The Romance Fantasy Novel MC is Only Into Me

Ransell immediately threw himself into the sea in pursuit of Marigold, who had been caught by the pirates.
“Sir Ransell!”
“Someone from the land is overdoing it!”
“Can you even swim?!”

The cold seawater embraced his body through the rough waves. He felt his heated body pleasantly cooling down.
“Phew!”
The underwater scenery came into view all at once.

Colorful coral and schools of fish, sunlight sparkling on the water’s surface, floating wreckage of ships, and the corpses of pirates.
And Marigold, her neck caught in a noose, being dragged along.
She entered Ransell’s sight.

“Ugh! Puh! S-s-save me, someone, save me…!”
Marigold was rapidly moving away, and Ransell approached her by diving underwater.
Having lived in the archipelago and learned to swim to the limit was useful at times like this.
Ransell swam with fluid motions. After bouncing his body a few times beneath the sea surface, he quickly reached Marigold.

“Hey.”
He tapped her cheek lightly. The dying look in Marigold’s eyes returned.
“R-Ransell-sama?!”
“You still look alive. Wait here a moment.”
“Huh?”

Ransell swiftly passed by her.
Grabbing the rope tied to Marigold, he climbed aboard the ship in one swift motion.
“Damn navy bastards! They won’t be able to follow us now, right?”
“Hurry! Back to the base!”
“We caught a female navy officer, what do we do?”
“Pull her up immediately! We gotta take something to torment her with.”
“Yes sir! Huh? Why is this so heavy?”

A man clutching the noose peeked his head over the railing.
“...?”
“Hello.”
It was the moment Ransell and the pirate’s eyes met, just a paper’s width apart as Ransell climbed the rope.

The pirate’s eyes widened in shock.
“Ahhh! N-navy! Navy officer!”
“Navy?!”
The pirates who had been catching their breath all stood up at once.

“W-where? Where is the navy?”
“What? What’s going on?”
“They say the navy’s here!”
“What?”
“There!”
At that moment, all eyes focused on Ransell, who had just crawled onto the deck.
Ransell counted the pirates one by one. One, two, three... roughly thirty in number.

“Navy officer?”
“Just one?”
The pirates were dumbfounded.
“J-just you alone?”
“There’s one more down below.”

Though caught in the noose.
“A navy... officer, alone?”
“That crazy navy bastard dares to sneak into the Ankhel Pirate Crew’s main ship?”
“Want to be fish food?”
Understanding the situation, the pirates simultaneously drew their blades.
“Kill him!”

Knives, spears, harpoons, pitchforks, hooks—various weapons flew through the air.
‘Oh.’
Ransell reached for his waist.

The moment he drew his blade, a spray of blood erupted wildly.
“Gah!”
While three men collapsed, he surged forward instantly.

Cutting two more throats in one swift move, five men fell to the floor at once.
“What kind of idiot can’t catch just one?”
“Grab him! Hold him down and throw him over!”
The pirates, who had never faced a trained knight from the land, couldn’t even follow Ransell’s shadow.

The moment a blade flashed, some part of a body was cut off, rolling on the deck.
“Monster...!”
Only after nearly twenty had fallen did fear spread among the pirates.

Ssshhh!
Watching how he ghosted through gaps, slicing necks cleanly, it was hard not to lose morale.
“P-please spare me, spare me...!”

Finally, Ransell confronted the one who had thrown the noose at Marigold.
He threw down his weapon, about to surrender, but Ransell cut off both his arms in one swift move.
“Huh, huh?”
“Fish food.”
“...!”
He lifted the man and threw him into the sea.

“Aaah!”
A tearing scream was swallowed beneath the waves.
Silence settled over the deck.

“Now I finally feel like a proper navy man.”
Ransell slowly turned around, running his wet hair back.
About a dozen remaining pirates had all dropped their weapons and surrendered.

“Surrender! Surrender!”
“P-please spare our lives...”
The men raising their hands had long lost their fighting spirit. Only fear, as if facing a monster, remained.
“You.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Pull up the one down below quickly.”
“T-the one down below, sir?”
“Don’t make me say it twice.”
“Yes, sir!”

A moment later.
“Krrk!”
Marigold was pulled up, burping repeatedly from swallowing seawater.

“R-Ransell-sama, ugh, what happened... ugh!”
“Follow me. Since we captured this pirate ship, let’s check out the spoils, Merry.”
“The pirates... ugh, what happened to them? Ugh!”
“...”
.
.
.
“Wow!”

