The White Oak had returned—after a long period of lost contact and deviation from its route, this advanced steamship belonging to the Explorer's Association had finally returned to Pland City-State.
Many people had been waiting for the ship's return. Countless eyes watched anxiously as its silhouette gradually drew closer across the sea.
Inquisitor Vana saw that the moment the White Oak's whistle sounded, the people on the dock sprang into action:
The personnel responsible for guiding ships into port had already taken their positions, signaling the White Oak with lights and flags. Meanwhile, the Church Guardians went to activate the deep-sea relics that had been placed around Pier One the previous night: a large number of bronze "boundary markers," their bases engraved with the name of Goddess of Storms Gemona, their upper grooves filled with sacred oils and spices. Once activated, these markers would seal off the area where the White Oak docked, turning it into a "sanctuary" watched over by the Goddess.
Farther away stood the peacekeepers dispatched by City Hall. Ordinary people were not skilled at dealing with supernatural matters, so their primary task was to seal off every route with heavy firepower—ordinary guns and cannons were of little use against strange, invisible curses, but if tangible contaminants came running off the White Oak, eight-millimeter bullets and four-pounder cannons would prove highly effective.
Sometimes, Vana could not help but feel grateful for the advances of technology. These products of engineering gave weak and powerless ordinary people enough strength to intervene in incidents involving the supernatural. Technological progress brought both good and bad, but at least... the support of Gatling guns and artillery had indeed greatly reduced the casualties suffered by her Church comrades over the years.
Vana's gaze passed over the dock and turned toward the distant sea.