Your Majesty's money, why don't you engrave my name on it?

“Adas controls waterfalls, lakes, and streams… and besides, I don’t eat fish, so what’s the point of catching them for no reason?” the druid said somewhat awkwardly, but he was the first to cast the next net.

Perhaps Edas truly had no say in this matter, for Bella's luck was even worse than Von Dahl's; she cast her net and caught nothing, not even a single deep-sea fish. But precisely because of this, Bella breathed a sigh of relief.

“You guys continue, I won’t get involved. Those fish are swimming peacefully in the deep sea, it’s not good for them to be suddenly pulled up,” the druid said with a smile as he handed the net to Raslaufer. “Raslaufer, I’ll watch them for you. Why don’t you give it a try? Opportunities to fish directly from the deep sea are rare.”

“Indeed not much,” the mercenary nodded, taking the fishing net but not immediately casting it out. “However, the deep sea is different from the shallow sea. Most of the time you will catch nothing. Even if you do catch something, it’s mostly like the fish that Von Dahl caught. You learn something, but it’s not of any practical use.”

Leslaufer was right. Looking across the riverbanks, within sight, no one had seen anyone retrieve anything remarkable. The luckiest person was only slightly better than von Dahl—that person had retrieved a large piece of some kind of animal fat, enough to provide light for a long time even if taken home for personal use.

"Okay, I've learned it!" Angelita finally cheered and cast her fishing net out. "Uncle Vondar, what should I do next?"

"Don't rush, listen to my instructions, hold on—" Seeing that Angelita had successfully made her move, von Dahl even ignored his own net, focusing only on observing Angelita's movements with wide eyes. "Hold on—retract! You can retract now!"

"It's so heavy!" Just as the princess was about to pull in the net, she felt an unusual strength in her hand. "Mary, Mary! Help me! I can't hold on to it anymore!"

Mary rushed to help, but the creature caught in the net seemed unusually heavy; even the two of them couldn't overcome it, and it was gradually being dragged into the river. Seeing this, Daisy also stepped in to lend a hand, and then Bella, having completed her transformation, joined the struggle. Just as Leslaufer and von Dahl were considering whether to get involved in this entertainment, the girls cried out in surprise and retreated to the shore, pulling the fishing net and its catch ashore.

"By Moradin!" When everyone saw what was in the net, von Dahl almost ripped his beard off. "Anne, what is this thing you pulled out?!"

"Could it be..." Even the most experienced mercenary couldn't help but show a hint of surprise. "No, no, it's that 'could it be'."

"It comes from one of those 'great voyages'!"

Chapter 316 The Blade of the Sea Song

The reason Raslaufer was so certain was because the item that Angelita had salvaged was none other than a figurehead made of some unknown type of wood!

As objects used to showcase the spiritual world of seafarers, figureheads are usually highly symbolic. For example, the one in front of us is sculpted as a female giant, holding a bolt of lightning tightly in her hands and tucking it into her waist. The traces of flaking on it indicate that it may have once been covered with metal for use as a ram.

It must be some kind of storm giant deity, but unfortunately, the pantheon of Ampiri is so complex that Leslaufer can't remember more than a few famous ones, so he really can't recall which one it is.

But at least it definitely comes from Ampiri.

"The Great Voyage?" Angelita, her hands on her knees, was slightly out of breath. Of course she knew about this; the tradition of expeditions held by the kings of the Ampiri in search of more fertile lands overseas continued to this day. "Which one is this?"

The commoners who had been watching the commotion dispersed. A wooden carving was of little use to them, and even if an antique dealer came to buy it, they wouldn't know how much it would cost.

“That’s hard to say. The whirlpool is no longer directional. Every time it opens, it may lead to anywhere in the sea,” Felix pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said, “But at least within one opening, the location is fixed. It seems you guys are really lucky. If it’s a shipwreck, you might be able to salvage quite a few good things.”

"Hmm, it seems that even though we only managed to retrieve a statue, it wasn't a complete waste," Daisy said with great interest, examining the figurehead that had been submerged in seawater for who knows how long but was still almost intact. "Annie, Annie, where did you set your net? I want to try it out too!"

