"I'm getting better at this," Henry murmured to himself, as he wiped off the sweat that had accumulated on his forehead.
Another day passed and during that time, Henry wasted no time mastering the new Water Magic spell, which he aptly named Water Magic:Pull & Push.
Basically, its function is to push and pull the ocean waves, whether at the same time or just one of the two.
Casting this spell exactly ten times in a single day, has pushed his mind and body past its limits. His mental energy has increased and while not visibly measurable, Henry can feel it.
The same can be said of his stamina. Surprisingly, Henry felt like overworking himself like this earns him more than his daily exercises.
And now, he just finished another session of Pushing and Pulling the ocean water.
"We're near the Pirate's Paradise, Lord Henry! It's within sight already!" The old sailor, whom he now knew as Frank, informed him from the upper deck.
Henry nodded his head seriously. He's been waiting for this. During the three to four days of non-stop sailing, the entire ocean has experienced countless phenomena.
Large whirlpools. Extreme rising of tide levels. Seaquakes, and Henry even caught a glimpse of a huge creature's shadowy figure under the ocean, he's not sure if he's just seeing things but that doubt soon disappeared after seeing it one more time this early in the morning.
King Triton is making his moves. No doubt about it. Whatever the man is doing, the entire mankind's safety depends on it. And before things could get worse, he must find Ariel safe and sound first.
'Where are you now, Ariel?' Henry clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.
———
—{Princess Ariel}—
The sudden loud sound of banging and chatter outside jolted me awake. I've been in this god forsaken for the past few days, I think.
Looking down at the dead fish on the ground beside me, I couldn't help but shake in anger at their audacity to kill this poor creature in the name of feeding me.
Me? Eating a lovely creature? I gritted my teeth every time I was graced by the sight of it.
"I'm sorry little one." I sobbed, caressing the fish's scales, "For what they did to you…"
Before I knew it, the cover draped over my cage was pulled off, revealing the crowd of pirates around me, in the middle among them was he, who calls himself Regor.
"It's time for you to meet our client, lil lass." His crooked grin was plastered on his face as he made a gesture to the others that prompted them to lift my cage.
Client? What does he mean by that? What does the word client even mean?
———
Liam crossed his arms as the wind slapped against his face while standing near the ship's bow.
After being welcomed by the princess of Arendelle and informed of everything that had been happening during Henry's stay in the Kingdom, Liam couldn't help but sigh in defeat.
'If only I had known sooner that he would be washed up on the shore of Arendelle. How does one even survive that far?' This was the question that had been plaguing his mind. Unfortunately, he can't have the answers for now.
And just when the relief of finding Prince Henry settled in, he was gone again, saving someone from the hands of a pirate named Regor.
Liam has dealt with many pirates in his entire life and he knows where those kinds of people gather up to do either their bidding or simply to hide to let the heat die down once they commit something atrocious and huge.
"Pirate's Paradise…" Liam murmured to himself, it'll take almost a week or less to arrive at the island and he can't imagine how Henry will fend against an island filled with hundreds to thousands of pirates.
Not to mention, the backings behind Pirate's Paradise.
Have you ever wondered why such an island filled to the brim with atrocious people still exists today? Why does no Kingdom assembles an army to take care of the pirates?
Because of the pirates' supposed clients. Nobles, royalties and even Kings themselves would commission these pirates to do their dirty work.
Assassinating someone in the middle of the sea, stealing from a merchant's ship, capturing someone, and many other wicked acts that cannot become public.
Through their constant support and the pirates' undeniable usefulness, the Pirate's Paradise stands as a haven for pirates.
"Please be safe, Henry…" Liam murmured to himself and heard footsteps behind him.
Turning to look over, he sighed as Elsa's hooded figure stepped forward and stared at the distant sea.
Yesterday before leaving, the princess secretly made contact with him, asking him to bring her along to meet with Henry.
Initially, he wanted to refuse but how exactly can you refuse a princess? In the end, he could only silently pray in his mind hoping that meeting with Prince Henry would keep any trouble of kidnapping a princess from Arendelle off his back.
"He will be, ser Liam. Trust in him." Elsa answered with a confident tone.
For someone who had just been with Henry for a few weeks, her confidence seems a bit unusual.
But still understandable, if what Liam heard from Elsa regarding Henry's feats, then there's no doubt that Henry is capable enough to be a force to be reckoned with.
'If his brothers were to know about this. I can only wonder what their reactions will be…' Liam loudly chuckled as he nodded his head at Princess Elsa's words, agreeing with her.
———
Under the sea, deep within the very depths of the ocean stood the most elegant-looking structures.
This is Atlantis and the famous Kingdom under the sea. However, its beauty couldn't be compared to before as the current events tracing back from a few days earlier have put the entire Kingdom in a state of alert.
The entire oceans were scoured. Countless marine creatures were forced out of their hiding to find their lost princess.
"Find anything?" Sitting atop his throne, a disheveled King Triton questioned the hulking merman in front of him, the grip over his trident tight enough to make his knuckles white.
