I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 486 Thoughts
excruciating pain.

This was my first feeling about my character after logging in without feeling satisfied.

His head was throbbing, and his shoulders and back felt like they'd been hit by a giant hammer; every bone in them was protesting. He struggled to open his eyes and saw the familiar yet repulsive view of the lower deck, but something seemed different.

The light filtering through the gaps and breaches in the hatch was still dim, but it was no longer the despairing darkness of a storm; instead, it had become a soft, grayish color.

Furthermore, the deafening roar of the storm outside the ship, the screams of the timber, the thunder... all disappeared.

Instead, there was a relatively calm sound, the gentle lapping of the sea against the hull, and the groans, gasps, and whispers of the players and NPCs around them who had survived the ordeal.

The shaking continued, but it had changed from a violent, jarring jolt that threatened to shake one's internal organs to a weary, rhythmic undulation, like the breathing of an exhausted giant.

"Is this damn storm over?"

A player next to him spoke up tremulously; his voice was unusually hoarse.

"It seems like... I've traveled through time?"

Another voice responded uncertainly.

As if ignited by those words, the survivors in the hold began to struggle to their feet, supporting each other as they staggered toward the stairs leading to the deck, unease and anticipation mingling in the air.

Despite the aches and pains all over my body, I refused to play and stood up, leaning against the cold cabin wall. Following the flow of people, I moved upwards step by step with great difficulty.

With every step I took, I could feel my bones creaking.

The hatch was pushed open from the outside, and brighter, even somewhat dazzling, light rushed in, along with a fresh yet still salty sea breeze, which quickly diluted the nauseating smell in the lower deck.

People squinted, adjusting to the light, and climbed onto the deck one by one.

The moment I stepped onto the deck, I could hardly believe my eyes.

The sky was no longer a leaden-gray curtain of despair, but had turned light gray, with some areas even showing a faint blue hue.

The sunlight struggled to pierce through the clouds, casting down a few weak but warm beams of light. Although the sea was still vast and boundless, it had transformed from the roaring, inky black mountains into deep blue, gently undulating hills.

And right in front of us, in the distance where we can see, lies the outline of a huge, hazy landmass lying quietly on the horizon!
That's Casarina Island.

It resembles a sleeping ancient behemoth, its back displaying a deep, almost dark green color—an unusually dense tropical rainforest that extends all the way to the towering, undulating mountain peaks.

The mountains are steep and peculiar, with some peaks appearing sharp, as if cleaved by a tremendous force, shrouded in a thin, veil-like mist, making them seem mysterious and treacherous.

The coastline is winding and meandering, with white sand beaches like a thin ribbon and some jagged black reefs, where the waves crash and create white foam.

The seawater near the islands is noticeably lighter in color, displaying a captivating, almost emerald-green turquoise hue that contrasts sharply with the deep blue ocean in the distance.

The entire island gives off a feeling of being incredibly primitive, vibrant yet fraught with hidden danger.

The lush green seemed to drip down, and one could almost smell the rich aroma wafting from there, a mixture of exotic floral scents, decaying soil, and the stench of some unknown creature.

Silence fell on the deck. Everyone was speechless, stunned by the sudden tranquility and the vast, beautiful, yet awe-inspiring island before them.

"Holy crap, this island is fucking gorgeous!"

"I'm so annoyed, I won't play!" he muttered to himself. "Quick, quick, start a live stream, record a video! With such beautiful visuals, the view count will definitely explode!"

……

At the same time, Chris, far away in Walteradnoy, was also watching the Macon Union colony through a player's live stream.

"Oh, so it only takes seven days to reach the storm belt, and then a day and a night to cross it, and about ten days to reach Casarina Island."

Chris muttered to himself as he casually opened the system map, which contained the location data of over a thousand new players. Amidst the fog of war, a winding route traversing the storm belt stood out prominently.

Chris pondered for a moment, wondering if following this route would allow Bagnia's navy to cross the storm belt.

It seems things aren't that simple.

Before entering the Storm Belt, the player's view is incomplete; the Church of the Sea God, the Church of Commerce and Messengers, and the Church of the Sun God all seem to hold the key to the "Storm Belt."

I wonder if the Church of the Earth Mother and the Church of the Goddess of Agriculture are aware of this... I'll ask them later.

It's highly unlikely that these two churches would hide anything from themselves.

Furthermore, this route is probably not fixed, because judging from the winding path above, it's unclear where this transport fleet carrying over a thousand players and their weapons and equipment would enter before approaching the storm belt.

Therefore, the fleet taking a longer route was probably not to conceal any course or coordinates from the players on board.

The transport fleet on the live stream was approaching Casarina Island and entering the dock. Chris glanced at it, found nothing unusual, and then turned it off.

He leaned back in the large chair and began to think about something.

The fact that the voyage took only ten days or so to cross the storm belt means that the storm belt is about 1,500 to 2,000 kilometers away from the Greek mainland.

It's unclear whether this data is accurate, as it's just Chris's rough estimate.

"Perhaps we should consider building steel paddlewheel warships."

Chris thought to himself.

"Continuing to develop sailing warships is not bad, but I always feel like we can't compete with other maritime nations."

In addition, he also felt that the wooden boat was unreliable for crossing the storm belt, which meant that each crossing would require God's guidance, which made Chris very unhappy.

But that's for the future, not now.

No matter what, Chris has to completely devour and digest Minicia before he can consider exploring the outside world.

Until then, let's leave this task to the mercenary players; I believe some of them will take the initiative to explore the environment and side quests.

If they achieve something, Chris will reward them with a ship, and these players will naturally volunteer to sail the seas, explore unknown areas, and make indelible contributions to the nautical charts of the Kingdom of Bagnia.

So Chris wasn't in a hurry.

(End of this chapter)