Super Magician: The Magic Network Collapsed Again at the Start

Chapter 74 Death's Roll Call
""

Colorful Ball - Lightning!

A blue energy ball streaked across the night sky and crashed into the crowd on the deck, unleashing a blinding burst of lightning.

[...Target dead, gain 18 combat experience...]

[...An elite member of the Amn Slave Hunters was hit, taking 16 points of lightning damage. Their current health is 6/22.]

The colorful ball bounced and hit a professional who was caught off guard.

'The slave-hunting team? They might be those adventurers from yesterday,' Anser guessed.

Don't assume that all members of the Shadow Thieves Guild are assassins. Thieves, thugs, swindlers, tomb raiders, slave traders... could all be members of the Shadow Thieves. It's normal to have multiple identities.

Moreover, the Nashwar family has close ties with the Shadow Thieves, so it's not surprising that they cooperate in their operations.

Onboard the Sea Shark, Captain Hells gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, his expression grim. The situation before him was not what he had expected.

He wasn't afraid of the elven ship. Although it was fast, it couldn't do anything to them because they had more cannons.

Don't underestimate this point. Apart from its poor accuracy, the artillery had a greater range and power than the enemy's flamethrower cannons. Of course, solid shot was not very effective against wooden sailboats, and ships were often riddled with holes but still did not sink.

However, that wood elf valued the ship more than his own life, so he generally wouldn't take risks; he'd retreat after suffering a bit of hardship.

Chaos erupted on the deck, and the noise gave him a headache. He couldn't help but shout angrily, "What are you afraid of? He's just one person. Let him stand there and kill us. How many can he kill even if he gets exhausted?"

The deck immediately fell silent, with only the sound of the wind and waves remaining.

The first mate's spirits lifted, and he shouted, "Everyone, prepare the artillery! Let's teach them a lesson!"

With clear instructions, the crew temporarily set aside their fears and got to work under the command of their superiors.

"boom--"

Another ball of lightning swept across the deck, striking a crew member squarely on the back. He was enveloped in electric light and collapsed straight against the ship's side, his breathing growing weaker and weaker.

The distant [Quisel] showed no intention of engaging in artillery combat, and the idea of ​​using cannons to shoot at a spellcaster lurking in the shadows was utter nonsense.

The first mate gritted his teeth and strode to the stern deck: "Captain, this can't go on."

“Nonsense, tell me your thoughts?” Hels said coldly.

"Hmm, they want to free the slaves. Why don't we bring the slaves aboard, tie them to the gunwale and mast, and have our men hide behind them? That way they won't dare to fight, forcing them into boarding action!" The first mate grinned cruelly, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth.

“You’re a fucking genius, get on it right now!” Hels patted him hard on the shoulder.

"Yes."

Soon, a large number of slaves were dragged out of the cabin and used as shields by the crew. They were then tied to the bulwarks, masts, and even gun carriages. Their cries and pleas could not be drowned out by the sound of the wind and waves.

"Come on, where's your magic...?"

Seeing that the spell had stopped, the crew members suddenly felt emboldened and became increasingly arrogant.

In the darkness not far away, a man and a horse silently rose and fell with the waves.

'Quite quick-witted.' Anser sighed inwardly. The slave trader reacted swiftly, hitting the nail on the head.

So far, his three colorful orbs have killed three people and seriously injured one, but that's all. There are forty or fifty crew members on the [Sea Shark], so a few deaths are insignificant.

But this situation is not unsolvable, because time is on their side.

Silverscale Bay is just a few nautical miles away. Once it's light, this scene will definitely be seen by other ships. The Deepwater City warships are just looking for an excuse.

However, in this way, this matter has nothing to do with him anymore.

'I won't be blackmailed by you.'

He gripped the magic orb and cast the spell again, this time with a magic missile.

""

Three flash missiles emerged from the endless darkness, drawing three eerie arcs in the air before bypassing the slaves and precisely hitting the three crew members.

"Bang bang bang-"

The screams startled the other crew members, who desperately huddled behind the slaves as if that were the only way to feel safe. 'Do you even know what a magical lock-on is?' Anser smiled faintly.

In theory, as long as he can see the target, the magic missile can hit it. The landing point is indeed difficult to control, but he just locks on and leaves the rest to fate.

