Chapter 63 Shipwreck (Two in One)
In the command room inside the ship, an old photo was hung on the wall. In the photo, a young man in a sailor's uniform was smiling cheerfully in front of a whale carcass. The sides of the wall were hung with whale bone crafts.
In front of the photo, the captain was looking at the photo and scanning it constantly. This was the first whale he had hunted in his youth, so he put it here to motivate himself.
We must shine in the whaling business!
"Now that technology is advanced and whales have had so many years to recuperate, you guys are really in luck!"
Then he turned to the first mate next to him and asked, "What's the matter?"
The first mate was a tall, muscular man with a dark face, and he put his hands behind his back.
"Captain, thanks to the signing of the global whale ban convention, the number of whales in the world has rebounded. And after we withdrew from the convention, we no longer need to secretly hunt in the name of research. Therefore, the number of whales caught in recent voyages is improving!"
"It can even be said that the number of catches has increased significantly."
"only……"
A trace of worry appeared on the first mate's face.
"I just don't know if the recent large catch will have an impact on us in international opinion."
The captain put down the newspaper in his hand and spoke to comfort him.
"Don't worry. As long as the harvest from each voyage is enough to feed the vampires in the Fisheries Department, they will keep everything out for us."
"Otherwise, why would so many high-paying positions at the Fisheries Research Institute be reserved for them?"
After hearing the captain's comfort, the first mate calmed down.
The whale's body is full of treasures. Whether it is refining whale oil, using whale bones to make handicrafts, or using long whiskers as high-quality products, huge profits can be obtained.
Not to mention that there is always enough whale meat to be absorbed by the domestic market.
Even whale meat that has been stored for too long can be purchased at a large price by various schools with the help of the Fisheries Department and used as campus meals.
The market is unlikely to become saturated.
Therefore, it can be said that in the whaling industry, as long as a whale is caught, huge profits will be obtained.
With huge profits, the Whaling Association, the Fisheries Research Institute and the Fisheries Agency formed an iron triangle to firmly grasp the interests of whaling.
The Whaling Association is responsible for dispatching whaling ships for hunting. After making huge profits, it provides funding to the Fisheries Research Institute on the grounds of helping research. Officials from the Water Affairs Bureau protect the whaling activities by blocking public opinion and policy support.
Of course, the officials from the Water Affairs Department did not help for free. The purpose of the Fisheries Research Institute was to serve as a transit station for both parties, collecting financial support from the Whaling Association and providing a place for the officials from the Water Affairs Department to go after retirement.
It can even be said that the post-retirement position is the greatest reward for the "diligent" work of the officials of the Water Resources Department.
Due to the powerful interests involved, the captain said that the first mate did not need to worry.
Suddenly he felt a little thirsty and reached out to get some water to moisten his throat.
At this moment, the captain noticed the subtle shaking of the ship, and the cup on the table seemed to lose balance and slowly slid to the edge of the table, and finally fell directly to the ground with a "pop".
"What happened? Did you encounter any storm?"
Upon hearing this, the first mate immediately stood up, saluted, and responded.
"I'll go and investigate the situation right away!"
Having said that, he left in a hurry.
The bearded sailor on the other deck also felt the deck begin to shake, and a large number of waves kept hitting the hull.
"What's going on?"
But he quickly came to his senses, because the whaling gun was still biting the fin whale tightly, and he could share a huge reward every time he successfully captured it, and he really didn't want to let this wealth go.
Therefore, the bearded man chose to continue controlling the launch pad in the wind and waves.
“Whoosh!”
Suddenly, a huge wave leaped up and hit the deck hard, splashing water everywhere. The bearded man's face was instantly soaked by the waves, and water droplets slid down his face.
Fortunately, the waves came and went quickly. He quickly wiped the water droplets off his face, muttering to himself.
"This sea water is really salty."
However, before he could catch his breath, another even more turbulent wave came rolling in, almost swallowing up the entire deck.
The bearded sailor remained calm, but tried harder to steady himself, holding the launch pad tightly with both hands like iron pliers.
However, the moment he came into contact with the waves, a strange touch spread along his waist, as if invisible tentacles were tightly wrapped around him, causing his heart to shudder.
This wave was completely different from usual, with an indescribable weirdness.
He subconsciously tightened his grip on the launch pad, trying to steady himself.