"Maybe this time I'll be able to salvage the treasure from that ship!"

“The fleets on the Great Voyage are all out looking for treasure; they don’t actually have anything of value,” Raslaufer chuckled and shook his head. “However, if you were to retrieve the remains of any prince of the Ampriel, you might actually be able to get a good amount of money.”

Although Ampiri is far to the north, it is said that there are remnants of the true giants of the past in the far north, possessing powerful magic. If such remains truly exist, they might be willing to pay a great price to resurrect them.

While having multiple ancestors may be unpleasant, their experience in long voyages is an invaluable treasure.

“Ugh, I’m not going to carry this drowned corpse all the way to Ampire!” Daisy grinned. Although she still didn’t quite understand how far Ampire was, it was separated by at least two large regions, so she knew it must be incredibly far away.

As he spoke, the poet immediately cast the net, but his movements were still not standard, and it seemed unlikely that he would catch anything.

Vondar knew this, but still instructed Daisy to wait a while before pulling in the net. Sure enough, Daisy's net was not nearly as heavy as Angelita's; Vondar only gave it a slight tug, and the contents were revealed to everyone.

The object in the net is a "handle," or rather a "handle," of coral, bearing obvious signs of artificial carving, shaped into the appearance of a rapier with a handguard. Unlike rapiers commonly found on land, it doesn't have many additional decorative patterns; the coral's natural veins, varying in shades of red, pink, and white, are enough to make this weapon look magnificent and elegant.

"Wow, it even has a matte finish!" Daisy caught the coral rapier in her hand, stroking its blade in surprise. A faint glow appeared in her eyes, and from a certain angle, the sword seemed to shimmer with a soft pink aura. "And... a magical weapon?"

“You really did find a treasure!” Vondar stroked his beard and smiled, his eyes constantly examining the salvaged object, which was more of a work of art than a weapon. “Amazing craftsmanship… It either didn’t come from land, or it was carved rather than forged by some legendary sculptor or stonemason.”

"The sword is fine, and the woman is beautiful, but their styles don't quite match," Bella commented jokingly. The sword alone exudes an elegant air, which is simply incompatible with a poet.

“This is such a treasure,” Daisy exclaimed, playing with her prize. But her exclamations eventually turned into a reluctant sigh as she pulled her fingers away from the hilt, which was covered by the guard, and handed the blade to Angrita. “Annie, Bella is right. This sword is for you to use. Besides… I don’t have any skill with it.”

What is a proficiency level? Felix was full of questions, but in his opinion, this sword was actually very suitable for Daisy. Although the girl was usually a bit strange, wasn't the temperament she had when playing a song a perfect match for this sword?

“How can you become proficient without practice?” the knight couldn’t help but advise. “Not many people are born knowing how to do something. Even those with exceptional talent need to work hard afterward. I think this sword is very suitable for you, Miss.”

"Besides, you're the one who fished it out."

Facing the sword hilt Daisy offered, Angelita smiled and took a step back: "You should listen to this gentleman's advice. Besides, I already have a Long Poem of the Guardian, and using both would be incongruous."

"As for proficiency, I've recently gained some insights into Corazonde's swordsmanship. Would you like to learn from me?"

"Me? Can I do it? I feel I should be a poet of anecdotes, not a sword dancer—"

“Forget all your fancy terms, Daisy,” Raslaufer said, arms crossed. “Corazond’s swordsmanship, while not the best for rapiers, is still much better than longswords. And don’t worry, if Annie can’t teach you something, I can give you some advice.”

"Uh, no need to trouble you, Lao Lei..." Daisy shrank back, and casually put away the coral dagger. "I even had to skip the 800-meter race. If you want me to run 10 kilometers every day to improve my physical fitness, I can't handle it..."

"You have enough energy to smash someone's head with your violin. As for the distance we're covering, nothing beats running."

Hearing this from Raslaufer, the bard finally felt relieved. She wasn't good at real fighting and didn't have much interest in it—but she was eager to learn some swordsmanship with her companions.

