Read Novel Full Vol 24 Chapter 1
Vol 24 Chapter 1
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Chapter 1 – The Southern Continent After a Long Time
At the request of the God of Commerce-sama, I set sail for the southern continent. I put aside everything that needed to be checked or followed up on: the liberation of Saporabi’s consciousness; regular shipping routes; the town of beastmen; the dark elves; and the mermaids… I’m a little scared to return.
The port town of Gothenburg came into view.
It’s been about 11 days since we set sail from Cagliari. Thanks to autopilot, we’ve been able to keep moving day and night; otherwise, this route would take a regular magic ship a month. Ship Summoning is truly a cheat.
I was torn between heading to Gothenburg, in the Kingdom of Catania, or Terni, in the Kingdom of Folri. I decided on Gothenburg this time.
The civil war on this continent began with a succession dispute over the throne of the Kingdom of Catania, where Gothenburg is located.
The center of any conflict usually suffers the most damage, so it’s more efficient to dive right into the heart of it from the start.
By the way, I suggested Terni as the first port to visit. Starting right in the middle of the chaos sounds scary, doesn’t it? I’d rather observe from a distance. Am I wrong?
I don’t think so, but in the end, I was persuaded by the girls to act quickly. I’m weak.
This time, we entered the port town of Gothenburg directly aboard the Stronghold.
Our goal is to follow up on the trade network in the turbulent continent.
In other words, we need to distribute a large amount of supplies. In such a situation, we can’t afford to waste time on tedious tasks like transferring cargo or switching ships.
So, I’m going with the rather far-fetched explanation that I used the money I made from the pepper trade to purchase a giant magic ship that I discovered by chance.
It’s already a stretch that such a massive magic ship is owned by an individual, but I’ll just have to hope people will accept that it’s from another continent.
I’m already dreading the inevitable criticism that no country would allow an individual to own such a thing.
Still, I felt that a luxury liner would be excessive, so I settled on the Stronghold, a ferry.
Originally, I wanted to infiltrate the southern continent on a Japanese-style boat to assess the situation before taking action. However, my idea was quickly dismissed because a brief infiltration wouldn’t be enough to understand the overall situation after a war that had engulfed the entire continent.
Everyone knows about the cheat that allows me to summon ships, so I feel like I can take more risks. Also, perhaps because they suspect this job has something to do with the gods, they are unusually enthusiastic about it.
“Ah, there’s a commotion. Wataru-san, stop the ship when we get close to the port.”
“…Understood.”
Gothenburg is a large port city, yet it still doesn’t have enough space or depth for a ferry to dock. In Cagliari, another military port, we also have to stop in deep waters and use small boats to get in and out.
Following Donatella-san’s instructions, we begin preparations to drop anchor once we are close enough.
Donatella-san sure is energetic.
She has been extremely active during this voyage.
In addition to working on the business plan for the southern continent, she has been enthusiastic about learning languages, participating in monster hunts to improve her skills, and communicating with her personal Saporabis, Sophia and Lorenzo.
In fact, I’d say about 90% of her communication with Sophia and Lorenzo was more like a hobby than work.
Camille-san was active too, but Donatella-san was even more so, burning with passion for her rewarding work of doing business with other continents.
It’s helpful that she works hard, but it’s sad that she worked so hard that nothing exciting happened.
Getting things done quickly isn’t everything, so I’ll insist on that on the return voyage and plan more fun events.
I dock the Stronghold and take another look at the port town of Gothenburg.
“It’s in bad shape. Was it badly damaged?”
Ines murmurs with concern.
As she said, the port is quite dilapidated, with visible traces of emergency repairs here and there. As a large port town, it seems it couldn’t escape the waves of war.
I wonder if Mear-san, the commercial guild member who helped us with the pepper trade, is safe. We’re not particularly close, but I’ve only met her a few times, and she was an honest businesswoman. I hope she’s okay.
“A small boat is heading this way. There are soldiers on board, and they seem to be on high alert.”
Marina-san reports on the situation. Sure enough, a small boat is heading this way.
It’s understandable that they’re on alert when a huge ship like this suddenly appears. I’m glad they came to us; it saves us the trouble of going out to them.
I’m actually surprised they decided to send a small boat. If I were in their position, I would be terrified if a huge ship like this appeared suddenly.
