Chapter 259: The Ship in the Mist
The sea breeze was cold and viscous, carrying a chill that seeped into the very marrow of one’s bones.
A specially made speedboat, entirely black with sleek lines, sailed silently across the dead waters of Black Reef Bay. It had no sails, yet intricate magic runes were inscribed on its hull, flowing with a faint light under the dim sky, propelling the vessel at a stable speed that was out of sync with the surrounding chaotic currents, cutting through the turbid waves.
Edgar stood at the bow, his dark grey trench coat rustling in the eerie sea breeze, his hat pulled low, obscuring all expression.
Behind him, Princess Victoria sat quietly, draped in a thick, hooded, deep blue cloak that concealed her overly striking golden hair and her elven ears. She held an ancient parchment sea chart, her demeanor calm and elegant, as if she were in a warm corner of the royal library, not in this deathly sea area filled with ill omen and danger.
“Captain Edgar, the direction seems to be a bit off,” the Princess’s gentle voice broke the oppressive silence on the ship. “According to the ancient book’s attached map I found in the royal secret vault, to avoid the most dangerous strong current belt outside Cape of Submergence, we should move half a nautical mile further to the east.”
Edgar’s body stiffened imperceptibly for a moment.
After forcefully “persuading” them, Her Highness Victoria, under the guise of “assisting in the investigation” and “ensuring that important historical sites of the Kingdom are not damaged by petty individuals,” had legitimately joined their operation. Moreover, she had, through some channel unknown to Edgar, requisitioned this special speedboat belonging to the Kingdom’s Navy intelligence department.
The speed and stealth of this ship far surpassed ordinary vessels, but it also meant that their current operation was completely guided by Her Highness.
The “Canary Operation” was forced to halt, and even the target himself had become their “navigator.” This feeling gave Edgar a sense of unprecedented absurdity and frustration. He didn’t know how the Princess had learned of their existence, or if she knew their true purpose, but he knew that under the current circumstances, he could not and dared not take any drastic action against a direct member of the royal family.
“Following your guidance, Your Highness,” Edgar finally responded in a low voice. He turned and gestured to Anrius, who was operating the magic ship.
Anrius glanced at his captain’s face, hidden in the shadows, as if it could drip water, then at the composed Princess, and finally sighed helplessly, adjusting the ship’s course.
As the ship ventured deeper, the surrounding scenery became increasingly bizarre. The seawater had turned a thick, almost ink-like black, with large patches of rotten seaweed and the pale remains of unknown creatures floating on the surface. The rotten, fishy smell in the air grew more intense, even beginning to mix with a subtle, sweet scent of death.
“This is it,” Victoria put down the sea chart and stood up, walking to the ship’s side. Her gaze fixed on the endlessly dark expanse ahead, shrouded in thick fog. “Legend has it that this is the final resting place where Laurentine City fell, and also the resting place of Soul Lord Kurt. Passing through this mist, we will see the entrance to Cape of Submergence – a massive, ceaseless underwater whirlpool.”
As soon as she finished speaking, the surrounding gray-white mist, which had been flowing slowly, seemed to be awakened by her words and began to thicken and churn at a visible speed.
The mist was no longer dissipating randomly but began to gather and solidify into a fixed outline. It seemed to have a life of its own, being drawn and woven by an invisible giant hand.
First, a towering mast made of gray-white mist appeared, followed by decaying gunwales and a dilapidated hull outlined in the churning mist. A black flag with a tattered skull insignia fluttered on the top of the mist mast, moving without wind, rustling loudly.
A massive ghost ship, exuding endless resentment and the aura of death, materialized from the formless mist before everyone’s eyes, blocking their path.
The hull was entirely black, as if soaked in deep-sea silt for centuries. The ship was covered in ghastly cracks and holes, with countless pale hands and twisted faces appearing and disappearing in those openings, emitting silent wails. Dozens of figures stood dimly on the deck.
They were pirates, or at least they had been. But now, their clothes were in tatters, hanging on them like shrouds. The exposed skin showed swelling and pallor from long immersion in seawater, some even starting to rot, revealing the white bones and dark red tissues beneath, like walking corpses.
Yet, even so, they could move like living people. Some were drinking foul, greenish rum, some were jeering at the speedboat, and some were sharpening rusty swords, preparing to slaughter.
“The Mist Devourer…” Edgar’s voice was extremely grave. He recognized the flag. “Roberts’ flagship, wasn’t it sunk by the Xide fleet long ago?”
“Some ships never truly sink,” Victoria’s voice remained calm, but a hint of unprecedented sharpness appeared in her clear golden eyes. “Especially when their former master was the great pirate of the Soul Lord path. Roberts may be dead, but his minions are still active.”
As if to confirm her words, a tall figure slowly emerged from the shadows of the ghost ship and stood at the bow.
His clothes were also tattered, but they couldn’t hide his tall and straight figure. He wore no hat, his wet black hair messily clinging to his forehead. His once handsome face now wore a sickly pallor, his lips a bloodless blue-purple. However, the most heart-stopping things were his pair of scarlet eyes, which contained not a shred of reason, only pure, boiling cruelty and brutality.
It was Joseph Vilburad.
He seemed unaffected by the Disciplinary Bureau’s small speedboat. His scarlet eyes scanned Edgar, Anrius, and the other prepared Disciplinary Bureau members with a dismissive and contemptuous gaze, as if they were ants.
However, when his gaze finally fell upon the figure in the deep blue cloak by the ship’s side, especially upon the clear, golden pupils, a twisted and sinister smile suddenly bloomed on his previously expressionless face.
The smile made the muscles on his face twitch in an inhuman way, appearing incredibly ferocious.
“I finally remember, it’s you!”
Joseph’s voice was hoarse, like two gravestones grinding against each other, the malice and madness contained within almost becoming tangible, threatening to devour the black speedboat.
“I never thought I’d meet you here, Princess Victoria.”
