Chapter 30: Chapter 106 – A Big Catch

“There’s so much blue everywhere! It looks almost as if the sky has become one with the water! This is so amazing!”

A few hours passed since the ship called the Bellowing Kingfisher had left the docks. Miria was as enthusiastic about their voyage as at the very beginning of it. Supported from behind by Asterios holding her close, she was leaning over the railing and looking in all directions in front of her, enjoying the pleasant breeze.

A soft chuckle arrived by their ears, originating from a white-furred fox lady resting her back on the wooden balustrade. Miria instantly moved her eyes to Selene, with her expression still overtaken by pure joy.

“Isn’t this so exciting, Selene? It’s completely different from traversing a lake! I’ve never thought the difference would be so incredible!”

“I’m pretty sure it is for someone’s first time. Considering the location of your tribe, I’m not surprised that you didn’t get to experience a real sea voyage.”

Miria’s eyes sparkled. “You’ve been on a ship this big before, then?”

“Twice or thrice. I did have to travel a little during my lifetime. I had my first sailing experience while much older than you, though.”

“And you, Master?” Miria turned her head to face Asterios, pushing herself more into his embrace.

He smiled and started brushing through her fluffy hair. “You should know that this is my first time too. I’m just glad none of us are suffering any discomfort, unlike a certain someone.”

They glanced back at a demon man trying to somehow act strong and dignified, which was very hard with his legs clearly shaking like they were made out of jello, forcing him to traverse the ship’s deck alongside something he could use to support himself.

Svertaniel noticed their gazes and showed a slightly strained wry smile. They all nodded and turned their heads towards the sea again to not make it more difficult for their new temporary companion.

For some reason, most of the medicines and drugs that were supposed to help with seasickness just didn’t work in the slightest in his case. And, unfortunately, Asterios couldn’t help much either since even if he had a few ideas that could possibly solve the issue, it was all magic he could only use on his companions, which fortunately wasn’t necessary.

“We should have asked the enchanter in Nebula to make us some Runic Chips with a spell for such situations. There’s no way someone working by the sea wouldn’t have it in their catalog.” Asterios sighed.

“In full honesty, my Lord, he was so decisive and adamant on joining us that we were fully convinced such a trip is nothing to him. And he did mention having decent relations with the company behind this transport. It’s only natural to assume that he was alright in the past.”

Miria giggled quietly, rubbing her ear into Ast’s cheek. “It was so surprising to see him like this.”

“I can’t rebuke nor deny that.” Asterios chuckled too. “Can you go and tell him to take it easy, Umbra? He’ll listen to you quicker than us.”

The shadowy raven materialized on Ast’s head after the black mist had fully gathered up.

~Don’t worry, Master. I have some experience in dealing with fanatics. Albeit not that many, there were some beings trying to act as if I was their god back in the Nethernight Realm.~

“Oooooh. That sounds interesting! You have to tell us about that story someday!” Miria turned around in Ast’s arms and gave Umbra a wide smile.

~I don’t mind. It’s not as interesting as it sounds though. And most likely much more horrific than you imagine.~

Seeing Miria’s eyes widen in shock, Asterios chuckled a little and began petting her adorable ears. “Why do I have a feeling it was something akin to a cult?”

Umbra took off from his head and flew to fulfill his task. The trio that was left alone, returned to enjoying the humid breeze in each other’s company. After a few more hours, they moved to their cabin to rest for the night.

The ship that served as their transport to the Demon Continent was designed as a cargo vessel. But, even with that, it didn’t lack in comfort when it came to the resting or sleeping areas for the crew. There were even a few fancy rooms for possible VIPs, with one of them now taken by Asterios and his party.

Miria was extremely curious how it would feel to sleep on a sailing ship so she naturally decided to stay with him. Selene, now without any leftover reservations, didn’t stray away from joining them, wanting to spend the night by their side too.

To further enhance the experience, they chose to jump into one of the hammocks hanging near the walls of their small personal chamber. They did have a bed, but doing it this way was much more interesting. If not for the offer from the ship’s captain, they would have just chosen any normal cabin with these hanging sheets instead.

