Asahi and Aletha's eyes widened. Aletha stayed silent, but Asahi demanded,
"What's happening? Trains?! Flying trains?"
The Chef chortled, amused.
"Yeah, there's a big rail system built by a legendary conductor. Now we use those rails to trade across all five nations on the continent!"
As he reached for saltine crackers, the sailor called out to Asahi.
"Hey, dude, ya' want some crackers? It's guaranteed to help you feel better on this trip!"
"Sure!" Asahi answered, enthusiasm clear in his voice.
Asahi caught the crackers, opened the bag, and inhaled their fresh aroma.
Phthonus leaned toward Asahi, smirking. "You're going to LOVE those crackers. I couldn't stop eating them."
"Okay."
Asahi grabbed one Saltine cracker from the bag. He tossed it inside his mouth and clamped on all of its glorious salinity.
Scrumptious it was; the crumbs juggled around his taste buds, then down his throat.
The sensation tingled and awakened Asahi, as if this snack was the best food in the world for him.
He shoved all fifteen crackers shortly after, crunching up the bag to savor every crumb.
Sally watched with concern. "Asahi, calm down!" she urged.
Phthonus smirked again. "I knew it," he muttered.
Meanwhile, Aletha picked up a wooden spoon and hesitated for a moment before attempting to scoop up the steaming soup.
At first, she looked hesitant, but her eyes widened as she took just one sip.
She felt the juices and chunks of veggies slip down her tongue. They juggled together in her mouth. It stimulated every taste bud she had, delighting her with a heavenly essence tingling on her tongue.
"Mmmm!"
Suddenly, Aletha gripped the bowl and poured the entire soup down her throat in one swift motion, stunning Phthonus, Asahi, and Sally. She wiped her mouth with her hand, slammed the empty bowl on the table, and let out an enormous belch.
Aletha set down the bowl and, in a honeyed voice, said, "Excuse me~."
The Chef's jaw dropped just like a scoop hitting the floor.
Everyone stared at Aletha in disbelief. The sailor dropped his silverware, jaw slack. Asahi's shock froze his face.
(I never thought my sister would be THAT hungry. Wow. She drank the entire soup as if it were nothing. She didn't even leave a single crumb! Didn't she eat?! At least she could give some manners… the sailor was standing there!)
. . .
It was so quiet in the room that they could hear the water crashing against the boat's bottom.
The wooden surface creaked, and the ship tilted side to side.
Phthonus, Sally, Asahi, and the sailor's eyes met with Aletha as she anxiously returned the bowl to the counter, acting as if that simple act didn't happen.
"Thank you, that was delicious!"
Chef mumbled suspiciously as he grabbed the bowl.
"You're… welcome…."
No one would have predicted Aletha gulping down that meal.
(Did all of her grumpiness die? No, that can't be.) Asahi thought as he saw Sally chomp on a loaf of bread.
. . .
The room was reasonably quiet. The Chef gave the last meals to Phthonus and Sally. He tidied up the kitchen. He put everything back in order. Phthonus shoveled the soup all in his mouth.
The vegetables, the broth—each part was enough to stimulate every sense in him.
He gulped the entire meal like Aletha. Soup droplets slid down his chin as he thanked the Chef.
"This is delicious. Thank you, Chef!"
He winked, gave Phthonus a napkin, and answered with a kind tone.
"You bet! It's the best soup on the ship! It's even Drimi's favorite."
Asahi and the others were in awe of the Chef's cooking. The meals tasted like a dish from heaven.
. . .
As Phthonus, Sally, Asahi, and Aletha returned to the table, suddenly a loud thump sounded beneath the floor.
(Knock)
Instantly, everyone in the room grew alert.
They all pushed their chairs back and gathered around the center of the room, trying to determine the source of the noise.
"W-What was that?" Sally was frighteningly expressive.
(Knock, knock, knock) The noise beneath them continued.
"Any butts up there?!" The muffled voice asked.
