Chapter 131Previous


    A small figure jumped into the room. It was Courant, holding a gun in one of his hands. Lil bit her lip in her dismay. Realising btedly that she had unlocked thetch afterying Ed down and right before she tried to leave the bedroom.


    Startled by the shout of the uninvited guest, the pigeon rushed toward Courant.


    What the?!


    The pigeon struck Courants small head with its beak and the sound of its loud pping wings filled the room. While Courant frantically covered his head, struggling to shove the bird away, a hand rose from above him. Lil couldnt see who reached out because their body and face were hidden behind the half-open door. But the rampaging pigeon that had been pecking on Courants head, was grabbed by its body in an instant. The grip was strong enough to hold the bird firmly despite its violent pping. Surprised, Courant looked back at his saviour and greeted them. The boy then pointed at Ed and raised his eyes towards him as a gesture of usation. The hands owner seemed to have said something because Courant eagerly nodded his head in response. The obedient boy then grabbed the wooden door and held it open for him.


    Lil hoped the person about to enter wasnt a member from Valtanos or Jarles crew as it was unimaginable how much more threatening the atmosphere would be if word got out that this ship had a navy onboard that couldmunicate with his fleet. But only a secondter, she wished it was one of them as she could only think of one other person who shouldve never seen this scene.


    Lil knew before the door even fully opened. She knew it the moment she saw the arm. The way it wore its sleeve and the appearance of the familiar wrist. She couldnt help but wonder what he was thinking about the hours shes spent with Ed. It wasnt long before the identity of the man, who stepped straight into the cabin, was revealed.


    Cold sweat poured down her back like a river, her brow became damp and her legs trembled. She felt as if shed been caught in bed with a stranger. The fact that Lil was still pointing her gun at Ed wasnt helping the situation either.


    What is going on?


    Cesar looked at Lil as he retrieved the message from the pigeons ankle


    ***


    Oh Im dying


    Captain Long struggled to open his eyes as hey face down on the conference table in the admirals office. He couldnt recall thest time he had a good nights sleep.


    <em>The rest of the fleet probably feels the same way. Of course, if the Vice-Admiral refuses to lie down for even a moment, who has the right to do so? Fortunately, I can ck off a bit like this if Sir Sagastar is out of sight, but if Im caught the situation will turn disastrous</em>


    Captain Long sighed deeply, drooping his forehead on the hard table.


    All battleships were currently on a tight schedule, but the Visha, where Sagastar was stationed, has elerated its pace immensely. Due to the urgency of the situation, the Visha raised from the middle to the front lines, but then it even set off alone and never drifted off its route. Of course, the Visha was apanied by a Legardon sloop on all sides.


    The captain smiled with relief, thankful that Legardon had joined them.


    Legardon, which has enemies in the shallow waters of the Ingres Sea, has arge number of shallow draft ships. These smaller ships were ideal for exploring coastlines. Such a setup would allow them to travel along the coast while leaving arger ship like the Visha in the middle of the sea.


    <em>However, thats the only thing that can be considered fortunate</em>


    The captains smile quickly turned into a sad one when he realised everything else was in disarray. He only wanted to sleep. It felt as if he was going insane from sleep deprivation.


    <em>I might die if I stay awake like this At this point, Im willing to sell my soul to the God of death in exchange for some shuteye</em>


    What are you doing, Captain?


    Aaaagh!


    Captain Long rose from his seat. Until now, he hadnt realised Sagastar was standing right next to him.


    <em>Maybe I really dozed off</em>


    That thought terrified him so much that it was writing all over his face.


    When did you arrive, Commodore?


    Ive been here since you were soundly asleep alone while everyone else worked hard.


    No No, I just happened to observe the Hangyang Inds from a lower vantage point


    Cut to the chase.


    Yes!


    Sagastar walked past the table and sat down on the admirals seat. The captain, who was still standing, finally sat down in response to the given gesture. Out of exhaustion, Sagastar leaned back in his chair and rubbed his eyes. Captain Long used this moment to scan the table in front of them, searching for anything worth reporting, before casting a sidelong nce at hismodore. Somewhere along the line, Sagastar had removed his jacket and was now dressed in an for him unusual manner, with a loose scarf hanging from his shoulders. He even rolled his sleeves all the way up to his elbows and his exposed forearms were smeared with ink.


