Lying on Riftan's chest, Maxi always felt as if they shared a soul.
The soft breathing above his head or the strong heartbeat beneath his ear seemed to be his own.
Sometimes she had the lonely, desperate thought that she wouldn't be able to live without him.
Her heart burned with the desire to have him all to herself.
It was like a newborn chick blindly following its mother hen.
However, the time to send him away was inexorably approaching.
“Stay inside the cabin tonight,” Riftan said with a grim expression as he returned from his short trip to the deck to speak with the captain.
Maxi, who was reading a book on the bed, responded with wide eyes.
Riftan went straight to the armor rack and donned the protection he hadn't worn in a while.
“Is there a problem?” said Maxi, alarmed.
"No.
We're just taking a precaution."
“A precaution… for what?”
Riftan stopped tightening the straps on his breastplate to turn to her, his brow furrowed.
He sighed and stroked her pale face.
"We'll be passing through the mermaid region soon.
If we're unlucky, we might have to face them."
Maxi swallowed hard through the lump in his throat.
Sirens were known to cause shipwrecks, luring sailors with their magical voices.
Having unconsciously assumed that they would be safe while at sea, Maxi froze in fear.
“I-Will everything be okay?”
"Yes, everything will be fine.
They might not even bother coming after the ship.
Try not to worry, just get some rest."
Riftan tightly tightened his sword belt around his waist and left the cabin.
Alone, Maxi anxiously leafed through her book and then looked out the porthole at the sea.
From the silvery horizon, an island shrouded in fog gradually came into view.
Could this be the mermaids' habitat?
A steep ivory rock covered in lush vegetation rose up on one side of the island.
Peering through the porthole, Maxi felt a chill run down her spine for no particular reason.
They got closer and eventually passed the rock, and no mermaid appeared.
Maxi relaxed and went back to reading his book in bed, but the words were impossible to get stuck in his head.
After flipping through the book of folk tales that she had already read twice, she felt the need to relieve herself.
She went out into the hallway.
That's when he heard the faint sound of someone singing.
Maxi stiffened, worried that it might be the mermaids' attempt to lure them away.
His shoulders relaxed when he noticed the huskiness of his voice.
It must be one of the sailors singing a sailor's song.
Maxi hurried down the hall to the bathroom and, after relieving himself, was about to return to his cabin when he heard the song get louder.
Unable to resist her curiosity, she went upstairs.
The lively song echoed across the deck bathed in the reddish light of the sunset.
The sailors sang the chorus and rhythmically stamped their feet as they marched across the deck.
They hoisted large barrels of water or pulled the ropes, adjusting the sails.
Way-hay, way-hay, pull your oars
Sailing through waves like mountains, to the end of the sea we go
Where the sun falls asleep
At the end of the glorious horizon lies Adrina's Paradise
No storm will stop us
Way-hay, way-hay, pull your oars
We go to the end of the sea!
Maxi listened to the deafening voices with a perplexed expression.
A fully armed knight who was patrolling nearby noticed her and approached.
It was Jack Breeman, one of the younger riders.
“Lady Calypse, you must not walk around the ship alone,” he said with a serious expression.
"I-I'm aware.
I...
heard the singing...
and just wanted to know...
what was going on."
The knight looked at the sailor and frowned.
"This is apparently the best way to stop the mermaids from tricking the sailors and causing the ship to crash into the rocks.
We are told that they will continue singing throughout the night until we are a safe distance from the mermaids' habitat."
“Th-All night?” Maxi asked, eyes wide.
The knight gave him a bitter smile.
"I know it's loud, but please bear with the noise.
Nothing matters more than safety, after all.
Singing loudly like that is supposed to keep the mermaids and mermen away from the ship."
“I-I understand.”Maxi looked at the red sea that shone like gold.
The sonorous melody of men echoed over the choppy waters.
Indeed, the mermaids' enchanting songs would be difficult to hear over so much noise.
Feeling a little calmer, Maxi returned to her cabin.
The sailors continued to sing even as the sun sank completely below the horizon.
Maxi listened to their songs while eating the food brought to his cabin.
Although it would be a bit of an exaggeration to say that the simple melody was pleasing to the ears, the sailors' lively voices seemed like reassurance that all was well.
Maxi's anxiety gradually disappeared, and she lay down on the bed and tried to sleep.
