A Warrior Exiled by the Hero and His Lover

Chapter 102 – The ship of ruins responds to the warrior’s call in


…A strange ship has arrived in port.

That’s what Keios told us.

I quickly got dressed and headed for the port, and immediately understood what he was trying to tell me upon getting there.

«That’s the ship you’re referring to?»

«Yes.»

There were many people gathered in the harbor to see the ship.

The ship was somewhat offshore, and from this distance one could judge how large it was.

The surface faintly reflected the light, as if it were made of metal, and there were no masts or sails.

I have no idea how it could work.

Keios said it was strange because the form that appeared was unknown.

Lastoria’s boats are all wooden, powered by wind or oars.

Compared to those, this particular one seemed too strange.

If I had to guess, I would say that this situation resembles that of the Golem we encountered in the fairy forest.

«Are there people onboard?»

«Judging by the lack of movement, it’s highly unlikely that there’s anyone on it.»

«Is there anything you want me to do?»

«I want you to go investigate. It’s possible there are demons running that ship.»

It is most likely a ship-shaped ruin.

But how has it remained intact so far?

Could it be that it is extremely durable?

«One more thing. If you could, I’d like you to check if it still works.»

«You’re thinking what I’m thinking, aren’t you?»

«Yes, I want to know if you can cross the sea in that thing.»

Keios left the port as he said, «I’m going to report to His Majesty, you take care of the rest.»

Well, let’s investigate.

«Frau…»

«You don’t have to tell me.»

Frau flew up and sprinkled her fairy dust all over us.

We flew over the surface of the sea and approached the ship.

«It’s very dirty, and there doesn’t seem to be any signs of life.»

«I’d say it’s over a hundred meters long.»
The large ship creaked as it floated on the surface of the sea.

There is a small tower-like structure near the center, and what appears to be windows are lined up across it.

However, the windows were so dirty that it was impossible to look inside.

«Did you get any feedback from your assessment skills?»

«There don’t seem to be any humans. But there are some monsters.»

«There may be people trapped inside. Let’s go in and search.»

I put my feet on the deck.

Bird droppings, algae and fish carcasses stick to my shoes.

It does not appear to be an environment inhabited by people.

How long had this thing been adrift in the sea?

I called Panda and Rosuke from their seals.

«We’re going to have to split up and search the ship. Frau, Panda and Rosuke, you guys take care of eliminating any enemies you see.»

«I got it!» «Kyui!» «Shaa!»

*Goonk*

I opened the door and entered a room within the ship.

The interior appeared to have been sealed and was quite clean.

A metal walkway led to the rear.

«Light.»

Kaede creates an orb of light with her magic.

There were several doors throughout the length of the hallway.

«Any sign of demons?»

«No, Master. I don’t think there are any here.»

*Craaank*

I opened one of the doors.

The room was empty… It looked as if it had been unused for a long time.

I tried another door, but it was also empty.

«Master, I found something!»

«Show me.»

In the room Kaede entered, there was a stack of metal boxes.

I took one and opened the lid.

«…A bottle?»
«They seem to be high-grade potions.»

«Really?»

I had never seen a box like this one, and one that contained so many high-grade potions.

When we opened another box, I found twelve vials of superlative antidote, another twelve vials of high-grade recovery potions, and some bottles that looked like sake.

I opened one of the bottles and when I drank it, the smooth taste made me feel relaxed.

It is the best sake I have ever tasted.

I shudder to think how much a bottle of this would cost.

After all, this ship has been wandering around for who knows how long.

I’ll put it in my ‘Magic Storage’ for now.

We went back out into the hallway, and then found some stairs leading up.

«What is this room for?»

We are at the top of the tower-like structure.

There were two rows of board-like objects lined up, like a table tilted at an angle.

When I touched the surface of the board, it beeped out of nowhere.

*Pin. Pin. Pin. Pin.*

At the same time, a sound emanated from all the stone slabs and a light green image-like object appeared on their surface.

«This… This is our current location?»

