Whew!
The fierce wind howled, the rain poured down, the three-masted sailing ship bobbed up and down among one wave after another, like a toy tossed and caught by giants.
The deep red in Algie Wilson's eyes faded away, and he found himself still standing on the deck, no different from before.
Immediately after that, he saw the strange-shaped glass bottle in his hand crack with a snap, the frost and snow melted and merged with the raindrops.
Just a few seconds later, this ancient wonder completely lost the traces of its past existence.
A six-sided crystal snowflake emerged on Algie's palm, then quickly faded away until it disappeared, seemingly shrinking into flesh and blood.
Algie seemed to be thinking something as he barely visible nodded, remaining calm for a full minute.
He turned around and walked towards the entrance of the cabin, just as he was about to enter, he met a man wearing a long robe with lightning patterns on it coming out.
The man with soft yellow hair stopped, looked at Algie, extended his right hand, clenched his fist and placed it on his chest:
"Storms are with you."
"Storms are with you." Algie's rough and profound face showed no extra emotion, and he also clenched his right fist and hit his left chest.
After bowing to each other, Algie entered the cabin and walked along the passage towards the captain's room in the distance.
Along the way, he didn't encounter any sailors or crew members at all. The place was so quiet that it seemed like the interior of a tomb.
The captain's room door opened, and a soft and thick dark brown carpet appeared before his eyes. On both sides were bookshelves and wine cabinets, and a number of yellowed-covered books and bottles of dark red wine were shining with an unusual luster under the light of the candles.
On the table with candles, there was a bottle of ink, a feather pen, a black metal telescope, and a brass sextant.
Behind the desk, a middle-aged man with a pale face wearing a skull captain's hat watched Algie walk towards him step by step, angrily gritting his teeth and saying:
"I will not yield!"
"I believe you can do it." Algie calmly said as if talking about the bad weather today.
"Your... " The middle-aged man froze for a moment, seemingly not expecting such an answer.
Just then, Algie slightly bent his body and suddenly rushed forward, instantly reducing the distance between them to only the desk.
Crack!
His shoulder tightened, his right hand suddenly extended and clutched the middle-aged man's throat.
Without giving the other person a chance to react, the back of his hand revealed a few illusory fish scales, exerting frenzied force.
Crack!
In the clear sound, the middle-aged man's eyes widened in astonishment, his body lifted up completely.
His feet thrashed violently, but soon regained calmness. In his blank gaze, his pupils began to dilate, and a foul smell emerged from his crotch area.
Algie lifted the middle-aged man, bent his waist, and with his feet stepping steadily, moved closer to the wall beside him.
Bang! He used the middle-aged man as a shield and forcefully crashed into the front, his arm as thick as a monster.
The wooden wall shattered with a sound, and the violent storm with the smell of seawater swept in.
Algie twisted his waist and back, threw the middle-aged man out of the cabin and into the mountain-like waves one after another.
The sky was dark, the wind was howling, and the power of nature buried everything.
Algie took out a white handkerchief, carefully wiped his right palm, and then threw it into the sea.
He stepped back a few steps and patiently waited for his companion to enter.
"Something's wrong?" Less than ten seconds later, the man with soft yellow hair rushed in.
"The captain has escaped." Algie gasped, answering with annoyance, "He still retains some extraordinary power!"
"Damn!" The man with yellow hair muttered under his breath.
He came to the opening, fixed his gaze on the distance, but could see nothing except the wind and the waves.
"Forget it, he's just an accessory." The man with yellow hair waved his arm. "If we can find this ghost ship from the Tudor era, we will be the ones to receive the credit."
Even as a guardian of the sea, he wouldn't dare to dive into the water rashly in such weather.
"And if the storm continues, 'Captain' won't be able to hold out for long either," Alge nodded, noticing that the cracks on the wooden walls were beginning to heal at a visible rate.
He gave a deep glance, then instinctively turned his head and looked towards the position of the rudder and sails.
Even with multiple layers of wooden planks separating them, he could clearly know what was happening there.
There was no first mate, no second mate, no crew, no sailors, not even a living person!
It was completely empty there, and the rudder and sails were adjusting strangely on their own.
The image of that "fool" who was completely shrouded in grayish-white fog suddenly appeared in his mind. Alge suddenly sighed.
He turned his head to look at the fierce wind and waves outside, speaking in a dreamy, expectant and fearful tone:
"The new era has begun..." ...
The capital of the Kingdom of Ruan, Becland, Queen's District.
Audrey squeezed her cheeks, unable to believe what had just happened.
