Challenge the Ocean

The greatest courage of mortals was nothing more than challenging the sky and the ocean.

The slightly fishy, salty sea breeze blew in from the east, sweeping across the long coastline of the eastern shore, past port houses with black sloping roofs and ancient spired towers. Black crown-and-shield banners snapped above the main castle of the port city of "Mobius," facing the Endless Sea. Upon the sea surface, the rising sun had just appeared.

Count Owen Dyson, with short black hair, deep blue eyes, and a black double-breasted long coat, stood before a window facing the sea. From the highest point of the castle, he silently overlooked the prosperous city below and the tranquil, shimmering sea in the distance.

This was Port Mobius, the largest seaport on the eastern coast of the Typhon Empire, and an unavoidable stop for eastern humans venturing out to sea.

It had once been.

The Dyson Family had ruled this land for centuries. Count Owen's ancestors had led the first settlers through thorns and brambles, reshaping the Empire's sturdy eastern coastline with massive stones and the power of magic. Seven hundred years ago, this had been an exceptionally prosperous city. The newly founded Typhon had used this harbor to knock open the gateway to the sea, establishing important colonies on several eastern islands. The early settlers mined ore and cultivated spices on those islands, supplying the newborn nation with a steady stream of precious resources, while flourishing trade routes across the eastern continent maintained the flow of goods between the Empire's southeastern and northeastern regions. As the hub of all this, Port Mobius had briefly enjoyed unrivaled status.

Yet that prosperity had lasted only a short time.

The fall of the Three Great Dark Cults had robbed humanity of its ability to challenge the ocean—the