The Record of Unusual Creatures

Panda Novel

Whether the shipgirl had a thick skull or not held no importance at all. Banging her head into others just seemed like a fun thing to do. The three pirate ships, which plunged into the planetary crack, were no longer a concern. Hao Ren was now interested in the white airship that was wobbling in the sea of clouds. It looked like the airship was about to explode at any time.

It was two sizes smaller than the Petrachelys, but it was by no means small. Perhaps due to its size, it had pretty good self-defense capabilities and damage tolerance, which gave it the ability to stay afloat even after it took the continuous bombardment from the pirate ships. But judging from the vessel’s miserable condition, anyone with a brain the size of a gallstone would know that the airship was not going to hold on for long.

Holey was an understatement when describing the condition of the ship. Sparks spread across metal components of unknown uses while white sheets, which looked like sails, hung loosely on the sides of the ship as most of their physical support had snapped. Hao Ren had no idea what the functions of the sails were, but seeing the broken conduits and cables, he reckoned that they were pretty essential components.

The ship was beyond repair unless the L’Haronne people had the type of black technology as Nolan, where she could still self-repair even if all that was left of her was only a steering wheel.

“Get closer. Be careful not to knock them out of business,” Hao Ren instructed Nolan to fly close to the white airship. “This ship looks like it’ll fall out of the sky with a sneeze.”

Nolan adjusted her angle and carefully moved toward the white airship. While she was at it, the onboard camera captured footage of the humanoids on the white airship; they were running around in a panic.

The MDT slammed the console. “Sh*t, the scene of us destroying three ships in a row must have scared the daylights out of them. They’re probably thinking that they’re the next target now.”

Hao Ren felt that the MDT made sense. He looked helplessly at Nolan. “Look at what you’ve done. Our image is ruined. You should show those people that we’re friendly. Otherwise, I’m worried that they’re going to jump off the ship.”

Nolan thought for a moment and flashed the headlights at the white airship not far away.

Charlemagne and his bodyguards had rushed onto the deck. Protected from the cold wind by the magical shield, he watched in awe as the giant silvery-white ship slowly adjusted its bearings and moved closer to the White Pearl.

Everyone—be it the veteran crew members or passengers—began to scream in horror.

Charlemagne clenched the sword in his hand. He had witnessed how the unstoppable and ruthless silvery-white ship crashed into the three pirate ships, like beating flies out of the air. Although it started with an attack on the pirates and gave the impression that it was on their side, when the silvery-white airship turned to them, it made everyone weak in the knees.

But then, Charlemagne saw a few bright flashes from the silvery-white airship.

“Your Highness,” one of the bodyguards leaned over and whispered nervously at him, “please leave. It is dangerous here.”

“Everyone stay calm!” Charlemagne shouted. “Do not do anything foolish like abandoning the ship at this time. The silvery-white ship is not hostile.”

“How does Your Highness know?”

“Can you not see it slowing down?!” Charlemagne barked. “It did not flash its lights at the pirates before it crashed into them!”

While Charlemagne spoke, a gap suddenly opened at the front part of the silvery-white ship, and a loud voice was heard saying, “Please remain calm… We are not hostile… I repeat, please remain calm…”

The frightened crowd on the deck of the White Pearl deck began to calm down.

On the bridge of the Petrachelys, Hao Ren switched off the microphone and turned to the bridge’s exit. “Let’s go and say hello to the locals.”

Rheia was baffled. “Since you have a loudspeaker and translation systems on board, why did you still need to flash the headlights?”

Nolan was a little embarrassed. “I forgot that we have these new functions. How on earth would a normal spacecraft realize that a loudspeaker was hanging on its head? What would it be for when one was in space?”

Rheia glanced at Hao Ren, who was walking in front, and then at Nolan, who was on the bridge. “This design is a bit…”

Four humans—a man and three women—walked out of the Petrachelys and approached the deck of the White Pearl in a light beam, which looked like magic in the eyes of the locals. The four humans were dressed in strange costumes, but their prominent human features at least prevented Charlemagne from thinking that they were visitors from the abyss, or ancient wanderers.

