The port was suddenly lively with sailors and ship captains moving about. Gossip was thick in the air, punctuated by the cheer of laughter and the echoing clang of glasses.

  The group arrived at the port, searching for Hindrey.

  "How about we split up here? Preparation is important before sailing out, you know?" Hana suggested. The group nodded and dispersed quickly.

  Then, Revir accidentally bumped into a girl, sending both of them sprawling onto the cobblestones.

  "Oh, I'm so sorry," the girl said, immediately scrambling to her feet to offer Revir a hand. "Are you okay?"

  "That voice..." Revir mumbled to himself, shocked and horrified by the familiar, feared tone. He slowly looked up at the girl, needing to confirm her face.

  "Dulcinia...?"

  "You...it can't be..." she whispered, then immediately bolted, disappearing into the chaotic crowds. Revir only watched her go, his expression hardening before he finally stood up on his own.

  Revir sighed in exhaustion. "Of course she would be here. That just mean he's here as well." He looked toward the clear sky, where a few crows loudly chirped—a literal bad sign of what was coming.

  After gathering their supplies, the group, except for Revir, teamed back up with Hana. Many of them had bought extra food for the voyage, anticipating a long journey.

  "Wow. You bought a lot of food," Hana said, curious. "But Is that really necessary? The journey isn't that long, right?"

  "We have to, Miss Hana," Carol replied with a small grin. "The sea is quite vast if I see on the map. Who knows if there are literal creatures waiting to grab us?"

  Hana giggled nervously. "About that..." She explained the context of the dangers surrounding the sea.

  "They... they really exist?" Carol's eyes widened in genuine shock.

  "Sorry about that. It seems your bad feeling is coming true, after all," Hana said, feeling guilty. "But it isn't going to be a problem, right?"

  (What an absolute disaster. Not only do I get seasick, but I have to fight in the middle of the sea?!) Carol thought, gripping her head in panicked disappointment.

  Hana, watching Carol in amusement, giving a smile to her. (No wonder you requested me to take care of her when you're at the campus. Here I thought I could go home after I done with this 'monster breakdown'.) her thought, lingered across her mind.

  A moment later, Revir arrived, his group already assembled without him. He casually walked toward them, flashing his usual smile.

  "Let me guess, an accident along the way?" Rein said, noticed his presence.

  "Oh, nothing. Just got bumped by an old friend," Revir shrugged.

  Rein didn't reply, but his expression hardened. He knew "old friends" wasn't the answer Revir was supposed to give him.

  "Hey!" a voice shouted, walking toward the group.

  Carol turned her head. It was Hindrey.

  "You must be Hindrey, right? We heard about you from Revir. Thank you for giving us a ride," she said politely, offering a hand.

  "My pleasure to meet you all, especially my old buddy, Revir." Hindrey focused an intense, almost predatory smile on Revir. Revir instantly turned his head away from the gaze.

  "Well, let me show you around my ship."

  The group followed as Hindrey became their guide.

  As Revir followed the group onto the ship, he felt a sudden gazes hitting him. He tried to ignore them, but when he turned his head, the stares instantly disappeared. Curious, Revir decided to search for the source, slipping away from the guided tour.

  "This ship is more huge than I thought," Revir muttered, walking inside the ship's lodge. There, he saw Dulcinia leaning against the wall, reading a book, lost in thought.

  "Seems like you're adapting quite well to this place, Dulcinia," he began, trying for a casual tone.

  She slowly lowered her book, closing it. "How are you still alive, Revir? I... We thought you were dead after that incident."

  "Really? Well, jokes on you, death cannot grasp me yet," Revir replied with an unusual, dark chuckle.

  "Revir, please restrain yourself from saying that," the figure said, walking toward him.

  Listening to the figure's voice, Revir sighed in disappointment. He looked up, and their gazes fixed upon each other. "Long time no see, Erick."

  "Yeah, long time no see. But it was a surprise coming to you."

  "A surprise?" Revir snorted. "Is it about my sudden appearance or something?"

  "Damn right, buddy!" Erick said with an excited grin, pulling Revir into a rough embrace and harshly ruffling his hair. "I'm really, really glad that we managed to reunite at last! It's all thanks to our mentor who saved us from that chaos!"

  Revir only gave a deep silence, offering no response.

  "By the way, why are you here? It's not like you would join our ride without any reason," Dulcinia said, demanding an answer.

  "Still sharp as ever, huh," Revir complimented her. "You're right about that." He casually pulled out the wand, causing both Erick and Dulcinia to stare in shock.

  "W-where did you get that wand, Revir?" she asked in horror.

  "Oh, this thing? Just found it in the trash. It's nothing special."

  "Trash or not, you have to throw it off," Erick said, his tone turning furious. "That wand... the Margias... they're responsible for everything that happened to us. You don't have any intention of following their footsteps, do you?"

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  Listening to his statement, Revir gripped his wand tightly before reluctantly hiding it in his pocket. "Of course I would never do that! I will throw it off after we're done here." He gave a small, forced laugh.

  "We? Do you have friends on board?"

  "Something like that, Erick. You don't mind?"

  "I guess. As long as your 'friends' aren't Margias."

  "Y-yeah..." Revir managed.

  As the guided tour ended, Rein noticed Revir was still missing. Just as he decided to tell the group, Revir, Dulcinia, and Erick emerged from the lodge.

  "I know you tried to slack off, Erick," Hindrey said, giving him a menacing, strict look.

  "Sorry about that, Sir Hindrey. But at least I finished my job," Erick replied casually.

  Despite his strict demeanor, Hindrey sighed deeply. "As long as you finish your job, I suppose it's fine."

