Chapter 151: |
The journey to the Caliphate was very relaxing.
The old, rickety ships had been replaced with large, sturdy sailing vessels, so there was no worry of capsizing.
In addition to the world’s fastest ship, the Red Goddess, and five warships from the Black Fleet of Pirate King Bardo.
They also had plenty of supplies, including fresh fruit, meat, and rum, from their stay in the Gurling Archipelago.
The voyage was many times smoother and faster than it had been at the beginning of their voyage.
And as for Otto….
“Yes, you’re doing well. Keep your feet moving.”
“Uffu! Ughh!”
“Okay. Let’s slowly move forward.”
During the voyage, Otto took swimming lessons from Camille.
Ever since Camille rescued him during the Battle of Skull Island, Otto has been slowly conquering his fear of water.
The words of Camille, that he would save him no matter if he fell into the water a hundred times or a thousand times, greatly reassured him.
Once he realized that someone would always be there to save him, he was no longer afraid of the water.
Over the course of the journey to the Caliphate, Otto slowly became more acclimatized to the water, and eventually succeeded in completely overcoming his phobia.
Not only that, but his swimming skills improved tremendously.
“Oh, that little bugger is a pretty good swimmer now, isn’t he?”
Kairos, sipping his usual rum on the deck, marveled as he watched Otto swimming.
*Splash!* *Splash!*
*Swoosh!*
In the distance, Otto darted across the water, leaping like a flying fish.
Within two weeks of officially being taught to swim, he had mastered the butterfly stroke.
“It’s like a single dolphin. Hahaha.”
“You don’t have to worry anymore.”
Camille looked at Otto and smiled.
“It’s just that he’s got a terrible phobia of water to begin with, and I didn’t have too much to teach him about swimming.”
“Hmm?”
“I just taught him once or twice, and he took it from there.”
“Hehehe. Is that what geniuses are like, huh. He picks up swordsmanship quickly, so I’m sure he can do anything with his body.”
“I agree.”
Then.
“Aaaahhh!”
Otto, who had been enjoying his swim, suddenly screamed.
“Your Highness?”
“Hmm?”
Camille and Kairos craned their necks to see if there was something wrong with Otto.
Camille was ready to jump into the ocean, thinking that Otto’s fear of water had flared up again.
However, Otto was far from being afraid of water.
“Aaaahhhh!”
It turned out that a huge great white shark, probably over six meters long, was chasing him.
“Ja, it’s Jawwws! Jaaaaawwwsssss!”
Panicking, Otto frantically boosted himself up to full mana and swam like crazy to avoid being eaten.
“…..”
Camille looked at Otto being chased by the shark and shook his head.
‘I’ve worked hard to overcome his fear of water, but I don’t want him to develop a fear of sharks.’
Despite feeling a little uneasy, Camille turned his attention back to the book he was reading on the sunbed.
If someone as powerful as Otto were to be eaten by a great white shark, it would be a laughing matter that would go down in history books.
Now that he had overcome his fear of water, worrying about Otto was a luxury.
Right now, he’s just panicking and being chased, and if he can keep his wits about him, it shouldn’t be a problem to turn the shark into a stew.
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The fleet of the Kingdom of Lota sailed safely and arrived in [Jalalabad], a port city and trading center of the Caliphate.
Since ancient times, Jalalabad has been a center of trade with the western part of the continent.
As a result, it was packed with so many trading ships that they had to take a number and wait to unload their cargo.
“They say we have to wait two months.”
Camille, who had traveled ashore in a small boat, reported to Otto.
“What? We’ll have to wait two months?”
“There are already so many ships trying to unload their cargo that there’s not enough space.”
“Eh.”
Otto pouted, then turned to Camille and gave her an order.
“Give them some money.”
“You mean bribe them?”
“Yeah, otherwise it’ll be six months instead of two.”
“….”
“It can’t be helped. This is how it is in Caliphates. All those with money are corrupt.”
“I see.”
Camille followed Otto’s orders and headed back to the mainland in order to bribe the official.
“This place is booming as ever.”
Kairos nodded, looking toward Jalalabad in the distance.
” Have you ever been here before?”
“It used to be my territory, Hehehe.”
“Ah?”
” A naval battle was fought right here….”
Just then.
*Shudder*
Kairos, who had been talking about the old days, suddenly shuddered and grasped the back of his neck.
“… Was it that bastard Argonne who was active in the naval battle here?”
“Argonne… yes bastard…!!!”
“Ugh.”
Otto shook his head as he watched Kairos reminisce about the past.
“I think you should just forget the past. You’re stressing yourself out by dredging up fond memories, when all you remember is getting your ass handed to you by that damned Argonne.”
“Sh, shut up!”
“Anyway, I hope everything’s okay….”
Otto cast a worried glance at Jalalabad.
It wasn’t a misplaced concern.
‘Because the Caliphate Kingdom is not stable.’
The Kingdom of Caliphate has always been a country plagued by internal strife, so it was essentially a conflict zone with little security outside of the capital city of Al-Salam.
The reason was simple.
Caliphate was not a feudal system, nor was it a centralized state.
The Kingdom of Caliphate was a classic tribal state.