The entire room fell silent, knelt on the floor, and placed their ears against it to hear the sound again.
(Bang!)
Drimi and her sailors pushed through the doors, hurried down the stairs, and stood near the table.
They finished their duties and looked forward to relaxing, only to be met with something more. Drimi stepped into the kitchen in her tall black heels. She hastily turned to the table and hollered.
"What's all this ruckus goin' on?! Are you two finished eating?"
One of her sailors urged Drimi.
"Captain Drimi… shhh."
After a few seconds of silence, the noises beneath the floor continued.
(Knock knock knock) "I know you people are up there… please, I'm holding on for my life under here! Please let me on the ship, you buffoons!"
The group gasped and jumped up. Phthonus remarked.
"Someone's under there…."
Drimi slapped the backside of his head.
"Of course! Hey, Jerry, grab that metal tool."
"Aiye, Captain."
The blonde sailor sprinted under the table, grabbed a sleek black metal object, and placed it in Drimi's hands.
She grasped it, bent over to the floor, knocked her fist on the surface, and hollered to make sure it wasn't a hallucination.
"Is anyone down there?!"
The muffled voice quickly replied.
"Yes! Help!"
Drimi sighed and drove the crowbar through the wooden planks. The splinters flew open, and the sailors backed away. Aletha rushed to Drimi, pulled her arm, and helped to peel the plank off.
Phthonus shook his head and raced to Aletha, pulling her arm as well. The plank slowly peeled closed, but still, they needed to apply more force.
"Asahi, help us!"
Asahi quickly pushed his chair away, dashed over to Phthonus, grabbed his arm tightly, and pulled with all his strength.
After two seconds of struggling to pry it open, Sally joined in, and finally, the plank flew to the wall, revealing a small, dark hole beneath the deck. Drimi collapsed onto the floor and dropped her crowbar, muttering while gasping for air.
"Buttons, you investigate. I… need to recover."
Aletha nodded, hurried to the hole, and cautiously slid her arm inside the darkness. Asahi watched in disbelief as her mood changed swiftly, and even Phthonus appeared shocked.
"Wasn't she JUST angry at you a minute ago?"
Nonetheless, Asahi, Sally, Phthonus, Drimi, and the entire crew watched as Aletha lay on the floor, stretching her arm into the dark hole and feeling along its edge, hoping to catch hold of something.
After a few moments, a cold touch stung Aletha's hand.
"EEP!"
Then she was swiftly dragged below to the dark hole, scraping the wood. Everyone on the ship fell in shock.
"Huh?!"
Without hesitation, Asahi raced to the dark hole and jumped into it. He slid his slim figure through the opening and fell to the bottom. He tilted his head upward and saw many faces staring down at him. Phthonus called out.
"Are you alright?"
Asahi brushed his shoulders.
"Y-Yeah, I'm fine. Nothing but a scratch is all."
"Okay, I will try to grab a ladder for you once you return!"
Asahi replied as he stepped forward into the darkness.
"Understood!"
. . .
The place felt so cramped to Asahi. There was barely any room to stand up fully. Hardly enough space to move left or right, either.
Crates slid beneath his feet, followed by more droplets falling on his face. He slid his hand against the wall. A rough, wooden-like texture touched him.
"So…. this is what's below Drimi's ship."
He continued along, hoping to find Aletha. As he advanced for a couple of minutes, Asahi heard loud noises coming from the darkness.
"Ha ha ha!"
Asahi reached out his hand and stepped forward; the water droplets seeped and clung to his attire. He dragged his feet across the surface and heard it creak.
"It's so… stingy here. Did Aletha go on this path or the other one? I never knew this ship was so big."
A loud, piercing scream echoed in front of him.
"Yup, I'm on the right path."
Asahi kicked his legs and jolted across the surface into the darkness. Adrenaline coursed through his veins, and he heard the screams gradually getting louder.
"Stop!"
Asahi bolted as fast as he could, breathing heavily and coughing. Finally, as the darkness faded away, his eyes widened in shock.
