I was a knight in the Middle Ages

The Barbarossa family is a newly emerging noble family in the empire, whose ancestor was none other than the famous pirate king, Hayreddin Barbarossa.

Although they later pledged allegiance to the Empire and were entrusted with important responsibilities, their inherent plundering nature seemed never to have changed.

A terrifying legend has long circulated along the empire's coastline: a ghost navy roams the coast, burning, killing, looting, and committing all sorts of atrocities. Their movements are elusive, and the imperial navy has repeatedly failed to capture them despite numerous attempts.

Many intelligent people privately suspect that this so-called "ghost navy" is actually a private armed force secretly maintained by the Barbarossa family to amass wealth, but they lack conclusive evidence.

"Damn it!" Kaskin cursed under his breath, but quickly regained his composure. "Show our flag! Hoist the Imperial Navy's banner, let them know we are the Imperial fleet, and see if they dare to be so insolent!"

The sailors hurriedly hung up the flag representing the Imperial Navy and the coat of arms of the Koprulu family.

Kaskin hopes that these two prestigious titles will intimidate the other side.

However, the three pirate ships in the distance showed no sign of stopping.

They were extremely fast, and the metal rams on their bows, used for ramming, had been lowered, gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

"They're not going to stop! Prepare for battle!" Kaskin didn't care about anything else.

He was, after all, the captain of the Imperial fleet; he could not surrender to pirates. "Magic cannons, prepare! Warning fire!"

The magic gunners on deck immediately took their positions and aimed their fully charged magic cannons at the approaching ship.

However, the pirate ships' tactics were very cunning.

Instead of charging in a single file, they quickly dispersed and surrounded them in a fan shape.

With such a dispersed formation, hitting the target with the few magic cannons on the warship is virtually impossible.

"They've launched their small boats! Many small boats!" cried the sailors in the watchtower in despair.

At that moment, Alpha, inside the cabin, also noticed something amiss.

Almost instinctively, he quickly returned to the cabin, carried the still-resting Star on his back, and dressed himself in his heavy armor and equipment as fast as he could.

Alpha's keen intuition told him that this pirate raid was anything but simple, and that there was probably a bigger conspiracy behind it.

The warship's magic cannons only managed to fire two shots before ceasing fire.

Because each shot fired by the magic cannon consumes expensive energy crystals.

This level of attack is fine for warning purposes, but if a real battle breaks out, a few shots will deplete the warship's reserves.

"The pirates have boarded! They're already close in!"

The situation took a sharp turn for the worse; the pirates were incredibly fast and moved with the agility of monkeys.

Using ropes and rams, they gained control of the warship's deck and key passageways within minutes.

They blocked all the crew and knights in specific areas of the cabins and decks, seemingly waiting for an important figure to board.

Alpha held back Peter and Murat, who were trying to rush out, and shook his head.

He also felt something was amiss; the other side didn't seem to immediately launch a massacre, which gave them a chance to observe the situation.

"We are the Imperial Fleet! How dare you, the Barbarossa family, attack the Imperial Navy?!" Captain Kaskin was still somewhat courageous.

He recognized the distinctive flame and scimitar insignia on the pirates' chests and attempted to negotiate in the name of the Empire.

"Not bad, you have a good eye." A loud, sarcastic voice came from the pirate group.

A burly pirate captain with a full beard and wearing ornate chainmail stepped out.

He was the commander of this operation, Aslan Barbarossa.

“Then we can’t let you live.” Aslan laughed, his eyes filled with cruelty and greed.

"How dare you!" Casskin roared, his voice trembling with fear. "We are the warships of the Koprulu family! By doing this, you are making enemies of the most core family of the Empire!"

He tried to intimidate the other party by mentioning his powerful backer.

After all, the Koprulu family is currently at the height of its power, second only to the royal family in the empire, and wields immense influence.

"Koprulu?" Aslan Barbarossa's mockery deepened. "So what? If we kill you all, there will only be dead bodies here. Who will know it was us?"

Aslan looked around and laughed arrogantly, "The emperor is far away, and I am the king of this sea! I don't care if you are Koprulu or royal relatives. Here, I call the shots!"

His gaze passed over Kaskin and landed on the fully armed and wary Imperial Knights, a greedy glint flashing in his eyes.

