Huh? No way. It’s…a ship?
Yes, the shape she spotted was a seafaring ship.
And it seemed quite large, like a galleass. But since it was only a moment before the veil of fog covered it again, she couldn’t be sure.
Of course, common sense said it was impossible.
Both the information she had collected and Gustav said there were no lakes in this area. But even if there was a lake, only a crazy person would build a ship as big as a galleass in an inland area like this.
If this were an area near the sea, it was possible that they had brought an old ship up on land to repurpose as a fort or something. That practice actually occurred in Roebel. But this far inland, it just didn’t make sense.
I must have seen it wrong.
That had to be the best answer.
Still, her eyes kept flicking in that direction.
“…So you did see something?” the knight from before asked.
“Huh?!” It caught her off guard.
“In that direction you were looking just now—you saw something, right?”
“Huh? No, I…”
She had seen something that looked just like a ship. But if she said that, he would almost certainly wonder if she had gone mad. Neia would definitely be doubted. So what could she say?
“Even if it was just your imagination. Could you tell me if you think you see something? That way, if it turns out to actually be something, it’ll be easier to handle.”
He was so incredibly sensible.
When she glanced around, she saw that everyone was listening to their conversation. All eyes were on her. Under those circumstances, she couldn’t just say it was her eyes playing tricks on her.
“…Um, I had the feeling I saw a large shape.”
“You mean like the shape of a monster?”
It was the person she wanted to be questioned by the least. No, don’t ask! she thought, but there was no way she could say that.
She sighed dozens of times in her mind before finally answering. “No, it seemed more like a building.”
“…You really saw it?”
“I don’t know. I just had the feeling I saw it. It might be a better chance that it was my imagination.”
“A building? Like a Nation of Darkness fort or something?”
“I don’t know. But it’s true that so far we haven’t seen a single Nation of Darkness fort along the road. Or a village. You would expect to see those things along the border.”
She told herself that it sounded better to say that it seemed like a building rather than just saying she saw a ship.
“I see… What do you think, Gustav?”
“It makes an awful lot of sense. But…we haven’t actually confirmed that it’s a building, right?”
“Right. I only caught a glimpse of it, so it might be something else.”
“Commander Custodio. I think our best bet is to standby in the fog for a little while longer. I doubt a Nation of Darkness fort would easily allow foreigners past anyhow.”
“Ahhh. Well, shall we do that, then? Everyone, stay on guard.”
The party acknowledged the order. That included Neia.
Though they were supposed to be on guard, everyone’s attention ended up focused on one spot. They all wanted to see it with their own eyes.
For a while, the fog was too thick to see anything, but just when they were starting to lose interest in the possibility of a building, something happened.
“—Ngh!”
Both Neia and the knight next to her gasped at the same time.
They could see something clearly moving through the fog.
“Wh-what is that?!”
Neia couldn’t answer the knight’s question. If she said that ships were mobile, she would sound insane.
“That’s the form you saw…? It’s moving! So it wasn’t a building?”
The commander’s questions were natural. But since Neia hadn’t said what she thought it actually looked like, she was forced to insist that it seemed like a building.
“It seemed like one to me…”
“But it’s definitely moving! And…it’s getting easier to see. I think it’s coming this way!”
She was right. If it was really a boat, it was sailing in their direction. So then…it was a boat that sailed across land?
But…that can’t be.
Eventually, it came close enough that others could discern its true shape through the thick fog.
There was no longer any doubt it was a ship. It was sailing as if it were on open water. Thick, long oars jutted out from the hull and moved as if they were actually paddling.
“This has to be some kind of joke.” Remedios’s astounded comment spoke for everyone.
“Do boats in the Nation of Darkness sail on land? Landlocked countries come up with some fascinating inventions…”
No, that can’t be it, Neia retorted in her head. She couldn’t have been the only one to think that.
“A ship that sails through fog… I feel like I heard about something like that before…”
“Nice, Gustav! C’mon, think! If anyone can do it, you can. You’re always teaching me things. Oh, should I shake your head up?”
“Please don’t. And I’m not some kind of wise man, you know. It’s just that I’ve taken it upon myself to learn the things that you won’t.”
“…Well, it’s ’cause I had you and my sister. Whenever I asked something, you always answered.”
“I guess we spoiled you. Once we do away with Jaldabaoth, I’ll make sure you catch up. Oh, and thanks to that I just remembered! It’s that ghost ship that shows up in thick fog. I heard about it from a sailor. He said it’s a ship that was supposed to have sunk, but instead it’s crewed by undead.”
“Ohhh! I have heard something like that, about thick fog being the sign of a ghost ship’s arrival… Troops, get into a wedge formation! If it’s a ghost ship, we’re up against undead! They’re our enemies!”
Their commander’s order caused even the paladins some consternation.
“P-please wait, Commander Custodio! We’re entering the Nation of Darkness where an undead is king. Couldn’t it be a Nation of Darkness ship?”
“What?! You mean they brought a ghost ship ashore and are controlling it…? What in the world…?”
It was only natural that