Even though the airship of the humans seemed unsuited for flying, and they had flown it so recklessly, they were at least of the same kind and communicable. Since they could be liaised with, everything else would not be a problem.

However, Charlemagne managed to control his impulse to step forward to talk to the man and three women. He certainly hoped to sort out the situation and make contact with the silvery-white ship, which probably came from some foreign forces. But his training all these years told him that it was not safe to do so in the current situation. Some hidden eyes could be lurking in the surroundings, and he had to keep a low profile.

The bodyguards were doing their job by disguising themselves as ordinary passengers. They were scattered around him, and they kept an eye on everyone there.

The first impression Hao Ren got after he stepped foot on the deck of the White Pearl was that the ship was the last place he wanted to be in. The minor shaking and apparent tilted floor under his feet showed that the ship was about to lose power and control. Unless, there was a team of black technology crew who could fly the disintegrating ship back to the port, of course. Otherwise, no one would be able to salvage the airship under that condition.

The autonomous robots that Nolan carried on board may have been able to keep the airship afloat or even give it the ability to fly thirty times the speed of light if they overdid it, but that was not the purpose of Hao Ren’s visit.

“Who’s in charge here?!” Hao Ren shouted. “Send someone to talk to me!”

As soon as his voice trailed off, the crowds standing far away split in the middle. A man in a long white coat, with white beard and hair, stepped out accompanied by two crew members. He looked as strong as a bear.

“I am the captain of the White Pearl, Birken Galen,” the strong old man said. “Thank you for your help. May I ask—”

“Let me do the asking first, we are running out of time.” Hao Ren waved his hand. “Can you repair this ship?”

The old captain was stunned, but he quickly responded by saying, “Frankly, the ship is irreparable. It is only a matter of time before it crashes.”

The crew and a few passengers nearby heard what the captain said, and they all had a sad look on their faces. But no one overacted since the situation had deteriorated so severely, and those who dared to stand on the deck had a clear grasp of the situation. People who still had the illusion of going home alive were still hugging each other and shivering inside the cabin.

Hao Ren expected the answer. He waved his hand and said, “Let’s not waste time here. Come with me and get on board my ship!”

The old captain did not hesitate at all. He turned and shouted at his first and second officers, “Gather everyone on the deck! Activate the third protocol: abandon ship!”

The officers immediately went to carry out the order.

Just then, a hatch suddenly swung open not far away. Several crew members in dirty clothes ran out, followed by a long-haired girl in a long skirt. Likewise, the girl was also covered in dirt and grease from head to toe; her beautiful dress looked like a rag now. She seemed to be unaware of the goings-on outside as she had been busy in the hull. She was surprised to see a massive silvery-white spaceship floating in the sky while the pirates were nowhere to be seen.

She ran up to the captain. “Captain Birken, what—”

“Miss Awenna,” the captain replied without waiting for the girl to finish, “the White Pearl is seriously damaged. We are now gathering the passengers. Please follow my first officer. We are evacuating to the silvery-white airship.”

The girl, known as Awenna, did a double-take on the argent spaceship and Hao Ren. Noticing the grim expression on Captain Birken’s face, she then nodded lightly. “Understood. But my brother…”

“I am here.” Charlemagne scurried up to Awenna. “Awenna, are you all right?”

“I am all right. The magical energy core exploded, but I am fine,” the long-haired girl wiped the grease off her face while she spoke. Her eyes swept over Hao Ren and his men before she said, “Brother, they are…”

“They are the ones who finished off the pirates,” the gray-and-curly-haired man said. “The White Pearl will not hold. We can only accept their kindness.”

Awenna blinked. “Understood.”

Hao Ren watched from afar as these L’Haronne people carried out their evacuation operation. He found that they were pretty efficient in their actions. There were some panicking passengers, but most of them vacated the ship in an orderly manner. The crew members, especially; their responses were quick and no-nonsense just like well-trained soldiers.

Yet, Hao Ren was not sure if these people represented the level of conduct of the average L’Haronnean. After all, he only had very little knowledge of this world.

He had noticed the long-haired girl, who exited the lower deck, and the young man with extraordinary aura and gray curly hair. But he did not pay them much attention. After all, their attire and manners did not differ much from the ordinary passengers.