Chapter 963: Act 135 – The Breezes of the Outer Harbor III
The ambush of Rodney’s flagship ended faster than expected.
In a situation where intentions were calculated, even Brendel and his companions’ backup plans were rendered useless. When the Valhalla fleet, disguised as an Imperial patrol ship, opened fire, Rodney thought there had been some misunderstanding and hurriedly commanded his ship to stop and wait for Brendel’s subordinates to come aboard and explain. However, by the time the three warships from Valhalla drew close enough, he finally sensed something was wrong. Unfortunately, it was too late. The commander of Brendel’s warship directly ordered the ship to close in for a boarding action, with sailors rushing aboard. While the knights from the Legion of White around Rodney were still preparing to resist, they weren’t accustomed to fighting in the skies or on the seas, not to mention Brendel’s side had Valkyries and the Gray Saint backing them. Within less than fifteen minutes, the sailors had stormed the lower deck, forcing Rodney and his remaining followers to surrender.
The three warships, along with the flagship, docked at a military anchorage near Fatan Port. Brendel was notified immediately and boarded the ship with Charles and the others. By the time they stepped onboard, the traces of battle on the deck had already been cleaned up. The bodies that had been sprawled about were removed, and the blood was washed away. Rows of sailors clad in Valhalla Navy uniforms stood on either side of the ship’s rail. It was evident from their appearance that they had been in battle, yet the gleam in the young sailors’ eyes reflected mostly excitement. Behind them, several captives were tossed aside like dumplings, whereas Rodney himself was unharmed, idly standing next to the cabin door under the watchful gaze of Brynhildr, the head Valkyrie. Today, Brynhildr was as ever in her armor, her expression cool and unsmiling before outsiders. Only in her light blue eyes, resembling the sea, did a bright flame burn within. She slightly nodded upon seeing Brendel.
Having the legendary head of the Valkyries personally keep watch over him made Rodney feel as though his life had value, albeit this moment, he obviously didn’t think so. Scared for his life, he was especially jittery. He had witnessed the entire battle; he had brought thirty-two grand knights from the Legion of White, all elite warriors, each with at least the strength of a golden lower tier. Yet, these elite knights were completely powerless against the three Valkyries riding flaming battle steeds. To put it mildly, the battle situation had been one-sided, with no room for luck. Particularly the female warrior next to him had left a massive hole in the warship with just one thrust; what a joke, this was a second-tier warship. Although he wasn’t capable himself, he had a keen eye and immediately recognized that these Valkyries had mastery over elemental powers—not just some half-baked skill of pushing past the golden peak to touch the elements, but genuine masters of elemental strength, strong enough to be called temple knights, if not more.
How could three elemental tier warriors suddenly appear in such a place, especially while wearing standard gear that seemed to belong to some mysterious force? Rodney didn’t even recognize the flaming steeds they rode, but it was evident such mounts were extraordinary enough to bear the weight of elemental combat. The thought that such mounts could appear in numbers made him break out in cold sweat. What kind of power is it that can have such strength in this vicinity? Aside from the temple, he couldn’t think of anyone, and the duke of eastern Mezz was Duke Flower Leaf, though even he wouldn’t possess such might. Could it really be the temple? Rodney knew that aside from the priest class, the highest knightly armed force of the Temple of Fire was the Flame-touched Knights, yet they had no females among them. Furthermore, it was obvious that these people were all foreigners. At that moment, he couldn’t connect them with the small country to the south but suspected they were most likely from Bud.
Only the Bud could appear at this moment and stand against Her Majesty the Queen.
Rodney’s wild thoughts continued until he saw a figure appear on the deck. When he saw the person, he couldn’t help but widen his eyes in disbelief, his face turning pale. Beads of sweat started to roll down his forehead, and his legs began to tremble uncontrollably, as if he would collapse at any moment. If it hadn’t been for Brynhildr supporting him from behind, it was quite possible he would have truly fallen, demonstrating just how frightened he was.