On the dressing table in front of her, the ancient copper mirror was shattered into pieces.
Looking down, Audrey saw the "deep red" flowing on her palm, like a "star tattoo".
The "deep red" gradually faded and disappeared beneath the skin until then, Audrey was certain she was not dreaming.
Her eyes moved with a gentle expression, her lips slightly curved, and she couldn't help standing up, bending over to lift her skirt.
She bowed to the air and, with light steps, her body turned, dancing the most popular "ancient elf dance" in the court at that time.
Her figure gracefully moved, and her face was full of bright smiles.
Ding ding ding! The bedroom door suddenly received a knock.
"Who?" Audrey stopped abruptly, assuming a refined posture.
"Miss, can I come in? You should be ready," the personal maid asked outside the door.
Audrey turned her head to look at the mirror on the dressing table and quickly suppressed the smile, leaving only a faint trace.
She looked left and right, confirming that her appearance was flawless before speaking gently:
"Come in."
She twisted her hand, and her personal maid, Anne, pushed the door open.
"Oh, it's broken..." Anne saw at a glance the fate of that ancient copper mirror.
Audrey blinked her eyes and spoke slowly:
"Well, yes, um, Susie came in before, you know, she always likes to cause trouble!"
Susie was a bloodless dog of not very pure breed, a gift from her father, Earl Hall, when he bought hunting dogs. But she was very dear to Audrey.
"You have to teach it a lesson," Anne skillfully gathered the copper mirror fragments, afraid of hurting the young lady.
After doing all this, she looked at Audrey and asked with a smile:
"Which dress do you want to wear?"
Audrey thought for a moment and said: "I like the one Mrs. Ginia designed for my seventeenth birthday."
"No, others will say that the Hall family is experiencing a financial crisis, and a dress can be worn twice in a formal occasion!" Anne shook her head in denial.
"But I really like it," Audrey emphasized gently.
" You can wear it at home, in less formal occasions," Anne showed an attitude of no room for negotiation on this matter.
"Then the one that Mr. Cedric sent yesterday, with ruffled cuffs," Audrey took a deep breath, maintaining an elegant and sweet smile.
"Your eyes are always so brilliant," Anne smiled and stepped back, shouting outside, "Closet number six. Forget it, I'll get it myself."
The maids began to work, one for the long dress, one for the jewelry, one for the shoes, one for the veil, one for the makeup, and one for the hairstyle.
When the preparations were nearly complete, Earl Hall, wearing a brown coat of the same color as the clothes, appeared at the door.
He wore a matching hat, had two beautiful small whiskers, blue eyes full of smiles, but his slack muscles, bulging belly, and obvious lines around the eyes all mercilessly ruined his youthful beauty.
"The most dazzling gem of Becland, we should set off now," Earl Hall stood at the entrance, tapping the open door twice.
"Father, don't call me that," Audrey stood up with the help of the maid, deliberately showing a somewhat distressed expression.
"Then my beautiful little princess, it's time to go," Earl Hall bent his left arm, indicating for Audrey to hold.
Audrey smiled and shook her head:
"This is Mrs. Hall, the countess, my dear mother's position."
"Here it is." Earl Hall smiled and bent his right arm again, "This is the pride of the father."
...
Prizh Port, Oak Island, Royal Navy Base.
When Audrey walked down from the carriage with her father's arm in her hand, she was suddenly shocked by the huge object before her.
Not far away in the naval port, there was a majestic giant ship that was shining with metallic light. It had no sails, only a lookout tower remained, and it had two tall chimneys and two open-air gun towers placed side by side.
It was so magnificent, so huge, that the sailing battleships nearby looked like a group of newborn dwarfs surrounding a giant god.
"Storm above..."
"Oh, my lord."
"Armored ship!" ...
One after another, exclamations rose in a low murmur. Audrey also felt the same shock. It was a miracle created by mankind, an unprecedented marine miracle!
After an unknown amount of time, the nobles, ministers, and members of the House of Commons gradually regained their composure. At this moment, a black dot gradually grew larger from small, occupying one-third of the sky and taking up everyone's line of sight, abruptly making the atmosphere become solemn.
This was a huge floating creature floating in mid-air. It had extremely smooth and graceful lines, its overall color painted in deep blue, and a sturdy and lightweight alloy skeleton supporting the cotton fabric filled with hydrogen balloons, while below there was a box with machine gun ports, bomb ports, and flat-aiming cannons, and the exaggerated buzzing sound of the high-explosive steam engine and the crazy rotation of the tail propellers formed a heart-stopping melody.
The airship carrying the royal family arrived, carrying the dignity of looking down upon everything from above.
