The sun rose and set, eventually dipping below the horizon and returning gradually to the sea level. As the lower edge of the evening sun touched the line where the water and sky met, the bustling Seabreath welcomed the final and most spectacular event of the day amidst the drumbeats signifying dusk: the Dance of Prayer and Offering.

"Ah, thanks for the hospitality."

Shao Ye clasped his palms together and exhaled a warm breath, lifting the tea cup beside him and taking a sip of water. Before him sat an empty bowl, wiped clean of even the broth. The extra thick tonkotsu soup with thickly sliced char siu was quite satisfying to eat.

With a contented smile, Shao Ye noticed Tiran sitting across from him, barely touching the bowl of rice with toppings. Tiran rested his chin on one hand, absentmindedly stirring the soup bowl with a spoon, his gaze fixed on an unknown point.

"Hey, you've been acting strange all day, like your mind is somewhere else." Shao Ye reached out and waved a hand in front of Tiran's eyes, leaning forward with furrowed brows.

"Huh? R-really?" Tiran snapped back to reality, attempting to stand up but accidentally hitting his knee on the table. The utensils on the table rattled as the soup and condiments spilled over the edge.

Glancing at the mess on the table and the awkwardly positioned Tiran, Shao Ye raised an eyebrow teasingly and said, "Well, forget what I said."

*Cough cough...*

Even though he was consumed by thoughts of the recent incident, was it really that obvious on his face?

"Whatever happened before, we need to focus on the upcoming events with all our energy."

The venue for the Dance of Prayer and Offering was already packed with people. Despite the stands that had been set up, the two of them struggled to find a suitable spot, arriving slightly late as the ceremony had already begun.

As an outsider, Tiran had no prior knowledge of Morninglight, but he had done some research on the ceremony they were here to witness.

In comparison to his memories on Earth, this ceremony was akin to a crucial examination for the girls, and many families even considered a girl's performance at the Dance of Prayer and Offering when deciding on a marriage proposal. Thus, the girls began practicing the basics of the dance from a very young age.

The elaborate attire the girls wore during the ceremony was meticulously crafted, even in modest families who spared no expense when dressing up their daughters. It was often said that the two most beautiful moments in a Morninglight girl's life were during the Dance of Prayer and Offering and her wedding.

Thinking back, Ayako had been practicing since she was a child, yet still moved so awkwardly. Just how bad were her motor skills...

As the girls on stage finished their dance, their radiant beauty and graceful movements earned them enthusiastic applause.

Despite being relegated to a corner due to the lack of space, Shao Ye couldn't contain his excitement. "Oh! I think I recognize that child! She used to follow me around and play all the time. Can't believe she's grown up to be so beautiful... Hey, Tiran, why are you daydreaming again?"

It's not daydreaming; I'm just thinking deeply. Tiran sighed inwardly. She had no intention of sharing her thoughts with Shao Ye—not that he would believe her. Tomorrow, she would be leaving Seabreath and Morninglight, so it seemed pointless to explain and only add to his confusion.

Come to think of it, the idea of leaving Morninglight now needed reconsideration. Previously, finding no clues had forced her to change strategies, but after the brief "time lapse" in the alley that morning, everything about Morninglight seemed increasingly unnatural.

What is that powerful presence that suppresses one's Chi to the point where it cannot be released, and where does it exist? And what about the fleeting figure of Aya that appeared in that scene.

Will Aya be here? Or is it just a virtual image extracted from one's memory by that powerful presence?

Aya, who was taken away by Yuan, according to the intelligence obtained, is supposedly in the eastern continent, but can such a thing be accurate based solely on that scant piece of information?

And what about the fellow whose whereabouts are unknown and whose goal is to target oneself?

Damn, there are too many questions! Can't there be any hints or something? I'm not good at solving puzzles! When playing an escape room game on Earth, I even used up all my chances to ask for help before being rescued by the staff!

The princess is now so frustrated that she feels like banging her head against the wall.

"Hey, Tiran, you know, it's one thing if you didn't watch it earlier, but now that Miss Ayako is on, you're not watching either? She even came specifically to visit you that day~"

Sakuya poked Tiran's forehead and pointed to the stage.

Huh? Ayako? The princess took a glance at the beautiful girl walking slowly onto the stage, causing the audience below to cheer, and rolled her eyes discreetly.

Ugh, I was actually thinking of sneaking away before Ayako's appearance! The practice I saw just now, coupled with the audience's high expectations today, Ayako's performance is bound to be a disaster.

After all, if something goes wrong with a public performance, not only will the performer on the stage feel embarrassed, but even Tiran himself watching from the sidelines will feel extremely awkward and ashamed.

At this moment, the band around the stage started the prelude.

“Vive

quologn du ego

Phoelle

Sed

caelullea vix hou equas

Lacrymabri

ego

Undiquo

tre tea flore

Veevu

lyeh tes kalli voontaleh

Yeoo

atro ego

Vive

quologn du ego

Phoelle

Sed

caelullea equas……”

The same tune that Tiran heard when sneaking into the Mayor's mansion, light and graceful with a strange power, just like the style of the divine dance, gentle yet exuding strength.

"Huh huh huh... this level seems a bit different from what you told me, Tiran."

The girl's graceful dance and singing put all the audience into silence, enjoying and feeling the beauty, with only Tiran and Sakuya, who heard of Ayako's awful dancing skills from Tiran, feeling puzzled.

"Don't look at me like that, I have no idea either." Even Tiran's eyes were wide open. What the heck, is it so easy to be proven wrong these days? But what he saw was true, could it be that Ayako took some drugs or practiced some quick methods? But isn't dancing something with no shortcuts?

