CHAPTER 62: CHAPTER 62: THIS IS NOT THE PROPHECY I WANTED

"Sailor, full sails!"

Under the blue sky and white clouds, a three-masted warship broke through the waves, sailing alone on the vast Black Sea. Various sea birds landed on and departed from the warship, as if it were a temporary nest.

This scene has continued for over half a month since departing from the military port, and the sailors on board are no longer fascinated by it as they were at first, having become accustomed to it.

Today is already the third day after the Departure Day celebration ended smoothly, and the group is on the return route to Gabred Military Port; strangely, the two warships that set out now have only the "Silver Wings" left on its own.

"Good morning! Captain Aiven is feeding the sea birds again."

On the deck of the "Silver Wings", Aiven was conducting his daily routine of nurturing and collecting intelligence. A handsome young man with dark blue short hair, wearing a captain’s uniform, casually wandered over, greeting Aiven enthusiastically.

"Good morning! Is Captain Milan not in the cabin with Miss Ivina today?" Aiven threw the last handful of bird feed, clapping his hands and turning back with a smile.

"Kids, what trouble they can be. Just a teddy bear left behind at the hotel, and it’s been an issue for several days now." The young man pursed his lips, dismissing his sister’s whims verbally, yet he was the very same brother who had been trying various ways to amuse her these past few days...

No need for further explanation; this young man with dark blue hair is naturally our heroic thief, Mr. Zorro.

As for why they appeared together on the "Silver Wings," it all started from the celebration days ago.

After discovering the conspiracy of the Lion Head group ahead of time, whether due to the Navy’s vigilant defense causing the mastermind to back out, or because there wasn’t any follow-up attack planned, the seven-day Departure Day celebration passed very smoothly.

However.

Just as this calm allowed the previously tense Navy to breathe a sigh of relief, they received a Seagull message from the Navy Department on the day the celebration ended.

The Kingdom’s route to the New Continent was ambushed by a ferocious pirate gang. In just half a month, more than eight merchant ships and one guard warship were lost.

Moreover, this pirate gang not only robbed the cargo but killed all personnel aboard, leaving no survivors on the nine ships. Their cruel and vicious methods nearly caused the suspension of this route, resulting in severe losses and a highly adverse impact on the Kingdom!

Finally, intelligence returned from the battleship sent for forward reconnaissance, indicating that it’s a medium-sized fleet consisting of at least three pirate ships, suspected to be the notoriously active "Shark Tooth" pirate gang from the New Continent.

Many Kingdom Navy members are familiar with this pirate gang; known for their frenzied brutality, the "Shark Tooth" pirate gang is the nightmare of many New World colonies, causing some small nation governors to turn pale at its mention. However, as their main activity zone wasn’t in Phaletis waters, the Navy never engaged with them.

Regardless of their current objective for openly attacking Phaletis shipping routes, the Navy won’t allow such madmen to persist!

In regions where the New Continent’s naval forces are weak, let it be. But daring to provoke the Kingdom near its shores means they will be utterly exterminated no matter the cost.

Fortunately, four warships attending the celebration were stationed on Lighthouse Island, the closest to the attack site. Excluding Vice Admiral Snite, who was unsuitable for combat due to his civilian position, the remaining three warships, including the "Warm Wind," were mobilized to form a joint fleet to support the guard ships along the route and collectively hunt the "Shark Tooth" pirate gang!

Consequently, only the "Silver Wings," ostensibly the weakest Level 5 cruiser, carried General Snite’s family and aides back to Gabred.

Though Gel and Aiven suspected this situation likely stemmed from the capture of the Shark Tooth pirate gang’s deputy leader, "One-Eyed Becky," by their "Silver Wings," they were eager to apply for participation in battle.

But they knew now wasn’t the time for heroics. For the Vice Admiral’s safety, they obediently complied with orders to return to Gabred.

However, what Aiven didn’t expect was that shortly after boarding, "Zorro" approached him under some pretext for casual chat, exhibiting a surprisingly familiar demeanor.

Aiven, though helpless, had no reason to avoid him, and through this, he also learned his true name, "Milan Snite."

After several casual "encounters" on the deck, whether intentional or not, the two formed a bit of a nodding acquaintance.

Through idle chats, Aiven found this guy surprisingly agreeable, free from the arrogance typical of the era’s upper-class nobles. A bit bohemian yet principled, overall not an unpleasant character.

Aiven has always believed.

A person’s true self is revealed once they don the "mask," much like how seemingly refined individuals turn into internet hooligans online. Several encounters with "Zorro" behind his disguise left an overall positive impression.

Evidently.

When Vice Admiral received the crossbow bolt, his subconscious glance towards "Zorro" was unnoticed by others, but how could it escape Aiven’s data visualization? He quickly realized "Zorro" was the one secretly shooting arrows to alert him.