    <em>Sir Sagastar used to nag Sir Edgar whenever he wandered around the Visha in simr attire Now hes the one who casually discarded his coat and vest. This practically confirms he isnt paying attention to anything but the search.</em>


    The captain snapped out of his thoughts and forcefully opened his eyes to read the report. He could only open his eyes fully by forcefully raising his brows. The captain looked at the ck letters with smarting eyes he then felt them close slowly.


    Captain.


    Yes, Commodore


    When he realised that his answer came out unconsciously, captain Long immediately opened his eyes wide.


    Yes! Whats the matter?


    Bring them.


    Oh, yes.


    The captain took the documents gathered in front of him and walked up to Sagastar. He scoured for the right page and ced the papers down in front of themodore.


    Uh, well here it is.


    Is this really the ship?


    Yes. Whether these waters are uncharted or not This must be it. A few days ago, another ship encountered it, but we lost its trail Who would even want to go this way? Its famous for being a windless zone, most ships avoid it, afraid to die of starvation.


    However, it oveps with the route to Serlio.


    Ah, ording to the officers of Legardon, Serlio primarily trades with the maind and the inds along the way. Because the main ind of the southern archipgo is Marchand, I heard that not many ships from the South find it profitable to go to Serlio.


    Right.


    Sagastar sank into silence. Trying to predict various scenarios and possibilities, he busily flipped through the papers. For a moment, the captain quietly observed him.


    By the way, Commodore


    What?


    Why do we keep searching the inds?


    Sagastars hand came to a halt. The captain winced, wondering if hed made a mistake. Fortunately for him, Sagastar turned the page before responding to him.


    Do you recall the most recent correspondence we received?


    Yes.


    It had the title of the book written on it.


    Yes.


    Under what conditions do you believe such a change in procedure could ur?


    The captain shook his head.


    Didnt you interpret it as a distress signal by the Admiral?


    Formally, yes.


    Is there an informal way to look at it?


    Thats correct.


    How?


    Someone coerced Sir Edgar into writing a code.


    What?!


    Sagastar gave him an irritated look, so the captain shrank his shoulders and shut his mouth again.


    For now, I can only assume something must have happened. Sir Edgar must have informed the perpetrator that their life was also on the line, so they had no choice but to help Sir Edgar. In this case, they must have had some scuffle over the code. If its written down without any chance to check, the perpetrator will never believe the content, and that will mean trouble for Sir Edgar too. And because Sir Edgar couldnt use the official code, this must be a product of thepromise between them.


    You came up with all this just because he wrote down the title?


    Yes. Think about it, Captain Long. Think. Whats the foundation of the code?


    The captain took a quick look around. Like a real library, the walls on both sides of the admirals room were lined with books. Bookshelves whose arrangement and contents havent changed in years. No matter how high the waves the Visha sailed were, the shelves remained intact. Even if a bookshelf was tipped over and all the books were spilt, the owner would return them to their original ce.


    <em>Is that even human?</em>


    The captain shook his head when he even imagined Edgars ghost hovering in front of the bookshelf. He rubbed his arms incessantly and gazed at Sagastar.


    The title coordinates?


    Thats right, Captain. One cant decipher the code unless he knows what kind of book he needs. The coordinates of the title, the first three numbers, are the key to the code.


    If Sir Edgar only wrote down the title with numbers, the perpetrator wont be able to trust the message, in addition, theres the risk that Sir Edgars library would be found out, so theypromised by just writing the title down?


    Exactly.


    Uh then I understand why its rming that the Admiral only used half of the coding system, but what does that have to do with searching the inds?


    The tired Sagastar rested his hand on his forehead.


    It wouldnt have been a peaceful situation if you had to write a letter under duress, Captain Think, youre now aboard a hostile ship with no allies. Threats are lurking all the time. How are you going to escape?


    Of course, Ill wait for a nearby ind and flee at night


    Thats all there is to it.


    Wellthen the Admiral could have drifted to one of the many inds in this vast ocean


    Finding that the conversation took another annoying turn, Sagastar waved his hand. The captain immediately bit his tongue and picked up the scattered reports. Meanwhile, themodore closed his eyes. Captain Long gathered thest report and packed all of them to his chest before quietly leaving the admirals room


    ***