As the song came to an end, the whole audience erupted into applause, almost several times louder than before. It has to be said that among the nearly a hundred girls dancing, only Ayako's divine dance stood out, not only perfectly matching the movements' rhythm and the singing voice but also giving almost all the on-site audience a strange feeling — even deities would be moved by those dance moves.

This is probably the dance that truly lives up to the name of "divine prayer."

Subsequently, without any ripples, the festival day came to a satisfactory conclusion, just as most people had expected, and the temporary guard duty ended peacefully as expected.

After receiving the payment, resting for a night, Tiran arrived at the dock the next morning as agreed.

Captain Plank's ship was already fully prepared, with the sailors loading all the goods to be transported and the supplies needed for the long voyage into the cabins or securely fastened to the deck. Various hanging boxes made the three-mast ship look like a traveler ready for a long journey with luggage on their back.

After handing over the agreed-upon four hundred gold coins to the captain, Tiran received a promise of an independent room from the captain and a breakfast that was quite good considering the average sailor's food standard.

"Well then, goodbye. I am really grateful. But all I can say is thank you."

In the final moments before setting sail, Tiran bid farewell to Shoya at the docks. In just seven short days in Seabreath, Ayako and Shoya had been a great help to him. Despite his usual carefree nature, Tiran would never forget those who had helped him.

Unfortunately, time was too short, and all he could do was use the remaining money to buy a small gift as a token of gratitude.

"It's okay, just come back and visit me once you find your home."

Shoya seemed relaxed, "I am looking forward to you finding that new continent for us."

"Hey, Miss Tiran, we're about to depart!" on the deck, the captain poked his head out, still holding his beloved pipe, and waved goodbye to Shoya, shouting vaguely, "Little Shoya, we'll come back to see you once we find the new continent!"

"Haha, take care of yourself, old man!" Shoya made a face at the captain, gave Tiran a hug, and then ran off cheerfully.

Back on the ship, Tiran stared thoughtfully at the captain. Hmm, he had a feeling that the old man had just jinxed their journey with that cryptic comment, although it wasn't as standard as "I'll get married once the war is over."

"Will there be any problems on this voyage?"

As the sailors hoisted the sails, the outline of Seabreath gradually faded into the distance. Tiran approached the captain, who was steering the ship from the high platform at the back, and asked, "Miss Tiran, first of all, let me correct you on one thing. There is no such thing as 'no problems at sea,' especially since we are preparing to explore new routes," the captain glanced at the compass and slightly adjusted the steering wheel, confidently saying, "But for now, we are sailing on a busy commercial route, and at least until we reach Ikash, I can guarantee safety. I have sailed this route thousands of times, I know where the underwater currents are, and I have a clear understanding of the weather conditions at any given time."

Tiran fell into a brief silence.

"So, does your so-called clear understanding include that thing?"

The captain paused.

"Captain! Captain Plank! Look at the sky in the southwest... Oh my goodness!"

Plank immediately looked at the direction indicated by the sailor responsible for observing from the mast, and his calm expression turned serious.

Although only a small area, the sky in the southwest was covered with a large expanse of dark thunderclouds, streaked with flashes of purple lightning. Like a living entity, it rapidly expanded and within a few breaths covered a corner of the southwest, causing a hurricane in the covered sea area, turning the calm sea into rough waves in an instant.

Plank saw a ship that had been sailing normally in that direction being struck by lightning from the sky after being engulfed by clouds overhead, turning into debris floating on the sea after two waves surged.

That thundercloud was like some kind of living monster!

"Damn, what in the world is this! All hands, clear the cargo deck! We need to move at the fastest speed!"

Observing the wind direction from the flag at the masthead, the captain gave the order. Fortunately, the wind direction at the moment was not too bad, so as long as they steered, they could still use the wind to dodge in the opposite direction of the thundercloud.

But when he looked back at the thundercloud, it had, at some point, moved to a position less than a hundred meters behind the ship in the sky.

"I shouldn't have raised the flag recklessly..."

Tiran was dumbfounded, his mind blank. Without even Chi now, he had no way to resist such thunder, not to mention the surging waves.

The surrounding area was constantly filled with thundering, and lightning as thick as a water barrel fell, turning everything in sight into pure white.

...

Splash... Splash...

That was the sound in his ears, the sensation of fine sand grains rubbing against his skin, and the moist airflow felt on other parts of his body.

In addition, the icy sensation of the sea waves constantly washing over his toes was a stark reminder of Tiran's current situation. However, the princess still refused to open her eyes and sit up, unwilling to accept the reality.

It was only when a seagull landed on Tiran's head flapping its wings incessantly that the princess could no longer bear it and finally sprang up in surprise.

"..." Watching the terrified seagull as it gradually flew further away turning into a small black dot in the distance, Tiran reluctantly returned to reality.

It seemed that he was once again in trouble.

Wait, why did he say "again"?

Ah... his head ached, what happened before? Hmm, he set sail from Seabreath, then... got attacked by a strange thundercloud and the ship sunk again?!

What kind of darn experience was this! Was he some kind of reincarnated vessel killer chosen by fate?

The princess, whose state of mind was about to explode, slammed a fist into the beach, creating a large pit despite not being able to use Chi, and the seawater rushed in with sand to fill the hole.

However, surviving two shipwrecks and being washed ashore was also a kind of luck to a certain extent, right? Tiran sighed, feeling his soaking wet clothes and turning to walk towards the shore.

Hold on.

Just as he took a step, Tiran froze in place again.

Clothes?

If he remembered correctly, he was wearing a set of traveler's casual clothes bought in Seabreath before going out to sea, the material couldn't compare to what he had worn before, but it was sturdy, durable, and not easy to get dirty.

But now the clothes on his body were from that set he wore during practice on the Eastern Starship?