-Marcow Bonanza.

  Born in the Empire of Nexia, he soon became a successful silk merchant, just like his father. The work paid well and he was content with his life, but there was one whim he just couldn't shake.

  -He wanted to become an adventurer.

  It excited him. The mere thought of battling monsters and seeing the world was tempting. He certainly had the resources to acquire excellent equipment and advance easily through the ranks. He already imagined himself becoming a Diamond adventurer, or even better.

  “I'm going to be so good they'll create a rank just for me!” he kept repeating to Frec, the family butler, who always followed him around like a puppy. He had been in the Bonanza family's service for about ten years, but he had never believed that that spoiled brat Marcow would actually try to work, getting his hands dirty.

  However, there were several technical problems that made it impossible to realize his dream,

  The first was his complete lack of manual dexterity. Marcow was inept, unable to wield a sword, raise a shield properly, or even shoot an arrow. Second, his cowardice; Marcow Bonanza was afraid of even his own shadow, let alone facing goblins or trolls. His first mission? A complete failure. He was only supposed to eliminate three slimes, but he ended up tripping and breaking his own arm.

  His dream remained in the drawer where he had decided to hide it.

  Marcow Bonanza returned to his work as a merchant—which was boring, but at least it brought in a lot of money. However, even this career wasn't without its dangers. As a man of modest wealth, he was constantly targeted by thieves or bandits. A normal man would barely have been able to handle the pressure of such a life, but a coward like Marcow? He risked wetting himself every time he thought about it too much.

  It couldn't go on like that.

  Thanks to a contact in the Merchants' Guild, Marcow Bonanza managed to find a good deal in one of the Ashen Kingdom's frontier cities, where it was much easier and safer to work. The problem was travel; how to cross the Plains of Mort without encountering raiders, demi humans or undead? He would have to hire adventurers, but what group would accept such a dangerous assignment?

  He was at sea, but fortunately his faithful butler Frec came to his rescue, telling him of a new adventuring party consisting of just two individuals: the Marquises of Darkness. The leader of the duo was a large knight in black and red armor, while the other was a woman of exquisite beauty, nicknamed "Poetess" by some of her acquaintances.

  Those two were amazing! In less than a month, they had eliminated extremely dangerous monsters like Giant Basilisks and Thousand-Wound Bears, routed a gang of brigands and rescued hostages, not to mention their greatest achievement: the elimination of a cult that had been causing trouble in the city of Arel .

  The fact that there were only two of them made such feats even more astonishing. Driven by his love of adventure, he decided to draw up a contract with them, hiring them as his guards.

  So here it was: Marcow Bonanza was aboard a wagon with the two wonders. For the first time in his life, he felt safe, even though he was away from home. Everything was going swimmingly, until...

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  The gigantic ghost ship approached slowly and relentlessly, its nose tilted toward them. The merchant Marcow had clung to his faithful butler Frec, trying to calm his confirmed cowardly agitation. He was already cracking his teeth, so hard he was banging them. In that grim situation, only one man could save them.

  “M-Mister Amon! Please, do something!”

  “Don't worry. I'll take care of the monster.”

  “Why bother with the monster? We have to flee from here!”

  “No, he would catch up with us in a moment.”

  The knight's response sent a shiver down Marcow's spine, and he began to shout even more insistently. He had sacrificed so much to get this far; he wouldn't die in a desolate land like this.

  “Then do something! Are you a Platinum-rank adventurer or not? Act! Now!!!!!”

  “Don't worry, Mister Bonanza. I'll take care of that monster, and Alcina will stay here to protect you.”

  The knight answered him in return, beginning to advance towards the flying vessel.

  “Be careful, Alcina! They mustn't get even a scratch!”

  “Roger-Doger, boss! I'll take care of this!”

  The girl's energetic response calmed Marcow's cowardly heart. Perhaps those two were truly marvelous after all. It was costing him a fortune to keep them in his service, but he couldn't do without them in this situation.

  “Alcina, summon a pair of rock golems and stay here to defend our client. We wouldn't want anything to happen to him, would we?”