Within the Empire, if there was someone who could create such an impact among the nobles, then without a doubt, that person could only have one title—Gray Saint, namely Mephistopheles, who had just followed Brendel onto the deck. His appearance was well-known throughout the Empire, requiring no introduction, as no one would fail to recognize him, not even among the common folk, let alone the nobles.
Seeing the color drain from Rodney’s face, Brendel linked it to the influence Mephistopheles had wielded among the southern nobles of the Empire. He couldn’t help but take a curious glance at his cheap swordsmanship teacher, thinking to himself just how formidable Mephistopheles had to be for someone to react in such fear upon seeing him for the first time, even by someone who had never met him before. Those unaware might think that he had committed some unforgivable acts in the Empire. Interestingly enough, in Brendel’s memory, the Gray Saint had only stirred up trouble in the Empire twice, and on record, nothing particularly severe occurred. He wondered why people were so terrified, whether they were overly concerned or there were hidden reasons behind it.
Mephistopheles cast a dismissive glance at his student, too lazy to answer such questions. Although he harbored resentment toward the Empire, he was not inclined to waste time on a small man like Rodney. He certainly knew Brendel had asked him to come for a reason, and now that part of his purpose had been achieved, he snorted through his nose, gripping his sword with one hand, striding to the other side of the deck, gazing out at the seamless integration of sea and sky beyond the harbor, conveniently choosing to ignore the commotion behind him.
The young sailors from Valhalla cast adoring glances his way.
Brendel felt a little speechless, knowing that his teacher had an odd disposition. He looked back at Rodney, slightly frowning. To be honest, he had no fondness for this man—be it his historical deeds or the current circumstances. Moreover, there had been losses in the previous battle, and that involved over thirty grand knights, while Brendel’s own men, having been trained by Bud, hadn’t been in training for more than six months. Even with their extraordinary talents and the assistance of subpar dragon’s blood potions, attaining the peak of black iron in that time was quite remarkable. Even with the pressure of the formidable Valkyries behind them, casualties were inevitable.
These losses shouldn’t have happened; these outstanding young men of the kingdom should have bright futures ahead of them instead of dying meaninglessly abroad, all because of this troublesome individual standing in front of him. He felt a surge of anger and wanted to order this man to be thrown into the sea. Thankfully, Brendel hadn’t lost his rationality; he knew this man was still Veronica’s brother. Even though he now served the Silver Queen, he hadn’t yet betrayed the Empire by throwing in his lot with Madara and still maintained nominal ties to the Aelric family. More importantly, Brendel sought to extract whatever residual value from him.
With that in mind, he shifted his gaze past the troublesome man to Marjory, who was positioned behind him. This young officer from the Royal Navy of Yanilas had actively requested to take part in the ambush, and given his wealth of experience, Brendel agreed to give him command over three ships. Thankfully, his performance didn’t disappoint, completing the task admirably.
Marjory placed a hand over his chest and bowed, respecting the naval etiquette from junior officers to their superiors, replying, “My lord, with the gods’ blessing, I have not disgraced your orders.”
Brendel nodded, smiling, “Well done.”
Just a simple sentence caused Marjory’s heart to flutter slightly with excitement, but he quickly realized that this was not the Royal Navy, and Brendel was not his direct superior. He paused momentarily, as if unsure when they—the embassy group—started getting accustomed to the tone of their commander. However, as a naval officer, he had long been bred to allegiance to discipline and orders, and this thought merely flashed across his mind without causing much concern.
On the other hand, the Duchess’s daughter, Oni, noted the difference in tone between the two and cast a complex look at Marjory and Brendel.
Brendel then glanced back at the dark hatch behind Rodney and threw Marjory an inquiring look.
The young naval officer understood, quickly replying, “My lord, the prisoner carriage is inside. Following your orders, I’ve ensured no one approaches that cabin.”
Brendel nodded in satisfaction. At this critical juncture, he didn’t want more people to know Faina’s identity. Some things were best kept in the dark rather than brought to light. He also understood that with Faina’s temperament, she likely wouldn’t want too many people to see her fall from grace. Reflecting on the lofty young lady he had met in the Loop of Trade Winds, his feelings were somewhat complex, thinking this must be fate’s cruel joke. Who would have thought their second meeting would occur in such circumstances?