  "Hehe, thanks, Sir," Erick said, giving a playful grin before returning to his post. Dulcinia, without saying a word, also went to her station as a deck officer.

  "We're going to sail right now?" Hana asked Hindrey.

  "Indeed, ma'am. It's much better to do it now. I have a good feeling about the weather today."

  "I hope you're right."

  Hindrey pulled out his hat, the clear symbol of his authority on the ship.

  "Alright, my crew! Let us embark once more to the Sea of Haze!" Hindrey shouted, giving a sharp command to Dulcinia and Erick, like a true captain.

  "Aye, Aye, captain!" Erick responded, quickly lifting the anchor that sealed the ship from the dock.

  "Do I have to say that?" Dulcinia mumbled to herself, embarrassment clear in her voice.

  "As long as I'm the captain, you have to do as I say, crew Dulcinia!"

  "Ugh, fine!" she surrendered. "Aye, Aye, captain!"

  "That's more like it."

  The group watched, shocked and astonished at how fast and cooperative they were.

  (Seems like I'm not the only one who has changed much, even after a decade.) Revir thought, observing the seamless teamwork between Hindrey, Dulcinia, and Erick from a distance.

  The ship finally set sail into the Sea of Haze. Their search for the ancient library had begun.

  (A shift of an event happened once more, showing a girl interaction with Revir)

  "Hey, Hey, Revir! Do you want to know something?" she said in an energetic tone.

  Revir sighed deeply, clearly uninterested. "What is it?"

  "Guess what? I heard Margias need their wands to cast spells! Unlike us, we can use spells just with our hands!" the girl explained excitedly.

  "So? Margias can use offensive and defensive spells. We Sealers can only seal specific creatures."

  The girl showed a genuine, proud smile. "W-what are you looking at?" his cheek blushed slightly.

  The girl giggled in amusement. "I knew you were just as interested in the Margias as I am!"

  "What a troublesome princess," Revir mumbled to himself. "Why do I, of all people, have to be your childhood friend?"

  "It must be fate, I presume."

  "Fate, huh. Can't believe you say that, considering the myth that the Sealers are discriminated against by fate itself. We aren't exactly favored."

  "I know. But still, I want to move forward. Even if fate will destroy us, I don't care about it."

  "Quite brave for someone like you. Thinking about defying fate like it came from a storybook. Does that man still come to your home, telling bedtime stories?"

  "Of course it's not, dumbass!" she pouted, annoyed.

  Revir shrugged tiredly. "A literal princess of the Sealer bloodline, trying to accomplish a dream rather than duty. Unbelievable."

  "Did you say something?"

  "Nothing."

  The girl stood up, the wind outside the library catching her hair. "No matter what, I'm going to make sure the world knows us. Only then," she turned her head, showing a hopeful smile toward Revir, "can I proudly say that I am a princess, a Sealer, and myself!"

  Revir closed his eyes, contemplating her words deeply. "Yeah. I hope you can do that, Irlia."

  (A faint light washed over the scene, marking the present day. The ship was already far out, deep in the sea.)

  Revir, startled from his daydream of the past, snapped back to reality as Rein interrupted him.

  "You okay there? It's rare for you to daydream about something," Rein said, looking out at the scenery of the sea.

  "Heh, nothing that concerns you, Rein. I was just thinking about that place."

  "You mean the library you told us about yesterday? It must be hurt to go back there after that 'incident' I just heard about."

  Revir flabbergasted, viciously turning his head toward Rein. "Did you just...?"

  "Yeah. I sneakily went into Hindrey's room and read one of his reports. It mentioned the Sealers at the library faced an 'unavoidable chaos.' I don't know the full story, but I feel bad for them."

  Revir offered no reply, the silence of pain lingering between them.

  (His silence really reminds me of my old self. I think I might have hit the nail on the head.) Rein thought, giving a small grin.

  Suddenly, the ship lurched to a halt, sending a shocking jolt through everyone on board. The group, along with Hana, who had been resting in the cabin, rushed out onto the deck.

  "What's the matter, everyone?" Hindrey asked, walking toward the group.

  "Do you know why the sudden stop, Captain?" Carol asked back.

  "Oh, that. I'm the one who stopped it."

  The group stared, confused by his statement.

  "May I ask why you did that?" Hana demanded.

  "It's a rule we must follow when we set sail to the Sea of Haze," Hindrey explained, lighting his cigarette before taking a drag. "The Sea of Haze has three zones. The first is a Safe Zone where humans can fish safely, while the third is a Neutral Zone where our destination resides."

  "How about the second zone?" Hana asked, curious but nervous at the same time.

  Hindrey let out a smoke from his mouth. "The second zone, where we are right now, is called the Hazard Zone. A place where sea creatures reside, ready to wreak havoc on any ship that tries to pass. You could say we've walked right into the monster's nest."

  "There's no other path, is there?"

  "Nope. There's no other path for us to use. That's why we have to stop here. We must prove to those monsters that we are superior if we want to pass this zone in one piece."

  "In other words, a trial," Dulcinia said, walking up to the group to provide the full context. "But it's not going to be easy."

  Just then, the ship began shaking violently, making it hard for the group to stand properly. Carol, meanwhile, felt her seasickness kick in, and she almost gagged. In that moment, a few creatures appeared on the deck, a monsters with hideous, wet, mermaid like bodies.

  "They are a vile creature with high intelligence called Cecaelia, and that's just the surface threat."

  "Do they have a boss or something?" Aria asked, preparing for the worst.

  "You'll find out soon enough."

  The Cecaelias screamed loudly across the ship, signaling the start of the fight.

  (Damn it... why does it have to come to this?!) Carol thought, desperately holding back her vomit while trying to stand firm.