[Vol. 9] Chapter 88: Trouble Rises Again
With things already said to this point, even if the officers still had doubts or didn’t fully agree in their hearts, they could no longer go against their commander’s orders. Cassio gave Lian, who also looked a bit surprised, a small nod, then walked straight toward the communication room inside the cabin.
“Seal Bearer, everyone, according to our schedule, we should reach the coast of the Kingdom of Preston in about half a day. I need to report the situation to His Majesty, so please excuse me for now.”
“...Alright, General, go ahead.”
While Cassio, Lian, and the rest of the imperial navy were sailing full speed toward Icefang Island, no one realized that, right above their fleet and the frozen sea, two enormous figures were silently following them, hidden among the clouds.
They were dragons. Real, giant dragons.
The two dragons flew one behind the other. The one in front was a platinum-colored dragon over a hundred meters long, its body covered in sleek, shining scales. Its elegant and slender form gave off a noble, sacred aura mixed with an overwhelming sense of dominance. Just its flight alone made the magic energy in the air scatter away as if afraid of its presence. Even the wind dared not brush against it, splitting to both sides to avoid its path.
The second dragon, a frosty blue one flying slightly behind, was a bit smaller, almost a hundred meters long, but still clearly an adult. Unlike the platinum dragon, which was boldly flying with only its physical strength, the blue dragon used magic to help lift its heavy body, looking a bit like the other dragon’s obedient follower.
Although dragons were rulers of the sky, their enormous bodies weighed thousands or even tens of thousands of tons. It was hard for even them to fly swiftly and gracefully using only their wings. That’s why dragons normally used magic to help them fly, this was normal.
The platinum dragon, however, was clearly an exception, a monster among dragons. The fact that it could fly freely without any magical aid could only mean one thing. Its physical power, or rather its strength, had reached a level that was terrifying even among dragons.
But right now, no one below knew any of this.
Apparently annoyed by the slow speed of the fleet below, the smaller blue dragon finally couldn’t hold back and complained,
“Hey, Sister Xiao Guang, why are we following this group of humans so slowly? Since we already know where Lady Violet is, can’t we just go straight to meet her?”
The platinum dragon lazily flapped its wings. Her lantern-sized golden eyes glanced sideways at her companion. Her tone was calm and emotionless as she replied,
“Idiot. If we were really in such a hurry, do you think we’d still be here? Anyway, this is my master’s order. We just need to follow it obediently. My master always thinks things through carefully.”
“...Okay.”
Although she still didn’t really understand, it was clear that whoever this “master” was, the blue dragon respected them deeply. So she didn’t argue anymore, she pulled a few white clouds closer and hid herself properly again, continuing to follow the slow-moving fleet below, which to her seemed as slow as a crawling turtle.
Just like that, about an hour passed peacefully.
Then suddenly—BOOM!!!
From the icy sea below came a massive explosion!
It was as if a huge bomb had gone off deep underwater. In an instant, waves shot up dozens of meters high! The shockwave and the roaring sea violently rocked several nearby ships. One of the vessels that was hit directly from below cracked in half like a stick snapped by brute force and was thrown into the air, breaking apart from the middle!
Countless soldiers were thrown off the ships by the impact, flying in all directions like dumplings being dropped into boiling water, splashing into the sea one after another. Some unlucky ones crashed into floating ice or metal debris, smashing their heads or breaking their bones, many died instantly!
“Enemy attack! Enemy attack!!!”
Blood, broken ship parts, and thick black smoke quickly spread across the sea. The once orderly fleet formation fell into chaos in an instant. Alarms blared, and panicked shouts filled the air. Even the sleepy blue dragon flying high above suddenly woke up, lifting her head in surprise.
“Ah? W-what happened? What’s going on down there?”
The white dragon in front didn’t expect this either, but she was clearly more experienced and observant. She paused midair, thinking for a moment, and soon noticed something unusual.
“There’s something under the water. The feeling is very similar to those icebergs we saw back in Nofenburg. Using these humans’ words... it should be a Calamity Beast.”
“Heh, those things really don’t know when to quit, huh?”
The blue dragon didn’t seem too concerned about the terrible situation below. Instead, she spoke in a casual tone, almost as if she were gossiping about something trivial.
“Maybe Lady Violet already knew this would happen, that’s why she told us to follow these humans?”
“Not sure, master only said it might happen.”
“Alright... then what do we do now?”
Hearing that, the white dragon suddenly grinned, showing a dangerous smile full of confidence.
“What else? Last time was too messy and we didn’t have the chance to clean up certain pests. Now that the fish are biting again, wouldn’t it be a shame if we didn’t pull the hook this time~?”
…………………………
Above the icy sea, the battle had already turned into chaos.
“What’s going on? What on earth is happening?!”
On the flagship Sea Dragon Titan, Cassio, who had just finished contacting the Austre Empire, rushed into the command room with his guards. Inside, soldiers and crew were running everywhere, activating ship weapons and systems in a panic. One of his officers quickly ran up to report loudly.
“General! We’re under attack by an unknown enemy! The exact situation is unclear, but the enemy seems to be several large underwater creatures. According to sonar scans, there are at least ten of them! Several ships have already been hit and damaged! The Sky Eagle has sunk, over three thousand soldiers onboard have fallen into the sea!”
“What!?”
Cassio’s eyes widened in rage. He roared like thunder, his voice echoing through the ship.
“What are you waiting for?! Send rescue boats immediately! Order all ships of the Second Fleet to stop advancing! Activate the ship’s magic shields! Link the ships in each squad with steel cables! Charge the main and secondary cannons! Deploy the underwater troops, prepare for battle!!!”
“Yes, sir!!!”
As his orders were shouted across the decks, the well-trained Imperial Navy finally began to react in full force.
Chains and bridges connected the ships into a larger formation. White light started to glow along their hulls as the magic engines roared to life. Massive cannons extended from the sides, while countless [Graemes], built to move like sea creatures, were dropped into the water, forming a protective ring around the fleet.
The sudden battle was about to explode at any moment.