Seeing the sailor so mortified that he couldn't even show his face, Fang Hong felt a twinge of pity, for the sailor hadn't really said anything terrible, and they didn't know who he was, so suspicion was only natural.

He quietly tugged at Hilveld's sleeve, but the Lady Noble gently took his hand, turned her head back and gave him a playful wink.

The meaning was clear—

"Leave it to me."

She turned back around and put on a stern face—Fang Hong had never seen her with such an icy demeanor and couldn't help but be taken aback.

And the Lady Noble, with a stern face as if she hadn't heard a single word from the sailor, said coldly, "On board a ship, what is the punishment for disobeying a superior?"

The sailor's face changed at those words, and he stood there, shaking like a leaf.

Even the Bosun was taken aback and couldn't help saying, "Miss Hilveld..."

But Hilveld didn't spare him a glance, unaffected by his interjection.

However, Fang Hong, witnessing all this, knew exactly what the Lady Noble intended and sighed softly, "Hilveld, let it go."

Hilveld turned back, smiled at him, and nodded slightly.

Then she turned again to face the sailor, whose face was ashen, and said, "Mr. Ade has pleaded on your behalf, have you seen? Confine yourself on the ship for three days. I will report this matter to the Princess and Captain, understood?"

It was only then that the sailor known as Pinky raised his head distraught, nodded repeatedly at Fang Hong with sweat pouring down his face, "Thank you, Mr. Ade, thank you, Miss Hilveld, I understand, I understand!"

Fang Hong couldn't help but shake his head slightly.

But Hilveld noticed his gesture and said softly, "Captain, one day you will be Captain, and you must have this kind of authority. Once we have our ship, not just your crew but also the sailors will be on board. Do you want them to look down on you because of your age?"

"But..." Fang Hong indeed understood her actions, but he had never encountered such a stringent hierarchy before and was still struggling to adapt.

"Captain, I know you are a capable person, and so does everyone else, and surely all who know of the Dolifen incident are aware of this too. But in the future, many others will come aboard, and not everyone will have the chance to understand all this, right?"

Hilveld whispered in his ear, "The rules on Eteliria ships are the accumulation of generations, and each rule has its reason. I will try my best to help you, but you need to set an example."

Fang Hong looked at her, somewhat surprised, and nodded slightly in agreement.

And it must be said.

After this episode, the way the sailors looked at him changed significantly, a new respect showing in their eyes. Although some still disapproved of his reliance on a woman, at least they no longer dared to show it outwardly.

The only side effect seemed to be that the Bosun's impression of Fang Hong greatly worsened, and he no longer brought up the Airbag, retreating to watch from the sidelines, seemingly waiting for Fang Hong to slip up.

Fang Hong saw this but said nothing more. However, this unexpected scene on the small boat was somewhat beyond his expectations.

Although he was touched by Hilveld's efforts to smooth the path for him, he didn't feel it was all that necessary.

He was not as naive and ignorant as the Lady Noble imagined; he simply had his choices to make.

With this in mind, he turned around, pulled down his Wind Goggles, and stretched out his right hand toward a maple tree on the riverbank.

Before anyone could react, a stream of air shot out from the metal glove Fang Hong wore on his hand, and with a "thud," the glove flew off his hand with a metallic tether, crossing a distance of nearly twenty meters.

Then Fang Hong clenched his fist, and the front end of the glove, which he had modified into a special Flexible Construct, responded to his command and clenched as well.

With a "click," the metal glove firmly grasped onto a tree trunk as thick as an arm.

Fang Hong pulled back, and the metal chain snapped taut with a sound of 'buzzing' as the metal winch concealed in the back part of the arm armor began to retract the chain, driven by the Magic Guided Reactor.

The skiff came to a sudden halt under this force and then its bow pointed in that direction.

Everyone who witnessed this scene couldn't help but be stunned, especially the sailor called Little Finger, whose face turned pale—how could these people not realize Fang Hong's identity now?

Combat Artisan—

The status of a formal Alchemist within the Kingdom was not low to begin with, and as the elite among them, Combat Artisans stood out remarkably. Picking a fight with a Combat Artisan—wasn't that a joke?

But such a young Combat Artisan was beyond everyone's expectations.

While everyone was still dazed, they heard Fang Hong's low shout, "What are you dawdling for? Row!"

This time, without the need for the Bosun's command or Miss Hilveld's reminder, the sailors snapped to their senses with a mix of respect and fear, quickly grabbing their oars and starting to row in unison.

And that sailor from before was even paler, as if he'd been punched in the face, his expression so ugly that his brows and eyes were scrunched together.

But at this moment, the others' gazes held no sympathy for him, instead some reveled in his misfortune—

In fact, even the Bosun was looking at Fang Hong with a mix of surprise and uncertainty, finally fully understanding why Miss Hilveld addressed this young man as Captain.

But Fang Hong didn't care about these reactions; he only looked at the pale-faced fellow and said, "What are you daydreaming about, why aren't you rowing?"

The sailor shivered and stuttering, said, "Com-Combat Artisan, sir, I..."

"I told you to row, didn't you hear me?" Fang Hong raised his tone, "Do you want to make everyone wait just for you?"

"But I..."

"There are no buts," shouted Fang Hong, "If you don't want your confinement to last a week, then quickly pick up your oar."

The sailor hesitated for a moment, as if it took him ages to comprehend the implications of Fang Hong's words, and with a mix of disbelief and gratitude, looked at him, "Sir, you mean..."

"Hm?" Fang Hong was taken aback, "Was I not clear enough?"

"Clear enough, clear enough, I understand, sir!" The sailor almost cried out as he clumsily grabbed his oar.

"Be careful, kid," Fang Hong shook his head at his clumsiness, throwing back his own words, "Don't forget what you said, if you accidentally fall into the water, no one here can save you."

His words immediately lightened the atmosphere on the boat; it was clear to everyone what he meant.

The sailors looked at each other, and some even began to chuckle, teasing the guy, "Did you hear that, Little Finger? Look at the embarrassing sight you've made of yourself."

Little Finger dared not retort and could only laugh awkwardly.

Fang Hong then turned to face Miss Hilveld, their eyes meeting with an undeniable display of the youthful boasting. Miss Hilveld looked at him, both annoyed and amused, and shook her head, but couldn't help but smile.

"Is the Captain trying to show off to me?" she asked softly.

"Ah?" Fang Hong's mouth fell open, "Is that how you see it?"

With a playful smile, Miss Hilveld said, "Well, the Captain performed very well, much better than Hilveld had expected."

"Hey!" Fang Hong finally scratched his head and laughed, clearly pleased to have won the approval of the consistently exemplary Noble lady.

...

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