It's been an entire week since they departed from Lioncrest Kingdom and Henry has grown tired of seeing nothing but an endless sea. There's nothing thrilling that has happened yet.
Although he doesn't want to raise any red flags but staring at the sea for every single day turns out to be boring as hell even though it was exciting at first.
The only thing that is keeping him company is the familiar training with Sir Liam. And since their battle would sometimes accidentally cause environmental damage, they refrained from the actual sword fighting.
Instead, they battled through other ways such as what they're doing right now.
"You're going to fall any second now, my prince." Sir Liam grinned, standing on the edge of the deck alongside Henry.
The constant waves and quivering of the ship would sometimes cause them to lose balance and fall either back on the deck or out into the sea. Fortunately, the two know how to swim properly without any problems.
Henry returned the teasing with a grin of his own, "You wish, Sir Liam."
"I love you, Prince Henry! We believe in you!"
Hearing the familiar voice of a child. Henry smiled. Apparently, his favourite old baker from the capital must've been informed by his father and decided to send him and his son to join and directly serve Henry his usual favourite pastries.
He didn't even hesitate to close down his shop that has always been packed with customers every day courtesy of Henry announcing to the entire Kingdom how he loved his baked goods. All for the sake of having the honor of cooking pastries for the heir to the throne.
The old man didn't even bother asking for payment or anything. He just insists that the ingredients be provided by his father, who instantly agreed.
Without clearing his eyes of Sir Liam's, Henry pointed in a certain direction and replied, "And I love you little Harry."
With that reply, little Harry, the first son of his favourite baker, old John, grinned and raised his fist high up in the air as if he had just won the lottery.
The nearby sailors and crews also cheered for the boy while old John simply smiled warmly and patted his son's head. One of the main reasons why he chose to join the voyage was simply to unwind and perhaps, let his son see more of the outside world instead of being cooped up inside the bakery shop.
Eventually, the battle ended and Henry managed to keep his five-times win streak against not just Sir Liam but also the rest of his retinue.
Splash!
Witnessing their knight captain losing against the Prince and embarrassingly falling from the edge of the deck to the sea, they tried their best to hold back their laughs. With some sneaking out a few after realizing that the splashing of the water might cover up their laughter.
Soon, Sir Liam was helped back up on the deck after being tossed a life buoy attached to a rope.
"Looks like you already had your bath." Henry couldn't help but tease as he handed him a towel.
Liam gratefully accepted it and dried himself before replying, "You're really talented, Prince Henry. I bet my life I've never seen anyone who can master balancing on a rocky ship in just a single day and defeat every single one of us."
He then continued with a tranquil tone, "Lioncrest Kingdom is extremely lucky to have you as their future King, Prince Henry."
"That's right! With Prince Henry around, Lioncrest will definitely reach higher heights than before!" Of course, his most devoted believer, little Harry took this opportunity to glaze.
Henry stayed silent for a few seconds after hearing those words. A contemplative look on his face disappeared just as fast as it appeared.
"Prince Henry?" Liam's words interrupted him and he forced out a smile.
"I hope so. I'll be heading back to my room for now. I'll revise the books Master Elias gave to me." Although it hasn't been publicly announced that the Kingdom's Court Magician has taken Henry as his student, only a few members of the inner circle are aware of it.
Which did nothing but heighten his popularity amongst the Knight captains and Nobles.
"Of course. Please rest well, Prince." Liam smiled softly and bowed his head.
Before Henry could head down the deck, little Harry tugged on his clothes, "Prince Henry, are we still going to play later?"
Henry contemplated for a brief moment before smiling and nodding his head, "Of course. I'll even teach you how to swim, how about that?"
"Really! This is the best day ever!" Filled with bubbling energy, little Harry raised his arms in victory.
All while old John approached Henry with a tired smile on his face, "I'm really thankful for your kindness, my Prince but you don't have to do it if you don't want to, it's just a child's whim."
"I don't mind it, old John. Consider it my payment for you being here, keeping me warm with your chocolates and pastries." Henry shook his head and insisted.