===========
— Empire Year 816, July 24th. Weather: Very Clear.
— Event triggered! ‘Pirate Ship Looting Great Success!’
※ Although it was a tough ordeal, Ransell Dante and his cooperation successfully looted a pirate ship full of silver, weapons, alcohol, food, and more! Tremendous achievement! Charm and Stamina UP!!
Below the pirate ship’s deck was a heap of looted goods.

“Awesome! Awesome, Sir Ransell!”
‘...Cooperation?’
Come to think of it, Marigold had climbed up the noose rope she got caught in. If that counts as cooperation, then it is cooperation.

Well, it didn’t matter.
After all, they had prevented her from becoming fish food or the pirates’ plaything. He willingly considered it cooperation.
“Sir Ransell! Look at °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° this! Chickens! Chickens!”

Marigold raised a cage containing chickens above her head, smiling brightly.
She looked so innocent it was hard to believe she had just been bloated with seawater.
“Pigs! Sir Ransell! There are pigs here too! And sheep! Is today a meat party or what?”

Chickens, pigs, sheep—there were all sorts of things.
Silver coins, spices, books, animals, an abundant mix of goods.
It seemed like a ship that had been carefully looted but got unlucky.

“What are you doing?”
“Hehe.”
Marigold was busy slipping a few silver coins and a sparkling jewel into her shoe.
“Sir Ransell, you should stuff some into your pockets too. There’s no chance for pocket money like this otherwise. This is the fun of being navy.”
“...”
“I’ll give you this. The priciest thing. A ring.”

Though it wasn’t hers, she generously offered a pair of gold rings to Ransell.
Marigold randomly slipped a ring onto his ring finger and started to grin slyly.
“Hehehe.”

I can clearly see what you’re thinking, Marigold.
“Hm?”
At that moment.

Marigold, rummaging inside for something useful, soon appeared struggling to carry a wooden box from the corner.
“This has a lock on it! Ugh, heavy!”
“Step back.”
“Huh?”

Marigold stepped back quickly as Ransell drew his blade.
Klang!
He cleanly struck the lock with his blade.

“Huh?”
Strangely, the lock remained intact without a scratch where the sword had passed.
“Looks solid...”

Marigold tried to smile brightly, worried Ransell might be embarrassed. That only irritated him more.
“Phew.”
Ransell closed his eyes.

Gripping the sword’s hilt, he steadied his breath.
The magic flowing along his heart spread throughout his body. A blue haze began to softly drift out from the blade.
“Sir Ransell, smoke is coming from your sword...!”
“Quiet.”

When the boiling magic completely wrapped the blade, Ransell opened his eyes wide.
‘Now.’
The blade traced a graceful arc. Boom! A ripping roar tore through the air, striking his eardrums.

Kuuuung-!
“Kyah!”
Marigold covered her ears.

Following the blade’s path, a long clean cut appeared. The ship’s ceiling, walls, and floor were neatly sliced through, causing the hull to tremble.
Even the sturdy lock could not withstand this time and was cleanly cut in half.
Kiiik!

The lid of the box slowly opened.
Ransell and Marigold pressed their faces close together, peering inside simultaneously.
“Huh? Ransell-sama, this is...”
“...?”

Inside was something completely unexpected.
“A flower.”
“A flower indeed.”
A single small flower bloomed in a bottle filled with transparent water, scattering sparkling light.

“Do flowers normally bloom underwater?”
Marigold moved her eyes closer to observe it carefully.
Ransell pushed her head aside and snatched the bottle.

‘What is this?’
Swaaa-!
A hallucination of pale purple pollen scattering outside the bottle appeared. A fleeting dizziness swirled in his head.

‘Where have I seen this before?’
For some reason.
It felt familiar. Not a good feeling. Much closer to a bad omen.

Ransell stroked the bottle’s surface with a dazed gaze.
“Huh?”
Suddenly, something felt strange.

His hand stroking the bottle was different than usual.
Not the calloused, rough palm hardened from gripping a sword for years, but pale, slender fingers.
Ransell suddenly raised his head, sensing something odd.

“Sir Ransell? Huh? Your voice... ahem, ahem!”
There was Ransell.
His own self.

“Whaaat?”
The voice that sounded like something he’d never make.
An absent-minded voice coming out.

It was Ransell himself.
“Ah.”
Only then did he understand the flower’s true nature.

.
.
.
“I’m back.”
The changed state quickly returned to normal.

The problem was the ripple this would cause in the archipelago.
Ransell already sensed it.