Author: Sociable Hermit
Category: Reincarnation
Go to read content：https://thereadnovel.com/enlightened-empire/chapter-16
"Damnit, which one of you numb skulls didn’t put their stuff below deck!?"
Animated by the oncoming storm, buckets, brooms and brushes tumbled all across the ship’s forecastle. At the same time, the howling winds, blowing through the overhead rigging with worrying force, threatened to swallow Atau’s voice, just like the seas threatened to swallow their entire ship. Although he was right at the heart of the problem, right atop the forecastle, it was a surprise that the sailors at fault for the mess could hear him at all. Luckily, the cultivator was large, and could elicit a volume to match his size. Thus, the men looked over as their first mate walked up the stairs with annoyance chiseled deep into his face. They didn’t need this kind of trouble, not now.
"What are you doing, you bastards!? Stop standing around and get to work!"
Though at first some attempted to step up, not convinced by Atau’s authority, it took only one look at their first mate for them to shrink away. Though Atau wasn’t a monster like Fadelio, he was still massive compared to ordinary men. So they bent in submission. With their bodies lowered, the sailors were in prime position to clean up the hazards they had so carelessly left on deck. As the slack-offs got to work, Atau looked out to the ships, the Delahlia’s bow, while he leaned on the railing.
The blue water had turned to white before them as the waves crashed against the submerged cliffs. Here, the two major streams of southern Arcavia would clash under the watchful eyes of ragged cliffs. Unpredictable weather, raging oceans, invisible reefs made of the hardest rock. The most dangerous place in the world. The Cape of Tears.
Worried, Atau observed the chaos as best as he could. Rocking and swaying like a punch-drunk fighter yet unperturbed their ship pressed on, up to the gates of the underworld, ready to face the destiny the World would present them. He really didn’t like being trapped here. Atau would have preferred to be at his proper place, atop the quarterdeck, under the captain’s instructions.
Over there he could have seen how a real sailor would use all his experience to navigate his way through the colossal dangers ahead. Instead, the numb skulls behind him had forced Atau to come all the way to the ship’s bow, just so they would do their jobs.
In the end, the first mate wasn’t only worried about their course. Over the past few days, the previous signs of insubordination had disappeared without a trace, so their return at the most critical point in their journey didn’t bode well for any of them. The sliding equipment had been hard to overlook, so clearly, they had refused to do their duties before their first mate had shown up, almost as if it had been done on purpose.