On the patrol ship, everyone stared in amazement at the huge ship that suddenly rushed out of the thick fog, watching its bow that was almost twice as tall as the patrol ship almost brushing the side of the ship, watching its mottled and rusted hull slowly move forward. The old and tattered flag seemed to still be hanging above the "Warrior", and the strips of cloth that had completely lost their original appearance were swaying wildly in the night wind, looking like a loose... shroud.

The patrol ship commander was the first to react.

"Keep turning and speed away!" he shouted. "Don't get caught in that boat's wake!"

It is extremely dangerous to pass by a main battleship at this distance, especially for a patrol ship which is a small vessel - the water currents around and at the stern of the large ship will greatly interfere with the course of the small boat, and any collision will be fatal during the violent swaying.

The steam core began to roar again. The helmsman had already felt the terrifying impact of the big ship. The patrol ship's hull was swaying to one side. He had to try his best to stabilize the hull in the irregular ocean current and speed up to move away from the huge monster that was so close.

The helmsman's efforts were on the verge of failure.

The speed of the Warrior was beyond expectations, and the turbulence surrounding the ship was even more bizarre and strange, even beyond the experience the helmsman had accumulated over the years - he felt as if countless invisible ropes were entangled on the seabed with the patrol boat's rudder and bottom, maliciously dragging the small boat closer to the old battleship that was like a ghost ship.

The entire ship began to make an unsettling creaking sound, as if it was being torn apart by something invisible.

The patrol ship only managed to hold on for a few breaths at first, relying on sudden turns and full engine load to gain a little distance. Then the entire ship began to approach the stern of the Warrior at a speed visible to the naked eye. The rusty "cliff" quickly enlarged in everyone's vision, and many swaying, terrifying figures that looked like humans but not humans appeared near the side of the Warrior, overlooking the boat that was about to capsize with a chilling look.

"It's going to hit! It's going to hit!"

Someone cried out in surprise, and the sailors immediately ran to the nearest railing or handrail to avoid being thrown overboard at the moment of impact. However, at the moment the side of the patrol ship touched the stern of the Warrior - the latter disappeared.

The Warrior disappeared, vanishing in plain sight.

Just like a nightmare that suddenly woke one up, the old battleship that had blocked out the sky and the sun a second ago disappeared in front of the soldiers in an instant, leaving only a horrible impression and a feeling of fear shaking everyone's heart. The people on the bridge and the deck looked at each other, as if they had just woken up from a dream, and they didn't know where they were.

The fog dissipated, and the cool light of the Creation of the World sprinkled on the sea. The cold sea breeze made many people sober up. All that remained on the empty sea were the rippling waves and the floating ice fragments hovering in the distance.

The patrol ship commander slowly let go of the railing and walked to the porthole, looking out at the sea. One of his subordinates walked up to him and muttered as if talking to himself: "Collective hallucination? Was that an illusion just now?"

"…It's not an illusion," the commander said in a low voice. He raised his hand and pointed at a guardrail outside the porthole. "Did you see it? The guardrail is broken - we just hit it."

"So where is it now? This doesn't seem to be the case with the 'Haiyan' before... The Haiyan didn't 'disappear' like this until it was completely destroyed. And the ocean currents around us suddenly changed just now, and the helmsman couldn't even control the course..."

The commander didn't speak for a while. After thinking for a long time, he slowly said, "Perhaps... we just sailed into some kind of gap - it wasn't the ghost ship that suddenly appeared and disappeared, but ourselves."

An expression of surprise and horror instantly appeared on the subordinate's face. Then he subconsciously looked at the sea in the distance and the direction of the Frost City. After a few seconds, he spoke: "So... are we back to the real world now?"

"...Call the Sea Mist and Frost Island at the same time," the commander paused for a moment and said quickly, "Compare their responses and determine our own status - before we can confirm the situation, do not approach any ships that appear in the nearby waters."

"yes."

※※※

"They encountered a warship that sank forty years ago? And then the warship suddenly disappeared before it hit them?" In the captain's room of the Sea Mist, Tirian leaned back in his chair and raised his eyebrows after listening to the report of the first mate Aiden. "Now they are still wandering in the patrol waters - because they are not sure whether they have returned to the real world?"

