The homely ambience of the lounge made it where the four gathered often. The angled arrangement of the dining area with the sofas and the recliners, the crackling wood accompanying the warmth of the fireplace, the snowy-stoned walls with curved corners, the speckled ivory kitchen counter, and the frosted glass doors and cabinets—even though the Stormfalcon was for war, the designers didn’t relent in creating a contrast with the cold metal shell.
And today too, the cozy and the mellow tone of the hall laced with the dim flickers of the lanterns dragged them here.
“Boss, aren’t we waiting a month?” Kidd asked as they all slouched on the repaired sofas.
“I haven’t decided yet,” Ewan said, leaning back and rubbing his forehead with his eyes closed. “Stefan, can you estimate the distance from the star map?”
“It’ll be hard to pinpoint, but I can take an educated guess,” Stefan said. “It should come to about two hundred to three hundred megameters.”
“The conservative estimate for the Nightingale series’ fuel distance is about hundred and eighty megameters per kiloliter,” Ewan said. “So, even if your guess misses by a few, as long as it’s within the range of hundred or two hundred over, we can make do with just a few kiloliters of Rigen.”
“If we keep the Warship on the water and sail with the lowest thrust instead, we should be able to extend the fuel distance,” Stefan said.
“But that will take longer,” Kidd said.
“My main concern is the accuracy of Nana’s star map. It wouldn’t be an issue under normal circumstances, but the hub is down now, and I can't talk to her,” Ewan said and rubbed his face with a deep breath, struggling to quell the dreadful anxiety that was rearing its head. It became stronger by the day and tormented him every second he stayed awake.
“Let’s go at full speed then. Vestal can't be the only Rigen station in the area, we can refuel on the way,” Kidd said.
“But if we don’t find any or if they’re also out of Rigen, it will just delay us more,” Stefan said.
“Is there any guarantee that Vestal will get the Rigen supply after a month?” Lance also chipped in.
“Locals have no say in the management of the Rigen station, it’s all handled by the Ashevagord. But with the situation as it is, we can't be sure of anything,” Ewan said. “And a naked treasure is at their doorsteps, helpless and defenseless, there’s no way the Stormfalcon won't tempt the Verns."
“So, if we leave earlier, we might get stranded somewhere. And if we wait for the transport, we might not even get the fuel and the Verns will attack us,” Kidd said. “Which is better?”
“Neither,” Lance murmured.
“If the Rigen from the black market has no problem, then let’s leave early. We don’t have to announce it, we’ll just slip away the moment we get the fuel and Nightingale wakes up,” Ewan said. “We’ll sail on the ocean with the lowest thrust until we get to another Rigen station. And if there’s none or they’re also out of stock, we’ll decide then whether to fly at max speed or continue to sail.”
“Why do I feel like we’ll get attacked the moment we try to leave?” Stefan muttered.
“Shut your black tongue!” Kidd shouted.
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…..
The stars faded-in when the four-hours day ended, but the irregular rhythm lost the moons again, and the cloak of blackness blanketed the night. The frequent fluctuations of Frosthelm and Flamecrest killed the crickets, the cicadas hushed their songs, and the cycle of life distorted in the wild.
Luckily for Ewan though, the promised time met the favor of the sun, and the delivery news arrived at the Stormfalcon when clock marked the twenty-fourth hour since their talks.
“We are ready.” The voice message echoed from the crystal ball as Ewan floated near the filler hole. The other three stayed on the top deck, keeping an eye on the town. “Break this crystal ball when you’ve connected the pipeline, we’ll start pumping. When it’s done, disconnect and throw the coin pouch inside the pipe. A thousand Novas, I hope you counted the coins well.”
An onyx-black pipe slithered out of depth of the ocean and curved to meet Ewan at the filler, water sliding off its wavy surface without leaving any wet patch behind. The giant snake shaded his sky, its sealed mouth large enough to devour all four of them at once, and it oozed with a hint of sweet and alluring aroma.
Ewan dragged it down with his Ryvia, and the tamed snake obeyed. Before connecting it to the filler hole though, he cast the modified version of
“I’m connecting now, stay alert,” Ewan said to the other three and fitted the pipe to the filler, rotating it to click the locks. There was no leak, there was no gap. After several checks, he crushed the crystal ball, and its jagged shards fell into the ocean. And with a tremor in the pipe, a stream of amber Rigen trickled in which soon turned into a gushing flood.
[Item Name: Rigen (Class-A)]
[Item Description: Strings of Fire-Anima chained together in a way that converts it into liquid state. Highly volatile, long-term contact with air is advised against.]
[Remark 1: Game changer!]
[Remark 2: The baby of Ashevagord, better not mess with it.]
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Status: Healthy
Step-1 Severynth [Spirit-Nebula: Zeroth Surge]
Subtype: Step-0 Elementalist
Name: Ewan Ayres
Species: Human
Vitality: 7.0
Spirit: 25.3
Anima: [Fire – 25.3 | Ice – 25.3 | Blood – 25.3 | Mystic: 25.3]
Astylinds: 4 [Potential: 1]
Rolling Cat [Toast]: Step-1 Severynth [Spirit-Nebula: Zeroth Surge]
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Fire Monkey [Orange]: Step-1 [Level-10] [Grade-B]
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Imp [Frost]: Step-1 [Level-10] [Grade-B]
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Bloodthorn-Lotus [Iris]: Step-1 [Level-10] [Grade-D]
Equipment: Common Clothes; Yurn [Neck Gaiter]; Moonkeeper [Crystal-Ball]; Rainwarden [Staff]; Blackfeather [Overcoat].
Storage: Journal; Elementalist—The Path of Anima [Subtype-Book]; Spellbook; Bloodlust [Spell]; Transmute [Spell]; Unknown Book [Radon’s Legacy]; Anima-Crystals [Novas Coins]; Hub-Connector; Ingredients.
Novas: 26,145
Crelith: 1,014