Fortunately for Miria and Selene, the hammock was big enough to fit the three of them together, albeit not without some squeezing. But, to them, it was just a bonus.

Asterios ended up lying on the bottom of it on his back, with the two girls snuggled to his chest from above and pushed more into him by the hammock’s fabric. It felt like they were in a cocoon together, cuddled with each other lovingly. And all the fluff coming from Miria’s and Selene’s fur was just a comfy bliss for Asterios, as much as his close presence was to them.

In the morning, Miria woke up feeling slightly dizzy, but it was nothing that a few caring kisses from Asterios couldn’t get rid of. Or it was his energy she had received through them. In the end, it didn’t really matter as long as she could get some more love from her master, showering him with her affection in return.

After a short and light breakfast, they moved to the upper deck together. It looked like Svertaniel was staying in his cabin for now. Miria showed great interest in seeing things from the captain’s perspective and they walked up to the man currently standing at the ship’s helm. After asking the crew if it was okay, of course.

They were let through and quickly arrived at the highest position on the deck. A single man was standing by the huge wooden wheel with many handles to grab onto. Asterios could tell how excited Miria was to come even closer and examine it in much more detail. Selene couldn’t help but chuckle at their enthusiastic friend.

The captain had obviously noticed them and tipped his black tricorne with crimson feathers, smiling politely. He was a demon. Judging by the red skin and three eyes in a triangle formation on his face, he was most likely partially related to Grea’s Dahaka subrace of demons. 

He did not possess horns, his third eye was just a normal one, and all of them closely resembled human ones, not glowing in a single color like that of a certain researcher woman. Plenty of almost waist-long brown dreadlocks flowed from under the man’s hat, hanging over the back of his black trench coat.

After hitting some slanted platform under the huge wheel with his foot, the captain left it alone and stepped towards them.

“Welcome to my humble helm. I’ve been wondering how long it would take for you to show up here after seeing the cute cat-eared girl eye-up every single piece of my ship, hahaha.”

Miria blushed and shyly lowered her gaze, evoking one more laugh from the man. He then gestured to his side.

“Come closer. You can look and touch as much as you want. I’ve locked the wheel in place so you won’t accidentally mess anything up. Just don’t hit that small pedal on the deck.”

A thrilled expression quickly took over her face. But, before jumping forward, Miria glanced up at Asterios, who nodded at her with a smile. She rubbed her cheek into his for a split second and dashed towards the wheel, causing everyone else to chuckle at her.

“Such an energetic girl by your side, lad. And the other lady seems very unique too. You must hardly ever get bored with such companions. Ah, but where are my manners? I’m Moreso, as you might have heard from Svertaniel or Guildmaster Suanori.”

“I’m Asterios. And the girls are Miria and Selene, starting from the overly curious one.” Asterios chuckled, glancing at the panthergirl poking the steering wheel. ”And if you spot some shadows moving around the ship then that’s Umbra, also my comrade, and not your mind playing tricks on you. He usually shows himself as a raven.”

The captain laughed heartily. “So that’s what has been scaring my crew recently. Some people reported seeing a huge ominous shadow looming over Svertaniel, with him acting like some servant. I was sure they had drunk a bit too much before our departure. He always acted like everything was just beneath him so it was quite unbelievable.”

“Although the two of us met just recently, I know what you mean.”

They all observed how Miria examined the captain’s position with extreme attention to detail while they chatted casually. After a few minutes of leaning over the wheel, grabbing it at various points, and looking all around, she came back to them with a tinge of rosiness covering her cute cheeks.

Miria passed by Moreso and hugged Ast’s left arm, half-hiding her face in his neck.

“Finished with your fun?”

She nodded lightly. Asterios moved his hand to scratch behind her fluffy ear.

“Hahahaha! No need to be so shy about it! Many people get curious and excited when they board a big ship for the first time. If you would like, I can find you some tasks to help the crew whenever you’d feel like it.” Moreso laughed and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Really?” Miria stopped hiding and glanced at him with wide eyes.

