Translator: Pai_

“Oh, no way...?”

Freezing wine was such a trivial trick for a wizard of his caliber that it was almost embarrassing to call it a skill. Nevertheless, it was more than enough to terrify the sailors.

Typically, only captains were qualified to deal directly with esteemed individuals like wizards.

Even though he hadn’t revealed whether he was a knight or a noble, to mere sailors, he was a lofty figure in either case.

"So, to have such an esteemed person in such a humble place..."

“You can speak comfortably. After all, I’m the one requesting to be hired here.”

“N-no, that’s a bit…”

Turan’s polite tone only seemed to make the sailors more uncomfortable.

Human nature is such that when the powerless lower their heads, it’s seen as servile and looked down upon. But when the powerful lower their heads, it makes others flustered, as if they’ve done something wrong.

This was one of the things he’d learned from coming down to the world and meeting people.

“So, is it possible?”

“Pardon?”

“I mean boarding your ship as a passenger. Naturally, I’ll help fend off any pirates or mermaids should they attack.”

“That’s not something I can decide on my own.”

“Then I’ll need to meet your captain.”

“I’ll call him immediately!”

At Turan’s request, the sailor, who had mentioned he was headed for the Enril Desert, hastily got up from his seat.

The man sitting across from him gave him a pitiful look, as if pleading not to be left behind. However, the sailor who stood up dashed off without a second thought.

“He’s not running away for good, is he?”

“N-no way, haha…”

The two sat quietly at the table without exchanging a word for almost ten minutes.

Fortunately for the sailor, the awkward silence was broken when the colleague who had left returned, bringing the captain with him.

“Well then, I’ll get going.”

“Let’s have another drink next time.”

As the two sailors exchanged farewells, the one who had been called over sat across from Turan and bowed respectfully.

A man in his forties with an eyepatch over his left eye.

His sunburned skin and deep wrinkles reflected his years of experience.

“I’m Pires, captain of the Blue Marlin.”

“I’m Turan.”

Judging by his rank, perhaps he had met many wizards before. Unlike the sailor, Pires didn’t fawn over Turan but instead observed him with a scrutinizing gaze.

After exchanging silent glances for a moment, it was Pires who spoke first.

“I hear you’d like to board my ship.”

“Yes.”

“Well, I’d prefer to discuss this somewhere quieter. Staff! Is there a private room available?”

“Yes, Captain.”

Familiar with the tavern, Pires asked the staff and moved to a small private room.

Once seated, the first topic he broached was Turan’s identity.

“So, are you a noble or a knight?”

“I’m a knight.”

Turan downplayed his status, thinking the captain might get overly anxious otherwise.

If a knight initiated a mutiny aboard a ship, dozens of armed sailors could potentially handle the situation. But for a noble, it would be no more than light exercise after a meal.

As expected, upon hearing that Turan was a knight, the captain appeared more at ease.

“Given that you’ve chosen such an unofficial route, you’re probably not affiliated with the House Carmine, are you? May I ask why you’re heading to Enril?”

“It’s a personal matter.”

“Well, I suppose so.”

When Turan’s demeanor showed that he didn’t want to elaborate, Pires nodded in understanding, as if he’d only asked on the off chance.

The captain suddenly lowered his voice significantly.

“It’s true that we need a knight, as you mentioned, but to be honest, unless I’m confident in your combat ability, it’s hard for me to hire you.”

Unlike nobles, knights didn’t vary much in terms of magic power. However, their combat skills weren’t necessarily on the same level.

A knight’s abilities depended on a variety of factors, proficiency in close combat and weaponry to compensate for limited magic power, mastery of magic, and battle experience, to name a few.

And from Pires’ perspective, Turan didn’t seem like someone particularly reliable.

The youthful face, which appeared to be no older than around twenty, bore not a single scratch, and the only weapon he carried was a dagger hanging at his waist.

If there was any redeeming factor, it was his well-built physique, which suggested he had trained his body to some extent.

“By skill, how should I prove it?”

“I’m not a wizard, but I do know a few essential skills that those who work at sea must master. Can you handle water and ice?”

It just so happened that these were the very techniques Turan had been practicing during his journey.

Turan called over a staff member and had them bring a glass of water. In front of Pires, he performed a light demonstration.

Starting with manipulating the water back and forth, he then rapidly vaporized it, froze it, transformed the ice into various shapes, and finally moved the ice around effortlessly.

Though it was insignificant compared to the water and ice manipulation abilities of the House Carmine Bloodline, it was enough to satisfy the captain.

“Impressive skill. Have you worked at sea before?”

“No, this is my first time at sea.”

