Chapter 471: The Lone Dark

Editor: Tseirp

The Lone Dark, an ocean-going cruiser belonging to the Central Navy’s First Fleet of the Suje Kingdom.

Its captain, Gorick Dew, is just 28 years old, making him the youngest captain of a ship of this class.

However, his experience, both in battle and long-distance voyages like the current one, is among the most extensive in the Central Navy.

With sun-kissed skin, wheat-colored hair, a well-toned body, black eyes, and a handsome face, Gorick is well-known in the capital city of Purri.

When he takes his crew bar-hopping, rumors naturally spread.

Since Captain Gorick always picks up the tab, his crew adores him.

Free drinks and meals are an effective way to win over the hearts of his sailors.

The Lone Dark is currently en route to the Free City of Kwebasa on the continent, but this time, they have two passengers aboard.

This is a rare occurrence.

Of course, it’s not unheard of.

For example, when diplomats need to be transported.

Whether it’s for assignments, attending meetings, or conferences, Central Navy warships often serve as transport.

In a way, it’s a tradition of the Suje Kingdom to use warships for the travel of officials.

But these passengers are different.

They are civilians.

Not even citizens of the Suje Kingdom.

However, they have been ordered by Lord Protector Kabui Somal, the highest authority in the navy, to deliver them with the utmost care.

Queen Iliaja, who recently ascended to the throne, personally informed the entire crew that these passengers were of great importance to the kingdom.

The entire crew, including Captain Gorick Dew, was tense.

They had transported a Foreign Minister to a continental conference before, but even then, the tension wasn’t this high.

The King’s words back then had been more of a formality.

This time, it was different.

Queen Iliaja’s words were filled with a surprising intensity.

It made Captain Gorick think that if they failed to deliver these guests safely, returning home could lead to demotion… or even expulsion from the Central Navy.

These two ultra-important passengers, however, struck Captain Gorick as somewhat peculiar.

“Gunno-sensei, I have a question!”

“Yes, Ryo-san, what is it?”

First, there’s this.

Every morning at this time, they hold a study session for the Eastern countries’ languages.

On the day they set sail, one of the passengers, a magician, had approached Captain Gorick with a request.

“I’d like to learn the language of the Eastern countries.”

Lord Protector Kabui Somal had instructed them to accommodate the passengers’ requests as much as possible.

While Captain Gorick had intended to reject any unreasonable demands, this particular request wasn’t unreasonable or difficult.

After all, every crew member of the Lone Dark spoke the language of the Eastern countries.

This made sense.

When disembarking at a foreign port, you couldn’t even order a drink if you didn’t understand the local language.

Which wouldn’t be any fun.

So learning the language for their own enjoyment was a given.

But the swordsman who accompanied the magician had a trickier proposal.

“If possible, I’d like someone who speaks the Central countries’ language to teach us.”

Both the magician and the swordsman wore an alchemy tool called a ‘translator’ in their ears.

Apparently made in the neighboring Komakyuta Principality.

Since Captain Gorick knew they were from the Central countries, he understood the swordsman Abel’s request.

It was better to translate directly from their native language, after all.

That made perfect sense.

However, there was a problem.

Although the Central countries’ language was widely spoken around the world and many merchants had mastered it.

Not many sailors spoke it fluently…

On the Lone Dark, there was only one person who fit the bill.

Chief Engineer Gunno.

The Chief Engineer was the third-highest officer on the ship, after the captain and first officer.

The Lone Dark is a sailing ship.

If it were just that, there wouldn’t be a need for a Chief Engineer.

However, this wasn’t a purely traditional sailing ship.

This was true for most ships benefiting from recent advancements in alchemy.

When there was no wind, or when they faced headwinds, they could generate wind through alchemy, allowing the ship to sail.

The alchemical device responsible for generating this wind was known as a ‘Wind Generator’, and the person in charge of it was the Chief Engineer.

As long as there were no malfunctions, the Chief Engineer’s daily work wasn’t too demanding.

Gunno had a team of engineers under him, so he didn’t have to personally oversee the alchemical mechanisms constantly.

Therefore, Captain Gorick assigned Chief Engineer Gunno as the language teacher for the two passengers.

However, he limited it to two hours per day.

After their morning duties and before lunch.

