"I can see the port!"
Molly's shout immediately attracted the attention of all the witches on the ship.
"Where? Where?"
"Hey, are we finally there? We've been drifting for almost a month and a half... "
"That silver-white spot of light is another sailboat, isn't it?"
"Isn't it said that only the Charming Beauty travels this route?"
"Fishing boat, it's a fishing boat."
Everyone leaned over the side of the ship and stood on tiptoe to look in the direction Molly was pointing at.
Seeing the lively scene in front of him, the old Captain Jack shook his head with a smile and said to Camilla Dary, who had a grave expression on her face, "You don't look very happy. This is a rare good day. "
"Why is it good?" Camilla replied somewhat absent-mindedly.
"It's good to go home." Jack shook his pipe and said, "Isn't it worth celebrating to be able to return to your homeland after so many years? Don't think that I can't see that you don't regard Sleeping Island as your home. Of course, I don't mean that you hate staying in the Fjords, but there's a difference between a refuge and a home. "
Camilla fell silent. She did not know whether what Jack said was true or not. She only knew that after Her Highness Tilly's letter had been sent back, the number of witches willing to go to the Western Region of Graycastle had increased a lot, gradually climbing from the initial 50% to about 80%. If the first batch of witches could be properly settled, she really could not tell how many of them would be willing to stay on Sleeping Island in the end.
That was supposed to be their home — there was no hostile secular environment, and there was no frightening church. The living conditions would indeed be much worse at the beginning, and the customs and habits would be very different from those of the kingdoms on land. But as long as they persisted for ten years or so, Sleeping Island would definitely become better and better. It would not even take a generation for the newly awakened witches to regard the island as their true homeland.
After a long time, she said in a low voice, "If only it was as you said."
"Oh?" Jack said, stroking his beard. "You don't believe in the king?"
"You know?" Camilla looked up.
"Ha, you have 'I'm worried' written all over your face," the old captain laughed. "Do you remember what it was like when you first set sail on a ship three years ago?"
Three years ago … the chief butler pondered for a moment. That was the time when Her Highness Tilly secretly contacted the witches to evacuate from Graycastle. As one of the few captains who had no prejudice against witches, Jack and his Charming Beauty risked being reported and put on trial to secretly pick up a large number of witches from the port city. Because of this, Sleeping Island had formed a deep friendship with the one-eyed captain.
"Am I in a sorry state?" she asked hesitantly.
"Embarrassed?" Jack snorted. "It's not that simple. At that time, all of you were covered in dirt and your eyes were dull and lifeless. It wouldn't be wrong to say that you were the living dead. Look at the present — don't you feel completely different? Therefore, the past was the past, and the present was the present. It was always right to look forward. Some of them have been to Neverwinter many times. If it was a terrible place, how could they laugh so easily? "
"But the nobles are fickle —"
"Including you?" The old captain interrupted her. "If I remember correctly, you're also a noble, aren't you? The day you left Graycastle, you were dressed more exquisitely than most of the people who boarded the ship — ordinary civilians couldn't afford to wear clothes made of silk. Think about it, if I hated the nobles as much as you do, what would have happened? "
"…" Camilla opened her mouth, but could not answer.
Jack slowly exhaled a mouthful of white smoke. "I don't think a person can be judged by his identity alone. Apart from the Three Gods, who can decide their own origin? The same goes for witches... Don't you think that simply hating witches because of their identity is not fundamentally different from your prejudice? "
The chief butler of Sleeping Island suddenly felt his heart tremble.
"You may say that it's because you're a noble that you know what they are like. But don't forget that as long as one person isn't like them, your prejudice will cause injustice and harm to him. " The old captain paused. "I'm sorry, child... perhaps I shouldn't say these words, but I don't want you to be blinded by your past experience — not only on this matter. People always have to look forward. "
"No, no one will say this except him," Camilla thought. Her Highness Tilly must have understood this long ago, so she took the initiative to go to Neverwinter. But she would not say this directly — especially when she said "there's no essential difference between the two", which almost sounded like a reproach. It was not because they were estranged, but because they were too close, and even the respect His Highness had for her prevented her from further admonishing him.
In the whole of Sleeping Island, perhaps only the old captain would call her child.
Camilla heaved a long sigh. "Maybe you're right."
"Am I?" Jack chuckled. "As you get older, you always encounter similar things. If you don't have an optimistic heart, you won't be able to persist on the sea for so long. But the following days won't be so good. "
"Why?"
"You've all returned to the mainland kingdom. Who else wants to take the Charming Beauty? I heard from those big Chambers of Commerce that a new kind of ship without sails will soon replace the existing ships and become the main merchant ships of the Fjords. Whether it's carrying capacity or speed, it'll be far better than my old partner's. By then, I'm afraid no one will want to use her to transport goods. "
"Maybe I can talk to Her Highness Tilly..."
"Talk about what? Support me for the rest of my life?" The old captain waved his pipe. "That's too early. I can still run! In fact, I plan to send you all to Graycastle, and then go to Lord Thunder's expedition to try my luck. "
"Expedition?" Camilla said in surprise.
"Yes. After crossing the Shadow Islands, we'll go to the untrodden sea. As long as we find something new, not to mention retirement money, we can even open a new business group." One-eyed Jack turned around and looked at the sea in high spirits. "Don't be fooled by my old age and slow legs. When it comes to judging the direction of the wind, there are few captains in the entire Fjords who are more competent than me!"
"Really …" Camilla found that she seemed to know this ordinary-looking old man from the Fjords for the first time. His expression at this moment was simply the best portrayal of "looking forward".
"Chief, we're almost at the shore!" The lookout on the mast shouted.
"Do you need me to teach you what to do next?" Jack looked up and stared at him. "Retract the sails and slow down!"
Camilla looked at the port area and found that there were all kinds of red banners hanging around the pier, all of which read "Welcome to Neverwinter". Among the people welcoming them, there were not only witches but also many ordinary people. She even saw a procession of 11 or 12-year-old children, holding a bunch of flowers in their hands, waiting for their arrival by the pier.
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