Anna made her decision on her own, and no amount of persuasion from Lilia could change her mind.
"Why don't we become pirates too?" She looked around the old pirate ship, her eyes full of excitement.
Leo was a fake noble, and it was easy for people to see through him. Plus, she didn't like the merchant ships or adventurer fleets.
"What do you think of the Elf Pirate Crew?" She spoke to herself, but no one responded.
"Hello? Don't be silent. If not, we can call it the Mage Pirate Crew. Biggy, Secondy, what do you think?" She turned to the two trolls, who were standing nearby.
Biggy scratched his head, looking a bit clueless. "I think the Troll Pirate Crew sounds cool."
"Shut up," Anna snapped, glaring at him. She slammed her hand on the table and decided, "We're calling it the Elf Pirate Crew."
Leo couldn't believe it. He looked at Lilia and asked, "Are you sure this girl is your princess? How has she survived out there?"
Lilia sighed. "Princess Anna has always been like this. She doesn't fear anything. The Elven King is really frustrated with her."
"Don't say bad things about me," Anna said, looking at the two of them. "From now on, I'm the captain of the Elf Pirate Crew. Everyone has to listen to me."
"Ridiculous. Even if we form a pirate crew, the captain should be Mister Leo," Ava protested.
"Then let's vote. The princess is very democratic," Anna teased Ava, then added, "Those who want me as captain, stand behind me."
No one moved.
"Biggy, Secondy!" Anna pointed at them, threateningly. "Come on, stand behind me."
The two trolls sighed and reluctantly stepped behind her.
"Lilia, come here," she said, turning to the elf.
"Princess, I think Leo is more reliable," Lilia looked between the two and finally stepped behind Leo.
"Traitor, Lilia!" Anna was furious. She continued, "Three votes each. If that's the case, then it's a duel!"
She pulled out her staff, glaring at Leo, then added, "No Skyfire allowed!"
"That's unfair. You're a mage, and Leo is just a regular human. He can't beat you," Ava protested.
Lilia nodded in agreement.
Leo spoke up, "Actually, there's an even better way. This is my ship, and I can just kick you off."
"Human, don't be too arrogant!" Anna glared at him.
"You forget, I'm your savior," Leo sighed.
"Big shot, I think this human is a better captain," Biggy muttered.
"Me too," Secondy nodded.
"Traitors! Both of you!" Anna scowled, glaring at Leo, who was clearly smug. She sighed in defeat and said, "Fine, then I'll be the deputy captain. Who agrees, who disagrees?"
She looked at the others with a challenge.
No one responded.
She declared to herself, "Since no one said no, then it's assumed. Now, we're heading to the deep sea to find The Fountain of Immortality!"
Lilia sighed and said, "Princess Anna, stop acting childish. The Fountain of Immortality is definitely a myth. Our first stop should be the Elven Forest."
"Lilia, don't think I don't know what you're thinking. I'm not going back to the Elven Forest. And regardless of whether this rumor is real or not, there's sure to be something interesting," she said excitedly, looking at Leo and asking, "Leo, what do you think?"
Leo was also somewhat tempted. He said, "Let's go to Flame Island first."
"Great!" Ava's eyes lit up and she was the first to agree.
"Leo, why do we have to go to Flame Island again?" Lilia was wary. She was worried that Leo might not return from Flame Island.
He explained, "We need to make more gunpowder. If we're going on a long journey, we need a way to protect ourselves."
"Gunpowder? Is that Skyfire? Okay, then we'll go to Flame Island first." Anna was excited and once again clung to Leo. "Leo, teach me how to make that Skyfire, okay?"
Leo ignored her and walked straight toward the ship's cabin.
Anna wasn't giving up. She kept following him.
"Big shot, there's something on the sea. It looks like a barrel," Secondy pointed excitedly.
Leo and Anna rushed over.
On the vast sea, a wooden barrel floated, easily overlooked if not looked at closely.
Was someone in trouble?
Leo was curious and said, "Get closer and pick it up."
