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Boom!

The orange-red energy projectile slammed into the magic shield conjured by Ethan. The resulting explosion rocked the air with a deafening roar, scattering fiery sparks and generating a powerful shockwave. While Ethan's shield absorbed the blast and kept his ship protected, the unshielded Flame Sovereign bore the brunt of the impact.

The enemy ship creaked ominously as the force pushed it backward, the hull groaning under the strain. The hooks securing the two ships together were ripped free, causing the distance between them to widen.

"Not good!"

Ethan's expression hardened. If the gap between the ships became too large, their position would become a major disadvantage. Keno could simply sit back and bombard them with cannonfire, forcing them into a helpless defensive position.

"Should we abandon the ship?" Ethan muttered, already calculating the worst-case scenario. If it came to that, he and Arthur could use the smaller boat at the stern to escape, leaving their main ship as a decoy to absorb enemy fire.

But even as he considered this grim possibility, Ethan refused to dismiss other options. Raising his gaze to the Flame Sovereign, he maintained the magic shield, carefully increasing its energy output to widen its range.

Arthur approached, having just finished off the last of the remaining sailors on their own ship. He stood beside Ethan, his sword still in hand. "What's the plan?"

Ethan's lips tightened. "Not much we can do unless you can somehow leap onto their ship and take them out."

Arthur glanced at the widening gap and shook his head. "I can't jump that far."

Ethan rolled his eyes. "Of course, you can't. That wasn't a serious suggestion."

But to his surprise, Arthur's expression turned thoughtful, almost hesitant.

"Actually… I think I might be able to make it."

"What?" Ethan blinked. "You have a plan?"

Arthur scratched the back of his head, his hesitation evident. "I'm not sure. It's more of a… feeling. Like I could make it if I tried."

If Ethan had heard this kind of reasoning in his past life, he would have dismissed it as baseless wishful thinking. But after experiencing numerous strange, instinct-driven moments in this world—many of which had saved his life—he wasn't so quick to discount Arthur's gut feeling.

"You're sure about this?" Ethan asked, eyeing him skeptically.

Arthur adjusted the straps on his armor, straightening up with determination. "I can't guarantee it, but do we have a better option? I'll make the jump. Just drop the shield when I go."

Ethan exhaled sharply. "Fine. But I'm not letting you faceplant into the shield, so don't miss your timing."

The magic shield wasn't selective in what it blocked—anything trying to pass through, friend or foe, would hit an impenetrable barrier. Ethan would need to lower it at just the right moment to let Arthur through.

Arthur strode confidently toward the edge of the deck. As he prepared to leap, Ethan dismissed the shield, timing it perfectly with Arthur's motion.

Arthur launched himself into the air… only to plummet straight down.

The golden-haired knight barely cleared the edge of the deck before gravity took over. Wearing heavy armor and still growing into his full strength, there was no way he could have made the jump on raw physical ability alone.

But no one laughed. Neither Ethan nor Keno's crew found the sight amusing. Instead, they stared in stunned disbelief.

Arthur didn't crash into the water as expected. Instead, as he descended, the sea beneath him seemed to shift. The water rippled and dented under the weight of his fall before springing back to support him.

Arthur now stood firmly atop the surface of the water as if it were solid ground.

"This is impossible!" one of Keno's sailors cried out, his voice trembling with shock.

"Can humans even stand on water?!"

The ordinary sailors were visibly shaken, their understanding of the world shattered by the sight.

Keno's reaction, however, was markedly different. As the newly self-proclaimed captain of the Flame Sovereign, his eyes burned with greedy calculation. His first thought wasn't disbelief but recognition.

"Magic stone equipment!" Keno growled, his expression twisting with desire. "It has to be some kind of magic stone gear that lets him walk on water!"

In a world dominated by vast oceans, such an ability was priceless—its utility unmatched. Keno could hardly contain himself. "Kill him! Target the blond with the cannons!"

As Keno barked orders, his thoughts raced. Forget the lightning rod, that's nothing compared to this. That magic stone is mine!

But practical issues quickly arose. Arthur was moving too nimbly for the cannons to track him, especially as the distance between the ships continued to shrink.

"Use bows and arrows!" Keno snapped.

A few sailors scrambled to obey, but even this presented a problem. Unlike Sean, whose command had been ironclad, Keno's leadership was still untested, and the chaos of the situation made it worse.

"Captain," one sailor stammered, clearly uncomfortable, "we've already used up most of the arrows. There aren't enough left…"

Keno's jaw clenched in frustration. He wanted to lash out but stopped himself, knowing that wasting time on anger would only worsen the situation.

"Then focus on the cannons!" Keno barked.

