Above the blue waves, a three-masted merchant ship is cleaving the wind and waves, heading west to the New World. They set off from the hot metal port of the Star Country in the "Old World", and it took them a full nine months of sailing to complete a round trip with Ximu Town in the "New World". There are only two islands on the way where ships can be resupplied by boats, but in order to avoid pirates, each docking time does not exceed a day, and then you have to rush on your way. So overall, the boat is always going through a very difficult journey.

The big ship, called the Lucky Thos, was sixteen years old, and it was an old ship - but it was well maintained. It has faced many disasters at sea, but in the end it has survived safely. The seafarers were superstitious, believing that the ship was protected by the god of the sea, and were willing to board such a ship in search of work. The shipowners also liked to see this, but took advantage of the fortunate reputation of the Soth to pay less wages, resulting in the ship's seafarers earning less than other ships. Because of this, the crew of this ship has been coming and going, and rarely stays for long.

There are only two people who have been working with the Lucky Thos ever since: Captain Siegel, whom is respected by all the crew, and Siegel, who is loved by most people.

These two are not father and son, they just have the same name, but the surname is different. Captain Siegel-Marlene is a tough old seaman who believes in the god of storms (rootless storms) and keeps celibate at sea, so he never marries or has children. Little Siegel was found in the hold of the ship on its first voyage, wrapped in swaddling clothes and abandoned in tanks used by seafarers to catch squid. The baby was stinking with a foul stench, and a large pool of viscous black ink nearly suffocated him. The sailor reported the first mate, the first mate reported to the captain, and the captain went down to the cabin to see him. Despite his embarrassment and hunger, the baby smiled at the captain, which allowed him to survive.

The child has very rare black hair and black eyes, which the crew says is dyed with squid ink. The old captain had another theory about this: "The god of storms has a squid sage, and this must be a child sent by him! You must not throw him into the sea, it is a blasphemous gift, and it will cause disaster." For everyone's welfare, I'll raise him. The crew nodded, believing the old captain's words—as much as he believed his predictions of the storm—so Siegel-Squid became the baby's name.

Before he was six years old, Siegel hadn't even stepped on the ground that wouldn't shake. He breathed the sea breeze, drank the seawater, frolicked with the waves, and earned a bite to eat in the storm, until now.

Now the child is 16 years old, sitting on the bow of the ship, up and down with the bumps of the merchant ship's breaking waves. His skin was dark and shiny by the sun and sea breeze all day long, and his muscles were compact and energetic due to years of work and eating sea fish. Passengers said he was like a sturdy leopard when he moved. Most delighted by his bright black eyes, few things in the world can escape his observation, a talent that becomes more evident with age and seafaring experience, and sometimes he can even predict the coming storm before the old captain. He was usually responsible for keeping an eye out of the mast, and few pirate ships could get close to the Soth out of his sight. The crew privately identified him as "boatswain", but this appointment was not formally approved by the ship's owner.

It is impossible for the passengers on the Soth not to notice this strange child, only two reasons are enough: 'black hair and black eyes' and 'jumping up and down'. They would ask the seafarers about the child, and the seafarers would always be happy to answer, make up stories to earn tips, or simply to hear a few exclamations. But as mentioned before, the seafarers here rarely last long, so they tell stories about Siegel from somebody, and somebody from another. Facts are quickly turned into stories, and stories are exaggerated into legends. So even though Siegel never leaves the ship, he still has many versions of "legends" in the vicinity of Molten Metal Harbor and Creek Town.

Earlier, because of these legends, Siegel would be welcomed by the shopkeepers and tavern people every time he docked, and everyone rushed to see the "child who came out of the belly of the squid". Siegel had no intention of correcting these different versions of the "legend", much less to add fuel to it. He often enters into a strange dream, too ridiculous to mention to others: a world of steel and lightning, where people eat poisonous food with relish and give their souls to the glowing idols in their hands every day. He wandered the world in a daze, then was caught by a firebird and flew into the vortex of the void.

Every time a squid has such a dream, it wakes up sweating profusely and panicking. He often prayed to the "God of Storms" or the "Squid Sage" to ask about the meaning of his dreams, but no one ever answered him.

Life as a seafarer is very hard and monotonous, and Siegel is able to adapt to the hard part, but it is difficult to endure the monotony. He is adventurous, battling the wind and waves, and winning against the sea. He learned to steer the sails, steer, dive and observe the stars. Everyone said that he would be the best sailor, and the old captain held him in high esteem. But Siegel was thinking of something else, and he admired the powerful warriors, the elegant and noble knights, and the mysterious and kind priests. Deep down, he felt that he shouldn't just be an ordinary sailor, and he wanted to try his luck in the New World. He had never told anyone about it, for fear that others would laugh at him for his delusional thinking. It was only when he sat in the bow of the boat, looking out at the horizon alone, that Siegel secretly mentioned it to God.

Today, the mood of the "squid" was very low, looking listlessly at the junction of the sea and the sky, and his legs dangled unconsciously. The pesky first mate on deck tells the passengers stories about his misfortunes, and Siegel doesn't bother to correct them. On other days, Siegel would spit in his lunch for revenge, even if he didn't kick the first mate. The two of them kept looking at each other, and Siegel thought it was purely because the first mate hated himself, and he always ordered himself to do some very hard work in front of everyone.

"Squid, come down, old captain wants to see you!" said Cook Deville, with his big belly, managed to squeeze out of the hatch, and staggered on the deck like a boiled egg. He shouted, "When you're done meeting with the captain, don't forget to hurry up to me to help, and I have lunch to make!"

