Free Web NovelChapter 46: Chapter 42: The Bane of the ’Jinx’ Shipworm
The letter was written on heavy, cream-colored Velin paper, exuding the scent of expensive ink and the lingering smell of cigars from her father’s study.
She pulled out the sheet of paper and unfolded it.
Her father’s handwriting was as strong and forceful as ever, each letter looking as if it had been carved with a sword.
The letter’s contents weren’t long. It didn’t contain a single word of blame, filled instead with a father’s "concern" for his daughter.
He subtly mentioned that her recent conquests in the world of commerce had severely "disturbed" the "peace" of certain old friends.
He said that the Golden Sail Commerce Association’s crisis was perhaps an "opportunity" for her to stop and rest.
Finally, he suggested that Caroline should give up "vulgar" pursuits like running a commerce association and travel to the Royal Capital to attach herself to a certain Duchess.
With her beauty and intelligence, learning to be a proper lady-in-waiting and securing a respectable marriage for herself was the most appropriate path.
At the end of the letter, he added a pointed remark.
"After all, you are merely a bloodless, Caroline. Your value does not lie in conquering the seas."
The letter slipped from her fingertips, fluttering down to the cold floor.
Caroline stood motionless before the window, her back to her father’s butler.
Her body was ramrod straight, like a sword that could snap at any moment.
But only she knew she was biting her lip so hard that a trickle of blood ran from the corner of her mouth, bringing with it a sharp, stinging pain.
But this was nothing more than her final struggle.
Darkness washed over her, and Caroline’s world spun as it plunged into an abyss.
...
Caroline felt as if she were back on the deck of the Strong Alcohol, but the ship was sinking.
Crimson Red water lapped at her ankles. She desperately tried to plug the enormous hole in the hull with her bare hands, but the solid Dragonbone Wood turned to quicksand at her touch.
In the distance, on a sturdy reef, her father and Hector stood side-by-side. They raised glasses of champagne, watching silently as she and her ship were devoured by the blood-red sea, their gazes like those of art connoisseurs.
...
Consciousness returned slowly, the first sensations being the softness of the mattress and the warmth of the cashmere blanket covering her.
Caroline opened her eyes. The intricate plasterwork on the ceiling was a blur in the dim light. The rain outside seemed to have stopped, leaving only a dull grayness.
She pushed herself up into a sitting position. Her long, silver hair fell disheveled over her shoulders, and her black riding habit was wrinkled.
Several people were standing in the room.
High Steward Freeman, chief Alchemist Valerius, and several of her most loyal captains. Their faces were etched with unconcealable worry, like a flock of lambs about to be led to the sacrificial altar.
Velin was there, too. freēwebnovel.com
He still wore the cloak that completely enveloped him, standing by the window and silently gazing outside, a figure starkly out of place.
"You all..."
Caroline’s voice was hoarse. She cleared her throat, a bitter smile gracing her pale face.
"You all know, don’t you? About my father’s letter."
No one answered. The silence was answer enough.
"Perhaps... he’s right."
She threw off the blanket and walked barefoot onto the floor, the cold touch shocking her into greater clarity.
"I’m tired, Freeman. I have fought against this world. I’ve won, and I’ve lost. Now, I don’t want to fight anymore."
She looked at the subordinates who had followed her for years, the "golden nuggets" she had personally unearthed from ship holds, warehouses, and offices. Her eyes held a weariness and vulnerability they had never seen before.
"Go. Go tell Hector, tell those vultures, that the Golden Sail Commerce Association concedes. Salvage what you can. At least you’ll all have a way to survive."
"Your Excellency!"
All the color drained from Freeman’s face; he looked as if he was about to fall to his knees.
An air of despair filled the entire room, as if Judgment Day had already been declared.
Just then, a calm voice shattered the dead silence.
"I never would have guessed you were such a melodramatic teenager."
Velin turned and strode out from the shadows.
He walked up to Caroline and, under the astonished gazes of the others, issued a command in a nearly impertinent tone.
"Now, I need to discuss the specific terms of surrender with the Vice President alone. After all, this concerns how much severance pay you’ll get, so please wait outside."
He said this so matter-of-factly that Freeman and the others didn’t know how to react for a moment, and could only look instinctively toward Caroline.
A flash of confusion crossed Caroline’s eyes, but when she saw the subtle look Valerius gave her, she still gave a slight nod.
As if granted a pardon, the group, still full of doubt, was led out of the room by the chief Alchemist, who thoughtfully closed the door behind them.
Only the two of them remained in the room.
"You..."
Caroline had just started to question him when Velin made a gesture for her to be quiet.
He took a palm-sized glass jar from inside his cloak and placed it on the table in front of Caroline.
Inside the jar was a clear liquid where the corpses of several "Disaster Star" shipworms floated limply. Their once-tough white bodies were now strangely swollen and bloated, like overstuffed rice sacks that had burst.
...
「Three days earlier.」
The Alchemy lab at the Golden Sail Commerce Association headquarters.
It was less a laboratory and more a massive warehouse. The air was a complex mixture of scents from hundreds of herbs, minerals, and alchemical reagents.
Velin stood before a workbench, ignoring the countless jars and vials around him.
His eyes were fixed on a single shipworm pinned to the workbench, still struggling weakly.
He wore a pair of gloves made from tanned lizard hide and used a precise, silver dissection knife to carefully cut open the shipworm’s exoskeleton.
The system interface unfolded in his vision.
[Shipworm "Disaster Star" (Alchemical Creature)]
[Level: Level 2 Magical Beast]
[Bloodline: Abyssal Devourer (Bronze Tier) 54%, Deep Sea Worm (Black Iron Tier) 18%, Alchemical Construct 28%]
[Abilities: Magic Gnawing, High Fire Resistance, High Poison Resistance, Medium Magic Resistance, Rapid Reproduction, Dormant Mimicry]
[Overall Evaluation: An alchemically and magically constructed creature with extremely specialized survival capabilities. However, its traits will degrade to normal levels after several generations, with no possibility of evolution.]
’Tch... this really is a tricky one.’
’No wonder everyone else has tried everything to no effect. It turns out this is an artificial product, specially developed by someone.’
’It seems it’ll be difficult to kill this shipworm directly.’
’So what other options are there?’
Velin recalled his knowledge of shipworms from his past life.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up. ’Things may change in a myriad of ways, but the underlying principle remains the same. As long as it’s still a shipworm, it must have that one common trait!’
Velin placed a drop of mucus extracted from the shipworm’s digestive tract onto a crystal slide, and his vision magnified instantly.
Countless microscopic points of light swam within his field of view.
"Killing you directly is too costly and inefficient."
"In that case, let’s try a different approach. What if I just add a little ’seasoning’ to your food... and let you eat yourselves to death?"
