His posture was upright, his steps brisk, and the face under his military cap was indeed familiar—he was the captain of the "Grace," Derek Hawthorn.

This captain, who had narrowly escaped death in the storm, had just docked at Saint Yil Castle and immediately stated that he had important matters to report, thus prompting General Hamoldon to summon him.

Passing by the quartermaster who was leaving the room, Derek marched up to the desk and stood at attention, offering a perfect military salute.

"General."

Hamoldon looked up at him.

"I heard you have important information to report to me in person."

Derek nodded, his expression serious as he spoke.

"Yes, regarding the anomalies during this voyage, I've compiled a written report, but there are certain details I believe I should explain personally."

Hamoldon gestured for him to continue.

With the general's silent approval, Derek did not hesitate and immediately recounted in detail his experiences on the Gana Continent.

"Firstly, regarding the regime in the area—the local region is governed by a political entity self-proclaimed as the 'Gutaf United Kingdom,' predominantly inhabited by Lizardmen commonly found along the Vortex Sea coast. They possess their own culture and religious beliefs, and have established a relatively mature civilized society, quite unlike the loose Primitive Tribes we've encountered on the New Continent."

He paused, his expression grave.

"What is most surprising is that they seem to possess steam power technology that is more mature and, in certain aspects, even more advanced than that of the Imperial."

The general's fingers slightly paused, a trace of surprise and disbelief evident on his firm face.

Steam power technology superior to the Imperial?

How is that possible!

If that were true, the Vast Ocean would be filled with the steam ships of that Gutaf United Kingdom instead of the glorious Imperial ones.

Though he felt disbelief towards the intelligence Derek had provided, General Hamoldon did not interrupt him, instead signaling him to proceed.

Derek paused briefly before continuing.

"Secondly, what surprised me was another matter—though it's my first time hearing of the Gana Continent's existence, there are already traces of Imperial colonization on this land."

"Oh?"

General Hamoldon's eyebrows raised as he tapped his pipe against the ashtray, speaking with a tinge of amusement, "How did our colonizers claim a region not even present on sea charts?"

"I was initially perplexed too, but after interacting with the local residents, I believe I've found the answer."

Derek nodded and cautiously continued to speak.

"The local residents are mainly migrants of unknown origin; from my observation, it appears some of them may be sailors who suffered shipwrecks or descendants of missing crew members."

Hamoldon chuckled.

"I see, all these years the missing sailors have ended up there... I thought the ship-devouring sea was merely a rumor."

"This...I don't know, but according to my observations, it's likely not something that happened in recent years. According to the locals, Withered Wood Port has existed for over a hundred years, ruled by an Imperial Prince named Roxey Colin, who established order there while also representing the Imperial in claiming colonial rights to the area."

Seeing Hamoldon's surprised expression, Derek hurriedly continued.

"During my stay, Prince Colin did not make an appearance; instead, his vassal—a man named Ticky Cosia, an Imperial Baron—acted as the Lord of the Baron Territory around Withered Wood Port. Recently, Withered Wood Port is governed by Kedson, appointed by Ticky."

"According to the Baron's account, 'Prince Colin' had previously engaged in military conflict with the Gutaf United Kingdom, but has now signed a truce agreement, maintaining a ceasefire."

"The two sides have agreed to set the Sun Step Mountain Range as the border and have established trade routes, at least ostensibly maintaining peace."

As he spoke, his gaze slightly lowered, his tone somewhat somber.

"I originally planned to stay for three to five days in order to resupply and observe the situation, but considering the numerous anomalies and complexities observed, I decided to set sail the day my ship was repaired."

"Besides, regarding this—"

Derek paused, a complex expression appearing on his face.

"The steam power system of my ship suffered severe damage from the storm. I expected repairs would be impossible for a short time, but...Ticky Baron dispatched a messenger to bring repair personnel from the Gutaf United Kingdom, who completed the repairs in just half a day!"

Hamoldon's expression finally changed slightly.

Though he wasn't well-versed in repair techniques, common sense told him that a malfunction capable of causing a warship to be stranded wasn't something that could be resolved in just half a day!

Most of the time, it takes our engineers at least half a day just to pinpoint the issue!

Yet this fellow claims the natives on the Gana Continent fixed it in half a day?!

What a hellish joke!

Seemingly noticing the disbelief and astonishment on Hamoldon's face, Derek revealed the most shocking fact—

"...They not only repaired our engine but also improved our power components, boosting their operational efficiency by at least thirty percent!"

"I swear to Saint Sis, there isn't a single exaggerated word in what I've said today; you only need to send a craftsman to the Grace for a glance to see for yourself."

Derek finished speaking, standing straight and silently awaiting instructions without further interrupting General Hamoldon's judgment and contemplation.

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