The Ice Age Came And I Just Got Married - Chapter 41

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 41
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I climbed onto the deck of the Meteorological Observation Vessel.
A slight turn of my head revealed the colossal tidal wave and the frozen observation ship in one glance.
Half the hull was buried in ice.
“Remarkable that you survived in a place like this.”
Logan muttered the same thing while staring at the hull entombed in ice.
After a moment, he turned to me and asked.
“Think you can do it?”
I nodded.
“I think so. It’s the same as when I use the Silverstone. I can feel the power.”
As I slowly raised my hand, a red glow began to bloom from within my palm.
The Redstone Power.
My heart thundered once, hard.
Thump.
Then waves of searing heat coursed through my entire body. My fingertips felt ablaze.
I stretched my hand toward the ice surrounding the hull.
Whoosh!
Red flames erupted outward.
The ice began to melt.
At first it was only the size of my palm. But soon the radius widened steadily.
“Logan, hold the hull tight.”
Logan pulled me close at my words, then quickly gripped the railing on the deck. I was held firmly in his embrace.
Crack-crack-crack—
Crack—
Enormous fissures spider-webbed through the ice in the wake of the tidal wave. The observation ship, trapped within the ice, revealed itself.
Like a monster that had slumbered for decades.
The ice shrouding the hull collapsed with a roar of vapor.
Boom-crash-crash!
The entire vessel shuddered.
I gritted my teeth and forced the Redstone Power—boiling and burning inside me—outward.
The red light intensified. The ice melted and the hull reclaimed its freedom inch by inch.
And then.
Crash!
At last, the final icy support collapsed.
The colossal observation ship began to tilt slowly.
Screech—screech—
The hull shrieked as it tilted.
Soon the observation ship slid diagonally down the ice cliff.
Splash!
The vessel fell onto the sea, sending up a tremendous spray of water.
“Success!”
From inside the Meteorological Observation Vessel, Pockner’s cry rang out like a shout of jubilation.
I breathed heavily, gasping, when blood suddenly dripped from my nose. A hand reached around from behind me and pinched my nose shut.
Wait. Why is this man using his bare hands—
The moment that thought crossed my mind, a handkerchief appeared in his other hand and pressed against my nose again.
Then black smoke began rising from the observation ship’s chimney.
Hisssss—
A moment later.
A dull vibration echoed across the sea.
The silent engine had finally awakened.
In this frozen world, the Meteorological Observation Vessel began to move for the first time in two months.
Logan and I made our way back inside the hull.
“Engine nominal!”
Leon’s voice rang out from the Engine Room below.
As we entered the wheelhouse, I saw Claire gripping the helm. The old brass instrument panel shuddered and swayed.
“Departure commencing.”
Claire turned the helm slowly.
Screeeech.
The Meteorological Observation Vessel began to move.
We gathered on the deck and examined our position on the map.
We were currently in the middle of the sea between the Granden Kingdom and its neighboring nation, Norsellan.
Norsellan. It was the country where my eldest brother Graham had gone to study.
‘I wonder if my brother is safe.’
The thought surfaced again, but I pushed it away deliberately.
If I dwelled too long on things I couldn’t address right now, my mind would crumble.
That’s when Leon spoke.
“At this speed, it should take about five hours to reach Rosebrook Harbor.”
I lifted my head and gazed forward. The Meteorological Observation Vessel was crawling along at a painfully slow pace.
“Can’t we go any faster?”
Logan’s question made Leon shake his head.
“It’s too risky.”
He gestured toward the frozen sea.
“We can’t see through the ice field, and with the tidal wave having passed through, the ice shattered everywhere. There are enormous chunks of ice drifting beneath the surface. If we hit one, we’re finished.”
There was nothing to be done about it. If the ship’s hull was breached, we’d sink without a trace.
‘I need to recover my strength soon.’
I wanted to use the Silverstone Power to return to Rosebrook, but after channeling such a massive force, my energy had drained completely.
‘I thought there were no side effects, but now that I’ve used this much power at once, they’ve appeared.’
Nosebleeds had been a chronic problem since childhood, so that was manageable, but losing consciousness was unexpected.
On top of that, my vitality was depleted and I had no strength. It felt like I wouldn’t be able to use the Silverstone Power for some time.
‘Still, it’s gradually replenishing, though…….’
It was clear I would need time.
“But do either of you have any idea what’s actually happened here?”
That’s when Leon asked us.
“We were trapped in this observation vessel, unable to descend, and we thought we were done for. Then we suddenly fell into the sea, and somehow the ice melted and now we’re sailing across the ocean like this… I’m completely lost.”
Leon’s eyes darted toward me with unmistakable curiosity.
“Did perhaps your lady use flames like before to melt the ice…?”
Instead of answering, I simply smiled. There was no need to respond to that question right now.
They would figure it out naturally in time.
Seeing my smile and realizing he wouldn’t get an answer, Leon cleanly abandoned his attempt to press for one.
He was a straightforward man with no lingering resentment—simple, almost. Which made things comfortable.
After two hours had passed, Claire handed the helm over to Leon.
Once she’d switched out and emerged onto the deck, she spread out the map and sat beside us, who had been chatting.
I suddenly felt that the name Claire rang oddly familiar.
Claire Shawn Wayne. Where had I heard it before?
The memory was on the tip of my tongue but wouldn’t quite surface. Eventually I gave up trying to remember and asked her directly.
“Lieutenant, how did you and Pockner end up trapped together on this observation vessel?”
“We were conducting meteorological observation operations.”
Claire answered in a clipped, precise tone. She was even more sharp-edged than Leon, and that was saying something.
Her dark blonde hair was cut short and neat, and there was something undeniably striking about it. Even with short hair, she carried the cool, polished air of a city beauty.
“Up until an hour before the incident, there were no warning signs whatsoever. Then suddenly, within thirty minutes, the sky darkened, a blizzard swept in, the tidal wave surged forward, and the entire observation vessel froze solid in the air.”
It really had happened in an instant.
I myself had nearly been caught in an avalanche the moment snow began falling over the Capital.
“When we reach Rosebrook Harbor, where will you go?”
Claire’s response was to prop her chin on the back of her hand, thinking hard.
“I’m not sure yet. First, I suppose I’d return to the base…….”
“We’ve already been to the Rosebrook Naval Base. There wasn’t a single survivor there.”
“……Is that true?”
Claire’s voice carried disbelief. Her pupils flickered sharply with the impact of my words.
“You mean you’ve searched the entire vast naval base?”
Her question wasn’t easy to answer. The truth was, we’d only explored the underground facility.
Logan, who had been listening quietly to the conversation, spoke up for the first time.
“It was a naval strategic research facility. Section 6.”
“Ah, I see. Then you haven’t checked the Operations Command yet.”
I had little to say about naval installations, so I was grateful Logan was here to fill the gap.
His military service hadn’t been particularly long, and he’d already left the service—not even navy, just army—but somehow he knew quite a lot.
“The harbor and shipyards are already crippled by the tidal wave, so forget those. We should inspect the Operations Command, the Barracks, the research complex, and the Coastal Artillery Battery.”
To be honest, I’d brought up the subject hoping to recruit Claire to Dotori Village, but it seemed clear that once we reached Rosebrook, she’d have her hands full.
‘Too bad.’
Then, a sudden thought struck me and my eyes widened.
Wait.
Claire Shon Wain.
Why did that name feel so familiar? She was a character from a novel.
The protagonist Aiden’s first love. That was Claire Shon Wain.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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