Siegel leaped from the bow of the ship, untied the noose from his waist, and threw it out with a whoosh. The lasso brushed the first mate's scalp across the deck and hooked exactly onto the transom of the first mast. To the curse of the first mate, the squid swung effortlessly across the foredeck and stopped in front of the cook with agility and grace. He shook his hand, and the lasso was wrapped back around the young man's waist as if spiritually.

Several passengers applauded vigorously and applauded loudly, hoping to see more of these circus performances. Siegel forced a smile and made an exaggerated hat salute, waving the non-existent hat at the applauding passengers, then squeezed past the fat chef's belly and headed straight for the captain's cabin.

The respected captain was now dying, he could not even stand on the deck and direct the voyage, but could only lie on the bed in the lounge, eating and drinking to be served by others. The old man endured great pain, and every joint of him was crying out against the need for a strike – a permanent strike. As the ship went up and down, the old captain was also being tortured round after round, and the age spots on his face were constantly twitching.

"The storm will also go away. Old Siegel explained life and death to little Siegel as follows: "Until a new storm is born." ”

"I don't want to see you die. The squid sat quietly across from the captain and helped to lift the old man's hand and place it on top of his head. The black hair was straight and stiff, but when the old captain's rough hands touched it, it felt as soft as silk. "When you're dead, I'm going to dislike this ship. ”

"Then go on an adventure, go out on land, I've seen that in your eyes. The old captain said, "The owner wanted you to be the next captain, but I refused, and I recommended the first mate." You're not going to be mad at me, are you?"

"No, it won't. The squid disagreed: "He's a good one to give orders, but I'm different." ”

"You deserve better, kid. The old captain tried to sit up, but only succeeded with the help of the squid. Little Siegel had thought that the captain would mention "that treasure" again, after all, since he could speak and listen, the old captain had always talked about it. The captain said that when he first became a sailor, one of the sages of the storm god revealed the secrets of the world to him, allowing him to predict the signs of storms at sea. The oracle then prophesied the captain's future life and converted him to the god of storms, where he would live celibate for the rest of his life and not be allowed to marry. But at the same time, he was told that there was a secret about the wealth of the world that could only be passed on to his son and fulfilled by his son. The old captain didn't understand this until he found Little Siegel in the squid's chest.

From then on, the captain told the little squid about it and told him to take it to heart. In the beginning, the child dreamed of being able to travel through the New World, reach the end of the West, obtain endless treasures, and live like a king. Even if he later learned that the New World was dangerous, and that only a few legendary powerhouses had ever reached it, there was no way a small sailor could complete such a journey. But he still firmly believes that he can fulfill this dream, as long as he finds an opportunity to train himself, improve his knowledge and strength.

But the captain knew today that he didn't have much time, so he wouldn't repeat the old story. With a shudder, he took a small box from the hidden compartment of the cupboard in the wall, opened it with the key he had untied from his neck, and handed it all to Siegel. Seegal took it curiously, and he saw that there was only one thing in the box, a pendant with twenty dice hanging from it.

The dice are the size of a thumb nail and are all black, with crimson dragon numbers engraved on them, ranging from 1 to 19. The only side that should have been written 20 is not a number, but a crimson symbol. The old captain had secretly questioned many people, but none of them knew what was written on it.

Siegel only glanced at it, but understood the meaning of this symbol, which was "phoenix".

"This was found in a squid basket. The old captain took out the dice pendant from the box, put it around the squid's neck with his own hands, and said, "When you were young, you would cry when you got close to this thing, and you would be awakened by nightmares at night. Now give it back to you, it's your stuff. The dice radiated a burst of warmth and rested peacefully on Siegel's chest. The young man did not feel uncomfortable, let alone cry, but felt much more peaceful and calm, and his sad mood was soothed.

"I was a glutton, a drinker, and a gambler, and I spent all my savings on my treatment, so I didn't leave you any inheritance, except for one ......," the old man coughed vigorously, which touched all the painful joints in his body, and made him convulse. The young man brought him a bitter medicinal soup filled with poppy milk and soothing herbs to numb the pain. The old man tried to restrain himself, pushed away the potion, and said with what little strength he had left: "Child, that treasure does exist, you must believe me." I know it's difficult, and I can only help you with one last thing. I told the first mate that he wanted to be captain on one condition, and that was that he had to find you a good way out, or at least a knight's servant. Only then will you be able to start learning and be competent enough to get to 'that place'. If he can't do that, let the storm take his life! You were born on a ship, you don't know who your parents are, you can't even be an illegitimate child, it's too hard to get ahead. But you can't be a sea rat for the rest of your life because of this! Go there, there must be something you want there, promise me!"

"I promise you, but I'm afraid I won't. ”

"Trust me, child, just as I believe in the God of Storms, you will accomplish your mission!" the old man's face flushed with excitement, and he suddenly became younger. His eyes were wide open, and he stared out through the porthole of the room, and he saw the wall of storms at the edge of the world, and a kingdom of God unfolded before him. A giant who stood tall in the sky walked out of the kingdom of God, his body surrounded by endless thunder, and his feet held up by a hurricane. The giant's mouth opened and closed silently, but the captain easily understood his words. The old man's face showed joy, as if he had solved the biggest problem in his life.

"I'm going home!" the old man finally shouted.

Note: Legend has it that the edge of the world is an impassable wall of storms that will shatter you if you drive in. Only pure souls can cross the storm wall and go to the kingdom of God.