"Those sure were some cute kids," said a soldier.
"I just had the same thought. I guess kids are still kids, no matter what race you are," said another. "The wraiths did catch me completely off guard though."
The speakers continued to work as they discussed the unusual guests.
"Doubt you'll ever find any other wraiths that adorable," said the first sailor. "I thought it was only possible for a wraith to be born if someone died with some pretty deep-rooted regrets. Did something like that really happen to those kids? It's hard to believe."
"Apparently not. The demon guy was saying that they were wraiths from the moment they were born, so they don't actually have any grudges or anything. They only look like kids because they are kids."
"…Other races are pretty damned hard to understand."
"You ain't wrong."
The pair exchanged a bit of a wry smile.
"Sure is strange though, to suddenly be at peace. Just a while ago, we were still at war with the demons, but now we're sailing them places like nothing was ever wrong."
"My thoughts exactly. I know it's all politics, but hey, I don't mind. Thanks to that, we've got all sorts of cute girls on board to brighten up the trip."
"I agree with that, man, but be careful and make sure you don't step out of line. The demon, he's friendly, but you can't forget he's Rogarde's emperor now. I'm pretty sure he ain't a bad guy, since the captain gets along so well with him, but say the wrong thing, and you could get your whole family executed."
The cheerful man was interrupted by a third, more cautious colleague.
"A-aye, I ain't about to go do something stupid and throw myself to the dogs. All I want is for the girls to salute me like they've been doing some of the other guys. Is that too much to ask?"
"Alright, yeah I can't blame you there. They're hellishly cute. I wish the brats I had back home were as pure and well-behaved."
"Yeah, your kids are real rascals, but I think that's just how sons are. Man… all this talk about kids is making me think I should find myself a wife soon."
"Might as well use this chance to see if you can find a girl that isn't human. Maybe you'll finally find someone that isn't scared off by that freaky face of yours."
"…You know, I might actually give that some thought."
Ending the conversation there, the group returned to focusing on their jobs.
It just so happened that a few years down the line, a certain sailor with a terrifyingly fierce face happened to settle down with a beautiful beastkin wife.
***
Our journey through the sky more or less continued exactly as anticipated.
Even Lyuu, who had been taken down and out, managed to get used to being aboard the airship, and eventually joined the others in enjoying the scenery. Though, she asked me to continue looking after her to make sure she would be alright, so we ended up sticking together throughout the trip. Before the official ceremony, Lyuu had been a lot more reserved, but now she was a lot clingier, often practically begging to be pampered. Reasons why I'm glad I'm a guy. Number one. This.
Though it was agreed that we would end up eliminating any threats that showed up along the way, we ended up running into a grand total of nothing. The ship went completely unhindered, even by the time it entered the demon realm. Most of the monsters that we happened to come across along the way fled almost immediately. It seemed like they were afraid of the ship, courtesy of its size. Thinking about it, choosing flight seemed like the obvious choice, from a wild animal's perspective. Getting attacked seemed like a rare case at best.
More aggressive monsters, like wyverns, would have been likely to charge the ship regardless of the size difference, but they weren't exactly common, at least not outside the Wicked Forest.
"The first thing I do when I get off this ship is take a bath," said Nell.
"Yeah, all the food and stuff was nice, but… yeah." I nodded, agreeing with our resident bath connoisseur.
We weren't exactly unsanitary, seeing as how we were able to wipe off our bodies, but it just didn't feel right, not to be able to bathe. Leila mentioned that there was a hot spring in Baachsburg, and I was already pretty set on having it as the first place we visited.
"I have to rejuvenate soon too!" said Shii.
She does?
"Yeah, you're starting to get a little discoloured… That's gotta be really rough!" said Illuna.
"Yup! I need to get to some water soon!"
Wait… she's discoloured? How come I can't tell?
"Uhhh… is it really that big of a difference?" I asked.
"Of course it is, Yuki! She looks completely different!" said Illuna.
"Mhm. Not as glossy," said Enne.
The wraith girls were also nodding in agreement.
"That's right, Master! Look! I'm different right now!"
She puffed up her cheeks as she tugged on my shirt. How cute.
I mean… if I look really carefully, it kinda feels like she isn't as reflective, but only by a tiny bit. I guess she really does need to replace the water she has in her or something then…
"Uhh… yeah uh… my bad. You were just so cute that I didn't notice."
"You really think so? Then I'll forgive you," she said with a delighted giggle.
I gave her a heatpat before turning to the adults with a questioning gaze soon returned by several head shakes. Apparently, I wasn't the only one that couldn't tell the difference. But I mean, I guess there is one, if the kids are so adamant about it…
"Well uhhh… I guess we can head down to the bath as soon as we get there. You mind showing us the way, Leila?"
"Of course not, My Lord."
"Alright, so I guess we'll head there, wash up, and spend the night. After that, Nell and I are gonna have to go visit the demon king. You'll be in charge while we're gone, Lefi."
"That I shall."
I didn't have any official business with him, but I figured that if Nell was going, I might as well also stop by. I was technically kind of important now, and it seemed right to go through on the formality.
"Make sure you come back soon, okay?" said Illuna. "It won't be as fun without everyone around!"
"Don't worry, Illuna. It'll only be a few days," said Nell, with a big smile.
There was a knock on the door right as we finished outlining our plans. After I gave him the okay, the captain opened the entrance and greeted us with a nod.
"We'll be reaching our destination in about another hour. Please prepare for landing."