Chapter 110: The Cold Winter (5) >
Spinola family’s third son, Antonio, lowered the documents he was reading and rubbed his hands together over a snowball.
“Those damn bastards. They’re seriously getting on my nerves. Are they planning to drown hundreds of thousands of people?”
The anger in his voice was thick and unmistakable.
Failure of the Sea King subjugation.
Due to the Sea King’s frenzy, the waterspouts have grown even more violent, and additional anomalies have been detected in the updraft that supported the Floating Archipelago...
At this rate, there’s a significant risk the archipelago might collapse or sink... Therefore, while they should seek a new approach to deal with the Sea King, it’s proving difficult...
The part of the report that infuriated him the most was right at the end.
Considering the necessity to review and possibly entertain Troyban’s proposal...
Damn Troyban!
No, calling them “dogs” wouldn’t even do them justice.
At the very least, dogs understood loyalty and trust.
But those bastards lacked any such qualities whatsoever.
Venota and the Floating Archipelago, where the Three Shipping Families, including the Spinola family, were coiled, were a unique geographical anomaly, nearly unparalleled even within the Empire.
One of the few known in existence.
A massive undercurrent flowing through the seafloor intersected with the magical winds of the underwater volcanoes on the deep-sea plains, creating a widespread updraft, which caused numerous islands, large and small, to float into the air.
Due to its considerable distance from the continent, the Floating Archipelago had developed a unique ecosystem and culture since ancient times.
This nature continued into the present, making it a lawless yet lucrative area where exiles and criminals expelled from the continent gathered.
Especially given its location, it served as a central hub port capable of distributing goods worldwide, leading to the flourishing of banking.
The Shipping Alliance.
This was the foundation that allowed for the emergence of an absolute force controlling all maritime trade routes.
Notably, they were even classified as Electors, wielding the electoral rights necessary for selecting the Emperor of the Empire.
This underscored the vast influence they had on the Empire and the world at large.
However,
Recently, the Floating Archipelago had encountered an unforeseen disaster.
The current connecting the continent and the archipelago had begun to falter, and anomalies had been detected in the updraft of magical winds supporting the islands.
Several of the floating islands had been hit especially hard by earthquakes, and some were gradually sinking toward the water’s surface.
For now, they had assured the islanders that it was nothing more than mild tremors caused by underwater volcanic activity.
But this truth couldn’t be kept hidden forever.
Moreover, the Three Shipping Families knew exactly who was behind these disturbances.
Troyban.
The culprit who had disrupted the balance of stable currents and updrafts of magical winds.
The problem was—
“We don’t have the power to pressure those bastards right now.”
While the Spinola family held notable influence within the underworld, they couldn’t compare to the prominence of a grand house like Troyban.
Even if the Shipping Alliance united to restrict Troyban’s trade routes, Troyban’s eastern location limited their reach.
Their most useful leverage was banking, but...
“That’s because those Grimahl bastards aren’t exactly cooperative.”
Spinola of the underworld.
Grimahl of banking.
Romellin of maritime vessels.
If these three families could unite in purpose, they might just overcome the current crisis.
But Grimahl hadn’t shown any willingness to cooperate in this situation.
“Unlike the other two families, who are rooted in their regional businesses, Grimahl’s confidence comes from knowing they can relocate anytime.”
There were signs, in fact, that Grimahl and Troyban had already engaged in secret negotiations behind the scenes. No, it was almost certain.
Grit!
Antonio clenched his molars tightly.
Though he couldn’t claim to have led a spotless life in the underworld, he believed his attachment to his homeland was genuine, and he couldn’t simply overlook this situation.
“If only there was some way to deal with the Sea King lurking beneath... beneath the Floating Archipelago.”
Tap!
Tap!
Antonio tapped his forefinger on the table, deep in thought.
Would they need to seek external assistance?
“The Imperial family has been a mess for a while now, so they’re out of the question... The North. The House of Ragnar in the North has reportedly been in conflict with Troyban recently. Should I reach out to them?”
But he knew he had reservations.
If he reached out to Ragnar and Troyban caught wind, they might retaliate by leveraging the Sea King, and everything would be over.
