Mid-November of the solar calendar year 4420.
It was an ordinary Friday morning, before nine in the morning.
It snowed a bit heavily today and the temperature was cold.
In the hazy vision, Tus-Port was shrouded in a dreamy white mist. By the dock, the outlines of several giant cargo ships could be vaguely seen. Some warmly dressed workers were operating machines and transporting large containers on the shore.
The shouts, the clanging of metal and the dull sound of chains turning intertwined and gradually spread.
You can hear it even from a long distance away.
At the other end of the Qidi Port boardwalk, a small fishing boat was ready to go. The blond handsome man Felice Anno jumped from the shore to the deck and distributed the sandwiches he had just bought to his companions.
"Thanks."
Polaris, dressed in a blue dress, took it with a smile.
He opened the paper package and took a bite of the breakfast with juicy bacon, then turned his head and looked at the stern, where a man was standing. His long brown curly hair fluttered in the wind, and his long dark brown windbreaker revealed his tall figure. The high collar of the aristocratic clothing could be vaguely seen.
"When do we leave?"
Polaris retracted his gaze and asked simply.
Felice Novo shrugged, gestured for him to wait, then walked through the narrow aisle of the fishing boat and came to his good friend Raphael.
Before he could speak, the other party said without even turning his head:
"It looks like this fog won't dissipate any time soon. Let's set off in twenty minutes."
Felice Anno was startled at first, then smiled and said:
"Well, I'll listen to you. After all, we don't have much experience in sailing..."
He returned again and informed the seniors of the departure time. Sunny, Xiaoyu, Lucy and Ahsoka gathered together, leaning on the railing and looking at the scenery of Enlightenment Harbor and the plank road.
"Will it be bad if we don't greet the teacher?"
Ahsoka said nervously.
"The professor is too busy. He has been studying in his room these days. Didn't Senior Polaris warn us not to disturb him casually..."
Felice Nou stood by and comforted her.
"Don't worry. We left a letter explaining why we were out. The professor may not have finished his work by the time we return."
"I have never had any experience of going out to sea, I hope I won't hold you back..."
Ahsoka still looked nervous, with her hands clasped together.
Lucy, who was beside her, put her arm around her shoulders and whispered to her:
"Me too, Ahsoka, but this is a rare opportunity... We are all learning extraordinary knowledge from our teacher. Sooner or later, we will have to learn to face danger alone. Besides, we have seniors and Mr. Raphael here, so there is no need to be too nervous."
"Um… "
Ahsoka's mood eased a little, and after nodding, she leaned into Lucy's arms lovingly.
At this time, Qingtian Xiaoyu, who was standing by, was eating a hot sandwich and asked incoherently:
"Felice Anno, Ahsoka, you have just been promoted to scholars. You should have understood the method of transcribing basic scrolls. How have you mastered it in the past few days?"
"Very skilled, Senpai."
Felice Nou smiled confidently.
As he spoke, he took out several scrolls from his backpack as proof.
"This is 'Acid Technique', this is 'Illumination Technique', and this is 'White Snake Invasion Technique'... I have worked hard to learn all the knowledge that Professor Jack asked Senior Polaris to pass on to me. If we encounter danger, I can also provide help to everyone!"
"I have memorized all the basic spells, but I am not very proficient in the 'White Snake Invasion Spell' developed by the professor. I failed to copy it several times..."
Ahsoka said sheepishly.
“You guys are already great!”
Sunny Rain touched Ahsoka's head. Even though she was about the same height as him, she looked a little funny.
After a few more small talk.
Raphael, who had a feminine appearance, walked over slowly and nodded to several people.
"Everyone, I will be responsible for driving the ship, but you will be needed to explore the sea surface later."
"No problem, leave it to me."
Polaris held up the blue hat and spoke softly.
"The fog is too thick, and the searchlight of this small fishing boat may not be effective. I will use divination to calibrate the direction and predict the danger."
"Then thank you for your help, Mr. Polaris."
Raphael bowed to him solemnly.
As the two strongest men in the sailing team, they had a certain tacit understanding, and out of respect for His Majesty Jackspeight, Raphael remained friendly to the five students from beginning to end.
Not long.
Woo!
A whistle sounded.
The pilot standing guard at the dock waved a small flag at the small fishing boat. Felice Novo on the deck responded with a thumbs-up, then turned around and ran back to the cabin.
The small fishing boat then slowly sailed out of the port and headed towards the foggy sea.
"It's really cold outside. Why am I so afraid of the cold even though I'm already a superhuman..."
As soon as Felice Novo came in, he took the cup of hot tea that Lucy handed him and complained while drinking it.
"Because the sequence of each path contains different powers, scholars are more inclined to the development of memory and brain, and have a stronger sensitivity and affinity for magical knowledge."
Raphael stood straight in front of the rudder, tilted his head and chuckled.
"You don't think that becoming a scholar will allow you to gain a strong body directly like butchers and believers, do you?"
"If that were the case, it would not be the Trisur Empire that unified the continent, but the Byron Kingdom..."
Polaris on the side chuckled.
"There are strong mages out there. His Majesty Honorino is a typical example."
