Until the moment she had landed on the merchant ship, Sarah was afraid that Gristella would kill her. She was after all a Royal and they usually only cared about their reputation.
'Maybe it was because there were other people in the surroundings and she didn't want to kill a child that may ruin her reputation?' Sarah thought as she followed the Captain. Even while following behind him, she always maintained an alert stance so that she may retaliate at a moment's notice.
'Though, if he actually wanted to harm me, he would have done so long ago. Any one of his underlings could defeat me with a single attack.' Sarah gave a wry smile as she shook her head to clear her messy thoughts. As her father always reminded her, she had to maintain a clear state of mind at all times.
"My lady, how may I address you?" The Captain performed another bow as he opened the door to a well-decorated room and motioned for her to enter.
"…Claire." Sarah said as she entered the room and settled herself in it. She gazed at her allotted room and noticed a large bed that could easily fit three of her and a small table placed next to it. The legs of the table and the bed seemed to be affixed to the floor to prevent them from sliding on the floor due to the swaying of the ship.
There was nothing on the table except for a small bell while some bizarre paintings hung on the walls. There were colourful curtains that were draped over her bed to make it look attractive while the bedsheets looked to be made from fine silk. There was a cupboard on one end of the room while another door was situated next to it.
"Lady Claire, please use the bathroom to wash yourself. If you have any needs please don't hesitate to ring that bell." The Captain stood at the entrance of the room and pointed at the bell on the table.
One of his subordinates brought in a tray of fruits and snacks and placed them on the table. He then arranged a couple of cutlery alongside a jug of water that was fixed to the table by inserting a trace of his energy into it. He went out and returned with a set of clothes and other necessities and placed them in the empty cupboard. He performed a bow towards Sarah and cleaned the floor on his way out.
The Captain made some more pleasantries and closed the door. Sarah heaved a sigh after he had left and massaged her sore arms. The energy in her body was completely expended as the tattoo on her chest activated and created a small dimensional door near her. Sarah pulled out a small artifact from within it and activated it by inserting the energy her body had recovered through the tattoo.
The artifact whirred into action as it scanned the food placed on the table. It then scanned the items placed within the cupboard, the bed, the bathroom and finally made a sweep through all corners of her room. She even made sure to direct the artifact towards the ceiling just to be safe. On finding that there were no harmful substances present anywhere in her surroundings, Sarah heaved a sigh of relief and placed the artifact in her 'Dimensional Box'.
It was only then did her stomach protest in hunger with a loud growl. Sarah stepped towards the table and looked into the food placed before her that were mostly fruits along with some bread and vegetable soup. There was also a meat dish made from fish that she set aside for that fact that it looked gross and didn't smell savoury.
Sarah took a round fruit and sniffed it in habit. The fruit smelled sweet as she bit into it, cleaving a chunk out of it.
"Ptui..puuu." Sarah spat out the contents of the fruit she had just eaten. It was sour, something she hadn't expected due to the sweet scent it released. She then took another fruit and took a small bite out of it. It was sour too. She tried all the fruits and found that all of them had the same sour taste.
Sarah had almost reached towards the bell when her hands froze mid-air. Taking a couple of moments to rethink her actions, Sarah retracted her hand took a bite out of the fruit. She curled her lips due to the sour taste but still ate it in silence.
People generally consumed such food items to prevent themselves from getting seasickness. But for someone like Sarah who was born and raised in the waters, she had never experienced seasickness ever in her life. That was why she ate all sorts of food even while travelling in the waters.
Sarah dipped the bread in the vegetable soup and ate it. Its taste was to her liking as she devoured the entire basket and licked the soup bowl clean. She didn't know how far she had travelled and how long she had been asleep after being separated from her father, but after feeling her hunger pangs, she came to realise that a long time had passed.
"Dad…" Sarah muttered under her breath as she controlled her tears and walked towards the cupboard. She found a set of garments placed in the cupboard that felt like they were tailored for her.
Sarah shook her head and picked a towel from it. She then undressed and entered the bathroom.