…The soldiers being sent out are undoubtedly cannon fodder. Or should I say sacrificial lambs? It’s possible the higher-ups are sending them to a dangerous area to see how things go.
We already expected a commotion when entering the port with the Stronghold and are prepared for an inspection.
I’ve disguised the interior of the Stronghold as a common ship so it won’t look out of place in this world. I’ve also removed all the cargo and replaced it with goods that will keep for a long time.
Hopefully, they’ll be satisfied with this, even if we release a large amount of supplies.
“Wataru, please.”
“Got it. Ilma and Donatella-san, please check if you can understand the language.”
Ilma-san and Donatella-san nod in response. The other members have also studied the language of the southern continent, but Ilma-san and Donatella-san are faster learners.
I will negotiate first. If there are no problems, I would like to leave the negotiations to them.
However, they’re not quite ready to handle everything on their own, so I’ll probably have to tag along anyway.
They’ve only studied for about twenty days while working on various tasks, so a full-fledged business negotiation is unrealistic. Nevertheless, they’ve managed to perfect their daily conversations—they’re incredibly talented.
I’ll take the two of them with me to greet them…
“This is getting complicated. Let’s send Sophia and Lorenzo back.”
The two Saporabi naturally followed Donatella-san. Although I was used to seeing them, I couldn’t leave them there in a situation where they might be inspected.
“What? Oh, no, of course. Sophia and Lorenzo, I’m sorry, but we have to part ways for a little while. I’ll see you again later, I promise.”
Donatella-san said goodbye as if it were the last time they would see each other. I thought she was overreacting, but I was relieved that she seemed willing to send the Saporabis back.
If she had refused in this situation, I would have thought she was beyond hope. It was a little dangerous, though.
“This is Gothenburg Port Security! We want to know why you suddenly brought a huge ship into port without permission!”
The soldier asked forcefully.
I thought it would have been more respectful if they had waited near the boarding area until we waved at them. But, well, it can’t be helped. A ferry is still huge, even though it’s smaller than a luxury liner, so even I wouldn’t know what to do if I saw one for the first time.
“We are a merchant ship from the Northern Continent belonging to the Toyoumi Trading Company. We apologize for not sending advance notice due to the long voyage!”
I answer loudly, but I’m not good at shouting. I wish I had a megaphone or a microphone.
We could have sent an advance party; that idea had been suggested, but we decided to go straight in for maximum impact. Of course, I’m in favor of sending an advance party.
“What? From the northern continent? I’m sorry, but as you can see, the port is in disarray. We cannot allow you to disembark easily. If you do not leave, we will conduct an inspection!”
The soldier seemed surprised by the “Northern Continent” response and hesitated for a moment, but he decided to prioritize his duties.
“Understood. Please board the ship from those stairs.”
But there are only two soldiers—the one on duty and the one rowing the small boat. Can they really conduct a search? The Stronghold is quite large.
The port authorities probably didn’t expect such a huge ship to dock, so there’s likely no manual.
The soldier who had been talking to us cautiously climbed the stairs alone. Maybe they need someone to watch the small boat. But are they really going to conduct the inspection alone? That’s too risky.
“Excuse me, but as you can see, this ship is quite large. It’s impossible for one person to inspect it. I recommend calling for backup.”
I couldn’t help but offer a suggestion from the perspective of someone being inspected. After all, it would be easier to have a large group finish the inspection quickly than to be inspected by one person for a long time.
“That’s a reasonable suggestion, but it’s up to us to decide. First, I’ll conduct the inspection by myself.”
My suggestion was rejected. I caught a hint of a wry smile, so there must be a reason he’s doing it alone.
“…Are you sure this is all the crew members?”
I was first instructed to gather the crew members for a personal inspection. They have crystals that can check criminal records when entering the city, so I guess they’ll use those to make the final decision.
Since we have nothing to hide, I obediently gathered everyone and lined them up in front of the soldiers.
“Yes, everyone is here.”
Why is he so angry? Maybe I should have gathered the Rimu and the other familiar group as well. I thought they would be bored, so I let them play in the kids’ area. Maybe that was a mistake.
“There’s no way you can maintain such a huge ship with just this many people. Hiding things won’t help you!”
…That was a blind spot!
The other members all look surprised to varying degrees when I look at them.
We had done all the groundwork to avoid arousing suspicion, but… we all overlooked something basic.
Normal ships don’t arrive at their destination automatically with the push of a button.
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