"Okay." Lilia quickly ran to the sails and adjusted the course toward the floating barrel.
Biggy and Secondy grabbed ropes and jumped into the water to retrieve it.
"Big shot, there's a rope under it," they said, securing the barrel and pulling it up. The rope was still attached to something below.
Lilia came closer and said, "This is the method that adventurers and merchant ships use to trap Fishman. Let's see if there's a Fishman stuck on it."
"Okay." Biggy and Secondy pulled the rope, and it wasn't too hard.
"Surely there's something!" Secondy exclaimed. The water below had turned red with blood, and the end of the rope was connected to a huge harpoon that had pierced a Fishman.
With effort, they pulled the Fishman onto the ship.
"Is that a mermaid?" Leo was surprised. Before them was a girl with a human body and a fish tail, her scales shimmering in the sunlight, refracting a rainbow of colors.
Lilia nodded, but her eyes remained alert as she looked around the fog. "Strangely, this place is far from the Fishman Island. Why is there a Fishman here?"
Fishmen rarely left their island, and capturing one was extremely difficult for adventurers and merchant ships. Fishmen were even more valuable than elves. Especially this beautiful mermaid girl, she was a prized possession for many nobles and rich men.
"Maybe she was separated from her group," Anna said dismissively, staring at the mermaid.
The girl's skin was smooth and white, and the most unusual thing was a pair of horns on her forehead.
"Why does a Fishman have horns?" Anna asked, touching them gently. They weren't attached.
"Also, she's still breathing," Ava checked the girl's nose. "She's alive."
Biggy and Secondy also came closer, curious about why the Fishman had horns.
"Maybe she inhaled water. Should we do mouth-to-mouth?" Biggy said seriously, deep in thought.
The others were speechless.
Anna glared at him and said, "Biggy, your analysis is great. From now on, don't analyze anymore."
"Mister Leo, what should we do? We don't have a doctor here," Ava said with concern, wanting to help the poor Fishman girl.
Anna spoke up, "First, take the harpoon out and bandage her wound. She's probably unconscious from blood loss. Once we get to shore, I'll find some herbs."
Elves did have some medical knowledge.
The others nodded.
Biggy and Secondy carefully pulled out the harpoon, trying not to cause any more damage.
The harpoon had large barbs to prevent the prey from escaping, but its tail could be pulled straight through.
Ava did a quick bandage on the girl's wound and gave her some fresh water. Then, Biggy and Secondy carried her to the ship's cabin to rest.
The ship continued drifting on the sea, and the journey was smooth with no danger.
Five days later, they left the fog and Flame Island appeared in the distance.
During this time, the Fishman girl had woken up, though her mind was still foggy. She seemed to have a fever, and her wound was showing signs of infection.
Leo didn't have any medical knowledge, so he had Ava give her water and simple food to keep her alive until they could find herbs on the shore.
The ship approached the island, and they dropped the anchor.
On the island, a group of barbarians surrounded them, holding bamboo tubes filled with explosives.
"Grandpa, it's us," Ava called out from the deck, waving.
"It's Ava and Mister Leo. Put the explosives down, don't hurt them," the priest recognized Ava and quickly ordered the barbarians to put down their weapons.
He had seen the power of those explosives before, and even now, he still felt a chill in his heart. If it wasn't a life-or-death situation, he wouldn't have used them.
The group boarded a small boat and rowed toward the shore.
"Mister Leo, I knew you'd come back," the priest greeted them warmly.
"High Priest, we're just here to rest for a while. We'll be leaving soon," Lilia stepped in front of Leo, her expression cautious. She didn't like this old man.
"No problem, you are always welcome here," the priest said, but this time, he didn't try to persuade them to stay. He noticed that Leo's group had grown to include four more people: an elf, two trolls, and a Fishman.
Then, he saw the Fishman girl for the first time.
"Horned Fishman!" He gasped, his eyes wide with fear, and took a step back, nearly falling over from the shock.