"..."

"......"

In the meticulously cleaned dungeon, Ronald walked to the edge of the cell after the guard left and reached out to shake Luna, who had just been taken out of a sack.

The girl was not deeply unconscious.

So with just a gentle shake from Ronald, she gradually awoke from her faint. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Then, it was a moment of peaceful staring, big eyes meeting small eyes.

Although Luna had just awoken from unconsciousness and couldn't clear up many things, looking at Ronald, who woke her up, she understood that the man in front of her was dragged into this because of her, ending up in this underground prison.

After nearly half a minute of mutual gazing, Luna finally spoke with a voice so small it was almost undetectable, her expression filled with grievance and pain:

"Ronald, I... I'm really sorry."

"If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have experienced such misfortune. Truly, I'm very sorry..."

Ronald accepted Luna's apology without any burden.

Only after the girl's apology ended and she sat in the corner of the cell, did Ronald approach her and said calmly:

"Luna, I can see that your identity is not simple."

"But for the other side to dare to kidnap people at such a critical point when the Grade ship fleet is entering the Niklan port, without a necessary reason, they wouldn't be so bold."

"..."

As Ronald's words ended, Luna, who was holding back her sobs, was momentarily stunned. Although young, her excellent education had endowed her with good logical thinking. With Ronald's mention, she naturally thought of many things immediately.

"A necessary reason..."

"Recently in Nikos, the things that could prompt such bold actions..."

Seeing Luna's thoughts gradually clicking into place.

Ronald waited for the girl a few more minutes until her expression became clear before asking:

"So, do you have any leads?"

"Yes, I have some leads." Luna had no intention of hiding anything from Ronald. She nodded gently before saying, "And this matter might interest you as well, Ronald."

"I would be interested too?" Ronald raised an eyebrow.

With Luna's words, his curiosity was indeed piqued.

Having just arrived in Nikos and only meeting Luna for half a day, how could the girl in front of him determine that he would be interested in this kind of high-level intrigue?

It was then that Luna really mentioned a term that caught Ronald's attention:

"Do you remember Moralis? From that book, Larchmont."

"..."

Ronald's eyes narrowed, hesitating for a few seconds before pursuing further:

"You're saying your kidnapping is related to the magic city lost at sea?"

"That's right." Luna nodded seriously and said in a stern tone, "Ronald, I can tell you this, but make sure not to let this information leak out."

"If others find out, or it becomes known that the information came from you, it could very well lead to deadly consequences!"

"..."

Being locked in a dungeon now, doesn't this already count as a deadly consequence?

Hearing this, Ronald's first thought was this, but the confidence brought by power made him unbothered by such minor issues, so he readily went along with Luna's words:

"Understood, I promise not to let a third party know about our conversation today."

"I trust you." Already in her own line of reasoning, Luna seriously nodded at Ronald, "Simply put, this is an event after the world's significant change several months ago."

"Since sea transport is one of Nikos's main economic lifelines, the first initiative His Majesty Hua took after the initial anomaly was to quickly restore maritime connections with neighboring countries to ensure basic daily commerce; and after maintaining this basic level, he began exploring longer routes..."

Luna's way of speaking was orderly, strictly adhering to the timeline's progression.

Through the narrative in the cell, Ronald soon learned a secret.

The Nikos Empire naturally dispatched many fleets with Casters while attempting to open sea routes, continually test-sailing around the surrounding seas day and night.

However, about three months ago, things changed.

A fleet suddenly encountered a very powerful storm in the direction of the Sunset Ocean.

Thanks to the assistance of Casters, the fleet was preserved in the storm. Later, while preparing to return, Casters on the fleet discovered a strong Magic Power reaction at the storm's center.

Having just experienced a storm, the ship's leaders chose not to risk exploring. But upon returning to Nikos and reporting this information up the chain,

The court scholars in Nikos compared the data and found out that the source of the Magic Power at the storm's center was precisely the vanished location of the historic sea magic city, Larchmont!

"..."

After listening to Luna's introduction, Ronald quickly formed his own idea:

"Since it was discovered three months ago... It seems the Nikos has encountered quite a bit of trouble searching for that city, hasn't it?"

Luna nodded in agreement:

"Indeed, in the month following the discovery, it was extremely difficult for Nikos just to ensure safe passage there; afterwards, when preparing to explore, they encountered Larchmont's defense systems; it wasn't until two months later that they finally made progress in breaking onto the island."

Hearing this, Ronald also understood the reason behind Luna's kidnapping:

"So they kidnapped you because breaking onto the island is imminent, and capturing you now can be a bargaining chip to gain more benefits; if they wait until the Grade fleet leaves or miss this opportunity, it's likely they will completely lose this chance?"

"This... this is all the bad consequence of my willfulness." Luna immediately admitted her mistake, "If not for wanting to roam freely and escape my duties, none of this would have happened."

Luna seriously reflected on her reckless behavior.

However, after that, she did not forget to sternly remind Ronald:

"Ronald, I'm telling you this because I see you understand that city."

"You've heard it; now it's best to forget these things, as this kind of dispute isn't something ordinary people should get involved in."

"After us, I..."

Suddenly, just as she was about to remind Ronald, Luna's expression froze.

The girl's expression changed several times before she lowered her head and said forlornly:

"Sorry, Ronald."

"We... we seem to not be able to leave right now either."