“Yeah, really. There’s always something to do and another pair of hands can be very useful. Just come to me or my first mate and we’ll find something for you.”

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“You have more than one mate too?” 

Selene chuckled softly from the side. “That’s not what he meant. Mates are like the captain’s assistants on big ships. First Mate is like the highest rank amongst them.”

Miria instantly blushed, releasing a quiet giggle from her misunderstanding, causing everyone to laugh. 

“Anyway, Captain, how’s our path planned?” Asterios helped get the attention off her by changing the topic.

“Almost straight to Ashen Barrel, with just a single stop in Dagger’s End in the territory of the Mountain Dwarves. We were planning to take a roundabout way and avoid some of the more dangerous waters, but since we now have the escort of an A-rank Void Mage, we chose not to delay our arrival and follow the shortest route.”

“I see. Just like Suanori mentioned to us. Although, Svertaniel doesn’t seem to be in the best condition to protect the ship.”

“No need to worry about that. I’ve sailed with him twice already. If push comes to shove, he can quickly focus on the important matters. It’s just too tiring for him to fight his sick body all the time. And, we also have you with us, don’t we? The Dungeon Slayers, nay?”

Asterios smiled wryly. “I don’t know where that name came from but I guess it’s at least better than the current one.”

“What’s wrong with our name? It’s good. And this one doesn’t even have anything to do with Dragons.” Miria pouted at him.

“We’ve already talked about that. And we do need to change just to be safe, you know? We should have done that in Nebula. I guess this will be the first thing we do in Ashen Barrel.”

“Let’s not act too selfish, Miria. We’ve had our fun with the previous name. We shouldn’t inconvenience Master too much,” Selene added, coming closer to embrace Ast’s other arm.

“I know… Can it be linked with Dragons, Master?” Miria glanced up at Asterios with hopeful eyes.

“I don’t see any reason for it not to be. We have like—” He turned to the captain.

“Forty days since we are taking the short route.”

“—to come up with something that everyone likes. I’m not really picky either. It’s just that while the joke has been funny, I don’t want you girls to be only associated with being my women.”

“That’s plenty of time to think. We’ll definitely figure something out, my Lord.” Selene smiled at Miria and they nodded at each other.

“Hahahaha! Good luck then! Maybe this voyage will help boost your creativity! I’ve always been terrible at naming things. Even this ship was named by my daughter. She loves birds. I’m sure she would like lovebirds like you too.” Moreso winked at Asterios, causing Miria’s cheeks to redden again and Selene to chuckle playfully.

Asterios didn’t want to disrupt the captain too long and took his companions back to the main deck. They spent some time observing how the crew worked and Miria happily joined the men and women of various races while receiving some tasks from them. Even things like scrubbing the wooden floor didn’t bring down her enthusiasm.

Asterios and Selene left the panthergirl to her own machinations and decided to spend some time together. As they were having a pleasant chat at the ship’s bow during which the fox lady sat on the railing and kept combing through Ast’s hair from above, one of the crewmates approached them and suggested some fishing for their sea date.

It was an interesting idea so they agreed. Three men who were currently trying their luck with the fish quickly explained to them how it worked while onboard a sailing ship and let Asterios and Selene have a few tries in front of them to make sure that they understood the lesson. A bit over half an hour was enough for them to catch on and the sailors moved to a different spot to let them be alone.

Luck seemed to not be on the duo’s side as they barely were getting any bites. But, the fun time they spent together, helping each other and laughing at their misfortune, was very enjoyable. Selene didn’t even notice when she had moved back to Ast’s side to lean onto him instead of keeping some distance. They rested their heads against each other and kept trying to catch something worth bragging about while surrounded by a calm and sweet atmosphere.

For the next two weeks, that was pretty much their routine. They slept together in their cabin, enjoying cuddling with each other in the hammock, ate a small breakfast, and split to go do different things.