"Nothing, your Majesty. But we've picked up clues by eavesdropping on a few ships. A human pirate that goes by the name Regor might have taken her. He was the only pirate around the area during the time of her disappearance and his reputation includes…" The merman turned hesitant for a brief moment before continuing, "Rumors about killing a mermaid back in the day…"
At the end of his words, King Triton clenched his fists. Killing a mermaid is unheard of. The last time a mermaid was killed…it was his wife.
'Could this Regor be…' Just the thought of it made King Triton's blood boil in rage. The one who killed his wife, has kidnapped his daughter.
The man whom he swore to kill a few years back but stopped when his father said so, has now come back and taken his daughter.
"Kill him at all costs. If you find him and bring him back in front of me alive, that'll be much better." King Triton doesn't care anymore.
If his father dares to stop him again, then so be it. He can face all sorts of punishment as long as he can save her daughter and pummel his fist on that pirate's face first.
He will let this world understand what his wrath means. A wrath that not even the gods themselves would be able to stop.
———
"We're finally here." Henry watched as the Pirate's Paradise island got closer and closer to his sight. The entire island seemed to consist of trees, grasses, and mountains. The only noticeable thing about it is a small town composed of several structures surrounded by a big stony wall.
The said structures can be said to be lacking in finesse and elegance, almost as if an inexperienced individual took it upon himself to make the blueprints.
Not one bit of symmetry can be found on the structures, looking as if they were crudely built by a bunch of children playing with popsicle sticks and glue.
As they arrived at the port, they weren't greeted by anyone. All the other pirate ships can come and go on the island whenever they want.
There's no sense of security or anything like that on this island.
Why would it be? When the entire island is composed of ruthless pirates and vicious people. Anyone who dares to cause trouble here would be killed in an instant, you're lucky if you just find yourself getting banned.
Pirates may like to cause chaos but when things start to get hectic, this island is their only safe haven and god knows how much they'd risk to protect it.
As soon as Henry deboarded along with a few of his crews, while letting the rest stay on the ship and guard—they instantly attracted all sorts of eyes.
The greedy. The curious. The nonchalant and even the crazy ones.
While the people who decided to follow him shuddered at the stares, Henry remained calm. Only he knows that he alone can burn the entire paradise into smithereens if given the chance.
Of course, as long as there aren't any mages like him.
But as of now. He'll refrain from making a move. At least until he secures Ariel's safety.
And so, he approached one of the nearest pirates, a man with a balding head and missing teeth. Henry quickly flashed two gold coins before asking, "Is Regor around here?"
The pirate, instantly struck by the glow of gold coins, immediately nodded his head, "He just 'rived this mornin! 'Erd he's staying at the Kraken's Inn!" Without saying more, the pirate snatched the two gold coins before making a run for it, giggling like a child on the way.
Of course, Henry allowed it to be snatched. He already got the information and in any case, the man is lying to him. Those very same gold coins would find themselves shoved into his eye sockets.
"Kraken's Inn. What an ominous name…" He murmured to himself.
Slowly, they made their way to the said inn, encountering several pirates on the way. Some looked deadly while others looked like they were forced into piracy.
However, what made Henry's blood turn cold was the several cages filled with various creatures. Ranging from women, animals, and even a gorilla. What made it even worse for Henry was his ability to understand animals.
"Help us!"
"Where am I?"
"It hurts. Why does it hurt so much?"
"Where's mama? Papa?"
"My time has come, I see."
From little wolf pups to the oldest turtle, all were either crying out for help or had accepted their inevitable fate.
By the time, they arrived at the so-called Kraken's Inn—after asking around, Henry had decided in his mind.
'For now, my priority is Ariel. Once she's back on the sea safe and sound, I'd see to it to bury this entire place off the face of the earth.' With gritted teeth, Henry slammed open the inn's doors.
Bang!
The moment his palm connected with the door, a loud banging sound echoed and everyone's eyes were on him.
With a brief sweep over the crowd of pirates, he asked coldly, "Where's Regor?" A few immediately pointed upwards, indicating for the inn's higher floors.
———
"It's nice to meet you, Lady Siren." Sitting in front of each other were two distinct individuals. The left side sat the familiar Regor and his crooked smile. On the other hand is a pale-skinned woman with sharp nails, and head to toe covered in a dark robe, showing only a part of her face.
There's no doubt about it that the woman is beautiful. Even just by hearing her voice, Regor could feel himself being rejuvenated, especially on the lower part of his body.
The hooded woman nodded her head and replied, "Good. Then she'll be staying here in the meantime. Keep an eye on her and make sure she's unharmed." With that, Siren was about to stand when all of a sudden, three of Regor's men flanked her on the sides.
The woman's gaze turned to Regor with sheer coldness, "What is the meaning of this? Hmm?"
Regor allowed himself to relax, grabbing his crotch and replying with a lust-filled voice, "My men and I have been on the sea for too long. Surely, our client would have her means to alleviate that."
Snickers and giggles were coming from the pirates around her.
"A single night, Missy. I promise this won't hurt much."
"Coming here alone and with no guards? Must've been a mistake…"
Hearing and seeing all this, instead of panicking, there was a curve on Siren's lips as she muttered to herself after a lick on her supple lips which also revealed her sharp razor-like teeth, "I guess you all have already outlived your usefulness then. Lady Ursula surely wouldn't mind…"