"Yes, the commander of the patrol ship seems to have judged that they had briefly entered an 'abnormal sea area' based on the various phenomena when they encountered the Warrior. Now they are contacting the Sea Mist Fleet and Frost at the same time, trying to determine whether the surrounding environment is real." Aiden nodded, and then shrugged, "I think they may be a little scared and nervous."

"...No, this is the right caution." Tirian shook his head, his expression quite serious. "We may not like the current Frost Navy, but we must admit that they have indeed defended the city-state for fifty years. In terms of experience in fighting extraordinary phenomena, they are no less experienced than us. The commander's judgment should be correct."

Listening to the captain's words, Aiden's expression finally became serious: "So... they really did briefly enter an 'abnormal sea area' that might overlap with the real world? And they encountered the Warrior there?"

"The Warrior... I still remember that ship. When it was first built, the Queen personally cut the ribbon for it," Tirian said with emotion. "Do you remember how it sank?"

"Of course I remember. After all, we sank it," First Mate Aiden nodded. "After the ship was controlled by the rebels, it underwent some modifications and was subsequently sent to destroy our 'defecting fleet'. As a result, it was sunk in the first battle in the ambush you arranged off the Frost Sea. Several rounds of artillery fire hit the ammunition compartment and fuel depot one after another, and it was almost broken in half."

"Yes, it was broken in half, but the patrol saw the Warrior as a whole ship," said Tirian. "So it was obvious—a fake like the Petrel."

"Frost has been looking for the source of those 'fakes' because they always seem to appear 'out of thin air'..." Aiden pondered, "Could it be... a hidden overlapping space?"

"The Frost side should receive the news soon. The smart ones among them will analyze the possibility. As for us, we don't have to worry about them - we have our own tasks."

"Will you report this to the old captain?"

"Of course, he has been waiting for my new news," Tirian said, raising his hand and pointing outside, "You go out first, close the door, and don't let anyone in."

"Yes, Captain."

※※※

"Tirion has reported a new situation."

In the Frost City, in the temporary residence on Oak Street, Duncan said to Morris and Vanna who were sitting opposite him.

Next to him, Nina was reading a history book with great interest, while Shirley, who had been swimming with him outside until midnight, was already sleeping soundly.

"What's new?" Morris immediately adjusted his sitting position. "Something happened at sea?"

"A Frost patrol ship encountered a navy warship that sank forty years ago in the southwest waters. It was suspected to be a 'fake' like the Haiyan, but no battle broke out between the two sides. After a slight collision, the 'fake' warship disappeared out of thin air in front of the patrol ship. Now it is not certain whether a new fake suddenly appeared in the sea, or the patrol ship briefly entered an abnormal sea area parallel to the real world. The second possibility is more likely."

"...an abnormal sea area parallel to the real world..." Morris analyzed this sentence, his expression gradually became serious, he raised his head, "This seems to confirm your discovery tonight..."

"Yes, another Frost appeared in the mirror. If all the counterfeits, even the cultists' lair, are hidden in a 'mirror image', then it can explain why the source of the pollution cannot be found after searching the entire city," Duncan said slowly. "There is also the 'Crow' that disappeared and returned out of nowhere, the large number of replicants of unknown origin in the city-state, and the disappearance of certain people...all of these can be explained."

Morris and Vanna looked at each other, and they saw the same solemnity in each other's eyes.

"...I can deal with ordinary heretics and demons. No matter how strong the enemy is, I can always deal with them with more manpower and firepower. But the enemy in the mirror..." Vanna frowned and looked a little headache. "I can't think of a solution for the time being... I can't even think of how those heretics did it."

"If this is also the authority of the Holy Lord of the Deep, then His power has obviously not only spread from the deep sea to the sea surface, but is also spreading on a large scale. This is no longer a 'small fight' like making a few replicas." Morris also spoke up.

The two "professionals" seemed to be in distress. Seeing this, Duncan smiled and said, "In fact, I have already cast a fire on the other side of the mirror."

Morris & Vanna: "...Ah?"