Aboard the cruiser.
Beidou had been peering through the telescope for a good long while, and had already sensed that something was off.
"How strange—why are there so many Shogunate Navy ships near Ritou? Could something have happened?"
Beside her, the first mate Chongzuo said smugly, "Big Sis, if Inazuma's run into some kind of trouble, then we can rake in another fortune!"
In ordinary times, the Southern Cross fleet could also serve as mercenaries.
There were plenty of skilled hands aboard who could throw down in a fight.
Back when Watatsumi Island's resistance army had clashed with the Shogunate Army, they'd even lent the resistance a hand.
The helmsman, Hailong, roared with laughter: "Let's show the Shogunate Army what our ship can do~!"
"Shh! Inazuma's Guuji Yae is still here, you know!"
"Oh oh... ahem, ahem, ahem."
Hearing this, Beidou nodded. "Even though we don't know what's going on, we can still try to communicate with the Shogunate Army!"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk—they've actually deployed over a dozen warships. By the look of it, whatever's happened is no small matter."
"Just what kind of enemy could have frightened them this badly?"
Hearing Beidou's remarks, Ye Xi glanced toward the bow, then glanced toward the stern.
When he noticed that the ship's flagpole was completely bare, he gave a dry cough.
"Beidou, I have a guess."
"Hmm? Master, please, go ahead!"
Ye Xi pointed at the Shogunate Navy off Ritou and said, "Is there a possibility—I'm just saying, a possibility...."
"That the enemy they've drawn up in full battle array against... is us?"
"Eh!?"
Beidou's face filled with astonishment.
She saw that Ye Xi was pointing at the bare flagpole, and all at once it dawned on her.
"Chongzuo! It was that brat's job to raise the flags!"
"Why doesn't our ship have the Southern Cross fleet's flag flying, or the commerce guild's flag either!"
In this era, no matter what kind of ship it was, it had to fly flags to identify itself.
A merchant vessel coming to trade at Ritou had to fly not only the flag of the commerce guild it belonged to, but also the ensign of Inazuma's International Commerce Guild.
Only then could it enter the country smoothly.
And it was only now that Beidou realized their cruiser wasn't flying any flags at all!
Which meant that Inazuma would treat this ship of unknown origin as an enemy!
Just think about it—with such a terrifying steel behemoth bearing down on them, how could the Shogunate not panic?!
After all that fuss, the enemy turns out to be me myself!?
But come to think of it, the fact that this ship had only just arrived at Inazuma and already scared the Shogunate Navy this badly was rather satisfying.
The first mate took one look outside, and his face instantly went dark: "Big Sis, don't you worry, I'll go drag that brat out right now!"
Ye Xi's face was full of speechlessness: "Shouldn't we be hurrying to raise the flags right now? In a moment the Shogunate Navy is going to come attacking!"
"Oh, right, right!"
Chongzuo hurriedly dashed off to find someone.
Off to the side, Yae Miko laughed out loud, her face full of gloating delight.
One look at the pink-furred fox's reaction, and Ye Xi understood at once.
Yae Miko must have known about this all along—she'd just deliberately kept quiet, wanting to watch the show!
He couldn't help but give the wretched fox's perky little behind a light kick, and said with a frown, "You're still laughing—if the fleet and the Shogunate come to blows in a moment, that's war."
"Mmh~ because it's so much fun!"
"Besides, with you here, how could a fight ever break out?"
Yae Miko rubbed a certain spot and gave a hmph: "How wicked—you actually kicked a girl right there~!"
"What if you broke it?"
"If I can't bear little foxes later on, the one who'll be sad is you, Master~"
Although she hadn't laid her cards on the table yet, Yae Miko had long since come to terms with it.
Among the girls living in the Serenitea Pot, which one wasn't Ye Xi's wife?
Even if they weren't now, none of them would escape it in the future.
So she had known all along that she too would have that day.
The reason she hadn't spelled it out yet was that she wanted to first drag her dear best friend Raiden Ei into the water.
If she let Raiden Ei go ahead of her, then she'd be able to tease Raiden Ei about it later.
However.
Not spelling it out didn't mean she couldn't flirt!
Seeing the wretched fox putting on such a coquettish display, Ye Xi felt a surge of irritation.
This stinky fox!
He had to think of a way to teach this fox a little lesson.