  The girl obeyed and waved her staff. Out of nowhere, two large, human-shaped pieces of rock emerged from the earth, standing to defend the wagon. They were about three meters tall, with sturdy, robust bodies. They stood stoically, waiting for some monster foolish enough to attack them.

  Marcow was so terrified he wanted to scream. The only reason he hadn't fled yet was that the two monsters hadn't yet shown any hostile intentions.

  “M-Mister Amon? Are you sure these things can be useful?”

  His question fell on deaf ears, however. The knight had already walked away, leaving them alone with Alcina, who had begun to flutter under a spell around the carriage. Even in that state, the girl was a beautiful sight, but his cowardice made it impossible for him to enjoy the moment.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Finally the character of Amon is proving useful.

  Almodeus was pleased with how the situation was evolving. Defeating a skeletal vessel of that size would certainly be a major blow. Amon's reputation would increase, and consequently, the contacts he would be able to make, allowing for greater intelligence gathering.

  He would keep the most important nobles in mind, using his powers to uncover their secrets and provide C with all the knowledge she needed to manipulate them to her advantage. So much still loomed large in that world, and therefore posed a danger to them. They needed to gather as much information as possible to avoid being left unprepared in the future.

  If we can't leave, then I'll have to conquer this world.

  It was the only way to avoid negative repercussions. If they played their cards right, they would be able to rule that world without anyone seeing them as evil conquerors, thus giving to those who called themself Heroes an excuse to come and bother them.

  Almodeus clenched his fists at the mere thought of that title. In his life, he had faced hundreds of Heroes: some were stronger than average humans, others champions of justice deluded by the belief that they could change the world, and others outright archangels. Through centuries and centuries of battle, he had understood one fundamental thing: They were not so different from humans after all.

  That was his take on the matter. Heroes? More idiots who thought they were the champions of the world. They trembled with fear, they could die, and they believed themselves superior to others in one way or another—what difference were they from the common human?

  Almodeus came to only one answer: power.

  It was their level of strength that guided their beliefs and actions. Their death was inevitable; after all, they were facing beings far beyond their abilities, but were too blinded by hope to notice.

  Thinking about idiots like that makes me feel bad...

  Almodeus shook his head and continued to advance toward the flying galleon. He had to admit, it was truly enormous, with at least hundreds undead inside. One thing few knew about skeletal vessels was that the ship itself was a monster, with various abilities that empowered its undead allies based on their numbers. It also had a skill that allowed it to regenerate any undead it slew on board, effectively making them immortal.

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  Judging by its size, I'd say this Blackship is level 51. Almodea would have enjoyed fighting it.

  Almodeus's thoughts turned to his daughter, who was probably still asleep at the Fear Tower. She'd never been a morning person. She'd gotten into the habit of sleeping late to watch anime, risking waking up after noon the next day. However, Almodea had an evening engagement that day. The coachman C had hired was a double agent and wanted to lead them into a trap—so it was urgent to speak to him civilly and explain the situation to him and his friends in kind.

  -Well...Almodea would have done the exact opposite.

  Jokes aside, it would be a great way to gain insight into the Battle Arts, unique skills of that world. Almodeus was curious to know how much humans could improve by using them, and if it were possible to teach them to some of his subordinates.

  Smaug, Morello and Hardshell would have been the perfect candidates. For the former in particular would have been extremely beneficial in learning such techniques. Smaug already possessed an arsenal of 41 God-level weapons, of which he could use four simultaneously. How powerful would he become with the Battle Arts?

  The answer depended on how they worked. For example- taking a physical enhancement art- how much did it increase the physical strength? By a percentage statistic? Or by a fixed number? If it were the latter, Battle Arts would be extremely useless to them. Given the high level of all the members of the Fear Tower, any enhancement other than a percentage one was practically negligible, as it would be as if it hadn't even been there in the first place. It would only make a difference in extremely specific cases.

  It would be interesting to have some test subjects, but with Almodea you can never be sure.

  Almodeus continued to advance toward the skeletal ship, which was growing larger and larger. It must have been at least one hundred and fifty feet long. Several hatches were open on the sides, as it was shelling the army below. Since the appearance of that galleon, the human soldiers had been retreating further and further back.