If any problems arose or the weather turned rough, the lessons would be canceled.

Ryo and Abel accepted these conditions.

Now, it seemed that today’s lesson had ended.

“Ah, it’s nice to feel yourself improving every day. Accumulating small successes really boosts your confidence.”

“Indeed. I never thought the structure of the sentences would be so different, but expanding my understanding is quite enjoyable.”

Ryo said happily, and Abel smiled and agreed.

“That’s great to hear. I hadn’t used the Central countries’ language much recently. But I’m glad it’s coming in handy now.”

Chief Engineer Gunno said cheerfully before returning to the engine room.

In the afternoon, the Chief Engineer would return to his usual duties, and the two guests would do whatever they wanted.

Abel would practice his swordsmanship, and Ryo would study alchemy.

Time seemed endless.

“Chief Engineer Gunno said he was born into a merchant family, didn’t he?”

“Yes, he did. He mentioned that he had been learning the Central countries’ language since he was a child. Just like Banhu from the Blue Jade Trading Company in the Komakyuta Principality, merchant families start training their children from a young age.”

That’s the strength of founding families.

Of course, there are cases where the founders or their descendants don’t understand that strength and don’t receive any training in their childhood…

“Abel, you also started learning various things from a young age, didn’t you?”

“Well, yes. It’s only natural, being of royal blood.”

You can’t achieve more than average results without effort.

It’s because of the unseen hard work behind the scenes that people produce results that surprise others.

But people tend to focus only on the results.

They don’t think about the invisible years, sometimes decades, of effort it took to get there.

So, they just say, “How nice”, or “I’m jealous”, and that’s where it ends.

It’s a sad thing.

“When we were suddenly sent to the Archipelago Region, we couldn’t prepare for anything. But things will be different on the continent from now on. We’ll make sure we’re well-prepared!”

“One part of that is learning the languages of the Eastern countries, I suppose.”

Both of them had managed to get through the Archipelago region by using the alchemy tool, the ‘translator’… still, they couldn’t help but admire the ability to speak the local language fluently.

“Admiration drives growth!”

“That’s true.”

Abel nodded at Ryo’s words.

Of course, if all you do is say, “How nice” or “I’m jealous”, you won’t grow.

You have to see it and put in your own effort as well.

Effort always pays off.

Those who have worked hard—so hard that people around them might try to stop them, most of them know this truth.

That’s why they can say it with certainty.

“Effort always pays off”.

They would never mock someone who is trying their best.

Nor would they envy those who have achieved results.

Because they can imagine the effort those successful people must have put in behind the scenes.

Conversely, people who envy or resent others simply haven’t worked hard enough.

Deep down, they know it.

They regret, somewhere in their hearts, that they could have worked harder in their youth or prime years… but they slacked off just a little.

They know they could have achieved something far greater, something that would have made their mark on the world if only they had put in more effort.

That’s why they envy others.

That’s why they resent others.

…Or maybe that’s why.

“Once, a great person said this: Effort always pays off. And if there’s effort that doesn’t, then it’s not really effort yet.”

“T-That’s a powerful statement…”

“That person worked and worked and worked, and eventually became the world’s home run king. Abel, you should aim to be the king of the world, too!”

“I don’t even know what this ‘home run’ thing is… and isn’t your point changing halfway through?”

“The details don’t matter. So, what do you think? Maybe as a souvenir, we could occupy the Free City and turn it into an enclave of the Knightley Kingdom…”

“Hey, stop talking nonsense.”

Ryo suggested something mischievously, and Abel quickly put a stop to it.

“Of course, I’m joking. Come on, Abel, don’t be so serious.”

“With you, Ryo, it’s hard to tell where the joke ends…”

Ryo laughed and playfully hit Abel’s arm, while Abel sighed.

“Well, I’m looking forward to it… the Free City of Kwebasa… I wonder what it’s like.”

“Yeah. I hope they have good food.”

“They’ll have some, for sure.”

Abel said it with conviction.

This was a rare occurrence, so Ryo was a little surprised.

“No matter where you go, there’s always delicious food. That’s because humans are just that kind of creatures.”

“Abel… I’m a bit impressed. It’s true, wherever you go, there’s always something tasty. Now I’m even more excited!”

And so, with these two food lovers on board, the Lone Dark continued northward towards the continent.

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