The Mystery of the Vampire Species

Looking at the somewhat old ship before him, Li Lin nodded with satisfaction. This ship was collateral for a merchant in the port who had borrowed a large sum of money from the port's sheriff, using the ship as collateral. Although old, it still looked quite prestigious. He'd heard that the ship had once belonged to a governor, a rumor that seemed to hold some truth. Although he had successfully borrowed the money, the unfortunate fellow, in his excitement, drank too much and fell into the sea on his way back to the inn that night, disappearing without a trace along with his money.

Regardless of the outcome, the ship no longer had a nominal owner. Although the sheriff wanted to relinquish it, a passenger ship used for transporting people wasn't particularly popular in a port primarily focused on cargo and fishing. So, when the sheriff encountered the two sisters who were inquiring in the tavern, he immediately had this idea. In his view, anyone who could afford maids must be someone important. Besides, the passenger ship was useless to him and required considerable expense to maintain. He figured he might as well do them a favor and make a fortune in the process.

Mina and Fina had never been to the seaside before. They had worked as priests and maids, but never in any profession related to ships. The two sisters had never even been on a boat. Therefore, persuaded by the sheriff, they agreed to go see the passenger ship with almost no doubt, and indeed, in their opinion, the ship was quite nice. So they quickly paid the sheriff a sufficient reward and informed Li Lin of their find.

However, Angela seemed very dissatisfied.

"It's so dilapidated and old, it's not even as good as the corner of the Titanic."

She frowned and complained in a low voice.

"Even the ship that carried the heroes to search for the Golden Fleece back then was far better than this large coffin made of rotten wood."

"All we need now is to be able to navigate on the sea."

As usual, Li Lin listened to Angela's complaints and let them go; he had no intention of having a serious discussion about such matters with the little one.

"Next, all we need to do is find enough sailors..."

"There's no need for that, Master."

Angela gave a smug and confident smile, then turned and stepped onto the deck.

"If it's just a voyage, then I can handle it. Master, please board the ship. I will safely deliver you to your destination."

"Oh?"

Hearing this, Li Lin looked at Angela with some surprise.

"This is the first time I've known you can drive a boat?"

"It's just a bunch of petty tricks."

Angela smiled her usual innocent and carefree smile.

"Since it is you, Master, who is to be aboard, then let me provide you with a superior voyage. At the very least, I cannot tolerate breathing the same air as a bunch of crude and lowly sailors. Just having such people standing on the ship makes me feel that my class has been lowered."

"But what are you planning to do?"

Since Angela had made it clear she wanted to do it herself, Li Lin was naturally happy to take it easy. He had never seen Angela a ship before. Moreover, ships in this era were completely different from those on Earth; they had no propulsion system and relied on the wind—the old-fashioned kind. Similar things existed in the Magic Empire era, but even those required a mage to operate them. While Angela possessed some spell-like abilities, unlike in the Magic Empire, Earth didn't have a formal magical system. According to Li Lin's observation, Angela's so-called "magic" was mostly spell-like abilities, like the Mind Flayer's mind spells or the Beholder's spell nullification zone—they seemed to have incredible effects like magic, but they were very fixed. Therefore, when Angela offered to sail the ship, Li Lin immediately became very interested. He naturally couldn't imagine Angela in a Western-style dress doing the heavy work of a sailor...

"Miss Angela, we know absolutely nothing about ships..."

It seems that Fina and Li Lin have the same idea.

"Hmph, what are you saying?"

Angela narrowed her eyes slightly, revealing a clear expression of mockery.

"You half-baked maids, who can't even do your job properly, and you can't even be vampires properly, yet you want to sail a ship? Besides..."

For some reason, Angela's voice carried a hint of malice, coldness, and anticipation.

Are you all really allowed to board the ship?

"Why?"

Faced with this completely unexpected question, Fina was stunned. She couldn't understand why Angela would suddenly say such a thing. Li Lin stood to the side, opened his mouth, but ultimately said nothing. He clearly remembered that in the legends about Vampire Species on Earth, it was always written that they were afraid of garlic, afraid of crosses, afraid of sunlight, and... afraid of water.

However, Li Lin was not one to show mercy to women, and besides, he was more interested in how Angela would get the ship moving. So he simply shrugged and turned to walk to the front of the deck—a move that also signaled the sisters' impending doom.

Afterwards, Mina and Fina's performance was exactly as Li Lin had predicted.

They had barely left the land and stepped onto the deck when they immediately began vomiting violently. Although it seemed like severe seasickness, the sisters looked as if they were in utter agony. They even huddled together in a corner, completely disregarding their appearance, looking like two... well, drunken squirrels.

"Hmph, useless thing."

Angela glanced at the two sisters who were on the verge of death, but did not continue to mock them as usual. Then, she turned around, walked to Li Lin, spread her skirt, and gave Li Lin a slight bow.

"Well then, esteemed master, it is time to set sail."

"Um."

Li Lin gazed at Angela and nodded. At the same time, he began to carefully observe the flow of Magic Power and air around him, trying to find some secrets about the spells the little girl was using. This could be considered a mage's innate desire to seek the unknown.