“By the way, now that this is your sword, you should give it a name,” von Dahl suggested. He paused for a moment, recalling some unpleasant memories. “Just don’t name it anything like ‘bush.’”

“No, in fact, it already has a name,” Daisy examined the rapier in her hand repeatedly, and finally found a clue on the inside of the hilt: “'The Blade of the Sea Song - Dedicated to Melukina, the noble descendant who rides the storm'.”

Chapter 317 Salvage Also Has Dangers

"You can read this too?" Feng Daer stood closer and glanced at it, but couldn't understand what was written in those uneven lines at all.

“Magic,” Daisy pointed to her eyes, “It’s in Mermaid language. I doubt anyone here understands it.”

Subconsciously, several gazes turned to Felix, but the lord said that perhaps only the ancestor who first became acquainted with the mermaids knew a part of it, and that the descendants had never come into contact with them again.

If their family had always lived by the sea, things might have been better, but inland, learning another language would be of little use.

“That’s a shame,” Daisy shrugged. “I thought I could figure out who that person was. But it doesn’t matter, it’s my sword now! Haige, at least half of the name suits me!”

Following Daisy, Mary, along with von Dahl and Bella, who hadn't gotten anything before, also tried to salvage again, but their results were the same: Mary and von Dahl got nothing, while Bella got some deep-sea plants that couldn't be seen on land, which looked like some kind of wakame, but the leaves were as tough as iron.

Like most other people.

Although many people were fishing along the riverbank, less than one-tenth of them actually caught anything. And even those who did catch something only got ordinary marine creatures, which, although they could fetch a high price here, were ultimately not worth mentioning.

"Why don't you give it a try, Lord Felix?" After two unsuccessful attempts to cast the net, von Dahl handed it over, but Felix did not take it.

"You are all guests, how could I take up your precious time? These two ladies are quite lucky tonight, they should try a few more times."

“The figurehead is soaked with water, and I’m exhausted,” Angelita said with a smile, shaking her head. “How about Uncle Leslaufer, could you help me haul it in?”

“I’d better not. Having already gotten such a sword, it would be too greedy to try and take more.” Daisy was initially eager to try, but after listening to something, she backed down and gave up her spot to Raslaufer.

The mercenary didn't refuse. After taking the net from Angelita, he stared intently at the water's surface for a while before making his move. The net landed precisely in the area where Angelita had cast her net, and even the size of the area was almost identical!

“The Great Voyage…” Raslaufer silently pulled on the fishing net, his mind racing as he counted the days as he thought about the expeditionary ships. When the time was close to the time Angelita had been waiting for, the muscles in his arms suddenly tensed, and he forcefully pulled the fishing net out of the whirlpool.

The net was very light, containing probably only a small object. However, as the net broke free of the whirlpool, the river suddenly surged, and almost everyone heard an extremely angry roar, though no one knew what kind of creature it came from.

Before Leslaufer, an extremely dense cloud of steam spewed out from the underwater vortex, heading straight for the mercenaries!

"Old Lei!"

None of them could react to such a sudden attack. They only felt the heat wave rolling over them. As one of the salvagers, Leslaufer was instantly engulfed by the high-temperature steam and could not be seen at all!

"Damn it, what's going on?" Daisy hurriedly prepared a healing spell. At this moment, she only deeply regretted not having the power of a priest—otherwise, she could have the magic to bring the dead back to life right now!

"Never—"

Felix was also startled by this sudden shock. In all these years, he had never seen or heard of such a thing! However, before he could finish speaking, the billowing white steam cloud changed and turned into a sinister green!

"You're asking for death!" Raslaufer's furious roar made his companions breathe a sigh of relief. With this shout, the discolored steam instantly dissipated into the night, as if it had never existed.

If it weren't for the mist constantly rising from Raslaufer's body, and his skin turning a grotesque, bright red as if he had been boiled, everyone would almost doubt whether what had just happened in the blink of an eye was just a dream.

