The Water Magician

"The journey from the imperial capital to this designated sea area takes about three days one way."

Ryo and Abel boarded the ship, and before departure, Admiral Myun spread out the navigational chart and began to explain.

However, his expression was grim.

"Honestly, I don't fully understand the designated island."

"Eh?"

Ryo tilted his head at Admiral Myun's words.

Abel seemed equally confused, tilting his head in a similar manner.

"I understand the designated sea area. However, there is no island in that vicinity."

"What do you mean...?"

"The captain of this flagship of the detachment, Jun Kar, whom we greeted earlier, also said he didn't know. Jun Kar is one of the most experienced captains in the Darwei fleet. If he doesn't know, it can't be an ordinary island."

Captain Jun Kar appeared to be in his mid-forties, around the same age as Admiral Myun, and had a calm, competent demeanor.

He exuded an aura that instantly assured Ryo and Abel that he was reliable...

And since Admiral Myun was explaining this, he must indeed be an excellent captain.

An island that even the captain does not know about?

"It might be an island created by magic or something."

At Ryo's words, Admiral Myun nodded silently.

In any case, this was not an ordinary opponent.

The ghost ship Luri seemed well-known even in Darwei.

However, that was only as a legendary ghost ship featured in tales.

No one had ever encountered it and returned alive.

Moreover, this time, a duel challenge from such a ghost ship?

Admiral Myun's mind was filled with question marks.

That said, he understood what needed to be done.

To deliver the two of them.

And to come back.

The twenty ships that formed this fleet of fast vessels were organized for various reasons.

First, of course, to arrive at the designated sea area as quickly as possible.

There was nothing good about taking too much time.

Next, the ones to be rescued were diplomatic missions from two nations.

As long as the ships were safe, it would be fine, but in the case they weren’t, they would have to accommodate them on this fleet to return.

That was why the number twenty was necessary.

Warships inherently do not have much spare capacity.

Lastly, as mentioned earlier, all twenty ships are warships.

This was in case of what might happen upon arrival...

The letter delivered to Duke Rondo promised liberation, but... honestly, who could say for sure?

Anticipating the worst-case scenario was the admiral's job.

If it was a warship, they could handle whatever happened.

That was Admiral Myun's line of thought.

"I have a question for Duke Rondo."

"Yes, what is it?"

Since the two boarded, Admiral Myun had unified his address to Duke Rondo.

Even during the public ship and in subsequent meetings in the imperial capital, he had always called him 'Ryo,' but he avoided that on the ship.

There were other Darwei soldiers present here.

They were on a mission to 'transport Duke Rondo.'

Thus, Admiral Myun decided to refer to him as Duke Rondo.

"Regarding the ghost ship Luri... to be honest, what are our chances of success?"

"Ah... that's very difficult to determine."

Ryo said this and turned to Abel.

Abel also shook his head.

Indeed, they had won once.

However, after the battle, the two from Luri had said this.

"Against these two, this 'vessel' was too weak," and "One day, I want to fight with the main body."

In other words, if the conditions were right, they could become even stronger.

And now, the fact that they had demanded a match by abducting the diplomatic mission indicated that the conditions must be met, and they would be able to fight in a stronger state than before.

Ryo and Abel recognized this.

"After recovering the hostages, leave the island. They likely won't attack you or the hostages on purpose, but that island will become a battlefield. You never know what will happen on a battlefield."

"...Understood."

Admiral Myun nodded at Ryo's words.

It was likely that they would become a battlefield as suggested.

Admiral Myun, who had traversed numerous battlefields, was acutely aware that anything could happen there.