Eros carried the trunk and placed it at the center of the deck with a thud. The crew gathered around him, including Silas, who looked at his majesty with concern.
Not even an hour had passed, yet his majesty was already up to his antics. Silas wondered why Eros had carried the trunk himself.
Gideon, who had been steering the helm moments before, approached Eros anxiously, with Pipo leaping behind him. The crew was surprised to see Pipo back on the ship, and they immediately realized that Mirabella must also be nearby.
Thaddeus exchanged a glance with Gideon, who nodded, confirming their suspicions. However, with the king of Dusthaven present, there was little they could do. Gideon steeled himself, preparing to apologize to the king and somehow save his little egg.
"My king, that..." Before Gideon could explain, Eros waved his hand casually.
"Don't mind me, Captain. I noticed one of my trunks wasn't closed tightly and suspect my clothes may be dust-covered. I'll dust them off myself," Eros said benevolently.
Silas gave his majesty an incredulous look. Dusting off? Himself? His majesty had been behaving strangely ever since they returned from Arie Isle.
Eros was someone who could walk with blood all over his clothes, into a courtroom filled with lords and ministers from various regions. Yet here he was, worrying about his clothes catching a bit of dust.
"My king, why don't I let my crew handle this? We can't let the great king do such a menial task," Gideon subtly tried to persuade the young king.
"It's alright, Captain. One should do their own tasks," Eros replied, and without waiting for a response, he opened the trunk, exposing its contents.
Gideon and the crew shut their eyes in unison, bracing for the impending doom. But when no outburst came, Gideon cautiously opened one eye to glance at the king. As expected, Eros's face had hardened, as if he were suppressing a volcano's worth of rage.
Gideon estimated in silence how long it would take to recoup the money he had spent on this expedition.
As long as my little egg is fine, he thought.
Gideon's knees buckled as he collapsed to the floor, bowing his head and spreading his arms dramatically. "I apologize to the king. My daughter just can't stay away from me and did this impudent thing. I will discipline her. Please spare my little daughter, Your Majesty," he said in one breath.
But Eros's attention was elsewhere—more precisely, on someone. Noticing the king's silence, Gideon, the crew members, and even Silas glanced inside the trunk.
There, inside the trunk, the little sparrow was nudging a raven who had fainted in fear. Mirabella was at a loss, as the raven had been fine until now, but when the trunk was opened, he passed out suddenly.
"Sift!" Both Gideon and Eros snapped at the same time.
The sparrow flinched and jumped out of the box before shifting into her human form. Mirabella hung her head low and slowly moved toward Gideon's side. Trying to keep up with the act of having fainted, Kael still lay on the pile of clothes, stretching his tongue out of his bill as much as he could.
Eros shot a look at Silas, who awkwardly stepped toward the trunk, carefully lifting the raven into his palm and handing it to his king. Eros unceremoniously grabbed the raven by the legs, trudged over to the railing, and threw him into the sea without hesitation.
Before gravity could bathe him in the water, Kael flapped his wings and flew back onto the deck. He morphed into his human form and pointed his fingers accusingly at Eros. "How dare you throw the Prince of Noctara into the sea?" Kael erupted in anger.
"Forget water," Eros replied, his voice steady and laced with a dangerous undertone. "If someone enters my room without permission, I won't hesitate to throw them into a pit of fire, too."
The king's threat made the crew members and Gideon flinch, and as time went on, their concern about Mirabella grew. Mirabella, on the other hand, stood there with her mouth hanging open.
Sinbad! But the boy?
Frowning, she scrutinized the boy for a moment, and her eyes widened when realization dawned upon her.
Isn't she Sinbad's niece? But why is she dressed in boy's clothes? And... more importantly, she can speak—though the voice sounds male!. Numerous thoughts ran wild inside her head.
"What are you doing here?" Eros questioned, his gaze narrowing at his nephew.
Kael folded his arms and replied in an aggrieved tone, "I don't like studying under Mr. Wenzel. He keeps giving me impossible tasks."
