Mystic Overlord: Reading Gives Strength-Chapter 1129 - 1123: Nighttime Gathering

The numbering of the [Grid] fleet is actually very simple.

Ship No. 1 carried Claudia and her investigative team, as well as other personnel sent by official forces of [Grid]; Ship No. 2 was for church members or someone powerful like Ronald, also carrying a portion of investigators.

Only Ship No. 3 was somewhat different from the first two.

Besides the basic crew maintaining order and piloting the ship, others on board had no close ties with [Grid] but intended to take advantage of the situation to profit or flatter [Grid] as Casters.

Under such circumstances, Ship No. 3 became a mix of various people, including those who boarded mid-way at [Carpen] or [Nicos] to join the expedition.

"..."

"The atmosphere… sure is different."

After Ronald finished dinner, he arrived on Ship No. 3.

Though not his first time seeing the situation here, it was still so... vibrant?

Ship No. 1 had clear rules and strict regulations, practically a warship;

Ship No. 2, with several powerful forces coexisting, had an overall harmonious and relaxed atmosphere, seemingly like a passenger cruise on the sea;

Ship No. 3…

People of all kinds could be seen here.

In the designated area, professional musicians exchanged with Casters who had personal interests in music, creating a harmonious atmosphere; beside this scene, enthusiastic painters were capturing this moment, clearly adept at finding ways to pass the time during the boring voyage.

If you turn your eyes further along both sides towards the back, you might even spot young people courting each other on the deck at the bow and stern.

"..."

"Why does this feel a bit like the Titanic?"

Loitering at the edge of the deck, Ronald was fine at first.

But the longer he stayed, the more he felt déjà vu, the setting here overlapping significantly with what he saw in the movie.

This should be considered unlucky, shouldn't it?

Come to think of it, this was actually normal.

Even though most passengers on this steamship were Casters, it didn't change their human nature. In daily life free from spells, isn't everyone like this?

"Ronald, next time you fly over, could you remember to bring me along?"

At this moment, a voice arose from the railing behind Ronald.

Nicole, completely dry, was climbing up the side of the steamship, looking rather concerned at Ronald waiting there for her.

Inside the railing, Ronald was puzzled by Nicole's gripe:

"Nicole, wasn't it you who wanted to try your newly researched spell when we came over?"

Nicole spoke quite self-righteously:

"I finished my research halfway through swimming! This spell isn't practical!"

"..."

"Alright then."

Ronald shrugged.

This was the current situation where, post-arranging staff swaps that afternoon, Nicole joined him on Ship No. 2's arrival developments.

After dining, Costate stayed in the cabin, taking care of Il, who was too unwell to join Ronald and was hit hard as a result.

Ronald, as agreed, took Nicole, who successfully switched shifts, to Ship No. 3 to attend the so-called party.

"Ronald, are we here at the wrong time?" 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Jumping over from outside the railing, Nicole glanced around and discovered something unexpected:

"They look like they haven't planned to start the party yet?"

Ronald confidently explained:

"We aren't at the wrong time, just a bit early."

"On Ship No. 2, mealtime follows a noble schedule, which is more than an hour earlier than here. The party normally gets delayed a bit, so there's still plenty of time."

Nicole nodded thoughtfully:

"I see…"

"In that case, maybe I should buy a new pocket watch next time we dock."

Ronald remembered Nicole had a pocket watch:

"What happened to your previous one?"

Nicole replied with a smile:

"Last time at [Carpen], I used it to smash a fish, and then… oh! Isn't that Wilma over there? I didn't know she was on this ship too!"

"Ronald, I'm going to chat with a friend, see you at the party later!"

In their conversation, the investigator girl's eyes were already scanning the surroundings.

Noticing an unexpected figure, Nicole's face lit up, and she ran off, leaving Ronald there.

"Typical you…"

On anyone else, this would be quite impolite.

But Ronald knew Nicole didn't mean to offend; she was simply just like that.

He shook his head slightly, not taking this to heart, and turned towards the center of the deck.

Such events were a rare outing for him too.

Now that he was here, why not fully experience the atmosphere?

After taking just two steps away from the railing, the effect of [Original Sin of Jealousy] altered Ronald's appearance to prevent others from recognizing him.

Soon, Ronald reached his first stop.

It was a small open bar set up on the deck.

Casters on Ship No. 3 often kept irregular hours, and with visitors around the clock, business here was thriving.

Yet stepping in, Ronald noticed something unique.

This little bar wasn't an operational facility of the ship itself, but rather some Caster who couldn't sit idle decided to start a business here!

"Handsome, would you like a drink?"

Before Ronald could even sit, the girl running the bar greeted him.

"..."

Hearing this greeting, Ronald was taken aback.

She didn't call him 'Sir', but 'Handsome'?

It's really been a long time since he heard such an address!

Ronald felt slightly nuanced, but still sat down and replied:

"I don't drink alcohol, do you have any juice?"

This time, it was the bar girl's turn to be taken aback.

She had been doing business on this deck for some time, but it was indeed her first time seeing a non-drinking customer.

"We do have juice, just a moment please."

The owner quickly reacted.

She didn't ask any further but turned to prepare a drink for Ronald.

Anyone randomly picked from these three steamships was likely a Caster, and potentially a capable one. Doing business here, some basic selectiveness was also to protect oneself.

In such circumstances,

it was another guest who started a conversation with Ronald:

"Friend, this is a bar! Non-drinking visitors are indeed rare."

This was a friendly greeting among strangers, without any mockery or malice in the tone.

Ronald smiled slightly, making up an excuse:

"Our school's spell requires a constantly clear mind, alcohol is definitely off-limits."

"..."