How the Villainous Consort Avoids His Death Ending - Chapter 52.1
After looking around the flagship, we finally headed to the admiral’s quarters. Tristan’s private residence was divided into a reception room, a study, and a bedroom, and overall it was even more spacious than before.
Tristan, who had been looking over the maps, turned to greet us. I furrowed my brows slightly and muttered to Tristan.
“If it was going to be built this spacious, I wish it had been divided in two, so I could have my own cabin as well.”
I swallowed the comment in one gulp. It was said in a complaining tone, but not seriously. Tristan, glancing briefly at me, still wore an expressionless face, but the corners of his lips were slightly, very faintly, curved upward. I laughed quietly, pretending to examine the shelves filled with logs and military books along the wall.
‘Does he really like the new flagship that much? Love it, even. I should have bought it sooner.’
Of course, the timing was not right to buy it earlier. Although I was not the one who bought it.
Still, seeing him so happy, I had no desire to complain that my own cabin had not been built. It was fine as it was. After all, we were sharing it anyway, so Tristan’s cabin was also my cabin, in a way.
❖ ❖ ❖
The preparations for departure officially began. Tristan and I, along with several key knights including Gehardt, Midred, and Johannes, gathered in the reception room of the admiral’s quarters to hold a meeting.
For a while, however, everyone simply stared intently at Matthias’s maps placed at the center of the table without saying a word. All of them looked quite serious.
This was a newly established route, abandoning the already profitable trade with the Northern Continent. Starting this venture meant taking on massive debt, so the burden was enormous. We simply could not afford failure.
“So, Your Highness, are you suggesting that instead of following the continental coastline closely, we turn in the opposite direction and head far into the open sea?”
“If we head south along the coast toward the east, we will have to sail against the headwinds for a long time. It would be difficult and dangerous…”
Tristan chose his words carefully as he answered Sir Midred’s question.
“We must pass through the Sea of Death.”
Because of the calm, windless area in that section, the sea route to the Sarr Empire had never been opened before. I gazed quietly at the map Matthias had handed me. Tristan pointed with his index finger to the new route marked in red.
“We will depart from Hezekia Port in the northern part of the empire and head west, not east. By taking a wide arc into the distant western seas, we can completely bypass the Sea of Death. When we reach the southwestern end of the empty sea…”
Tristan paused to study the map. I spoke slowly.
“With the west wind at our backs, we can quickly sail across the desert region on the west coast of the Eastern Continent and enter the capital area of the Sarr Empire in one go.”
Tristan looked up at me silently. When our eyes met, he smiled slightly. After a brief hesitation, he nodded firmly.
“Grand Consort’s explanation is correct. Since it is an untested route, it will naturally be unsettling. However, theoretically, it is entirely possible. The wind blowing from the western seas is the prevailing eastward wind throughout the year.”
“But how can we steer in the opposite direction knowing how vast the sea is…? If something happens and we never return from the open ocean…”
One of the knights murmured anxiously, lowering his head. Tristan tapped the map lightly with his fingertip.
“Do we not have the maps? If we follow them precisely, we can reach Ashurana, the capital of the Sarr Empire, within one month, or at most two months, even taking a longer route.”
“……”
Though no one said it aloud, it was clear that everyone worried about whether they could trust the maps. Even the smallest miscalculation in distance could mean getting lost in the vast sea. Even Tristan, leading the initiative to open a new route, must have had some unease.
But I was confident.
“Trust Grand Duke Your Highness. There is no need to worry at all.”
“Grand Consort……”
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