A different sailor hesitated, nervously adding, "Uh… sir, the magic stones for the cannons are nearly depleted. We've only got enough for four more shots…"

Keno's eyes were bloodshot, frustration burning in them as he watched the possibility of seizing the magic stone slip further and further away. The blond boy running effortlessly across the surface of the sea was already closing in on the Flame Sovereign, and every second brought him closer. The treasure he so desperately desired was slipping through his grasp.

But as the reality of the situation sank in, Keno forced himself to calm down. Clenching his fists, he finally made up his mind. Watching Arthur sprint toward him, he barked out an order.

"Set the sails! Full speed ahead!"

"What?"

The sailor standing closest to him froze in shock, unsure if he'd misheard. Retreat? That wasn't something they expected from their new captain.

Frustrated by the hesitation, Keno kicked the sailor aside and snarled, "I said raise the sails! Forget the boy—move now, or we're all dead!"

Though retreating felt like swallowing a bitter pill, Keno understood that it was the only logical choice. He couldn't win this fight. Sean had failed to take down the two young men, and Sean had been far stronger than he was. If Keno stayed and fought, he'd be killed, there was no doubt in his mind.

His strength lay in his crew and his ship. But now, his crew was disorganized, and the Flame Sovereign had taken enough damage that a single well-placed strike could doom them all. If Arthur somehow managed to breach their hull, there would be no escape.

Reluctantly, Keno admitted to himself that today was not the day to get what he wanted. Continuing to engage would only lead to disaster, so he made the hard choice to flee.

The sails of the Flame Sovereign unfurled, catching the wind. While the process of fully raising the sails was cumbersome, the earlier impact from the magic shield had already created some distance between the ships, giving Keno just enough time.

As the ship began to pull away, the cannonfire that had hindered Arthur's progress earlier also bought Keno a precious few moments to retreat.

"Next time we meet, I'll be stronger," Keno muttered under his breath, his eyes fixed on Arthur, who had stopped his pursuit and stood motionless on the water. He turned to his remaining sailors and barked, "Get us out of here now!"

Keno wasn't planning to return to State Island anytime soon. He knew Ethan and Arthur would likely head there to resupply. Instead, Keno planned to find a nearby island to repair his ship and regroup. He'd use the time to recruit new men and figure out ways to grow stronger.

Sean's death had left a power vacuum, but it had also removed the person who had once overshadowed Keno's ambitions. Now, with his weakness laid bare, Keno was desperate to rise above it.

On Ethan's ship, he watched the Flame Sovereign retreat, narrowing his eyes thoughtfully. The fact that Keno didn't fire the cannon again confirmed Ethan's suspicion. "They're out of ammo," he muttered.

He touched his chin, pondering aloud. "So the magic stone cannon is an expendable weapon after all. It's not the type of continuous energy weapon I thought it was, where magic stones power repeated shots."

Ethan's gaze followed the fading ship, and his theory began to solidify. "If they're low on resources, it probably means each shot consumes a magic stone. And considering how desperately these captains fought for the equipment we have, it's safe to say high-quality magic stones are hard to come by, at least here in the Sea of Calm."

Satisfied with his deduction, Ethan lowered the rope ladder to help Arthur climb back onto the ship. As the two regrouped, the adrenaline of the battle began to fade, replaced by the dull routine of cleaning up after the skirmish.

For a while, they worked in silence, each lost in thought about the fight that had just ended. Despite their victory, there was a lingering sense of frustration—it felt unfinished, almost anticlimactic.

"Arthur," Ethan said suddenly, breaking the silence.

"Yeah?"

"We need to figure out what all that stuff Merlin gave you actually does."

Arthur nodded. "Agreed. I've been thinking the same thing."

Before this journey, they'd spent most of their time exploring and learning about each other's abilities. They hadn't taken the time to fully investigate the enchanted items and spells Merlin had gifted Arthur, one of which had clearly allowed him to walk on water.

"If we'd known that spell could do this," Ethan said, shaking his head, "we could've planned this differently. Keno wouldn't have gotten away so easily."

Ethan wasn't a bloodthirsty person by nature, but he understood the dangers of leaving an enemy alive. A foe like Keno, who had already demonstrated ambition and cunning, could easily come back to haunt them at the worst possible moment.

"If you let an enemy like that survive," Ethan said quietly, "you're only asking for trouble later."

This time, the enemy had escaped. And Ethan knew exactly why—it wasn't Keno's cunning or skill. It was their own lack of preparation.

His jaw tightened, dissatisfaction churning in his chest. "Still not strong enough," he muttered.

If he'd been strong enough, Sean wouldn't have even been a threat. The crew wouldn't have had the opportunity to regroup. Keno wouldn't have been able to retreat. If he'd been stronger, he could've ended this fight decisively before it ever became so chaotic.

Arthur looked over, sensing Ethan's frustration.

"Back to training?" he asked with a wry smile.

Ethan exhaled sharply, nodding. "Yeah. Let's keep pushing forward."

***

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