The next morning, with a thunderous roar, a colossal ship slowly departed the Imperial capital's docks.
Newspaper reporters who had rushed to the scene were blocked by a wall of Kingdom soldiers. They fought through the crowd of civilians, squeezed toward the front, and rose onto their toes, straining to lift their wooden-box cameras above their heads to capture the moment the giant vessel sailed away.
The murmurs in the crowd never stopped.
"That ship is incredible… If only I could go aboard."
"Don't daydream. That's a Deep Sea Council ship! I read in the papers it uses—uses…"
"Steam power."
"Right, steam power! See the people over there behind the human wall? The Chamber President, the arms tycoon, the cardinal… I've lived here my whole life and I've never seen so many big shots at once! Only people like that get invited onboard!"
"But that means the visit is over. Shame we didn't get to see the Council representatives."
"I heard Deep Sea Council's about to reshuffle too."
"Who told you that?"
"Don't ask. I have my own intelligence network!"
"If that's true, then doesn't that mean we're about to…"
"Watch your mouth! You trying to die? Don't get blood on me when it happens!"
Even so, the chatter continued. This was the Imperial capital's favorite pastime—talking politics until it felt like they were close enough to touch it, as if all it took was a raised hand and an open mouth.
At the very least, they had eyes.
They could watch the giant ship vanish beyond the horizon.
Something big was coming.
Everyone knew it.
...
At the same moment, aboard the steamship, the blond young man in a white formal suit leaned against the railing, staring back at the city's fading silhouette. When it was nearly gone, he finally stretched with relief.
"Young Master, how was the visit?"
The captain and several sailors approached. With them came a black-haired maid carrying a tray—grilled fish, fruit, and a drink tinted an ocean-blue hue.
"Oh, Lily, you truly understand me best," the blond youth praised warmly. Then he turned to the captain. "Only Hearthbay was any fun. When we get back, contact the Lofic Consortium. Build a few more teleport nodes in our coastal cities."
Lily disagreed at once. "Young Master was cheated out of quite a bit. Everyone in Hearthbay now knows a rich fool of a fat sheep arrived."
"Hahaha! Young Master, you've upset the head maid again."
The sailors teased. The head maid was always refined in public, fiercely protective of the young master's image—only in private did she occasionally show her sharp tongue.
The youth lounged into a deck chair, picked up a skewer of fruit, and asked with a smile, "Lily… still not over it?"
"This isn't about 'getting over it.' Young Master, you were clearly swindled by that Elemental Shaper who called himself Heisenberg."
Spending money wasn't the issue. The young master had always been extravagant. But being tricked like an idiot was another matter entirely.
To Lily, this was far worse than spending a hundred Gold Lions to buy freedom for a pitiful couple.
Thankfully, no one in Hearthbay knew their true identities. Otherwise, if the Empire came away thinking "Deep Sea Council people are rich idiots," the consequences would be… political.
The sailors smelled gossip and surged in eagerly.
"Lily, tell us!"
"Who's Heisenberg? How'd he scam the young master?"
Lily's expression darkened. "There is nothing amusing about this."
Then, she told them what had happened last night.
Their reactions were exactly as she'd predicted.
"PFFT—hahahaha! Magic scrolls, three-in-one?"
"Even I've never touched scrolls, and I know that's impossible."
"Sixty Silver Antlers in the shop!"
"Wait… those twenty scrolls—did Heisenberg just buy them from the shop and resell them to the young master?"
"Very possible. It was a setup between Heisenberg and the shop owner. First time traveling and all—young master's still too young."
The deck rang with laughter. Lily remained expressionless. In principle, they shouldn't gather to mock the young master—but this time, his behavior was too absurd. If it continued, he would suffer a far greater loss one day.
"Is there really no one on my side?" the youth protested. "It's magic scrolls, three-in-one! Doesn't that sound fun?"
The sailors responded with action—every one of them stepped behind Lily, leaving the youth alone. The captain didn't miss the chance to deliver a final blow.
"Fun, perhaps, but unfortunately impossible. The material used for scrolls is called energy-storing parchment. Each sheet is independent, with limited capacity. How could three possibly be used together?"
"I don't think he lied to me," the youth insisted, unwavering. He trusted his instincts.
"Young Master—this isn't the age of knights and magic anymore. It's their age now."
A finely crafted revolver was presented. Silver barrel, gold inlay, and an iris motif carved into the grip.
The moment the captain saw the iris, his smile vanished, replaced by a solemn seriousness.
The iris symbolized the Imperial royal family. He immediately understood: this was a royal gift.
On a grand scale, a symbol of friendship between the Empire and the Deep Sea Council.
"This is a gift from Imperial military industry," Lily said. "And you haven't even looked at it once. When we toured the factories, you must have heard it— even a great power like the Empire, allied with the Nasiriel Sanctum, has been reducing knight regiments in recent years. Since the rise of gunner battalions, their share in the Kingdom's army has increased year by year. Imperial military industry has long since become the Empire's number one heavy industry."
During the visit, with outsiders present and ears everywhere, Lily had stayed silent. But someone had to say it.
"I know Young Master loves magic. But you represent more than yourself. Your father appointed you as ambassador because he has high hopes for you."
One of Lily's duties on this voyage was to evaluate the young master's performance.
The result could only be described as… not ideal.
Young master was still young master—absent-minded in the military factories, missing information that mattered.
"Lily," the young man said suddenly, eyes sharpening, "you're not wrong."
The deck fell silent.
Even the sailors were startled by the sudden shift.
"But that's exactly why I trust my eyes even more," he continued. "Didn't you notice the workers' gazes?"
Lily froze.
"I thought His Majesty Henry was still strong—he could hold on for at least another decade. But now…"
He paused, then cast his eyes once more toward the Imperial docks, now nothing but a blur.
"The dragon-slayer of old… can't defeat time."
He stared into the distance.
"This country is going to erupt into civil war."
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