Striving For The Luxury Liner – Vol 11 Chapter 2

Thanks to Go0gleplex for the Ko-Fi and this chapter! Join our Patreon to get more chapters, enjoy~

(5/8)

---

---

Chapter 2 – Duke’s Castle Infiltration

After a somewhat complicated procedure to switch submarines, we finally reached a position where we could see the Duke’s castle. I’m a little sorry that the Chris I used as bait is surrounded by a bunch of Sea Serpents up there.

“It’s a little creepy, crumbling in places, but a castle in the sea is pretty cool.”

I think it is miraculously still in good shape for being sunk in the sea. The walls of the castle seem to be at the bottom of the sea, with some parts remaining, and the remaining object that looks like a watchtower is also collapsed. However, the main body of the castle seems to have kept its beautiful shape.

The castle reminds me of Neuschwanstein Castle in the west, but in terms of shape, it is closer to Mont Saint-Michel.

I heard that Mont Saint-Michel is a monastery, but it looks like a castle no matter which way you look at it, right?

“…Master. It looks pretty battered to me.”

“Eh, really?”

“Yes. It’s a wonder it hasn’t fallen apart.”

Apparently, Felicia, who has good night vision, can see things I can’t because of the darkness. Well, it sank into the sea a long time ago and even became Sea Serpent’s nest, so it’s probably a miracle that it’s still in shape.

“I guess we can’t expect to find any treasures there?”

“I don’t know. It’s hard to tell from here what’s going on inside, and the treasury and such are solidly built, so I think there’s a chance.”

Then there is no problem. This is a treasure hunt, and the problem is that we can’t expect to find any treasure at all, but if there’s a chance, that’s good enough.

“Master. Let’s stop talking and get on with it.”

Oops, it looks like Ines can’t wait any longer for the adventure ahead of her. We have a time limit on the Chris, so we’d better get going.

“All right. Let’s go then.”

I took control of Egg No. 1 and headed slowly and carefully toward the Duke’s castle. …Well, I say slowly and carefully, but I’m going as fast as I can.

“Felicia. Are the Egg No. 2 and No. 3 following us?”

“Yes. They are to the left and right of Egg No. 1. Shall I contact them by radio?”

That was it. We were going in the dark, so we had to use the radio. How could I have forgotten the existence of modern equipment, and Felicia remembered?

“If they’re following us, then we’re good for now. Then let’s continue on our way.”

Oh, it’s true. Even though it’s dimly lit, if I pay attention, I can vaguely see the Egg No. 2 and No. 3. The Ship Disguise made them look black from the outside, but now that it’s a little brighter, would they stand out if they were black? But I’m not sure what color would stand out besides black. When I tried blue in the Ship Disguise, it stood out quite a bit, so I’m not sure what’s going on.

Hmm? Oh, if I made it the same color as the crumbling wall, would it look like a wreck to the Sea Serpent? No, I think black would be less noticeable from a distance. It will be even darker when we enter the Duke’s castle, so let’s keep going.

After a while, we approached the grounds of the Duke’s castle. Is this the courtyard of the Duke’s castle?

“Felicia. Is the Sea Serpent here?”

“No, not in sight. I don’t know if they’re inside the castle.”

The Sea Serpent outside seems to have been attracted to the Chris. It seems we don’t have enough time to rush into the castle now, so I want to get closer to the castle and look for a place to hide. I’ll ask Felicia, who has good night vision, to look for it while we go ahead.

“Master. There is a gap between the wall and the building on the far right. I don’t think it will be noticed if we stay there.”

As I continued, avoiding the ruins of fountains and flower beds that must have been beautiful in the past and the remains of walls and arches that would have divided the garden, Felicia found a place for us to hide.

“Roger that. We’ll hide there temporarily, so please lead the way.”

Following Felicia’s lead, I found an opening between the walls of a sturdy-looking building that looked a bit like a barracks. Surely it would be less conspicuous there.

“Felicia. Tell the Egg No. 2 and Egg No. 3 to enter the gap first.”

“Understood.”

After communicating by radio, I followed Egg No. 2 and No. 3 into the gap and anchored Egg No. 1.

“Master. There are scuff marks on the wall and peeled scales on the floor.”

After stopping the Egg No. 1 and feeling a bit relieved, Felicia brought back an ominous report.

“Could this be the Sea Serpent’s bed?”

“That seems very likely.”

…Come to think of it, Sea Serpent means sea serpent, doesn’t it? I think a serpent would like this kind of crevice.

I was surprised because there was no sign of the Sea Serpent, but if the Sea Serpent that was here had not been attracted to Chris, would we have met it at this place? There seems to have been some kind of crisis. For now, let’s move the Egg No. 1 to a place where we can check what’s going on outside.

“Should we escape?”

Hmm, even if we escape from here, the place where we could hide is probably a sleeping place. Then it would be safer to repatriate and re-summon the Chris. Besides, I would like to know how long it will take the Sea Serpent to return after Chris is gone.

