Chapter 12: Sailing with the Ship
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
A crisp knock came from the wooden door of the house.
Sigurd's voice rang out from outside: "Arka, are you ready? We're going out to sea today."
"Right away, I'll be there right away."
Alka in the room had just gotten ready. He picked up a piece of bread on the table, stuffed it into his mouth, chewed it twice, and rushed out of the house.
Looking at the bread Alka was chewing, Sigurd wanted to ask him if he had breakfast, but swallowed the words back.
I had no choice but to pull him aside and said, "Let's go quickly, the ship should be setting sail soon."
After that, he took Alka along the path through the town and came to the port of the island.
Facing the salty and humid sea breeze in the early morning and the slightly hot sunshine.
Fishing boats that could only carry two or three people slowly left the port.
Fishing boats on the island usually set out in the early morning and may not return until the afternoon or even at night.
Only the two large sailing ships seen before were still in the port.
The hold of one of the ships had been opened, and many sailors who had never been seen before were carrying bags of wheat into the hold.
There was also a person who seemed to be a supervisor watching from the side.
"Hold them tightly, don't spill them or get them wet, these are golden ears of wheat."
At this time, there were only a few bags of wheat left piled on the wooden board not far away, and it would not be long before all of them would be transported into the cabin.
"This is Uncle Halls' merchant ship. You know Uncle Halls, right?"
Alka nodded, remembering this man.
He is also a resident of the island. He can often be seen in taverns or at the port. I didn’t expect that he works on a merchant ship?
Sigurd looked at the sailboat, patted Alka on the shoulder, shook his head, and motioned them to go up.
"Uncle Halls often uses this ship to transport goods between the surrounding islands. Sometimes I would go on a few trips with him and serve as a sailor."
The two chatted as they boarded the ship through the connected wooden boards and came to the deck.
"Hurry up, you lazy fellows, check the cables and locks, and you..."
This middle-aged man, who looked a bit burly and like a rough man, was yelling at the sailors around him.
Alka had no memory of seeing him before, so he should not be a resident of the island.
He was wearing a very ordinary linen short-sleeved shirt and shorts, with a sheathed long sword on his waist.
Suddenly I saw two unemployed people standing in front of me, and I was ready to scold them together.
"It's Sigurd, you're here."
As he said this, he smiled and walked over to hug Sigurd.
Then he saw Alka next to Sigurd: "This is..."
"This is my brother, Alka," Sigurd introduced.
Alka also quickly extended his hand: "Alka Lagu, nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you, nice to meet you. Sigurd's brother is my brother. Just call me Tofel."
As he said this, he stretched out his broad palm, held Alka's hand, and shook it vigorously twice.
Appears very enthusiastic.
Sigurd said nearby: "He has just come of age, bring him to the ship to see the world."
TOEFL nodded in understanding and laughed twice.
"A man of the sea should be a man in the storm, hahahaha!"
After a few pleasantries.
From the bow came a ding-dong sound like the ringing of a bell.
Hearing this, Tofu quickly said: "I still have work to do, so I'm leaving first."
After saying that, he left.
Before Alka could turn around, he heard a gruff voice.
"Set sail!"
Sigurd also pulled Alka forward and said, "We are about to start the boat. It will be a bit bumpy. Find something to hold on to and keep steady."
The words fell before Alka had time to grab the baffle next to him.
With a swish, the sail was pulled down.
As the wind pushed, the canvas swelled and pushed the sailboat out of the harbor.
Seeing that Alka hadn't grabbed the thing that was holding his body in place, Sigurd immediately tried to reach out and grab him.
After all, this is Alka's first time on board a ship, and if he doesn't stand firmly, he will probably fall down.
The shaking and bumping during sailing can easily cause people who are not used to it to roll over in a ball.
However, before he could reach out his hand, he saw that Alka's legs were nailed to the deck as if there were nails.
There was no sign of him losing his balance as the sailboat swayed.
"Have you been on a ship before?" Sigt said in surprise.
Alka shook his head. He just felt that the shaking was not enough to make him lose his balance.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but reach out and touch the ring on his left thumb.
It seems that the balance and body coordination brought by the ring are indeed very useful when sailing on the sea.
I didn't expect it would be this attribute that would first allow Alka to experience the strange power.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but walk on the sailboat, which had just sailed and had not yet fully regained stability.
The feeling of moving steadily on a shaking object is really extraordinary.
"Sigurd, look at his posture, he is a natural born sailor, just like an old sailor."
Alka looked in the direction where the voice came from and saw a middle-aged man with messy hair and a well-groomed beard with a few white hairs, striding towards him.
The clothes he wore were obviously different from those of the sailors around him. He was wearing a brown-gray leather coat and a hat similar to a captain's hat on his head.
On his sturdy body, there was a long sword that looked very ancient hanging on his waist.
After saying that, without waiting for Sigurd's answer, he came to Alka's side, patted his shoulder, and pinched the muscles on his shoulder.
"Arka, why don't you come work on my ship from now on? Treasure hunting may not be suitable for you. Hahaha."
This is the captain of the ship, Halls, who is also a resident of the island.
Sigurd came over quickly and said in a rather cocky tone, "Uncle Hols, you don't know this, but Alka is now a real treasure hunter."
As he spoke, he patted Alka's chest proudly.
One painting is like finding a treasure.
Then he started talking about how Alka had found the magician's treasure a few days ago, although someone had gotten there first.
"Good boy, that's great. I didn't expect you to find it. I really underestimated you before."
Hols looked at him as if he had just recognized Alka.
Who would have thought that the kid who once loved playing treasure hunt games has now become a real treasure hunter?
Alka immediately burst into laughter and said in a boastful tone, "No, no, you really flatter me. It's just a small treasure."
Seeing that Alka was still the same as before, Hols couldn't help but shook his head in amusement, laughed twice, patted him on the shoulder and left.
Sigurd pulled Alka towards the stern of the ship.
After passing some sailors who said hello, we arrived at a small warehouse.
It was filled with various iron objects, like a tool library.
On several of the wooden racks, long sailor knives were hung firmly.
Sigurd walked over and found two short knives that looked good and had scabbards. He took them down and handed one of them to Alka.
"This is……"
Seeing Alka's confusion, Sigurd explained: "This is the sea. There are too many dangers. You can't protect yourself well without weapons."
After Alka took it, he looked at the sailor knife in his hand.
This knife is more like a short sword, probably shorter than an adult's entire arm, with a wider blade in an arc shape and a D-shaped guard that extends to the handle.
A weapon that is very useful for chopping and splitting, with a relatively short blade that can also be used in more complex situations.
He pulled out the sword from the scabbard and took a look. The blade flashed with a cold metallic gleam.
"But I don't know how to use weapons."
"It's okay. It's mainly to give you courage. If you really encounter danger, at least you will have the confidence, right?"
Sigurd looked up and said with a smile as he adjusted himself to the short knife in his hand.
"Besides, all you need to do with this kind of knife is to know how to chop. You don't necessarily need much experience. Just swinging it randomly can cause damage to the enemy."
Alka nodded. Although he said this, he really liked it in his heart.
After all, this is a real weapon with a blade. He held it in his hand, compared it, and even posed in a few positions.