But that wasn't the case. Three puffs of white breath escaped from Raslaufer's mouth and nose. With a creaking sound from his bones, the mercenary bent down and untied the fishing net, which was also scorching hot and almost burning, revealing the contents inside.

He had just used that damned demon's power, and he could clearly sense that this fatal encounter wasn't due to natural causes, but rather the work of some colossal being lurking in the other side of the vortex. However, now, that power from purgatory should have already come seeking revenge, and Reslaufer, who possesses a portion of a demonic body, also has a certain resistance to fire. If the opponent doesn't have equivalent defensive measures, then it deserves its fate.

"You...you don't even qualify as burns!"

Daisy and Bella tried to treat Raslaufer, but they soon discovered that the damage he had suffered was negligible. Aside from the sheer force and suddenness of the attack, and the somewhat frightening sight of Raslaufer's flushed face after being struck, there were no worse consequences!

How can this attack be all bark and no bite?

“Never mind that,” Daisy said, still trying to poke at Raslaufer’s rosy skin, which looked like that of a newborn baby, but the mercenary slapped her away in annoyance. “Annie, come and see what you’ve fished out?”

“Uncle, this is of course your spoils of war, this…” With this happening all of a sudden, Angelita was far from willing to accept it.

But Leslaufer ignored all that, forcibly pulling the girl to his side, and before she could struggle, he haphazardly pinned a rapidly cooling metal ring to Angrita's head.

“You said you got this for yourself,” Leslaufer chuckled, releasing Angelita and taking two steps back. After looking the girl up and down, he nodded with satisfaction. “This is perfect for you. Besides, no one else is qualified to wear it.”

Angelita was taken aback. Whether someone is suitable or not is a subjective concept, but whether someone is qualified...

She removed the object from her head. At first glance, it appeared to be woven from vines, but upon closer inspection, one could see that the so-called "vines" were actually lines woven from interwoven fine gold and mithril. Jade and moonstone carvings of leaves and petals adorned the surface with lifelike detail, as if just plucked from branches. In the very center, a huge blue-green gemstone was set, seemingly shimmering with starlight and reflecting the moonlight.

Metal and gemstones complement each other, and plants and stars blend into one—this is no ordinary headdress; it is clearly a crown!

Chapter 318 The Last Straw

"My earrings, my earrings..."

Just as everyone was praising the exquisite treasure that Leslaufer had retrieved, thousands of miles away in the depths of the northern ocean, in an underwater cave hidden by coral reefs, the air was unusually oppressive.

Geothermal vents are distributed near this hidden nest, heating the surrounding water to nearly 100 degrees Celsius while stirring up chaotic currents that repel anything that tries to approach and scorch their bodies. The master that dwells here once took pride in its wisdom and insight, believing that no other creature could have found and crafted such a perfect nest.

But this unparalleled sense of superiority has been shattered today.

At this very moment, a massive creature with a huge, dark green tortoise shell on its back was huddled in its nest, whimpering incessantly. The silver speckles on its shell, which mortals once thought were reflections of sunlight or moonlight on the waves, now looked more like the creature's tears.

"Why, why—I've tried so hard to protect you all—"

The turtle-like creature lay on the bed made of a lot of metal, trying its best to pull them under its body to prevent the fishing nets from appearing out of nowhere and dragging them away unreasonably. However, even so, in the space of this nest, one of the various figureheads that were lined up along the wall to the right of the creature was missing, and even the asymmetrical head ornaments on its body were missing one of them.

However, these were not the main reasons for its sorrow. On the side of the creature's jaws was a dark, flame-shaped scar.

This scar is not an old wound; to be precise, it was left not long ago, and to be even more accurate, it was created just a few minutes ago!

It was born when it was desperately fighting against that despicable, shameless robber who tried to steal its favorite earring!

This was perfectly legitimate self-defense! The fishing net appeared suddenly, first dragging away its collection of storm giant statues, then taking the coral branch it used to pry off barnacles, and finally netting its head—what child over a hundred years old could endure such humiliation!

The fishing net was angled so cunningly that it could neither bite through it nor scratch it. In the end, it could only release its innate ability to breathe when it was about to disappear into a small whirlpool, hoping to make the robber back down.