Suddenly, a powerful force broke through his defenses, and water rushed into his nasal cavity like a beast, causing him to cough violently.
In this unprepared moment, he lost control of the launch pad, his hands loosened powerlessly, and the deck under his feet became slippery.
Just like that, he was ruthlessly swallowed by the surging waves and slammed into the freezing cold water.
Snap!
He struggled to float to the surface and call for help, but the sea water seemed to have consciousness and poured into his mouth madly, making every breath extremely difficult.
The dragging feeling from underwater became stronger and stronger. He widened his eyes and a sense of despair rose in his heart.
"Ugh! Ugh!" He tried his best to send out a distress signal, but his voice was ruthlessly swallowed up by the surging waves.
"Big Beard, over there..."
Just as the colleague next to him had his vision temporarily obscured by the waves and was finally able to refocus, his pupils shrank and the bearded figure disappeared without a trace in the blink of an eye.
"Oh no! The bearded man was washed down by the waves!"
Under the unnoticed sea surface, a stream of water as sharp as a blade passed silently, accurately splitting the rope connecting the whaling ship into two.
On the other side, the fin whale shot by the whaling gun suddenly felt a sense of relief in its body while struggling, and the feeling of being pulled disappeared in an instant.
hold head high!
With this long roar, the fin whale vigorously swam its huge body and swam towards the deep sea with all its strength.
Fin whales in the sea are still continuously outputting energy.
Ever since Kira Yoshimitsu assigned him the abilities of [Demonization] and [Water Control].
He discovered that these sea beasts had an extremely strong ability to withstand energy, and were infused with nearly 70% of the little spider's energy.
If the little spider is gifted, then these sea monsters may have large capacity due to racial advantage.
Of course, it could also be a coincidence, and the other party is the Chosen Whale.
Just like at this moment, due to the abundant energy reserves, the output capacity of the fin whale plus the home advantage made a huge difference. The effect was far beyond the limit of the first-level ability [Water Flow Control].
The energy in the sea continued to spread in all directions like waves. The waves began to surge continuously, attacking the hull one after another.
Snap!
"Not good! The ship's main engine appears to be damaged!"
"Hurry up and rescue! Send out a distress signal!"
"There is no signal in this sea area!"
"Then use the digital selective calling terminal!"
Someone hurriedly threw a lifebuoy from the deck in the direction where the bearded man disappeared and kept calling out, but after a long time there was no reply from the bearded man. He realized that the man might have been in an accident like a collision and was in great danger.
“Come here quickly!”
The crew on the deck now had no time to care about the bearded crew member who was washed away by the waves.
Everyone has put on their life jackets and gathered on the bridge.
At this time, the whaling ship had been rolling to a full 30 degrees, and many sailors were looking for something to secure themselves to avoid being thrown out.
In fact, the ship was still rolling sideways, with the amplitude getting bigger and bigger.
"Damn it, what did we do wrong? To have to suffer such misfortune!"
Under the constant shaking, everyone has lost the ability to move.
At this moment, not far from the whaling ship, the water began to gather upwards and quickly formed a giant slime.
Everyone noticed the movement on the sea. A huge monster made of water currents with holes like eyes was staring at the whaling ship.
"Oh my god! What is that?"
"Sea monster?"
Under the horrified gazes of the crowd, a giant hand extended from the water flow and slapped towards the command room on the second floor.
Bang!
The glass front cover of the command room was shattered with one smack.
The surging water rushed into the command room, carrying broken glass.
The captain had just put down his water cup after moistening his throat, and when he turned around, he was hit against the wall by the oncoming water.
Cough cough!
Feeling the scratches on his face from the glass and the stinging pain from the salt in the seawater, the captain was about to curse, but just as he looked up, he suddenly saw a huge water monster appear outside the window.
That monster seemed to be coming towards him?
"What kind of monster is that!!!"
The giant slime stared at the captain for a while as if identifying its target, and then reached out to attack the command room again.
The captain was about to stand up and run away in fear, but suddenly he felt something wrapped around his body, and when he looked back, he saw a hand grabbing him.
Under the pressure of the giant hand, the captain felt as if his internal organs were being squeezed out.
“Help!”
“No!!!”
Then he seemed to be on a roller coaster as he was pulled out of the command room by a giant hand and held in the air.