As they were talking, the Southern Cross fleet's great banner rose up the cruiser's flagpole, along with the ensign of the International Commerce Guild.
Seeing this, Kujou Sara, aboard her small boat, knit her brows.
"Is this Liyue's Southern Cross fleet?"
"No—they must have deliberately raised the flags to confuse us, then seize the chance for a sneak attack!"
At this thought, she gave the order: "Close in quickly, and make them submit to inspection!"
"If the situation changes, flee at once!"
"Yes!"
...
Ritou.
On the high ground of the little island, the merchants of the International Commerce Guild and the peddlers of Inazuma were all watching the situation out at sea.
The moment things took a turn, they would immediately flee with their goods and money.
Only, when they saw the cruiser suddenly raise the Southern Cross fleet's great banner, the merchants were all taken aback.
"That's... Liyue's Southern Cross fleet!?"
"Impossible!? That enormous ship is actually a merchant vessel!?"
"I know that fleet—its leader is Liyue's Captain Beidou!"
"Heavens, if this were a cargo ship, just how much freight could it haul!?"
"Didn't you all notice? Its speed is incredibly fast!"
The merchants grew excited all at once.
For the merchants of Inazuma, what mattered most?
A cargo ship, of course!
A sturdy ship, a fast ship, a high-capacity ship—this ship was the merchants' dream [vessel]!
Sturdy meant a smaller chance of cargo being damaged.
You have to understand—in this world there was no such thing as insurance!
Once a ship sank, the loss of the cargo had to be borne by buyer and seller themselves, and that was a brutal, bloody loss!
And fast meant the cargo needn't fear spoilage, with a smaller chance of loss.
Over long voyages, drifting at sea for ten days or half a month, cargo getting damp, corroded, or going bad would all eat away a fair bit of money!
The faster the speed, the less cargo lost!
High capacity meant you could do big business all in one go!
Take importing grain, for instance—each and every import run burned an enormous amount of money.
Every single time, you had to bear tremendous risk!
And this was all Mora!
"Ahem, gentlemen, I still have some matters to attend to. I'll take my leave first."
"Eric, you old swindler, don't think I don't know—you're going off to find a contact to get in touch with the Southern Cross fleet!"
"Gentlemen, no matter what, I am absolutely going to do business with the Southern Cross fleet! Don't any of you try to fight me for it! I've got a huge shipment of goods!"
"Cut the nonsense—the marketplace doesn't have so many rules. Whoever makes contact first gets it!"
"...."
The merchants instantly began jostling and scrambling.
The moment everyone laid eyes on the cruiser, they knew business had come!
...
As long as they could hook up with the Southern Cross fleet and rely on them to haul cargo from then on, wouldn't that mean striking it rich?
There were too many monks and too little porridge—if you were slow, you'd miss the golden opportunity!
.....
The people on the island sprang into action, each striving to be first.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Kujou Sara's small boat had come up close to the cruiser.
The Hatamoto shouted, "Ship ahead, halt immediately! Submit to inspection!"
"We are the Shogunate Navy. If you do not cooperate, you will be treated as a terrorist attack!"
Hearing this shout, the sailors and crew aboard the ship hurriedly responded, explaining their origins.
However, Kujou Sara's attitude did not change in the least.
She took up her bow and arrow, looking poised for battle, and said in a low, stern voice, "Halt at once! If you come any closer to Ritou, don't blame us for striking!"
"This..."
At the sight of the bow and arrow, the crew couldn't help but shrink back.
Just then, a playful, teasing laugh reached Kujou Sara's ears.
"Oh my my, Sara, I'm here, you know."
With a single flit, Yae Miko darted out from the bridge tower and arrived on the deck.
Kujou Sara was instantly stunned: "Lady Guuji Yae? How is it that you're aboard the ship?"
She truly had not expected to run into Yae Miko here!
The pink-furred fox explained with a narrow-eyed smile, "I had some business that took me to Liyue a while back."
"In any case, surely you won't doubt us now, will you?"
"Uh..."
Kujou Sara shook her head and said in all solemnity, "Lady Guuji Yae betrayed Her Excellency the Shogun, and has brought an enemy of unknown identity to attack Inazuma!"
"So it was you who led the enemy here!"
Yae Miko: ....
Ye Xi: ...
Beidou: ...
.....
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