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Chapter 53

The Second Sea District, Notos, was essentially a fishery. People hunted the sea monsters that popped up at sea and harvested expensive materials from them. There were fish that were said to be worth the price of an entire boat, and most of the time, hunters could trade their catch for at least a few gold coins back on land, so it wasn’t a bad way to make money.

The types of monsters that could be found in Notos were only around Rank E and Rank D, Rank D at most, so it was more profitable to catch fish than to hunt monsters for their mana stones. Notos was also where the rookies who’d just joined an Atlantis expedition team went.

“Starting from the Third Sea District, Eurus, there are only monsters. Their mid-grade mana stones, meat, and even their bones are worth a lot. As long as you have the skill, you can earn several times more than you would in the Second Sea District.”

“Then it must be several times more dangerous,” Leonard observed.

“Of course it is! Though it only happens once every few decades, sometimes expedition teams encounter a sea serpent and get wiped out, you know.”

The species classification of sea serpents was astonishing at Rank S. They were one of the three most gigantic sea monsters. Even at the First Stage, the Fledgling Demon Tier, they were too powerful for External Force Tier martial artists to fight in the water. Once they reached the Second Stage, the Mature Demon Tier, even Transcendence Tier martial artists had to risk their lives to fight them. If they reached the Third Stage, an Alliance-wide hunt had to be organized.

However, human greed knew no bounds, and there were apparently expedition teams who would spend decades roaming the Third Sea District in search of sea serpents.

“The Fourth Sea District is Zephyros. From there on out, seasoned expedition teams carry out their activities. Instead of fish, we look for other aquatic resources, and you can either claim resource-rich areas to harvest materials or sell them to others!”

Frances raised her chin and puffed up her chest because her team, Aquamarine, was authorized to be active in the Fourth Sea District. It was a privilege granted only to teams who had not only the skills but also the experience.

Leonard gave a single nod. “How dangerous is it compared to the Third Sea District?”

“Not much. However! Because you have to fight monsters for their parts, large-scale battles occur,” she answered.

Whereas the monsters in the Third Sea District were few in number and could pop up anywhere, the Fourth Sea District had a larger population, which resided in fixed areas. Though the Third Sea District had more unexpected accidents, the Fourth Sea District was several times more challenging on a basic level. When an operation failed in the Third Sea District, it usually resulted in property damage and a few deaths. But in the Fourth Sea District, failure meant full annihilation most of the time.

Therefore, if a team was active in the Fourth Sea District, it was pretty much proof that they’d never failed a mission.

“As for the Fifth Sea District, Aiolos...” Frances’s bright and cheerful voice suddenly died down. “That’s where my team is aiming to go! Only the best—no, the best of the best—are granted permits to hunt there, you see. They don’t issue new permits often, so you have to take them from other teams!” she finished, her voice sounding carefully constructed.

Leonard knew she was hiding something, but he didn’t push her. They weren’t close enough for her to share such things, and he knew that once he crossed a certain line, he wouldn’t be able to avoid getting caught up in her personal affairs.

For the briefest moment, the mood in the cabin grew awkward.

“...What about the Sixth Sea District?” Leonard asked politely.

“The Sixth Sea District has no other name!” she exclaimed as if she’d been waiting for this question. “No team who has gone there has ever returned. It’s uncharted territory, a no-man’s land. That’s what we call it.”

Naturally, no one dared to attempt to explore it. The Sixth Sea District was also the place the expedition teams in the Fifth Sea District were the most wary of. If they accidentally entered the region, it meant nothing but death.

For some reason, her description gave him a sense of déjà vu.

“That sounds similar to Corroded Realms,” Leonard pointed out.

Frances’s eyes lit up with agreement. “Exactly. A Rift in the Fifth Sea District kept growing until it swallowed an entire area. That’s how the Sixth Sea District formed, but the Alliance tries to hide its origin as much as possible.”

“Goodness.”

Most of the Cardenas family’s famed knightly orders spent their time cleaning up Rifts. Rifts were created when the unstable boundaries of the world gave way, eroding the laws of nature and the organisms on this plane. If Rifts were left alone for too long, they became “Corroded.” To put it simply, Corroded Realms were the unfortunate result of Rifts becoming too big.

“Don’t you think the Alliance is too ignorant about the dangers of Rifts? Even on a family level, sealing them before they become Corroded is the standard procedure for the Cardenas family,” Leonard pointed out.

Compared to its size, the Arcadian Empire barely had any Rifts, let alone Corroded Realms, because the Seven Orders worked tirelessly across the Empire to seal them. As soon as a Rift opened, several Transcendence Tier knights, and sometimes even a Demigod Tier knight, were sent to crush the monsters from another dimension. Unfortunately, Leonard had just become an apprentice after graduating from training, so he’d never had the opportunity to see it himself.

Based on the bits and pieces I’ve heard, I already know that the Seven Orders are much stronger than the factions from my previous life. Even if everyone in the Central Plains, the outer regions, and the Heavenly Demon Cult made an alliance, the knights would slaughter them all in a matter of days.

Sure, Heavenly Demon Dan Mok-Jin was as strong as a Commander, but since it was him against seven others, he would die within ten exchanges.

Despite their strength, such a powerful force spent every day finding and destroying Rifts before they could spread. This was proof that this world’s latent dangers far exceeded what its people imagined.

Frances looked helpless. “Well—”

“My lady, we are now within range of communicating with the docks,” Marianne called from outside the cabin, cutting off Frances before she could give an answer.

“Oh! Sorry. I’m coming over now!” Frances turned toward him. “Leonard, would you like to come with me? You have to leave the room at some point anyway.”

“All right.”

“Say my name!”

“Yes, Fran.”

