Sailing Out

Evan was not a pure idealist. The spirit of his ancestors, who had bravely explored the unknown world, was worthy of admiration, but when one had nothing to one's name, selling everything to invest in one's ideals was simply too hollow and unrealistic.

However, once he truly possessed the power to control his own fate, Evan would probably follow in the footsteps of the Garratt ancestors and choose to see just how vast this world truly was!

"Then... Ensign Evan, you'd better work hard. I'm very strict!"

"Thank you, Captain. I'll do my best!"

After that back-and-forth, uncle and nephew burst out laughing together. The estrangement born of five years apart gradually faded, and the two of them truly began to grow closer.

They toasted each other and enjoyed the rare delicacies on the table, talking until late into the night before finally calling it a night.

However, another little incident occurred the day after Evan and Gell recognized each other.

Early that morning, Gell took Evan ashore and sought out Major Eugene, Evan's instructor for this training period.

"Good morning, Colonel Gell!"

Seeing Gell push through the door, Major Eugene, who had been processing documents, immediately rose and saluted. Whether it was Gell's rank as a colonel, his status as a knight, or his identity as captain of a main battle warship, each demanded Eugene's utmost respect.

Only then did he notice Evan following behind Gell, head lowered and seemingly afraid to look at him. Eugene assumed that the hotheaded youth had caused some trouble aboard the colonel's ship.

"Did this brat Evan cause trouble as soon as he boarded? Hand him over to me. I'll deal with him."

Though Major Eugene said he would deal with Evan, he secretly winked at him, his protectiveness plain to see.

"Haha, Major Eugene, Evan didn't cause any trouble. On the contrary, I need to thank you for sending him to my ship!

Come on, come on, let's go to the tavern and talk properly. Evan and I both have to buy you a drink!"

Without caring that it was still breakfast time, Gell dragged Major Eugene off for drinks. He now saw Eugene as the benefactor who had enabled his reunion with Evan, giving him a chance to make up for the years of neglect he owed his old friend. Before setting sail, he had to thank him no matter what.

Soon, the three were seated in a tavern. On the way there, Gell had already explained Evan's situation to Eugene.

"The child didn't know any better. He ran away without telling his family. Luckily, you sent him to my ship. You really did us a great favor." Gell raised his cup and offered it sincerely to Eugene.

"Colonel Gell, you're too kind. I was merely doing my duty. I didn't think much of it at the time. I simply couldn't bear to watch Evan waste away aboard a dispatch vessel.

"A talented young man like him could only receive the best training aboard your ship."

Eugene was extremely modest. Not only did he claim no credit, he also quietly flattered the uncle and nephew pair. Even a trace of a smile appeared on Gell's usually stern face.

The two officers chatted with great enthusiasm.

Meanwhile, Evan, seated beside them, could only pretend to be a "troubled runaway child," forcing a smile as he drank several cups with Eugene and received quite a few glares in return.

In Eugene's mind, Evan had quietly changed from a lonely, impoverished member of a fallen branch family into a young master who had run away from home. Eugene, who had initially felt great sympathy for him, would have kicked Evan in the backside if Gell had not been present.

Oh, so after I went out of my way, called in favors, and finally helped you secure a bright future, all I did was send you to a relative's ship? Is this a joke?

Still, Eugene was not truly angry. Young people always had that fearless drive of newborn calves, wanting to strike out alone and prove their abilities without relying on their families. There was nothing wrong with that.

But most such "calves" would recognize reality after several years of society's harsh beatings. Though they gained experience, they also wasted a great deal of time, making it rather not worth the cost.

Looking at it that way, his accidental actions had turned out to be a good deed after all. He had already thought highly of Evan, and now that Evan had his uncle, Colonel Gell, his military career would certainly go much more smoothly, sparing him many detours.

Deep down, Eugene was truly happy for him!

The Silver Wing remained in port for two days this time. After brief maintenance, personnel rest, and replenishing supplies, it would continue its patrol mission within the Third Fleet's jurisdiction.

Moreover, considering Colonel Gell's exceptional abilities, their assigned route would be relatively more dangerous.

But the sailors had long grown accustomed to such a life. Greater danger naturally meant greater rewards. Just as Gell had once said, those who followed the rules and only wanted a quiet, stable life could never become naval personnel, much less sailors.

Most of these men were daring to the extreme. As long as the reward was good enough, they would not even mind taking a chance at the infamous Pirate Harbor, Shipwreck Bay.

Amid such an atmosphere, Evan officially went to sea with the ship for the first time as a naval officer.

Splash—

Splash—

As he paced back and forth across the deck, waves blossoming around him, Evan's feelings were different from when he had left Leopold.

Today was the true starting point of his new life.

During the two days the Silver Wing had spent docked for supplies, Gell had introduced Evan to the ship's general situation, allowing him to quickly integrate into this new group.

