I Have a Dice Left by a God

Chapter 672 - 264: Pirate Angel

Patulu Five Claw Island’s main island port.Compared to other ships, the Mermaid that Simmons rides on resembles a fierce beast, with the bow featuring a mermaid statue exclusive to the Moncalleta Royal Fleet. It’s one of the Moncalleta’s eight legendary main ships, five of which have been destroyed in past battles, and currently only three maintain combat power, and this is one of them.

The metal ram cuts through the watery surface, ahead of them is the guide ship painted in black and white stripes, with the flagman at the stern continuously signaling to guide them towards the berth deep within the port.

On the clean, tidy deck, Simmons and Lancer, along with other members of the Saint Grace Canon Law School, gaze at the pier of the Five Claw Island’s dock. Lancer and the others appear especially excited; for these small families, it’s an unprecedented opportunity that may lead to potential promotion if carried out well.

Simmons did not wait for the enormous Moncal Expeditionary Fleet to fully assemble; Your Majesty asked him to proceed first. The situation in the Netherworld Sea is extremely complex, and waiting for the fleet to assemble might mean missing many opportunities. This time, he has one hurricane-class main ship and four storm escort ships.

Holman is still forming the fleet, and the nobles, big and small, who want to join this expedition need time to gather their strength, causing a frenzy throughout Moncalleta. Even small and medium nobles, many families are selling assets to convert enough resources to join this grand event. Almost everyone believes this is a chance for a small family to advance further in the empire; currently, this is beyond the control of the George Family.

This grand assembly keeps delaying the Southern Fleet’s progress, the empire’s massive war machine is still warming up, and Simmons himself, due to some special information, can’t sit still. After gaining the king’s permission, Simmons, acting as the intelligence vanguard, heads directly to the center of the Wish Book storm at Five Claw Island, not worrying about Celestia’s side as Brother Li is there.

The waterways are busy, with ships swarming like chaotic yet orderly labyrinthine traffic, with the guide ship ahead carving out a safe path for the gigantic royal Mermaid. The Mermaid almost brushes past other ships’ ropes as it navigates, exceeding the port’s operational capacity limits with disputes and curses arising from queue congestion. Yet, when the Mermaid passes, those sounds are subdued, and sailors greedily and jealously gaze at the legendary Moncalleta giant ship.

Standing vigilant at the bow, Lancer keenly senses a few malicious glances. When he looks back, those stares retract like mice encountering a cat.

"There are all kinds of people here, just ignore them," Simmons says.

Having obtained intelligence transmitted from Taurus, Simmons is already quite aware of the situation on Five Claw Island. Officially, some churches are present, and some may have agents here through the Adventurer Association due to distant locations, along with a few powerful Evil God churches. Locally, the strength of the three sea god churches is most notable; fortunately, deep-seated conflicts and grudges persist among these three churches, with constant infighting, and lastly, there is a major union of large pirates.

The arrival of the Mermaid signifies the Moncalleta Kingdom’s strongest formal entry into the Wish Book storm in this sea.

There is still no news of the Dragon Mother, although some leads have been provided for the bounty, but after Taurus’s screening, they’re either false or outdated and worthless. Hopefully, once Simmons arrives, there will be some reliable new information regarding the bounties.

Woo...

The Mermaid horn blares, the ship steadies at the berth, the gangplank lowers, and as Simmons and his fellows emerge, they immediately spot a uniformed group of Patulans scampering towards them.

"Welcome to Five Claw Island’s main island, Honorable Simmons from Moncalleta. I am Customs Director Li Gao, under orders from Island Master. All new arrivals must register relevant information before entering the island. Are you able to proceed now?"

Li Gao smiles formally, exhibiting a typical Patulan large nose and short stature.

The so-called Five Claw Island, in fact, consists of four medium-sized islands and one large island shaped like a fierce beast’s claw. Compared to the public nature of the other four islands, the largest main island is the Patulans’ base camp, where operations mimic Moncalleta with complete customs and duties.

