The Bosang's newly installed steam engine was considerably better than its old one, giving it one and a half times its former speed!
Its boiler was also larger, so it could go at least two weeks without needing a replacement.
By their calculations, this steam engine alone could get them all the way to the capital, Skorint, without breaking down!
On the Bosang's eighteenth day at sea, the outside temperature was one degree Celsius. They encountered a settlement that had been reduced to ruins, its residents hiding among the wreckage, barely clinging to life.
On the Bosang's twentieth day at sea, the outside temperature was zero degrees Celsius. They passed another settlement, which seemed to be preparing for war. All the ships in its harbor had been fitted with armor.
The Bosang left as though fleeing for its life.
On the Bosang's twenty-third day at sea, the outside temperature was minus two degrees Celsius.
All the freshwater storage tanks aboard had been moved into cabins near the steam boiler. Otherwise, they would freeze and burst.
Thanks to its high salt content and moving currents, the sea had yet to freeze over, so navigation remained unaffected.
There were fewer and fewer active creatures in the sea. They had often seen fish leaping out of the water before, but now such sights were rare.
The occasional fish they did see were half-dead, drifting in the water.
That day, the Bosang encountered a settlement.
It was large enough to house at least thirty thousand people, qualifying as a sizable city-state, yet not a single person was in sight.
Something about the place felt eerie, but the ship had to dock there to replenish its fuel and freshwater.
This would be their last supply stop. Afterward, they would head straight to Skorint over the