Some might think that traveling on the sea might be dangerous because of the monsters, but in reality, many of them are unable to do anything from the water. Barnacles can only be dangerous if someone travels by boat since they can flip it over and get their hands on the people on board.

Most of the monsters aren’t strong enough to damage the ship from under the water. There are unique monsters capable of destroying whole fleets, but there are so few of them that the sailors consider it a small risk. Some even think about them as legends, stories to scare children from sailing away from their homes.

Approaching the massive island, Navia saw the lights of a small village and turned the ship toward the light. The place was small but had a dock that could fit four military ships. Only one bridge was occupied by a ship, it was eight times bigger than the ship Navia had her feet on.

Once she tied the rope and made sure the boat wouldn’t sail away on its own, Navia went down to wake up the girl. She gently placed a hand on her shoulder and lightly shook it while whispering, “We arrived.”

Mirabell quickly turned around to face Navia. A soft smile on her face as she said, “I’m starving!”

They were about to leave, but Navia stopped near the stairs. “Wait for me at the deck. I have to grab something before we go.” Without any question, the girl ran up the stairs. Navia opened one of the chests and took the first shirt she saw, a teal shirt, to cover her torn black shirt with blood stains. While lifting the shirt, she saw a few silver coins on the bottom of the chest. “Lucky find.” She whispered as she took the coins.

Mirabell gasped with amusement at the sight of a new shirt that Navia had. “You didn't say you have a change of clothes in there! I also need one!” Said the girl as she glanced at her old dress, darkened by the dirt that gathered over time with a few small holes at the bottom.

“I don’t think there is one you could fit in.” Said Navia playfully as she patted the girl on the head, messing up her hair.

The village was placed on the hill, and from the shore, there were visible five buildings, and one of them was much bigger than the rest and much louder. A lot of people were inside, judging by the sea of voices coming out of the windows.

“Looks like we won’t need to worry about waking up the owner…” Playfully said Navia as she grabbed Mirabell and brought her closer.

The inn was built out of wood. It had two floors with a balcony above the entrance where a few smokers already spotted them approaching. They stopped their conversation to observe the new visitors.

Navia took the girl under her protective wing as the three men didn’t take their eyes off them. She picked up their pace as she didn’t enjoy being eyed like that by strangers.

Opening the door, the sound of the crowd became even louder, and the smell of freshly roasted meat filled their nostrils. Most of the tables were taken by drinking men. Many plates of food were placed on their tables, from whole chickens to rows of steaks. There were around twenty of them on the first floor and more visible by the railings of the second floor where a bit calmer conversations were held.

Quite a lot of them were so drunk that they barely sat on the benches. One man even slept with his head on the plate that still had a lot of food on it. Navia slowly walked forward and tried her best to avoid those men. She flinched as she felt something hard against her leg. She accidentally caught the sword of one of the men, but he didn’t react as he was too busy telling jokes to his companions.

Looking around, she noticed that all of them possessed weapons. “I don’t see the symbol of Guns For Hire. Most likely a group of mercenaries.” Navia thought as she moved forward to the counter where a bold man sat with two waitresses placing food on wooden trays.

The bald man raised his eyebrows in surprise as he didn’t expect a woman and a child at such an hour with a group of drinking men already inside. Not a time for such visitors to come into the tavern.

“Is there anything left to eat?” Asked Navia as she looked at the tables full of food.

“There is but nothing with meat. We sold out all of it, as you can see.” Said the bald man with a bit of a disgusted face as he looked around at the dishes that were prepared and already placed on the tables.

“I don’t think that would be a problem.” Navia answered as she slowly patted the girl under her arm, trying to comfort her. The girl was overwhelmed by the ruckus inside the inn.

“That’s the only thing available right now.” The bald man tapped his finger on the counter where the menu was engraved in the wood.

Navia looked Mirabell in the eyes with a gentle smile and calmly asked, “Do you like mushrooms?” The girl only nodded at her question. “Then we’ll take the boletus soup and four slices of bread.” Navia placed seven coins on the counter and then moved up the stairs where the inn was calmer.

Not many people moved upstairs, so once they noticed that it wasn’t a waitress, their eyes lingered on two of them until they went out of sight. Navia let out an uncomfortable grunt, and a few eyes went away, a bit ashamed by how long they had stared at them. That is, except for one man who sat by the table for two with his companion.

The man had black dreadlocks partially hidden under a blue band; on some of them, he had silver rings. He had slightly tanned skin from months spent on the sea. No sign of hair on his young face. His eyes were like a dark blue ocean; just by looking in them felt as if a person was sinking under the water. His coat was short and slightly darker than his band, with shining silver buttons. Under it, he had a white shirt with a cut that slightly showed his chest. Thin dark ropes were wrapped around his waist. More rings were on his hands, proudly showing his wealth to everyone.

The girls moved away from the group to the other corner of the second floor. Navia sat down by the wall so she could observe the whole floor while Mirabell sat to her right. Anxiously watching the men drinking and playing around with each other.

“Those people are…” Mirabell finally spoke, but she lacked the words for what she wanted to say.

“Intimidating?” Navia continued the girl's thought, a bit unsure if that was the word she was looking for. Looking away from the drinking group to Mirabell, lifting one brow as she waited for the confirmation.

“Yes…” Mirabell awkwardly agreed, her gaze constantly on her hands, which she placed on the table.

Navia tried to smile for the girl so she would feel a bit better, more comfortable, but she couldn’t force it any longer as two drunk men were coming their way. Their faces were enough to figure out why they were coming here. They were lustful.

A man with blond hair and a rough beard turned the chair around and sat on it, laying his arms on the chair's back and his head on them while his bald companion placed one hand on his shoulder.

“What brings a beautiful lady like you to this inn… In the middle of the night…” The blond-haired man tried to flirt and not to stutter from being drunk while his friend only smiled with a disturbing grin, making Mirabell move closer to Navia and hide her face behind her protector.

“Just food. Once we eat, we’ll get moving.” Navia answered plainly, her face stoic, not showing any signs of discomfort or fear. A bit of anxiety slipped as the bald man licked his mouth as he clearly looked up and down at Navia.

“As you can see, there is more than food in here… How about a drink? We’d like to get to know you closer… What’s your name, sweetie?” The blond man asked calmly as he tried to show his best smile, but his friend didn’t help with his seduction. The bald man represented with his expressions what both of them wanted.

“I don’t have time for drinking…” Navia looked away to show disinterest in them, but she was startled as the bold man hit the table with his fist.

“Enough of this crap! You’re going with me!” He shouted as he extended his arm to grab Navia. The man was suddenly jerked backward, falling flat to the ground. “Hey! You fucker…” The man’s agitation faded and turned into shock as he saw the figure that had pushed him. The man in a dark blue coat who was sitting by the table for two.