The sea breeze howled, billowing the sails of the ship.
The northeastern winds that prevailed throughout the year in the Bantaan Archipelago provided every sailboat heading out to sea and continuing southward with a perfect quartering wind.
It was not a headwind, nor a direct tailwind, but a quartering wind.
To every captain, there was nothing more delightful than sailing with favorable wind and currents.
If there was anything better, it would be for this quartering wind to blow on and on!
The World's Fastest Three-Master, the Golden Deer, had sailed south from its base at Torrent Fortress, arriving first at the Saint Clara Lighthouse at the southernmost point of Yucatan Island.
This place marked the end of the land territory of the Bantaan Archipelago and the boundary of the Taya Empire's sphere of influence for thousands of years.
Further south, one would venture into the vast and deep Sapphire Sea, reaching the edge of the Celestial Sphere Circulation.
Saint Clara had no native city-states, nor any towns of outsiders—just a towering lighthouse standing on massive rocks.
A Tower Guardian from the Lighthouse Sequence managed it all year round, lighting the way home for all the brave explorers who set out to sea.
Byron glanced at the towering lighthouse receding in the distance and the increasingly deep blue sea beneath the ship, then exhaled softly, "The truly unexplored wilderness overseas is here."
In his right eye, the last page of the Sailing Logbook also changed immediately.
[Hidden: Prophecy, the racial revival prophecy of Woden, God of Authority and the Mad Hunt Deity, historical influence 69] The Decryption Rate jumped from 20% to 22%.
The Sailing Logbook began to automatically record a new adventure map, marking the route The Golden Deer and Byron had taken, including the hydrological conditions along the way.
The last time this Hidden's Decryption Rate improved due to a voyage was when Byron first entered the First Circulation Zone of the Erkadna Triangular Circulation.
To forge ahead, explore the unknown, and fulfill the maxim, "I am the pioneer"—this was precisely what he, the Storm Knight, was meant to do.
Occupying territories, recruiting soldiers, industrial construction, acting as a confidant to others... these were merely side activities.
"Order! From now on, The Golden Deer enters Level Three battle readiness.
Crew members are to rotate in three shifts. Vigilance and adherence to taboos will be the same as in the First Circulation Zone.
Last year we set sail from the Old Continent, from Iron Anchor Bay. Today, just by crossing the Sapphire Sea ahead, we can catch up with the nearly one hundred years of exploration progress made by our predecessors." ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ novel_fіre.net
As Byron's voice, carried by the sea breeze, reached every crew member's ears clearly, each one of them, regardless of their role, was stirred with excitement.
Especially the Transcendents, who, drawing from the ocean of humanity's collective subconscious, could vividly feel the boundless exhilaration rising from the depths of their hearts.
It was the sense of mission and the epic feeling of participating in the expansion of humankind's known world!
The Great Nautical Age was no longer a vague concept.
At this moment, it was not in historical records, not in textbooks, but right here in their hands—on the ship's wheel, the ropes, the sails, and of course, in the barrel of a flintlock gun!
"Don't worry, Captain, the best 120 sailors out of nearly 5,000 from the entire Pioneer Guiding Colonial Trading Company are here.
Routine navigation didn't require Byron's personal command; Bruh, the first mate, handled it. The Guardian Knight gripped the helm, leading the singing of a pirate song:
"Riding the wind and breaking the waves, ten heavy cannons; it's not sailing, it's flying.
Terror is my name, Pirate my surname; within a hundred miles, who dares not to tremble..."
Jacqueline, the "Singer," somehow got her hands on a tricorn hat and a black eyepatch. Looking oddly enthusiastic, she joined in the song with more vigor than any pirate:
"My warriors, sail forth; no enemy ships, calm winds and seas.
Selfless and fearless, invincible. Twenty female slaves, toiling for me..."
At the words "female slaves," the Outlaw Madmen aboard the ship all burst into loud laughter, getting to work while joining in the song:
"A hundred nations bow to me! Warships are treasures, freedom is heaven, force is the law, the sea our home..."
Byron, also caught up in the ship's atmosphere, drew his Miracle sidearm sword, "White Frost." Striking the blade, he sang:
"In all the seas, I alone am revered!
No king's law, no borders, no national flags—only us!
Those who follow me shall prosper; those who oppose me shall perish!
The King of the Great Seas patrols here! All prey is mine to distribute! Riches shared equally, leaving the beauties behind..."
This "Pirate's Song," created by the sea-dominant People of Castilia, unexpectedly and perfectly matched the identities and moods of everyone aboard The Golden Deer.
Violet, standing beside Byron, had no particular thoughts about the line "leaving the beauties behind" that he sang.
Even her father, "Whale Hunter" Jack Harold, despite being so serious and busy, had countless lovers besides her mother.
And what about Byron, the last of the Lancasters?
If the Red Rose Family had not faced such adversity, Byron would likely have been hastily pushed into an arranged marriage by the Royal Family after his coming-of-age ceremony. He would not have been allowed to go to sea on an adventure without first producing an heir.
The girl simply watched the young pirate captain, his authority clearly on display, with a slightly dreamy gaze.
In her heart, she firmly believed he was destined to become the Pirate King.
As for my dream? Well, it's to follow in the footsteps of my father, the "Whale Hunter," and become the first female... Pirate King.
Of course, after the high-spirited singing, they did not forget their duties.
Though the team's average age was just over twenty, and they were young and spirited, they were also thoroughly vigilant.