Gun of Ashes

Ingwig, Reindona Harbor.

After more than a dozen days of adjustments and preparations, Lorenzo finally welcomed the day of departure. He stood before the towering cargo ship, its immense shadow swallowing him whole. Looking back, there were not just one, but a total of four such cargo ships, lined up in sequence at the port.

”So, out of these four ships, three belong to your Stuart family?”

Lorenzo gazed at these cargo ships, his face full of disbelief.

”To be precise, they are Nordro’s ships, carrying goods for the Stuart group,” Selyu corrected, standing beside him.

”The Viking countries are impoverished and cold, coupled with the internal wars of recent years. Their development requires many resources. This is practically an untapped market waiting for us to explore.”

The lessons taught by Yawei had clearly taken effect. Although Selyu had not been in the position of Duke for long, she was beginning to show some of the necessary qualities.

”Thanks to the alliance between Ingwig and the Viking countries, our Stuart family’s voyage this time will bring a large amount of supplies to the Viking countries. Simultaneously, we will negotiate future trade. With Nordro’s assistance, this will become a golden trade route.”

Selyu said with anticipation, this being the first project she actively planned since becoming Duke Stuart. She was eager for success, not wanting to disappoint those who had expectations of her.

”Sounds really profitable, doesn’t it?”

Lorenzo marveled repeatedly, even though he didn’t understand much about trade routes. Listening to Selyu’s descriptions, he could almost see heaps of gold coins laid out before him, exuding their tempting glow.

”This is also one of the joint treaties between Ingwig and the Viking countries. We need to help the Viking countries develop to some extent. Most of these supplies are basically being given away, with no immediate profits. The fastest returns will only come when the Viking countries have developed, but there is a precondition before that—we must not lose the upcoming war.”

Selyu shook her head, dismissing Lorenzo’s words, a slight worry still evident on her youthful face.

”No one knows what we might encounter at sea; pirates, or perhaps the ironclad ships of Gaulunaro. After all, with war approaching, all it takes is a spark to set things off.”

”Don’t worry about these things. We’re with you, aren’t we, to guard against this?” Lorenzo comforted Selyu.

”Indeed, there’s no need to worry about these things. These ships carry weapons of the Purification Mechanism. Unless we’re extremely unlucky, it should suffice to help us navigate the high seas.”

The creaking sound of wheels approached as medical staff pushed a wheelchair over, and Merlin was sitting in it, injured.

”You look pretty good.”

Lorenzo was somewhat surprised, not expecting to see Merlin here. In his memory, this guy should have been lying quietly in the hospital room.

”Just not dead is all.”

Merlin’s voice was weak, and he couldn’t help but cough a few times after speaking.

”Can we have some private space, Duke Stuart?”

Merlin glanced at Selyu, speaking sincerely. Selyu didn’t say much more, cooperatively stepping aside to verify the cargo with the staff.

”What’s the matter?”

Lorenzo felt something amiss. Not only had Selyu left, but the medical staff attending Merlin also tactfully stepped to the side.

”This ship is the Morning Glow Advance. On the surface, it’s a cargo ship, but during this period, it has already been secretly modified by the Perpetual Motion Pump, with enhanced armor and overall strength. It is equipped with many weapons. Although it hasn’t undergone actual sea combat, you might want to hold your expectations.”

Merlin raised his head to glance at the large ship in front of him.

”Just for these things?”

Lorenzo didn’t quite understand; there was definitely something Merlin hadn’t told him, or else he wouldn’t have asked Selyu to step away.

”Not just that. These should be explained by Bola to you, but I’m still a bit uneasy... If I could, I really wish to go with you. I once went to the World’s End, but on that snow-covered ice plain, I gained nothing and almost died there.”

Merlin sighed as he spoke.

”Alright, let’s not talk about these things first. The power furnace of this ship uses a large power furnace still in the experimental stage, based on the Power Core of the Third Generation Armor. You can think of it as a large Armor Core stripped of Demon’s flesh and blood. The required fuel is Lacquered Antimony, and we’ve equipped it with hundreds of tons of Lacquered Antimony, so you don’t have to worry about the endurance.”

As a new energy source, Lacquered Antimony brought tremendous help to this voyage. Otherwise, Merlin couldn’t imagine how much coal it would need to carry. Comparing Lorenzo’s current journey to his own past voyage, it seemed utterly wretched.

”Don’t be hasty; listen to me. I’ve been to the Silent Sea, reached the World’s End. It’s a land frozen in ice. You need a powerful force to break through the ice. In essence, this is a ship specially designed for this operation, an icebreaker.”

Merlin looked at the bow of the Morning Glow Advance. The armor there was clearly much thicker, the inclined plane with a slope, the entire front end with a protruding angle like a massive narwhal.

”Thank the changes in technology, Lorenzo. Back then, we didn’t have such an icebreaker. Over fifty people carried supplies across the vast glaciers, and in the end, only I returned.”

Lorenzo fell silent, unsure of what to say for a moment.