The night passed quickly. For Callen, that proved he really had been tired—though now he felt good as new. Before leaving, he checked that everything was in its place. It seemed the so-called Lin hadn't bothered him again.
After that experience, he stopped trusting the place's security. Deep down, he never did, but now even less.
I have to get used to the smell of fish, he thought as he walked through the village streets, carrying his bag.
Something had caught his attention—in a bad way. Those three pirates from yesterday weren't an isolated case. The village was packed with them. He'd counted around eighteen in all the area he'd covered, and the soldiers even ignored them.
This can't mean anything good. The soldiers on patrol shouldn't just ignore them, he thought with a furrowed brow.
After walking a little more, he reached the village's central plaza, where there was a statue of the Moon Goddess atop a fountain. Some fishermen and villagers prayed as they passed. To his surprise, he saw two pirates doing the same.
This place is strange, he thought as he approached the fountain. He took the opportunity to also pay his respects to the Goddess.
When he finished, a familiar figure appeared in the periphery of his vision. He quickly turned to look and found her.
It was easier than I thought.
There she was—Lin, sitting on some crates, laughing heartily with a group of people who didn't look like the calmest folks around.
Getting in among them could cause a problem. Killing them wouldn't be a problem, he thought, gripping the hilt of one of his scimitars beneath his cloak. But that would mean getting into serious trouble—even worse trouble if they discovered he was the prince.
No matter how he thought about it, he had to approach in a way that wouldn't cause problems—or at least not too many. However, from turning the matter over so much in his head, he didn't realize he'd been staring at her fixedly, and now she was staring back.
The woman raised her hand, said something Callen didn't catch, and moved away from the group—it seemed she was saying goodbye. When the people stopped paying her attention, she gestured with her head to the prince, pointing to a nearby alley.
Callen sighed and obeyed. Without wasting time, he entered the alley, and there she was, waiting for him with a sour face.
"You know, if you want to get someone's attention, staring at them from across the street isn't the best way," she said.
"Let's talk about what happened yesterday," the prince said, going straight to the point.
"Pff, that was just a little welcome."
"You tried to rob me."
"And I didn't, see? All resolved." The woman gave a little spin and extended her hand to Callen. "Let's start over. My name is Lin, you're Nellac. A pleasure," she said, taking Callen's hand and shaking it.
Just like the day before, when they shook hands, Callen felt that tingling again. Lin also seemed a little frustrated by something. Since nothing was happening to him, he decided to ignore it.
"Anyway, the attempted robbery is the least of my problems." Callen took a more serious stance. Lin didn't.
"You mean the crown? Well, if you're a prince, I don't really care that much. Or are you the king?"
"I don't care that you don't care. I can't just have someone knowing that and walking around freely."
"If you're worried I'll tell someone, you're worrying for nothing."
"I don't know that."
"What do you plan to do, then—silence me?" the woman said jokingly.
Callen moved part of his cloak aside to grip the hilt of one of his weapons.
"It was a joke! There's no need to go to those extremes," the woman said, now nervous, taking a step back and raising her hands.
"I'll be honest with you. I don't like this path I'm walking too much, so I don't want to kill you," the prince told her, though without releasing his weapon.
"Your gestures say otherwise."
"Let's reach an agreement."
The woman raised an eyebrow, returned to that carefree stance from before, and smiled.
"I'm all ears."
"I'll be here for a few days. I don't want any rumors flying around about me being the prince," Callen began to say. "But I don't trust you to keep your word."
"Ouch."
"So here's the thing: I'm not used to how things work here, and everything seems strange to me."
"That's not my problem, friend," the woman interrupted, shrugging. "You should have thought better before coming all the way here."
"I want you to be my guide."
The woman froze upon hearing that.
"You'll guide me through this place, tell me what's important, and keep me from doing something that isn't well regarded," the man continued. "That way I can also keep you watched so you don't say anything out of place."
"So what you're saying is you want to spend the next few days in my company," the woman repeated in her own way.