  Maybe I should give them a hand, hoping to get something positive out of it?

  The knight drew his sword and prepared for battle, but not before turning towards nothing, as if someone were walking there with him.

  “Shaco, did you leave a copy of yourself guarding the wagon before you followed me?”

  "Of course! I am mad, not a fool!"

  The clown, who was standing invisibly next to Almodeus, answered with a laugh.

  “I'm so curious! I want to know what's going on!”

  “I like the spirit, Shaco. Anyway, I need you to do something for me.”

  “Ohhhh? Really?”

  “Listen to me carefully and do NOT do only as you please, okay?”

  After that stern warning, Almodeus began to explain his plan in great detail.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  The battle was fierce. The enemy advanced easily through their lines, aided by the airship that served as support. Each cannon shot claimed at least one victim among their ranks. Their heavy armor was useless against such a powerful weapon. Furthermore, to make matters worse, the enemy soldiers were skeletons, immune to fatigue and fearless in the face of death. Archers were useless, as arrows were of little effect against this type of undead. The best plan was to hit them with halberds as hard as possible, hoping nothing would rise to strike. They were completely at a disadvantage.

  -But Ambessa hadn't given up yet.

  As a good commander, she was on the front lines fighting relentlessly, brandishing the two large blades that protruded from her bracers. Those were among her favorite weapons, durable and capable of piercing enemy armor as if it were made of butter.

  However, strength wasn't enough in this case. The enemies were skeletons that continually rebuilt themselves every time they were torn to pieces. The main problem was the airship which, in addition to dropping undead relentlessly, continuously bombarded the battlefield, causing massive casualties and injuries among Ambessa's troops.

  Shit! These undead are too strong! My soldiers are holding the lines, but...

  She glared furiously at the galleon, which continued to soar undisturbed in the sky. Lacking artillery, any attack against that monster was completely futile, so much so that the soldiers had begun to lose hope.

  ...That ship is devastating my troops. How can I stop it?

  She didn't know what to do. The most logical idea would have been to retreat, but the dishonor would never leave their hearts if they did so. Dying in battle was the height of honor for them, but Ambessa had to reach the Kingdom of Pitova, she had to join her daughter and restore her family to its former glory.

  Ambessa couldn't give up, so she charged at some skeletons that were about to strike one of her men. She cut them to pieces with two sword blows, roaring like a ravenous wolf.

  “Keep fighting! To the death and even after!!!”

  Fleeing would have been the most logical course of action, but too many would have died in that unworthy manner. Fighting was the only way to reach her daughter without losing their honor, so they would do so.

  However, a cannon shot interrupted her scream, throwing her several meters back.

  “Ah! Damn!”

  She hadn't struck her directly, so the wounds were only superficial, but still hurt. Ambessa started to get up when a skeleton attempted to decapitate her with its saber, but Riktus blew off its head with a thrust of his spear, helping the woman to her feet.

  “Thank you, Riktus...”

  “You’re welcome, General. What shall we do?”

  "I do not know."

  Ambessa gritted her teeth at her own words. She hated herself for her weakness in that moment; she wasn't worthy of the name she bore.

  “I know it will look bad, but it would be better if we retreated. This is not a battle we can win.”

  “I can't blame you for that.”

  She punched a skeleton and shattered it to pieces.

  "Order a general retreat! We'll regroup and attack again in the future."

  It was a mere excuse, so that any complaints about the row would be reduced.

  “Okay, General!”

  Riktus reached for the horn on his belt, but a second nearby cannon shot hurled him and Ambessa several meters apart. The former took the brunt of the damage, knocking himself unconscious against a rock.

  “Riktus! Damn it! You fucking piece of shit of a ship!”

  Driven by the blackest fury, Ambessa grabbed her companion's spear and hurled it at the galleon. It was obviously a completely futile move, as the thrown weapon stuck in the ground without even reaching the ship's hull, but that wasn't the true objective of the attack—Ambessa had only done it to vent the rage that was eating her up from within.

  “Die! Why don’t you die?!”