Ultimately, the best solution was for them to handle this themselves.
“Ugh...!”
Just as Antonio’s fist was trembling with frustration, unable to find a solution—
Knock knock.
“Lord Antonio. It’s Paolo.”
With a knock, the door opened, and the old butler entered.
He was not only Antonio’s butler but also had served as his aide for a long time.
“What is it?”
“Did you go through our entry records or something?”
At Theo’s narrow-eyed look of displeasure, Antonio quickly bowed his head.
“My apologies. However, we had to be certain of things ourselves, so I regret any discourtesy.”
“Fine. Go on, then.”
“The currents leading to Venota have been rather unstable recently. We’re also seeing a rise in sea beasts.”
Sea beasts.
It was a term used to describe all manner of monsters that lived in the ocean.
“You want us to act as an escort force?”
“I wouldn’t presume to make such a rude request. Though we may not compare to Sir Lant’s(Theo’s alias) strength, we do have our own escort forces.”
“Then?”
“It’s simply... there’s always the chance of an incident....”
“You want us to accompany you?”
“Yes. In exchange, we’ll provide first-class accommodations and cover all your necessary expenses in Venota.”
Theo let out a slight laugh.
“And what makes you think we’ll even be useful to you there?”
“I pride myself on having a good eye for people. I’m certain you wouldn’t do anything that could harm Venota.”
“Haha, flattery already puts me in a good mood. But what if we end up staying quite a while?”
“They say Spinola is nothing but a corpse without money, after all.”
“Confident, aren’t you? Very well. Is there anything else you’d like to ask for? That seems to be your real objective.”
For one so young, he’s skilled in politics and conversation.
Antonio’s estimation of Theo continued to rise.
“I only ask that you lend me your strength once. Just once, when I make the request.”
“And what exactly are you asking me to do?”
“You may decide whether to comply or not after hearing the request. But I assure you, Sir Lant, on my name, that it will only benefit you—not harm you in any way.”
“Hmph. And what honor does a lowly merchant’s name carry, anyway?”
Despite the blatant disdain, Antonio’s smiling face remained steady.
“Very well. With this kind of treatment, there’s no reason to refuse. When do we depart?”
* * *
The ship bound for Venota was noticeably different from ordinary vessels.
Protrusions extended from both sides of the hull, seemingly designed to stabilize the ship while riding the updrafts.
‘There’s quite a large escort force. I even see a few skilled fighters. It must be true that the currents have become unstable; they’re clearly not leaving things to chance.’
While Theo’s group comfortably boarded alongside Antonio’s entourage, they couldn’t help but notice the exceptional armaments of the guards.
Some among them, likely also handpicked by Antonio, were clearly wary of Theo’s group, openly eyeing them with suspicion.
They probably weren’t pleased that Theo’s group, who joined at the last minute, seemed to be receiving more favor.
「Should I knock them down a peg or two? If not, they’ll probably keep being a nuisance for the next five days.」
It seemed Selperd felt similarly, as he was just about to seek Theo’s opinion when—
Boom...!
Boom...!
Suddenly, a faint vibration was detectable.
Theo’s face tensed slightly, and his gaze shifted toward the open sea beyond the ship.
To the distant horizon.
Something was resonating out there.
「What’s wrong?」
「Do you see something over there?」
Selperd and Arin, noticing Theo’s sudden shift, quickly turned their gazes in the same direction.
‘Can’t either of you sense that?’
Theo wanted to ask, but he quickly widened his eyes.
Within the faint vibration, a familiar energy was pulsing.
Dragon Force (龍力).
It was the magic of a dragon.
And then—
『My companion...』
Chizzz, chizziz-
Through the jumbled noise, a familiar voice broke through.
“...!”
Theo quickly gathered his magic.
Thump, thump, thump, thump!
As the faint pulse synchronized with his heartbeat, the frequencies aligned.
Zzzzzzzng!
Amid the resonating relics he carried, the voice became clearer.
『Can you hear... my voice...?』
‘So, I wasn’t just hearing things.’
『If you can hear this... wave a carrot...』
Even throwing in a silly joke.
It was Lothbrok.