Chapter 443: Embarkation

"This is our ship, and it's currently undergoing repairs. However, I think it won't be long until we set sail once again. Have you ever been on a ship, kid?" Dipp asked, standing on the Narwhale's deck.

However, he heard no response behind him, prompting him to turn around. The new sailor of the Narwhale was staring right at him in a daze, seemingly terrified by Dipp's appearance.

"What? Never seen a Deep Dweller before? Do I look scary? You better not make me dislike you, kid. Otherwise, I'll make you clean the toilets every day once we're out at sea," Dipp said.

Norton Wright clad in the blue and white-striped short-sleeved shirt immediately stood at attention and exclaimed, "Reporting to the boatswain, sir! I don't find you scary at all!"

Dipp sized Norton up for a while and muttered words Norton couldn't hear. He then turned around and pushed open the cabin door next to him, saying, "Come here, I'll take you on a stroll inside."

Norton sighed in relief and hurriedly caught up with Dipp. "Reporting to the boatswain, sir! I was a border guard of one of our lighthouse ships, and I've studied everything there is to know about ships!"

"You can't be so confident when it comes to our ship. This ship is different from the run-of-the-mill exploration vessels out there. The Narwhale can dive, and it's probably the only ship throughout the Subterranean Sea that can go underwater.

"Follow me; I'll show you our ballast tanks."

Norton suppressed the bubbling excitement within him as he walked down the corridor. However, goosebumps still broke out all over him once he had taken a good look at the dim and narrow corridors of the Narwhale.

At last, he was on board the ship of his dreams.

Dipp showed Norton everything the Narwhale had to offer, making sure that the latter would become familiar with his future workplace.

"Calm down. Don't be so tense. You're a crew of the Narwhale, not a part of the navy. You can be as comfortable as you want as long as you've finished your tasks. By the way, whose fleet are you from?"

"Reporting to the boatswain, sir! I was from the 3rd Fleet!"

"The 3rd Fleet? Who's in charge of that?" Dipp asked, looking confused. He wasn't actually completely clear as to how the Navy worked. After all, Feuerbach and Bandages were the ones who usually handled matters related to the navy.

"It's Commodore Ralph's fleet, sir!"

Dipp's eyes lit up at Norton's remark. "Ah, it's that punk"

He could still remember Ralph, who insisted on wearing his signature black military uniform[1] even though he was the captain of an exploration vessel. Ralph was one of the captains who had discovered Hope Island along with Charles.

"No wonder you're so uptight. I heard he was a part of some island's navy before becoming a captain of an exploration vessel himself. It does make sense that his soldiers are disciplined.

"However, that kind of discipline is unnecessary here, so put it away," Dipp said.

Norton restrained the urge to shout, "Reporting to the boatswain, sir!" He pretended to relax and nodded. "Okay."

"See that? That's our water tank. No one is allowed to open that except for the cook. Anyway, why did you even come here? Is it for Echo?" Dipp asked.

Norton's expression changed, and he almost looked like a cultist as he cried out, "I'm not here for money! I'm here because I admire the Governor, and becoming a crew member of his ship has always been one of my dreams! I dream of going on adventures with him as well!"

"What? That's such a bullshit reason" Dipp muttered, scratching his dorsal fins with both hands. Then, he decided to ask more questions and ended up finding out that Charles actually had a fan club on the island.

The fan club members believed that the Governorsexcept for Charleswere cowards who had quit while they were ahead. Charles had never stopped exploring unknown islands for the sake of finding habitable islands among them.

They believed Charles was the only Governor living up to the spirit of the exploration vessels' raison d'etre; Charles was a true hero of humanity in their eyes.

Dipp looked astonished as he scratched the scales on his chin with his sharp fingers while thinking,

The island really has a diverse variety of people. To think that the island has grown enough to give birth to such a group. Do they not have anything to do?

"Reporting to the boatswain, sir! I will definitely not drag you down, sir! I have the strongest physique, even among our crew back in our fleet.

"My marksmanship is excellent as well; I can guarantee an accuracy of eight out of ten shots," Norton stated, unconsciously straightening his back and returning to his earlier manner of speech.

"You don't have to go that far. You're just a sailor. Your tasks aren't that difficult, and you'll do just fine doing some odd jobs on the ship and carrying supplies whenever we're back on land," Dipp said. Then, he turned around and walked down the corridor. "Come and report to my house at three this afternoon.

"The deck team needs to gather and get to know each other."

"Would we get to see the Governor?" Norton asked as his eyes sparkled in excitement.

"Are you deaf? I said the 'deck team.' Is the Captain a part of the deck team?"

Norton's eyes flickered with disappointment. "Mr. Dipp, may I ask how you met the Captain?"

"Well, it's going to be a long story, but" Dipp said. He took out a cigarette from his pocket, but he stopped when he was about to light it and decided to put it back into his pocket.

Two months could be a long or a short time for some people, but it was definitely a long time for Charles. It was just two months, but he was already growing impatient from the wait.

In addition to the necessary daily training, Charles was also paying attention to the ongoing battle at the Divine Light Grand Cathedral. It'd be bad if the Pope was defeated, but it'd also be bad if the Pope emerged victorious.

The best-case scenario was a stalemate between the Divine Light Order and the Fhtagn Covenant. That way, Charles would have time and room to maneuver around after acquiring the key.

Daily reports were sent over to Charles via telegram. Overall, both sides were a bit too conservative than Charles had imagined. The grand life-and-death battles Charles had been imagining were missing.

There were daily casualties, but the damage was limited to just a few ships every day. The Pope had yet to make a move as well, even though his strength was comparable to a tactical nuke. Charles also couldn't figure out what was the Pope wary of. By the time the Narwhale's repairs were done, the stalemate was still ongoing.

The holes in the canopy above Hope Island were opened, allowing sunlight to descend upon Hope Island once more. It was a whole new day, and Charles opened his eyes slowly on his bed.

He stood up and put on the Captain's uniform that the maids had washed clean and had placed on the stool next to him. Then, he went over to the washroom to shave the stubble on his chin using the Dark Blade.

Charles then freshened up with the cool, fresh water flowing down his faucet.

Charles took his time to enjoy his usual daily routine. After all, today was the day he'd board the ship once more and go out at sea. Once on board, he could only wash up with seawater.

In addition to the fishy smell, the salt in the seawater would make anyone's skin exceptionally dry and rough as well. Of course, Charles didn't really care about such inconvenience.

When Charles arrived at the docks, he saw that some of the crew members had chosen to come early, waiting to board the Narwhale. The new crew members Charles had recruited were there as well, including Norton.

However, what truly caught Charles' attention was the repaired Narwhale. The once white hull had been painted matte blacka color similar to the abyss but strangely comforting to see on the Narwhale.

The Narwhale greeted Charles with her animated ropes made out of steel wire.

Charles climbed up the ladder and grazed the Narwhale's stern with his prosthetic.

A dull noise entered Charles' ears, which soon changed into the signature high-pitched screech produced by metal scratching metal the moment Charles put more strength into the Dark Blade.

The Type-3 Steel was more durable than Charles had imagined, and he reckoned that the Narwhale wouldn't sink so easily, even if she was bombarded by cannon shells.

1. early mention of Ralph is on CH 132