Chapter 37: Sea ​​Voyage

Upon hearing that voice, Sules and Aode’s mouths both twitched downward simultaneously.

They exchanged a glance, revealing wry smiles.

The two, who had just been sizing each other up, now shared a sense of comradeship born from similar troubles.

Taylor swaggered over with several sailors, unapologetically cutting between the two of them.

“What are you two whispering about behind my back?”

Sules took the initiative to speak.

“First Mate Taylor, I just found Second Mate Aode and asked him to give me a tour of the ship. You have so many things to manage, it wouldn’t be right to trouble you with such trivial matters. If you’re involved, it has to be something important enough to decide the ship’s course.”

Her words were artfully crafted, deftly rescuing Aode while shifting the matter onto herself.

At the same time, she complimented Taylor enough to avoid making him feel slighted.

As expected, after she spoke, Sules immediately caught Aode’s grateful gaze and Taylor’s satisfied smile.

Taylor softened his tone and waved off the sailors around him, who had been tense because of his attitude, signaling them to calm down.

Then he smiled at Sules and said, “I like smart people, and I believe you must be one.”

Sules, sticking to her principle of avoiding trouble, nodded respectfully at Taylor.

“I’ll be relying on you in the future. Hopefully, we can have a pleasant collaboration on this journey.”

Taylor was indeed pleased with Sules’s tactfulness.

He had met too many captains who thought themselves superior and still dared to keep an arrogant attitude toward him.

Such captains usually lasted less than a day before he made them suffer.

After all, he was the boss on this ship.

Although satisfied with Sules’s attitude, that didn’t mean he thought highly of her.

Someone so timid could only ever be his subordinate at best.

But come to think of it, it was the first time he had seen a female captain.

Setting aside the anger he had felt before, thinking he’d been looked down upon, Taylor took his first good look at Sules under the sunlight.

He was surprised to find she was a beauty.

A beautiful female captain?

That made things interesting.

The smile on Taylor’s face immediately took on a suggestive edge as he softened his voice, “Captain, Su—Su Captain, right? Was I too harsh just now? Did I scare you?”

Sules had seen this expression too many times to misunderstand his thoughts.

She sneered silently inside but smiled sweetly on the surface, “Not at all, everyone’s very kind. Especially you, First Mate—you look like a good person.”

Though she had no intention of offering herself, Sules didn’t mind leveraging her looks.

Years of cutthroat experience in the business world had taught her never to hesitate in using every advantage.

Taylor, who had been drifting at sea for a long time, hadn’t seen a woman in ages.

At most, he could only enjoy himself with the trivial women on the main ship.

Now that this little beauty spoke kindly, he immediately wanted to show off his power, addressing the sailors, “Once we’re out at sea, you all better work hard and listen to me, got it? Anyone disrespecting the captain, I’ll throw you to the sharks!”

A sailor grumbled silently: Isn’t the biggest disrespect to the captain coming from you?

If it weren’t for you, who would dare shout at the captain?

But it was obvious that Sules had won Taylor’s favor for the moment.

Several sailors quietly tagged her as someone not to be underestimated and treated her with much more respect.

At sea, gender was irrelevant; strength was what determined how others treated you.

Suddenly, Sules remembered something and went down to the market to buy a few things before returning.

***

The next morning, the fleet set off on time.

At the front was a sixth-level main ship, followed by four fourth-level ships, with Sules’s ship among them.

She stayed at the rear, following the ships ahead at a steady pace.

This was not a complicated task.

During this period, Sules had also learned quite a bit from the system and volunteered to pilot the ship herself.

The system, of course, did not object to the host’s proactive progress and promptly gave up control but reminded her, “Player, please note that it takes five seconds for the system to take over your body. Please request a handover before any danger arises.”

They had just left port, so no chance of trouble yet.

Sules gave an OK sign and started steering the ship herself for the first time.

She was a quick learner and picked it up fast.

After the ship lurched a couple of times, she basically got it under control.

However, Sules’s skills were still quite green compared to the system’s precise control.

Although the current operation was simple enough that nothing appeared wrong on the surface, any experienced old hand could tell by looking that this captain’s technique was raw.

A highly skilled captain could maintain a stable course, with the deck feeling almost flat beneath their feet.

Even passengers prone to seasickness wouldn’t feel it much if they didn’t look out at the ocean.

Sules’s direction was generally fine, but careful observers could see the ship swaying erratically.

The crew could clearly feel the uneven pitching.

Old Jack was on the main ship’s deck, holding an umbrella and observing the ship with a physician friend.

Sules was the only newly recruited captain among the current captains and naturally drew more attention.