The ship's veteran crewmen had all transferred over with Gell from the original Fourth-Rate Battleship.

No one knew what they had experienced in the past, but their vacancies had never been fully filled. The formal officers had gradually received internal promotions through Gell's appointments, and the key positions of Navigator, helmsman, Sail Master, first mate, second mate, third mate, boatswain, master gunner, and gunnery officer had all been filled.

But as for Cadet Officers like himself, he was the only one for the time being.

After boarding, Gell, as the warship captain, assigned him the provisional post of messenger. He would be responsible for relaying some of the captain's orders and could observe and study at any station aboard the ship. It could be said to be the position most beneficial to a Cadet Officer's growth.

It had to be said, this was the advantage of having connections above you!

Otherwise, if a superior casually threw you into the ship's hold, the conditions would be terrible and you would not learn a thing. That would be truly miserable.

Though the warship's officers found it strange that the captain seemed to favor this newcomer, it was not too excessive. After all, he was the only Cadet Officer aboard, so they merely assumed Gell wished to look after and train a young man. None of them thought too much about it.

This was Evan's request. It was not as though he was being overly particular and demanding that Gell treat him exactly like everyone else. But temporarily concealing their relationship would help Evan blend into the group. Once he became fully familiar with everyone, even if the truth came out, there would not be such a great sense of distance. Having connections might seem glamorous, but the barriers between such people and ordinary people were everywhere.

The only one who knew part of the truth was Chris, the boatswain. But Chris was Gell's true loyal confidant and the manager of the ship's sailors. Gell would find a chance to tell him sooner or later. At the very least, he needed Chris to look after Evan during any possible battles after they put to sea.

Whoosh—

The Silver Wing gradually sailed out of the military harbor. The waters opened up, and the wind steadily strengthened. The sailors needed to readjust the rigging and control the sails to maintain stable sailing and achieve the best speed.

"Heave-ho! Heave-ho!"

A steady chant sounded across the deck. Beneath every mast, around ten sailors were working the rigging.

"Mr. Jabb, may I help handle the sails?" Evan, who had been watching for quite a while, approached Sail Master Jabb, who was directing the sailors in adjusting the sails.

During three months of recruit training, Evan had crammed his mind full of knowledge, both from the instructors' lessons and his own studies in the library.

Though he had tried it a few times aboard those shabby little training ships, this was his first time on a real warship. Evan was not sure whether the Sail Master would allow a novice like him to try his hand.

The bearded Sail Master glanced at Evan. After thinking for a moment, he agreed. They had only just put to sea, so there was no danger yet. It was the perfect time for a novice to practice if he wanted to improve.

"All right, I agree. But young man, you don't need to work the rigging with the sailors. Just stand beside me and watch. I'll explain how it is done and why it is done that way." The Sail Master's attitude was pleasant, and he agreed readily, but he also set his conditions.

Evan knew that the Sail Master was not afraid he would damage the sails. Raising and lowering rigging was, in practical terms, mere hard labor. Knowing when to operate it and what to operate was the true skill behind sail handling.

"Thank you, Mr. Jabb!"

Standing beside Jabb and listening to his explanations, Evan gradually matched the knowledge he had learned in training camp to actual practice.

Sails were the most technically sophisticated equipment aboard a sailing ship and the sole source of power for most sailing vessels. Their importance was no less than that of an engine in the modern world. Calling them the heart of a sailing ship would not be an exaggeration, except this heart was somewhat unusual—it grew on the outside.

The running rigging on a warship was white, while the standing rigging was black. The white running rigging was what was mainly adjusted when handling sails. To an outsider, the dense web of rigging aboard a sailing ship would certainly be dizzying.

But to precisely control the sails and battle wind and waves, one could never do without rigging systems of every size and height.

Let us take a look at how much rigging a three-masted sailing ship had.

Controlling the yards required halyards, lifts, and braces; controlling the sails required clewlines, fore-clewlines, and tacklines; furling sails required three sets of furling lines: clewlines, footlines, and leechlines.

A three-masted sailing warship had eleven square sails—four at the foremast, four at the mainmast, and three at the mizzenmast. Each of these rigging systems had to be repeated eleven times, requiring at least ninety-nine lines, not including spare lines and double lines needed to bear additional loads.

Though the rigging aboard a sailing ship appeared complicated, it was complicated without being chaotic. Regardless of wind direction or weather, experienced sailors could find the corresponding line at once and adjust it to the optimal position.

When the sails were balanced and the sea was calm, there was even no need to use the ship's wheel. By adjusting the sails alone, the sail handlers could keep the warship moving in a straight line.

Thus, the sailors working upon the three masts bore the most important responsibilities and were among the most essential technical personnel aboard a sailing ship.

Evan still had a long way to go before becoming a skilled sail handler.