Theo avoided looking down into the inky blackness of the ocean below him, and instead just looked at the buoy. He thought it was safe to approach- but he took a few minutes looking for anything that would cause danger if he got too near.

He swam up to take a breath, treading water. He was glad his body was naturally strong, because he hadn’t really put in much effort training and his wet robes were heavy. Why hadn’t he worn something else? Surely he should have known investigating buoys would involves swimming. He’d had other things on his mind just before leaving though. At least he’d brought paper to take notes- and left them up on the deck where they wouldn’t get wet.

After circling the buoy a few times- looking at it both above and below the water- Theo climbed out of the water. He used magic to dry himself off- something it was very convenient for- before writing the first handful of notes. Then he handed the papers back to the sailor who was keeping the papers from blowing away and dived back in.

He approached closer. He wasn’t sure if it was safe to touch yet, but he didn’t think it sensed anything in particular around it. It definitely had effects outside of itself, but they didn’t seem to change any. Instead, it was just a steady, slow output of magic. Most of it went into the waters in general, but there were two faint beams of mana that Theo thought were connections to other buoys.

Those connections also explained how it kept its relative position in the ocean. The sea wasn’t shallow enough for all of the buoys to be anchored. Theo thought it was a good thing they hadn’t tried to take it away. It would certainly have been noticed… and could have caused quite a few problem that they wished to avoid. Spying and copying technology was one thing, but completely disrupting their shipping routes was another.

Theo actually managed to forget that he was in the ocean where there were definitely sea monsters that could swallow him whole. That was good for his concentration, not so good when he forgot he had to surface to breathe. He didn’t breathe in that much salt water though. Not all at once anyway.

The ship above kept watch for other ships approaching, but fortunately they weren’t that frequent. Thus, over the course of a few days Theo gathered all the information he could without taking apart the buoy and studying it in a lab.

In the end, it was quite similar to the method the dwarves used, but more consistent. That is, the buoys remaining in the area constantly pacified the native sea life. Instead of just being dissuaded from attacking by the bypassing ships, it would become habit. That was Theo’s theory, anyway.

He still got out of the water as quickly as he could when he saw something swimming by. They did stay away from the ship, though, so that was something. “Alright, captain, that’s as much as I can get. We should move on before any more Eclean ships arrive.”

“Good. It’s a pain to keep the ship around without a proper anchor point anyway. I hope you were successful in your endeavors.”

-----

William liked the news from Theo. If they could implement a system like those buoys, they could trade with the dwarves. It would probably take some time before it became a profitable venture, but the more important thing would be the political part of that. Sure, they could currently communicate thanks to the phone William had sent- but that was only communications between rulers. It would be better for the people of to get used to each other.

Of course, in relation to the dwarves, William was still hearing rumors of dwarves and elves appearing throughout Cruonia. It was almost as if they wanted to be seen, waiting until someone noticed them then darting off.

Then a very rare occurrence took place. A diviner actually came to William, petitioning for an audience. Anyone could petition for an audience, but it wasn’t exactly common. While the castle was central to Cruonia, Crunoia itself was also quite large. Most people weren’t exactly nearby- though a few travelled a long way with their petitions. That actually made William take them more seriously, because they wouldn’t come with minor problems. The diviners weren’t necessarily far away- at least, they always had a few representatives shuffling around in the library- but they also only very rarely approached William for anything. “Greetings, Eternal King.”

“Greetings. You have a petition? I must confess I don’t believe I have any new knowledge to share.” The diviners also kept stores of knowledge- and though at times he had traded for their knowledge, he had shared some freely. They owed him, but he didn’t have anything he particularly needed from them. At least, not that he knew about. Still, helping them out more would likely not hurt.

The elderly gevai’s head bobbed slowly. “In the coming days… a significant event will occur. We just ask that you continue your traditions of level headedness and wisdom.”

“Is that all?” William wondered how long ‘the coming days’ were. What kind of significant event would there be? “Your foretelling is rather vague, but I have no intentions of suddenly changing my ways. I don’t suppose you can elaborate any on the event, or time?”

“It will indeed be days… not weeks or years. Saying any more about it…” The old man’s face wrinkled, “We already do not know the results. We can only say we do not believe it to be a danger, and we wish for you to act with that in mind.”

William nodded, “I have always strived to do my best for my people- and for all people. I will keep your words in mind.”

As the diviner left, William wondered just what could happen in the next few days. He certainly hadn’t heard much of anything. Was there something that could surprise him so much that he would fail to keep his calm without a warning? What kind of momentous event would it be? Well, if it was truly just days… he would find out very soon.