But who knew—who knew! That bandit actually dared to fight back! And the force of his attack far exceeded his imagination and his ability to withstand it. Now, recalling that roar accompanied by rolling flames, it was probably the power of purgatory, and the level was definitely not low!

This is truly hell! From its birth until now, all its treasures have been gathered from the seabed. It has never been to Purgatory, the River Styx, the Abyss, or the Water Elemental Plane. It has even surfaced only four times its lifespan! What did it do to deserve this treatment?!

……

“As expected of the craftsmanship of the elves, even the crowns I wore at grand ceremonies before were not this magnificent,” Angelita carefully put the crown away. She had naturally had a crown before, but as a princess, her crown could not possibly exceed that of the emperor. Moreover, even the royal family would not be willing to display such a large star sapphire on their crowns.

No matter how abundant or all-encompassing an empire may be, it still fears losing things. Such a treasure is enough to make someone take the risk.

"Those elves only like these flashy and impractical things." Even the dwarves had to admit the exquisite elegance of elven products, though they remained stubborn.

“You’d better be sensible and not get your hands on this,” Leslaufer glanced at Felix and warned, “Those civilians would never dare to entertain such a thought, but you…”

"No, no, absolutely not!" The knight quickly raised his hands to show his innocence. "This is an elf's creation! Even if I got my hands on it, there would be nowhere to sell it. If the elves caught me, I wouldn't even know how I died! How could I dare to have such a thought?"

“You’d better tell the truth,” Leslaufer nodded. “But don’t worry about it for too long; we should be leaving soon.”

"Anyone else planning to try their luck and grab some fish? If not, let's just keep going—we'll just be walking along the riverbank, and that won't stop anyone from watching the show."

While the prow and the rapier were valuable, they weren't particularly eye-catching. However, the appearance of this crown caused a stir, making it unwise to linger. The group understood, turned, and left the troublesome place, continuing along the riverbank towards Felix's manor.

However, after walking for less than half an hour, the group realized that the so-called place of trouble was not their side, but rather the entire banks of the Moser River, which were filled with all sorts of disputes. Scenes of arguing, fighting, and even group brawls were commonplace.

They don't need to catch any treasures. Sometimes it might just be a few fish, or even a few stones or seaweed. These valuable but not precious things, or a good fishing spot, are enough for them to fish until they are exhausted.

Logically speaking, Felix should have been used to this kind of chaos by now. However, tonight, when everyone passed by a brawl, Jazz suddenly became furious. He grabbed his sword sheath and went up to smash the group of burly men over the head.

"This is my territory, and you're stealing my things! You bastards, how dare you attack my people here!"

It was then that Raslaw and the others noticed that the two groups fighting were dressed slightly differently, and that the group that was beating people almost all had luggage, while the group that was being beaten did not.

"Spare us! My lord, spare us!" The group that had initially been in control was caught off guard by Felix's sudden charge on horseback and begged the nobleman for mercy. However, upon seeing Felix's appearance and hearing his words, one of the most burly men actually stood up, and when Felix struck him, he reached out and grabbed the scabbard!

How dare you—

“What’s there to be afraid of?” The man looked like a city dweller, dressed quite differently from the villagers. When Felix tried to teach him a lesson, the man nonchalantly spat a thick wad of phlegm on the ground. “Don’t try to act tough. My sister is an apprentice to the Earl’s head chef. I know you, Felix!”

The man looked at the other person with a sullen expression. This person was not worthy of speaking to him like that. This person must have some other source of confidence.

As expected, seeing Felix remain silent, the man became even more confident: "You deserted your post! My sister heard about it with her own ears! The Earl has sent word back that he will soon strip you of your title, issue a warrant for your arrest, and sentence you to hanging!"

"You're a fugitive, a traitor, a sinner! How dare you show your face here? I want this place, so what? In two days, this place won't be yours anymore!"

The atmosphere froze for a moment. Felix stared intently at the man, his face expressionless, until the man released his grip in fear. Only then did the man sit up straight.