“Hmm.”

The captain’s expression wavered as though he wasn’t sure whether to believe Turan’s words.

After a moment, Pires nodded and spoke in a gloomier tone than before.

“Well, your skills seem sufficient. However, as I mentioned before... our ship’s budget doesn’t allow for paying a knight the wage they deserve.”

Apparently, the shipowner hadn’t allocated the funds to hire a knight to act as a guard.

Turan nodded in acknowledgment.

“I have personal reasons for traveling to the Enril Desert, so I’d be content even with a low wage.”

In truth, he was willing to pay for the passage if necessary, but he didn’t mention that. No need to spend money if it wasn’t required.

At Turan’s response, Pires’ face brightened slightly, but his expression still remained serious.

“And one more thing. I apologize, but I’d only be able to pay you the wage after we arrive.”

“Why is that?”

“We currently don’t have any money.”

Pires explained that most of the ship’s funds had been spent on purchasing the cargo currently loaded on the vessel. Only after arriving at the Enril Desert and selling the cargo would they have any profit to spare.

Judging by how he was still talking about such conditions despite Turan’s offer to work for a low wage, it seemed they truly didn’t have any money.

“Well… that’s fine with me.”

“Wonderful! It’s an honor to work with you.”

But as soon as Turan agreed, Pires’ previously serious face broke into a bright smile.

Seeing such an expression on the rugged, one-eyed man with his stern appearance, Turan couldn’t help but chuckle to himself.

At the very least, the captain didn’t seem like a bad person.

* * *

After finalizing their negotiation, Turan received a recommendation from Captain Pires for a well-maintained inn nearby and spent the night there.

Since it seemed unlikely he’d have quality meals on the ship, he decided to order the best breakfast course the inn offered the next morning.

“Your meal is ready, sir!”

The dining culture in Abacha, a town by the sea, was quite different from anything Turan had encountered before.

It began with shellfish dishes, followed by steamed and grilled seafood, seaweed, pickled vegetables, and salted fish.

Oysters were far too pungent for his taste, but the grilled fish dishes were generally enjoyable.

After finishing his meal, Turan had some time to spare, so he visited the bookstore he had scoped out the previous day and bought two books.

One was a collection of various legends about mermaids, and the other was a rulebook detailing the regulations aboard sailing ships.

By the time he tied the books to his bag using two leather straps, the agreed-upon time was approaching.

When he arrived at the specified location, he saw a massive three-masted sailing ship docked at the harbor.

Turan scanned the surroundings and spotted the sailor he’d met yesterday, busy giving instructions to others. He approached him.

“Put that on the very bottom! If you place it on top, the weight will mess up the balance… Oh, welcome, Sir Knight!”

"Can I board now?"

“Yes!”

According to the rules of sailing, the knight responsible for the ship's safety was considered equal in rank to the captain. Because of this, Turan spoke down to his counterpart.

Judging by the other person’s demeanor, he seemed to prefer it that way.

“Now that I think about it, we didn’t properly exchange names yesterday.”

“I’m Osban, the first mate!”

“First mate? So does that mean there’s a second mate and third mate too?”

“That’s correct!”

Turan had just made a passing remark, but the serious reply caught him off guard. Slightly flustered, he nodded and climbed the rope ladder.

With just two leaps, he soared several meters into the air and landed on the deck. The surrounding sailors all turned to look at him.

“Wow…”

“Did you see that? Did you?”

“Incredible.”

"Quiet! Does everyone have nothing to do? Want to scrub the deck again?"

It seemed rare for knights to display such feats, as the junior sailors aboard the Blue Marlin were visibly amazed. However, their superior's scolding quickly sent them scurrying back to their tasks.

The man who had chased away the others, seemingly in his early thirties, grinned and spoke.

“Nice to meet you, Sir Knight. I’m Renak, the boatswain.”

His rough manner of speaking wasn’t disrespectful but rather gave off a frank and cheerful impression.

Renak, with cheeks flushed as if from drinking, rubbed his face and welcomed Turan aboard.

“Honestly, all the men who died during the last voyage were under my direct command. That fucking shipowner bastard treats hiring new crew as if it’s the same as patching a hole in the ship. If it weren’t for the captain, I would’ve quit a long time ago.”

Though his language was coarse, the affection he had for his subordinates was evident, and Turan gave him high marks in his mind.

Continuing to vent his complaints about the shipowner, Renak guided Turan to the cabin where he would be staying.

“Here it is.”

The cabin assigned to Turan was so narrow that he could touch both walls with his arms fully extended.