"Relax, relax, I know I'm irresistible. Though I must admit, that was quite a strange confession," the woman continued in a flirtatious tone.
Callen could feel his blood beginning to boil. This woman was getting on his nerves—and too quickly. He doubted his ability to not split her in two right now.
He breathed deeply. He had to control himself. This wasn't the moment to let his emotions take over.
"But unfortunately, I'm a busy woman, so I must decline your offer," she said with dramatic regret.
The woman wrapped her arm around Callen's neck, moving closer.
"I can recommend a guide. For a modest price, anyone in the crew will be willing to do it."
Callen sighed.
"No one in the crew knows what you know."
"Come on, please! I gain nothing by telling anyone that!"
"That doesn't mean you won't."
"Friend, I'm trying to reject you without hurting your feelings too much, but you're making it complicated."
They both fell silent for a few seconds. It was clear this woman wasn't giving the matter any importance and wouldn't change her mind.
"I already apologized. Now get lost and leave me alone," she said, turning around.
If she won't accept nicely, then it'll be the hard way, Callen thought, feinting to grab the woman's arm.
To his surprise, the woman reacted quickly, moving her arm aside and putting distance between them.
"What the hell are you trying to do now?" the woman reproached him, frowning.
"I already told you."
"By the Goddess, don't you know how to accept a no for an answer?"
The woman took a step back when she saw Callen draw one of his scimitars.
"You really don't."
Callen lunged at her. The woman stifled a scream upon seeing him but managed to dodge the attack narrowly. Though Callen wasn't attacking with the intent to kill—he just wanted to have her cornered.
A plan that seemed a little more complicated to achieve than he'd thought. The woman had generated two water bubbles on her feet, making her dodge the attacks by sliding.
"You're not so dangerous after all, huh?" the woman mocked from several meters away from Callen.
Using those bubbles to improve her agility, the woman took off running down the alley. Callen quickly followed, though running wouldn't let him catch her.
I must keep her from reaching the streets. She won't be able to do anything if she joins a group of people, he thought, sighing. In the end, I have to do everything with brute force.
A red aura surrounded Callen's weapon. Immediately after, a cut was launched directly at one of Lin's feet.
The cut impacted but didn't harm the woman's foot—it only destroyed the bubble. This made her lose her balance, and with a scream, she fell against some crates.
Now Callen did reach her just as she was getting up. The woman was about to run off again, but this time Callen managed to grab her by the arm, making her lose her balance once more and fall to the ground.
After throwing several curses into the air, the woman sat up, watching Callen.
"So what?" she asked with a sour face. "You don't expect me to believe you'll spare my life just like that, do you?"
"Killing you was never in my plans. If I'd wanted to, I would have cut off your foot with that attack."
The woman felt a chill run through her entire body, but she ignored it to stand up and look him in the eyes.
They stared at each other for a few seconds, until Callen spoke.
"I'll pay you for your services when I leave."
The woman's face lit up. Just like a while ago, she wrapped her arm around Callen's neck again.
"Hey, damn it! You should have started with that! We're finally speaking the same language!"
The air around her changed completely—she was back to being the same carefree woman she always seemed to be.
"So, where do I start?"
"With everything. Tell me about the situation this village is going through and why there are pirates here."
The woman blinked a bit, stretched, and began to speak.
Lin spoke for several minutes straight, explaining to the prince what was happening in that village—and it could be summed up in one word: war.
Apparently, for a few months now, Tarzovian ships had been spotted in the distance. Luneria's navy was busy in the south, but it was thought these wouldn't pose any threat.
One day, the sightings stopped being sightings. Two Tarzovian warships approached the coast and launched a series of cannon attacks. Some houses were destroyed, there were wounded and dead, and the old fort took a hit that collapsed part of it.
At that moment, they appeared—swift and destructive as lightning. They sank one of the ships, forcing the other to flee. Then their captain presented them as saviors: the crew of the Storm Angel. The source of this chapter is g.com.
