"Lilia, how many people are left in the ship group? Try to take the big ship," Leo hurriedly reminded.
He needed a big ship to leave this place.
He had already watched the shore and saw that only two soldiers and a dozen sailors and laborers were left. They were no match for Lilia and the barbarians.
"Okay." Lilia nodded and led the remaining barbarian warriors straight to the shore.
The priest also came over and said a few words to Leo, as if thanking him.
He didn't understand a single word, but the prompt message appeared again this time, and the barbarian's favor increased by 5 points.
He smiled and nodded.
The priest didn't say anything else and led the remaining barbarian women and children to clean up the battlefield.
Leo wasn't used to such bloody scenes, and he still felt a little uncomfortable.
But the barbarian women and children looked calm. They picked up weapons and took off the soldiers' armor.
To them, these were all sacred treasures.
Leo didn't join in. He stood on top of the canyon, looking at the center of the island.
There, hot air was rising. There was a circular volcano, and it was an active one. It erupted every few years.
The local barbarians saw it as the wrath of the fire god and were full of respect. They made sacrifices every year.
Leo just sneered at that.
"Should I give the native people of this world a little shock?" He said to himself quietly.
Where there was a volcano, there must be sulfur rocks. Potassium nitrate was easy for him to make, and charcoal was even easier.
Maybe he could make some of this for protection.
Leo felt a little excited. In this sea, the dangers weren't the fog or the storms, but the barbarian tribes, half-orcs, and... humans!
Yes, in his opinion, humans were even more dangerous than the barbarians.
He would deal with that later.
A fight was happening on the shore.
Lilia and the others had already started fighting the humans.
"Bad news, they're trying to escape!" Leo stood high up and saw a big ship raising its sail. The ship captain hadn't even gotten off the ship and stayed on board.
The ship was leaving, and they couldn't catch up.
But there was still another big ship.
Lilia and the barbarians quickly boarded the other big ship.
Massacre!
Yes, it was a brutal massacre.
All the sailors and laborers who fought back on the ship were killed. Even the slaves who were being held were not spared.
Leo frowned. He knew the barbarians were very exclusive and only accepted people from their own tribe.
He wasn't too upset about them killing humans.
Humans had hurt elves and barbarians more. Some were innocent, but he couldn't save them all.
Soon, the fighting stopped, and that ship was now under Lilia's control.
There were still a few sailors and laborers on the ship that she had saved.
This ship couldn't be driven by just her and Leo. They needed those laborers.
"Lock them up and give them water and food regularly. Don't let them starve," Lilia said, then jumped off the ship and joined Leo.
"This ship is complete and strong. There are over thirty people on board, mostly laborers. I've already taken full control of it, but the captain got away," she explained, a little frustrated.
"Don't worry. They won't cause much trouble. Their soldiers are all dead. Whether they can survive in this sea is another question," Leo said, watching the ship disappear into the fog, not taking it seriously.
Even if they wanted to take revenge on him, he wouldn't be afraid. He should already be far away by then.
At that moment, the old priest stepped forward and said something in a fast, confusing way.
Lilia frowned and translated: "They want to hold a ritual tonight to thank you for saving their lives. And they want you to stay here."
"Stay here?" Leo quickly shook his head. He said, "Tell them, thank the priest for his kindness. If they really want to thank me, help us prepare some fresh water and food. I'll teach them how to use fire."
He had found a few flint stones on the dead soldiers and gave one to the priest.
"Okay," Lilia translated again.
The old priest looked at Leo, sighed, and showed obvious disappointment. But he didn't try to stop them. He directed the barbarians to clean up the battlefield.
Weapons, armor, and even clothes from the dead soldiers were treasures to them.
Leo looked at Lilia and asked, "Lilia, do I look like a noble?"
They needed a solid identity while sailing on the sea. In this world, the powerful were either mages or corrupt nobles.
"No," Lilia shook her head immediately.
Leo frowned and continued, "Should I change my clothes then?"
