Part 3 the traveler chapter viii advice from an ex-sailor
The lobby of the “Ticket Company of Prize Harbor” was quite spacious, with seven ticket windows, but at each of them there was already a line of ten or twenty people.
Klein glanced at them, and instead of going directly to the relatively small number of people, he took two steps to the right, and came to a straight vertical brown wooden board.
On top of the board was a continuous sheet of white paper, posting all the information about the passenger ships of the recent week, including destinations, ports of call, and prices of different cabins.
Before Klein had a chance to take a closer look, a staff member came over and drew a red circle on one of the rows where the second class cabin was located, marking a word:
”Sold out.”
”Very sought after ……,” Klein whispered.
”Of course, Port Prize is the largest port in the kingdom, and untold numbers of people pass through it in search of opportunities on the southern continent and those colonized islands.” A middle-aged man standing next to the wooden board responded with a slightly pompous voice.
He wore a black fedora and a black-and-white checkered police uniform, but there was no shoulder badge, only a seagull badge on his chest – which was identical to the logo of the “Pritz Harbor Ticket Company”.
The middle-aged man’s face, hands, and all exposed skin were bronze-colored and rough, as if they had been exposed to the sea breeze and the sun for years, giving the impression that salt had penetrated the wrinkles.
There was a dispute to find the guard in the hall …… This should be the guard …… Klein remembered the note at the door, and did not mind the other party taking the initiative to talk, and said with a smile:
”You seem to know a lot about this harbor?”
Hearing this question, the middle-aged man replied rather smugly:
”I used to be a sailor in the kingdom’s navy, their main base is at Oak Island in Pritz Harbor, I served for 15 years and spent a long time here at sea, if not for the war in East Byron destroying my health, I would have been a sailor for another 10 years! I know this harbor as well as I know my wife’s body!”
A little cultured and a little vulgar …… Klein, in the spirit of prying into the sea, made casual small talk:
”After you retired, you came here to work as a guard?”
”No, I got shoved into a night school for a full two years, as a student and a watchman, Storm on Top, can you imagine someone my age reading aloud with a bunch of kids in their late teens? And they all recognize and remember words faster than I do!” The guard wore an unbearable expression.
With that, he patted the outside of his thigh and sighed:
”Unfortunately, my knees can’t take it every time it gets wet and cold, otherwise I’d still be moonlighting as a night school teacher, those kids will make you feel like you’re getting younger, but I won’t deny that I’m doing it to make more money, and when you’ve got a wife and four kids, it’s important to realize that you’ve got to support the family.”
You talk a little too much, sir …… which is probably why the ticket company hired you as a guard …… Klein did not bother to take up the other man s subject, and smiled:
”I just read the notes on the door and realized that you’re not allowed to open cans of wolf fish here, and frankly, I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
The guard’s expression suddenly became complicated.
He pinched his nose and said:
”That’s a food popular in places like the eastern coast of Forsak, the Galgas Islands, and so on, it’s a wolffish that’s salted but retains its blood and water, and the smell, the smell is very, very, very irritating, stinky and disgusting!”
It turns out to be a dark cuisine …… Klein laughed:
”But I don’t think anyone would purposely eat canned food while standing in line for a ticket, would they?”
”No, you don’t understand that feeling, maybe one day you’ll be able to experience it.” The guard had an afterthought look on his face, “There was once a barbarian from the north who came here to buy a ticket, but there was already a line of people in front of him, jamming the hall like a barrel full of fish, and he was in a hurry, so he opened a can of wolf fish, and in less than ten seconds he and a handful of other guys were the only ones left in the entire hall.”
This, this is a biochemical weapon …… the common version of the “biotoxin bottle” …… Klein laughed:
”He ended up getting a ticket without any problems, and there were more new caveats out there?”
”It didn’t turn out the way he expected, the lady and gentleman in charge of ticketing escaped as well, lol, you know, barbarians have worse brains than curly haired baboons!” The guard tsked and laughed, “Back when I was a sailor, there used to be this rumor on the sea that a group of pirates took control of a merchant ship from Raus, ah, that’s a city on the east coast of Forsak, anyway, those pirates were eager to open their booty, who knew it was a barrel full of pickled wolffish, and as a result, can you imagine the outcome? They fainted, vomited, lost the fight, and became a bounty for the crew.”
”Nice story.” Klein held back from letting out a chuckle.
He returned his gaze to the paper on the board and searched for information about the ship on January 5th.
As a professional, he’d divined beforehand the suitable dates for sailing during the week, a 5th and an 8th, and of the passenger ships bound for the Rothschilds on the 5th, the ones that suited him best were the St. Vrain and the White Onyx.
