"Desperate situations can make people give up, but as long as you show them a glimmer of hope, their survival instincts will push them to fight for it. Fortunately, I can provide that hope.
Compared to your and Ginny's plan, don't you think a tangible escape solution with a working prototype would be more convincing to others?"
A physical object is always more persuasive than a mere plan.
As he spoke, Oran led them to another level of the ship's cabin.
The items here were somewhat disorganized, with a wide variety of objects.
There were mechanical lotus flowers, peculiar parts, potions glowing with purple fluorescence, eggs from unknown creatures, mysterious green fruits, and even a few green beetles crawling around.
Oran picked up two short cannon-like devices and handed them to Ivankov and Ginny, then put away the mechanical lotuses.
"You're right, but what does this have to do with a 'return gift'?"
"The Teleportation Gate plan is to show the island's residents that we have a feasible way to escape, but that's not enough. The ones responsible for all this are the Celestial Dragons. Ignoring them entirely is a bit difficult for me."
There wasn't much emotion in Oran's eyes, and his tone remained calm. However, if his old employees saw this, they would know their boss was in a state of considerable displeasure, clearly pushed past his limits.
As a rule, those who offended their boss to this degree never met a good end, whether they were Zaun's alchemical barons or Piltover's councilors. Oran always had a way of returning the favor with interest.
"You mean to say…"
"It's a simple principle. Whatever they want to do, I'll make sure they can't.
The Celestial Dragons want to exterminate this island? Then I'll do my best to take as many people as I can with me.
They treat this place as their hunting ground? I'll shatter the myth of their invincibility right here."
If not for knowing the situation, Ivankov might have thought Oran was the hunter. He sensed a unique confidence in Oran.
In fact, Oran intended to prove with his actions that the roles of hunter and prey weren't as straightforward as they seemed.
The Celestial Dragons were the World Nobles, protected by the Navy. Attacking them would provoke the wrath of an Admiral—a common knowledge on the high seas.
In the minds of many Navy officers, protecting the Celestial Dragons was one of their duties. Years of influence meant that even if the Celestial Dragons took everything from them, most people didn't dare resist.
Even though Ivankov harbored thoughts of resistance, his current goal was merely to escape and prevent the Celestial Dragons from achieving their objective.
But such thoughts didn't sway Oran, whether in his original world or his life in Valoran.
Especially in Valoran, whether it was the domains of demigods or the lofty Star Spirits, humans had never surrendered. Those who dared to slay gods were far from few.
"Shatter the myth? You mean to say…"
Looking at the short cannon in his hand and hearing Oran's words, Ivankov thought of an outcome he wouldn't normally dare consider.
But he still wanted confirmation from Oran.
"They've got two shoulders and a head, just like us. They can kill people, so why can't we kill them?
They're descendants of the original 20 kings, so what? Their ancestors' glory isn't an invincible halo.
You said there are 200 Celestial Dragon hunters scattered across this island. I admit our current abilities aren't enough to deal with their top elites.
But the Celestial Dragons as a group are full of useless trash. Taking down someone like that is entirely doable."
"Hee-bro… That's a plan I never would've expected…"
What happened in the distant past was unknown, but after Joy Boy's failure during the Void Century, voices opposing the Celestial Dragons had all but vanished from the seas.
Over a hundred years ago, a mysterious robot attacked the Red Line, but it ultimately achieved nothing.
Oran's audacious idea hadn't surfaced in ages.
"Oran, you have to survive."
"What are you talking about?"
"I mean, your idea could one day be the foundation for breaking the Celestial Dragons' rule. Even if only you escape this place, that would be a massive victory."
Ivankov's tone was filled with excitement. At just 15 years old, he was at an age where a few words could easily set his blood boiling.
Oran's words seemed to open the door to a new world for him, though Oran himself showed no signs of excitement.
"Don't put some weird noble hat on me. I'm just doing this for myself."
"Wait! Wait! Both of you, calm down! Our plan right now is to escape, isn't it? Oran, your words are inspiring, but killing a Celestial Dragon isn't that easy.
They definitely have life cards. If you kill one outright, the Navy protecting them on this island will go berserk, and then…"
Ginny felt her big brother and this new acquaintance were getting too worked up, even losing some rationality. She acknowledged the logic in Oran's words, but the consequences of such actions might be more than they could handle.
"Of course, we won't kill them outright. Even if it's for raising a flag, that's something you do before setting out. Those 200 Celestial Dragons aren't checking in every day, are they?
We just need to capture one at the right time and deal with them at another suitable moment. That'll achieve our goal."
Once the myth is shattered, the seeds of resistance will start to sprout.
This was part of Oran's so-called "return gift," though whether this spark could truly ignite on these seas was an open question.
"These things I gave you are net guns, firing 90-caliber rope nets. They're standard Piltover police equipment, though the recoil is a bit strong. We'll test them outside in a bit, and I'll teach you how to use them if anything's unclear."
Oran needed craftsmen to assist with his assembly, which meant more people would gather in one place.
According to the intelligence from Ivankov and Ginny, the Celestial Dragons referred to the island's slaves and residents as "rabbits" and assigned them point values.
There were 13 SR-level rabbits and 150 R-level rabbits, with over 100,000 people in total as the Celestial Dragons' hunting targets. To gain more points, densely populated areas would naturally be their primary targets.
Human nature doesn't hold up under scrutiny. No one could be certain what someone might do when faced with the threat of death.
While some could hold firm to their principles, there was no room for trial and error in this situation.
Thus, before recruiting others, Oran needed a small group of his own to ensure the plan's execution and maintain order among those gathered.
Having proposed another plan and shared intelligence, Ivankov and Ginny became Oran's top choices.
…
"It's definitely a sturdy net. Ordinary Celestial Dragons shouldn't be able to break free. The recoil is just a bit much for Ginny to handle."
By now, Oran had used the ship's cutting machine to remove Ivankov and Ginny's handcuffs and taught them how to use the net guns, also showing them some trap devices.
Ivankov quickly got the hang of the weapon's recoil, but it was still challenging for Ginny.
Even an adult woman would be pushed back a short distance by the recoil of the net's launch. The equipment was part of the same series as Piltover's officer Caitlyn's gear, though slightly modified.
Ginny's malnourished, youthful body couldn't handle the weapon. She focused more on using a Den Den Mushi to gather intelligence on the island.
Den Den Mushi were a unique species on these seas, found in various regions. In their natural state, they were just special snails, but with added components, they could function as telephones.
Using parts from Oran's ship, Ginny had modified a wild snail from the Valley of the Gods, enhancing the equipment. This allowed her to intercept more information.
"The Celestial Dragons are about to start their hunt, but just now, a slave from the Buccaneer tribe escaped. They fled in that direction."
Ginny checked a rough terrain map and pinpointed a general area. At that moment, her earpiece picked up new signal fluctuations, causing her face to light up with joy.
"Big Brother Ivankov, Oran, I've detected a lot of signal activity in the nearby seas. It looks like the message we sent out earlier was received!"
"Hee-haw! That's great news! The more strong people show up, the better. The more chaos this place descends into, the more chances we'll have."
With the tools and equipment from Oran's ship, Ginny's talents were being put to good use.
She had even contacted people at the Valley of the Gods' shipyard, obtaining their exact location, which she had roughly marked on the terrain map.
Ivankov had also mastered loading and aiming the weapon. Seeing they were mostly prepared, Oran was ready to move on to the next step of the plan.
"We can't put all our hopes on the unknown. In any case, whether it's your plan or mine, the three of us aren't enough. Let's get moving.
Didn't you say another person escaped? There are still plenty of people who don't want to wait for death."