Chapter 32: Brig on the Sea

A city holds no allure; only castles do—noble households maintain cleanliness with baths and toilets, and servants carry waste beyond their walls.

Since no one knew of using excrement to fertilize fields, it was carelessly discarded in the wilderness to decompose naturally.

If they were to harness this resource effectively, it would certainly lessen their dependence on elves—albeit only marginally, for elves still had the power to enhance crop traits.

The two-masted ship sailed across the cerulean sea, with Coral City gradually fading from sight. Tulip Castle, perched atop its towering mountain, began to dip below the horizon as well.

Did this imply that this world was also spherical in shape?

Occasionally, Liszt pondered over the nature of the world he had transmigrated into, but alas, there was insufficient information to draw any conclusions.

"Milord, what are you looking at?" Marcus approached.

"I'm looking at the sea, the vast, blue expanse concealing countless treasures."

"I grew up by the sea, so I don't have such romantic notions about it. There are sea monsters out there, perhaps some fish too, but there are fish in rivers and lakes without the danger. The true wealth lies on the continent, an inexhaustible treasure trove. It's on the mainland where knights and nobles earn their glory."

The Sapphire Grand Duchy was an archipelagic nation, yet it never ceased its conquests of the mainland. Every few years, knightly orders would be assembled to vie for mineral resources on the continent.

A multitude of nobles were created through these endeavors.

The Tulip Family also rose to prominence from this. Marcus often fantasized about joining the battles on the continent and being granted the title of a baron for his contributions.

Now that he had resolved to serve Liszt, he naturally tried to persuade Liszt from time to time.

Liszt continued to gaze at the vast sea, not minding the "Continent's Wealth Theory." The battlefield was too dangerous. Why would he want to go there? It was much better to quietly be a rural lord, complete missions, farm, and steadily progress. If he had merely transmigrated, he didn't believe that he could stand out among the natives. However, with the aid of the Smoke Mission, becoming strong was just a matter of time.

As for what the Smoke Mission was, its secrets would be revealed one day.

"Teacher Marcus, I've heard that there are many unexplored islands beyond the archipelago of the Grand Duchy?"

"Yes, I've conversed with some old sailors. There are vast islands beyond the archipelago, but they're situated in the deep sea, frequently battered by storms and riddled with hidden reefs. It's difficult for ships to travel there, so they don't hold much development value."

"Perhaps."

Liszt nonchalantly agreed.

Putting that aside, if long-distance fishing developed, the riches of the sea would reveal a corner of its veil. At that time, the competition for those islands might be no less intense than that for the mainland.

At present, he was merely the lord of a rural town; he needed to focus on development first.

"Raise the sails! Port tack!"

"Raise the sails! Port tack!"

The sailors' angry cries echoed from below the mast as a southern breeze blew from astern, rustling the sails. The captain promptly ordered the sailors to hoist the sails to harness the full power of the wind.

The advent of sailing ships enabled humans to venture into vast oceans. The fleets of the Sapphire Duchy were predominantly sailboats, though they used only square sails. There had yet to be any fore-and-aft rigged vessels. The advantage of square sails was their speed in a tailwind, but their disadvantage was their ineffectiveness against headwinds, requiring oars instead.

With the favorable wind, the fleet unfurled their sails, forming an impressive triangular formation on the sea.

They set out in the morning and arrived at Red Crab Island by evening.

Red Crab Island was ten times larger than Coral Island. Castle Longtaro was not situated by the coast but nestled halfway up a mountain range in the island's interior. Thus, after disembarking, Liszt and his companions had to spend the night in the harbor city, Crab City, before transferring to carriages for a day's journey. It would take them until the third day to finally reach Castle Longtaro.

Training pigeons for message delivery had yet to be developed, and the weight of parchment might exceed what the birds could carry.

However, a knight had been dispatched beforehand with a letter, informing the Tulip Family that their young members would be visiting soon.

