The Serpent Dragon of the Western Sea Route
Helena had handed me an A-Class ticket.
I showed it to the staff when I boarded, and once I was on the ship they led me straight to my room. I hadn’t expected this kind of service, so it caught me a little off guard.
Was A-Class really that different?
“This is Suite A-1, where you will be staying, Lady Esilly.”
“It’s… incredibly tall.”
Was it a duplex? From the entrance alone it was hard to tell, but the ceiling soared high enough that you could almost believe there was another floor up there. At least it wouldn’t feel cramped just because we were on a ship.
“I will take my leave, then. Please enjoy a comfortable voyage.”
“Thank you.”
The attendant bowed and stepped out.
Right… so this was VIP treatment.
Those kingdom knights and the higher-ups could stand to learn a thing or two. In a world where even a little money bought you decent service, they had the nerve to treat the person who protected and saved their country like dirt. Their idea of hospitality was a complete mess.
Anyway, boarding this was basically the same as flying first class, so I figured I might as well look around the room.
Places like this usually came with a refrigerator magic tool…
“Ah, there it is.”
Of course it was here. Even the carriage that brought me to this town had one; there was no way this suite would be without.
But was there actually anything inside?
The ticket said food and water weren’t provided at all, so I didn’t get my hopes up as I opened the door of the refrigerator magic tool.
What I found, though, was nothing like what I’d expected.
“Orange juice and milk… and sandwiches too?”
Hold on—they said meals weren’t included. Why was there enough here for a proper snack?
I’d already bought plenty of food myself, so I didn’t strictly need any of it… but it was still reassuring.
Might as well start with this.
I pulled the cork from the orange juice and took a long, refreshing swig. Freshly squeezed, bright and sweet. Fruit like this shouldn’t grow easily near the coast.
“Ah—right. Trade hub. They just import it.”
I kept forgetting. For a city-state, this place had way too many delicious things.
After a quick look around the room I headed out onto the deck. No matter how high the ceilings were or how wide the doors stood open, being inside a ship still felt stuffy.
I’d stay out here until we cast off.
With that in mind I sat on one of the deck benches and pulled out an ice cream.
“Mmm… being able to eat soft-serve whenever I want is the absolute best part of Inventory.”
Helena and I had wandered all over town buying snacks. Just in case, I’d cleaned out every soft-serve shop we passed. Right now I was sitting on about two hundred fifty vanilla soft-serves and another hundred fifty chocolate.
“Whew, that’s sweet. Maybe one more.”
People had warned me more than once that I’d put on weight, but in my case I never gained a gram no matter how much I ate. Maybe it was because combat rations tasted so bad I never had the chance before—but either way, one or two ice creams weren’t going to change a body like mine.
Thinking that, I reached into Inventory again.
And then I felt it—not quite a feeling, but a gaze fixed on me from somewhere.
Assassins from the kingdom? Had they finally decided that ignoring their benefactor wasn’t enough and now they wanted me dead?!
I trusted that instinct and pulled a sword out of Inventory instead of ice cream. So soon already using the blade the mayor had so kindly given me.
Fine. I’ll give you a proper fight.
……
……
But no matter how long I waited, no one attacked. Waiting for an opening, maybe?
“Or maybe I’m just imagining things. Whatever—ice cream time.”
I reached into Inventory again for a vanilla soft-serve, and sure enough the gaze returned. The only difference this time was that it felt close—right beside me rather than far away.
I turned my head.
Standing there was a girl who looked a little younger than me, staring straight at me. About fifteen? Bright blue hair, clear blue eyes without a single cloud in them, and an absolutely adorable, pretty face. She was wearing a blue dress that looked exactly like mine.
“Big sister… would you sell me one of those ice creams?”
“Huh? Ice cream?”
She’d been watching the one in my hand the whole time.
Hmm… what to do. I wasn’t going to finish them all in a week anyway. And she was asking to buy one, not just demanding it free, so there was no real reason to refuse. Even if she’d simply asked for one, I probably would’ve given it to her if she let me pat her head once.
“All right. But I don’t need money. Can I pat your head instead?”
“That’s fine. I like it when people pat my head too.”
I liked patting heads, and she liked having hers patted—so we both won. A perfect “good for the sister-in-law, good for the brother-in-law” situation, as the saying went.
“Deal, then. Here.”
“Wow, thank you!”
I pulled another ice cream from Inventory and held it out. The girl beamed as she took it and started eating with a happy little smile.
Normally you shouldn’t just eat something a stranger hands you. Looking this cute and pretty, she really ought to be more careful.
“You’re not a bad person, big sister. Mommy said so.”
The words that came back from her sounded like she already knew me.
“Huh? Your mother?”
“Yes. She told me you’re the wonderful person who protected our town from the invaders.”
“I see…”
“So you’re okay. And you’re pretty, too.”
With that she began nibbling the soft-serve with a mouth as small as a hamster’s. This kid was pretty entertaining—just like Helena.
“What’s your name?”
“Erna. I don’t have a family name.”
“Really? And if Erna’s on this ship, that means you’re heading to the West Continent, right?”
“That’s right. I’m going with my mother to Labyrinth City Labyrinth on the West Continent, where my father is.”
“Labyrinth City?”
I never paid much attention to places outside my own region… so this was the first I’d heard of a place called Labyrinth City. For some reason it sparked my interest. A labyrinth city meant there was a labyrinth, right?
“Is the food good there?”
“Most of the West Continent has lots of delicious things. If you like good food, Labyrinth is a jackpot.”
“Yeah? Then maybe I’ll head there too.”
I hadn’t decided on a destination anyway. I was just wandering wherever the wind took me.
Perfect. My first stop on the West Continent would be Labyrinth City. I’d roam around, eat everything tasty I could find, and start building new connections from scratch!
After parting with Erna I returned to my room and stretched out on the bed. It was a little firm, but I never imagined I’d enjoy this kind of luxury on a ship, so I couldn’t bring myself to complain.
Why? Because earlier I’d gone and looked at the cheap C-Class quarters.
One big room packed with rows of four-tier bunks. They’d be stuck in there for a whole week. It reminded me of the beds used when African slaves were shipped to Europe… For the first time in my life I thought sleeping at the front desk or in a hallway would be better. Even on the battlefield I’d never felt that way.
“Still, there’s surprisingly little to do on this ship…”
Of course—this world treated ships as cargo vessels first and foremost. Expecting a cruise-liner interior was a mistake. The A-Class rooms were nicer than most hotel suites, but everywhere else was basically the same as a freighter. There was maybe one café, and even that was ridiculously expensive.
After selling off everything I owned in the royal capital I’d scraped together about five gold coins—roughly fifty million won. A single cup of coffee here cost one mid-tier silver coin (about ten thousand won). Ten thousand won didn’t sound bad until you realized it was one five-thousandth of my entire fortune. I never thought I’d turn into such a miser…
If I’d known, I would’ve demanded my reward in cash and cleaned out every last bit of severance pay before I left.
Nothing for it. I’d just have to sit on the terrace and watch the sea.
Whoosh—!
With that thought I yanked the curtains wide open. Beyond the perfectly parted window lay a scene straight out of a movie: sunlight glittering like jewels across the blue ocean, an endless horizon, flying fish and dolphins leaping through the waves, seagulls wheeling overhead…
If that had been all, it would have reminded me of the documentary Oceans I’d watched in a theater as a kid.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Yeah… everything except that one detail.
Something long, blue, and vicious-looking was swimming straight toward us. This wasn’t a marine documentary anymore—it had turned into a Godzilla-style SF fantasy monster movie.
How long had it even been since we left the port city? What was a beast that size doing in water this shallow?!