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Volu 3, Part 2, Free City
Editor: Tseirp
“I feel the wind of freedom!”
Ryo said, taking a deep breath on the deck of the Lone Dark.
“What’s this ‘wind of freedom’ supposed to be?”
The king, his companion, didn’t seem to feel the sa.
A monarch of an absolute state would, of course, be an enemy of freedom!
Naturally, the Kingdom of Knightley has laws.
Even a king can’t ignore the laws, so technically, Abel is more of a constitutional monarch than an absolute ruler.
But Ryo didn’t care about such details.
Absolute monarchy had a more tyrannical image, so Ryo liked to picture Abel as an absolute monarch.
“Ryo, you’re scheming sothing again, aren’t you?”
“A-again with the false accusations, Abel! I was rely imagining a future where the citizens of the Kingdom of Knightley are happy.”
“Hmm…”
Abel, clearly not convinced by Ryo’s explanation.
“In my holand, there’s a saying: ‘The city air makes one free’. If people spend a year and a day in a free city after escaping from a tyrannical lord, they can break free from their oppressor.”
“Interesting. So there are many different laws in the world.”
Ryo was referring to the knowledge he’d learned in high school world history.
Whether it applied in the Free City of Kwebasa was another matter entirely.
The Lone Dark, where the two stood on deck, was anchored about 300 ters off the coast of Kwebasa Freeport.
Awaiting permission to dock.
Being a warship of the Suje Kingdom, the entry procedures were different from a rchant vessel.
Of course, the Suje Kingdom embassy had submitted prior notice, so they expected to be allowed entry shortly, according to Captain Gorick.
“Flag signal spotted from port. ‘Wait where you are’. Repeating: ‘Wait where you are!’ ”
A crew mber at the mast shouted.
Captain Gorick, who was at the bow, also confird it with his own eyes.
“Confird!”
Gorick turned to Ryo and Abel.
“It seems there’s so issue. You might have to sleep on the ship tonight.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
“Well, nothing we can do.”
Ryo and Abel said, accepting the situation.
They didn’t really have any other choice.
It was already 5 p.m.
And both of them suspected that they’d likely be delayed until the next day.
“It’s sad to be kept waiting right at the last minute.”
“Ryo-san, I’ll make you a delicious dinner tonight to cheer you up.”
The one who brought this comforting news was Lone Dark’s head chef, Susie.
“Really, Susie-san?!”
“Yeah. Since we’re docking tomorrow. We can use all the ingredients we have. Leave it to !”
“Yay!”
Ryo almost jumped for joy at Susie’s words.
The crew smiled as they watched Ryo’s delight.
The scene on deck was one of peacefulness.
The Free City of Kwebasa consists of the mainland, three large islands, and more than ten smaller islands.
The three large islands are called Administration Island, Diplomatic Island, and Prison Island.
As their nas suggest, each island is ho to its respective institutions.
Administration Island houses the central governnt, including the Supre Council, Free Parliant, and various ministries, making it the administrative hub of Kwebasa.
It’s quite a large island, accommodating the state’s nerve center.
Diplomatic Island is where embassies from various countries and state-run accommodations for delegations are located.
The embassy of the Suje Kingdom is also there, with over a hundred diplomats permanently stationed.
After completing their mission of delivering Ryo and Abel, the crew of the Lone Dark would stay on the island for so ti to receive new orders.
The embassy on this diplomatic island will serve as the center of the mission.
Finally, there’s Prison Island. Which, as the na implies, is a massive prison.
It contains various types of facilities, from those housing petty criminals to high-security prisons for serious offenders.
Naturally, public access to this island is heavily restricted.
The three large islands are connected to the mainland by massive bridges several hundred ters long.
There’s also a bridge between Administration Island and Diplomatic Island, making travel between them convenient.
Kwebasa Freeport, where the Lone Dark was set to dock, is located on the mainland. Most of the comrcial and residential areas are also on the mainland.
The accommodation prepared by the Suje Kingdom for Ryo and Abel was also said to be on the mainland.
Their stay was pre-paid by the Suje Kingdom for two months.
A surprisingly VIP treatnt!
One of the ministries that governs the Free City of Kwebasa is the Ministry of Ports.
Mishita, the deputy minister of the Port Authority, was frowning.
In front of him stood Ronfan, his assistant, waiting for instructions.
Mishita knew he was waiting, but…
“Are you sure Minister Bagaji gave this order?”
It was the sixth ti Mishita had asked for confirmation.
“Yes, there’s no mistake.”
It was the sixth ti Ronfan had answered.
“He wants us to let the flagship Franze of the Atinjo Grand Duchy dock at the administrative port, while the entire fleet accompanying it is to dock at Freeport? We’ve never issued such an order before!”
“Yes, I’ve never heard of anything like it. When I received the order, I asked for confirmation myself, but he insisted that it was correct… word for word.”
“What could he be thinking…?”
Mishita sighed for the umpteenth ti.
If they followed this order, it would undoubtedly lead to chaos.
The administrative port, located on Administration Island.
Primarily serves military and official vessels, including those of the Kwebasa Navy.
While there was so leeway, docking the flagship Franze might be manageable.
The problem was the accompanying fleet.
The Freeport is large.
As it should be for a nation that thrives on trade.
However…
“A fleet of 200 ships… If that many warships enter Freeport all at once, it’ll cause a massive disruption. How does the minister not understand that?”
Of course, there was space for 200 ships to dock.
But these were warships.
And the crews were military personnel.
With the neighboring nations of the Atinjo Grand Duchy and the Ghegish-Lu Federation being so tense… it was easy to imagine this sparking a conflict.
“In general, no more than ten warships are allowed to anchor in port at one ti… right?”
“Yes, that’s correct. Although, it’s rare for even ten warships to co to this free city…”
Indeed, it rarely happened.
They would typically reject such requests through diplomatic channels.
But this ti, various exceptions had been made.
“Their arrival is the day after tomorrow? There’s no helping it… accept them.”
“Understood.”
Deputy Minister Mishita gave the order, and his assistant Ronfan nodded.
“There’s another issue: the port functions have been disrupted, and…”
“Hm? At this ti, there’s a request for a warship to dock?”
“Yes. It’s the Lone Dark of the Central Navy of the Suje Kingdom, requesting to dock.”
“Hmm. Wasn’t it originally scheduled to dock four days ago? Is there an issue with the embassy’s prior notice?”
“No issues. Of the 100 crew mbers, half are scheduled to stay at the embassy, while the other half will stay in the city… their entry applications have already been submitted.”
As Mishita flipped through the docunts, Ronfan added further details.
“Hmm. Despite the rebellion, the queen’s ascension, and all the resulting chaos, they’ve sent a ship here… They must be stepping up their intelligence-gathering efforts. I wonder what their true goal is…”
Mishita let out a small sigh.
Frankly, he wasn’t good at handling these kinds of intrigues.
But with his superiors being unreliable, he had no choice.
He had resigned himself to this fate.
“Very well. Allow the Suje Kingdom’s ship to dock tomorrow morning. Inform Freeport.”
“Understood.”
And so, the Lone Dark, carrying Ryo and Abel, was granted permission to dock the following day.
That night, a luxurious last supper was served, putting the entire crew in high spirits.
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