Unfortunately, no one died this time, but even serious injuries are enough to achieve the objective. Without people, how can we fire the cannons, control the slaves, and fight boarding maneuvers?
The scene that followed resembled Anser's personal target practice on horseback around the boat; no matter how you dodged, there would always be some of your body showing.

He didn't discriminate; every crew member received the same treatment, one magic missile each. That was all. If you died, you were unlucky; if you survived, you should be secretly happy.

"stop--"

"If you don't stop, I'll kill someone!"

The first mate was furious. He grabbed a slave, chopped off his head with a knife, and blood splattered all over the slave's head and face.

However, no one responded, and missiles continued to pierce the deep night, making it impossible to defend against them.

He thought the other side hadn't seen him, so he killed two more people in succession, but it was all in vain, and even the rhythm of the missile launches didn't change.

"Turn off the lights!" Hels commanded, noticing the lights on the ship.

"Right, right..." The first mate suddenly realized, "Lights out, lights out, load the muskets, keep your eyes wide open, shoot as soon as you see them..."

Everyone's eyesight is about the same. If you want to cast a spell, you have to see me. If you get close, I can see you too. Then we'll fire a barrage of muskets. Let's see how many rounds you can withstand.

Soon, the Sea Shark was plunged into darkness, and every spark was covered by fireproof sand.

'You reacted quickly.'

Anser calmed his mental fluctuations. He had fired eight rounds of magic missiles in this short time, and he still had more than half of his magic power left.

Twenty-four flashbang missiles only took six lives, but ordinary crew members would feel considerable pain from even one hit and would be unable to maintain normal combat effectiveness.

The crew of the "Sea Shark" were as if they had been summoned by the Grim Reaper. More than half of the crew were injured, everyone was in danger, and their emotions were on the verge of collapse. Turning off the lights was just a way to prolong their lives.

He smiled faintly, patted the horse's back, and Nornos turned back to the [Quise], where Salian would now take the stage.

"Haha, well done." As soon as he jumped onto the deck, Salian ran over with a smile, his eyes overflowing with surprise. This was exactly the first mate he had always dreamed of.

"Captain Salian, how do you usually handle this kind of situation?" Anser asked.

“Well, we don’t usually encounter this situation.” Salian shrugged. In the past, they would retreat as soon as the slave traders started killing slaves.

It wasn't that they were soft-hearted, but that the slave traders were ruthless. Once, when he insisted on starting a war, the slave traders actually threw half of the slaves into the sea.

Anser twitched his lips, unsure how to comment on the [Quisser] and Salian. They might not really be afraid of you; they're probably just... a little annoying.

“This time is different,” Salian added, “The Sea Shark has lost power, so they can only rely on those slaves as a shield, at most killing a few to intimidate us.”

"Okay, fire."

"what?"

"The wind has died down, and the slaves are all on the upper deck. We'll attack the sterncastle and the hull. Don't worry about them fighting back; I'll keep an eye on them."

Salian frowned, worried about sinking the ship, but he also knew that the opportunity was rare. Under normal circumstances, wooden sailboats sink very slowly, and there would always be time to rescue the people.

"Alright, act immediately. We can't give them time to react." He made a decisive decision; they might only have one chance to strike.

He immediately ordered all the lights on the ship to be turned off, and then maneuvered the sailboat quietly toward the stern of the [Sea Shark], which was drifting with the current.

The crew of the Quesser are of all races, and most of them have darkvision, so nighttime navigation has little impact.

The flame cannon was mounted on the top of the sterncastle. It was not large, roughly equivalent to a 6-pound muzzle-loading cannon. The barrel, covered with magical patterns, was about 1.5 meters long, and including the carriage, it should not have weighed more than 1,000 pounds.

“It’s too dark. I need you to make a mark on the stern of the [Sea Shark], either with a rocket or a light spell…” Salian didn’t dare get too close.

"No problem, watch carefully." Anser wanted to see how the cannon was fired, but upon hearing this, he could only regretfully jump off the stern tower.

He mounted Nornos and galloped rapidly from the side toward the stern of the slave ship, getting so close that he could only see the details of the ship when he was more than ten meters away.

The slave crew members, who were on guard duty in the sterncastle, heard the noise, looked up, and saw a black knight running out of the darkness. They trembled in fright.

"I saw him, behind me—"

(End of this chapter)