Chapter 4: The Journey
“Mr. Rebrí, it seems your profession keeps changing along with your hobbies—magician, adventurer, magic artifact maker, or even a salesman. Your naturally optimistic personality is truly enviable. I’d be satisfied once I reached your level.” Comer’s compliments lacked sincerity, and it was hard to tell if there was any sarcasm in them. Rebrí seemed unfazed by this, as neither of them seemed to be focusing on it.
“Well, my lord, I doubt you came to me just to praise my diverse hobbies. Heh, have you finalized the plan to go to the swamp? It seems you intend to have that mage, Lomei, join us in that mess too. It appears our lord has gained quite some insight from training that convert from the Light Church lately. Are you really that confident in her?” His mocking tone carried a hint of disapproval. The disheveled mage gently swayed the nameless short staff in his hand. Comer wasn’t sure if this was the magic staff used in his experiments, but its design was extremely unique—thick and short, more like a mallet, with smooth ends and no decorative patterns. Yet he handled it skillfully, resembling a street performer clown, looking utterly comical.
“Mr. Rebrí, there’s no need for you to worry too much. Miss Lomei’s performance has far exceeded our expectations. You can’t deny that the Light Church has a significant advantage in choosing those to whom it spreads its teachings. With so many devout believers, they can easily find excellent candidates. Miss Lomei’s talent is undoubtedly top-notch. I think, after experiencing the breadth of Light magic, she should now explore the profundity of Dark magic as well. Oh, I almost forgot to mention—Dark doctrine and the principles of Dark magic seem to have an innate appeal to Miss Lomei. This is indeed a cause for celebration.” Comer’s words were filled with praise for his disciple. Rebrí even wanted to remind him not to forget that everything buried deep in this Light mage’s memory might be reactivated at any time. He wasn’t sure how Comer managed to make this highly skilled Light mage lose his original memories.
“Well, since Lord has such great trust in Miss Lomei, I won’t say any more. I’ve made all the preparations here and am waiting for Lord’s orders. It seems the Jellyfish People don’t have any strongholds near the Caucasus; most of their bases are located in the west, in the marshlands near the Duchy of Rosenburg and the City-States of Loire. Where do you plan to contact them?” Shrugging, the disheveled magician seemed aware that the baron could be particularly stubborn at times, so he wisely stopped pressing the issue.
“Let’s go to the Duchy of Rosenburg. There should be some ways there, and I’d like to meet some old friends as well.” Komer’s eyes lit up slightly.
There were originally three routes to the Duchy of Rosenburg. The first was, of course, to cross Leon, pass through the Greenland Forest, enter the Bosen Plain, then head west to Calais. From there, continuing west would take one into the heart of the Northern Alliance, and further south, through the Kingdom of Bohemia, one could enter the territory of the Duchy of Luxembourg. But this route was cut off due to the destruction of the bridge at Bruce Fortress. The second route followed a similar direction: sailing north from Middelton to Odessa Port, then switching to inland waterways to reach the Canal Region, from where one could continue by ship to Calais and then enter Luxembourg by land. The third route was purely theoretical, as it hadn’t actually been developed. It required crossing the vast and desolate Cordillera Wasteland, passing through this land of barbarians, then taking secret paths into the complex city-states of the south. Crossing the upper reaches of the Catalonia River from the City-States of Lurva would lead one to the heart of the Duchy of Luxembourg.
Rebri suggested crossing the Cordillera Wasteland to infiltrate Luxembourg from the southern continent, but Komer rejected this idea. Although this route seemed simpler and obtaining permission from the barbarians wouldn’t be a problem, Komer didn’t want to enter the southern continent through their lands. Hostility along that border was extremely high at the moment. If a few mortals emerged safely from barbarian territory, it could easily draw attention among the city-states and nations of the southern continent. Under these circumstances, Komer didn’t want his influence to grow to such a degree—it would be of no benefit to the Caucasus.
