PC04B

<It's so... big!>

Amazing… I didn't know there were remaining vessels of this class in Iberia.

Aha, I espy her name here! 'Tis called by the name Rebelión de las Masas.

Rebelión de las Masas… "Revolt of the Masses", is it? A name very much mired in peculiarity, indeed.

Hong Lu chimed in, that he was rather fond of it with its size being about the same as the boat from his home, while Ishmael quickly jumped in to correct us that its size alone wasn't anything special at the Great Lake, but…

... It was still pretty big compared to Mephi or the Indigo Elder's skiff.

<I thought it was going to be somewhere around Mephi's size, at most… Are you sure you can get this ship fixed in a day or two?>

As I briefed you yesterday, the great majority of the time-consuming repairs had already been completed by the villagers.

The extent of our repair efforts only concerns a few components within the vessel that the villagers could not repair, which shouldn't take us much time.

Unless parts that are unfamiliar to Faust are also malfunctioning, such as the core engine, remaining repairs should be sufficiently managed by Faust.

Despite Outis's confident declaration, I could not help but feel oddly unsettled as I looked at the ship.

I don't know why, but… something tells me that we don't want to linger here for too long…

<Still, please be thorough about it, just in case.>

<I'd rather not sit on a sinking ship again… the experience at the Great Lake was enough.>

Do not worry, Dante.

Unlike Mephistopheles, most functions of this vessel - buoyancy gear, propellers, steering gear - are all in operational capacity. This repair should be much easier than the case with Mephistopheles.

They seem confident enough... it should be safe this time around, right?

Are we taking that rope to climb up to the ship?

No, there's a lift-like apparatus down here. It should take us up to the ship.

Its stability was verified yesterday. Let us board the lift.

<You're one-hundred-per-cent certain, right...?>

The boat is afloat right now, Dante. I don't think it'll be sinking anytime soon.

<Wouldn't that be nice.>

Oi, are you two just going to faff about down here? We're headin' up now.

<N-no, we're going with you.>

As I made my way into the vessel's bridge...

... I was greeted by the extravagant interior that was as gaudy as its exterior.

T-this isn't real gold, is it? Sure is shiny as heck in here… I've got butterflies in my stomach.

Hm… A.S.

"Aesthetically Satisfying," she says…

But too ostentatious. Not quite my style.

Our young Mephi is also quite the excellent vessel, yet… Imagine the adventures we could embark on aboard this vessel most lavishly decorated...!

As Faust and Outis were working on one of the control panels, Ishmael walked up to another and interfaced with it before giving a knowing nod.

This must've been an investigative or research vessel of sorts… but it does seem a bit extravagant for one of those, though.

Look, coordinates. Updating in real-time, it seems…

The coordinates seem to have been set to somewhere out in the middle of the ocean. Maybe it points to a small islet?

Nope, no islet there.

Waagh!

B-blimey, lass. You sure know how to sneak up on people.

<Mayors!?>

Ha ha, what? Did I actually surprise you? I did ask if you guys were gonna come fix the boat today.

Still, I didn't know you'd be here…

Hmm… Why are the coordinates set to this location?

There are several undersea cities beneath those coordinates. Collectively known as Ægir.

Gramps' home.

… I see. Understood.

Hm? What was understood, if I may ask?

It is now understood why the promise to repair this ship was sufficient to earn their trust and the title of 'saviors'.

What's she on about? Someone get translatin'.

… Consolidating and cross-referencing the observed particular circumstances of the village and the statements from the village chief, alongside information garnered from the exchange with Mayors, it is possible to gauge the significance this ship's repair has to the local populace.

Of course, while this may constitute a sequence of logical connections that poses a certain challenge for Heathcliff to comprehend,

to employ any degree of effort to attempt to explain it in more digestible language would constitute a pursuit of inefficiency.

…….

L-lower the baton, I implore you! I shall explain it in full.

Haah… I was wondering when Miss smartarse would start gabbing like that again. So, what's she on about?

Heathcliff's shoulders were relaxed; it didn't seem like he was actually going to swing the bat. He placed it lightly over his shoulder with a sigh.

A brief observation of the village seemed to suggest that their subsistence situation was quite dire; much of their daily sustenance consisted of dried food, most of them made for long-term storage purposes.

Considering what Skadi said about how the coastal areas are full of danger… maybe those dried seafood aren't from around here, either.

Maybe it's food they packed when they first came to Faro Muerto?

<Some villagers were armed, yeah, and those "Sea Terrors" weren't exactly that formidable, but...>

<... given the state the villagers are in, I doubt they'd have an easy time repelling those monsters.>

Indeed. And that brings us to the question of sustenance...

