Captain

The so-called "Oceanic Secret Treasure" is not a human creation!

Rather, it is a type of magical treasure that is naturally produced under special conditions, influenced by the mystical factors of this world.

The reasons for their creation are varied and strange, possibly based on special geographical environments, far-reaching large-scale historical events, or even the massive extinction of life.

Their physical forms are also diverse, possibly like the "Shipwreck Lament," which is a sculpture, or a shell, a stone, a pocket watch, or anything else that might exist in the real world.

But they all share one unique characteristic: they are extremely difficult to destroy.

Each "Oceanic Secret Treasure" possesses its own unique magical ability, powerful and mysterious.

And since their names carry the "Oceanic" prefix, these abilities are mostly related to the ocean. Especially in the sea, these treasures can bring unparalleled assistance to the ships that hold them, making them objects of desperate pursuit for everyone on the sea.

"Oceanic Secret Treasures" are almost synonymous with power and wealth!

Of course, not all Oceanic Secret Treasures are like the "Shipwreck Lament," which houses a malicious evil spirit. It deliberately reveals information about the treasure and a unique extraordinary path, luring others to use its evil power to achieve ulterior motives.

Most Oceanic Secret Treasures are of the type that conceals their own value. Unless a professional holds them in their hands, they cannot even discern that it is an Oceanic Secret Treasure.

It must be said that this time, the uncle and nephew not only obtained One-Eyed Beck's head but also picked up an Oceanic Secret Treasure for free. It was truly great luck!

Although they cannot use it because it is hostile to the side of order, and as long as the two do not want to defect from the kingdom to become pirates, it is a bit of a pity for them as naval officers. But there is no problem at all in conducting a trade of benefits with nobles who have special needs.

"As long as the evil spirit hidden inside is dealt with, it should fetch a good price," Gell finally concluded.

As for exchanging it for a secret treasure that they can use themselves, neither of them had any hope. The opportunity is too slim and hard to come by, so it is better to turn it into tangible wealth and resources that can be used now.

"By the way, Uncle Gell, what do you plan to do with the extraordinary path on this?" Hearing this, Evan did not see Gell mention the "Shipwreck Wailer" extraordinary path again, and asked strangely.

Mentioning the extraordinary power that concerns his own future, Gell became much more serious and asked Evan a question in return: "Evan, there are many extraordinary paths in this world. Why do you think the path of the knight dominates the human world?"

Although he has a vision that transcends the times, Evan has never considered this question. After thinking for a while and combining it with Grandpa Leo's teachings when he was a child, he tentatively said, "Is it because of stability?"

"That's right! But not comprehensive. Stability is only one aspect of it."

"In fact, both internal and external factors determine the extraordinary status quo of the civilized world.

The internal factor is that although the path of the knight is extraordinary, the extraordinary power involved only targets the relatively basic and pure human body, so the risk of losing control is the smallest and most stable. Even if it eventually loses control, it will not have too much destructive power."

Gell paused to give Evan time to digest, and continued to explain:

"The external factor is due to the merits of the 'True God Church', the highest level of extraordinary power in our continent.

Although knights are powerful, our path has been firmly fixed, just like swords in people's hands. Even a Titled Knight of Extraordinary Level Four is just a divine weapon and cannot threaten their position at all."

In his words, Gell, as an old-school kingdom officer, revealed a faint dissatisfaction with the Holy See. If this were in a public setting, something major would definitely happen, but Evan pretended not to hear it.

"As for those extraordinary paths that are prone to losing control and causing large-scale casualties, or those that are highly creative and have a promising future, including the 'Black Iron Cross Church' that rules our Tulip Alliance, the 'Dawn Church' of the Sark Empire, and the 'Eternal Fire' of the Sirius Kingdom, the seven True God Churches all take a stance of suppression and elimination!"

"Most of the unpopular extraordinary paths like the 'Shipwreck Wailer' have flaws. Moreover, because of the reasons I mentioned earlier, the more you leave the civilized world, the more unique extraordinary individuals there are. The paths are incomplete, or have various fatal flaws, and the possibility of losing control is frighteningly high."

This knowledge cannot be recorded in any books and is entirely Gell's own summary of experience.

As an extraordinary captain who has been adventuring in the sea for many years, Gell used his profound knowledge accumulation and unique perspective to instantly enlighten Evan.

He couldn't help but rejoice that he had such a guide.

"Keep it to trick people, kid!" Finally, Gell patted Evan on the shoulder and stuffed the re-boxed sculpture into his hand.

"Take it back to your room and keep a close watch on it for the entire return journey. Whether we eat well or poorly in the next few years depends entirely on it."

Afterward, the two returned to the main deck and gathered some crew members to repair the severely damaged pirate ship as much as possible, barely managing to get it moving again.

The Silver Wing used a cable to tow it, slowly returning to the initial Chaotic Rock Island battlefield.

"The Silver Wing is back!"

"We're saved!"