«Hey, is it me, or is that thing moving?»

«I think this may be some kind of Golem, master.»

Kaede’s words surprised me.

That makes a lot of sense. This must be a ship-shaped golem.

I find no explanation as to how this thing came to move if it is not being powered by something. The technology of the ancient race continues to amaze me.

«Why did it react that way?»

«What if it’s here because I’m a dragonoid? The golem we encountered in the forest reacted the same way..»

«If that’s the case, maybe the ship came here because it was lured here by you, Master.»

«This is… too much, even for me.»

I looked at the board again and lithographs began to appear.

[Would you like to dock at this location click; YES/NO].

[YES]

The ship shook a little.

Has the anchor come loose?
On the other hand, it seems safe to assume that the ship is no longer at risk of being dragged further.

«It doesn’t look like the ship has any problems, and it’s in good condition, so why would they have let it wander off on its own?»

«I don’t know, maybe it had been asleep for a long time, and suddenly woke up again.»

«I see. That may be a possibility.»

That would explain why the interior of the ship is so clean.

Although if we are going out to sea with this boat, it will have to be cleaned some more.

The inside is fine, but the outside is so dirty that I don’t dare use it in this condition.

A high-pressure wash with Kaede’s magic should suffice.

We left the room and went downstairs.

«I can’t see anything.»

Darkness pervades the area at the top of the stairs.

Kaede again creates an orb of light and illuminates our surroundings, but the darkness is too dense for the light to spread.

This situation brings back memories.

It’s like that berserker valley dungeon, the lair of the undead.

I activated my dragon eye and stayed alert.

*Oooooooh*

There was a voice that seemed to echo from the depths of the place.

At the end of the passage, there was a humanoid figure shrouded by a black mist.

It is a high-level undead, Shadowman.

This demon uses magic that causes confusion and paralysis, and it mainly manipulates dark and ice magic.

It is also a nasty demon that can pierce physical objects and cripple the person it possesses.

But fortunately, it’s no match for me.

I instantly closed the distance and hit it in the head with my fist.

The darkness faded and the interior of the ship was slightly illuminated.

«There seems to be more than one.»

«Then let’s clean this place up.»

Relying on Kaede’s assessment skills, we took care of all the remaining demons.

After killing about fifteen of them, the darkness completely disappeared from the ship.

«Is there more sake?»

«No, it’s just a bunch of junk. My assessment skills tell me there are useful objects here, but I don’t know what they’re for or how they’re used.»
We entered the room and found another metal box.

When I looked inside the box Kaede was holding, I saw that it was indeed filled with a jumble of things I couldn’t understand.

Oh, are these binoculars?

I peered outside through the round window of the room.

I thought I heard a small sound, so I used the binoculars to look towards the harbor. Surprisingly, it seemed very close.

So much so that I could see the wrinkles of an old man’s face.

This thing is amazing. All the binoculars I’ve used are like toys in comparison.

«What else is there?»

«How about this?»

Kaede handed me an object that looked like an eyeball cut in half.

It seemed to be designed to stick somewhere, as its back was sticky.

I put it on my forehead.

Wow, my vision is getting wider and wider, and everything is spinning around.

Eeeh, I feel bad.

I quickly shook it off.

«The other thing we could use would be a quick water boiler or this insect repelling light.»

«I guess there’s nothing else interesting anymore.»

We left the room and headed further downstairs.

We found a bedroom that contained triple bunk beds and single beds.

In one of the doors there was a room that was described as [Power Room] and inside it there was a huge kind of organ like a beating heart… I closed the room quickly.

We’d better not let anyone in there.

That left one last door that was closed.

«It doesn’t look like any door I’ve ever seen.»

«There seems to be something in here. Maybe this is the room where the valuables are kept.»

I pulled out a wire.

And I inserted it into the keyhole and activated my [Great Thief] skill.

Within seconds, the door was unlocked and opened wide.

«This is…»

»This is an amazing discovery, Master!»

I had also been happy when Kaede came over to hug me.

There were two beast eggs in the room.