Chapter 290 – Ship Gridnt
As soon as we exited the dense forest of buildings, a refreshing breeze greeted us, along with the sight of a massive dock.
“Woooow!”
Lily let out a gasp as she looked around.
A blue-hued river shimred as it flowed around the entire city.
Golden waves sparkled beneath the sun.
It was the Kenline River, the lifeline of Hell Gri.
Bwooooooo~!
“Woof! Woof! Woof!”
At the sudden blare of a ship horn, Keros barked sharply, alert and on edge.
In the distance, a ship floating on the river ca into view.
‘I didn’t think I’d see that ship in person.’
It was so large, you could make it out clearly even from far away.
A massive vessel clad in blue steel armor.
Capable of holding several hundred passengers, yet it mysteriously hovered just above the flowing current as if it were floating effortlessly.
“Even seeing it in person, it’s hard to believe.”
Demtor and Aintrier.
A representative mode of transportation on the Kenline River, created through the fusion of magic and capital.
It was the Ship Gridnt, the massive anti-gravity transport vessel I once imagined while reading the novel.
“The ship’s floating on water!”
Lily pointed at the ship with wide eyes.
It must have looked amazing to her, seeing such a gigantic vessel levitating so low above the river.
“Is this your first ti seeing the Gridnt?”
“Uh? Grid… what?”
“This is your first ti here, right?”
“Yeah. This place is off-limits for witches.”
Maybe because it was her first ti visiting, she looked around with sparkling eyes, clearly excited.
Then she pointed at the ship again.
“Are we riding that?”
“If you keep your promise to .”
On the main road,
I could feel passersby slowing down when they saw her, so I pulled Lily’s hood up to cover her face.
After the commotion she caused at the vagrant camp, I changed her outfit before crossing the wall.
I got rid of her witch clothes—fed them to Keros—and bought her a large robe that covered her from head to toe. But she looked uncomfortable in it.
Whenever she got the chance, she’d yank the hood off. That was a problem too.
“Is my face really that noticeable?”
Though she often admired herself in mirrors, claiming how beautiful she looked, we all just ignored her. But strangers were different.
‘She is gorgeous, after all.’
Lustrous black hair and pale skin.
A dreamy, languid aura unique to the Sloth trait.
Once her face was exposed, it didn’t take long for attention to focus on her.
If she stayed exposed for too long, it would cause trouble. So I hurried our pace toward the dock.
As we walked, she shook off the hood again, and I pulled it back on.
I must’ve done that ten tis already during the walk.
She must really hate it.
“This is so stuffy! It's uncomfortable!”
“If you don’t wear it, things will get more uncomfortable. Don’t you want that?”
“…That??”
When she turned her gaze where I pointed, she saw skewers sizzling with steam.
I bought a few and placed them in her hands.
“If you keep your hood on, I’ll buy one of every flavor.”
“Mmm…”
After seriously tasting one, she nodded enthusiastically.
Thankfully, it suited her taste.
I pulled the at off one skewer and tossed it to Keros.
“Keep an eye on Lily.”
“Woof!”
“Got it…”
Just then, the at I threw turned golden and vanished.
Watching Keros happily chomp on the skewer, I sighed.
I wasn’t sure if it was right to use Sacred Power for sothing like this.
The dock was bustling with people.
Many rchants had co to trade around the Kenline River, loading goods onto the Ship Gridnt from smaller boats.
I could see laborers lined up, carrying heavy loads.
It looked grueling, but their faces seed cheerful.
Even vagrants, once inside the city, could make a living through safe work like this.
After briefly crossing the crowded dock, I entered a building at its far end.
Inside, it was lavishly decorated.
An upscale office—it was where you made reservations for the Ship Gridnt.
‘Why is it so empty?’
It was a must-visit for any outsider, so I expected it to be packed. But both inside and outside, it was oddly vacant.
I glanced around, confused, then seated Lily on a small sofa and walked to the desk where a staff mber stood.
That’s when I learned why.
“…You're saying all the reservations are full?”
“That is correct.”
Only two Ship Gridnts existed on the Kenline River. So, there were fixed schedules for boarding.
I had assud they operated five to six tis a month, but an unexpected problem had occurred.
“During the Dark Sales period, if you don’t reserve in advance, it’s nearly impossible to board.”
The Dark Sales.
“When’s the next available date for reservation?”
“You’ll likely have to wait about a month.”
A month.
That was far too late.
I needed to reach Aintrier ahead of Lochter’s group to secure our position and wait for them.
I slid so gold coins toward the clerk.
In this place, money usually solved everything.
But the amount needed was heavier than expected.
I placed 3 gold coins down, but the clerk stood motionless.
He wore a copper mask, so I couldn’t read his expression.
When I raised it to 10 gold, he pocketed the coins naturally and replied offhandedly,
“There are rules to the reservation system.”
“Rules??”
“The Push-Out Rule.”
There were 200 designated seats.
And for 550 gold, you could bump soone from the lowest tier.
For 1000 gold, your seat was fully secured.
It was absurd.
Even 550 gold was ridiculous.
