Chapter 424 - 137: Holy Light: Advent of the Silver Radiance Angel

Chapter 424: Chapter 137: Holy Light: Advent of the Silver Radiance Angel

She pointed down at the dazzlingly prosperous coastline and said, "The Free City States is a collective term for the major cities and settlements along the eastern coast. They might seem loosely organized, but they’re all interconnected. Nominally, they belong to the Empire, but they’re internally autonomous. Imperial law is less useful here than a single Gold Coin. See that tallest white spire? That’s the landmark of Silver Moon Academy—the Tower of the Silver Moon!"

Everyone looked in the direction she was pointing and saw a towering spire. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

The spire had a distinctly Elven style, slender and elegant, with a tranquil beauty.

Below the spire lay a shockingly massive port city.

Unlike the elegant and tranquil, more inland-oriented style of Moon Sail Port near Saint Roland City, this harbor was crammed with ships of all sizes. From massive three-masted merchant vessels to nimble speedboats, everything could be seen here. From a distance, the masts resembled a forest, and the flags were a chaotic mix.

The docks were teeming with people. Sailors and merchants of every skin color and style of dress bustled about, and you could almost smell the potent mixture of Gold Coins, tobacco, liquor, and gunpowder in the air.

"This is Silver Moon Port." Eleanor’s eyes lit up. "Here, you can buy tobacco from the New World, silk and porcelain from the Eastern Continent, and Magic Crystals from the Western Continent at the cheapest prices... Of course, you could also have your throat slit and be thrown into the sea to feed the fish the very next second. This place isn’t just famous for its goods; the pirates are notoriously vicious! Otherwise, the Empire wouldn’t need to station the entire Rage Tide Legion here."

"The Rage Tide Legion?" Avril turned her head. "Isn’t that our Empire’s Third Legion!?"

"That’s right." Eleanor nodded emphatically. "They’re the Empire’s best legion when it comes to naval warfare, commanding three entire fleets. But even so, they spend most of their energy just suppressing pirates. My grandfather said that Legion Commander Jais once complained in private that the Rage Tide Legion’s military budget is thirty percent higher than our North Wind Legion’s, all of it poured into the bottomless pit that is the pirate problem."

"Are they really that formidable?" Lilith’s eyes filled with curiosity as she rubbed her hands together excitedly. "Quick, tell us! What’s the story with these pirates?"

Eleanor cleared her throat and, putting on the air of a miniature adult, spoke with confident ease. "There are three major pirate powers along the eastern coast, and none of them are to be underestimated."

"First, there’s the Blood Sail Pirates. Those guys wear light armor and wield katanas, like from the eastern island nations. They excel at boarding actions and unorthodox tactics, appearing and vanishing without a trace. Their leader, the Bloodsail Queen, is said to be a real monster who can unleash Sword Qi over a hundred meters. She once single-handedly took down one of the Empire’s second-class battleships!"

She paused, her voice dropping as her tone grew solemn. "Then there’s the Frost Fang Pirates, a group of barbarian Berserkers from the frozen northern wastes. They ride in longships, wield giant axes, and worship some kind of totemic deity. When they fight, they throw their lives away. Their leader, Eric the Wave Rider, once shattered the keel of a third-class Imperial Navy battleship all by himself. He’s incredibly savage."

"As for the third..." Eleanor shuddered, her voice dropping even lower. "They’re the Abyssal Hunters. That pirate crew isn’t actually human. It’s a mixed band of Deep Sea Naga and Fishmen."

"They’re led by a Naga Witch known as the Abyssal Priest. They don’t just plunder treasure; they also love to capture people alive to sacrifice to an Evil God on the seafloor. Running into them is more trouble than facing the other two combined. It’s said that the very souls of those they capture are dragged into the Deep Sea, to suffer for all eternity."

After her description, the atmosphere on the airship grew heavy.

Even the fearless Lilith couldn’t help but gulp. "That’s... really that intense?"

******

「At the same time.」

At the docks of Silver Moon Port, beneath a large, three-masted galleon named the *Silver Moon*, the spacious harbor area was already packed shoulder to shoulder with a massive crowd.

Based on their banners and attire, the crowd could be clearly divided into three distinct groups.

The first and largest group occupied the central area of the port, which was laid out with a red carpet.

They wore magnificent, matching uniforms—pure white with gold trim and violet patterns. The standard-issue capes on their shoulders snapped in the sea breeze. They were clearly all students from the same academy.

Furthermore, their equipment was extraordinary. From the plate armor on the Warriors, which shimmered with a magical luster, to the Gemstone-inlaid Magic Staves in the Mages’ hands, everything exuded an extravagant air that screamed, ’I’m expensive.’

Behind this group of students stood several instructors in varied attire and of different professions. They stood about casually, but each one exuded a profound aura, clearly indicating they were High Tier experts.

Among this group of students.

At their head was a handsome, golden-haired young man with a distinctly arrogant air.

He wore the purple bauhinia crest of the Imperial Capital’s Royal Extraordinary Academy on his chest, and his body was wreathed in Holy Light.

This was none other than the top student of the Holy Knight specialization in the Imperial Capital Academy’s graduating class: the Tier Three Holy Light Knight, Karl von Hohenlohe.

He was currently surveying the area with a critical gaze, as if inspecting his own territory.

Several students, clearly his lackeys, crowded around behind him.

"Hmph, a bunch of country bumpkins," one of Carl’s lackeys sneered. "Look at this port. They don’t even have a decent carpet. I guess this is all Silver Moon Academy amounts to."

The second group was gathered over on a reefy area to the left. Most of them were the ’locals’—students from Silver Moon Academy.