Lunar-shaped eyes, salt-pepper colored hair, and a pale face were laughing hysterically in front of a white-haired girl. His goose-like laughs honked over the walls.
"Hank hank hank! I can't believe you actually fell for that."
Aletha slowly turned her face toward Asahi, with tears falling down her cheek. He hastily raced to her and embraced Aletha, patting her back and asking gently.
"W-What happened?"
Then Aletha slowly stepped back from Asahi. He gasped. Her face was smudged and covered with a white substance, followed by cranberry-like colors scattering all over her chin.
Whipped cream was neatly smeared all over her cheek, and to top it off, a fine cherry was placed on the tip of Aletha's nose.
Asahi turned over to the boy and saw him flailing his legs on the floor, tears flying down his face. He asked, his fists clenched.
"Devlin, what have you done to her?"
He choked on his own spit and slammed his fist against the floor. Devlin rolled side to side like a dog.
"Ask that of your mother. I promised you that I wouldn't mess around, not your sister. Hahaha! You get what you get!"
Asahi shook his head, face-palmed, and managed a smile.
Devlin continued to cringe up in laughter, coughing and choking all at the same time.
Asahi stood behind Devlin and burst out laughing. He mumbled something as Aletha stood there, shocked.
"Heh… haha! I guess that was funny… Haha!"
Devlin joined in and cried. Asahi patted his back and closed his eyes, laughing uncontrollably.
"Ha ha ha ha!"
He continued to pat Devlin's back, with each one getting harder and harder. Devlin was too ignorant to understand what was going on and instead joined in with the laughter.
"Hahaha! That mother joke was good. Hahaha! I told you that it will be fun--
Asahi threw his fist as HARD as he possibly could on Devlin's stomach.
The fool flew up to the ceiling, banged his head, and wailed in agony. All force punctured inside him as he felt Asahi's knuckles tossing him like a ball.
"AHHH!"
To make matters worse, he flailed all around the place, slipping and tripping on his own whipped cream. He screamed and whined like a child.
"Ouchie! OUCHIE! OUCHIE! I have a BOO BOO!"
Asahi walked up to Aletha and stood in front of her to defend his sister. He sneered at Devlin with his dark gray eyes and roared furiously.
"NEVER put my mother's name into this!!"
Ignoring Devlin, Asahi sprinted to his sister.
He wiped the whipped cream off Aletha, chucked the cherry to Devlin's bruise on his head, and whispered to Aletha with a worried look on his face.
"Sis, A-Are you alright?"
She slowly nodded as she wiped the remaining bits of whipped cream from her face.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry that I was so rude."
Asahi shook his head and patted her shoulder.
"It's okay… I was rude too."
Devlin whined harder.
"AHHHHH! OUCHIE!"
Asahi clenched his fists, tilted back to Devlin, and asked with a fake smile on his face.
"Do you want your mother's toasters back?~ I have two of them right here!"
Devlin begged.
"NO! PLEASE NO!"
Just as Asahi could throw another punch to Devlin, as Aletha tried to stop her brother, a loud, deep feminine voice sounded from the darkness.
"Asahi, Aletha?!"
The wanderers turned behind and saw Drimi and the rest of the crew emerging from the darkness with a lantern held in one of their hands. They saw Devlin and lightly chuckled. Phthonus asked as he covered his smile with his scarf.
"What happened to him?"
Sally joined in.
"Did he get hurt?"
Drimi sighed and facepalmed, approaching Asahi and Aletha to inform them.
"Oh, thank goodness the two of you hardheads are alright. Asahi, right after you jumped into the hole, the crew and I went on the deck to grab the ladder. I checked on the steering wheel to see if we were going in the right direction. But oh my, I found something even better."
"What is it?!" Both the wanderers asked ecstatically.
Devlin slammed his fist against the ground.
"Please! It hurts! Anyone?!"