Felice Nou pointed out the porthole at the tall bronze statue faintly visible in the fog and began to speak.
"It's a pity that even a great god like her will fall..."
"It's just a rumor. The life and death of gods are beyond the comprehension of us mortals... Perhaps when you become a magic saint one day, you can tell me the answer, Feliceano."
Raphael said jokingly.
Perhaps he had some realization because he thought of his ancestors.
In the mysterious realm, there is very little information about the "old guest" Sid Mitchell, but most of it indicates that this earth angel has long since fallen. However, in Raphael's dream, he can clearly sense the breath of his ancestor, and the other party is not dead at all, but is not known to the mortals in this world.
Thinking of this, Raphael's mood became even heavier.
He was eager to find that special extraordinary material through this voyage, so that he could gain some peace and not have to worry about falling asleep every day.
"By the way, how much do you know about the Misty Sea?"
Felice Novo sat on the cold, hard stool, feeling a little bored, so he couldn't help but start a conversation.
Neither Lucy nor Ahsoka spoke. Although they had both entered the mysterious realm, their understanding of this world was still in the exploratory stage, and they only had a vague understanding of many things.
"I only know that in the limited historical records, no one has ever successfully left the Misty Sea and returned alive."
Raphael said indifferently.
"The foggy sea surrounds the Sun Continent. No one knows whether there are other human civilizations and new worlds outside... Of course, I believe that the omnipotent gods know the answer, but they have never told us."
"It is said that there is another continent beyond the easternmost part of the continent, in the distant misty sea? The army of the Trisur Empire has reached there..."
Sunny and Rainy asked in confusion.
Unexpectedly, Raphael just shook his head.
"That's not a continent, it can only be regarded as an archipelago. The Trisur people call it the 'Misty Island'. What's on it may only be known by the imperial soldiers who participated in the 'Overseas Landing War'... But most of them died, and those who survived kept silent. The Sun Royal Family deliberately blocked the news, which shows that it is not a good place."
He turned the rudder, looked back at the curious crowd, and shared some of what he knew:
"Have you heard of the 'Misty Islands Drifting Theory'? It talks about the origin of the mysterious archipelago... It is said that before the establishment of the Trisur Empire, in the ancient era, there was no Misty Islands at all. Later, one day, it was discovered by someone, as if it suddenly appeared, like a miracle."
Raphael raised his hand and gestured, then pointed three times in front of him.
"And the Misty Islands are not only in the far east, but also in the far north and west of the Sun Continent... If you look down from the sky, they look like a triangular arc surrounding the continent, so some historians and geologists say that they were most likely part of the continent, but they split and drifted away for some reason."
"So there is such a saying. Thank you for sharing, Mr. Raphael Mitchell."
Qingtian Xiaoyu hurriedly thanked him.
She and Polaris looked at each other and realized the value of such rare information. Maybe one day in the future, it could become the key to unlocking a hidden mission!
"You're welcome. It's just a rumor anyway. There is no substantial evidence to prove the accuracy of the 'drifting theory'."
Raphael waved his hand.
The small fishing boat had already left the harbor and was swaying gently on the foggy sea. All around was an endless expanse of misty white and visibility was extremely low.
About four hours later.
The fog gradually became thinner, and the shadow of a small island could be vaguely seen not far ahead of the small fishing boat.
Polaris, who was standing by the porthole, suddenly frowned. He seemed to be confirming something. He raised his hand, took out a deck of cards, and swiped them quickly in his hand.
Wow…
Finally, he held three red cards, turned to look at everyone, and said in a deep voice:
"There are people on the small deserted island ahead. They must be survivors of the shipwreck."
After hearing this, everyone stood up and ran to the porthole to look out. As expected, they could see some broken planks and boxes floating on the sea. There was also a wisp of smoke rising from the shore of the island, which should be the distress signal deliberately created by the man.
"Should we go over and take a look?"
Felice Nou turned around and glanced at everyone, then asked.
"Maybe I can rescue him."
Raphael opened his mouth, ready to refuse.
He had been in the mysterious field for many years and knew that he couldn't be kind in many things. He might have fallen into a trap because of this. Moreover, the purpose of this trip was just to explore the ruins and find extraordinary materials. He didn't want to care about anything else.
But he was not alone on this trip, so he still needed to respect other people's opinions. So Raphael asked calmly:
"Everyone, what are your opinions?"
"I think we should focus on Mr. Raphael's matter. If things go well, we can rescue him on the return voyage."
Lucy said.
"I think we should save people first."
Ahsoka said cautiously.
She thought to herself, how could an ordinary person survive such cold weather... If she went too late, the person might have frozen to death.
Polaris and Sunny Rain didn't care much, but they both triggered the rescue mission because of it. The rest of the rewards were a bit tricky, but the experience points were quite generous.
The two followed Jack to the Kingdom of Byron and had not leveled up deliberately for more than half a month. They were a little anxious about this, so they did not intend to miss this experience point.
"Since we've met him, let's rescue him. Maybe we can get some information from him, which will facilitate our next action."
Polaris thought for a moment and spoke.
"All right."
Raphael sighed inwardly when he saw this, and finally nodded helplessly. He turned the rudder and the small fishing boat slowly headed towards the island.