“Now, I’m giving you a chance to live.” Aslan said, brandishing his blood-dripping scimitar.

He pointed to the sailors and knights behind Kaskin and shouted, "Swear allegiance to the Barbarossa family and become our warriors! Otherwise, go down in the sea with this ship!"

"We are willing to pledge our loyalty to you, sir!"

At this tense moment, when life and death hung in the balance, Alpha suddenly pushed aside the knight blocking his way and strode to the front of the crowd.

Alpha's voice was calm and clear, without the slightest hesitation, as if he had already made this decision.

Aslan Barbarossa narrowed his eyes, sizing up the heavily armored, imposing knight.

But Aslan's face was full of doubt: "Why should I believe you? You are knights of the Empire, lackeys of the Koprulu family, and now you're saying you're loyal to them?"

Aslan is not so easily fooled; the loyalty of the Imperial Knights is notoriously stubborn at sea.

Upon hearing this, Alpha remained completely unfazed, offering no further explanation.

His eyes narrowed, and his right hand shot out with lightning speed, drawing the curved knife from his waist.

A flash of cold light, and the movement was as fast as lightning!

"You—!" Kaskin, who was standing not far away and still trying to maintain his captain's dignity, didn't even have time to react. He only felt a chill on his neck and a line of blood appeared instantly.

Kaskin clutched his bleeding throat with both hands, his eyes filled with shock, anger, and disbelief.

His body swayed, and finally, with a "thump," he fell heavily onto the deck.

Blood instantly stained the deck red, and a strong stench of blood filled the air.

This is Alpha's pledge of allegiance!

Clean and efficient, leaving no room for compromise!

Seeing Alpha's decisive and ruthless methods, Aslan Barbarossa and his men were stunned, and then their eyes showed surprise and approval.

"Hmph, this is betrayal!" Aslan admired the man, but still wanted to make things clear, "The Koprulu family will never let a traitor get away with killing an Imperial captain!"

“My lord.” Alpha wiped the blood-stained scimitar clean on Kaskin’s corpse, then slowly sheathed it, his tone eerily calm.

“We knights, from the moment we stepped onto the warship, have never truly obeyed Kaskin’s orders, let alone pledged allegiance to the Koprulu family, who are far away. So, how can there be any talk of betrayal?”

Alpha raised his head, looked directly into Aslan's eyes, and continued, "As for killing Kaskin, it was my personal revenge for his usual mistreatment of knights. If it is ever exposed, I, Alpha, will take full responsibility and will never implicate you or your family."

These words were perfectly worded, both stating his position and taking responsibility upon himself, while also giving Aslan a way out.

Alpha knew exactly what was going on.

Although the Koprulu family wielded immense power, they were located far from the heart of the empire, beyond the reach of the imperial court.

Although the Barbarossa family originated as pirates, they were local strongmen in this sea area, with deep roots and influence near the Holy City.

In this chaotic era, it's better to cling to the tree in front of you than to pledge allegiance to an invisible and intangible behemoth.

The crucial point is that once their mission is complete, they will leave this dangerous place, and who will take care of them in the future?

"Excellent! You've got guts and guts!" Aslan laughed heartily, clearly very satisfied with Alpha's performance. "From now on, you're one of my men. I'll give you ten minutes to clean up all the disobedient scum on board. I want to see your sincerity!"

"Yes, sir!" Alpha immediately clasped his hands in obeisance and accepted the order.

Alpha turned around, his cold eyes sweeping over the remaining crowd on the deck.

Alpha's voice was as cold as a judge from hell: "Hear my command! Whoever finishes Kaskin's job now will be considered to have officially pledged allegiance to Lord Aslan, and will be spared all punishment and killed!"

At Alpha's command, Peter, Murat, and the other three knights who had followed Alpha already understood.

Without a word, they immediately drew their weapons and stabbed the corpses, thus completing their pledge of allegiance.

At the same time, they pounced on the still stunned crew members and hesitant knights without hesitation!

Immediately afterwards, Athena also joined the battle with a group of Imperial Knights who were already dissatisfied with the Empire.

They were merely pawns abandoned by the empire, and had absolutely no loyalty to the so-called "Koprulu family".

"kill!"

The deck instantly transformed into a slaughterhouse.

