The huge black wall was so shocking that everyone stood there in a daze for five seconds before they came to their senses.
"Is this the darkness that belongs to us that the newspapers talked about? As long as we bring it back, Earthsea can be saved." Grace, who was carrying a cross-body bag, said with emotion while holding her red crystal staff.
"Come on, I'll take you to see Governor Charles. This outpost has just been built, and he has been urging us to do it via telegrams. He should be impatient to wait."
Leonardo said this and led a group of people towards the busy street.
The outpost had just been built and the area was not very large, so they soon found the repaired Narwhal.
Grace sees the legendary Governor Charles for the first time.
There were some hideous scars on his white and red face, one of his eyes was normal and the other was dark red. Coupled with the mechanical steel prosthetic limbs and his tall stature, her uneasy heart became even more uneasy.
The so-called hero of Earthsea was not what she had thought before, and it could even be said that he was very different.
"Why are you here?" Charles glanced at Grace with an expressionless face and asked Leonardo.
Leonardo bowed slightly and said, "This is the last station on the front line. The master is worried, so she asked me to help manage this place, and also let James be in charge of the Giant Pit Fortress."
Charles nodded and took a step forward to stand in front of Grace.
In front of the tall Charles, the girl looked even smaller. She held the staff in her hand in fear and subconsciously shrank back.
"Why is it so small? Can't the Western Sea even take out an adult?" Charles' voice sounded somewhat dissatisfied.
"Governor, that's not the case. They just said that this girl has the strongest ability and is the most qualified bait among the batch, so they gave her to you."
As Charles, who was fighting in a sea of blood and corpses, his substantial gaze made Grace almost breathless.
"Forget it. The time agreed with T is almost up. Let's use this first. By the way, has Anna checked her memory?"
"The owner has checked it, and there is absolutely no problem."
"Look up. What's your name? How old are you?" Charles' question made the girl's body tremble violently.
"Grace... Grace, I'm just 15 this year, Governor Charles." The girl's voice was as small as a mosquito.
"Do you understand what you are here to do?"
"I understand. They told me about this before I came. I... I will also do my best."
"Very good, come with me, I'll take you to meet the crew, we've already wasted a lot of time,"
When Grace felt the gazes on her disappear, she heaved a sigh of relief and looked up, only to see a tall figure walking away.
"Don't just stand there, hurry up and catch up." Hearing Leonardo's words, Grace quickly took two steps and caught up with Charles.
Soon, at the reminder of the mouse, the crew of the Narwhal regrouped, but their appearance obviously frightened Grace.
The first mate wrapped in bandages, the second mate with seductive body and heavy makeup, the boatswain covered with fish scales, the ship's doctor who showed his blood-sucking fangs while talking, and that group of rat gunners.
After hearing everyone's introductions, her mouth remained open and her bright eyes were filled with shock.
"Snap!" Charles' iron left hand rested on Grace's shoulder, causing her body to tremble violently.
In front of him, petite Grace was as helpless as a little white rabbit.
"She is Grace from the Western Seas, and she is also a new crew member of our Narwhal."
"Captain, what is the job of this lovely girl? It can't be that she is there for you to play with, right?" Nico said jokingly.
Hearing this, Grace's face turned red with embarrassment and she felt like she was about to smoke.
"Her position on the ship is a weapon, a weapon used to fight desperately at the critical moment." Charles then simply expressed his thoughts.
After learning about Grace's true role, everyone looked at the girl in front of them again, and this time there was something else in their eyes.
"Everyone knows my personality. I will only say this once. Grace is very important to us. She has not participated in any exploration missions before, so in the next period of time, I don't like to see anyone messing with her."
"Although the weapons are powerful, they are very fragile and need to be protected from moisture and fire. The same is true for her. If anyone dares to reach out, I will grab that person's neck and throw him off the ship. Do you understand?"
Charles' gaze shot towards the crew members. The old crew members were fine, he said this mainly to warn the new crew members.
Although all those who can board the Narwhal are experienced explorers, it is better to be safe than sorry. A weak girl is an unstable factor on an exploration ship.
"Understood, Captain."
"knew."
"Yes, sir!"
Charles nodded in satisfaction. "Dipper, go squeeze in with the sailors. Give your room to Grace. You can move back in after she leaves. Linda, take her to tidy up. Everyone else, please disperse. We will gather on time at 8 a.m. tomorrow."
Everyone left in twos and threes. Grace, feeling a little uneasy, stood on the deck and waited for the bald woman to walk up to her.
After thinking for a while, Grace mustered up the courage to say, "Hello, my name is Grace."
"Linda, the ship's doctor, come with me. I'll take you to buy some necessary things."
Coming down the rope ladder, Grace followed Linda towards the shop next door.
Because they were in a same-sex relationship, Grace was not as nervous as before. Her lively personality gradually emerged. She looked around curiously and kept asking Linda questions.
"Linda, what do we need to buy?"
"Daily necessities, daily necessities for the ship, and some things to relieve stress. A ship is so small, and you'll go crazy if you do nothing on it every day."
"Daily necessities? Is it a washbasin?"
"You don't need to buy a basin. Fresh water is for drinking. This is not the Earth Sea, and there is no sea water to use."
"You don't want to wash your face? Wouldn't that be dirty?"
Linda glanced at her and led her to a shop with a white door frame.
"We didn't wash them before, but now we have a new batch of wet wipes. You can buy a month's supply, and there is also chewing toothpaste for cleaning teeth vigorously. These are newly invented by Hope Island."
Grace looked at the things in the store, then opened her bag and looked inside. "Can I take all of these? How much do they cost? I don't have much money with me."
Linda looked at her young face with a trace of regret. "It's free. Just tell them how much you want to pay. You've already paid. We all have."
(End of this chapter)