By this time, the burnt wreckage of the Warrior had long since sunk to the bottom of the sea. A few lifeboats floating on the surface were sparsely occupied by some dejected former Warrior crew members, who only regained their spirits when they saw the Silver Wing return.

After taking them aboard, everyone learned that after they abandoned ship, the officers on the original Warrior had been targeted and killed, including the captain. The sailing master, who had freeloaded on the Silver Wing, was the highest-ranking officer among the survivors.

Gell comforted them with kind words, after all, their early engagement with the pirates had caused significant attrition, which was an assist to the Silver Wing.

However, they definitely couldn't count on any spoils of war.

Time flew by, and it was the third day after returning to Gabreid.

After the brief excitement of completing the mission, everything seemed to return to normal.

In the past few days, Gell, carrying the halo of honor for killing the mad pirate "One-Eyed Beck," frequently interacted with the nobles and merchants of Gabreid, seemingly engaging in normal social activities to expand his network. But in reality, only Evan knew that his Uncle Gell was looking for a buyer for their "spoils."

Evan couldn't get involved for the time being, but he had his own important mission.

The Third Fleet garrison.

In the garrison corridor, the predominantly blue walls were adorned with large oil paintings, depicting landscapes, figures, and war scenes. Each painting represented an important moment for the Third Fleet, making this a veritable wall of honor.

Walking here was like walking through the corridors of history, inspiring a heavy sense of honor as a member of it. Even Evan, who had a somewhat lacking sense of belonging to this other world, couldn't help but slow his pace.

He stopped in front of a room with a brass plaque, straightened his naval uniform, and gently knocked on the door.

"Knock!" "Knock!" "Knock!"

The force was neither too light nor too heavy, three just-right knocks, a habit from his previous life's workplace.

"Enter!" a steady, elderly male voice sounded.

Pushing open the door, the simply decorated room had curtains drawn to block the outside sunlight, but a gas lamp was lit, creating a quiet and solemn atmosphere.

Three elderly men in field officer uniforms sat behind a long table covered with a green velvet tablecloth, each with an open notebook in front of them.

Evan walked to the empty chair in front of the long table, stood at attention, and saluted: "Greetings, officers! Ensign Evan Garratt of the Silver Wing is here for the examination!"

"No need to be nervous, young man! Please sit down." The officer in the center, with completely white hair and wearing a monocle, was very kind, smiling and gesturing for him to sit down, indicating that the examination was about to begin.

"Before we officially begin, I hope you can take this examination seriously.

Although your achievements have completely met the standards, which is not easy for a young man who has only been in the service for a few months, every officer bears the honor and lives of all subordinates in times of crisis. If the examination does not satisfy us, we cannot entrust this responsibility to you!"

An officer with short gray hair sitting on the right side of the long table said with a serious face.

"I fully understand! Please begin!" Evan indicated that he understood and was not intimidated by him. He guessed that this was probably also part of the assessment, to prevent someone from thinking it was just a formality, doing things perfunctorily, and ultimately making it difficult for everyone to deal with.

"Please list the names and functions of three types of rigging on a warship."

"Controlling the yardarm requires halyard, brace, and yard tackle..."

"In a main battle line engagement, if your warship is focused by the enemy, would you order to weigh anchor and evade?"

"..."

"With a wind speed of 30 to 40 knots and waves at least one meter high, can the warship sail with full sails?"

"No, at this time, only 'half sails' can be raised on the fore and main mast top sails to lift the bow and reduce the burying effect, preventing the ship from capsizing!" From beginning to end, no matter how the three examiners questioned him, Evan answered fluently and calmly.

After learning the examination format from Gell, he began to prepare. The assessment, which was extremely difficult for many reserve officers, was a piece of cake for Evan, who had come from a sea of books and exams in his previous life.

After all, for any candidate officer who can get to this point, they have already spent enough time on warships, and their practical ability is completely fine. That's why they adopted this form of assessment, where experienced old officers ask questions and candidate officers answer.

The assessment lasted for twenty minutes, and each examiner asked several questions, which were broad but not tricky.

After Evan answered the last question, the examiners exchanged glances and gave a unified opinion. A stamp representing passage was placed on Evan's file.

"Congratulations, Evan of the Silver Wing, from today onwards, you are a Navy Captain!" The kind old man in the middle announced the news on behalf of the three examiners.

"Thank you, examiners! It's my honor!"

A smile appeared on Evan's face, and he got up to shake hands and hug each examiner. After bowing again, he slowly retreated to the door before turning around and leaving.

"I like this young man. I hope to see more and more energetic and cultivated young people like him in the Navy in the future."

"Hehe, you've been doing clerical work your whole life and are about to retire, yet you still worry so much..."

"Is there a problem with me worrying...?"

Passing the first turning point in his military career, truly completing the leap from candidate officer to formal officer, Evan only felt his heart broaden. Even the faint murmurs of the old officers in his ears became extremely endearing.

With a slight smile, the corridor was still the same corridor engraved with history, but his steps became unexpectedly lighter.