…
In the dark dungeon, Faina curled up in a corner, shivering slightly. The cold shackles were locked around her right ankle, attached by a heavy chain. She did not know what was happening outside but had clearly heard the roar of cannon fire, the sounds of fighting, and the ship’s violent shaking. At first, these noises were extremely chaotic, peaking at one point before gradually becoming silent until the entire ship descended into total stillness.
Initially, she could hear the occasional sound of kicking doors, heavy objects falling, pleas for mercy, and the howls of what sounded like wild beasts, but soon even those sounds faded. She had felt the deck slightly sway beneath her, but eventually, the entire ship came to a halt, seemingly trapped in a world of utter silence.
Faina did not realize it was because the ship had docked again. All she knew was that the terrifying cannon fire had frightened her into covering her head and screaming, wishing desperately for this hellish ordeal to end. However, once everything fell silent, she found herself yearning for the earlier uproar. The seemingly endless silence made her feel as if her heart had frozen over. She had no idea what was happening outside in the pitch-black space; it was as if she were stuck in a vast unknown. This feeling of uncertainty about the future made the noble daughter feel as though a monstrous beast lurked in the darkness ahead, just waiting for her to collide with it.
She could hear her heart pounding powerfully in the dark, thumping loudly—a sound that seemed like the only noise in the world. Fear made her press herself tightly against the cold wall. A few times, she tried to call out softly, hoping to attract the guards outside the iron cell’s attention, but because of hunger and cold, her voice emerged soft and weak, like a helpless lamb, completely unable to reach beyond the iron bars.
Overwhelming unease finally brought her to tears.
Just then, a prolonged sound of metal scraping seemed to pierce through the dark world, causing the young lady to spring up from the ground as if pricked by a needle. With tears still glistening on her face, she looked around in terror with wide eyes. That sound vaguely came from outside the hatch, and soon she heard a second sound. Faina felt all the hair on her body stand on end as she strained her ears to finally hear the unmistakable noise of someone opening the lower cabin door. Although she was a noble, she was not ignorant; she understood that in such a warship, only the power room’s door was made of metal, and it wasn’t far from the hold where she was kept.
Someone’s coming?
Or is it something else?
The beast lurking in the unknown seemed to close in on her, causing her heart to race uncontrollably again. Soon, she heard a series of footsteps stopping just outside the cage, followed by the voices of men. Were they pirates? This thought struck her immediately because she knew there were no airships in her father’s territory, and anyone coming to save her would not wait until the ship was out at sea. But who would engage the Imperial Navy in the Sacred Inland Sea? Only pirates could possibly do that.
Faina knew those pirates might have won. Although she didn’t know who they were, capable of defeating the knights alongside Rodney, she had heard many stories about pirates since she was a child. She knew well what would happen to those who fell into pirates’ hands, especially a girl like her.
Her face turned pale as she wished time could freeze at that moment, never moving forward again, or that those rough men would not notice this prisoner carriage. Unfortunately, that wasn’t to be. She soon heard the sound of the prison door opening. With a creaking sound that grated on the nerves, a beam of bright light shone through the door, and Faina instinctively buried her head. Helplessly, she curled up in the corner, feeling nothing but confusion within.
She was almost completely desperate; for her, this was the worst possible outcome.
Yet hell and heaven are only a thin line apart.
She heard a voice ask:
“Faina?”
That voice was so melodious, like a heavenly sound. Faina could swear she had never thought that the detestable voice could sound so beautiful, to the point that she almost hallucinated, believing she was imagining it. Trembling, she incredulously lifted her head, as the light penetrating the darkness caused her beautiful pupils to dilate in circles. Beneath the initially dazzling and lovely, yet now somewhat disheveled golden hair was a face brimming with astonishment and ecstasy.
She saw a face definitively impossible to have appeared, now standing right before her, vividly real.