A "Judgment Sword" emblem, vertically downward and with a ruby crown handle, reflected sunlight on both sides of the box. This was a symbol of the Augustus family, passed down for a long time and dating back to the previous century.
Audrey was not yet eighteen years old and had not participated in the "Introduction Ceremony", but under the guidance of the queen, she officially entered the social circle of Beckland, declaring her adulthood. She could only quietly stand by and watch, unable to approach.
However, she wasn't too concerned. Even because she didn't have to face the princes, she felt relieved.
The "miracle" of human conquest of the sky landed steadily. The first to descend from the ladder was the vigorous young guard, wearing red military uniforms, white trousers, with a ribbon on his chest, holding rifles, arranged in two rows, waiting for the appearance of King George III and the queen, princes, and princesses.
Audrey wasn't unfamiliar with big people, and she had no interest in it. Instead, her gaze wandered, looking at the two black-armored knights who seemed like statues beside the king.
In this era of steel, steam, and guns, there were still people who insisted on wearing full armor!
The cold metallic luster, the deep black helmets, all gave a feeling of heaviness, authority, and the need to obey.
"Could it be the higher-ranked 'Punishing Knights'... " A thought flashed through Audrey's mind from the casual conversation of her elders, wanting to witness it but not daring to approach.
With the arrival of the king's family, the ceremony finally began. The current Prime Minister, Agusheed Nigen勋爵, walked to the front of the crowd.
He was a member of the Conservative Party, one of the only two prominent figures to become the prime minister without being a noble so far, and was awarded a bar for his outstanding contributions.
Of course, Audrey knew more. Agusheed's brother, the main supporter of the Conservative Party, called Parlas Nigen, was the current Duke of Nigen!
Agusheed was tall and slender, with sparse hair, sharp eyes, and after looking around, he said:
"Ladies and gentlemen, I believe you have already seen that this is an ironclad ship, a ship capable of overturning the era, 101 meters long, 21 meters wide, with a *** hull design, the main armor belt is 457 millimeters thick, the displacement is 10,060 tons, there are four 305-millimeter main guns in front and back, and there are also six rapid-fire guns, 12 six-pounders, 18 six-barreled machine guns, and 4 torpedo launchers. The speed can reach 16 knots!"
"It will be a true hegemon, it will conquer the sea!"
The nobles, ministers, and members of the House of Commons were in a stir. Just the prime minister's description was enough to allow them to imagine the horror of this ironclad ship, and not to mention the actual object right in front of them!
Agusheed showed a slight smile and gave a few more speeches, then bowed to King George III:
"Your Majesty, please name it."
"Starting from Priz Port, call it Priz Ship." King George III's expression was quite pleasant.
"Priz Ship!"
"Priz Ship!" ...
Starting from the Minister of the Navy and the Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Navy, this name spread gradually, and finally reached the ironclad ships, where officers and soldiers shouted in unison:
"Plyz!"
In the atmosphere of celebration, the cannons fired continuously, and George III issued the order for the trial firing at sea.
Boom!
The whistle sounded, thick smoke spewed from the chimneys, and the noises of machinery could be faintly heard.
That colossal vessel set off, when it left the port and used its two main guns on the front unoccupied island, everyone was shocked.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The earth seemed to shake, dust rose into the air, a hurricane swept outward, and waves rose.
Prime Minister Agusheed turned with satisfaction, addressing the nobles, ministers and parliamentarians:
"From now on, those seven pirates who call themselves generals, and those four pirates who overstepped the bounds and claimed kingship, can only tremble all over and wait for the end!"
" Their era is over. Even if they have more extraordinary powers, ghosts or cursed ships, only ironclad ships can traverse the oceans!"
At this moment, Agusheed's chief secretary deliberately asked:
"Then can't they build ironclad ships themselves?"
Some nobles and parliamentarians nodded secretly, thinking that this possibility couldn't be ruled out.
Agusheed immediately smiled and slowly shook his head:
"It's impossible, never possible! Building such ironclad ships requires three large coal and steel consortia, twenty or more large steel factories, sixty scientists and more senior engineers from the Beckland Cannon Research Institute and the Plyz Ship Research Institute, two royal shipyards and their affiliated nearly a hundred component factories, a Ministry of the Navy, a Shipbuilding Committee, a Cabinet, a king with outstanding vision and a great country that produces 12 million tons of steel annually!"
"The pirates will never be able to do it."
After saying this, he paused for a moment and then raised his arms, shouting passionately:
"Ladies and gentlemen, the era of huge ships and cannons has arrived!"