The Pirate King's Daughter - Chapter 18

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 18
“Tatiana!”
Dilshad’s cry went unheard.
“Kiis, please snap out of it.”
From behind Kiis, I thrust my arms deep under both his armpits and tried to drag him away. But instead of moving, my feet slipped and I landed hard on my rear.
“Ugh!”
At the same instant, the wind picked up.
When I lifted my head, the Siren’s talons—I hadn’t noticed it approach—came at my eyes so close I could barely focus.
Thud!
“Nngh!”
I squeezed my eyes shut.
But feeling no pain, I cautiously cracked one eyelid open to find the Siren gone, replaced by a thick vine hovering just inches from my nose. Pierced through its center, a Siren hung limp, eyes wide and glassy in death.
Everything was happening too fast to keep track.
“You really—again!”
Dilshad was mid-rebuke when another enraged Siren lunged at me. He summoned several wooden vines in rapid succession to block its path.
I abandoned any hope of moving the others and drew my Revolver from its holster.
Click—a round chambered.
Dilshad conjured flame in his palm. Simultaneously, two Sirens opened their maws wide.
A crystalline, intoxicating melody poured forth.
“Damn it.”
Dilshad extinguished the fire and cast Sound Blocking Magic, then rolled across the deck to evade the attacking Siren.
Bang!
I fired at the Siren closing on Berto. The shot sailed wide—nowhere close.
‘Should’ve practiced more,’ I thought bitterly.
The Siren wheeled freely through the air, sidestepping Dilshad’s attacks with ease. This wasn’t working.
Flap—
Then I spotted it: a massive white sail billowing full.
“Dilshad! Bring down the sail!”
Wooden vines surged upward, climbing the mast in rapid coils.
I pulled the trigger on the Siren charging at Dilshad.
Bang!
The shot missed, but that didn’t matter. As long as I kept it from closing distance.
The Siren wheeled for another attack just as the sail collapsed.
Blocked by the falling canvas, the two Sirens drew closer, panic flickering across their faces.
Dilshad didn’t miss his chance. A vine, honed to razor sharpness, drove straight through a Siren’s chest.
One remained.
In a final, desperate act, the last Siren began to sing. While Dilshad was forced to abandon his Magic, it drove straight for me.
“No!”
A Dagger I’d thrown lodged in its wing, but it didn’t slow. The billowing sail descended like a parachute, about to swallow me whole.
The Siren was almost on top of me.
Bang!
Pristine white canvas consumed the entire deck.
‘I’m alive.’
Buried beneath cloth, I stumbled backward, my heel nearly catching on the Siren’s protruding wing.
“Tatiana!”
At the urgency in Dilshad’s voice, I opened my mouth to answer when the canvas tore apart. He was there, desperation written across his face.
“… you really are fast.”
There’d been distance between us. Even accounting for the magic that tore through the cloth, Dilshad had crossed it in a heartbeat.
“Hah…”
He dropped to his knees, head bowed.
“Look, I’ve always had a fragile body, but that doesn’t mean I die easily.”
Since I wasn’t going to die anyway, I shouldn’t show off. Truthfully, without the power Lucas gave me, I could never have moved like this.
“You’re scaring me half to death.”
I hurried to change the subject when Dilshad shot me a look.
“Besides, just the two of us took down three Sirens. That’s insane. We’re insane.”
At my cheerful proclamation, he let out a bemused laugh.
We haphazardly shoved the fallen sail to one side.
Berto would probably sigh when he woke up, but that was fine.
I’d once dragged him into my scheming, and he was the sort of magnanimous person who rarely punished such things.
While Dilshad carried the three unconscious bodies into their quarters, I prepared hot tea.
“That was rough work.”
I handed him the cup. The Dilshad I thought had relaxed suddenly looked sharp again.
“What’s that look for?”
“Was it really that hard to ignore him?”
It hadn’t been my choice.
‘It was all because of that dream.’
The memories of him, the feelings toward him—once they surfaced in my mind, my legs moved of their own accord.
And Kiis, without covering his ears, had even come running toward me in his most righteous form, which made it worse.
But there was no other meaning to it.
“He’s my ally, that’s all. We have to look out for each other. If you’d collapsed, I’d have done the same.”
“If I’d been one second slower, you’d be dead.”
I thought the conversation was over, but apparently not.
“I’m sorry. Next time I’ll run without looking back.”
