Hunter of the Evernight
Chapter 587: An added need for caution

Chapter 587: An added need for caution

On Athena, the steel behemoth sailing across the Azure Seas towards the Eastern continent of Henos, the trio of Alex, Ulysses, and Ana found themselves faced with a new problem to tackle, one that came in the form of a ridiculously large ship.

"Damn it." Ulysses cursed as he stood on the deck along with Alex and Ana, all of whom had their gazes focused on the towering structure approaching in the distance.

Despite being so far away, it had already begun to cast an ominous shadow over their faces with Ulysses the most affected as he added. "Why are they here so soon?"

"What is that thing?" Alex inquired with Ulysses replying.

"It’s called a floating city, it’s one of the greatest technological advancements owned by the Enclave and one of the reasons they continue to reign as kings of the Azure Seas."

"So it’s from the Enclave?"

"Yes, you could consider them as city-states just like Zion has Cance and other cities."

Pursing his lips, Alex inquired. "Is it normal for it to be here?"

"Something like that."

"I don’t get it. Are we in any trouble?" Ana asked, unable to keep her silence any longer.

"Well, no, it’s mostly because we are sailing rather close to the epicenter of the Enclave that we would meet with a floating city."

Alex raised a brow as he glanced at Ulysses. "Why are we sailing that close to them?"

"Because their sea routes are the safest and I am more familiar with them."

"There should be other routes we could have followed." Ana chimed in with Ulysses shaking his head.

"But they are less safe and you gave me the responsibility of ensuring this ship reached Henos safely. I had no other choice."

Letting out a sigh, Alex massaged his temples while Ana asked. "What now?"

"Running away is not an option, despite the size of that thing, it can quickly catch up to us if need be. All we can do now is hope that the person in charge is understanding, else we are in for a rough patch."

"Is there anything on board that could be considered contraband?" Alex inquired with Ulysses shaking his head.

"The Enclave doesn’t care about things like that."

"Then what do they care about?"

"For that, we’ll have to wait until they arrive," Ulysses remarked before adding. "In the meantime, maybe it’s best we prepare for their arrival."

Alex nodded. "Alright, do what needs to be done, I’ll keep watch."

With that, Ulysses left to carry out his tasks with Ana following closely behind while Alex remained on deck, his gaze focused on the approaching ship

***

It was just as Ulysses said.

Despite the ship being ridiculously large, it quickly arrived before Athena before coming to an abrupt stop, an act that subtly broke the laws of physics.

Taking a deep breath, Alex stood at the deck with Ulysses, who was to serve as a translator, while Ana stayed below deck to keep watch on the passengers on board.

To make a better impression, Alex had changed clothes, opting for a long black leather jacket along with trousers, ankle-high boots, and a cane.

Ulysses remained in his usual attire of a white shirt and a pair of khaki trousers.

An oppressive silence followed as the duo waited patiently, but for a time, it seemed as though no one would be coming.

It wasn’t until almost an hour later that the envoys from the floating city arrived, riding on Mutants that resembled a cross between a sea lion and a seagull.

Alex counted five envoys, with none bearing an aura that could threaten him, though he couldn’t be sure if they were hiding their strength.

Either way, as much as he didn’t want to resort to violence, he had to prepare for the possibility.

The Mutants gracefully landed despite their grotesque appearances after which the envoys jumped down from their backs.

"Who is the captain of this ship?" The lead envoy inquired as he approached, dressed in fish scales that seemed to change color based on how the rays of the Lightbringer reflected off of it.

Noting that the envoys appeared slightly inhuman, Alex replied. "The captain is dead, I am the one in charge now."

"Did you kill the captain?"

"No, he died due to an accident we faced three weeks ago."

"And his deputy?"

"Dead as well, for the same reason as the captain."

The envoy regarded Alex briefly, seemingly scrutinizing his words before he asked. "Can you describe the accident that led to their deaths?"

Expecting the question, Alex proceeded to narrate the incident with the Drowned Palace, making sure to leave out problematic details after which he ended it with a single statement.

"We also came across a man calling himself Sinbad."

The envoys froze at the mention of the name, their expressions taking a drastic turn as they exchanged looks with one another.

Only after a while were they able to regain their composure with the lead envoy intoning. "In that case, everything is fine. You may be on your way, however, I should warn you that the Great Unknown has gotten rather unpredictable lately, even popping up in the safe zones."

"The Great Unknown?" Ulysses displayed an alarmed look while Alex could only stare at him in confusion.

"Best be careful."

Leaving those words behind, the envoys returned to the floating city, having already confirmed that Athena was a registered vessel with the Enclave, albeit with a different captain at its helm.

Only after they were gone did Alex turn to Ulysses for answers. "What is the Great Unknown and why should we be careful of it?"

"It’s one of the reasons I chose to follow the safe routes closer to the Enclave’s epicenter." Ulysses remarked with a worried look on his face. "We’d have to be careful if even the safe routes aren’t safe anymore because if we get caught, we can only wait for death."

Alex frowned at this point as he couldn’t help but wonder if sea travel had always been so dangerous or if it was the Will of the World testing him yet again.

Either way, there was an added need for caution.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.