The captain tried to stretch out his hands and tread water with his legs to escape, but it was difficult to gain leverage and he could only stare into the giant slime's empty eyes in fear.
A moment.
The giant hand swung in an arc and slammed the captain heavily onto the plywood.
Snap!
There was a pool of meat paste on the deck.
Many sailors trembled as they looked at the pool of flesh.
"Oh my god, what is that!"
"What did we do wrong?"
The giant slime shifted its gaze to the many sailors on the bridge.
A sailor ran to the distress room in panic, ready to use the digital selective calling terminal to contact the shore.
The digital selective calling terminal is the core of the whaler's emergency system and can send signals to the outside world through wavelengths.
But just after he took a few steps, a water arrow quickly shot towards the sailor. The sailor was pierced through the head by the water arrow and fell to the ground without a sound.
Everyone looked at each other and realized that the monster might have attacked because it saw someone moving!
Yes! That's right! As long as you don't move, you will be safe!
With the idea of "I would rather die than let my friend die", some sailors began to wonder: Is there anyone who can attract that guy's attention?
But the giant slime's next move shattered their fantasy.
Phew!
Phew!
The successive water arrows were like the scythe of the god of death, constantly reaping the many sailors in the cockpit one by one.
It was unknown how much time had passed, and only a few sailors survived by hiding in the corners of the room.
Phew! Finally saved!
Just when the surviving sailors were feeling grateful.
The giant slime placed its hands on the side of the boat in front of the sailors' horrified eyes, and then the sea surface responded by creating even more ferocious waves.
Bang!
Like the last straw that broke the camel's back, the whaling ship finally couldn't bear it anymore.
With the help of the huge force on the sea, the giant slime pushed the hull further to the side.
Thirty degrees, forty-five degrees...
With the pressure getting more and more exaggerated, the whaling ship was finally overwhelmed.
thump!
The few remaining sailors clung to the mast and felt the world turning upside down.
In despair, he watched the whaling ship capsize and sink to the bottom of the sea.
————————
【Taiji City, Yamaguchi Prefecture】
This is the birthplace of ancient Japanese whaling. As early as the beginning of the 17th century, Aoki Hachimoto, a local samurai from a powerful family, pioneered the whaling method.
Since then, whaling has gradually become the main way of livelihood for local fishermen, and has formed a unique whaling culture and customs.
Nearly one-third of the residents here are engaged in whaling, and the rest make their livings in processing industries related to the whaling industry to a greater or lesser extent.
In addition to whaling, Taiji City is also famous for slaughtering dolphins.
From September to March of the following year is the local dolphin hunting season, when tens of thousands of dolphins are driven into the bay for mass slaughter.
Whaling and dolphin hunting bring significant economic benefits to Taiji City. Whale and dolphin meat is considered a local delicacy and is sold all over the country.
However, there has been a "small problem" recently for the local powerful Aoki family.
That is, the new generation helmsman of the Aoki family recently suffered some minor physical injuries - he lost a heart.
Therefore, in the competition with the mountain village families working in the same industry, they suffered a slight disadvantage on the political level.
Saburo Aoki's father, Futaro Aoki, had no choice but to take over the helm of the family again.
"How is the recent performance of the family's whaling ship?"
Futaro Aoki was knocking on the table while looking at his assistant. At that time, the family was in a period of transition and only his second son, Jiro Aoki, had a chance to take over the position of his third son due to his age.
It takes a huge amount of wealth to win over those hyenas.
At this time, the whaling ship that was about to return from the ocean had become a shot in the arm for the family's development.
"According to the communication with the whaling ship the day before yesterday, the profit of this voyage..."
"Bang!"
"Oh no, Mr. Aoki! Our whaling ship encountered a shipwreck! No one survived!!!"
Um? ! !
When Aoki Futaro heard this, his pupils dilated, and then he felt his heart skip a beat, followed by a blackout.
In the blur, I seemed to see my son waving at me...
"Oh no! Someone come quickly! Mr. Aoki has fainted!!!"
I've been busy lately so I posted it late. I guess I'll be busy all day tomorrow so the release time will be uncertain, but I'll try my best to finish it.
In addition, when I was looking up information, I found that a former prime minister made great efforts in Japan's withdrawal from the whaling agreement. After subsequent investigation, it was found that his hometown was the "origin of modern whaling" in Japan...
The world line has ended.
(End of this chapter)
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