Right, I get what's goin' on here.

The lass and her granddad are 'bout to visit their hometown, and they're tryin' to get some food supplies from there to feed the villagers, and to convince 'em, they're planning to use the fact they're from the same neck 'o the woods. Or sea, I guess.

Ohh, so we're not just repairing their ship, we're repairing their food supply plan, too!

Huh? What's wrong?

<It's uh…>

While the expressions were rather crude, Heathcliff's summary of the situation was clear, to the point, and easily understood. The Sinners stared at him with mild surprise.

And I did, too…

… What's with them annoyin' looks? Wait. Oh, you sods…!

You don't think I'm that dimwitted, do you?

Heh. Top-notch intuition.

<It's just that… It's been a while since you've shown this side of yourself.>

Thinking back, Heathcliff's intuition's always been excellent, and he'd often put together surprisingly accurate conclusions with impressive speed.

Y-you know, when you really think about it, it's kind of your fault for - aah!?

I've been too soft on you lately, haven't I? Oi! Get back here!

Ahem... Now, with those fools out of the conversation… Was he correct?

Outis looks away from the usual chaos and asks Mayors.

Honestly, I'm surprised. He was on point.

Yeah. Food's been running low in the village. At this rate, we won't last another year...

But the Ægir will… I'm sure they'll welcome us with open arms.

… I don't want to come off like I'm overly worried, but… do you think they'll welcome the others, too?

Unlike Mayors or chief, they're… not Ægir.

I believe they will.

Iberia suspects and hates the Ægir for no other reason than that we're from the sea, but…

Our home cannot have fallen so low as to abandon a group of starving land-dwellers.

…….

P-prithee, might thou explain to us who… the Ægir are…?

... I had initially thought it to be a reference to a region, yet it also seems to refer to an affiliation of sorts.

Maybe they're something like Nest dwellers? Though I don't think I've heard of a Nest that accepts Backstreets people with open arms.

Or maybe… they used to be some rich folk?

If they call them Nest toffs Ægir here, then does that make the rabbit-eared lass Ægir, too?

…….

Wait, in the world you came from… do they not distinguish between races?

That is not entirely true. Delineation between races is a concept that does exist.

Though I only saw them in the fathoms... there were those terrifying things called the Cuckoospawns.

However, as a general rule, it can be said that humans are - excuse me, humans should be the only intelligent lifeforms in the City.

The people of Terra... have slightly varying appearances depending on their race. Like my... Cautus ears.

And I've got pointed ears, because I'm an Ægir. Though it's not a characteristic every Ægir shares…

The closest idea to what they are discussing appeareth to be… umm, uhm...

Don Quixote seemed to be struggling to finish her sentence.

Meursault stepped in to continue.

By context clues and the manner of word usage, including the means of classification, the closest example in our world would be Bloodfiends. Similar external appearances to humans, different natures, comparable sapience.

'Tis of my belief that Bloodfiends are ostracized due to their nature that maketh coexistence with humans difficult. It may be that the Ægir are also…

I'm sure some of them do possess qualities that make coexistence with others difficult, but… they're probably rare.

Then wherefore are they made subjects of suspicion and hatred…?

That's...

Well... the language is new, but the idea itself is pretty familiar to the City folks like us.

Think of feathers of fallen Wings. Kids born in the Backstreets. People who replaced their body parts with prosthetics.

The form differs, yet in its essence we find the thread.

…….

Something about how we keep finding these similarities in the ways of our lives, despite finding ourselves in a distant world with different rules, races, and humans...

... felt oddly discomforting.

Ahem. The point is, you guys are doing us a real solid by fixing up the ship.

Let's move on from these gloomy conversations, okay? I wanna show you the cooler parts of this ship. This way -

… The ship tour may have to wait.

The repairs are almost completed, but an issue has arisen.

Issue...?

W-wow, that's not reassuring at all…

…!

Multiple lifeforms identified ahead! Assumed to be a Sea Terror horde!

The ship's radar system seems to suggest that the vessel is surrounded.

<They're the same monsters from yesterday!>

Executive Manager! Please order us to prepare for battle!

Dammit... Are they the 'Sea Terrors' you encountered?

They look a bit different, but… yeah, probably.

There's a lot of them, but… if our last experience tells us anything, we should be able to handle this.

<Amiya, please support us in battle like you did yesterday!>

Canst thou fight, young Mayors?

I... feel like I'm just gonna get in your way…

<Then... Guys, find a place to keep Mayors as far as possible from the battle.>

<Then let's hurry down there. We don't want them damaging the ship any further.>