“No, I’ll repatriate the Chris here. I’ll have a meeting with Alessia-san and the others in a bit.”

“This is the Egg No. 2. This is Alessia.”

“This is Egg No. 3. This is Dorothea. What do we do now?”

I called them on the radio, and Alessia-san and Dorothea-san quickly answered the radio. It seems that radio has over terminology, but I regret that I didn’t have the knowledge to explain it to them.

＊＊＊

“Hey, Master. That radio is handy, but don’t you have one on your other ships?”

After a short discussion about the next steps and the repatriation of the Chris, Ines asked a painful question.

“…There is.”

“Why didn’t you use it before?”

Ines asked me with sincere curiosity. I think she asked because she was really curious, not because she wanted to question me. But it’s hard to explain because I don’t really understand it either.　　

“Um, the radio we use now is a short-range, direct-use radio. The one used on big ships can’t be used because there are other things besides the ship that are needed.”

When I did some quick research, I found out that it was a satellite radio, so I left it alone, but there is a possibility that it could be used as a regular radio if it was short range as well. Well, I don’t get a chance to use it much, and if I need it, that’s fine.

“Isn’t that something you need that is sold in the ship’s store? It’s something you use on the ship, isn’t it?”

Well, I hadn’t thought of that. But it’s not wrong to think that since it’s something that’s used on the ship, it’s sold on the ship, right? Well, even if satellites were sold on the ship, I don’t know how to launch them.

“It’s a pretty big thing, so they don’t sell it on ships.”

“I guess it doesn’t always work that way.”

“Yeah. It’s a tough world, isn’t it?”

My life would be a lot richer if I could buy non-ship items on the purchase screen and if I could use wireless or connect to the Internet without having to use a satellite.

If I could at least download e-books and videos, I could read the rest of the novels and manga I’m only halfway through…

“Master. It’s a Sea Serpent.”

After chatting for a while, Felicia told me that the Sea Serpent had returned. It’s been about 20 minutes since I returned the Chris.

I was expecting them to come back in less than five minutes, but the fact that it took longer than expected means that they were probably searching the area after the Chris disappeared. I don’t know if they’ll be on the lookout again next time, but it seems to buy us some time. I looked out from behind the wall, but I still couldn’t see the Sea Serpent.

Wow, I finally saw it. That scurrying shadow is the Sea Serpent, isn’t it? It seems to be a type of monster that can act in groups near its nest, although it often acts alone when it gets into a fight.

The reason they act alone outside the nest may be because they are so large that there is not enough food for more than one. Wow, one of them is coming towards us. It seems to be sleeping here. It would be inconvenient if we had to fight it, so let’s summon Chris.

When the Chris is summoned to the center of the Duke’s castle courtyard, the Sea Serpents rush to the magic circle of light that appears.

The Sea Serpent that was going that way changed direction and went to the magic circle, and attacked the summoned Chris.

I was a little worried, but it seems that the lures are still having a great effect. I heard that even fish learn when a lot of fishermen come to a spot, so it will depend on how many more times they are attracted to the lures.

“Let’s get started.”

I asked Felicia to contact Egg No. 2 and No. 3 by radio, and we set Egg No. 1 in motion toward the Duke’s castle.

As we approach the Duke’s castle, it is quite battered, as Felicia said, and the security is quite unreliable, with collapsed walls and expanding windows.

It is amazing that even though it is in such disrepair, it still retains the shape that makes it recognizable as a castle. The Duke’s castle must have been built very sturdily.

“Master. Where do we enter?”

“There are so many places where we could enter, so it is a bit confusing.”

“In a case like this, it’s better to take the official way in. There is a possibility that the passage is blocked by a collapse, but I am sure that there is still a passage that leads to the back.”

Well, Ines was right. Even if we enter through another hole, it will be useless if there is no passage ahead of us. Let’s explore the official way first.　　

We sneak into the castle through the large entrance at the front of the Duke’s castle. I don’t know if it’s crumbled or if the Sea Serpent destroyed it, but it was easy to sneak in because there’s no door.

Once inside, it was like a huge entrance hall. I don’t know what normal castles are like, but a castle built during a war wouldn’t be so unprotected. Maybe it’s a castle built as an authority in times of peace.

The question is, where do we go to find the treasure? Once inside, it is too dark to see clearly, but it seems that there is not only the grand staircase in front of us but also passages on both sides.

In a game, my style would be to check all the passages, but considering the swarm of sea serpents, I doubt I’ll have time for that.

“Master! There’s a Sea Serpent coming from the left passage!”

It would have been easier if all the Sea Serpents had flocked to the Chris, but alas, there seems to be one stay-at-home. And even though I was told it was the front left aisle, it’s so dark I can’t even see the aisle.

“…It’s Rimu’s turn.”

Oof. Rimu is motivated. We can hide somewhere in the crevice where the Sea Serpent can’t get in, but let’s try fighting for once. Is it like switching from a stealth mission to an attack mission?

<< Previous Table of Content Next >>