October 29, 1371


After a quiet night wherein the temperature only dropped down to 82F, you awake to a sunny morning and a cloudless sky. The wind has shifted slightly to the northeast and eased a bit, which is probably a good thing in view of the condition of your sails. The humidity has also dropped, too, making things a lot more comfortable.

You maintain your course southeast, paralleling the coast. Around 9 in the morning the shoreline curves more to the south, so you do too. Soon after that, you spot the sails of another ship rising above the southern horizon. The hull appears, and the Triton closes with it. It turns out to be a merchant ship, sailing northwest. You pass it several miles distant.

The afternoon progresses smoothly. About midafternoon Niko orders a course change, and Jesse brings the ship around until she is sailing south-southwest. A large promontory just out into the ocean, and the elf knows that a large, dangerous shoal runs out from it for some 15 miles into the ocean. As you sail past it late in the afternoon, a second promontory comes into view, previously hidden by the first.

"That marks the northern border of the Empire of Mestom," says Ramage. Niko keeps you well out to sea, for another long shoal juts out into the ocean west from it, too.

As night falls Ramage calls out some of his men, and a new jib is hoisted to replace the old, split one. The others are already working on the next sail. That, along with Occa's use of mending spells, has smartened up the brig quite a bit.

In all, you make good progress today, and cover quite a few miles.


next day...

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