The Hull

What did I do to make everyone so furious? Su Ming was utterly baffled. Wasn't it just one shipment that didn't reach its destination? That wasn't even my fault!

But there was no time to hesitate. Their escape in the other world was imminent, and there was no room for delay. Su Ming steeled himself, guided Little Spiky Head onto the sidewalk on the motorcycle, grabbed the package outside the supermarket, and sped off.

The package contained nothing but a 3D-printed model ship. The police would certainly inspect it, but they probably wouldn't replace it. If the packaging, appearance, or weight alerted their target, it could needlessly create complications.

Besides, time was tight. With high-speed logistics, there was no time to spare, and an unnecessary delay could cost them their chance to catch the suspect. That should be the logic from the police's perspective.

Once he had the package, Little Spiky Head opened the throttle all the way and fled. The police climbed out of their cars and drew their pistols, intending to fire warning shots.

Su Ming ignored them and turned into a nearby alley.

Something seemed to whiz past, and Little Spiky Head's body jolted.

Su Ming hadn't practiced Spirit Hearing yet, so he couldn't hear the sounds around Little Spiky Head. After turning into the alley, Su Ming saw that it wasn't very wide; the police cars couldn't get in. He hurried onward and escaped the encirclement before the police could get around to the alley's exit.

But that wasn't the end. The police cars soon caught up again. Surveillance cameras were everywhere, making escape difficult. Fortunately, they weren't far from the edge of the city, and the cameras would be less densely packed farther out. Su Ming pushed the bike to full speed, turned onto a side road at an intersection, then picked a village road at random and raced down it.

Only after racing several dozen kilometers did Su Ming dare stop. He hid the motorcycle in an abandoned pigsty by the road and hid Little Spiky Head in the basement of an unfinished building.

There was no time to think about why any of this had happened. Su Ming felt the immediate priority was to deal with his own life-or-death situation in the other world.

He opened the package, and sure enough, the model ship was inside.

Thank goodness they didn't swap it! After all, from a normal person's perspective, it was just a harmless lump of iron.

Su Ming suddenly noticed that one of Little Spiky Head's ribs was shattered. He panicked. The power sustaining Little Spiky Head came from his mana in the other world. In theory, as long as he didn't dissolve the undead mark in his sea of consciousness, Little Spiky Head would continue to exist and could even slowly repair himself.

But why had he suddenly been damaged? Was he about to fall apart?

After a careful inspection, Su Ming breathed a sigh of relief. There was a round hole through the shoulder of Little Spiky Head's clothing. He'd been shot.

Thinking back to that jolt before he entered the alley and considering the angle of the shot, Su Ming realized it was a sniper!

So what exactly did I do?! Su Ming wanted to cry but had no tears. This is definitely the kind of treatment reserved for serious criminals! I'm just a junior process engineer at a machinery plant-what did I do to deserve this?!

But in any case, those were problems for later.

Su Ming set the model ship on the ground and began transferring it.

In the hall of the White Bone Fortress, the spell's runes flashed, and pieces of steel formed the model ship before Su Ming and White Bone.

"That's a ship?" Even after seeing so many Earth-style things, the scholar still couldn't help doubting it. "It's too slender."

Su Ming reached out and picked it up. The hull looked much like a Type 056, long and narrow indeed. Its deep-V bottom, flared hull, and long superstructure were very beautiful.

"What's this round part for?" White Bone asked, pointing to the bulbous bow at the front of the model.

"Given your grasp of geometry, are you sure you want to hear it?" Su Ming asked.

"Never mind, then." White Bone pursed her lips.

"My first idea was a catamaran or a hydrofoil. Their shapes are even sleeker." Su Ming picked up his laptop and showed White Bone some pictures. "But with only this much power available right now, we can't make use of what those designs can do."

"Fine, I'll keep my mouth shut." White Bone frowned at the wild lines filling the screen. "From now on, don't ever consult me about the fortress's configuration. The white bone mark is with you anyway, so do as you please!"

"Good thing I woke this body up," she muttered softly.

Su Ming imported the model into the white bone mark and began refining and modifying it. After all, it was a magical material, and many things were different.

He also needed to practice the various operations involved in restructuring the fortress on a small scale first.

"Oh, right, remember to leave me a big room for a library," White Bone said. "And three slightly smaller rooms for a storeroom, an alchemy laboratory, and a rune research room. The rune research room needs windows and good ventilation."

"No problem. There's plenty of room in the hull," Su Ming agreed.

Night fell, and Su Ming and White Bone went to the top of the tower. He held a checklist, with two preparations still unfinished or awaiting confirmation.

He looked up at the sky. By now, even without magical perception, he could tell that a considerable rainstorm was on its way.

"Do you have spells that can change the weather here?" Su Ming asked.

"We do," White Bone replied. "If enough people gather to cast a spell together, it's possible to change the weather over a small area for a short time."

Even a commonplace natural event, whether an avalanche, a rainstorm, or a tornado, involved an enormous amount of energy. Even in a magical other world, it took humans a tremendous effort to interfere.

"So the temple wouldn't go to the trouble of doing something like that for so little benefit." Su Ming checked off [rainfall], which had been awaiting confirmation. "That takes care of that. One last thing-which direction are we escaping in?"

White Bone waved a hand, and a faintly glowing nautical chart spread out across the floor. She tapped a spot, and a small orange point of light appeared. "This is where we are, Cui'an Sea Cliff."

Su Ming studied this part of the Western Continent. The coastline was relatively straight overall, with few major bends. Beyond the coastal waters lay the vast Western Ocean.

He looked more closely and confirmed that there were no special landforms nearby. That meant there was no real choice: their general escape route had to head straight out, perpendicular to the coast.

Su Ming summoned several bone fragments with a wave, shaped them into ships, wyverns, cavalry, bishops, and the like, and placed them in the corresponding positions on the chart.

"The southeastern side looks a little weaker," Su Ming said. No ships blocked that direction, and it was far from the base of the wyvern troops, who had the greatest mobility.

"It's a trap." White Bone reached out and drew a line curving around from the northeast. The route even passed between the warships of the Pearl Duchy Navy. "Take this route."

Though he didn't understand, Su Ming was a complete blank slate when it came to war, especially war in another world. So he decided to follow White Bone's instructions without question.

"The steam engine is very loud when it's running at full speed. Will that be a problem?" Su Ming asked White Bone. He noticed that this route came within a few nautical miles of those warships. Sound could carry quite far across the open sea.

"A big problem," White Bone replied.

"I can reduce it considerably." Su Ming thought for a moment. "I have the white bone mark now, so I can do it myself."