She giggled. When she stepped out of the cabin, Marianne was waiting. The bodyguard stepped aside and looked quizzically at Leonard, apparently having missed their exchange.

“Why are you coming out?” she asked.

“Fran asked me to,” he said flatly.

“My lady?” she said, asking for confirmation.

“There’s no use in hiding him any longer, you know? Once we reach the wharf, everyone will see him anyway. And he felt stuffy in there!”

Frances actually had a point, so Marianne simply let out a long sigh and stood next to Leonard. Now it looked like Frances had two bodyguards.

“I only had Marianne until now, so something felt missing, but now I finally look like someone important!” she proclaimed triumphantly. “This is why bodyguards should come in pairs!”

“This can’t be the only reason you are bringing him, right? My lady? Please answer me.”

“Now, on to the wheelhouse! We can’t leave them waiting, or else they’ll get upset!”

“My lady!”

While the two of them chattered as they always did, Leonard looked around the inside of the hull to take in what he’d missed in the past few days. From the type of wood used in the columns and planks to its design and the method of construction, it barely shared any traits with the ships from the Central Plains. In fact, it didn’t even have seats for rowers, so it had to have used some other form of propulsion.

Is it powered by magic? Or by some type of energy source I don’t know about? he asked himself as he studied the ship.

When the three of them reached the upper deck, they had to go up another few more steps of stairs to reach the wheelhouse.

Some of the people they passed by were surprised by his presence, but when they saw he was with Marianne and Frances, they only bobbed their heads. He felt as if they were treating him like a guest of honor.

“Wow.”

As soon as he stepped inside the wheelhouse, Leonard unconsciously let out a sound of admiration. Naturally, he was impressed by all the instruments he couldn’t identify the uses of, and he couldn’t help but marvel at the magnificent oceanscape surrounding them. He could see it through the wheelhouse’s four glass walls.

All the walls are made of glass so that the view is completely unhindered. I’ve never seen such a luxurious ship before.

He knew that glass was cheaper here than in the Central Plains, but he was always shocked whenever he witnessed a new aspect of their culture.

At that moment, a message arrived.

—This is the port inspection office of the First Sea District, Orichalcos. Please identify yourself immediately. If you do not respond within five minutes or approach any closer, shots will be fired.

A muffled voice came from the crystal ball. It sat in the middle of the room, right next to the seat obviously meant for the highest-ranking officer.

Sure enough, Frances sat down.

“My, so impatient!” she said to the dispatcher. She turned to the side. “Marianne? Connect me, please.”

“Understood.” As instructed, Marianne reached out and adjusted something. The gray crystal ball glowed blue.

“Ah, ah. Can you hear me?” Frances asked.

An answer came, sounding more clear this time.

—Please refrain from making unnecessary comments. Please provide your ship registration number or expedition team identification number.

“This is expedition team No. B-007, Aquamarine.”

—And the passcode?

“A ship is safest at port, but that is not its purpose.”

—Confirmed, No. B-007 Aquamarine. Permission granted to dock at No. 37. Will your length of stay be the same as usual?

“Yes.”

—Welcome back to Atlantis City.

With that dull greeting, the light from the crystal ball faded back to an opaque gray. In any case, it seemed to be an artifact that could be used to communicate with the port.

“Geez, it’s so annoying having to do this when they always say the same thing,” Frances said, stretching. “They should let us through as soon as they hear my voice.”

“This is their job, my lady.”

“Apparently, they let Rank A expedition teams right in. Once we become Rank A too, I’m gonna see if it’s true and kill them all if it is.”

The port inspectors would have been appalled if they had heard her.

She and Marianne didn’t seem to be talking about anything too serious, because they included Leonard as the topics changed.

As they approached the capital, he listened attentively and chimed in every now and then, captivated by the politics and economics of Atlantis City and amazed by the splendor of the enormous vessels that passed by. He’d already considered Aquamarine’s ship to be big, but there were immense sailboats that dwarfed it.

Apparently, his thoughts showed on his face.

“Leonard! You’re thinking about how small my ship is, aren’t you? Aren’t you?!” Frances said sharply.

“I... was just thinking about how the other vessels are too big,” he said, taking half a step back.

Frances didn’t accept his answer and began to rant. “First of all, the fact that they have sails means they didn’t use any magical engineering! They’re used by third-rate expedition teams and fishermen! Look at the ships that don’t use any oars or sails! Almost none of them are as big as Aquamarine!” she exclaimed.

“Ah,” Leonard said, his eyes lighting up with understanding. So magic was the mysterious force that propelled these ships.

When he looked around and saw that she was correct, he immediately apologized. “I see my knowledge is insufficient. I’m sorry, Fran.”

She sighed. “See, now I look like the bad guy. I’m sorry I raised my voice. I get a little excited when the topic of ships comes up.”

Just as their little squabble came to an end, Aquamarine stopped at a dock labeled with the number 37. As soon as the ship neared, the dock’s shielding mechanisms activated and stabilized the vessel. The shielding mechanisms allowed passengers to board and disembark even without anchoring or mooring the vessel. There was no doubt the dock used magic.

“All right. Marianne and Leonard, you two will get off with me. The crew will take care of the rest!” Frances announced as she stood from her seat.

The two of them followed behind her just as they’d done when they had first gone into the wheelhouse. They went down to the deck again and disembarked through a simple set of stairs, stepping onto dock No. 37.

The capital, Atlantis City.

Leonard was finally face-to-face with the heart and soul of the Atlantis Maritime Alliance.

Sorry to the South Sea Sword Sect, but they can’t even compare to this.

Atlantis City wasn’t just exotic; it was basically a whole new world. As he took in the sight, he felt excitement swell inside him.

“Wow! Would you look at that? It’s the runaway princess!”

A smug voice came from somewhere, shattering any sense of sentimentality within him.