Chapter 238: 022: It’s you!

Lynch was a man of action. Once he made up his mind, he immediately began preparing for the journey ahead.

There wasn’t actually much to prepare for; his plans to explore the ruins had been set in motion long ago. Over the years, Richard’s little alchemy booklet had already been studied to the max by him.

The more he mastered its contents, the more curiosity he felt about what lay beyond. Lynch had wanted to embark on the exploration more than once already.

However, he had always hesitated due to safety concerns, delaying his plans until now. With his promotion to a Mid-level Wizard, he felt significantly more confident in his safety, and finally officially put this expedition on the agenda.

A few days later, Valkyrie Kingdom, Water Capital.

The Water Capital was the capital city of the Valkyrie Kingdom, and also the largest human port in the Seven Kingdoms. It boasted the largest deep-water dock in the Seven Kingdoms, and most ships heading westward into the sea departed from here.

No matter how meticulously a plan is designed on paper, it’s impossible to identify every problem ahead of time. Now was a textbook example of that.

To Lynch’s surprise, his expedition hadn’t even begun yet and he was already confronted with a major challenge—

No ship!

Or rather, no ship willing to meet his needs for an ocean voyage.

In this era, humanity’s sailing technology was still very primitive. Basically, all maritime activities were confined to coastal areas.

But Lynch’s destination was unquestionably in the open seas, requiring months of uninterrupted navigation with no islands, no ports, and no form of resupply along the way. Such risky endeavors were ones that few captains dared to undertake.

“Respected sir, this is not a matter of money. I must consider the safety of my ship and crew’s lives.”

“Please try looking for other ships. This is beyond my capabilities.”

“Or you could visit the Parrot Tavern near the docks and seek out the mad Grupa. If there’s anyone in the Water Capital who might agree to go to sea with you, I reckon that reckless lunatic with delusions is your best bet…”

Leaving yet another shipyard, Lynch frowned. This had already been several places, and no matter how high he bid, the moment they heard about his destination they refused him outright.

What should he do?

Exploring distant oceans wasn’t unheard of for wizards, but most of them organized their own teams and used specialized Wizard Ships for their ventures.

Such ships, however, were far beyond Lynch’s means. A single qualified Wizard Ship’s material costs alone were over a billion Magic Stones, not to mention the team required to operate it—the magical costs were simply astronomical.

Even among the prominent Wizard Families across the Ancient Ruins regions, only a handful could afford to use Wizard Ships.

With Lynch’s current status and his relationship with Avery, leveraging the power of these Wizard Families to set sail was achievable. The problem, however, was that it would involve sharing his secrets with others and splitting the subsequent profits—not worth it at all.

Or perhaps…

Use the same tactic as Richard once did? Reveal his wizard identity and employ half-threats, half-coercion to acquire a ship?

Controlling a few humans with magic would be effortlessly easy, but doing so would undoubtedly add unpredictable risks to the journey. Unless it was absolutely necessary, it was best to avoid taking such an approach.

“Forget it, let’s head to the Parrot Tavern for now.”

With this thought, Lynch arrived at the docks, having heard the name from multiple shipyard owners. Apparently, it was home to a man famous for his adventurous spirit in the maritime industry. Lynch decided to give it a try and see for himself.

Dockside, Parrot Tavern.

It didn’t look much different from other taverns: on its old wooden floors stood a dozen or so tables, the walls adorned with lifebuoys, model sailboats, bottles, and specimens of large fish as decorations. At the front was a bar counter with several large barrels beside it.

Since it was daytime, the tavern wasn’t busy, and only a one-legged barkeep was at the counter polishing glasses.

“Welcome to the Parrot Tavern. Anything I can do for you?” Seeing Lynch enter, the barkeep greeted him loudly from the counter.

Lynch glanced around at the decorations in the tavern, walked over, and asked, “I heard that there’s a bold navigator living here, someone daring enough to venture into even the most dangerous, unexplored seas. I’m looking for a ship to sail to perilous waters.”

“Ha?”

The barkeep sized Lynch up and down with a skeptical look. He seemed too young—as if he didn’t belong in the hard-labor world of sailing.

Without additional discussion, Lynch took out a gold coin and pressed it onto the table. “A glass of water, please.”

The barkeep’s eyes lit up. He pocketed the coin and served Lynch a glass of water before saying, “Please wait here. I’ll fetch the boss for you right away.”

With that, he turned and headed toward the back room.

Sitting on the barstool, Lynch mulled over what he’d heard about this so-called “Ocean Fantasist.”

According to shipyard owners, the proprietor of this Parrot Tavern was a rather peculiar man.

He wasn’t a native of the Water Capital but hailed from the inner regions, and he wasn’t originally engaged in maritime trade. He used to transport goods along inland rivers, nothing more than a regular sailor.

About twenty or thirty years ago, he suddenly stumbled upon an enormous fortune—rumor had it that he had so much gold he couldn’t possibly spend it all.

He came to the Water Capital, bought a ship, assembled a fleet, and officially joined those active in these waters.

Unlike others in the industry, who typically worked for profit and survival, conducting voyages only when hired, his approach was different. Even during the off-season for transportation, he would still take his crew to sea, specifically exploring uncharted territories and remote islands, claiming he was searching for wizards or other mysteries.

“He’s not like other people. Everyone else treats minstrel legends as mere stories, but he truly believes in them. He believes magic and wizards are real and even claims to have seen one with his own eyes…”

Regardless of the wizard and magic talk, his adventurous spirit undeniably brought tangible benefits to the Water Capital and the entire maritime community.

Over the years, he had nearly circled all the nearby coastal waters, mapping out the islands, terrain, and more, and producing detailed navigation charts. In doing so, he discovered several new and safe routes.

Many journeys became shorter as a result, and the likelihood of encountering dangers decreased significantly.

Because of his achievements, he had become a highly esteemed figure in the Water Capital’s maritime circles. Just a few years ago, he was even summoned by the King and awarded the title of Honorary Lord, stepping one foot into nobility.

While his status had elevated, it seemed his philosophy remained unchanged. For decades, he continued venturing into uncharted seas, exploring forgotten islands and reaching for the unknown.

Perhaps as he often said: “Life is a mere handful of decades. I refuse to let mine be dull and ordinary.”

“Tap, tap, tap!” Footsteps echoed through the room.

Accompanied by the barkeep, an elderly man emerged from the back.

He appeared to be around sixty years old, clad in a finely tailored long coat and donning a captain’s hat. His hair had turned white, his face etched with deep wrinkles, but his eyes remained bright, radiating youthful vigor.

He strode quickly, his urgency almost palpable. Before even reaching Lynch, he exclaimed, “My sailor told me someone here wants to venture into dangerous, uncharted seas for an adventure? May I know what kind of—”

His words abruptly cut off.

It was as though he had seen something utterly unbelievable. His aged eyes widened in shock as he stared at Lynch, his entire body trembling as if struck by lightning.

The barkeep, puzzled, instinctively reached out to steady his boss, thinking something might be wrong with his health.

But the old man waved the barkeep off and staggered toward Lynch. He studied Lynch closely, his eyes filled with disbelief.

“You…”

“It’s you…”

His voice trembled with emotion, sounding dry with excitement as he muttered to himself, staring at Lynch.

Lynch froze for a moment. “Do we know each other?”

He searched his memories for any interaction with the old man, and soon, a brief incident from years ago surfaced. Back when he first arrived in the human world, despite the substantial change in his appearance, the essence of his soul was immutable.

At the same time, the old man removed his hat and bowed deeply to Lynch, his gratitude overflowing as he said, “It’s you again, Master Wizard!”

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