Chapter 281: Promoted to Expert Level!

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After bidding a hurried farewell to Meiyin, Yun Mu arrived on the deck at the front of the Xiangyang, where she saw Meilaer, Lixia, and Kamaier standing there chatting while catching the sea breeze.

"Good morning, Captain!" Kamaier greeted her as soon as he noticed Yun Mu approaching.

"Mm." Yun Mu nodded, acknowledging him.

At this moment, Meilaer and Lixia also reacted immediately and bowed to her one after another.

"What are you two..." Yun Mu looked at them with some confusion; it was one thing for Kamaier, a commoner, to not be very familiar with her, but why did these two have to bow to her?

"Huh? Did we do something wrong?" Seeing Yun Mu's reaction, Lixia looked toward Kamaier with some doubt.

Before Kamaier could answer her, Yun Mu spoke first: "There's nothing wrong with the action, I just wanted to ask why you suddenly bowed to me?"

"... Isn't Miss Yun the captain of the Xiangyang?" Lixia said in a tone that suggested it was only natural: "Crew members should of course be respectful toward the captain, not to mention you are also the hero who saved Frostfall City!"

"No, I'm not, you didn't, don't talk nonsense." Seeing the undisguised admiration in Lixia's speech, Yun Mu suddenly felt a headache coming on.

Although resolving the Scarlet Incident did indeed have a lot to do with her, it was clearly wrong to take all the credit for herself.

Lixia's longing for her likely stemmed from their shared status as Bloodline, and the fact that Yun Mu had helped her once.

"It's fine to get along like we usually do; otherwise, I'll feel awkward," she said.

"So, why did you come here?" Yun Mu looked at Meilaer and asked.

She had already roughly figured out Lixia's reason, but what about Meilaer?

"That, I was present when Lixia and the others were discussing it, and because I felt it was a rare opportunity, I agreed," Meilaer explained softly, noticing Yun Mu's gaze.

"A rare opportunity?" Hearing her words, Yun Mu tilted her head: "What opportunity?"

"I am a Transcendental of the 【Thief】 series; the subsequent names for this profession are 【Thief】, 【Master Thief】, and 【Explorer】."

"Although I can still improve my professional abilities through Pickpocketing for now, as my professional rank increases, venturing into the wild is a necessity. Since that's the case, I think finding a reliable captain is quite necessary."

"So... well, I trust you very much, Miss Yun!" Meilaer said with a slightly flushed face.

"I, I also trust Miss Yun very much!" Hearing this, Lixia, who was on the side, immediately chimed in.

"Alright, alright, I get it." Yun Mu looked at the scene before her, feeling a mix of amusement and frustration.

She already knew the reasons why Meilaer and Lixia became crew members of the Xiangyang, but what about Ruixi?

For what purpose did she come to the Xiangyang? Yun Mu asked Meilaer, Lixia, and Kamaier if they knew the reason for Ruixi boarding the ship.

They had come over together earlier, so perhaps they would know the reason behind it.

Of course, she was just asking casually; it didn't matter if they didn't know, she could just go find the person herself to confirm later.

"Hmm..." Meilaer and the others looked at each other, and it was Kamaier who spoke first: "Not really sure, Miss Ruixi has never said why she came to the Xiangyang."

"That's right." Meilaer nodded in agreement: "I just always feel like she has something on her mind, but we aren't sure."

"She should also count as having been saved by Miss Yun, right?" Lixia pondered for a moment: "From the hands of that Siman noble."

The group discussed the reasons for Ruixi boarding the ship in a flurry of voices. Yun Mu felt that what each of them said made some sense, but for this kind of thing, it was definitely more reliable to ask the person herself.

As it happened, under the detection of Blood Perception, Yun Mu had already locked onto Ruixi's location.

"You guys chat slowly, I'll go take a look."

She bid farewell to the three of them, then opened the trapdoor leading to the ship's hold, and followed the wooden ladder down to the somewhat dim lower deck—this was the first level of the Xiangyang's hold, where the cannons extending from the shooting ports in the hull were located.

If a naval battle occurred, the sailors operating the cannons would gather here to load ammunition for the cannons.

