At that moment, the refined-looking young officer spoke.
"I think differently from you. I’m guessing our new captain must have been born into a great family. Perhaps she is a genius from our Naval Academy, or maybe a famous young naval commander."
The scar-faced officer immediately disagreed.
"No. It has to be a veteran."
The handsome young officer refused to back down.
"No. Definitely a genius. And a young general at that. Our new captain must be young."
The two argued for quite some time, but neither could convince the other. In the end, they could only drop the matter and wait for the arrival of the new captain.
At that moment, two figures gradually entered the field of vision of those aboard the Dawn Battleship.
One wore a naval uniform covered in medals across the chest.
He was none other than the Commander of the Naval Corps.
The other figure wore a uniform bearing a single star, representing the rank of Major General.
Yet what shocked the two officers was that the newcomer was actually a young woman.
Her expression was calm and emotionless, and her eyes seemed capable of seeing through everything.
The elderly Corps Commander cleared his throat.
"Greetings, everyone."
The three thousand soldiers aboard the Dawn Battleship responded in unison.
"Greetings, sir!"
The Corps Commander nodded in satisfaction.
"Very good. As expected of the warriors serving aboard the strongest battleship of the Seahorse Kingdom."
"Next, allow me to introduce your new captain."
"Her name is Odelle."
The moment he finished speaking, every gaze immediately fell upon Odelle.
Some were challenging.
Some were unconvinced.
Some were curious.
And some contained outright hostility.
Yet Odelle remained as calm as still water, completely ignoring those malicious looks.
The Corps Commander raised his voice.
"Odelle is the most outstanding young talent ever produced by our Naval Corps Academy."
"She graduated with perfect scores in all seven subjects."
"Our Naval Corps Academy has existed for five hundred years, yet we have never seen a student as extraordinary as her."
"Odelle is the first cadet in our history to achieve perfect scores in all seven subjects."
The moment her record was announced, all three thousand soldiers aboard the Dawn Battleship were stunned.
Every trace of doubt, hostility, and curiosity in their eyes was instantly replaced by shock.
No one understood better than them what perfect scores in all seven subjects meant.
After all, every one of them had graduated from that same academy.
The seven subjects were swordsmanship, gunnery, surveying, management, commerce, munitions, and shipyard operations.
To achieve a perfect score in every subject meant reaching one hundred and fifty points in all seven.
Scoring one hundred was something almost anyone could accomplish with enough effort.
But the final fifty points were vastly more difficult.
In terms of difficulty, those additional fifty points were practically worth another hundred.
Among graduates of the academy, those final fifty points were known as the divide between mortals and the heavens.
Only by crossing that divide could one reach an entirely different realm.
And today...
they had finally witnessed what the heavens looked like.
In their minds, Odelle was no longer merely an outstanding student.
She was a true academic monster.
Only someone like that could possibly achieve perfect scores across all seven subjects.
The Corps Commander observed their expressions and felt extremely satisfied.
Before arriving, they had worried whether Odelle would be capable of suppressing these hot-tempered sailors.
That was why they had decided to establish her authority from the very beginning.
Simply announcing Odelle’s academic achievements was enough to overwhelm most of them.
Judging from their reactions, the plan had worked perfectly.
The Corps Commander continued.
"Odelle is not merely the greatest cadet in the history of our academy."
"She is also an adviser and member of numerous organizations, including the Scientific Society and the Maritime Trade Association."
"She has qualified as a royal adviser and has also been awarded a special honorary medal."
"If any of you dare show Captain Odelle disrespect, then forget about answering to me..."
"Even the King of the Seahorse Kingdom will not spare you!"
The Corps Commander’s voice grew stern.
"Captain Odelle’s orders are my orders."
"Captain Odelle’s instructions are my instructions."
"Whatever Captain Odelle chooses to do, I will stand behind her!"
"If you refuse Captain Odelle’s orders, then you are refusing mine."
"If you oppose Captain Odelle, then you oppose me."
"Do you understand?!"
He emphasized the final words heavily.
The three thousand soldiers trembled in unison.
Their attitude toward Odelle instantly became far more respectful.
"Yes, Commander!"
"Good."
Only then did the Corps Commander nod before turning toward Odelle.
"Odelle, I leave the Dawn Battleship in your hands."
Odelle nodded.
"It is my duty."
...
Sea Cat Kingdom.
Inside a certain tavern.
Lyric appeared at the entrance and swept his gaze across the noisy, chaotic interior.
He frowned in discomfort.
The tavern was filled with rough men, and there were all kinds of unsightly scenes around him.
Lyric could only shake his head.
However, now that he had become the guild leader of a merchant guild, he needed to recruit sailors for an upcoming voyage.
This trade expedition would be crucial to his future achievements, so he had no choice but to come personally.
Lyric found the tavern owner and stated his requirements.
"The Thornbird Merchant Guild is recruiting."
"As long as someone is willing to go to sea, we will take them."
The tavern owner’s eyes widened the moment he heard the name Thornbird Merchant Guild.
Running a tavern meant dealing with all kinds of people, so his information network was exceptionally broad.
He knew exactly how much weight the name Thornbird carried.
It was a merchant guild that had risen from nothing.
From weak to powerful, it had expanded at astonishing speed in an incredibly short period of time.
Not only had it risen rapidly, it already possessed the strength and qualifications to topple long-established merchant guilds.
It was the newest rising star of the commercial world.
Realizing this, the tavern owner did not dare delay.
He immediately went to recruit manpower for Lyric.
Lyric watched him leave and thought to himself,
"As long as I complete this trade deal, I will firmly establish myself among the top three merchants in the Sea Cat Kingdom."
"Give me a little more time, and I’ll dominate the entire commercial world of the Sea Cat Kingdom."
"By then, I’ll have manpower, wealth, fame, and authority."
"Obtaining an Overlord’s Token will be simple."
...
The other participants were also making gains of their own.
All of them were developing steadily and rapidly.
Valentin had chosen the continental Ziyang Kingdom.
Within the Ziyang Kingdom, Valentin became a frontier general commanding several thousand soldiers.
Alvin had chosen the continental Blue Moon Kingdom.
Within the Green Mountain Kingdom, he placed first in the imperial examination and attracted the attention of several powerful officials at court, giving him a smooth path into government service.
Cedric had chosen the continental Green Mountain Kingdom.
He became an outlaw and took advantage of the chaos to rise rapidly, eventually becoming one of thirty-six rebel armies. Although he commanded only several thousand men for now, his future prospects were considerable.
Wallis had chosen the continental Wenhua Kingdom.
Within the Wenhua Kingdom, he joined a martial sect and, in an extremely short period of time, became its sect master. From then on, he swept through the martial world without opposition.
Kaine had chosen the Divine Creation Kingdom.
There, he married the daughter of a marshal, joined the military, and quickly obtained a fairly high-ranking position.