But of course, that doesn't change the fact they're pirates. They didn't do it out of good faith—they demanded an enormous reward. They reached an agreement with the Lord of this place: they would stay here to protect them from possible Tarzovian attacks, and he would pay them the reward little by little.
"What do you think, little prince? We're not so bad after all," she said once the story was finished.
While they talked, they both walked to the port, where the enormous pirate ship lay anchored.
"You look too proud for someone who scammed the people of a fishing village."
"I wouldn't say scammed. After all, they receive our protection in exchange."
Callen looked a little further ahead, where two pirates walked almost sideways, drunk. Then he returned his gaze to the woman, who looked away this time.
"If that's how they defend this place, I doubt they're as capable as you told me."
"Come on, they're pirates, remember?" The woman elbowed him. "We used to raid ships in the middle of the ocean. You can't expect too much seriousness."
"Now you look too calm saying that to a prince. I'm starting to think maybe your sense of survival leaves much to be desired."
They passed by a house that hadn't been repaired yet. People were working to fix it as quickly as possible—it seemed to be one of the few remaining.
"My sense of survival is fine, thank you."
They both kept walking, wandering through the streets. Lin greeted friends, introduced "Nellac" to some people, and they advanced until they approached the Lord's mansion, farther out from the village.
"Why did you bring me here?"
"It's the day's activity, my friend. Lord Halad will give a speech about the most pressing news."
That he hadn't expected. Callen had never met Halad in person—he was one of the few nobles of the empire he'd never seen, but his father had once said he didn't tend to appear much in public.
Callen hadn't noticed, but there really were quite a few people, and little by little more gathered. It seemed this was something they expected.
Well, it'll be a good experience. I'll meet a lord, even if from afar, he thought, taking position.
After waiting what felt like too long, he finally appeared. They had prepared a wooden structure where he was to give the speeches.
The man climbed up, revealing his face adorned with a patch over his left eye and his neat clothing—tall, quite tall.
"Fisherman's Rest, hear me! I bring you important news. The war against the Tarzovians has reached the next level."
Already? Olivia must be busy, the prince thought.
"That's why the empire needs your support more than ever. After years, we've gotten close enough to strike a devastating blow against the enemy."
Around Callen, whispers erupted. People had heard rumors that his father planned to advance on the Tarzovian capital.
They're right, though the preparations shouldn't be ready yet, the prince thought.
"The capital has given us an order. We must all contribute to make this possible."
I don't like where this is heading.
"I know food taxes will increase, and these will be sent directly to the front. The villages of the north have already made their contribution. Now it's your turn."
The whispers increased. The discontent was clear—they didn't believe whatever Lord Halad was talking about was necessary, and the truth was, it wasn't.
Father has enough supplies to hold out for months in the frozen lands of Tarzovia, Callen thought, frowning. Something's going on here. This isn't an order from the capital.
He turned to look at Lin. He was about to ask if they had anything to do with it, but the woman smiled without even looking at him. He didn't need to ask.
"This is the moment to be more united than ever! For the empire!"
Many people began to cheer, but Callen knew—many of them didn't agree with what Halad had said. Even so, there they were, supporting, keeping up appearances.
"A good speech—short but good, don't you think, little prince?"
Callen didn't respond. He just turned to move away from the crowd and began walking toward the streets once more.
"Little prince? Don't tell me you got bored. I thought you people loved speeches," she said jokingly.
"Speeches aren't my thing. A while ago I was going to ask you—what about the fort?"
"Ah, that. We're staying there—most of us, at least."
So that's the pirates' hideout, he frowned.
"Why do you ask?" The woman caught up to walk beside him, in the direction of that place.
Since he'd arrived in this village, the atmosphere had seemed strange to him. He felt there was something that didn't add up, and that speech confirmed it. He knew it—these pirates had something to do with it.
"I'll pay a quick visit."
If he wanted to know what was happening, he'd have to go straight into the wolf's den.