Due to the need for rapid reloading during combat, the armory was also placed on this level; of course, it was in a safer environment and had protective measures in place.

Unless one's luck was truly terrible, generally speaking, accidents like secondary explosions would not occur.

Continuing downward, one would find the crew's quarters. The Xiangyang's configuration was quite good; it could basically ensure that each room only housed four people, and they all had bunk beds, so there was no need to use ropes as hammocks.

The restroom was also placed on this level to prevent situations where a crew member might suddenly need to use the toilet at night but couldn't find the way.

Relying on the ability of Blood Perception, Yun Mu knew Ruixi was right here.

However, because she hadn't finished introducing the cabin structure of the Xiangyang, she would ignore her for the time being.

If one continued to go down, there was the warehouse specifically used for storing supplies, as well as the mess hall that doubled as a tavern. The crew of the Xiangyang could eat here, and they could also drink... provided it didn't interfere with their work.

And the last level... the space there was almost below sea level, quite Damp, and could only be used to cultivate some algae or vegetables like bean sprouts.

Besides that, there was a fish tank where they could put the fish they caught, as well as cattle and sheep that could be slaughtered in critical moments.

Hehe, although the sailors of the Xiangyang were all Elites recruited by Brenna, and the social level of the Frost Kingdom was close to the modern era, but regardless, Yun Mu would absolutely, absolutely never touch those ewes!

She knew the rumor that sailors on long voyages during the Middle Ages on Earth wouldn't even spare ewes due to loneliness—ah no, that wasn't a rumor at all, it was a fact!

It was truly terrifying. As for the saying that one shouldn't bring women on sea voyages, this world didn't have that; at least in the current era, within the Frost Kingdom, Yun Mu had never heard of such talk.

"Miss Ruixi?"

Yun Mu found Ruixi, who was cleaning the dormitory, and greeted her.

Ruixi clearly did not expect her to appear here and was slightly stunned, but she quickly regained her composure: "Good morning, Captain."

"Is there something you need?" she asked Yun Mu.

"Mm, it's like this, it's just out of my own curiosity..." Yun Mu told her the content of her previous chat with Meilaer, Lixia, and Kamaier, and expressed that she was a bit curious about her reason for coming to the Xiangyang.

"The reason for boarding?" Ruixi's hand holding the broom paused for a moment; she chuckled and said: "Actually, it's nothing, I just had nowhere else to go, so I'm here."

"What about your family?" Yun Mu said this subconsciously, and then felt like she was an idiot.

The other party had already said that, so what could her family be like? They were definitely gone! Why did she have to open her mouth to ask about such things? She really was poking at a sore spot! Ah, I'm such a fool! Just as Yun Mu was regretting it in her heart, Ruixi seemed to see through her thoughts: "My parents are still alive and well." "Huh, then why..."

Before Yun Mu could finish her sentence, she saw a complex expression appear on Ruixi's face.

That look seemed to be sadness, yet also seemed to be a self-deprecating smile, while simultaneously containing helplessness, resentment, grievance, and other emotions, all appearing on the same face.

It was a pity Ruixi wasn't a domineering CEO, otherwise the description of this part would definitely have turned into a pie chart.

"When I was infected by the Scarlet Curse, I once lost my mind and attacked them. Although they were fine in the end and the Scarlet Curse on me had dissipated, I could notice the undisguised Fear in their eyes."

"Perhaps, letting myself disappear from their lives is the best choice, not to mention..."

Ruixi paused slightly here and looked at Yun Mu: "I, Lixia, and Miss Yun are the only three remaining Bloodline."

"The two of you left Frostfall City together, leaving only me, a Bloodline, here; that feeling is truly hard to be at ease with, so I followed."

"Otherwise, you should just go back." After listening to Ruixi, Yun Mu was silent for a moment: "Your parents' Fear is only temporary; I believe they will return to normal one day."

"As for the matter of you being the only Bloodline left in Frostfall City, I don't think there is any need to worry at all."

The Lady of Dark Night intends to release the Scarlet into this world; what does a mere single Bloodline count for? Ruixi's worry is completely superfluous.

"..."

After a brief silence, Ruixi gripped the broom and said: "Please let me think about it."

