Chilling sentimental journey with point saving! [Prologue] [Volume 4] (Patreon)

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. White waves trailed behind like a tail.

The ruins ship Ruolick glided smoothly across the vast blue expanse of the Outer Sea. 

From the deck, the endless ocean stretched out in every direction, but it didn’t necessarily make one feel small. Instead, it evoked something else—a strange mix of awe and insignificance.

—I had no idea the sea was this vast.

Caw, caw.

A bird cried out as it soared overhead, its wings slicing through the salty breeze that brushed against my face. The wind carried with it an invigorating freshness, and each gentle sway of the ship sent a peculiar sensation rippling through me.

This was my first time traveling on such a massive body of water. It felt surreal, like floating on a leaf in the middle of an enormous puddle.

For now, I decided to head to the control room.

—Ah, Lord Toru.

—Everything running smoothly?

The captain noticed me and approached, his boots clicking softly against the metal floor.

—No issues so far. But honestly, this ship is incredible. Every function necessary for crossing the seas has been accounted for, and there’s even a management system ensuring comfort in each cabin. Truly, the ancients’ technology was on another level.

The ship was currently on autopilot, steadily making its way toward the destination I’d input earlier. It was almost eerie how seamlessly everything worked without human intervention.

Of course, specifying a destination requires a world map… but the ancient data stored in this ship left us utterly stunned.

The place we’d been living all this time… was an island.

I’m still not entirely sure how to process it myself, but once you look at the map, there’s no other way to interpret it.

What we thought was a continent turned out to be nothing more than a small island.

We’d always believed we were living on a vast landmass, but in reality, we were on an island—and the true continent was far, far larger.

This revelation is known only to the upper echelons of Lastoria and those aboard this ship.

There’s no way we can announce to the public now that we’ve been living on an island.

Even if we did, it would only cause unnecessary panic.

At any rate, our current goal is to reach the nearest possible landing spot on the closest mainland.

Estimated time of arrival: two weeks.

This ship is moving at an impressive speed, but even so, the journey will take quite some time.

—Something approximately fifty meters in size is passing directly beneath us.

A crew member monitoring the screens issued a warning.

On the display, rendered in faint green, a massive shape was moving steadily.

According to Kaede, this was part of the ship’s “lower detection” function—a system designed to track objects moving directly underneath the hull. There was also an “upper detection” feature for scanning the ship’s surroundings, though it seemed to be used less frequently.

Given that monsters were the primary threat in the Outer Sea, this made perfect sense.

—By the way, have you checked the freezer?

—The freezer? What’s that?

—Hahaha, I see you’re not familiar with it. Allow me to show you.

He left the crew member in charge and led me down into the lower levels of the ship.

—This is the freezer.

—Whoa, it’s freezing!

I couldn’t help but shiver as the cold air hit me like a wall.

The large room was filled with icy air, and stacks of frozen fish, meat, and vegetables were piled high.

—Thanks to the magical energy Lord Toru replenished, this room stays at a constant temperature of around minus fifty degrees Celsius. To be blunt, without this facility, we wouldn’t have been able to sustain such a large number of people on this voyage.

—So this is essential for survival, huh?

—Exactly. This room, along with the water tanks equipped with purification systems, is what makes long-term voyages possible. In the past, with wooden ships, crossing the seas would have been far more difficult.

The captain stroked his beard, looking visibly relieved.

In short, it’s only because of these advanced functions that humans can traverse the Outer Sea. The initial plan of using wooden ships would have indeed been suicidal.

—So I assume we can store any fish we catch here?

—Of course. Though, if you catch anything too big, expect to be eating fish for a while.

—I’ll keep that in mind.

The captain and I left the freezer and headed back toward the deck.

On the way, we passed by the crew’s quarters. Peering inside, I spotted a young man snoring away in one of the triple bunk beds.

The room was cramped, hardly a comfortable space for six people. A desk was bolted to the wall, though, so at least writing was possible.

—Hmm, I’ll have to scold him later.

Apparently, the young man had been slacking off. The captain quietly closed the door and stroked his beard as we continued on.

When we stepped back onto the deck, we ran into the reconnaissance team gazing out at the sea.

—What a coincidence, Lord Toru. I didn’t expect to see you here.

Rubé Nonterk, the leader of the reconnaissance team, gave a slight bow. 

She was a striking woman with short, neatly cropped blonde hair. Despite being the daughter of a duke, she had volunteered for this mission—a rather unusual choice for someone of her status.

Suddenly, the ship rocked violently.

—Hieeeeee! We’re sinking! That was definitely the impact of something hitting us and making a hole!

—Lady Rubé, please calm down. It was just the waves causing the ship to sway.

—...Ah, I see. I overreacted a bit there.

At the reassuring words of her bespectacled vice-captain, Rubé composed herself, her expression tightening with resolve.

This was pretty much how things usually went with her. The team members were used to it, so no one batted an eye.

Still sneaking glances in my direction, Rubé turned to ask the captain a question.

—Could you explain how we should handle an attack by sea monsters? On land, we can hold our own in a fight, but this is the open sea. The team is frightened, and I want to do something to ease their fears.

—Indeed. Lord Toru, would you care to join us?

Invited by the captain, we moved to the center of the deck.

There, we found what looked like three long planks joined together, mounted on a stand. It had a certain vibe, as if it could move left or right with some force.

The captain communicated with the control room using a small box installed on the deck.

—We’ll be launching shortly.

—Launching…?

boom!

A blue flash erupted from the three joined planks, and a towering column of water shot up in the distance.

—That was a naval weapon. You can think of it as similar to a cannon.

—What?! Are you saying this ship is equipped with weapons equivalent to cannons?!

—Actually, it’s likely more powerful.

—This is incredible! Now I feel reassured! I’m truly in awe of how magnificent this ship is! Excellent, excellent!!

—Lady Rubé, please compose yourself. Lord Toru is present.

—Ahem, yes, what a fine ship indeed. The success of our mission seems all but guaranteed.

Rubé straightened her expression with determination.

By the way, cannons are artifacts powered by magical energy. They’re immensely powerful but few in number, large, and heavy, so they’re typically stationed for use in fortifications.

Though, I’ve heard they’re rarely ever used.

Rubé turned toward me, fidgeting slightly and looking a bit embarrassed.

—I’ve heard that Lord Toru is a hero. From your perspective, do I… seem charming at all?

—Well, you’ve got potential. But yeah, I think you’re a wonderful woman.

—Eek! He called me wonderful! Did you hear that, Vice-Captain? Make sure to write in the reconnaissance log that Lord Toru complimented me!

—I apologize, Lady Rubé, but the log is for recording operational matters, not personal diary entries. And besides, what would your father think if he were to read it?

—Ah, you’re right. Then I’ll write it in my personal diary instead. Well, see you later!

Rubé and her team departed from the deck.

A few seconds later, I overheard, —What should I do? What if I’m already carrying Lord Toru’s child! 

And almost immediately after, the vice-captain’s voice followed: —Lady Rubé, children cannot be conceived simply by exchanging words.

The captain chuckled softly.

—They certainly are lively. This long journey might turn out to be quite entertaining.

—By the way, Captain, do you have any personal goals for this voyage?

I placed my hand on the railing as I gazed out at the sea.

—The sea is romance itself. When a man yearns to travel far, no reason is needed, right?

He tipped the brim of his hat slightly and grinned.