"Mom, where are we going?" the boy asked with sleepy eyes.
"Somewhere nice, my son," replied the weary woman with a worried face.
"Yawn, the sound of the ship's boards won't let me sleep," the boy rubbed his eyes.
"Close your eyes, you'll fall asleep," his mother responded kindly.
"Mom, are you worried?" the boy was curious.
"N…no, of course not, my son," the mother hesitated a bit.
"Then why are you as white as a sheet?" the boy gave her an innocent look.
"Well, I'm not used to the sea, and we've been on the water for quite a while now," the mother gave an awkward smile.
"Uh-huh, I'm really sleepy…" the boy trailed off.
"Sleep tight, my son… Do you want me to tell you a story?"
"Hmm…" the boy nodded.
"Alright, but only if you close your eyes first… Once upon a time, in a faraway land, there was a god who took away people's painful memories and kept them with him…"
"Does that mean he was a thief?"
"Haha, you can't call him a thief, he was the god of memories…"
And their conversation continued in this manner. Cyrus stood by the wooden stairs leading to the middle deck, listening to the woman and her son. He smiled and shook his head.
[Now I understand what that old man was really after.]
The captain intended to use local fishermen to crew his ship. That's why he chose a place where he thought people would accept his offer. The place that caught his attention was the Pirate Island.
[People don't want to be under the black flag. They seek freedom, and that man knew it. The journey to the land of the god of memories is fraught with dangers, and few are willing to take that risk. So he had to find those who were willing to make a deal.]
[Right, I'm not dealing with a simple man. But it doesn't matter; he wants to go to the land of memories, and that's my final destination too; there's no harm in getting a free ride, haha.]
He slowly climbed the wooden stairs and reached the middle deck. People were sitting by the cannons, staring silently at an indistinct point. Cyrus glanced at their distressed faces and went to the upper deck.
[As far as the eye can see, it's just white mist. In these conditions, even I don't know which way to go; although I escaped this hell once.]
[I just need to find that boatman and follow the flames…]
The weight of a hand on his shoulder pulled him out of his thoughts.
"So, what do we do now? We've been wandering for a while and haven't reached anywhere yet."
Cyrus turned and saw the captain looking at him with a worried face.
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
But that wasn't true. Cyrus had completely left the ship's fate to destiny and the unknown waves of that misty territory.
"Maybe I can endure it, but this fog corrupts the soul. Despair is not something I want to gamble on."
"So you'd rather fight the pirate king and his ships out there?"
"I'd prefer to try a more reasonable way."
"If there was such a way, I would never have suggested bringing the ship to a place I once escaped from."
"Y…you escaped from here?" the captain was shocked.
"…"
This was shocking news.
[So that's why he suggested coming here??]
The captain rubbed his chin. He was silent for a moment and then went to the ship's helm.
"Do you see anything?" he asked the helmsman.
"No, captain…"
"What's our speed?"
"10 knots…"
"Hmm… Be careful. Don't be fooled by the ship's speed."
"Aye, sir!"
Julian stood in the crow's nest, watching the surroundings. However, nothing was visible except for thick strands of fog.
[Damn it! Why did we listen to him! Now we have to die of despair.]
Such a death was terrifying for a knight. If possible, he would prefer to die in a battle with the pirate king. But the decision was not his to make. Julian sighed and scanned the surroundings again.
"This is the only thing I can do."
He picked up the spyglass and looked in all four directions.
Crack!
The sound of a bottle breaking came from the lower deck.
"Bastard!!! I told you to be careful!!! Can't you see the situation we're in??"
One of the main crew members shouted, pointing to the broken water bottle. He had never had a good view of the new crew, who were all villagers, and now that they were stuck in that tough situation, he showed his anger and frustration even more.
"Hey! What's wrong with you guys?" the captain shouted angrily. Cyrus had also come down to the lower deck behind the captain.
"Sir…"
"Quiet!!! I don't want to hear any stupid excuses."
"S…sir…"
The captain looked at the sailor with a murderous look, and he fell silent.
"Damn it!!! What's wrong with you all? Have you even paid attention to the situation we're in?? Do you think this is playtime? We're walking on the edge of a cliff here, and if we make one wrong move, just one wrong move…"
He paused, anger flashing in his eyes, and lowered his head slightly.
"Do I need to explain what will happen?!"
"But sir…"
"Shut up! Take him to the lower deck and imprison him, his food rations are halved; and you! Remember, this isn't your village. Whatever you do on my ship, you'll face the consequences. Take him to clean the ship. He gets nothing to eat until he's done." Cyrus smirked and stared at their clenched fists.
[That man knows how to run a ship. A leader who shows weakness can't get anything done. That man understands this and doesn't want to be a puppet in the hands of a bunch of sailors.]
"Bastards!"
"Hey, you see how things are. You'd better find a way out of this hell as soon as possible," the captain said quietly to Cyrus. Cyrus nodded in response.
Ding! Ding! Ding!!!
"Everyone on deck!!! Arm the cannons. Prepare for battle!!!"
Cyrus turned back to the upper deck in surprise and immediately got himself on deck. At the same time, most of the crew lined up with swords and mana guns along the sides of the ship.
"Who sounded the alarm?? What's going on??!!" the captain shouted.
Julian came down from the crow's nest. Drawing his sword, he handed the spyglass to the captain.
"Use mana"
The captain injected some mana into the spyglass, and the field of view expanded significantly. Suddenly, his face turned pale, and he stammered, "Is that… a ship?"