Given his use of an arm crossbow, a fondness for skulking around at night, and goodwill towards the Navy, he was likely the only candidate.

Although knowing full well that Milan had recognized him and refrained from pointing it out, Aiven no longer resisted interacting with him, regarding him as just an ordinary acquaintance.

"The weather should be good for the next few days at sea. Captain Aiven, interested in some sea fishing together?"

"Oh? Our Chief Navigator is quite adept at meteorological forecasting. Is Captain Milan skilled in this area too?"

It seemed to hit a sweet spot, and Milan’s face showed a bit of pride: "Meteorological prediction is my strong suit. In the Third Fleet’s Chief Navigator competition, whether it was nautical chart identification, navigation, intelligence gathering, or meteorological prediction, I ranked in the top ten of the fleet for all skills."

"Wow! That’s amazing?!" Aiven genuinely marveled at it, considering these were the achievements of the entire Third Fleet, including all combat personnel from the Tier 1, 2, and 3 main battleships, the prestige of which was self-evident.

Unexpectedly, this seemingly spoiled young man possessed such skills, surpassing most seasoned veterans at a young age.

People with talent always command a glance of respect. Only those who have sailed the seas understand the importance of a competent chief navigator to a vessel.

Aiven had been on the Silver Wings for quite a while, having worked in various critical departments aboard the warship, learning quite a few skills. Now that he encountered an expert, he felt a bit itchy to spar and couldn’t resist discussing nautical knowledge with Milan.

"Look, the waves aren’t big now, and although there are many clouds in the sky, they’re all like cotton-like cumulus clouds, with their bases on the same horizontal line. When the sky has such clouds, it generally indicates it won’t rain."

Milan was eloquently showcasing his knowledge to Aiven, who occasionally nodded in agreement, creating a very harmonious atmosphere.

Milan even forgot that he came to Aiven initially to confirm whether he had discovered the secrets of the witchcraft notes.

Initially, he wanted to confirm through divination.

But after several failed attempts at divination, he was surprised to discover that Aiven had quietly surpassed the Tier 2 Official Knight, exceeding the limits of his divination abilities. Curiosity drove him to personally come over to talk and probe Aiven.

Just when Milan confidently stated that the weather for the next few days should be fine.

In the air, strands of white mist silently formed and quickly thickened, soon reaching levels that affected the sailors’ visibility. The ship immediately resounded with Captain Gel’s order to lower sails and reduce speed.

"Sailor! Lower sails, reduce speed!"

Aiven noticed Milan’s face freeze for a moment; the change was so quick that it made him, the listener, feel a bit embarrassed.

He hastily spoke up to save face for him: "Weather changes at sea are so fast, even the Sea God can’t completely grasp the entire ocean, let alone us mere mortals?"

"Hahaha, Captain Aiven, you’re right..."

But Milan’s voice abruptly stopped here. From Aiven’s angle, it seemed as though Milan twitched like he had been electrocuted, his eyes unfocused and staring blankly.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Milan’s body shook again, and it seemed as if he had expended enormous energy in those few short seconds, nearly collapsing lifelessly. Fortunately, Aiven quickly caught him.

Even so, Milan remained weakly leaning against Aiven, like a dehydrated fish desperately gasping for air.

"Huff... huff... danger! Danger! Blood... cannon fire... sharks... There’s a deadly danger approaching!"

If anyone else heard Milan’s words, they’d be confused, not understanding what this young master was babbling about, but Aiven knew he was a true divination master. He had already proven his divination abilities when he previously guided Aiven to find the saltwater crocodile scale.

Instantly, hearing his words, Aiven’s heart tightened!

Whistle—!

Ignoring that Milan might have discovered his secret, Aiven blew a loud whistle, and the needle-tailed swifts resting on the ship took off, darting into the depths of the mist instantly.

Blind guessing was useless; seeing with one’s own eyes would naturally reveal whether there was danger.

Turning back, Milan had already recovered, albeit not noticing the fleeting swifts amid his intense emotional turmoil.

He retrieved a crystal ball the size of a child’s fist from his pocket, seeing it filled with a white haze.

"Damn it!"

Without intending to explain in detail to Aiven, Milan bolted towards the cabin, wanting to convey the prophecy to the only person on this ship he trusted—his father.

Otherwise, even if he told the truth, no one on this ship would believe him, and he couldn’t prevent the disaster from occurring.

Although most sailors had encountered some of the peculiarities of the Extraordinary World, predicting the future was too shocking. Instead of wasting words, he would seek out the person with the most authority on this ship.

At this moment, Milan’s emotions were extremely complex; clearly, he had finally made the major prophecy he had long awaited that could satisfy the conditions for advancement, but now he wished he would never advance to a Tier 2 Prophet in his entire life.

"I want to prophesy a crisis affecting hundreds of lives, but I don’t want to be among the hundreds of one percent!"