It contained little more than a single bed placed lengthwise and a chest for storing belongings. The window was nothing more than two wooden panels connected by hinges.

“It’s… a bit cramped.”

“Well, yeah, it is. To be honest, the captain’s quarters are bigger, but that’s because he’s got all sorts of stuff he needs to manage.”

Even the previously jovial Renak looked slightly awkward at this point, unable to defend the accommodations.

Still, Turan figured it was good enough as long as he had a place to lie down. He placed his bag into the chest, effectively unpacking his things.

Lying down on the bed, he gazed at the sunlight streaming through the window, and various thoughts crossed his mind.

Originally, when Turan had first stayed with the House Berg, his plan was to head south through the Takein Plains and then walk east from the area near Maderi City, where he had met Ashiz, to reach the Enril Desert.

This route had been mentioned in 'Journey Around the World', the first book Turan had ever read.

The problem was that the route had unexpectedly become a battlefield between the Dark Elves and the House Arabion.

If caught by the Dark Elf army, he would likely be torn limb from limb and turned into a meal. And Arabion wouldn’t be any more welcoming to an unidentified wizard wandering near their warfront.

Under these circumstances, Turan had chosen an alternative route: heading straight east to the North Sea, then taking a ship southeast to land on the northern edge of the Enril Desert.

‘I wonder how Meisa is doing.’

The princess of Arabion, who was likely in the middle of the war with the Dark Elves by now.

That dry, skeletal lady was a powerful force that Turan couldn’t even think of defeating in his current state. But no matter how strong a wizard might be, no one was invincible.

Once he reached the Enril Desert, he thought it might be worth gathering some news about that situation as well.

* * *

"Keeeeaaaaaah-!"

In front of the burning fortress, the Arabion knight watched as the Dark Elf warriors let out bizarre screams and charged toward him.

They were beings who, lacking spirit energy, could not wield Undead Spirits, in human terms, they were no different from commoners.

However, their strength and agility were not much different from those of seasoned knights.

This was due to the inherent gap in the physical capabilities of their respective races.

That was likely why, in ancient times, they had trampled over humanity and reigned supreme before the Preah God Tribe descended.

“Haaaahp!”

As he infused his sword’s speed and power with magic power, the body of one Dark Elf was split in half.

The next one that leapt at him was scorched in the face by a burst of flame, and then he swung his sword again.

But there were far too many of them to take down all at once.

Two, four, six…

His arms and legs became sluggish as the endless attacks from the Dark Elves slipped through the gaps in his defense, occasionally cutting into his magically reinforced body.

In his dizziness from the blood loss clouding his vision, a longsword came crashing down toward him.

At the moment he felt death was certain, a deafening thunderclap roared from the sky, followed by a flash of lightning piercing through the Dark Elves.

“Kyahhhhhh!”

The scream that echoed now was similar to the earlier cries but tinged with far more fear.

In the now darkened sky, a woman with a gaunt, skeletal face soared downward.

Meisa Arabion had unleashed a bolt of lightning, which split into dozens of branches, instantly burning the Dark Elves to death.

“Th-thank you, my lady…”

“Join the main force.”

“Yes!”

After saving the stranded knight, Meisa glanced down at the battlefield with an exhausted expression.

The battle against the Dark Elf army was far from an honorable duel.

They repeatedly sent ordinary soldiers through underground tunnels to ambush vulnerable parts of the Arabion army. The knights killed in these skirmishes were dragged underground, turned into Undead Spirits, and used as combat assets by Necromancers.

There was no warrior among the enemy strong enough to face Meisa directly, but her overwhelming power was useless against an opponent who refused to meet her head-on.

“Meisa, are you hurt anywhere?”

“No, Uncle.”

Meisa slightly nodded her head in greeting toward the middle-aged noble flying toward her.

His name was Cadrum Arabion, the half-brother of the Arabion family head and the vice-commander of this punitive force.

“Don’t overdo it. You’re far more precious than the lives of a few knights.”

“This much is fine. More importantly, what’s the situation on the battlefield?”

Despite Meisa’s curt tone, Cadrum maintained his smiling demeanor as he answered.

“Not bad. At this rate, we’ll likely recover this area soon. Though we still haven’t found their tunnels.”

“Let me know when you do. I’ll go deal with it myself.”

“You should take a break…”

Before Cadrum could even finish his sentence, Meisa used magic to lift herself into the air and swiftly flew off in one direction.

“Tch, such a rude girl. Brother you have raised her too carelessly.”

The gentleness from moments ago was gone as Cadrum clicked his tongue and glared at the spot where Meisa had just disappeared.

“At this rate, she’ll end up just like her mother and her siblings…”