The once clear sky gradually became overcast, and subtle changes began to appear on the calm sea. While this might seem unremarkable to others, the fishermen who spent their lives fishing at sea were already hurriedly hauling in their nets and heading back to port. They sensed unease from the changes in the fish population and the fluctuations in the waves and temperature. Faced with unknown dangers, they had no courage to continue working in such weather.

"This is unbelievable!"

The sheriff walked slowly along the dock, directing his men to ensure the hastily arriving ships entered in an orderly fashion, preventing chaos. How could this be? Damn it, I clearly saw the sky this morning; it should have been fine. How could it have turned into this awful state so quickly? And what's with the fog? Gods above, has someone here done something blasphemous with the book and is being punished?

Thinking of this, the sheriff looked up at the distant sea again. The originally light fog had now become thick. He couldn't even see anything outside the harbor, let alone on the sea.

"What bad luck."

Thinking this, the sheriff turned and walked to the dock ahead. He clearly remembered that his biggest profit today was selling that useless boat to someone else. Although getting unexpected extra income was a very happy thing, judging from the current weather, it seemed impossible to go out to sea. He remembered that the passengers seemed to have already boarded the ship? However, the ship hadn't had time to hire sailors yet, so they probably wouldn't be in such a hurry to set sail. Anyway... as the seller, he should go and check the situation.

However, when the sheriff reached the dock, he stared in astonishment, speechless.

There was nothing there except for a cable that had fallen to the ground.

The Shell simply vanished into thin air.

That's a really strange spell.

Standing at the bow, gazing at the swirling wind, rain, and thick fog, Li Lin couldn't help but admire it. He wondered what method Angela had used; the Shell seemed like a ghost ship, moving forward automatically. Moreover, its movement was completely different from ordinary ships. Whenever a wave crashed in, the Shell would be lifted to the crest, then vanish instantly, reappearing on another wave's crest. There must be some mysterious energy at work, but Li Lin had tried all his spells to investigate, yet to no avail. It wasn't spatial teleportation, nor illusion. Li Lin even used spells to determine his own coordinates to deduce the effect of Angela's magic, but he could only sense a slight tremor before the spell froze firmly on the ship. It was as if not the ship, but the entire ocean itself, was moving.

That's a truly amazing technique.

Li Lin stood at the edge of the boat, the magical runes on his hands shimmering faintly, flowing like a river of light across the hull. Angela stood beside Li Lin, a curious smile on her face. In fact, she was quite interested in it as well. After all, most of Angela's so-called "magic" was something she created herself, like eating and drinking—it was as simple as thinking about it. She hadn't studied any special spells; the rituals of the Vampire Species were mostly related to their growth, but not to their magic. Therefore, Angela was quite interested in Li Lin's careful study. So, whenever this happened, she would stand quietly beside Li Lin, watching him ponder intently—and then the little guy would be reassured that he hadn't chosen the wrong master.

"What a strange power."

Li Lin sighed and made the same judgment again—just like before, he had the same thought every time he came into contact with Angela's power.

It seemed to be connected to the power of a mage, yet completely different. Angela's power was like trying to see flowers through the fog or the moon's reflection in water; even if you could guess its general outline, you would always fail when you tried to reach out and grasp its essence. Li Lin didn't find this difficult at all; on the contrary, he was completely absorbed in it. After all, such strange things couldn't be found just anywhere.

Perhaps it's because of how people on Earth perceive magic that the manifestation of energy has changed?

Li Lin frowned and pondered, but ultimately could not come up with a clear answer.

Just then, Anjie's voice rang out from the side.

"Master, we're almost there!"

"I see."

As Li Lin spoke, he made a slight gesture, and soon the streams of magic returned to his hand and disappeared.

At this moment, the thick fog gradually dissipated, and the silhouettes of four enormous ships slowly emerged before the two.

"Speaking of which, Angela?"

Perhaps because he had arrived at his destination, Li Lin suddenly remembered some trivial things.

"You were on the Titanic?"

When Angela complained about the dilapidated passenger ship, Li Lin had this thought before. After all, given Angela's love for luxury and extravagance, it wouldn't be strange for her to travel on a top-of-the-line cruise ship.

"Certainly."

Angela gazed at the ship before her, a hint of smugness on her face.

"Since humanity claims that a ship made of steel and tacky crystal chandeliers is the most luxurious cruise ship in the world, how could I possibly not go and admire it?"

"So..."

"Of course it was I who sank it. Just thinking about how those ignorant humans dared to claim they had built an 'unsinkable steel ship,' don't you feel even a little bit of wanting to deny them? They are still so fragile, yet they dare to be so arrogant and conceited. Such fools who have lost their self-awareness naturally deserve punishment. It is also my responsibility to make humanity realize how insignificant their power is and to help them rediscover their proper duties. It's like putting a collar on a dog to prevent it from biting people—isn't that the owner's responsibility?"

Angela answered Li Lin's question with pride and satisfaction, seemingly without the slightest impropriety.

"All right."

Li Lin sighed helplessly. Then, he extended his right hand, silently chanted an incantation, and soon a fireball shot out from the center of his palm and exploded in the air. This was a signal, and Kalin should react now.

"Perhaps I should be thankful that I haven't had a chance to name my fleet yet."