Due to the Dark Sales, the wealthy had driven prices through the roof by pushing others out.
“What is this, a VIP club bribe room or sothing?”
I paused to think.
Even if I excluded Keros, taking Lily would cost at least 1100 gold.
It’s not that steep, really.
I still had Fenry’s bag of gems, which was basically his entire fortune. Honestly, 1100 gold was nothing.
But typically, you’d pay under 100 gold—was it really worth paying this much for a designated seat?
First, I needed information.
“Can you tell why the price shot up?”
“We don’t disclose internal matters.”
I offered another 10 gold.
The answer ca imdiately.
“A group from Demtor reserved a large number of seats at once, driving the price up.”
“Demtor? From the Arcane Tower?”
“Yes, both the Arcane Tower and the Cleaners, from what I’ve heard.”
The Arcane Tower and the Cleaners.
If they were pushing out reservations, it must an they brought more people than expected.
‘But Demtor shouldn’t have the resources for the Dark Sales right now…’
Demtor suffered massive losses during the battle at Ordor Forest, even with all their Star-level forces deployed.
They should be scrambling to recover, not attending so sales event.
It was strange, but for so reason, I felt like I had to board the sa ship they were on.
Forget the designated seats.
I had zero intention of boarding the reserved section with Lily, where Demtor’s people would be.
I looked around.
There were dozens of employees in the building, but only a few wore masks.
I focused on one man wearing a silver mask.
Since this was the Ship Gridnt's reservation office, the man in the silver mask must’ve been a key figure.
In Aintrier, masks represented status: Gold, Silver, Bronze.
A silver mask ant he was one of the highest-ranking people here.
He also looks like he’s got decent combat ability.
I pointed to the man in the silver mask.
“I want to speak with him.”
“You can speak to ,” said the bronze-masked clerk.
I handed the bronze-mask 10 gold and replied,
“I don’t think you’re up to it.”
After a pause, he approached the silver mask and gave a respectful bow.
Monts later, the man in the silver mask approached .
He moved with composure—clearly soone with real authority here.
“I heard you requested a eting.”
“I need two spots on the Ship Gridnt.”
“Then use the reservation system.”
“I don’t want designated seats.”
I handed him a small pouch.
He checked the contents, then looked at and asked,
“If not designated seats?”
“The storage area is fine.”
The silver-mask nodded and led into a side room.
He offered a seat and served tea.
Then, he handed a letter of recomndation.
That was the end of our conversation.
I left the room with that paper in hand.
‘Guess 500 gold really was enough.’
The bribe worked.
As intended, I secured two spots in the cargo section of the Ship Gridnt boarding Demtor’s group.
Not every passenger is wealthy.
Their underlings and attendants would need space too.
The storage area was where most trade goods were kept, so slipping in two people there wasn’t a big ask for soone in charge.
Departure was scheduled for dawn—right before sunrise.
When I returned to the entrance, Lily was fast asleep, snoring against the wall.
“You really sleep well.”
She had half a skewer dangling from her mouth. Keros was about to lick it but froze when he saw .
“Hungry?”
“Woof!”
I picked up Lily and looked down at Keros, who wagged his tail and trotted over.
I grabbed the scruff of his neck and lifted him up.
He drooped his tongue and went limp in my hand.
“You know how to act?”
“Woof??”
“Play dead.”
With that, I figured I wouldn’t need to pay Keros’s fare next ti, or even register him.
Bwoooooong—!
A horn echoed across the night sky.
Just before dawn, the darkest hour, I stood at the dock, Lily still asleep on my back.
Even at this hour, the dock was crowded with people queuing to board the Ship Gridnt.
The line was split into two.
One side for designated seat passengers, the other for those carrying luggage or working for the VIPs.
“Next passenger.”
A small boat pulled in, checked the designated list, and quickly ferried the guest away.
One person per boat.
Apparently, the higher the price, the better the service. Dozens of small boats waited their turn to escort VIPs to the main ship.
“No such thing as economy class, huh.”
They say there’s no place with clearer class separation than air travel—this felt similar.
Each VIP was escorted to the ship by a beautiful woman.
In my case, dozens of us were packed into one boat.
Of course, there was strict ID verification beforehand.
I handed the official the letter of recomndation from the silver mask.
After nodding, the man checked Lily, then narrowed his eyes at Keros slumped on my shoulder.
“There was no ntion of a dog.”
“It’s a puppet.”
“A puppet? This?”
Suspicious, the man grabbed Keros’s cheek and tugged.
“Feels real.”
“If you doubt , stab it.”
And he did—poked Keros in the back several tis with a dagger before finally nodding.
“Go ahead.”
The mont we boarded, I felt a sharp pinch on my shoulder. Keros had bit hard and glared.
I smiled and quietly grabbed him by the scruff.
“Let go, idiot. Can’t you see all the people?”
“I didn’t think he’d actually stab !”
“Ahh, at…”
Still dreaming, Lily bit Keros’s back like she was eating in her sleep.
Biting and being bitten—we slowly boarded the Ship Gridnt together.
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