Despite her best efforts, however, she felt more alert as the night progressed.
After tossing and turning all night, Maxi ran onto the deck at the first bluish hint of dawn.
The sailors were still singing, this time to the sound of a charamela and a mandolin.
Their voices no longer sounded as lively as yesterday.
After silently listening to the melody resonating softly in the darkness, Maxi made his way along the deck to the stern.
A group of sailors sat in the middle, on top of cargo crates arranged in a circle.
Around them, a few knights stood guard at the railings with longbows slung across their backs.
Maxi spotted Riftan and ran towards him.
As if sensing his presence, Riftan looked over his shoulder and frowned.
"Why aren't you in the cabin?
It's not safe for you to be here yet."
Maxi clung to his arm.
As he looked into the darkness, he could see the rock face that rose above the rolling waves appearing and disappearing behind the fog.
“Shouldn’t we… be safe now… at this distance?”
"We can't be sure.
Sometimes they follow us“"
“Don’t be so strict, Commander,” interrupted Hebaron, leaning on the railing.
“Even if they come after us, we just need to block their voices, right?”
Hebaron yawned loudly and indignantly and gave Maxi a mischievous smile.
“I'm afraid that hearing hoarse voices all night has given me a headache,” he said.
"Could you say something, my lady?
I would like to purify my ears with your pure voice."
“Stop your idle talk,” Riftan said coldly through clenched teeth.
Hebaron remained unfazed.
"Don't be so petty, Commander.
A man must have a heart as big as the sea."
“Shut your mouth before I throw you overboard.”
Riftan placed a hand on Maxi's back and led her to where the sailors and knights were gathered.
"We were having beef stew to recover our energy.
You should also eat while you're here."
They stopped before a large cauldron filled with thick, steaming soup.
A sailor filled a bowl and handed it to Riftan.
Maxi accepted the offered meal and sat down on a barrel.
Returning with his own portion, Riftan sat down next to her and began to eat his soup.
Maxi followed his example and began to eat heartily while watching the sailors' faces.
Everyone looked exhausted from singing all night.
Those who still had energy to spare were gathered near the stern, humming the song.
The young mandolin player called out to Riftan abruptly.
“Noble sir, may I play a melody for your wife?”
Maxi blinked at the young man's unexpected request.
Riftan paused while eating his soup to turn to the sailor.
“She must be tired of hearing the sailors sing…” the sailor added.
“If you have a song you want to hear, I will do my best to play it.”
Riftan watched the young man for a moment, then turned to Maxi.
“Is there a song you would like to hear?”
All eyes were on her.
Maxi shook his head.
“N-No…”
"I may not look it, but I can recite most ballads, my lady.
You just need to say the name of the song."
The young sailor looked at her so expectantly that Maxi couldn't directly refuse, and his expression became worried.
Although she had heard countless songs from the bards at Croyso Castle, now that she was being put to the test, she could not remember any of them.
As she looked up, trying to think of a song, she suddenly remembered the one she had heard during the spring festival in Anatol.“I… I don’t know the title… but it’s a song I heard during a village festival…”
The sailor tilted his head as Maxi finished his vague description.
“Do you know the words, my lady?”
Going through his memories, Maxi hummed to him parts of the song he remembered.
The sailor smiled radiantly.
“Ah, isso é o Poema de Adelian.
É uma balada desde os tempos do Império Roem.
Eu mesmo gosto muito dela.
Farei o meu melhor para fazer uma apresentação digna, minha senhora.”
He straightened up and began strumming the mandolin.
The melody that emanated was slower and more melancholy than what Maxi remembered, but a soft smile spread across her lips as she listened to the nostalgic melody.
Soon, the young sailor's charming deep voice resounded from the stern.
The knight kisses the earth
And ascend to the heavens
Your beloved oak tree
Alone on a hill
Shake the slender branches in the wind
Oh Dragon, I beg you
Take your body, broken and bruised
Where he can rest
Go, oh dearest beloved
Far, far from this turbulent land
Oh,
I will love you
Until my last breath
The delicate melody of the mandolin faded.
Maxi laid his head on Riftan's shoulder as he savored the atmosphere that still lingered on the deck.
It hadn't been long since she danced in the fields, and yet, now it seemed like a distant memory.