Miria would often help with the ship whenever it was possible or observe the various people with different roles from up close. She could be found anywhere on the ship, starting from the helm, through the crow’s nest, to the various lower decks, including the kitchens. She sometimes prepared a snack for the three of them to eat together, learning more about cooking.

Meanwhile, the other two would either enjoy fishing together, competing against each other or joining the contests run by the fishermen amongst the crew, or sit in the party’s cabin, where Asterios was slowly resupplying his Runic Chips by carving various sigils from the Core’s remains and other materials.

Selene learned that her spiritual energy and fire could achieve almost the same effect as the knife that Asterios used to work on the hard minerals and monster cores. She could form a very accurate and sharp spiritual knife and envelop the edge with her spiritual flame, which additionally made the materials less resistant. Thanks to that, he offered to teach her a little about this craft and she got absorbed in it extremely quickly. 

She was glad to be of help but also found the activity really entertaining, gratifying, and satisfying. It took a few days for her to start carving sigils that weren’t damaged or had to be slightly tweaked by Asterios, but each time she properly finished one that he gave a nod of approval to, she couldn’t hide her excitement and pride. He had never seen her tail moving so fast and her face so purely bright, almost competing with Miria’s.

And naturally, during that time, a full moon had arrived. It was inevitable. Thanks to Ast’s Alcove of Serenity, they could spend an affectionate night together without disturbing anyone else around them. 

Asterios could tell how much Miria wanted to try it on the hammock and they ended up going at it a few times while surrounded by the soft material, embracing each other slowly and lovingly. 

Selene ended up joining them and Asterios pretty much drowned under their exquisite bodies, surrounded from both sides, or top and bottom, by his beautiful and affectionate companions, with the mischievous fox lady always finding some way to tease him or Miria while she wasn’t the one in Ast’s care.

Now, it was the fifteenth day—two more before they reached Dagger’s End—and Asterios was sitting behind Selene. She was holding a fishing pole and trying to get a nice catch. They didn’t compete today, just spent some pleasant time together. Selene enjoyed leaning into Ast’s chest while he hugged her from behind as they both held onto the rod extending over the ship’s side.

Selene sighed softly and Asterios kissed her long ear, making her chuckle quietly.

“What are you thinking about? he asked.

“Nothing much. Just how happy I am doing nothing more than sitting on the lap of the man I love. I’ve never thought I would spend my days like this; free of the worries about the curse and with a Soul Mate who cares for me greatly by my side. I could stay like this forever.”

Asterios nibbled gently on her ear with just his supple lips, evoking a rather pleasant sigh from Selene. She turned her face to match his and they gazed into each other’s eyes, both being a similar shade of blue.

Just as they leaned forward to join their lips in a tender kiss, something tugged the fishing line with incredible strength, instantly pulling both of them forward, evoking a grunt and a yelp of surprise from them.

They quickly braced themselves while sliding over the deck and hit the railing with their feet, starting to resist.

“Ugh… What the hell is this strong?! Did we hook a steel crate or something?!”

“It must be a big one, my Lord! Let’s get it out!”

Selene’s spiritual energy flared up and Asterios reached for his source; both of them entered their respective awakened states. While he focused on retracting the line, she did her best to hold the rod steady, without straining the pole too much.

The contest of strength was so flashy that people started gathering around them and cheering the duo on. Even Miria and Moreso arrived by their side, excited to see what was giving the quite strong foxkin this much of an issue.

After a good three minutes, the mysterious opponent was out of the water and both of them were launched back a few meters, pushing themselves off the railing. With a loud thud, something of an impressive size landed behind them while the whole crowd turned silent in a flash.

Asterios and Selene found themselves on top of each other and chuckled together. She rolled off him and they glanced towards their trophy… just to see the captain drive his saber between the sharp teeth of an over-two-meter-tall humanoid figure with the head, fins, and tail of a shark.

“TO ARMS! LOOKS LIKE WE ARE ON THE MENU TODAY, BOYS!”

And the bell rang.

 

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