The bathroom had a washbasin at one corner, a shower in the centre and a toilet at the other end. Sarah took a look into the mirror attached above the washbasin and felt horrified at the sight of her face. Dishelved hair, baggy eye bags, and red eyes that were possibly due to her crying.
Sarah picked up a brush and paste from the necessities she was provided as she proceeded to freshen herself. She relieved herself first and then proceeded to take a long bath to relax her nerves.
She wiped herself clean and picked the clothes she had just worn. She then entered the bathroom and washed them using the soap available before hanging them dry atop the curtains that were draped above the bed. On seeing her undergarment striking a valiant post atop the bed, Sarah giggled and wore the garment the sailors had given.
It was a blue gown with a shrilly frock. Its ends were bordered with pink embroidery while ribbons shaped into flowers were affixed on the top. Seeing that they hadn't provided any undergarments, Sarah pouted in distaste and just decided to wear without them. Since she didn't plan to go out, she wanted to feel a little free.
One corner of the bed was occupied by all the miscellaneous things she had removed from her previous dress including the two leather rolls. Sarah lay to rest on the huge bed and felt the soft mattress under her. She soon fell asleep.
In the Captain's cabin, the Captain was lecturing some of his subordinates in a stern tone. His subordinates listened with rapt attention, a trace amount of fear present in their eyes.
"I don't know how Lady Claire is related to Lady Gristella but I want you guys to treat her in the same manner as you would a Noble. If any of you is disrespectful in the slightest, then you can say farewell to your lives. Even if I don't kill you, one of the noble families will take care of us when we reach the shore."
"Don't just try to think the workings of the Royal family through your pea-brained heads. Just do as you are told. You understand?"
"Yes, Sir!" His subordinates saluted and strode out of the room.
After they shut the door behind them, the Captain used a kerchief to wipe the cold sweat that had formed on his head. The pressure he was facing was immense because the moment Sarah had landed on the deck of his ship, a trace amount of energy entered his body.
It seemed like she wanted him to know about it and hence, he could detect it entering his body. This meant that Gristella could know his whereabouts any time she wanted. Even now, she might be probably monitoring his actions through that energy.
'This is my one chance to curry favour with a Royal. I should make the best impression on them.' The Captain thought with excitement. If he did his job well, he might even be given a job in an administrative body. That would make him reach the pinnacle of success in his lifetime.
…
Sarah woke up after a long slumber and stretched her body to relieve her sore muscles. She had rowed the boat for quite the distance that made her limbs feel weak. All she wanted to do was to lay on the bed and laze around. After some more time had passed in such a manner, Sarah wore her undergarments beneath her gown. It seemed she had slept for a very long time that even her clothes had completely dried up.
Sarah was just about to push open the door when her hand paused as her mind began to analyse her situation.
'Just because this place seems safe doesn't mean that I could go out so defenceless.' Sarah thought as she kept the two leather rolls and the pouch filled with Energy Berries inside her gown. She also made a slight tear in her gown in order to quickly access the concealed items should the situation necessitate. The tear was made along the seams of the dress that was situated beneath some frills so Sarah didn't have to bother about people noticing the tear.
Tiptoeing towards the door to check whether the gown was comfortable to move in, Sarah felt satisfied and pushed open the door.
"Lady Claire, do you need something?" A sailor that was stationed at her door hurriedly bowed when he saw her.
"N-Nothing. I just wanted to take a stroll." Sarah said while placing a hand on her chest to curb her thumping heart. She had almost leaped in fright when she heard the voice.
"Allow me to accompany you then." The Sailor said as he followed after Sarah and made sure to maintain some distance between them. He controlled his walking speed to match hers while positioning himself a little to her right so that she could still notice him from the corner of her eye.
The Captain of the ship had paid attention to even such small details to ensure that Sarah would feel comfortable and not feel that they had breached etiquette.
As Sarah walked towards the deck of the ship, she was greeted with the scenery of aquatic plants that had risen out of the water all around her. Countless fishes were swimming about in the waters while various leaves that were situated on the plants occasionally pounced at the swimming fishes.
'I have already arrived at the Vitality Domain.' Sarah silently thanked Gristella for making something like this possible. She didn't even have the confidence to make it here alive if she were alone.