  Unable to hit the ship, the woman unleashed her rage on the skeletal soldiers, who, despite their numbers, were being harvested like wheat. The thought of retreating had completely left Ambessa's mind, and she had focused entirely on the attack.

  It was then that another cannon shot rang out across the battlefield, this time aimed squarely at Ambessa. This time, she wouldn't have survived if she'd been hit. No amount of Battle Arts or armor would have protected her enough—she would have died instantly.

  However...

  “Huh?”

  ...The shot missed. Or at least, it was deflected. The remains of the cannonball were scattered all around Ambessa, who stared with wide eyes at the colossal knight who had appeared before her.

  Did he...deflect the cannonball with a simple sword?

  In truth, the big man's sword was anything but simple, being nearly six feet long. It didn't look enchanted, yet it had managed to slice through a cannon shot like butter. Ambessa couldn't deny it—the man before her was certainly a marvel.

  “W-Who the hell are you?”

  Even though he had saved her, she couldn't trust the knight. He remained a stranger that, for who knows why, was on that cursed plain.

  “My name is Amon.”

  The large man replied, turning to her. His black and red armor shone like diamonds in the sun. Ambessa had to admit, the big man exuded the aura of a truly expert fighter. The knight's size alone was absurd, even compared to Riktus.

  “I'm a Platinum adventurer. I had an assignment, but my employer asked me to vanquish the undead. I apologize for intruding on your battle.”

  “T-There's no need to apologize...”

  She wasn't sure how to answer at that man, so decided to cut short.

  “I know I have no right to give you orders, so take this as a request. Could you take on the undead on dry land?”

  “Sure, but why? Wait! You don't want to—”

  "Exactly."

  Amon took a few steps forward, slicing through all the skeletons in his path with a single swing of his sword.

  “I will try to put an end to their attack by defeating the leader.”

  “You want to attack the ship? Alone?! B-But-”

  “Don't worry, Miss...er, ma'am. I'll get through this. You can even retreat if your losses are too high to sustain.”

  “W-Wait a minute, I-”

  The knight didn't give her time to respond. With a leap, he had already disappeared into the sky, as if flying.

  That man...He's not normal.

  Ambessa couldn't believe a human would be stupid enough to charge into a skeletal ship all by himself. She knew the so-called "Martial Goddess" could do it without a problem, but that man was only a Platinum-rank adventurer—he could never defeat an army of undead alone.

  Nevertheless...

  Ambessa's eyes shifted to the remains of the cannonball that had nearly hit her. It had been cut in two with a clean, precise blow—it would have taken extraordinary physical strength to do such a thing.

  He destroyed it without me even noticing. This isn't something Platinum-level...

  Something about the man didn't convince her, but she couldn't help it, since he'd already charged. It was obvious he was physically superior to a normal human; his height alone spoke for it. Even lifting a sword as long as his would have stymied many warriors, and perhaps Ambessa herself.

  Maybe he's a half-giant or some other mixed breed.

  The woman clicked her tongue and approached Riktus's unconscious body, huffing.

  “Well...it doesn't matter if he's human or not. Now I just have to buy time...”

  She grabbed her companion by the neck and gave him a resounding slap, waking him from his forced sleep.

  “Huh?! Ah? What?!”

  “Good morning, Riktus! Now get off your ass and give me a hand with the undead!”

  “B-But...and the retreat?”

  Ambessa shook her head and planted her feet on the ground, assuming a martial stance, ready to repel the approaching undead.

  “There’s no running away! Not now that we can win!”

  “What do you mean, General?”

  “What I said! It's a long story, and I'll explain everything later! Now, regroup your soldiers and organize a defense. We need to buy time!”

  Explaining what had happened with Amon's arrival to Riktus would be too complex, so it would be postponed until later. Now they had to focus on holding the line until the mysterious knight's return. The undead, once they had regained their composure, began charging at them again- and were greeted with a resounding punch in the face.

  “Come on, you skeletal scum!”

  Ambessa's battle cry also infected Riktus, who joined her in the fight for survival. Even the fleeing soldiers were called back to the fray, allowing a defensive line to be immediately reformed. It was fragile, but it could hold for some time.

  The battle against the Skeleton Ship had just begun.