Inazuma.
On the sea not far from Ritou Harbor, a gigantic aircraft carrier was slowly cutting through the waves.
More than a dozen wooden ships followed behind it.
It was none other than the Southern Cross Fleet from Liyue Harbor.
After sailing through the entire night, they were finally about to reach Inazuma.
Inside the control room, Beidou looked at the busy crew members before patting the young man beside her on the shoulder.
"Thanks. If you hadn't taught them, we wouldn't even be able to operate this ship."
"They've only learned the basics. It'll take a lot more time before they're truly proficient."
Kazuha shook his head.
After leaving Liyue Harbor and satisfying his own desire to pilot the carrier for a while, he had accepted Beidou's request and selected several literate crew members to teach.
He carefully explained the carrier's systems and operating procedures.
That way, once he left, they wouldn't be completely helpless.
But an aircraft carrier was an extremely complicated machine.
Combined with the fact that none of the sailors had ever seen anything like it before, the learning curve was enormous.
Fortunately, Kazuha possessed the knowledge and experience inherited from two ace pilots.
After spending most of a day teaching them, he finally managed to help them grasp the fundamentals.
The rest of the voyage had been carried out by the crew themselves while he supervised from the side.
That was also why the trip had taken so much longer than expected.
"We can't help it. We've never seen anything like this before. Being able to operate it at all is already enough for now."
Beidou laughed heartily.
Without Kazuha, they wouldn't have even been able to get the vessel moving.
So she was already more than satisfied.
They could worry about mastering it later.
Her attitude toward such things had always been relaxed.
"Oh right. We'll be reaching Inazuma soon. Where are you planning to go? The Resistance?"
Leaning against the wall, Beidou looked toward Kazuha.
She still remembered him saying that he wanted to bring light to Inazuma.
If that was his goal, joining the Resistance would seem like the most logical choice.
"No. I'm planning to find the Boss's manga shop first."
Kazuha shook his head.
After all this time, Han Feng was probably already operating the Inazuma branch.
There was no way he could miss it.
After all, everyone could only read once per day.
That opportunity was far too valuable.
And once he located the shop, he could bring members of the Resistance there as well.
Strengthening their abilities would give them a much better chance against the Shogunate Army.
"Do you know where the branch is?"
Beidou immediately pointed out the key problem.
Inazuma wasn't like Mondstadt or Liyue.
Those nations were centered around a single major city.
Mondstadt City.
Liyue Harbor.
Outside those locations, the population was relatively sparse.
That made the manga shops easy to find.
But Inazuma was different.
The nation consisted of numerous islands.
Its population and political forces were scattered across them.
Trying to locate a single manga shop in such a fragmented country would be much more difficult.
"So I'll head to Inazuma City first. That's probably the most likely place. If I still can't find it, I'll ask Thoma. As a local, he might know something."
Kazuha smiled.
He had already thought through the matter.
"That sounds reasonable. In that case, I'll come with you."
Beidou stepped forward and patted his shoulder.
The fleet would be staying in Inazuma for a while anyway.
This would be a good opportunity to take a look.
Otherwise, they'd have to wait until tomorrow—or even the day after—to read manga again.
Now that she understood how miraculous the manga shop was, she had no intention of waiting that long.
At that moment, one of the crew members ran over.
"Captain! We're about to reach Inazuma!"
"Prepare to dock!"
Beidou waved her hand decisively.
"Yes, Captain!"
A century ago, Hiiragi Hiroshi of the Kanjou Commission had miraculously transformed a barren island into a thriving commercial hub.
That place became Ritou.
His achievement had even earned the admiration of the Raiden Shogun herself.
But after the Sakoku Decree took effect, merchants from overseas gradually disappeared.
Now, only the occasional fleet from Liyue still arrived.
Because supplies had become scarce, every shipment sparked fierce competition among merchants.
At this moment, many traders had already gathered at the harbor.
They frequently glanced toward the sea, their expressions anxious.
"By the usual schedule, the Liyue fleet should've arrived already. Why hasn't there been any sign of them these past two days?"
"Exactly. I've been waiting for two whole days."
"Could it be because of the Sakoku Decree? Maybe they're too afraid to come now?"
"Careful with your words! The Shogun's pursuit of Eternity naturally has its reasons."
"Maybe they encountered a storm at sea?"
"That seems likely."
After discussing the possibilities, most of them agreed that bad weather was the most probable explanation.
After all, delays caused by storms weren't uncommon.
Such things had happened before.
Just never for this long.
While they were talking, someone suddenly shouted.
"Look! There's a ship coming!"
Everyone immediately turned toward the horizon.
More than a dozen vessels were emerging from the sea.
And leading them—was an enormous warship unlike anything they had ever seen.
Its imposing silhouette and overwhelming size instantly stunned everyone present.
"My... my heavens! A ship can be that large?"
"The wooden ships around it look like toys!"
"Which nation does that fleet belong to? Fontaine?"
"No! I can see the banner! It's the Southern Cross Fleet!"
"The Southern Cross Fleet?! Since when did they own something this incredible?"
"Who knows? Maybe that's why they've been delayed for so long!"
As the colossal carrier slowly approached, the merchants unconsciously swallowed.
Their faces were filled with shock.
Standing before such a vessel, they couldn't help but feel unbelievably small.
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