Both men were veterans with rich sailing experience and keen eyes—they immediately spotted Sules’s clumsy handling.

The physician glanced at Old Jack.

“Is this the ‘very promising and skillful’ rookie captain you mentioned?”

Old Jack was puzzled.

The technical skills Sules had shown him that day were indeed excellent—she had even shown off a trick.

How had she suddenly regressed like this today?

“What is this supposed to be?” he asked, though hiding his doubts behind tough talk.

“This kind of simple maneuvering just needs to keep up with the fleet. The real skills will only show when it really counts.”

The physician knew his old friend’s character and only smiled knowingly, responding vaguely.

Deep down, he didn’t believe Old Jack.

It was normal to misjudge as one grew older.

The plum rain season usually meant continuous rain, and today was no exception.

Since morning, a light drizzle had fallen, making the sea foggy and the route hard to see.

However, the sixth-level main ship naturally came equipped with large lighting instruments.

When Sules got more skilled, she could find two second-level small ships to act as advance ships.

Sules herself had done this before—second-level ships were easy to build and cheap to lose.

Thinking back on those times, she could only smile bitterly.

Human territories were vast, so the mysterious sea was actually quite far from the East Sea.

It was expected to take more than ten days to reach it, meaning this period was just boring travel.

After sailing for a long time, the fleet finally stopped to rest in the evening.

Sules stepped onto the deck, where tables were already set up.

A brown-haired young man was carrying plates over.

Sules recognized him as the ship’s cook, named Kadi, a sunny kid.

Kadi Jeffery stiffened immediately when he saw Sules and loudly reported, “Reporting, Captain! These are the last two plates; all the dishes are served!”

Sules smiled wryly.

“Don’t be nervous. You did great.”

Kadi finally relaxed but, boosted by Sules’s praise, became even more energetic.

His black grape-like eyes sparkled like a little puppy’s.

“Thanks for the compliment, Captain! Come and eat! It’s all hot! Do you want anything else? I can make two more dishes!”

For a moment, Sules thought she saw a wagging tail behind him.

She felt ashamed of her absurd imagination and coughed lightly, “No, no need…”

She wanted to address him by his last name, but they weren’t close enough, and calling him by his first name felt a bit rude.

However, after thinking it over, she awkwardly realized she only remembered his first name and had forgotten his surname.

Asking now would be even ruder.

So, she pretended to be casual and continued, “Kadi, I’ll eat the same as you all. No need to cook extra for me.”

Kadi was unaware of her internal struggle.

Hearing Sules address him by name so familiarly, though shy, made him very happy.

“Alright, Captain Su, but if you ever need anything, be sure to tell me!”

This little exchange passed quickly.

Soon, fifteen crew members, plus Sules, made sixteen in total, gathered around two tables.

Sules stood in the middle, raised her glass of sea barley wine, and gave a calm opening speech before the real meal began.

At this table sat some of the higher-ranking people on the ship: the first and second mates, the gunners, and four sailors who were close to First Mate Taylor.

Taylor raised his glass, looking at Sules with some mischievous intent.

“Captain Su, to celebrate your official joining our ship, let’s drink!”

Sules immediately understood his thinly veiled intention behind this clumsy toast.

But she didn’t refuse and smiled gently as she drained her glass with Taylor.

Seeing Sules so straightforward, Taylor gave a look to the four sailors he had brought along.

They took turns forcing drinks on Sules.

Aode watched Sules with concern. If their captain got drunk, it would be troublesome.

But soon he realized that even after five drinks in a row, Sules’s expression remained unchanged, seemingly quite in control.

Sules noticed Aode’s gaze and nodded slightly at him.

Aode felt much more at ease and leaned back, ready to enjoy the show.

Sules curled her lips and raised her glass toward Taylor.

“First Mate, this one’s for you. We’ll be counting on you for the journey ahead.”

“This one’s for everyone—meeting on the same ship is fate, how can we not drink to it?”

“And this one’s still for you, First Mate! Deep feelings call for a gulp—I’ll drink first!”

After several drinks, Taylor began to realize the situation was not good.

But Sules’s toasts were always reasonable, and he couldn’t refuse.

When he started getting drunk, he poured drinks for himself without anyone having to encourage him.

By the end of the drinking session, he and the four sailors were so drunk they were barely human, swaying like mud.

Throughout, Sules kept a ‘I’m suffering with you’ expression and kept insisting she couldn’t drink, yet remained completely sober.

She smiled sweetly and directed sailors at the next table to carry the five drunks away.

Aode watched in disbelief and couldn’t help but applaud.

“Captain, impressive! You really are hiding your true strength.”