Simmons glanced at the short man reaching only his chest level, slightly mindful of the oversized nostrils characteristic of Patulans, but the Island Master he referred to is a genuine Patulan Angel. This presence is the reason why various forces treat Five Claw Island as a buffer safety zone, avoiding trouble there. No one, not even other angels, lightly provokes an angel with local advantages.

With this in mind, Simmons had no intention to offend the Island Master upon arrival. "Lancer, you handle the registration of our personnel going ashore. Mekro, take some people to the car and horse company to purchase some carriages, as many as possible; soon we need to go to the Earth Mother Goddess Church."

"Well..." Li Gao showed a difficult expression. By regulation, as the Customs Director, he needed to photograph foreign arrivals for documentation using a Hex Camera, with foreigners footing the bill for this service, effectively a disguised entry fee. Clearly, Simmons completely ignored this.

Lancer sneered and blocked Li Gao. "Is it Li Gao? Do you know who stands before you? The great Moncalleta Eagle’s son, Captain Simmons George. Who gave you the courage to act so recklessly!"

"...So it’s Lord George..." Li Gao looked embarrassed but quickly relented. Nominally, Five Claw Island is under Moncalleta’s subordination, but due to various reasons, it enjoys high autonomy. As Moncalleta shifted core strategies from sea to land in earlier years, Five Claw Island gained substantial autonomous power. Regardless, nominally, they still regard Moncalleta as the Sect Master.

Simmons gazed over the intensely busy main island port. In mere moments, he spotted more than a dozen customs directors in identical uniforms to Li Gao, with their attendants carrying precious Hex Cameras, snapping photos of newcomers for registration. This means that in this brief period, over a dozen vessels have docked.

Apparently, the gentlemen enjoying themselves in Hedan are completely unaware of the rapid development here.

"Captain," said Lancer, who had dismissed the customs director, approaching. "All sorted."

Companions from the Saint Grace Canon Law School still prefer addressing Simmons as captain; compared to respectful titles, it’s closer and symbolizes a trust beyond typical hierarchy.

"How do you feel this compares to Hedan Harbor?"

Lancer paused, turning to observe the cargo area at the dock. There, the workers toil like ants, bustling in orderly fashion, never idle—scenes he has witnessed at Hedan too.

"It seems...it’s no different, Captain?"

"No difference, how terrifying." Simmons shook his head. Five Claw Island’s location, controlling Moncalleta’s golden nautical path to the Mosel Archipelago, is a destined prosperous maritime jewel. After watching for a while, he added, "The commercial traffic here already rivals Hedan."

There’s even a chance it surpasses Hedan Harbor; presently, the efficiency here is higher. As Mermaid approached, professional guide boats ensure swift, secure entry to port, which earlier he thought a Moncalleta territory privilege. Now, it seems that’s not the case... In Hedan, there’s more prolonged waiting and queuing. Of course, if connections are willing or one pays to make them, exceptions occur.

Over the past century, Five Claw Island heavily relied on Moncalleta, which couldn’t afford the risk of having its golden voyage route throttled.

Various strategic considerations, especially disputes with the Black Meteor Empire, shifted Moncalleta’s strategic focus from ocean to land over the past decades. Despite this shift, maritime supremacy didn’t diminish significantly, but from the prosperous scene before him, behind Hedan’s control for centuries, Five Claw Island seized these golden years. This is entirely understandable, though, from Simmons’s perspective, the Moncalleta major nobles’ perception of Five Claw Island seems stuck a decade or more in the past.

Of course, the opportunity arose when a pirate path cultivator advanced to become an angel, which ended regional chaos and now is the Island Master of Five Claw Island—a conduit for maritime trade between Moncalleta, Mosel, and various smaller nations.

"We must treat this Island Master cautiously."

Though an angel doesn’t significantly impact Moncalleta Kingdom, an angel established here necessitates serious contemplation.