Carlotta smiled, "Only our own people would co at this ti."
Zephyr smiled slightly, "Please lead the way."
Carlotta made a gesture of invitation and led the way, with Zephyr and others following closely.
After walking for a while, they noticed that Carlotta wasn’t heading towards the interior of Wales Castle but instead towards an alchemy ship. Zephyr instinctively slowed his pace.
He squinted at the alchemy ship ahead and asked, "Is the Baron waiting for on that ship?"
Carlotta replied calmly, "Yes."
"Why choose that ship?"
Zephyr asked again.
Carlotta said, "Because the Baron said it’s the greatest spoils since arriving in Wales Castle, and he can’t wait to share this joy with you."
"Share joy? More like showing off, right?"
Zephyr shook his head in amusent.
He started moving again, heading towards the alchemy ship.
The alchemy ship was indeed a treasure, arguably the greatest spoils in Wales Castle.
Since Carlotta’s answer didn’t reveal any flaws and due to preconceived notions, Zephyr didn’t realize he was walking into hell.
He thus arrived on the alchemy ship, stepping onto its deck, admiring it with great interest.
After the Starfall Campaign twenty years ago, the naval forces of the Velmoria Empire were nearly wiped out, showing signs of recovery only in recent years. Alchemy ships were rare, so Zephyr found this one quite novel.
After about a dozen steps, Zephyr suddenly halted.
The commander of the surprise force that had previously occupied Wales Castle was nad Cliff Durant, an acquaintance of Zephyr. That’s why Zephyr initially thought Cliff wanted to show off the alchemy ship.
But precisely because he was familiar with Cliff, Zephyr knew that his colleague would have co to boast the mont he set foot on the ship. The lack of any commotion was unusual.
Wasn’t the ship unnaturally quiet?
"Retreat!"
Almost instantly, Zephyr shouted and dashed towards the ship’s side, intending to jump off. As he moved, he flipped his hand, and a black horn appeared in his palm.
Just as Zephyr started moving, a glint of light appeared before his eyes.
Carlotta had struck!
She was closely watching Zephyr, noting every subtle change in his expression. As soon as she noticed a shift, she reacted, thrusting her Starfall Sword straight at Zephyr’s palm.
"Fifth-tier apprentice?"
Zephyr was initially startled by Carlotta’s sudden attack but then realized she was only a fifth-tier apprentice, which eased his mind.
He swung the Whale Horn casually, intending to knock away Carlotta’s sword and even planned to use the horn to kill her before retreating.
Although the Whale Horn was primarily a functional artifact, it still possessed the qualities of one. A heavy blow from it, given his rank, could easily kill a fifth-tier apprentice.
But in the next mont, Zephyr’s expression changed.
An invisible force enveloped him, rendering him immobile, as if he had turned into a statue.
Carlotta’s sword followed through, knocking the Whale Horn out of Zephyr’s hand and swiftly storing it in a card.
"Once you’re on the ship, it’s too late to realize sothing’s wrong. Whether you notice early or late, what’s the difference?"
Carlotta smiled and continued to thrust her sword at Zephyr.
The Moonlight Ship had thirty-six alchemy arrays, one of which was for immobilization. As the ship’s deputy captain, Carlotta had full authority over it and had immobilized Zephyr as she attacked.
"Clang!"
With a crisp sound, Carlotta failed to strike Zephyr. As her attack neared him, a protective barrier appeared around his body.
Seeing this, Carlotta retreated without hesitation.
As she stepped back, Zephyr let out a low roar, forcefully breaking free from the Moonlight Ship’s immobilization.
Carlotta was secretly relieved. She had chosen to seize the Whale Horn first instead of attempting to kill him, which would have given Zephyr a chance to blow the horn even if she was saved by Julia.
Gaining Freedom, Zephyr’s eyes turned red. He hadn’t expected a trap upon arriving in Wales Castle. It was clear that his colleagues had likely t their demise.
He glared at Carlotta and was about to charge, but the knights hidden on the Moonlight Ship had already erged from various cabins, quickly filling the deck.
One group of knights positioned themselves between Carlotta and Zephyr.
Alia’s guards, including Julia, launched a fierce attack without hesitation.
Julia, being the closest, targeted Zephyr, her sword slashing down and distorting the protective barrier around him.
This startled Zephyr, who could no longer focus on Carlotta and had to direct all his attention to Julia.
"Boom!"
As both sides clashed, the deck erupted with deafening explosions, and chaos ensued.
The port was always bustling, and the Moonlight Ship was particularly conspicuous. As the battle broke out, all eyes in the port turned to the ship in astonishnt.
"What’s happening?"
"Those seem to be Lady Fenwick’s knights. Who are they fighting? Pirates?"
"It can’t be an invasion by the Velmoria people, can it? They wouldn’t be that foolish."
As the citizens at the port speculated in surprise, the stationed guards nearby also sprang into action.
So quickly surrounded the Moonlight Ship to prevent bystanders from approaching while providing support.
Others surrounded Zephyr’s fleet, as not everyone had followed him onto the Moonlight Ship; many Velmoria people remained there.
Thus, another area erupted in fierce combat, and the sounds of battle soared into the sky.
With intention against carelessness, and purpose against unawareness.
From the very beginning, Carlotta’s side held the absolute advantage.
Zephyr, as a transcendent beyond the apprentice stage, possessed considerable strength, yet he was still unable to reverse the situation before him.
