Amid the roar of artillery fire, a strange twin ghost ship suddenly came in and rushed through the battlefield right under the noses of both warring parties. Not to mention the Sea Mist, Tirian even felt that even the "fake" warships in the depths of the fog were stunned for several seconds.

Then, he heard Aiden's voice coming from the side: "Captain, the guy who just ran over seemed to have come out of the fog. Shall we... fight?"

On the bridge, all eyes turned to their captain, because the words the captain had said just a moment ago were still lingering in everyone's mind:

[After the war begins, everything that appears in this sea area is an enemy.]

"...Fuck!" After a few seconds of awkward silence, Tirian finally glared and shouted, "Can you catch up?! And didn't you see the shadow of the ship in the sea?"

Aiden immediately shrank his neck, and a streak of light flashed across his bald head. He hesitated and said, "I saw it. That shadow...seems to be entangled with spiritual fire."

As soon as the first mate finished speaking, a low roar came from deep inside the hull of the Sea Mist, and at the same time, the whistle above the deck suddenly sounded - this former main battleship of the Lost Homeland Fleet, which had been transformed by extraordinary power, seemed to be responding spontaneously, confirming the first mate's judgment.

"The ship has sensed it, too." Aiden looked up and around, then looked at Tirian with a complicated expression. "Captain, what do you think the ship was?"

"...Perhaps it was arranged by my father," Tirian said solemnly, "Don't delve into it, just continue fighting. Also, notify all friendly forces, including the Frost Navy, not to stop that strange ship... Never mind, I guess at that speed..."

He had just said half of his words when the sailor who was monitoring the radio beside him suddenly received some news. He immediately stood up and reported loudly: "Captain! The Frost Navy's 'Sea Owl' called and said that a ghost ship with an extremely fast speed and a strange appearance suddenly rushed past them and headed straight for the Frost Island. They asked if it was our ship."

Tirian pinched his brows hard, and waved his hands after a moment: "Don't tell them about the loss of the Hometown - just say they are friendly forces, and don't explain anything else. When the battle situation stabilizes, I will go to confirm the situation with 'him'."

"Yes, Captain!"

The cannons roared, and the flames and explosions in the fog did not calm down at all because of this momentary episode. Amid the huge water columns rising into the sky in the distance, Tirian's thoughtful eyes penetrated the thick fog of the battle zone and quietly watched the direction where the strange ship had just left.

※※※

"I think we just hit something!"

Lawrence hurried back to his desk from the porthole and spoke loudly to a small mirror on the table. Then he looked up uneasily and saw that the sea outside the porthole was dark and hazy, as if countless shadowy and illusory things were floating on the sea. For a moment, it was impossible to distinguish what was real and what was an illusion.

And the White Oak itself was moving through those phantoms at an astonishing speed.

A black mist surged in the mirror, and a female adventurer in a captain's uniform appeared in the mist.

"We didn't hit her," Martha said with a pleasant smile on her face, "We almost hit her."

"Almost hitting it is already terrifying!" Lawrence picked up the small mirror and walked towards the window while speaking quickly, "I didn't realize it when there was no reference just now - what speed are we going now?!"

"Very fast, very, very fast - an invisible and intangible phantom that can pass through the waves like the wind." Martha smiled and looked into Lawrence's eyes through the mirror. "Do you remember what you said to me many years ago? You said you would transform the White Oak and the Black Oak into the best pioneer exploration ships, and then, together with me, we would pass through the sea like the wind... My love, we are now at least level seven or eight."

"That was a metaphor! A metaphor!" Lawrence's eyes were filled with fear, because just as he opened his mouth, he watched another huge phantom almost brushing past the porthole in front of him and rushing towards the rear. The phantom bridge was towering, and the turrets on the side of the hull were pointing far into the distance. It was fighting fiercely with the enemy in another dimension, and the White Oak - Black Oak seemed to have rushed directly past the muzzle of its main gun.

After a moment, Lawrence raised his hand and tapped his forehead, then sighed, "Forget it, as long as you can guarantee your safety, what is the situation outside now?"

"We are crossing a war zone," Martha said in a gentle and calm tone.

"War zone? Who are they fighting?"