Screams, pleas for mercy, and the sounds of weapons piercing flesh were all mixed together.

Five minutes! Just five minutes! The first batch of "pledges of allegiance" actions, which carried out the order without hesitation, were over.

Dozens of corpses lay on the deck, and blood flowed like a river down the drainpipes.

The remaining people were mostly sailors and a few knights who were closely associated with Kaskin.

Their faces were deathly pale, their legs were weak, and they were gripped by extreme fear and uncertainty.

They knew that Kaskin's death was tantamount to a resounding slap in the face to the Koprulu family.

Given that family's vengeful nature, they are now the empire's mortal enemy.

"I'll give you one minute to think it over!" Alpha showed no mercy whatsoever.

Aslan gave Alpha only ten minutes to resolve the issue, but he only intended to use six minutes to fix these problems.

"Since they're unwilling to pledge allegiance, then they're destined to die." Alpha coldly issued the final order, "Kill them all!"

Seeing Alpha personally step forward with his sword, the remaining wavering individuals immediately panicked completely.

In an attempt to survive, some sailors knelt down and begged for mercy, while others desperately jumped into the sea to try and escape.

The few knights who were still putting up a fight were no match for Alpha and his squad.

The battle lasted only one minute.

When the last knight who resisted was pierced through the heart by Murat, the deck finally returned to a deathly silence.

All that remained were corpses scattered on the ground and the nauseating smell of blood.

"Good! Clean and efficient!" Aslan Barbarossa clapped his hands in praise.

At this moment, Aslan's gaze towards Alpha had shifted from admiration to high regard. "You come with me to my flagship. The rest of you, stay put and clean up the battlefield!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Alpha handed the weapon to Peter.

He straightened his armor, calmly followed Aslan, and stepped onto the ramp leading to the pirate flagship.

Alpha's figure was composed and confident, as if he were not the one who had just committed a bloody massacre on the deck, but a nobleman about to attend a banquet.

"What's your name?" Aslan Barbarossa poured himself a glass of red wine, asking indifferently without even glancing at Alpha.

"Ray Alpha Collin," Alpha replied with a pre-prepared pseudonym, neither humble nor arrogant.

The surname was made up, but the middle name "Alpha" was retained.

This is both the code name for Alpha and the source of his confidence.

"Alright, you wait outside for now." Aslan waved his hand dismissively, as if dismissing a servant.

Alpha bowed slightly and withdrew.

He was not surprised by this; pirates always act with caution.

Alpha could sense that Aslan was nothing more than a henchman, or rather, a guide.

The real person in charge is probably someone else.

Alpha waited quietly outside the door, the sound of waves crashing against the hull and the commotion of sailors cleaning up the mess on deck filling the air.

Five minutes passed, and finally a summons came from inside the door.

"Come in."

Alfa pushed open the door and entered the luxurious command center.

Sure enough, Aslan was standing respectfully to the side, while a young man who looked to be no more than twenty years old sat in the main seat.

The young man was dressed in a well-tailored dark suit. He had a handsome face, but his eyes were as deep as the sea, making it impossible to see through them.

The young man is the true core of this pirate fleet, the "big shot" that Aslan mentioned.

“Ray Alpha Collin, right?” The young man tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest, confirming again.

“Yes, sir.” Alpha lowered his eyes, concealing the glint in them.

“Very good.” The young man smiled slightly. “Aslan said you have great courage and are a promising talent. Now, in front of me, state your position again.”

Alpha took a deep breath, his voice steady and powerful: "Reporting to my lord, we were originally Imperial knights, nominally loyal to the will of the Empire. But from this day forward, we are the swords in your hands, my lord. If you command us to go east, we will never go west. Our loyalty belongs only to you, my lord."

This statement was watertight, neither completely negating the empire (to avoid having no way out in the future) nor failing to clearly express absolute obedience to the person in front of him.

"Haha, what a fine sword you wield." The young man seemed quite pleased. "Since you are an Imperial Knight, what are your thoughts on the current state of the Empire?"

Alpha's heart sank.

This is a matter of life and death, but also a touchstone for testing loyalty.

What exactly does the other party want to hear? Do they want to hear about the empire's prosperity or its decay?

Alpha quickly analyzed the situation.