"Ignore him," Asahi mumbled. The Crew and the others agreed to let Devlin feel the pain and ignored him until further notice.
As Drimi turned her head away from the fool, she peered directly into the wanderers' gray eyes. She took a deep breath, placed her two hands on both Asahi and Aletha's shoulders, then whispered with an excited smile.
"The shores of Linuxinia."
Asahi and Aletha's eyes broadened with shock. They jumped up and down with excitement.
"REALLY?!"
She gave both of them an extraordinary gesture.
"Mhm… follow me."
Drimi led the wanderers and the crew back to the hole, climbing up the ladder, while also abandoning.
Devlin, who was hunched over and regretting his actions, sneakily followed them behind, climbing the ladder.
. . .
Asahi, Aletha, Drimi, Sally, Phthonus, and The Crew all gazed at the front of the ship to see what Drimi was talking about.
Drimi tapped her wrists and whispered as the crew and the others gasped in shock.
"I thought it would be a little more before we arrive, but oh well. Something might have propelled the ship without us even noticing."
The horizon gleamed brightly.
Aletha's heart thudded, nearly knocking her to the ground with shock. Adrenaline coursed, shooting jolts down her spine. The air warmed, thickening around her, as a wave of oxygen washed her flushed face.
. . .
"It looks so small from here…" Aletha mumbled.
The sails drove the ship onward.
"No… way. That's—
Beyond the sun-glazed sea, a rugged strip of land stretched from one misty horizon to the other.
Seagulls screeched overhead, salt spray tingling their nostrils, and sea mist brushed their skin.
The Wanderers turned and saw giant, light-green lily pads floating across turquoise waters, each exuding a faint glow that softly illuminated the scene.
Underneath, colorful vegetation swayed, releasing iridescent bubbles that popped with gentle chimes.
It looked like a vast, thriving pond.
Massive insects flew overhead like airplanes, soaring toward the lands above. Gargantuan sea creatures swam and leaped nearby, some serpentine, while others resembled squid.
The abundance of passive life astonished the wanderers.
Drimi whispered, their eyes widening in awe as they took in the breathtaking sight together.
"They won't hurt."
Aletha quickly interrupted, her gaze darting sharply ahead.
"Look!"
At last, the accurate view emerged.
Mist drifted away like stage curtains, revealing bright green mountains spiraling through the clouds—blue waterfalls cascaded from the heights, nourishing blossoming creatures.
Brown precipices clung to the water, colossal curved rocks dotted the land, green slopes brushed the shore, and geysers spouted freshwater onto lush vegetation.
Thick forests surrounded some land patches, while pointed mountains, cloud-piercing valleys, and towering formations surrounded others.
Deciduous trees, the size of skyscrapers, cast shadows over sunlit land, while rivers of all sizes were scattered across it.
But behind all the terrain—mountains, forests, geysers, and cliffs—lay a triangular-shaped peak.
Thousands of meters high in the sky.
It stretched not just to the clouds, but to the stars themselves.
Asahi and Aletha's jaws dropped as they gazed at the spectacular landscape.
"So… pretty!" Aletha called.
"Absolutely wonderful…" Asahi muttered with a grin.
At such a low elevation, they couldn't see the rest of the nation from the ship—barely even the city.
Echoes of their past journey still lingered in their minds—the sprawling forests of Pladtioa crossed under a scorching sun, and the kind faces they had to part with along the way.
But they knew this was none other than...
Drimi stepped in front of the wanderers, pushed her dark hair back with one hand, then lifted her other arm into the air. She climbed carefully onto the stern, steadying herself as the ship rocked.
As the crew and others cheered, jumping and screaming in excitement, Drimi faced them and announced in a loud, cheerful voice.
"WELCOME…"
She stomped her foot on the ground and turned to the ship.
This was the moment that marked the beginning of the wanderers' new adventure—a venture with love and prosperity.
THIS was the moment that ignited the true beginning of pure jubilant, cheerful, and wild chaos.
"...to Linuxinia!"