Martha in the mirror turned her head, as if she was observing the situation on her side. After a moment, she turned her gaze back and said, "The Frost Navy in the real world, and the famous Sea Mist Fleet. Their opponents are the fakes that have floated up from the mirror image to the real world."

Lawrence's heart sank, and his expression became solemn: "...Is the final moment here?"

"It looks like we've arrived," Martha said softly, "The mirror image is merging with the real world, and the final 'inversion' process has begun."

"Why so soon? Didn't you say the process wasn't that early?"

"I can only make a general guess, Lawrence. After I left the ranks of fakes, the connection between me and this mirror world has been rapidly weakening. I don't know what happened, but it is clear that someone has consciously accelerated the process of mirror reversal..."

Lawrence didn't speak for a moment. He just looked out the window at the hazy and chaotic sea and the phantoms that kept passing by. After a few seconds, he suddenly asked, "Are we still sailing in the mirror sea?"

"Yes, we are still trapped in this mirror world," Martha nodded, "but the barrier between the mirror world and the real world is blurring - we don't have much time left."

"What would happen if the inversion was actually accomplished?" Lawrence asked.

"If a city-state becomes a hotbed for the advent of ancient gods, what do you think will happen?" Martha asked calmly.

Lawrence pressed his temple subconsciously.

"...Damn, how far are we from the Frost?"

"We're almost there," Martha raised her hand in the mirror and pointed out the window. "I can already see the lights of the port area. Countless ships are gathering in the surrounding waters, including countless replicas of shipwrecks from the past half century - but they are turning a blind eye to the Black Oak, at least for now."

Lawrence nodded seriously. He took the mirror he had used to talk to Martha, opened the door and left his captain's room. As he walked towards the bridge, he asked in a deep voice, "What do you need me to do after we arrive at Frost?"

"Find their lair. The power used to create and maintain this mirror world is deep in the frost. I can sense its approximate location." The smile on Martha's face turned serious. She looked into Lawrence's eyes and spoke in an extremely serious tone. "Once you start looking for it, the fakes entrenched around the city-state should react immediately. I will find a way to hold them back."

"...Can we deal with them with just the Black Oak and White Oak ships? You just said that countless ships are gathering..."

"We are part of the Lost Home Fleet, Lawrence," Martha smiled again, "and we are not the only ones participating in this battle."

Lawrence reacted quickly and looked out the corridor window thoughtfully.

Those huge, shadowy warships are fighting on the distant sea. As time goes by, the boundary between the mirror image and reality is becoming more and more blurred. Soon, the entire sea area, including the mirror image frost and the real frost, will be burning.

"I understand," Lawrence nodded, retracted his gaze from the window, and continued to walk quickly towards the bridge. "But there is one last question - I can lead the team into the Frost, but how should we deal with the... 'thing' deep in the city-state? If it is really, as you said, an ancient god or a part of an ancient god, then ordinary weapons may not be able to deal with it."

We have reached the bridge.

Lawrence calmed himself down, walked forward and pushed open the door.

His first mate, second mate, the ship's chaplain, and his crew were all waiting for him here.

There was also the strange-looking anomaly 077-sailor. This mummy had found a crew hat from the White Oak from somewhere and put it on his head. At this moment, he was sitting properly on a chair, studying the work of the other crew members curiously and attentively.

Lawrence walked towards them, and the crew stood up and saluted him.

Martha's voice came from the mirror: "You will have help."

Lawrence responded to the crew's greetings. When he heard this, he looked at Martha in the mirror in surprise: "Helper?"

"Yes, helpers. In the past many years, they have been fighting in the depths of this mirror world, trying to break through the gate leading to the deepest part of the city-state, but they have never succeeded. You can go find them. You don't need to explain your purpose. They will naturally become your helpers... probably."

"perhaps?!"

"Because I'm not sure what kind of existence they are, and I'm not sure if they can communicate with people. Lawrence, you know, even though I've been wandering here for many years, I don't have much freedom."

"Okay, I understand, helper," Lawrence sighed, and then his tone was inevitably filled with curiosity, "I thought we were the only ones fighting against the 'fakes' around here, but I didn't expect there were other people. Who are they?"

"They call themselves... the Queen's Guard."