The only route then is to set sail by boat and transfer in Odessa. The sole risk with this route is passing through the control area of the Homer Navy in the central part of the Abyssal Sea. Given how closely the Homer Navy monitors ships entering and leaving Matdam, avoiding their inspections is nearly impossible, especially when trying to reach Odessa. However, Komer doesn’t see this as a risk—simple disguise will suffice to solve everything. The Homer Navy’s fleets mainly target cargo ships rather than passenger ships, paying far more attention to goods than to passengers.
The blue sea water gently lapped against the ship’s hull. Komer sat quietly in a private cabin in the middle of the ship. Lome clearly wasn’t used to ship life; the sense of novelty she had when leaving Matdam Port had long been worn away by the bumpy journey, leaving only fatigue. The ship’s black alder hull showed that the owner had put some effort into maintaining it, and the cabin was fairly well-designed. The thick velvet curtains were slightly frayed, and a bunch of the most common wild lilies from the Caucasus was placed in a simple vase, adding a touch of decoration—at least in Komer’s eyes, it wasn’t vulgar or flashy. The simple, unadorned interior, along with the semi-new materials, gave it a somewhat elegant vibe.
In the cabin across from him, the girl had fallen into a deep sleep. The continuous bumps made her vomit repeatedly, as if she had never experienced such things before. After finally cleaning herself up, the owner grew impatient. If it weren’t for the Gold Shield, Komer guessed the owner would have forced them to move to ordinary cabins. Rebrí and Sorenberg occupied the other two private cabins. Out of the ship’s six total private cabins, four were taken by Komer’s group of four, no wonder the owner couldn’t help but wonder how such seemingly unremarkable people could be so extravagant.
It was an ordinary medium-sized passenger ship, capable of holding over sixty guests. Of course, the cabins were divided into different classes. The first-class cabins were located in the best positions in the middle of the ship, offering stability and safety but at a high cost. The ends of the ship mainly had ordinary and mixed-class cabins. Ten Gold Shields could get you from Matdam straight to Odessa—this was one of the busiest routes nowadays, with at least thirty ships traveling daily between Matdam and Odessa, of various sizes. Komer chose the most unassuming medium-sized ship.
It takes three days and two nights or two days and three nights to travel from Middelburg to Odessa, without stopping at any ports, with night voyages relying entirely on the sailors’ experience and the use of a star compass. The star compass can be considered one of the simplest and most practical magical navigation tools. In fact, it can no longer be entirely called a magical tool, as it can be purchased in almost every port and is essential for almost every sea vessel. Although expensive, no ship dares to do without this basic equipment, as relying solely on the sailors’ experience to navigate safely at sea without getting lost is quite risky, especially in bad weather or when encountering unpredictable seasonal currents. Sailors who lose their bearings must rely on the star compass to determine their location and choose their course.
Walking outside the cabin, Komer observed with interest the star compass placed in the center of the captain’s room, embedded in a wooden stand. It was clear that this star compass was quite old—probably older than the ship itself—likely transferred from some other abandoned vessel. The dark disc was covered with various marks indicating the positions of celestial stars, while the routes marked with red lines and small dots represented the sea chart.
Komer could sense that these faintly glowing marks were made of magical metal, with a small hole beneath each mark, slightly bulging directly above it. He had heard that magic artisans activate such devices by pouring magic energy into this bulging area through the hole, causing the magical metal to function. Once the magician’s own magic energy merges with the magical metal marks, the star compass is ready to use. Therefore, star compasses must be installed on ships by magic artisans themselves or using pre-prepared magic scrolls to ensure they function properly.
When a ship gets lost, the star compass can connect the metal nodes made of magical metal with the power of celestial stars, quickly reflecting the ship’s location on the sea chart through that star power, thus helping to determine the ship’s position and direction.
The lifespan of star compasses varies, and their quality differs depending on the skill of the magic artisans and the quality of the magical metal used. A high-quality star compass can account for nearly one-fifth of a ship’s value and may last up to ten years. Making star compasses has become an excellent alternative career for some magicians on the continent who can no longer progress further in the path of magic.
The owner’s cabin was directly opposite the captain’s cabin, highlighting the importance of the captain during a ship’s voyage. However, the owner’s vigilant gaze and the captain’s kind smile revealed their different attitudes toward Komer.