We entered the ship and Colt took off onto the seas. Colt was the expert when it came to driving ships. I stood on the deck and stared out into the ocean. Takame walked up to me and held onto the rail of the ship.
"The ocean is very calming at this time of day." Takame smiled.
"Really? The waters do look very calm." I said then looked at the ocean with a smile.
Takame looked out into the sea as well then got closer to me. "Phoenix is a very interesting girl isn't she."
"Yeah, a very fiery personality. She's very unafraid to show her affection for me. It gets tiring at times even as kids, but she means extremely well and is very trustworthy." I smiled.
"I can tell she likes you a lot, it kinda makes me jealous. I mean you've known her since you were kids and she comes out of nowhere then sweeps you away." Takame said and gently tapped the tip of her feet against the floor.
"Ehhh...I wouldn't say swept me away. She certainly surprised me a bit though. She's still got that happy go lucky side to her. She's never been one to worry about the future unless it's very serious. She's also very easygoing. I can say that I did miss her...but.." I said.
"But?" Takame looked at me.
"I don't want it to affect you all since I can tell you're all jealous of her." I smiled and closed my eyes. "I can tell Freya is trying dig into her head as we speak."
Takame blushed slightly, knowing I'm right about her being jealous of Phoenix. "I know you won't let it affect us." She smiled and got off the rails.
I looked at her then watched her walk off. I decided to go see Gideon and Colt on the main deck. The ship was basically being conducted by one of Colt's henchmen. I joined them at a table and sat down with them.
"Done playing lady's man?" Gideon teased.
"Hey don't get angry at me because the ladies aren't falling for your charm." I chuckled.
"Nah I'm just fuckin' with you." Gideon chuckled as he slipped on his wine.
"Glad you could join us. Care for a drink?" Colt asked.
I looked at Colt and shrugged. "Fuck it. Why not."
Colt chuckled and opened his cooler then pulled out a bottle of root beer. "Here. I can tell you're not 21 yet, so I came prepared."
"How can you tell?" I asked as I grabbed the root beer.
"It's just a gut feeling I have. Also you're Shidao's son aren't you?" Colt said.
"Man my dad has ties with you as well?" I asked.
"Nah it isn't anything bad, kid. He used to sail the seas together with my dad before he settled down with his wife. Your dad died very young. He was only 33 when he died. He was an honorable man, a fool however." Colt chuckled.
"A fool?" I asked.
"He was a very overconfident man. His power was unmatched however which fed into his arrogance. I remember it like it was yesterday watching him fight against 50 pirates using his Valor of Ruin and winning that battle. It was amazing to watch as a young adult, still learning to control the waves." Colt said and looked at the sky. "The news of his death upset many around the globe. King Icas managed to make him go all out and die after it was all over. His legacy remains strong. He's known as the man who saved the world."
I looked at the bottle of root beer then frowned. "I remember seeing my father dead on the ground after his fight with Icas. I'll never forgive him for what he's done."
Gideon looked at me then pat my shoulder. "You're not in this alone, Shiryo. We are a team now so we fight together."
I looked at Gideon then smiled and took another swig from my root beer. "Yeah I know."
The women were inside of the ship in the hot tub area. They took this chance to relax and soak in the warmth of the waters.
"So Phoenix, I know you're not as Doki Doki as you let on. What's the scoop..? You come out of nowhere, strike us down from the sky, fight with Shiryo and now it's all fine and dandy? I don't think so." Freya said.
Phoenix smirked and stretched then sighed. "Come on, Freya. I can smell your jealousy from here. It's actually sickening."
"What..?" Freya glared.
"It's clear as day that you like him as well, but I'm not trying to take him from you. I'm simply going to win him over before you get the chance to~ I know your game..~ I can tell exactly how you are.." Phoenix said.
"Looks like the true colors of a Phoenix has shown." Serafina said and crossed her arms.
"Come on ladies, let's all get along." Esta said.
"I am getting along, you should talk to Miss Firecracker there. Don't want her popping a blood vessel out of jealousy." Phoenix smirked then made a popping sound with her mouth while doing a popping hand gesture.
"Oh you're really irking my nerves, you overgrown bird." Freya said.
Phoenix chuckled and rested her arm along the edge of the hot tub then looked at Freya. "Let's have a little competition. You all have known Ragna for a while now..~ With the exception of Serafina who's only known him for maybe two days or so. You, Esta, and Takame obviously like him...so why not hold a little competition to see who can snag the first kiss from him. We'll make it fair, so no love magic, no forcing a kiss, no kissing him while he's asleep, keep it clean alright?"
"Alright, and what happens if any of us wins?" Freya asked.
"Bragging rights. Simple as that." Phoenix smiled. "Also whoever gets the first kiss gets to sleep with him for an entire week."
"Sounds fair enough." Freya said.
"It's gonna take a week to get to Adristan right, Vriska?" Phoenix asked.
"Yep." Vriska said as she had her eyes closed in the hot tub. "You young ladies and your competitions. Makes me remember when I was young like you."
"You're still young!" Esta said.
"Heh...once you hit your thirties, you're old in the eyes of society." Vriska smiled.
"Huh really?" Esta asked and got into her thinking pose.
"When do we start this competition?" Takame asked.
"Right now." Phoenix said then got out of the hot tub.
