to be their slaves... please..." As he tried to speak, blood rose to his throat and he couldn't help but vomit.

He couldn't finish speaking, as he immediately fell unconscious.

The chaos outside made Ryan and Cecily frown. Could it be that what Alaric said was true?

So they shook him to wake him up.

"Something's wrong with your friends," Ryan said.

Alaric frowned and shook his head to wake himself up, then got out of the carriage, followed by Ryan and Cecily.

He quickly ran towards his subordinates.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Young Lord, the Royal Dukes seem to be allied with strange people. I didn't understand much of what he said, but it seems they want you to be their slaves."

"Slaves?" Alaric frowned and quickly glanced around at the people nearby.

They had just died.

The culprits must be nearby, but it was difficult to search for them in a place like this.

Alaric soon frowned when he noticed a familiar face lying on the ground and ran towards him.

"Mr. Milo..." His heart sank a little, and he bent down to check his breathing...

He was dead.

There appeared to be a piece of paper in his hand, which he grabbed.

His name was written on it.

He clenched his fists tightly, crumpling the paper in his hand.

"What's wrong?" Ryan asked.

"Mr. Milo was an envoy of Lord Maxwell, an eloquent man with a good heart and a great teacher. He taught me everything I should do to never fall into the cursed specializations... or to never become a Polluting Monster." He whispered softly. His heart was calm.

Stay calm in anger, that will help you avoid the curse... Lord Milo's most famous saying.

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