Sea monsters, Lucas thought.
He was not surprised when he heard it. His first encounter on this planet was with a flying monster, a dragon. For him, the existence of sea monsters on this planet was not something strange.
“Sea monsters, huh? I’d like to see it.”
“I don’t think you should risk yourself, My Lord.”
“Come one, William. Sea monsters are interesting.”
“Still… I don’t recommend you do it. Especially, without the Duchess’s knowledge.”
“Honestly, I think she will allow it.”
“My Lord, I haven’t met the Duchess yet. But, I have a feeling that by the fact you are her only relative here, Her Grace will not allow you to go to a certain death.”
“Come on, I only want to see it. What’s the harm?”
Lucas was persistent in checking the sea monsters in person. The drone he had sent to do reconnaissance on the water off the coast of Petersburg had detected a faint heat signature. Whatever the monster would be, Lucas had to defeat it if he wanted to make ocean voyages.
“Still, I don’t recommend you to do it.”
Lucas sighed. “Fineee…. So, where can I meet this man?”
“He usually hangs out by the bar near the dock, you can meet him in the evening. If you want, I can send people to pick him up right now at his house.”
“No need, I can go there, later.”
“Please, make sure to tell me before you go there. I will prepare men to escort you.”
“Ugh… I'll talk with Asher, you don't need to worry.”
“Yes, My Lord.”
“You may leave and send a message to Asher, I want to meet him, now.”
“Yes, My Lord, I will relay your message.”
William left the room and shortly after a knock came on the door.
That was fast, Lucas thought.
He let the person go in and it was Ella.
“Afternoon, Ella.”
“My Lord." Ella curtsy to him.
She brought tea and refreshment for Lucas.
“Thank you. Put it on my table, please.”
Ella placed down the tea and refreshment on the table.
“My Lord, did you, really... find a ruin of an ancient civilization?” Ella said with a curious face.
“We did. I left Max and the others there, to take care of the place.”
“What is it like?”
“Not much different, honestly. Some parts are older versions or just an old model.”
“What?” asked Ella, confused.
Lucas just realised he accidentally spoke as if he was speaking to his crew member. “Uh, I mean… It looked strange, bizarre. Like… I have ever seen before.”
“But, you said old?”
“Yes, it’s a building from the ancient civilisation, right? So, old.”
While they were still talking, a knock came on the door.
This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.
Lucas gestured to Ella to see who was coming. Ella walked toward the door and opened it, she let the person come in; it was Asher.
Asher walked inside and saluted Lucas. "You called for me, My Lord?"
"Yes." Lucas could notice sweat dripping down his face; he just come back from training. "I believe you have already known about the place we have found, correct?"
Asher was hesitant to answer, he took a peek at Ella, who was standing near them. "Yes, I have."
Lucas saw Asher's gaze at her. "She knew about it. You don't have to worry," Lucas assured him.
"Yes, My Lord."
"The Novgorod Knight currently has 130 people and before the rebellion, they had 700 people. Is that correct?"
"That is correct. Those 130 were the ones left to defend the previous Duchess and her children."
"Right, I wanted to expand the numbers to what we are allowed by the kingdom. Can you take care of the recruitment?"
"Of course, Lord Lucas. I will send out the recruitment announcement as soon as possible."
"Good. I also want you to pick someone after the recruitment to be the Duchess’s guard. Currently, she has no one as her personal guard."
"Certainly, I will have the candidate ready for you."
"Also pick 50 people and send them to the ruin. I'm going to have them trained with the weapons we found."
"Yes.”
“That’s all. You may leave,” Lucas said, “oh right before I forget, I’ll be going out tonight. I'll be looking for someone, have two people ready to go with me.”
“I’ll arrange that,” Asher bowed down and left the room.
Three hooded men walked along the street in the direction of the harbour. The street was less crowded at night compared to the day, but still, a lively atmosphere blanketed the street. The men stopped in front of an inn. Shallow Wind was written on the sign in front of the inn, they then entered the inn. The inn was not crowded, there were a handful of people who were eating and drinking inside. One of the men scanned the room as if he was looking for someone. His eyes then fixed on someone sitting in the corner, a man, around his 40s was sitting there, alone. There was a glass of beer in front of him, which accompanied him to spend the night.
One of the men walked closer to him and sat down in front of him.
A raspy voice greeted the hooded man. “What do you want?”
“You,” said the hooded man.
“What?”
“You're a talented man, Captain.”
Reznov chuckled hearing the hooded man’s words. “Captain? That's a name I haven't for a long time. We have a joker here.”
“…” The hooded man kept silent.
“Whatever. As long as I get paid, I will tell you my humble life story and whatever you want from me.”
The hooded man reached into his cloak and took out a bag of money. “This is the advance payment, once everything is settled, I will give you more.”
Reznov was shocked. He was in disbelief that someone would want to hear his story. “Hey, you’re kidding right?”
“No. I am serious.”
“What do you gain from this? Are you going to travel the sea? Do you want to die at the hand of that despicable monster!?”
“I want information.”
“Information, huh?”
“Yes, I will tell you more about it later. Now, Mister Reznov, your story, please.”
“What do you want to hear first?”
“The sea monsters.”
“Right, those bastards. This will be a long story, so how about ordering some drinks, eh? You drink, right?”
“Sure, I’ll pay,” said the hooded man. He called the waitress and ordered drinks for both of them.
“Great, thank you.”
Reznov chugged the drink he had and then he started his story. “The sea monster, I met it. You know the legend, right?”
“I do.” The hooded man nodded.
“It was a clear day and suddenly the sea was blanketed with fog. I ordered my fleet to be on alert... Then, one of my ships was blown apart. Lo, and behold, the culprit then showed themselves. Mister, have you ever seen a snake?”
"Yes,"
The waitress brought the drinks they ordered. Reznov drank the beer before continuing his story. “It had a long body, like a snake, and it had three heads, each able to breathe ice. I could never forget the horror that came after that... We were trying to subjugate it, with arrows, magic and even swords. But, everything we threw at it was mere pebbles for that bastard. I saw all of its heads charging its attack. In a flash... my fleet is gone.”
“Interesting,” the hooded man blurted.
Reznov was curious about the hooded man. He ordered the drink but he did not drink it. The hooded man’s face was occasionally dimly lit by the light, giving Reznov a chance to see the man’s face. Reznov could see the man’s white hair hidden under the hood.
“That’s all the story… so, mysterious man, would you be so kind as to tell me who the hell are you?”
The hooded man drank the beer in front of him before he took off his hood. His shiny white hair was dimly lit by the light in the inn. “I’m Lucas Lorien.”
“Well, Mister Lorien. I assume you wanted to go out there to the sea and probably fight this monster… For whatever reason. But, you will only face death.”
“What if I have the power to kill it?” said Lucas with a serious face and voice.
Reznov was flustered. He did not say anything after Lucas said those words and then, after a few minutes of silence, Reznov let out a big laugh.
His laugh resonated throughout the room, everyone stopped to look at Reznov. “You’re a madman. I never knew I would met a crazier person than me!”
Lucas stood up and put on his hood. “If you’re interested in building ships for me, come to the Petersburg Palace.”
Lucas left the inn with the two other hooded men.
Reznov was left alone at the table, flustered and curious of that man.