“As if you actually would.”
Seeing him pout like that, I felt a laugh escape.
“Are you laughing now?”
“No—I’m just… happy. You came to threaten me in the dead of night before, and now you’re worrying about me.”
“That was—!”
“Never mind, I understand. I’m not blaming you. If you’re done being angry, drink this down. It’s gotten cold already.”
Dilshad acquiesced and drank the deeply steeped Black Tea.
“But the others lost consciousness to the Siren’s Song. Why weren’t we affected?”
That was the strangest part. Even Kiis, who wielded an Aura, had collapsed instantly. So why had I remained unaffected?
“The moment I realized what they were, I used Magic to block the sound.”
Dilshad set his cup down on the saucer as he spoke.
“Just you?”
“… Living alone made me reflexive. I only protected myself.”
It wasn’t an accusation when I asked.
“Then what about me?”
“That’s what I’d like to know. Is it the same power that repelled the Tour Leader before?”
“How should I know? I didn’t do anything.”
The ability Lucas had granted me came with quite a few peripheral advantages.
Deflecting Evil Magic, immunity to Demon Beast attacks—it was incredibly convenient.
Of course, it had gotten me mistaken for a Demon by the righteous humpback whale, but sailing meant encountering far more dangerous creatures than benevolent ones anyway.
“The more I look at you, the less I understand.”
Dilshad muttered something that sounded like a sigh.
“You at least know I’m good, right?”
“I know you’re foolish.”
He deflected.
“Anyway, when do you think the others will wake up? We’ll need Berto to—”
I trailed off.
I’d just realized again: two clueless sailors, adrift in the middle of the Sea without a navigator.
“It’ll probably take a few days. The Siren’s Song is quite potent, or so I’ve heard.”
“Dilshad! Hurry, to the Navigation Room!”
I sprang from my seat and grabbed Dilshad’s wrist, pulling him toward the Dining Hall door.
“Ack, you startled me!”
“What?”
On the floor lay the Siren, its chest cavity punctured clean through, dead.
“Oh, I forgot about that. I’ll clean it up in a moment. Don’t look.”
“No, wait. The Navigation Room first.”
I bounded up to the second floor, immediately consulted the Compass to determine our heading, then unfolded the Navigation Log and Sea Chart.
“We’ve drifted.”
“Don’t say unlucky things. Words have power.”
With more mouths to feed, I’d need to start fishing in earnest right away.
* * *
The day after the Siren incident, Kiis woke. Then Berto, followed by Perian.
The sail, which Dilshad had cleanly brought down, was repaired quickly enough.
The good news was that those three buffoons finally accepted Dilshad.
“Popo, please save us.”
I stood before the humpback whale figurehead, drenched in sunlight, and pressed my palms together in prayer.
After Berto heard my plea, he enlarged the tiny window he’d been working with, and now light poured in far better than before.
Finishing my prayer and stepping back into the cabin, I raised my voice.
“Berto!”
The Navigation Room door opened, and Berto poked his head down to the first floor where I stood.
“Yes?”
“Do you still have no idea where we are?”
Berto had calculated our position using the logs we’d recorded, but he said the result wasn’t accurate.
“If the calculation were correct, we should have spotted an Uninhabited Island. It seems our course has drifted considerably.”
It was dire news. Our Provisions were running perilously low.
“Understood. I’m going fishing then.”
I climbed up to the second-floor Deck.
“Hey!”
I rushed over and smacked Kiis’s back as he churned out Push-ups at a furious pace.
“Oof!”
“What are you doing? I told you not to exercise. You’re going to waste water and food.”
“It aches. My body felt stiff, so I just did a few.”
“Such a complainer.”
I settled into a chair and picked up the Fishing Rod resting against the railing.
“Fishing is so boring though.”
Kiis grumbled and sat down beside me.
I was at least grateful there was someone else here with nothing to do.
“Tatiana, coffee.”
Dilshad emerged onto the Deck with an Iced Americano.
“I told you, I’m not drinking coffee anymore.”
“We have a condenser. We can make fresh water from seawater. Don’t worry so much—just drink it.”
“But…”
No matter what he said, coffee made me lose touch with reality and feel like I was indulging in luxury I didn’t deserve.
“If you won’t, I will.”
Then Kiis snatched the Iced Americano from Dilshad’s hand and drained it in one gulp.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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