Thus, the Longtaro Manor in Crab City had servants waiting specifically for Liszt and his group. Upon their arrival, they were promptly accommodated in the manor, sparing them from having to stay in the filthy city. After dinner that night, Liszt took a bath and went straight to bed.

He was feeling a bit seasick.

Back home, he was accustomed to planes and trains, and truly couldn't get used to boats. Fortunately, his predecessor was an islander with good swimming skills, allowing him to endure it somewhat and avoid being completely nauseous.

"As an islander, you're actually seasick, Liszt. I have to say, you're really disgracing the Tulip Family. I thought you had matured, but it seems I was wrong. Your previous cowardly actions remind me of my foolish younger brother." Li Weiwei appeared in Liszt's room at some point, seemingly without knocking.

She hadn't knocked on the door.

This startled Liszt, as he was currently observing his Smoke Snake Rune – a habit of his to see if there were any new developments.

However, he quickly calmed down because Li Weiwei seemed unable to see the Smoke Snake Rune. Only he could perceive it, so there was no need to worry about secrets being exposed.

"You forgot to knock."

"Did I not knock? That's not important." Li Weiwei crossed her arms and stared at Liszt, expressing her disdain.

"It's very important to me. You didn't respect my privacy, and such behavior is also unbecoming of a lady. Noble gentlemen appreciate ladies, dear sister."

"I don't need to change myself to please any noble! Besides, Liszt, when have I ever needed your advice? If we weren't on Red Crab Island, I would teach you a lesson and show you that advancing to a Earth Knight means nothing!"

Liszt had always been bullied by Li Weiwei.

He believed the root cause was her jealousy of his looks—handsome enough to make most women feel ashamed.

"You didn't come here just to tell me how weak I am, did you?"

"I only wanted to see your pathetic seasick state."

"Well, you've seen it. Now, can you leave?"

Li Weiwei glared at him fiercely before turning and leaving. Liszt got up and locked the door. She was still a nineteen-year-old maiden, and her actions were truly unpredictable.

Nonetheless, he wasn't too bothered. In his memories, Li Weiwei had always been careless or even recklessly flirtatious.

The Earl often lamented that their personalities should be swapped.

One was more delicate than a girl, while the other was more boisterous than a boy.

Lying back down, Liszt found himself unable to fall asleep, so he entertained himself with idle thoughts: "Five months ago, I visited Longtaro Castle for the New Year's festivities. Marquis Merlin wasn't on the island then; he was still serving as a captain in the royal navy, and we hadn't had a formal meeting in about four or five years."

Due to the nobility's strict monogamy, their families often didn't expand significantly.

Marquis Merlin had one son and two daughters. Unfortunately, his third daughter, Melissa, had passed away, while his second daughter, Melinda, was married to Viscount Roland Pinecone, a follower of the marquis and the lord of Longtaro Island. There was only one direct heir, the eldest son, Mescalro Longtaro, who in turn had only one son, Meopo Longtaro.

"Uncle Meopo... He should be almost twenty-five now, but hasn't married yet, right? It seems he's pursuing the Grand Duchess's daughter? I've heard that this princess from a small country is quite the socialite."

A grand duchy was a vassal state of an empire or kingdom, and its ruler held the title of grand duke. Technically, he wasn't a king, and therefore, his daughter couldn't be called a princess. Besides, the newly enthroned Sapphire Grand Duke, having failed to become a dragon knight, had been demoted to the rank of duke.

In the noble hierarchy, prince, grand duke, and duke were all equal ranks, but only those who became knights could be granted the titles of prince or grand duke; otherwise, they would be dukes.

However, rules were meant to be broken, and people adapted. In the Sapphire Grand Duchy, all the nobles addressed the ruler as the grand duke, and his daughter was naturally treated like a princess, sought after by many.

With a mischievous thought, Liszt imagined, "If Meopo were to marry the princess, there's a chance he might discover that the child isn't his... Haha."