Going north from the city-states of Purnd and Lensa, across the "Great Cross Route" where merchants are busy, the cold breath lingers forever over this sea area called the "Cold Sea", and in this sea that never seems to dissipate
Under the influence of the mysterious cold air, the entire Cold Sea looks different from other places.
Here, the seawater presents a deep texture that is distinct from the warm sea. Fine ice floes often appear at the intersection of sea currents and islands. There are also mysterious large icebergs that rise periodically from the sea level, turning into temporary barriers or
The moving land has become a sign or emergency shelter on the sailing route for some sailors who make a living in the cold sea, and various mysterious cold fog, ice wind and phantom phenomena are the unique landscape of this cold sea.
It has brought countless strange legends, so much so that the two major city-states of Frost and Cold Harbor on this sea area have been dyed with a layer of mystery.
But compared to the large icebergs that can be controlled according to rules and the extraordinary phenomena that in most cases only exist in legends, what the captains who live in the cold sea talk about most is the iceberg that has been active since half a century ago.
, a terrifying fleet that is real but entangled with countless psychedelic colors - the Sea Mist Fleet led by Tirian, the son of Duncan Abnomar, whose influence radiates to one-third of the route in the Cold Sea.
On the edge of an island that is blocked and hidden by special sea currents and thick fog barriers, a steel warship with iron-gray paint, rigid lines, and a towering bow is quietly moored in the dock. Service personnel and sailors are
Busy, add fuel, fresh water and ammunition to the battleship.
If someone with a little knowledge of the history of the Frost City-State was standing here, he would probably notice at first glance that the sailors were still wearing the Frost Navy uniforms from half a century ago, and the white logos on their shoulders or chests—
—In Hanshuang tradition, this is a sign of mourning.
In the captain's room on the upper floor of the battleship, a man wearing a black navy cloak was flipping through a document.
This man has a thin build, a high nose, deep-set eye sockets, neat short black hair, and wears a black eyepatch made of unknown leather on his left eye. It is almost a pirate's iconic eyepatch, which makes his already gloomy face even more obvious.
He is sinister, and the outline between his brows is vaguely similar to the "ghost captain" who makes the world fear him.
A large parrot with colorful tail feathers was parked on a nearby wooden stand, staring intently at a brass device next to the emaciated man.
Arms and small lenses, and a large crystal ball in the center, it looks extremely luxurious and full of mysterious atmosphere.
The thin man didn't even raise his head: "Perli, if you touch it, I will send you to the Brilliant Star next month to accompany those puppets and ghosts."
"Ah, cruel!" The large parrot immediately screamed, shaking the wooden frame, "Ah, cruel! Tirian is really a cruel captain!"
"...I should really ask to find out which bastard taught you this," Tyrian Abnomar frowned, "Can you say something else?"
The large parrot flapped its wings triumphantly: "Perli learned it by herself! Perli learned it by herself!"
Tirian rubbed his forehead: "Damn, there's this sentence..."
At this time, a knock on the door suddenly came from the side, interrupting the communication between Tirian and the parrot.
"Come in." Tirian turned around and said.
The door to the captain's cabin opened, and a tall bald man walked in.
His skin was pale, like a long-dead corpse, and there was an eternal turbid haze in his eyes. A faint sea smell filled the air around him, mixed with a... coldness that seemed to come from the grave.
A living corpse, a dead body stranded in the world.
Tirian looked at the "living dead" who walked into the room: "Aiden, how much fuel has been added?"
"It's about to end, Captain," the tall bald man known as Aiden lowered his head slightly, his voice was hoarse and rough, and a faint cold white mist escaped from his mouth and nose as he spoke, "The boiler is already preheating.
Already."
"Very good," Tirian nodded slightly, "What's going on over at Cold Harbor?"
"As quiet as stone," Aiden said with a hint of contempt in his tone, "They dare not offend our territory - even if only half of the Sea Mist Fleet remains in the Cold Sea, those cowards will not have the courage to cross the route."