Caliphate was a political system in which the largest tribe controlled the capital city, and the chieftain ascended to the position of Sultan, which could be considered the king.
So there was constant discord among the tribes, and when they got bored, they broke out into civil war.
It was even jokingly said that the civil war raged for 364 days out of 365 in Caliphate.
This is why the world’s largest producer and exporter of the magic stone was not considered a great power, but a rich, backward country.
‘So smuggling is rampant. Even Argonne was aiming for that.’
The tribes that were hostile to the current sultan were keen on smuggling to raise military funds.
As such, Caliphate was the world’s most prolific smuggling hub.
‘I should quickly meet with the Sultan, sell the artifacts, and return home. If we get caught up in a civil war here, we’ll be….’
At that moment.
*Boom!*
A huge explosion erupted in the harbor in the distance.
“Noooooooo!”
At the same time, a scream erupted from Otto’s mouth.
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The Caliphate Kingdom is an eventful place, constantly engaged in rebellion.
If not for the world’s largest reserves of magic stones, it would have been destroyed long ago.
The reason why the country was able to survive for hundreds of years despite the constant civil wars was because the Caliphs were an incredibly warlike people.
Throughout history, many great powers have invaded the Kingdom of the Caliphate for its magic stones, but they have gained nothing.
Caliphate was a natural fortress of rough seas, scorching deserts, and mountains that were basically over 3,000 meters high.
This combination of climates and terrain made for an unforgiving environment for any invading force.
Add to that the fierce resistance of the Caliphs, who were not above sacrificing their lives, and the invaders had no choice but to run for their lives.
Instead of plundering the magic stones, they were left with a huge amount of war expenses and military losses.
Thus, the Caliphate was a very strange place, nicknamed the “Graveyard of Great Powers”.
Once upon a time, the Cannibal Emperor Kairos was the only one to succeed in taking over the Kingdom of Caliphate.
It was also the first nation to gain independence after the unification of the continent by the Great Emperor Argonne.
The belligerence and tenacity of the Caliphs is widely recognized across the continent.
Unfortunately, they utilized that warlike spirit to fight amongst themselves.
“These lunatics are fighting again! They’re at it again!”
Otto intuitively realized that a war had broken out.
Otherwise, there would be no reason for a major explosion in a trading port like Jalalabad.
“These lunatics are just born to fight amongst themselves. And they’re a force to be reckoned with.”
As a result, the civil war in the Caliphate was one of the most frustrating aspects of the game, even for gamers who played it.
Whenever players tried to do something important within Caliphate, a civil war would break out, disrupting their progress.
Moreover, the probability of a civil war breaking out is randomized, making it completely unpredictable.
For this reason, Prince Saladin, one of the princes and Lord characters in the Caliphate, was rated at the highest difficulty.
Why?
Because it’s almost impossible to organize your builds, and you never know which tribe will rebel at any given time.
“Hilarious, when I come to trade with the Sultan, they start fighting. Ugh.”
As Otto laments.
*Boom!* *BOOOOM!*
Even the artillery batteries defending the harbor exploded.
Just by looking at it, it was clear that someone had set off a bomb made of magic stones that had been planted in advance.
That wasn’t all.
Rebel ships disguised as merchant vessels suddenly opened fire and began firing shells at the Caliphate’s military vessels.
And these rebel attacks did not spare the fleets of the Kingdom of Lota.
No, the fleets of the Kingdom of Lota were secondary targets to the ships of the Caliphate.
The five warships of the Black Fleet that Otto had brought with him were enormous in size, and they boasted an imposing presence just by their mere existence.
It was natural for the rebels to be intimidated, so it was perfectly logical for them to attack first.
But….
*Clink!* *Ting!*
*Clang!* *Clank!* *Ting!*
The warships of the Black Fleet bounced off every shell the Rebels fired at them.
An incredible level of defense.
It wasn’t for nothing that Pirate King Bardo’s fleet was called the Invincible Fleet.
“Prepare the cannons, ready for firing.”
Taking out the Pirate King’s hat, Otto set the fleet in motion.
“3, 2, 1, Fire.”
A low voice came out of Otto’s mouth.
*Whoosh!* *Boom!* *Boom!* *BOOM!* Boom!* *Boom!* *BOOM!*
The Black Fleet’s canons unleashed a barrage of shots.
And the result.
*Craash!*
*Crack!*
The ten rebel ships that had attacked the Lota Kingdom’s fleet shattered into pieces and sank to the bottom of the ocean without a trace.
The disparity in defense and sheer firepower was like the difference between heaven and earth.
‘Camille is in danger.’
Not only that, but if the port fell to the rebels, business with the Sultan would become a foregone conclusion.
“Fleet! Spread out! Sink all the enemy ships!”
As soon as Otto gave the order, the Black Fleet scattered and began to guard the port.
“All troops.”
Otto turned to his men and barked his orders.
“Land in the harbor and rescue Sir Camille. Depending on the situation, we will also assist the Caliphate forces in suppressing the rebels. This order will be disseminated after landing, depending on the situation.”
As soon as the order was given, the <Red Goddess> cut through the water at a terrifying speed.