What emerged from beyond the sand dune was unmistakably a ship.
A sail was rigged to the ship's mast, catching the desert wind as it skimmed across the sand.
The vessel, nearly ten meters in length, looked like nothing more than an ordinary boat to any observer.
There were no oars or anything of the sort—in appearance, it was a thoroughly unremarkable ship.
"You hear people call the desert a Sea of Sand all the time, but... still, isn't this a bit off? Why is there a ship sailing on sand..."
Rei muttered as he watched the vessel bear down on them. Zarust spoke up beside him, weapon at the ready.
"A Sand Ship, huh? Damn, these Sand Bandits are a bigger outfit than I expected. I figured they'd just come at us normally."
"Sand Ship?"
"...Ah, right. This is your first time in the Felis Desert, Rei."
Zarust continued his explanation while issuing detailed orders to the adventurers, masking his slight surprise at Rei's question.
"Sand Ship. As the name implies, it's a ship that runs on sand. It's a Magic Item, so naturally it's not something you can get your hands on easily..."
"Heh. A Magic Item... huh."
The surprise from seconds ago had already vanished. What filled Rei's eyes now was the Magic Item known as a Sand Ship.
...And yes, it was a Magic Item. Rei's hobby was collecting practical Magic Items—not decorative ones, but items that could actually be used, particularly in combat. For someone like him, a Sand Ship was something he absolutely had to get his hands on.
"Just to be sure—I want to ask something. In the Kingdom of Mireana, if you defeat bandits, whatever treasure they're carrying basically belongs to whoever took them down. Is it the same in this country?"
"Hm? Ah, yeah, it is. ...Are you planning to take on the Sand Bandits by yourself?"
"Yeah. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't have minded helping you deal with these Sand Bandits, but with that Magic Item—the Sand Ship or whatever—it's not going to be that simple, is it?"
Zarust nodded at Rei's words.
Unfortunately, there was no Young Mage among Augusto's escort.
Some carried bows, but they were few in number, which severely limited their means of attack. The enemy, on the other hand, had set out with the premise of attacking from a Sand Ship from the start, so there was no doubt they had plenty of ranged options.
Considering all this, it was an undeniable fact that Zarust and his group were at a disadvantage.
Understanding this, Zarust turned his gaze toward Augusto.
Normally, escort matters were left entirely to Zarust's discretion, but with a special case like the Sand Ship, he felt the decision belonged to the employer.
"...That's right. Honestly, a Sand Ship is an extremely expensive Magic Item, so it's not something Sand Bandits could easily obtain."
Augusto spoke as he watched the Sand Ship draw closer.
His tone carried a tinge of gloom.
"Augusto?"
"...Rei-san. I believe that Sand Ship was prepared by someone who wants me dead. Of course, it's not impossible that the Sand Bandits came across it by chance, but..."
"The Elema Trading Company, was it?"
"Yes. ...I must be quite a thorn in their side."
"But that doesn't mean you're planning to just sit here and die, right? Besides, if that Sand Ship is as valuable a Magic Item as you say, what do you think the person behind all this would feel if it were lost?"
There was no mistaking that someone had given the Sand Bandits the Sand Ship—a high-value Magic Item—with the firm intention of eliminating an obstacle here.
However, judging from the personality of the Elema Trading Company's heir, as Rei understood it, he doubted they had truly given the ship away.
They probably just lent it at best. Once this job is done, they'll take the Sand Ship back. Worst case, they'll silence the bandits.
Of course, the Sand Bandits themselves were likely reading into that much. But Rei suspected they figured that if they killed Augusto and fled on the Sand Ship, they could claim to have fulfilled their obligation.
"As I mentioned earlier, the Sand Ship is extremely valuable. If it were lost, it would be no small blow to the Elema Trading Company as well."
Augusto's words were exactly what Rei had been hoping to hear.
A smile forming on his face, Rei looked at the approaching Sand Ship and spoke.
"Like I said before, any treasure held by bandits naturally belongs to whoever defeats them. And if I defeat those Sand Bandits—the ones riding that Sand Ship—then ownership of the Sand Ship itself naturally becomes mine. That's correct, right?"
"That's... yes, you're not wrong. But going by what you just said, are you planning to face the Sand Bandits alone?"
"Yeah. For your side, it means you don't have to fight the Sand Ship, and you can deal a blow to the Elema Trading Company in the process. I defeat the Sand Bandits and get my hands on the Sand Ship, a valuable Magic Item. The locals will be safer with the Sand Bandits gone. ...Not a bad deal for anyone, right?"
"No, I'd say it's the worst possible outcome for the Sand Bandits and the Elema Trading Company."
Zarust, who had been listening to the exchange, couldn't help but interject.
It was true, but Rei showed not the slightest concern and replied without missing a beat.
"Is there any reason to worry about the enemy?"
"No, there isn't."
"Right? Anyway, we're traveling together as guards, so let me handle those Sand Bandits. I've got my own interests in this, too. You don't mind, do you?"
At Rei's words, Zarust, Augusto, and everyone else could only silently nod.
Defeating an opponent who had brought out a Sand Ship with their numbers... while he wouldn't go so far as to say it was impossible, they would be taking one-sided attacks the entire time, so heavy casualties were a certainty.
There was a high probability that more than half the caravan would die, and the guards would suffer similar losses.
If Rei—someone who could fly—could step up and resolve the situation, that was by far the best outcome.
...Naturally, lurking beneath their willingness to rely on Rei was the cold calculation that since he had few ties to them, it would be better for him to die than their own comrades. But Rei was acting fully aware of this.