Old John's lips turned into a curve, significantly showing off the wrinkles on his face, "Thank you so much, my Prince. And it has always been the greatest honor to have my pastries favored by the Prince himself."
Henry chuckled and patted the old man's shoulder—saying his farewells to him before retreating to his room.
As soon as he got inside, he wasted no time and plopped down on the bed. His chest heaving up and down as he recalled Sir Liam's words earlier.
Before he knew it, the consequences of his talent had started to bloom. Every citizen and knight in the Kingdom has already seen him as the one and only successor to the throne, relying on him and reassured that his incredible talents would push the Kingdom to greatness.
And despite it all, there's always a heavy feeling inside his chest. He was anxious, nervous that their expectations of him would turn into disappointment once he showed a single mistake.
He can't help it. That's just how people are. Sure, they love to see a talented individual shining like a bright star, but there's nothing more satisfying than watching that same bright star that once blinded everyone turn into a shooting star.
"I'm not a perfect person they see me as…" Henry murmured to himself, covering his eyes with his forearm as the dizziness started to take hold of him and before he knew it, darkness took over his vision.
———
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Henry was startled awake by the sound of the loud consecutive banging on his door, followed by the clamor and commotion he was hearing outside.
He immediately turned alert, grabbing his sword and wearing what he could manage to in just a short amount of time between jumping out of his bed and reaching the door.
Opening it, he was met with Sir Liam breathing heavily.
"What's going on? Did we encounter pirates?"
Faced with Henry's question, Sir Liam swallowed his saliva before shaking his head and answering, "I'm afraid not, Prince Henry. The ship is sinking and….we found old John dead inside the kitchen."
At the first mention of the bad news, Henry was about to nod his head and declare to abandon ship. He has read enough books about precautions concerning being on board a sinking ship. He knows how to handle it.
However, the moment Sir Liam finished his words, Henry froze. His blood turned cold and his pupils dilated.
"Old John…is dead?" Henry's jaw tightened, as if mustering his entire being just to ask that confirmation.
And once the answer came in the form of a nod. Henry's eyes turned bloodshot—trying his best not to let his emotions overwhelm him.
Unfortunately for him, there was no time to mourn, "…The ship contains five emergency boats. Make sure to evacuate everyone."
Sir Liam seemed hesitant for a brief moment before mentioning, "…Actually, one of the emergency boats is missing. We're only left with four. The perpetrator must've taken one to escape after what he did."
"Then still evacuate everyone. Prioritize the little Harry and the females. I'll assess the situation." Now that time is running out and they're out of lifeboats, Henry gritted his teeth and rushed towards the kitchen.
At least, before the ship fully sinks, he wanted to see old John one last time.
Sir Liam's face darkened as he tried to reason with him, "But Prince Henry. We must prioritize you first! If we sink with this ship, the storm would swallow us whole!"
Henry raised his hand to stop him, "Just do as I said, Sir Liam. I'm not stupid enough to stay on a sinking ship. We will all get through this."
Patting the knight's shoulders, Henry made his way to the kitchen, swiftly avoiding the panicking staff and the ship's crew rushing out to the deck.
By the time Henry got to the kitchen, he saw several holes around where the seawater was gushing in. Some holes were starting to crack and enlarge.
On the ground, he saw the familiar figure lying down, sitting beside him was unexpectedly little Harry, sobbing his heart out as he clutched the bloodied shirt of his dead father. The gushing water was already reaching Harry's waist.
Henry also noticed that a knife was stabbed into old John's chest.
"Harry…" Henry solemnly called out to the crying child, crouching beside him and touching old John's calloused hand under the water.
Harry slowly turned his messy face, his eyes showing a flash of surprise followed by his wail that intensified, "P-P-Prince Henry! F-Father won't wake up! We have to leave the ship!"
Seeing and hearing the cheerful boy from earlier who has turned into this, Henry felt his heart ache.
As much as he wanted to weep with the little boy, time is running out and they have to escape.
"Harry, we must time to leave." Henry stood back up and tried to grab him by the shoulder, pulling him out of the flooded ground that was now reaching his chest. Old John's corpse was already submerged under the water.