Colt blocked my attacks with relative ease and parried my attacks. I dashed to him and went for quick strikes with my sword, but he blocked the attacks with ease. I jumped back and looked at him then wiped my sweat. Colt was a better fighter than I imagined, behind able to keep up with my movements.
"Heh, my father used to keep up with yours like this as well. Your way of fighting is very repetitive, predictable. There's more to battle than being fast and hitting hard. If you must know, studying your opponent is important as well, but I can sense you know that. Even though this is training doesn't mean you slack off. We've got a week on this boat, so I want to help you perfect your craft." Colt said.
"Heh...I know that much and I appreciate you wanting to help me perfect my craft." I said. I twirled my sword then pointed it at Colt. "But, I have to say that it's impressive that you can read my movements so how about you read this!"
I dashed to Colt and knocked him off his feet with a front sweep kick. I got up quickly then dodged his get up kick then grabbed his leg. He looked a bit surprised then I tossed him in the air then appeared above him and struck him with my sword. He groaned as he crashed back down on the ship. I landed on the ship and looked at him.
"Damn, alright alright I'm done." Colt chuckled and stood up.
"Come on, I didn't even get to showcase my skills." I said and made my sword disappear.
"Sorry, kid. Just haven't been the same since I stopped fighting two years ago." Colt chuckled and went to sit down at the table.
"It's been two years since your last battle huh? Well better get back into shape because we're about to do a while lot of fighting." Gideon said.
"I'm aware." Colt said and rolled his shoulder.
"I'm gonna go take a break on the side decks." I said then walked off.
"Right. Don't fall in the sea." Colt chuckled.
I gave a nose exhale laugh then walked to the side deck. I leaned against the rails and stared out into the scenery. I soaked in the sun and smiled.
"Raaagna!~" Phoenix called out to me and hurried over to me.
I looked at Phoenix and grunted as she hastily hugged my arm, pressing her breasts against my arm. "What's up, Phi?"
"Phi?~ You haven't called me that since we were kids~" Phoenix giggled.
"Wha!" Esta exclaimed as she slipped and felt on the floor.
I looked at Esta then watched he quickly get up and rub her back. "Esta, are you alright?"
"Y-Yeah, just wasn't expecting the floor to be that slippery.." Esta whined softly and stood up quickly. "Anyway! What time is it?"
"It's 11:47 AM." I said.
"Okay thank you!~" Esta turned away and walked off.
'Wow they were right, she is an airhead...I can kinda see how she can be attractive but she's...she's dumb!' Phoenix thought to herself.
"I feel like I'm forgetting something..." Esta said then got into her thinking pose. She thought for a bit then shrugged. "Oh well! Bye Shiryo, Phoenix!~"
Esta hummed as she walked off then bumped into a pillar.
Phoenix looked surprised. 'Holy shit she's an idiot! I can't tell if this is her plan to attract Ragna or if she's this dense!'
"Shiryo!" Freya called out to me from behind.
I looked back and looked at Freya. "What's up?"
"I request attention from you and I want you to join me in the game area!" Freya pointed at me with a hand on her hip.
"This ship has a game area? Goddamn, is this a pirate ship or a cruise ship?" I asked.
'Fuck, little miss Sweet talk is trying to win him with some one on one time. Not today, Freya Unsweet! Wow that was so lame of me to even think of...I need to come up with better roasts..' Phoenix thought to herself.
"What is going on with these women..?" Minerva asked.
"I feel like it's pretty obvious." Ain said.
"You're gonna have to wait your turn because I already have plans with MY Ragna." Phoenix pouted and stuck her tongue out at Freya.
Freya's left eye twitched from annoyance. "If only you knew how much you piss me off.."
"Shishishishi!" Phoenix snickered.
"C'mon Phi, you can just join us." I said and looked a Phoenix.
Phoenix quickly stopped snickering and looked at me with sparkles in her eyes. "Of course Ragna!~ I would love to accompany you to the game area~"
'Of course she would agree..' Freya rolled her eyes as she thought to herself.
"Your friend seems to be quite the chick magnetic eh?" Colt asked.
"Yep, I don't know how he managed to get my cousin to like him, but as long as she's alright I'm alright as well." Gideon smiled as he scrolled through social media on his phone.
"Reminds me of my younger days when I would have my own harem of ladies around me. Good times, good times.." Colt said.
"What happened to them?" Gideon asked.
"I'm known as the Heartbreaker, had to shatter their hearts to be one with with the seas. Also the only one I truly had eyes for was Vriska before she became a royal bodyguard." Colt said.
"She doesn't seem to like you...at all." Gideon looked at Colt.
"Yeah well, she kissed me so that's somethi-" Colt groaned as a bottle hit his head.
"I only kissed you so we could get this fucking boat. Don't get it twisted, Sea Breath. Besides I'm sure those 'harem' of women hated you as well. You're damn right about being a heartbreaker, but you're nothing like Shiryo. Unlike you, the women actually like Shiryo." Vriska said with a blush on her face.
"Because he's the main character.." Colt mumbled.
"What was that?" Vriska asked.
"I said because he's a charming guy." Colt said.
"Hmph...Tell your goons to stay on course. We don't need any more delays than what we already experienced." Vriska said.
"Yeah yeah..." Colt said.
Gideon smiled as he watched Vriska and Colt interact. "The ladies liked you huh..."
"Whatever." Colt chuckled.