Chapter 176: Touring Their Ship_2
They went directly to the deck.
The ship's entire deck was exceptionally spacious and tidy, with an area resembling a small garden situated between the two masts. It was located at the very center of the open-air deck, making the whole expanse feel like a small square. In the middle was a huge, circular flower bed, though nothing was planted in it yet, revealing a large patch of soil. This, then, was likely the area intended for their cultivation. They could even plant trees here, fulfilling the requests they had made earlier. As for what plants to grow, that decision was left to Alka and his companions.
Alka went to the forecastle and looked inside. Indeed, it had only one level, a design choice to maintain the hull's streamlined shape. The entire floor of the forecastle was converted into the captain's cabin. It had excellent lighting with glass on both sides. Inside, there was a huge circular wooden table, surrounded by various bookshelves and empty spaces. The decision of what items to place there was also left to Alka and his group. One couldn't expect the shipyard to provide a complete set of finished furniture; it would only supply Alka and the others with some very basic, detachable pieces, allowing the ship's true owners to customize it later. After all, those who commissioned such ships undoubtedly had their own ideas. The space was also large enough to serve as a meeting room, more than sufficient for their needs.
Then, the group proceeded along the deck to the sterncastle, which was to be their main living area. The best rooms on the entire ship were located here.
The sterncastle had a total of three levels. The entrance on the first level led directly to a small dining room, capable of accommodating a meal for more than ten people. Additionally, diagonally behind the dining room, an entrance led to a downward passage. This passage connected directly to the first gun deck below, where the ship's kitchen was conveniently located for the chefs. Given the ship's considerable size, the kitchen had also been greatly expanded per Alka's request and was naturally designed to be on the lower gun deck. Outside the kitchen, near the aft entrance of the first gun deck, there was an even larger dining hall. This space could be used for banquets, allowing many more people to dine. The entire aft section of the first gun deck comprised the large dining hall, the kitchen, and its spacious cold storage.
Naturally, the sides of the first gun deck were designated for cannon emplacements. The central section housed other functional rooms, as well as dispersed ammunition magazines located near the cannons. The fore section was designated for other functions.
The group only took a brief look before returning upstairs, as the sterncastle had not yet been fully examined. Besides the dining room, there were other vacant rooms in the aft section of the sterncastle; how they would be used was up to Alka and his companions to decide. The upper two levels contained lounges and several bedrooms. Besides those intended for Alka, Jason, and Chadite, several additional rooms were left unoccupied. The rooms could be modified by opening passages between them if needed, adding more usable space to the bedrooms.
Juanlu, who had just boarded, would also reside here; he was a normal human too.
As for Pororo and Julia, the group made their way to the very bottom of the ship. In the hold, two rooms had been specially prepared for them. Due to their unique races and specific room requirements, these were two separately designed spaces constructed with different materials.
These rooms were located at the bow and stern. The one at the bottom of the ship's bow was Pororo's. It was a room that could be filled with seawater, which could also be pumped out. No furniture was provided inside, as the shipyard was unfamiliar with the specific habits of fish people.
The room at the stern was Julia's. It was divided into two sections: one half was floored, while the other half featured a large, bathtub-like basin. The floored side was simply laid out according to human customs. This area could also be connected to the seawater outside, allowing Julia to rest there.
Both were very satisfied with their respective rooms.
Afterwards, the group members dispersed to explore the areas that interested them most.
Alka started by inspecting the ship's firepower. If fully armed, the ship could accommodate 36 cannons. However, in practice, no cannons were installed on the main deck, as Alka and the others preferred not to have them there. Therefore, the cannons were only placed on the two lower gun decks, totaling 24—six on each side of each deck. Since the ship was not intended to be a pure warship and also needed to offer a certain level of comfort, only this many cannons had been installed.
However, these Vibrating Stone Cannons were the standard model from the Blood Gold Alliance, a tier lower in quality than those of the Church. It was possible to exchange them for better ones, though. That, however, would cost extra. The ship's cannon emplacements allowed for future expansion and were similarly linked with an automated Spell system.
The second gun deck, in addition to the cannon corridors on both sides, had functional spaces in its central, fore, and aft sections.
The fore section of the first gun deck housed a huge library. This area had been specially reinforced for heat resistance, fireproofing, and impact protection, and was already equipped with special bookshelves. This layout was very similar to that of the Sea Fist, where Alka had once served, possibly because both ships had been built by the same shipyard.
The mid-aft section of the second gun deck contained the manufacturing hall Alka needed, occupying one-third of this deck's area.
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