As the cold wind of the northern seas blew past Mikael's face, he could hear the songs of the gulls, flying along as the Siren traversed the salty waters. It has been quite a few days since the incident, nobody talks about that, the corpses have been disposed of, there was some trouble regarding Carder asking for his sister, but that was quickly taken care of by Ardan.
Speaking of the merchant family, they had asked to build a coffin for Mivi. the captain of course agreed, he instructed his other men to deal with it, making it from the emergency wooden boards that they stored below the deck.
Now, they are approaching Kovir, Mikael could see it, as there are many fishing boats sighted near the ship. Then, Mikael finally saw it. Walls disguising themselves as breakwaters, it's not even like a port anymore, it was like a fortress in the middle sea. Forests of black and white masts filled the port of Pont Vanis. The high walls were protecting the port, stocky roundels around the walls as tall towers stood in the middle of the waters, guarding the entrance.
"Ah… Pont Vanis, the summer capital of Kovir." someone suddenly stated. Mikael turned around, and saw Ardan, his eyes looked tired, but nonetheless happy to see land in front of him.
"Have any thoughts on the city?" questioned Mikael.
"What can I say? Base of the fleet of Kovir, traders filled the port with ships and boats, and a literal fortress by the sea."
Mikael hummed. "Must be a great place."
"It is." nodded Ardan. "I recommend that you taste the cuisine by the beaches, seafood prosper in that area."
"Don't like seafood." shrugged Mikael.
"Preposterous!" Ardan said jokingly. "Seafood is the core of Koviri cuisine, well, at least the towns near the sea."
"Then I'll just travel to the place near the mountains." said Mikael casually. "But seriously, even I doubt the Nilfgaardian fleet could siege this beast of a fortress."
"Ha! I even doubt the Skellige fleet could!"
"Er… not so sure about that…" Mikale chuckled. "Anyways, our destination isn't here."
"True, we're going to the great canal of Lan Exeter. We'll stop there." said the captain suddenly, entering the conversation.
"It's not really a canal is it if it can fit a big ship like this?"
"It's more like a river." shrugged Ardan. "But the canals are all connected to there, hence the name."
"It'll probably take a good while to get used to." stated Mikael. "Traveling using canoes instead of simply walking…"
"You'll get used to it quickly." the captain patted Mikael's shoulder.
"Ah, I just remembered…" Mikael suddenly said. "What's the currency here?"
"Oh, it's Bizats." said Ardan. "You haven't got any?"
"Forgot to exchange it back in Novigrad…" shrugged Mikael.
"No matter, I can provide some for you."
"Oh no, I'll just exchange it myself once we docked…"
"No, no, I insist, friend." said Ardan. "You've helped us a lot, it's the least I could do, you are also always welcome to our estate in the city."
Ardan then gave a pouch of Bizats to Mikael casually, making Mikael raise his eyebrow. "Well… this is a bit too much don't you think?"
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"Nonsense, you'll be traveling around Kovir, which needs Bizats." said Ardan. "Just stop by once a while, tell your stories."
Mikael just smiled. "Will do."
—
As the ship approached a rather well-built city, Mikael saw the city of Lan Exeter in full glory. He could see people greeting each other from their canoes, smoke rising from chimneys as snow fell from above, covering the roofs with clear white snow.
Mikael could definitely see this place as people's choice of a retirement place. It's just a nice city, while it's cold, Mikael could feel the warmth of home around this place.
"We're almost there." said the captain. "Grab your things lads!"
Mikael had already picked up his bag from his room, he was just waiting for the ship to dock.
As the anchor was dropped, and the board was connected to the platform below, people quickly unloaded the cargo. Mikael helped the merchant family carry the coffin to the platform, Ardan's wife ever silent.
As Mikael and the other sailors carefully placed the coffin at the platform, some new men suddenly approached Ardan. They greeted him with respect, perhaps he's they're boss. They then offer some condolences to him, before carrying the task of bringing the coffin to the estate.
"Well Mikael, I guess this is where we part ways." said Ardan, offering his hand to him.
Mikael accepted the handshake with his steel arm, and smiled. "Can't say that it's been a fun journey, but it was nice meeting you, Ardan, Evre."
"Thank you." said Evre as he hugged Mikael, kissing his two cheeks politely. "For everything you've done for us… for Mivi…"
"I didn't do anything, Evre…" said Mikael sadly. "I just did what I was supposed to do."
"Well, some people can't even realize that," said Ardan. "And for that, I thank you. Be careful outside the city Mikael, remember my warning about the extremists."
"Will do." said Mikael. "Who knows, might get a job that involves killing them."
Ardan laughed. "Then I pity those refugees…"
Ardan and his family then departed from the port, leaving Mikael alone amongst the busy sailors, unloading the ship behind him. He took a deep breath, it was cold, piercing his nose as he breathed, but he took it nonetheless.
Mikae looked around, the smell of the sea still lingers, and he walked away from the port. As he was walking, he saw a peculiar woman, standing behind a bunch of barrels. That woman wore a cloak, he could see her hair, same as him, red. As he tried to get a good look of her, the woman vanished, as if she wasn't there in the first place.
Mikael raised her eyebrows, and shrugged, before continuing to walk towards the nearest tavern.
Mikael walked through the side of the canals, it was made out of stone, but it was covered in snow as it kept falling from above. He honestly never saw such a city, a cold climate city that used canals as means of transportation, it had this unique charm to it. He saw a couple rowing canoes together, spending their time together, he saw a family of four having fun in this cold climate, he saw orphans running around the side of the canal, chasing each other.
It was a calming sight in this world, such a peaceful city, honestly, he had missed this, a city where people could walk freely and not being mugged or raped, a city where children could run around freely.
But then again, this city is rich, so it's definitely not possible to create this atmosphere for the whole continent.
Mikael sighed again as he turned, where he saw an inn in the corner, just at the end of the canal. He walked to it, and read the name. "The Windy River."
Mikael hummed, quite an ironic name he might say, but I guess it's better than nothing. He opened the door, and entered the inn.