Confident that no one would object, Rei gave a small nod and turned his gaze toward Set.
"Set."
"Guruuu."
At Rei's call, Set approached and crouched slightly to make it easier for Rei to mount.
Rei hopped onto Set's back as usual and gave it a light pat.
Taking that as his signal, Set took a few running steps, flapped his wings, and soared into the desert sky.
The crew of the Sand Ship had surely spotted Set, but they showed no signs of altering course or going on alert.
"Are they getting bold just because they have that Magic Item? Well, that's fine by us."
In the Kingdom of Mireana, bandits would bolt the moment Set showed himself. The fact that the Sand Bandits aboard the Sand Ship showed no signs of fleeing was, in a sense, refreshing.
"Well, just because they're a new experience doesn't mean I'll go easy. ...Set, I want to get a preemptive strike in first. I want to secure that Sand Ship, so try not to damage it if possible. Can I count on King's Intimidation?"
"Guruu!"
For Set as well, this would be his first time using King's Intimidation against an enemy since leveling up.
Because of that, he flapped his wings with what seemed like a hint of eagerness at Rei's words.
The Sand Ship was closing in rapidly. The Sand Bandits on the deck naturally spotted Rei and Set bearing down on them.
"Hey, look! There's something coming at us from the sky!"
"Huh? The sky?"
One of the Sand Bandits, bow in hand, noticed Set approaching and called out to the man beside him. When the others turned their gazes upward... they froze.
"N-no way... that's... a Gryphon!?"
Whether the others heard his shout or simply noticed the approaching presence on their own, they all turned to look—
"Gurururururururururururururururuu!"
As if waiting for exactly that moment, Set unleashed his cry.
And it was no ordinary cry. It was the skill that had leveled up during the World Tree incident—King's Intimidation.
The instant that roar reached them, every Sand Bandit aboard the ship trembled and went rigid.
"Ah... a..."
A few managed to stammer out sounds like that, but they were a tiny minority. Nearly all of them were unable to produce so much as a word.
Watching from the air, Rei smiled with satisfaction at the expected outcome.
"Now I just need to stop the Sand Ship... how do you think we should do it?"
"Guruu?"
What should we do? Set rumbled in response to Rei's question.
If the Sand Ship kept going straight, it would plow right into Augusto's caravan. Since they had been targeting Augusto all along, that was a given.
"Then should we do something about whoever's operating the Sand Ship?"
Just as Rei muttered those words, as if on cue, the Sand Ship began to slow.
Decelerating as though someone had slammed the brakes, the vessel came to a halt right in front of Zarust and his group, who had been trying to clear a path.
"...Looks like we managed to pull this off in one piece."
Rei muttered with a sense of relief as he watched the stopped Sand Ship.
It would have been dangerous if the ship hadn't stopped, but Rei had a feeling it would be fine.
It was somewhat optimistic reasoning, but even if things had gone wrong, this was a desert—there were no buildings or structures nearby to worry about. Plus, Zarust and the others weren't being peppered with arrows from the Sand Ship, so evading wouldn't be difficult.
The Sand Ship was a Magic Item he wanted intact, but having the option to destroy it as a last resort was a significant safety net.
"Everyone safe?"
Just to be sure, Rei descended to the ground still mounted on Set and called out to Zarust and the others.
In response, Zarust and his group nodded back, their faces somewhat stiff.
Whether that stiffness was from the Sand Ship looming right in front of them, or from the roar Set had unleashed with King's Intimidation, Rei couldn't say.
King's Intimidation shouldn't affect allies. So it must be the Sand Ship.
Though the question lingered, he couldn't stand around forever.
The Sand Bandits aboard the Sand Ship were currently immobilized by King's Intimidation, but the effect wouldn't last forever.
"In the Kingdom of Mireana, you can sell bandits to slave merchants. How about here?"
"Eh? Ah, it's the same here."
Augusto snapped out of his daze at Rei's question and gave that reply. With that settled, Rei made his proposal.
"Could you help me tie up the Sand Bandits on the Sand Ship? And transport them to Gauche as well. In exchange, I'd like to split the money from selling them as slaves—fifty-fifty."
"...Are you sure? You'd be taking a significant loss that way, Rei-san."
"Yeah. On my own, I can't capture all of them alive. While I'm tying them up one by one, the others would start coming around."
"Coming around... so that loud cry from Set earlier was..."
"Yeah, exactly what you're thinking. Anyway, I'll tie up the Sand Bandits and haul them along, so I'm counting on you for that side of things. I'm asking you to handle all this busywork, so splitting the money is fair, right? Besides..."
Rei paused and turned his gaze toward the Sand Ship.
"My main objective—the Sand Ship—is secured, safe and sound. ...We don't know for certain who the original owner is yet, but picture this: the Sand Bandits are all captured alive without being able to put up a fight, and on top of that, the Sand Ship is taken right out from under them. How do you think the person behind this would react?"
"Driven by frustration, they'd certainly fly into a rage."
"Right? Plus, capturing them alive means we can interrogate them for information. ...Killing them is something we can do anytime. But once they're dead, we can't get anything out of them."
A wicked grin on his face, Rei had Set carry him onto the Sand Ship.
Watching him go, Augusto noticed that there was no bravado or bluster behind Rei's use of the word "killing"—just flat, matter-of-fact practicality. A chill ran down his spine as he realized just how many battlefields the young-looking Rei must have survived.
Completely oblivious to Augusto's thoughts, Rei lowered a rope ladder from the Sand Ship's deck and called for Zarust and the others to come up.