"Hard a-port! Hard a-port!"
"Ship number three! Quickly furl the sails, a wave is coming!"
"What are you idle people staring at?! Quickly bail out the water!"
...On the turbulent sea, a fleet of ships was swaying amidst giant waves. The crude wooden ships looked as if they could be swallowed by the surging waves at any moment, making onlookers hold their breath.
"Splash!"
Dark blue waves crashed against the hull, making the ship emit worrying creaking sounds.
Childe wiped the salty seawater from his face. He looked up at the Sky, where only the sun hung high in a cloudless expanse. By all appearances, it was a beautiful day.
But why were the waves so big on such a clear day?
"This place is really strange, isn't it? It's sunny, yet the waves are huge." Childe cupped his hand, and the seawater that had just flooded the deck was tossed back into the sea by him.
"After all, it's close to the Dark Sea; it's normal for it to be strange," Balladeer said with a sigh, looking at the sea, which was so blue it was almost black.
They hadn't even approached the Dark Sea yet, and anomalies were already appearing. What would the true Dark Sea be like?
Balladeer couldn't imagine it, nor did he have any interest in imagining it.
"Damn it, why are these waves coming again?" Childe stood on the ship, swaying violently.
He caught sight of another giant wave approaching on the sea and impatiently raised his hand.
Childe's usual white bow appeared in his palm. Then he drew the string taut, and a thick, aquamarine arrow materialized on the tensed bowstring.
Childe released the string, and the arrow shot out. Though made of water, the arrow was harder than steel.
"Bang!"
The arrow violently collided with the incoming giant wave, instantly tearing a large hole in the rising water curtain.
The wave, which had possessed infinite power, also turned into pouring raindrops under the arrow's impact.
As the raindrops fell, Childe's freshly wiped face gained more water stains.
"Damn it, I can't do anything about the storms outside Inazuma, but can't I deal with these little waves?!" Childe shook his soaked short hair and jumped directly into the sea.
However, he didn't sink but stood on the surface of the water.
If one looked closely, they could even see faint ripples beneath his feet—he was floating on the water by controlling his Hydro element.
Looking around, Childe saw the constantly rising and falling sea and the ships moving with it.
"Phew… I don't know how much longer it will be. Let's see if I can hold on!" Childe took a deep breath, then let out a loud shout.
"Hmph!"
Purple and blue intertwined on Childe's body. Once the suffocating elemental power stabilized a little, Childe in his Foul Legacy Transformation appeared before everyone's eyes.
"I never thought… I could enter this state without fighting," Childe murmured in a hoarse voice, looking at his armored arm.
But he quickly emerged from his contemplation. The urgent matter now was to calm the waves a little.
The twin daggers in his hands dissipated, and Childe's now free palms opened, pressing down little by little.
There was nothing beneath his palms, yet Childe's movements appeared incredibly strenuous.
"Quiet… down!"
He seemed to have had enough of the slow, grinding descent of his palms. Childe gritted his teeth and pressed down with all his might. The immense power he exerted even leaked out, emitting streaks of leaping light around him.
After exerting his full strength, Childe's movements immediately became smooth, and his palms pressed down without any hindrance.
Correspondingly, the turbulent waves nearby seemed to be held down by an invisible large hand and immediately quieted down.
"Let's go quickly; I don't know how long I can last."
On the calm sea, Childe was breathing heavily, and combined with his already hoarse voice from entering Foul Legacy Transformation, he gave the impression that he was about to collapse.
After speaking, Childe didn't wait for anyone on the ship to respond and stepped on the sea surface, walking forward on his own.
As he moved, the calm sea stirred again. Everyone immediately realized—only by staying close enough to Childe would the waves not rise again.
"So strong, is this the power of a Harbinger?"
"When will I be as powerful as Childe?"
"If you have time to marvel, why aren't you rowing and raising the sails! Don't waste Childe's kindness!"
...After a brief moment of stunned silence, the ships, which had been crawling like turtles, accelerated in an instant. The oars on both sides of the ships churned rapidly, making the fleet's speed even faster than when they first set out to sea.
Childe's action not only calmed the sea but also boosted the morale of the Fatui present.
"Not bad, I didn't expect Childe to be quite capable," Ember remarked, leaning on the deck railing and watching Childe walk on the sea ahead.
"Hmph, he's only useful when brute force is needed," Balladeer snorted coldly.
Despite looking down on Childe, a guy with only muscles in his head, Balladeer had to admit that in terms of combat and growth, Childe's Talents were terrifyingly high.
Although he could still defeat Childe now, in the brawls that often arose from arguments, Balladeer found that the time it took to defeat Childe was getting longer and longer, and the battles themselves were becoming increasingly difficult.
"Fools have their blessings," Balladeer said, shaking his head helplessly as he watched Childe on the sea. Such Talents were something he couldn't envy.
The surging waves calmed down due to Childe's arrival. In his battles with Ember and Balladeer, his control over elemental power had reached a new level.
Childe advanced relentlessly, and the ships carrying everyone naturally followed closely. After taking this scene in, Ember suddenly noticed a loophole.
"Does Childe know the direction?"
"…"
Ember turned and asked Balladeer. However, he was met only with silence.
"I'll go ask." After a moment of silence, Balladeer immediately turned and ran to the pilot at the bow of the ship.
After a brief exchange, Balladeer returned.
"Not yet. If they do, they'll signal Childe with flags." After saying this, Balladeer closed his eyes, silently waiting for the ship to sail towards Tsurumi Island.
"That's good." Ember nodded and began to gaze into the distance.
The fleet sailed on the sea, much more steadily than before, thanks to Childe.
The journey could almost be described as "calm and peaceful." Naturally, the sea monsters Childe had hoped for were nowhere to be found.
Perhaps there were some, but in the face of Childe's powerful aura, the sea monsters knew to hide.
The Sky grew dim, not because night had fallen. In fact, the people on the ship had long lost track of time—the entire space was enveloped in thick fog.
The fog on the sea was so dense that looking from the bow, one couldn't even see what the stern looked like.
Affected by this, the fleet also stopped.
"Thump! Thump! Thump!"
Purple light flashed in the fog, followed by the dull thud of nails drilling into solid wood.
"Splash! Splash!"
The sound of water splashing, which had disappeared when the fleet stopped, rang out again. Immediately after, Childe leaped from the mist onto the deck.
Not only that, but he was also tightly clutching several purple ropes in his hand.
Upon reaching the ship, Childe took a deep breath. He used his hips to exert force, slowly pulling the ropes backward.
The sound of water grew louder, and then the outlines of several ships appeared before everyone's eyes.
"Wh-what are you staring at? Qu-quickly connect all the ships… This fog… there's something wrong with it…"
After completing all this, Childe's Foul Legacy Transformation instantly dissolved into countless specks of light, revealing his exhausted face.
"My… task is done. Now… it's… it's up to you all." Childe said, then collapsed onto the deck.
"Understood, just rest easy and be a patient!" Balladeer said, seeing Childe in such a state and abandoning the idea of mocking him.
He looked at the swirling fog around them. It had no tangible feel, yet the ships were slowly moving backward.
Just as Childe had said, there was something wrong with this fog.
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