He was still wearing a torn, rough tunic. It definitely didn't look like a noble. More like a beggar.
Lilia looked him up and down and shook her head again. "Not at all. Those dirty nobles smell evil. You don't, and you actually smell pretty good."
"Huh?" Leo was confused. He raised his arm to smell it. A stinky, sour smell mixed with the salty seawater.
Does that smell good?
He even felt like throwing up.
He looked at Lilia with a confused expression. Did elves have a different sense of smell than humans?
Lilia seemed lost in thought, her face slightly red, and turned her head to look at the distance.
"Maybe I should take a bath," he muttered to himself, then looked at Lilia and said, "Lilia, I'll teach you how to swim, and you teach me how to fight. Okay?"
"Sure," Lilia said happily. He needed to find the princess, and not knowing how to swim was dangerous.
Plus, it was something they had already agreed on.
The waves were crashing, and they walked to the beach.
"Hey, you're so clumsy! You can't even do the frog kick. Just dog-paddle, okay?" Leo's voice came from somewhere.
Lilia seemed to have a natural fear of water. As soon as the water reached her neck, she panicked and clung to Leo with all her strength.
Leo once again experienced the feeling of being dragged underwater from his previous life.
But here, the water wasn't too deep. Lilia was strong, but light. He just grabbed her collar and pulled her up.
"Let's practice in the shallow water first. I'll hold you," Leo said, not daring to go any deeper.
He remembered swimming was simple. He was thrown into the water by his father as a kid, took two big gulps, and without using his hands or feet, he just naturally learned.
He supported Lilia, lifting her flat and smooth belly and instructing her to move her arms and legs.
Every time he thought she could manage, he let go, and Lilia would sink immediately.
He suspected this woman wasn't made of water, but of stone.
"I'm not learning anymore. I'll teach you how to fight!" Lilia shouted angrily, slapping the water with a fierce look in her eyes.
It seemed she was bitter about his strictness and harsh words.
Leo had a bad feeling. But since it was his idea to exchange skills, he couldn't refuse.
The two of them picked up two sticks from the shore.
"Let's begin," Lilia said, and with a decisive move, her light stick struck down heavily.
Whack!
Leo felt a searing pain in his back.
"Damn it, you really hit me!" It felt like being whipped, but the force was lighter. Lilia had held back.
"Hmph. I taught you the same way. If you can't swim, just flail in the water and you'll learn. If you can't fight, flail in danger and you'll learn." She spoke coldly, clearly taking revenge.
"Is that the same thing?" Leo looked at her as she swung again and ran away.
"Stop!" Lilia shouted, chasing after him.
"You're not a qualified teacher!" Leo protested, but he was caught quickly and received another beating.
"You're not a qualified student either," Lilia didn't back down.
...
As the sun set, the two of them, exhausted from playing, lay on the soft sand to rest.
Leo was a bit sore, but there were no scars. Lilia had controlled her strength just right.
He sighed helplessly, just like Lilia was born not to swim, he seemed to be born not to fight.
"It seems this life isn't so bad," he muttered to himself.
The warm sunlight hit his skin, the soft beach beneath him, relaxed and pleasant.
"Hmm," Lilia nodded, and suddenly said, "Leo, what if you stay with me from now on? I'll protect you, and take you to live in the Elven Forest."
"Uh?" Leo was taken aback, turned to Lilia, and shook his head. "No thanks, elves aren't friendly to humans."
Humans had done a lot of harm to elves. It was said that over the centuries, tens of thousands of elf slaves had been sold. Whether it was the handsome male elves or the elegant and beautiful female elves, they were all sought after by nobles and the royal family, even symbols of status.
The elves' hatred for humans was unimaginable. If it weren't for him saving Lilia, she would've already been dead.
If he entered the Elven Forest, he would definitely not have a good ending.
Although he was lost, he still longed for the human world. He had modern technology in his mind, and even if he ended up in the worst situation, it wouldn't be worse than this.
"You're different," Lilia said, looking at Leo, her eyes flickering with some hidden meaning.