The Water Magician

The voyage westward was going smoothly, interspersed with mock battles between Ryo and Zack.

That is, until they encountered something.

"A storm is coming!"

The lookout's shout sent a wave of tension throughout the ship.

"This is what we were concerned about..."

"While we can fend off monsters and fight off pirates, a storm is..."

Both Ryo and Abel frowned.

Abel suddenly felt a pang of curiosity and asked Ryo, "Does this ship not have any mechanisms to deal with storms?"

"No, it does not."

Ryo replied with a frustrated expression.

"For a ship, storms are the most troublesome, right? And yet, there is nothing?"

"That is true, but at the same time, there isn't much we can do."

Ryo shook his head slightly as he answered.

"The energy of a storm... well, its power, is not something that can be dealt with by human hands. All we can do is hope it passes quickly with minimal damage. Humans are always powerless in the face of nature's fury."

"I see. But I would like to avoid the mast and sails breaking."

Abel had experienced storms on ships before.

In fact, he had faced two.

It was because of those storms that he had washed up in the Forest of Rondo.

"Indeed... that is a valid point," Ryo pondered.

Skizblaznil had already folded all its sails.

That was the standard procedure for all sailing ships in a storm.

However, there was nothing that could be done about the three massive masts.

For a sailing ship encountering a storm, capsizing was the greatest fear.

The next concern was damage to the masts.

A broken mast in a storm could damage the ship's equipment as well.

Furthermore, if the mast were broken after the storm passed, they would be unable to set sail...

What could be done if the mast was damaged?

If there were a broken mast left behind or if it could be retrieved, they could reattach it... it might look a little awkward and its strength would decrease, but they would have to accept that.

And if they found an island or some land along the way, they could gather wood and carve a new mast for themselves...

The sea was indeed a tough world.

Ryo wondered if there was a good solution to prevent such a situation.

What caught his eye was the red old man and the coffin.

"Coffin... put it in a box... wrap it in a box... oh, wait a moment..."

Ryo had a flash of insight.

"What is it, Ryo?"

"Yes, if it's just to prevent breaking... I think we might be able to manage."

"Really?"

Abel perked up at Ryo's mutter.

This was a rare occurrence.

Abel knew well the dire consequences when a ship was swallowed by a storm.

He had experienced it firsthand during the smuggling ship incident.

If they could avoid that...

"I'm going to talk to Captain Paulina."

"I see. If that is possible, I would greatly appreciate it."

"The rocking is due to the heaving of the sea, so it’s difficult..."

"No, even if we can prevent damage, that would be a relief."

As Ryo explained, Paulina considered for a moment before accepting the proposal.

"Then I will proceed. [Ice Wall Package]."

As Ryo chanted, an ice wall enveloped the entire Skizblaznil.

The entire ship, over a hundred meters long.

In that moment, the strong winds blowing across the deck ceased.

"Oh..."

Paulina could not help but express her surprise.

Even for her, who had spent most of her life on ships, this was a first.

It wasn't just her.

The crew members who had been busy moving about the deck in preparation for the storm also stopped in shock.

They looked up at the sky.

They realized that the storm had not passed.

They were enveloped and protected by some kind of powerful force.

"Indeed, with this, we should be fine. However, your grace... I must ask, how long can your magical power last?"

"Ah... I'm not sure. I believe I can maintain [Ice Wall] for two to three days."

"Oh."

"That’s amazing."

Paulina and Abel were both astonished at Ryo's answer.

Even for Abel, who had known Ryo for a long time, this was beyond his expectations.

Yes, even for Abel, who usually brushed off most things with "because it's Ryo," maintaining an ice wall of this scale for three days was...

"Are you really going to be alright?"