Harry immediately panicked, doing his best to stay on the ground, clutching on to old John's bloodied sleeve, "No! Let go of me! I wanna stay! Papa! Papa wake up, please!"
Henry bit his lower lip and was left with no choice—he was about to hand chop Harry's neck, to render him unconscious and bring him out when all of a sudden, their surroundings tremored and before he knew it, they were thrown to the far left wall of the kitchen, the entire ship tilting heavily to the left.
Splash!
Boom!
Landing harshly on the wall, Henry used his body and covered Harry's just in time as several sharp utensils and knives fell towards them.
Henry gritted his teeth as he raised his hand and cast the magic spell that was taught to him, "Wind Barrier!"
A gush of wind was gathered from their surroundings before covering Henry's front, just in time as the knives arrived courtesy of the gravity.
Thankfully, he cast the magic spell on time and so he watched as the knives and utensils were redirected to the sides upon contact with the wind barrier.
Clang! Clang!
Sighing in relief, Henry grabbed Harry and carried him on his shoulders. The boy looked very terrified to even utter a small cry anymore.
For a brief moment before they left the kitchen, Henry heard a faint whisper in his ears.
"Thank you, Prince Henry."
———
As Henry's feet ran across the halls, doing his best to keep his balance as the ship kept rocking left and right, they reached the deck just in time as all three emergency boats were now filled to the brim and thrown into the sea.
The only ones left were Sir Liam and some of his retinue.
"Prince Henry!" A relieved smile appeared on Sir Liam's face as he approached them.
Henry, who was stunned by the intensity of the storm surrounding the ship, snapped out of it and immediately handed Harry to Sir Liam's arms.
"Get him on the boat! Let's go!"
Liam nodded his head and gently carried Harry into a princess-style before running back to the edge of the deck. Henry also followed suit.
As they reached the final emergency boat, the entire retinue was already on it, assisting Liam as their captain slowly passed the frightened boy to them.
Once Harry is safe and sound, Liam turned around and faced Henry, "Your turn, Prince."
Seeing that there's still enough room for the two of them, Henry set aside his worries and was about to descend when all of a sudden, the clouds rumbled.
Before anyone could react, the deck between Liam and Henry was struck by lightning, the explosive shockwave separating both of them.
While Henry landed further back but remained on the deck, Liam wasn't as lucky. The Knight captain fell off the ship, harshly sinking deep into the sea.
And with how the man is wearing his entire armor with him, swimming back out especially under the heavy storm would be nigh-impossible.
"CAPTAIN!" The rest of the knights all yelled in shock and worry.
Witnessing this, Henry didn't know what came over him. One moment he was stunned by what had just happened and the next thing he knew, he stripped himself of everything except his pants before jumping off the ship.
This shocked the retinue even more, "Prince Henry!"
Splash!
With a practiced dive, Henry smoothly entered the raging sea, a bubble made of a magic spell cast over his head.
Squinting his eyes, Henry quickly spotted Liam further down below, having a hard time removing his armor.
Henry quickly swam downward, by the time they met, he saw how Liam's eyes widened in surprise either seeing Henry in the sea with him or the bubble around his head.
"Calm down. I'll take us out of here." Henry assured the man.
Together, they mustered their entire strength to remove the armor. Thankfully, Henry knows his way around the full-body armor and successfully removed them in a minute or so.
However, doing so slowly weakened Sir Liam due to the lack of air in his lungs. Seeing this, Henry removed the bubble around his head and recast it on Sir Liam instead as maintaining two bubbles is still out of his capacity.
"HUAAHHH! " Liam instantly took a deep breath, "But Prince, what about you?"
Henry replied with a shake of his head before pointing at his mouth where his cheeks were inflated with air.
Liam instantly understood that he was trying to portray and quickly took a deep breath. By the time he did so, Henry removed the bubble on his and recast it on himself.
"Let's go!" Henry hurriedly said.
Without his armor weighing him down. The two slowly reached the surface. Henry would sometimes bounce the Water Bubble spell from him to Liam and vice versa, effectively supplying the two of them with an ample amount of air.
But doing so slowly exhausted him.