Tickets are still available, and the prices are about the same, £4 for third class, £10 for second class, and £35 for first class. …… Those who live by the sea believe in the Storm Lord to a greater or lesser extent, and even in the countries of Intis and Fossac, there are fishermen and crews who quietly believe in the impermissible deity in order to get out of the sea. Even in countries such as Intis and Vossak, there are fishermen and sailors who quietly believe in this impermissible deity, in order to have a smooth voyage …… The name of the St. Vulcan ship sounds like it comes from the saint of the Storm Church, and it has a certain background …… Klein thought carefully, and he was inclined to choose the White Onyx ship.
He didn’t rush to decide and turned to look at the guard:
”Do you know about the White Onyx?”
The guard instantly revealed a smile:
”Sir, you have a good eye, the White Onyx is a steamship but retains its sails, and can reach a maximum speed of 16 knots.
”And the captain has a lot of experience, used to be a Bosun’s Mate on the William V in the Royal Navy, no, it should be the Royal Navy, the King keeps claiming that he got the Emperor’s title for the Byron, heh, in the Royal Navy, no matter how good or excellent an ordinary man is, at best he can become a Bosun’s Mate, he can’t serve as an officer, unless, unless you can satisfy your officer, by any means , any way! Only then can you be recommended to go to the Pritz Naval Academy and become an officer in the reserves!
”That’s how Erland was made to leave the Navy and join the White Onyx, step by step, to become a captain.
”I suggest you take first class, that way you will have rooms where you can sleep three or four servants, waiters who have received lessons in etiquette, a designated cook with excellent hands, a quiet dining room with a view, a special room for smoking cigars, and a place to get together and play cards …… ”
Seeing how detailed the guard was, Klein couldn’t help but be a bit skeptical.
Noticing his expression, the guard smiled sarcastically:
”Aeran used to be my superior, he would often buy me drinks and ask me to help him sell first class cabins, but you can rest assured that every word I said is true!”
This is not a question of truth or not, this is a question of money …… Klein muttered silently to himself.
He had already made up his mind, and with deliberation he asked again:
”What advice would you give to a maritime adventurer, sir?”
In order to fit the identity of Germaine Sparrow, Klein had previously fine-tuned his image to make himself appear colder and sharper.
”An adventurer?” The guard unconsciously pulled up his voice.
Many people in the queue waiting for tickets turned their heads at the sound and turned their gazes towards Klein.
According to spiritual intuition, Kline instinctively followed a line of sight.
He saw a man in his thirties wearing a black bowler hat with a rugged face, weather-stained lines, a strong but not sturdy enough body, and light blue eyes that had experienced many things.
Also an adventurer? Klein and the man’s eyes made slight contact before each moved away.
At that moment, the guard squeezed out a smile and said:
”I’m sorry, I’m a bit overzealous with the term adventurer, which in my mind equates to outlaws, sea villains, and oath-breakers, and no, I’m not talking about you.
”Honest counsel? I, uh, you have to remember three things.
”One, don’t mess with pirates, two, don’t mess with pirates, and three, still don’t mess with pirates!
”Unless you’re in the Navy and the Church, don’t antagonize pirates!”
”Eh …… don’t be fooled by the enthusiasm of those girls on the islands, they are either pirates or want you to take them to Priz, to Birkeland, it’s not all about them, many of the sailors, crews, and passengers, in order to deceive their bodies, have painted a very tantalizing picture of the metropolis and an exceptionally good life, and then kicked them out of their own beds and dumped them where they had been.”
What a bunch of nasty people …… In this era, people who make a living at sea can’t be too kind is all …… The order at sea is so bad? Pirates are so rampant? Klein nodded and said:
”Thank you, I understand what to do.”
After saying this, he walked towards the column with the least number of people.
The guards then shouted after him:
”Also, the legends of treasure at sea are basically false!”
……
After buying a second class ticket on the White Onyx, Klein returned to the hotel and waited patiently for the night to begin.
In the process, he enjoyed the most famous fried fish in Puerto Prizzi, and found it to be quite tasty, but he certainly wouldn’t be able to take it if he ate like that all the time.
As the time approached eight o’clock, he entered above the gray mist, holding the insignia from Lanlus in one hand and writing up the appropriate sentence in the other:
”The circumstances of this gathering.”
He had reason to believe that when the door to the party was “opened”, he, with his medallion of orientation, would be able to divine a certain amount of things through the medium of the gray mist!
Unlike the previous failures, where nothing had appeared yet, this time things were happening, and Klein had a sufficiently accurate medium!
Soon, Klein entered the gray, dreamy world.
He saw the quietly rushing Tasok River, the wide river valley sandwiched on either side, and a dozen people in various locations, shrouded in a thin glow, either blurred or illusory, disappearing into place.
One of them, with black hair and green pupils and good looks, was just like an acquaintance of Klein’s.
Leonard Mitchell!