"Has our Captain returned?"

Beside the helm of the Xiangyang, Brenna, who was slowly operating the rudder, asked with a hint of teasing after hearing the footsteps behind her.

"Hm?" Hearing the tone of her speech, Yun Mu suddenly thought of something: "You wouldn't have known about these things all along, would you?"

"Hehehe, guess." Brenna covered her mouth and chuckled, with no intention of denying it.

"I guess you're a big-headed ghost." Yun Mu said with annoyance.

Pausing, she asked the other party: "How is the voyage going?"

"Everything is going smoothly, Captain." Brenna answered almost without thinking: "At this speed, we will have to sail for about three days."

"Can we reach the Orc Federation in three days? That feels quite fast." Yun Mu exclaimed.

"How is that possible!" Brenna looked at her, quite speechless: "In three days, we will arrive at Folaka, a small border town in the northernmost part of the Frost Kingdom. After a short rest there, we will set off again and follow the ocean currents..."

"It will probably take more than twenty days of sailing before we can reach the Orc Federation, but that is still not the destination. If we want to head to the capital located inland, we have to take the Magic Train..."

"Stop, stop, stop, hold it!" Yun Mu pushed her palms out: "I know it's very far from the target; don't say any more."

"So, during this time sailing on the sea, we can only stay on the ship and can't go anywhere else?"

"Unfortunately, Captain Yun Mu, the fact is just as you think." Brenna shrugged helplessly.

"Sailing on the sea is very boring; it is not as interesting as described in storybooks. So-called sea adventures do not exist for the vast majority of people."

"The real situation is often unbearable hygiene, a dull and boring voyage, damp air so humid you could squeeze a handful of water out of your clothes, as well as tasteless dried food, Monsters in the sea, extreme weather, and so on and so forth..."

"There are too many troublesome things, too many to count, but fortunately, with the development of modern technology, many problems have new solutions."

Brenna chuckled, and as she raised her hand, a round tin sealed in metal packaging appeared in her hand.

Looking at the patterns and text on the packaging, this seemed to be a vegetable tin made of peas, carrots, and corn, mixed with sugar.

Not to mention how it tastes, the nutrition is definitely sufficient; at least with these tins, everyone on the ship doesn't need to worry about scurvy.

Although the bean sprouts planted in the bottom of the ship's hold could actually solve this problem—"Since you're idle anyway, Miss Yun, would you like to learn how to steer?" Brenna put the tin back into the spatial item she carried with her and invited Yun Mu.

"As the Captain of the Xiangyang, you should at least learn basic Navigation." She said.

"Alright." Yun Mu agreed decisively: "Where should I start learning?"

From the start of the voyage until now, it had always been Brenna steering on the upper deck, so her level of Navigation could be trusted.

In any case, it was definitely much better than Yun Mu's.

"Let's start with steering." Brenna chuckled and stepped aside from the helm.

"Although it looks simple, it is quite difficult to control the helm and keep the whole ship steady."

"Many times, if you don't coordinate with the waves to turn, the whole ship has the possibility of being Overturned!"

Brenna stood behind Yun Mu and began to teach her hand-in-hand how to steer.

Besides that, there was how to distinguish directions, how the ship should sail when facing different Wind directions, and how to deal with bad weather, such as heavy Rain. Most of these contents sounded like things from textbooks, so it could be judged that Brenna's Navigation was probably learned from books.

There was no feeling of someone who sounded like an old hand or was purely empirical.

Therefore, Yun Mu found it a little difficult to learn; at least that was how she felt. After all, compared to theory, she was more inclined toward actual combat.

Fortunately, Brenna was very patient, and her explanations were relatively clear and easy to understand.

Coupled with Yun Mu practicing what she learned through the Xiangyang, in just two short days, a new passive skill appeared in her skill bar.

【After arduous training and study, you have mastered the passive skill 【Navigation lv1】】 【Your Mystery +1, Charm +1, Lucky +1】

【Navigation lv1: Unless you encounter special circumstances, you will not lose your way while sailing at sea, and the probability of scavenging rare items and treasures is increased.】

【The Goddess of Luck is smiling】

(End of this chapter)