"What did he ask you to do?" Eros clearly wasn't planning to let his bratty nephew off the hook this time.
"He asked me to write the name of the thirty-sixth concubine of the late King of Everdale!" Kael exclaimed.
"That's it?" Eros raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.
"And... he asked me to feed his 'Hex Vermis,'" Kael muttered, his voice dropping to a whisper.
"Did you feed it?" Eros asked, his tone even more pointed.
Burp~
Kael's gut erupted with a loud noise, providing the worst possible response to the question. Eros sighed and ran his hand over his hair. He was unsure of how to handle him.
"Send a message to Noctara and Everdale that Prince Kael is with me," Eros ordered his advisor.
Silas bowed and went below deck to carry out the order, shaking his head at the young prince's actions. Who in their sane mind would eat Hex Vermis—a worm nurtured in poison?
Eros shifted his attention from his nephew to the woman standing with her eyes wide open, clearly stunned. His mouth curled into a slow and sly smile. The very reason he had boarded this ship was now right in front of him, and he couldn't be more pleased.
"And you? Who are you?" he asked with feigned ignorance, as though they were meeting for the first time.
Mirabella glared at him, the urge to scream "You deceitful Sindbad!" rising within her. But with him being the King of Dusthaven, she bit her tongue. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, Gideon stepped in front of her protectively, bowing his head slightly.
"Your Majesty, pardon my impudence. She is my daughter and has been ill for days. I believe it impacted her mental state. I apologize on her behalf." Gideon pleaded, "Please spare her, Your Majesty. "
Mirabella scoffed inwardly. Who's muddle-headed? She fought the urge to shout at Gideon, wanting to expose the deceit of both men, but she restrained herself. She didn't want either Gideon or the crew involved, so she kept her head low, standing silently behind him.
Eros studied her quietly for a while before asking, "What's your name?"
The prolonged silence made Gideon nudge her gently. "Little egg, the king is asking for your name. Speak," he whispered.
Mirabella, who had her head down, slowly looked up at Eros and answered through clenched teeth, "Mirabella... Mirabella Flamire, Your Majesty"
"Hmm. Mirabella. You will be my maid until I reach Dusthaven," Eros ordered, turning back to his room and dragging Kael along with him.
Gideon and the crew let out a collective sigh of relief. They were grateful the king had shown leniency toward Mirabella. They bowed respectfully until Eros had disappeared from view.
Mirabella stood there, her head bowed in guilt. "I'm sorry, Gideon," she murmured softly.
To her surprise, she was enveloped in a warm hug by Gideon and her crew.
"Are you not angry with me?" she asked unsurely.
Gideon grinned and patted her head. "I'm just glad you're here with us. I couldn't bear to leave you behind."
"Indeed!" Jax added, wiggling his brows. "I'd be bored without you, and who else would help me find my balls?"
At his words, Pax smacked the back of Jax's head, causing his eyeball to pop out of his socket. A fight immediately broke out between the two, leaving everyone around them laughing at their antics.
"Little egg, pay attention to the king's needs. Don't make him angry," Gideon advised, then headed to the lower deck to order the crew to prepare another chamber for the little prince.
Mirabella frowned. She wanted to tell Gideon that the king was the same man she met at the market that day, and the "little girl" she had missed at the port was none other than the Prince of Noctara.
However, she chose to keep that information to herself because disclosing it would only make things more difficult. She certainly hadn't expected the King of Dusthaven to be such a rude and deceitful person.
Inside the stateroom, Eros dragged Kael to his cabin and threw him onto the bed. "Did you think about your sister before running off like this?" Eros asked, his voice sharp.
Kael pouted, knowing full well his sister would be worried about him. But if he had asked her permission, there was no way she would have allowed him to join his uncle.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled quietly.
Eros sighed, rubbing his temples in frustration. "How many Hex Vermis did you eat?" he asked.
Kael gulped and timidly held up two fingers. "Two jars..."
Eros: "-_-"
Silas, who had just returned to inform Eros about completing the order: "-_-"