"They are very smart and can accurately calculate the gains and losses between interests. They were half a century ago," Tirian laughed. "Then make preparations. We will leave the port on time."
"Yes, Captain."
The first mate, who exuded the cold aura of death, opened the door and left the room, and Tirian's eyes gradually withdrew.
His first mate is a "living dead", and in fact, except for him, the "immortal", all the members of the entire Sea Mist Fleet are this kind of "living dead" between the living and the dead.
His loyal subordinates have served in this fleet faithfully for half a century.
In a sense, he himself, who cannot die due to the curse of subspace, is actually no different from his crew members.
Tirian shook his head, and at this moment, the brass device placed in his hand suddenly made a mechanical sound - he looked around and saw the complex rockers and lenses moving rapidly.
, and according to a certain rule, focus on the crystal ball in the center of the device. The next second, the crystal ball emits a faint light, and a blurry image emerges from it.
A young lady with long straight black hair, wearing a black silk skirt, with exquisite facial features and a hint of cold mystery appeared in the crystal ball - and behind this lady, you can vaguely see many things
The magic mechanism is running automatically, and there are dots of phosphorescent light floating in the air.
"Lucrecia," Tirian glanced at the lady in the crystal ball and nodded slightly, "I didn't expect you to remember to send a greeting to your brother before he left for the war."
The young lady in the crystal ball was about to speak, but was stunned after hearing Tirian's words: "Are you leaving today?"
Tirian frowned: "...Didn't you send me greetings because I'm leaving today?!"
"No," the lady in the crystal ball with a mage-like mystique shook her head calmly, "My deep-sea exploration device exploded."
The corner of Tirian's mouth trembled, and then he heard his sister continue: "Everything else is easy to repair, but the core crystal lens cannot be replaced."
Tirian continued to remain expressionless.
"Do you have any new ones over there? I'll exchange them with you for border minerals and samples."
"...Only two city-states can produce spiritual lenses that meet your precision requirements. The main trading channels are controlled by the Academy of Truth. The number that can be circulated to the outside is very, very, very... limited," Tirian finally couldn't help but sigh,
"It's only been two months since you last broke your detection device..."
"I found a very interesting sample, which may have floated up from the deep sea." Lucretia said.
"...The samples from the Deep Sea are not good either, although those things can indeed be sold to the Academy of Truth..."
"I also collected the phantoms left after the border collapsed."
"This is not..." Tirian covered his head with a headache, "The main thing is that I really don't know where to find a new set of lenses for you right now..."
Lucretia thought for a while: "Robbery?"
"I can't always rely on robbery," Tirian sighed, "The Sea Mist Fleet is preparing to formalize its operations. Now we mainly rely on collecting protection fees..."
"Oh, forget it," Lucretia finally shrugged. The first half of her words made Tirian relax, but the second half made the famous pirate leader feel excited.
"Then I'll ask again tomorrow."
"You... forget it, I can't stop your exploration plan," Tirian finally sighed helplessly (he sighed so many times in just a few minutes), "Tell me about your situation.
My 'respectable' sister who is a great explorer...you wander around the frontiers of the civilized world all day long, have you ever really discovered the signs that our world is heading for the end?"
"I can hear your teasing, brother," Lucretia said expressionlessly, "You have always been dismissive of my sense of urgency and never even really cared about what I found at the border. I can
I understand that you focus on more practical things, so I am even more grateful that you still provided me with the best help you could even though you didn't understand. But don't forget, our father... the warning he once gave.
"
"...Is our world just a pile of extinguishing embers..." Tirian leaned on his chair and said softly as if sighing, "I still don't know what he saw that day, but there is
It is an obvious fact that he was already crazy when he made this warning - and you are repeating what he did back then, and even trying to uncover the truth that led to his madness in the process."
Tirian shook his head and looked seriously at the figure in the crystal ball: "Lucrecia, it's bad enough that there is a Homeless Ship in this world."