A dark ship rode through the crimson rays of the setting sun. A thick and long anchor rope wiggled behind it like the tail of a flying beast.
The vessel carried a duo of foolishly brave humans.
One was plastered to the rear of the ship, unable to stand. Another grimaced as he used all his strength to hang on to the edge of the ship. His grasp was strong enough to dent the tough metallic handrail he was holding onto.
The wind assaulted the group, trembling the mast under its pressure. Yet neither the ship nor the sailors buckled. They kept moving forward at haunting speeds despite the brutal breeze.
There was nothing that could stop their flight, so the ship kept gliding for a long time.
Maybe it had only been a minute, but the struggle to hold on made the two sailors feel as if an eternity had passed.
They had crossed an enormous distance in a very short time. The whirlpool was long gone from sight, left behind alongside the bodies of their former comrades and the Leviathan who devoured them.
Below them was nothing but the clear ocean bathing in dusk.
Eventually, the careening vessel slowed, and its speed became a bit more manageable. Scarn pulled himself up and flew inside the ship. But he couldn't find his footing, so he flew back. He crashed into the rear alongside Ray, his only remaining partner.
He grimaced and took a second to settle down. He lingered for a while and then turned to look at his companion. Ray did the same.
Both gazed at each other with complicated expressions shrouding their eyes. They sighed and turned to look away.
Their eyes faced the approaching night and the rising moon. Gradually, a subtle grin twisted their lips.
As the ship dropped further, the two tried to stand up. Struggling against the assaulting wind, they crawled forward and stood beside the mast, holding onto its firm surface.
Scarn's short brown hair fluttered back, trembling in the breeze.
As he looked forward, his lips started quivering. Then, he laughed.
Ray smiled and turned to look at his senior, his eyes paying attention to the man for the first time in detail. He had never seen him laugh so wholeheartedly. His hair was brow-length, but his sides were trimmed, revealing white hair beneath.
'I wonder how old this guy really is…' he thought to himself.
He laughed to himself, then shouted through the rumbling air, "What's gotten into you, Lieutenant?! We just escaped death by an inch—wait, no, we still haven't escaped it before this ship makes a perfect landing—and yet you're laughing! Why?"
The lieutenant laughed some more, then slowed down, turned to look at Ray, and said loudly, "I have been an officer in the Navy for who knows how many decades. Through my adolescence, my youth, and my seniority, I have never experienced excitement like I did today. For the first time, I genuinely look forward to the future and to what I am about to do.
"I'm grateful to you, you crazy bastard. Who would've thought your crazy plan could actually work? I can't believe I am not just alive after sailing into a whirlpool, but also riding a flying ship! How could I not be ecstatic!"
He looked forward and pumped his fist, "Woooooooooo baby!"
Light shook his head with a smile and turned to look ahead. 'At least he forgot the grief of losing his fallen comrades for a bit, I guess. The newfound focus is going to be necessary for the next step.'
…
The ship was moving forward far faster than it was descending, and as it was almost completely dark by now, it was hard to tell how high up they were in the air.
So to check how close the surface of the ocean is, Light chopped off the mostly torn part of the anchor rope that he had failed to destroy completely.
The vessel lost its tail, it flew away from the ship, and submerged into the darkness. Scarn then picked up the metal piece of the anchor with struggle and threw it down.
He didn't see the anchor fall, but in about a second, he heard a loud splash. His eyes widened. 'Did not expect it to be this close, Damn!'
He turned to look at Light and shouted, "Brace yourself, we are about to touch the surf!-"
Before he could finish the sentence, the vessel, along with its vassals, landed on the ocean.
Both of their bodies banged on the floor, but due to the warning just before, they managed to hold on and not ricochet off the deck.
Scarn was holding onto the handrail of the ship whereas Light held onto the left cannon, which made some of its screws loosely tremble.
Fortunately, the impact was not too great. Rather than crashing straight into the ocean with a single impact, the ship kept moving forward after the initial touchdown like a rock skipping across water.
Every impact slowed the ship and harshly jerked its passengers, but they held on.
After dozens of skips, the ship finally stopped bouncing and started surfing across the dark waters with nothing but moonlight to illuminate the sky.
The two slowly stood up, their breaths heavy. Light supported himself on his knees, and Scarn leaned on the mast.
Both were tired and needed some rest. After standing for a while and looking around, they nodded at each other and spoke without speaking. Light went to sit down at the rear, whereas Scarn went to the storage under the deck and took out a tool. While looking for it, he also checked the other stuff they had brought along as well.
Looking at him digging through the storage, Light asked, "Everything good?"
As Scarn's head was under the deck, a muffled voice replied, "Yup, my plates are intact. Well, as intact as they can be after you skinned them alive."
Light coughed without saying anything.
Struggling to find it, Scarn made some small talk. "By the way, that shot you made was fantastic. It would've been difficult even for me to pull it off while revolving around a giant whirlpool. If we somehow make it to a marine base, I'll be sure to write a recommendation letter for your promotion. Well, you'll get a promotion regardless…. if we succeed today."
Light grinned, "Oh, could I become a lieutenant like you then? Can I call you just Scarn then?"
Scarn scoffed, "Fat chance, kiddo. On the seas, just strategy isn't enough. You gotta have the muscle to back up your brains. And after seeing your swordsmanship, you for sure ain't making it past seaman first class rank in your whole life.
"Even if we succeed today, with that feat, they might make an exception for you and give you some high, non-combat rank like a Navy Warrant Officer. But being a real marine ain't cut out for ya, keeping it a buck."
Light smirked and replied, "We'll see."
Scarn paused for a moment and continued, "Actually, you might still have an opportunity for a marine rank. With your shooting skills, you might be able to enroll in one of the spy agencies of the world government." Scarn suddenly paused and chuckled under his breath before saying, "Try shooting ya shot there haha!"
Light giggled with a sigh and then shook his head, "You're overcrediting me, Lieutenant. I did manage to hit the rope at the right time, but it wasn't in the right place. We were lucky the monster's teeth were sharp enough to chop off the rope on the other end, or else we would've been sucked into the whirlpool and gotten turned into the serpent's belly matter."
While Light spoke, Scarn suddenly stopped fiddling around the storage and–
Bang!
…