Chapter 367: A Mysterious Fog (1)

Caw...! Caw...!

The shrill cries of seabirds echoed across the beautiful night sky.

The moon shone brightly, and the stars scattered like salt sprinkled on the ground.

The view was so breathtaking that Nolan couldn’t help but marvel at it.

"Aren’t you cold, Nolan? Put on something warmer so you don’t catch a cold," a soft voice said from behind him.

Nolan turned and saw his sister walking toward him, wearing a pink fur coat.

"Cold? Not really. The weather’s fine," Nolan replied casually, leaning his arms on the ship’s railing.

Sharon rolled her eyes and stopped beside him. She snapped her fingers, and two cups of warm chocolate milk appeared in the air, slowly landing on the railing.

"Drink this to warm up," she said softly, taking one of the cups and sipping it.

Nolan didn’t refuse. Though the weather wasn’t too cold, a warm drink still felt comforting.

The two of them enjoyed the warmth of the drink while feeling the strong sea breeze.

"By the way, I’m curious about something, Sister," Nolan said, leaning back against the railing. "Do you know much about the Kingdom of Kaldarion?"

To be honest, he didn’t know much about the kingdom, beyond some basic facts.

It wasn’t that he underestimated them—he was just too lazy to read their history.

After all, there were too many kingdoms and empires on this continent. It was impossible to read about all of them one by one, right?

"I’ve studied their kingdom, and I can tell you about it. But..." Sharon narrowed her eyes in dissatisfaction. "Didn’t you have five days to study it? Why didn’t you use that time?"

Nolan felt a twinge of embarrassment but stayed relaxed and calm.

"I’ve been very busy, Sister. I just didn’t have time to study them," he replied honestly.

"Busy?" Sharon’s suspicion deepened. Still, she wasn’t the type to pry into other people’s secrets.

After all, her brother was just a lazy, good-for-nothing prince.

What secrets could he possibly have?

She was certain Nolan had spent the past five days enjoying himself, so it made sense that he hadn’t learned anything about the Kingdom of Kaldorian.

"The Kingdom of Kaldarion was originally just a community of fishermen along the coast, about a hundred years ago," Sharon explained indifferently as she sipped her chocolate milk. "At that time, they formed the kingdom simply to keep their group stable. Conflicts between groups were common back then."

"But gradually, their kingdom grew strong. They began attacking other groups and forcing them to submit. Well, the story isn’t much different from the founding of other kingdoms."

Nolan listened while sipping his drink, then asked, "Was the white dragon that attacked their kingdom very powerful?"

"I don’t know the details yet." Sharon shook her head. "It’s said that the monster has existed for a long time and was sealed by a Celestial Mage. I’ve been looking for information but haven’t found much. So, you could say we’re going in without clear intel."

Actually, this kind of journey was quite dangerous. They didn’t know how strong the white dragon really was. Relying on its sealing history alone was clearly not enough.

That’s why her father sent Cassiopeia and Draco at the same time—as a precaution, in case the monster turned out stronger than expected.

Nolan rubbed his chin. "If that’s the case, then this journey is dangerous, isn’t it? Well, I’m just an ordinary person with no powers. So... please protect me, okay?"

Sharon’s eyes sparkled. She patted her chest and assured him, "Don’t worry, my dear brother. I’ll protect you, no matter what! You can leave it to me."

Nolan smiled slightly. "Alright, I’m counting on you."

***

It was getting late, and the ship carrying Nolan, Sharon, Cassiopeia, and Draco pressed steadily onward.

The night breeze was refreshing, yet sharp enough to pierce the skin. Reluctantly, Sharon urged Nolan to go inside, back to their respective rooms.

Nolan still wanted to relax on the deck, but Sharon was insistent, and he had no choice but to follow her.

"Well then, I’m heading to my room first. Sleep well. If you get seasick, just call me, okay?"

With that, Sharon entered her room and closed the door.

Fortunately, their rooms were next to each other, allowing them to move quickly if either faced danger.

Nolan simply smiled, shook his head, and stepped into his room.

The interior wasn’t particularly luxurious—far from what one would expect in a royal palace. But he didn’t mind. As long as there was a clean bed, that was enough.

He sank onto the bed, leaning back lazily, reflecting on the day’s events.

"A ghost ship, huh? I wonder what it looks like," he muttered, staring at the ceiling.

In his previous world, news about ghost ships had been widely discussed about ten years ago.

At that time, a ship from a powerful country had vanished while transporting supplies to a neighboring nation.

The incident caused a stir because many people claimed to have seen a mysterious ship beforehand—a so-called ghost ship.

Following that incident, other mysterious events continued to occur, causing unrest.

Authorities from various countries investigated but found no satisfactory answers.

In the end, the ghost ship phenomenon was dismissed as a hoax, with experts claiming the shipwrecks were likely caused by natural phenomena.

This world was full of magic and wonders once thought impossible—surely, the ghost ship was real.

"I can’t wait to see it," Nolan murmured with a soft chuckle.

He closed his eyes and slipped into sleep.

***

In her room, Sharon closed her eyes, but no matter how hard she tried, sleep would not come.

"How strange," she whispered, slowly opening her eyes. "Could it be because of my nap at the Anderson family mansion?"

Sighing softly, she sat up and rubbed her temples.

She stared into the darkness around her, and for some reason, a strange fear she had never felt before suddenly crept over her.

"It’s just my imagination," she muttered, shaking her head.

She got up, walked to the table near the wardrobe, and gulped down a glass of water she had prepared before bed.

Once her throat felt refreshed, a small sense of calm returned.

"I have to sleep."

She lay back down and pulled the blanket over herself.

Just as she was about to close her eyes, the atmosphere fell into an unnatural silence, as if even the faintest sound had vanished.

"What’s going on?" Her eyes widened. "Why is it so quiet?"

She was at sea—she should have heard the waves lapping against the ship.

But this time, not a single sound reached her ears, something that made no sense at all.

Without overthinking, she got up, slipped on her coat, and walked toward the door.

But just as her hand reached for the doorknob, a sudden, deafening bell rang from behind.

Dong!