Outside the Feysac naval port on the eastern side of Sonia Island, a sailing warship hidden beneath the sea's surface slowly reduced its speed.
It was the Trident. Perhaps eager to impress its new "master," it had taken less than an hour to reach its destination.
At this moment, because Ebner had nested an additional Game of Years within the Vanished Nation of Night, the dragon's act of "suicide" had not yet fully concluded.
"According to the intelligence provided by Arrodes, there's a Sequence 3 War Bishop and a Sequence 4 Iron-Blooded Knight stationed inside the naval port. In the church just beyond the port lies a Sequence 3 Silver Knight who can come to their aid at any time…
"And patrolling not far offshore is Vice Admiral of Dusk's fleet… On that flagship sits the admiral's father, a Sequence 4 Demon Hunter.
"The sea monster's lair lies in a rather tricky spot… strictly speaking, it's within range of the port's coastal cannons…
"Fortunately, since we've taken the Trident, we won't have to approach from the surface.
"But once we enter the lair, the demigods will definitely come to assist… so we must find a way to keep them occupied."
Klein pointed at a map of the area surrounding the naval port as he analyzed.
He had drawn it based on what he had seen earlier from above the gray fog, viewing the scene through the perspectives of various sea creatures.
"High-Sequence Beyonders of the Hunter pathway possess the power of Gathering of the Masses. Within a military force, they're terrifying—it won't be easy to stall them…
"Especially the War Bishop… If possible, it would be better to lure him into the lair. That would actually make things much easier." Ebner thought for a moment before offering his suggestion.
Klein, however, shook his head. "That War Bishop isn't part of that organization. He'll definitely do everything he can to stop us. If we lure him over, we might cause unnecessary complications."
"You're right…" After pondering for a while, Ebner continued, "In that case, I'll have Daphne summon a demigod projection to hold off Vice Admiral of Dusk. Then Daphne herself will take my Medal of Rampage and Book of Virtues to block War Bishop Beliak Einhorn…
"As for the Church of the God of Combat's archbishop, I can have Oumu transform into a dragon and deal with that Silver Knight."
At that, Klein picked up the discussion. "Miss Temperance will take care of the Iron-Blooded Knight, Yegor Einhorn…"
He paused for a moment, then said with some hesitation, "The only problem now is that we need to make a big enough commotion to make the attack on the naval port believable. Otherwise, those demigods won't be fooled—they'll immediately see through our trick.
"I can pray to Mr. Fool to create tsunamis, storms, and other natural disasters to mimic an assault by the Church of the Storm… but where do we get enough ships to make it look real?"
When he finished, he looked hopefully at Ebner. During their earlier meeting above the gray fog, Mr. Tower had said he could solve this issue.
Ebner only smiled mysteriously and asked in return, "Do you remember how Zhuge Liang completed Zhou Yu's request for a hundred thousand arrows during the Three Kingdoms era?"
"You mean… borrowing arrows with straw boats?" Klein said, confused. He understood the historical reference but had no idea what Ebner was planning.
Meanwhile, Daphne, Sharon, and Miss Messenger, who were listening nearby, were completely lost. They didn't understand the riddle being exchanged—nor even what language the two were suddenly speaking.
…..
Onboard the flagship Nepos of the First Fleet of the Feysac Empire in the Sonia Sea.
A tall, burly man over two meters in height, his upper lip covered with a thick mustache, sat behind a desk covered with maps. This was Yegor Einhorn. He sipped Soniya Blood Wine as he mulled over his next move:
By tomorrow night at the latest, the ragtag fleet assembled by the Church of the Storm will definitely attack. Though they lack proper coordination, there are still a few troublesome "Ghost Ships" among them… Keeping the fleet docked in the port might put us in a passive position.
Even though I'm an Iron-Blooded Knight and can gather the fleet's combined power within myself to distribute damage, the enemy's irregular forces will surely bring along a Sequence 1 Sealed Artifact from the Sailor pathway. If they stir up huge waves in the harbor, what good will damage sharing do? A single misstep, and they'll board for close combat—that's where pirates excel.
The best option is to head out and seize the initiative. Unfortunately, Lord Beliak plans to completely annihilate that assembled force from the Storm Church… My fleet is merely bait—or perhaps just one of several pieces of bait?
Heh, still, if I can win this battle, I'll likely digest a large portion of my potion.
And this is only the appetizer. The true war lies ahead!
Hmm… I should advance to War Bishop as soon as possible. Only then can I truly draw out a military force's full potential—instead of just concentrating power on myself like I do now…
If I join the coming war as a War Bishop, I might even have a chance to ascend to angel afterward…
Yegor's thoughts were racing when his expression suddenly changed. Through his Iron-Blooded Knight's latent link to his soldiers, he sensed abnormal weather conditions at the port—the waves were rising higher and higher.
"This is… the Sea King's power? The Church of the Storm has come already?!" He abruptly looked up through the window to see dark clouds slowly swallowing the crimson moon.
As a naval admiral deeply familiar with the Church of the Storm, Yegor immediately reached a conclusion and was about to summon his adjutant to prepare the troops for battle.
But just then, thick fog rolled over the sea. Through the mist, countless lights began to flicker, as though a large number of warships were using the fog as cover to launch an assault on the port.
A cannonball even fired from within the mist, splashing into the sea near the harbor.
Seeing this, Yegor dared not act rashly. He immediately relayed the information up the chain of command.
Meanwhile, in the army camp on land, War Bishop Beliak Einhorn received the report via the lighthouse. His brow furrowed.
"Our intelligence said that the assembled pirate fleet wouldn't arrive until tomorrow… Why are they here now?
"Could it be because of that fog?
"Hm… it's of a high level—I can't even see through it… Ah, if only I were a Weather Warlock, I could disperse it directly."
Just as he thought this, a report came in from Yegor requesting orders. After a moment's consideration, Beliak instructed his adjutant, "Tell Yegor not to engage until that fleet reaches its designated position. Order Vice Admiral of Dusk's fleet to probe the fog."
"Yes, sir." The adjutant saluted and departed.
About ten minutes later, he returned—with bad news.
"Vice Admiral of Dusk has been stopped by an unfamiliar demigod."
"What kind of unfamiliar demigod could hold off Vice Admiral of Dusk's entire fleet? Peter Ivank is aboard the flagship!
"Even I, without my fleet, might not manage such a feat!"
The adjutant said nothing. Instead, he handed Beliak a portrait transmitted via a special means from Vice Admiral of Dusk.
"This is… the Professor?"
Beliak Einhorn recognized him instantly.
A man who could leave objects inside the homes of both the Sea King and the Imperative Mage without being detected had earned the right to have his materials kept on Beliak's desk.
Moreover, that Professor had been reported acting in various places before.
But to think he was powerful enough to single-handedly block an entire fleet?
At the same time, Scholar of Yore Daphne was equally stunned. She had known that the Divine Emissary was strong—but she hadn't expected even the Divine Emissary's historical projection to be this powerful.
After all, though she'd come to know the Divine Emissary better over recent days, she still didn't fully understand what Sealed Artifacts he possessed. Thus, even if she managed to summon his projection successfully, it should have been a "blank slate," devoid of any equipment.
Yet even so, the Divine Emissary's strength far exceeded her expectations.
(End of Chapter)