The battle lasted less than half an hour. These Velmorias were either killed on the spot or captured, and Zephyr was no exception.
Alia ordered the knights to take these Velmorians away for strict interrogation. Although extracting useful information wouldn’t be easy, this step was indispensable.
The chaos at the port was thus quelled.
Alia sighed and said to Carlotta, "Fortunately, we went out to sea. Otherwise, letting them co to Wales Castle without any knowledge of them would likely cause a lot of trouble."
Zephyr and his group were not weak. If it weren’t for the elent of surprise, it would have been difficult to handle them so smoothly.
Although Zephyr and his group had sent a ssenger bird in advance, revealing so information, the bird only ntioned their arrival within a certain tifra, without specifying who would co. It was hard to associate it with the official personnel of the Velmoria Empire.
After all, it had been twenty years since the last ti Velmorian ventured out to sea.
"After dealing with these Velmorians, Wales Castle should enter a relatively stable period for a while," Alia judged.
The Velmoria Empire was fully engaged in warfare, with the entire Francis front ablaze. It would be difficult for them to redeploy personnel from other areas, and new recruits would take ti to prepare.
Alia planned to take advantage of this period to patrol the Starlight Sea, targeting pirates to continue acquiring treasures while also subduing so pirates to fill her soldier roster and increase her control.
"By the way," Carlotta seed to rember sothing and took out the Demon Whale Horn from her storage card. "I got this, Alia. Do you think I can use it?"
"Let see."
Alia took the Demon Whale Horn and examined it.
As befitting a noble lady, she understood the function of this alchemical artifact in just a couple of glances.
"This is an alchemical artifact that can summon a magical creature called the Demon Whale in the Starlight Sea. However..."
Alia paused and handed the horn back, saying, "If you use the Demon Whale Horn, the summoned whale will attack you instead."
Carlotta couldn’t help but feel a bit regretful. "Does that an I can only sell it?"
An alchemical artifact naturally holds significant value, but Carlotta was reluctant to sell it.
Alia smiled slightly. "Not necessarily. The Demon Whale likely has a certain contract with this artifact. You just need to gain its recognition to command it. Since you’re not the original owner of the horn, it would attack you. But if you can subdue it, you can beco the whale’s master and make it obey."
"Subdue the Demon Whale?"
Carlotta gasped.
She didn’t think this was sothing she could achieve. The Demon Whale, being Zephyr’s ally, was probably stronger than Zephyr himself. As a fifth-tier apprentice, how could she possibly subdue it?
Seemingly reading Carlotta’s thoughts, Alia added, "You don’t have to rely on yourself to subdue the Demon Whale. You can use external ans, such as the Moonlight."
Although the Moonlight is of superior alchemical quality, as an alchemical ship, it shouldn’t be judged by ordinary alchemical standards. Its combat power would have no problem dealing with the Demon Whale summoned by the horn.
Carlotta’s eyes lit up. "What about getting Ms. Julia and the others to help? Would that make it easier?"
"Outsiders won’t work; it has to be external ans."
Alia shook her head.
"I see... Alright then, I think I’ll give it a try."
Carlotta couldn’t help but rub her hands in anticipation.
Alia smiled. "Then I’ll leave the Moonlight to you. I’ll take the others back to Wales Castle."
With Zephyr and his group just captured, she had so matters to attend to and couldn’t accompany Carlotta to deal with the Demon Whale.
Carlotta didn’t mind. Staying on the Moonlight, as the vice-captain, her safety was well assured.
...
Soon after, Alia led the group away from the Moonlight, while Carlotta took control of the ship and sailed out into the ocean.
The process of subduing the Demon Whale naturally couldn’t be done at the port.
When they sailed far enough that the port was no longer visible, Carlotta stopped the Moonlight and took out the Demon Whale Horn to examine it.
This black horn didn’t require blowing to use; it had a button on it.
As Carlotta pressed the button, a desolate horn sound echoed across the ocean. When these sounds hit the water’s surface, their nature changed slightly, transforming into mysterious sound waves that quickly spread beneath the sea.
Carlotta felt quite intrigued by this alchemical artifact. As a magical creature, the Demon Whale wouldn’t stay in one place but would swim aimlessly, potentially far from the horn. Yet, even at great distances, could it still hear the horn and co?
Carlotta watched the sea, pulling out a clock card to check the ti.
One minute, two minutes...
About ten minutes later, Carlotta noticed the water churning, as if so massive creature was erging.
"Is this response ti fast or slow? In a sudden battle, it might not make it in ti," Carlotta muttered.
"Boom!"
Water splashed as a massive creature surfaced. It was a black-skinned whale, and such creatures were always large. This Demon Whale was almost as big as the Moonlight.
After surfacing, the Demon Whale’s gaze fell on the Demon Whale Horn. Seeing that the person holding it wasn’t the one it rembered, it let out a roar, like a tiger’s growl or a dragon’s cry. The sound waves caused the surrounding water to explode, forcing Carlotta to step back.
Amid the roar, a thick water arrow shot from the Demon Whale’s mouth, striking the Moonlight’s protective barrier, causing the ship to shake.
"So this is a Listener-level magical creature?"
Carlotta winced.
Above the apprentice level was the Listener.
At this level, transcendent beings or magical creatures could hear the existence of elental forces, allowing them to better absorb these elents, even selecting higher-quality ones to enhance their mana.
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