Life aboard the ship slipped back into its familiar, monotonous rhythm. Only their encounter with the sunken galley had briefly disturbed its steady current.
The Violet set her course for Nightingale and held to it.
The children did not understand what exactly had changed after the cerberus pup joined them and was given the name Lucky. Yet the very next day, the entire crew treated them with even greater warmth.
Lucky was not the most sociable dog. Perhaps that trait had taken root on the sunken galley, where the people had not been to his liking. But aboard the Violet, the pup's disposition changed with remarkable speed.
Grace had clearly managed to win his heart. He played with the girl eagerly, and those games brought her endless delight. In the endless sameness of the sea, what could be better than a new companion?
Grace treated Lucky well and never tormented him. But turning the dog into a lively steed—wasn't that tempting? Fortunately, as the pup grew, he could take on that role. And so their journey gained yet another source of amusement.
Yet her fascination with the dog did nothing to cool her passion for card games. Other sailors now often joined her and the cook at their rounds. They lost constantly, but laughed without a care and praised her talent.
After Sinbad settled matters with Catherine, he informed the crew that from that day forward they were sworn brother and sister. He immediately made it clear that any disrespect toward her or the children would be taken as a personal insult.
The sudden change surprised the sailors, but the captain's word was law to them. From then on, they treated the twins better than their own kin.
Grey had befriended the narrow-eyed pilot from the Empire of the Six Pillars. No one aboard the ship knew his real name except Sinbad himself. But he had a nickname—Eagle Eye—earned for his exceptional vision and sharp powers of observation.
Eagle Eye looked to be around fifty. Lean rather than thin. Not exactly short, yet somehow compact, with an enormous, unruly head. At first glance, one might have taken him for a scholar—harmless, yet enigmatic.
Surprisingly, this "scholar" proved quite clumsy in everyday matters. It would be unfair to call him a burden, yet he somehow managed to inconvenience everyone around him, while at the same time feeling constrained by his own awkwardness.
Still, he was undemanding, compliant, easygoing, indifferent to heat and cold. Strange, but kind, and always willing to help others if he was capable of doing so. Everyone liked him despite his flaws—or perhaps precisely because of them.
At the moment, Grey was speaking with him in one of the cabins.
Catherine now trusted Sinbad and his men enough to allow the children to move freely among the sailors. Of course, that did not mean she had stopped watching over them. Her keen senses remained close at hand, even when she herself was in another part of the ship.
"Eagle Eye, why are you always fussing over those disgusting insects? Is there really anything about them worth your attention?" the boy asked, glancing around the pilot's cabin.
The cabin had originally been spacious. Now, however, it felt cramped, for terrariums stood everywhere, each containing a different species of insect: ants, scorpions, centipedes, spiders. One could find all manner of small yet dangerous creatures here.
Eagle Eye did not delay his reply. His voice was even, though faintly creaking.
"Alex, you are mistaken. Even the weakest-looking creature deserves attention. There is something to learn from each of them. Look at the ants. What would you say about them?"
Grey hesitated before answering. He was confused, unsure what the pilot wished to hear. "They are small and weak. Right now they are searching for food, unaware that the time when you feed them has not yet come."
"Ha-ha-ha… That is the voice of someone who has never truly watched them. Look closer—ants are social insects. They are constantly working, interacting, helping one another, much like humans.
Once, there was only a queen and a dozen workers in this terrarium. Now there are nearly a thousand.
See how they carve new tunnels here. Here they store the eggs. New workers will soon emerge from there. And here—that is the queen's chamber. Does it remind you of nothing?"
The boy thoughtfully rubbed his chin. "It looks like a small kingdom… But what is so interesting about that?"
"Exactly—a small kingdom!" the pilot exclaimed enthusiastically, as though he had just uncovered a universal truth. "We can watch it grow, watch it become more powerful—is that not fascinating?"
"But they are still weak and useless."
"Weak only in comparison to us. To them, we are higher beings. As gods are to us. Just as ants cannot comprehend the greatness of man, man cannot comprehend the greatness of a god. But here is what is interesting: if a colony becomes sufficiently developed, it can threaten such 'higher beings' as you or I.
Think about it. If you learn from them—order, persistence, the ability to act as one—then one day you may become someone even the gods would fear," Eagle Eye explained, striving to make the boy understand.
Grey froze as if struck by lightning.
The man could not have imagined what mark those words would leave upon the boy's unformed mind. In truth, he had meant nothing so grand. He had only wanted Grey not to underestimate these tiny life forms—perhaps even to share his fascination with them.
But once the words reached Grey's ears, they took on a different meaning. He understood them in a wholly literal way.
His thoughts wandered:
[They can be feared by higher beings… Gods… Feared…
If even an ant colony can threaten higher beings like us… then gods can be made to fear as well. If one understands how they do it. If one becomes strong not in body, but… in something else.
So what if my core is broken? Is there truly a difference in strength between a soldier ant and a worker ant? All of them are pitifully weak, yet there are many of them—and they manage. Then why can't I? Why must I simply… be weak?
I don't want Mother and my sister to suffer because of me. I want no one to dare hurt them. I want to become strong. Strong enough that even the gods would not be able to touch them…]
Unaware of the boy's past, Eagle Eye could not have imagined the effect his lesson would have. He believed the child had been born without a magical core and merely wished to encourage him—to show that even the weak could become strong through effort and careful observation of the world.
He could not have foreseen that he was planting a rebellious seed in that small head.
No ordinary person would ever entertain such a thought. Even a genius like Catherine, with all her domineering pride, would not dare dream of vengeance against the gods.
For heaven's sake, they were gods! They had existed since the dawn of history!
What vengeance could there possibly be?..
And yet now? If you can imagine yourself posing a threat to a higher being, does it remain higher in your mind?
That day, an almost imperceptible shift occurred in Grey's thinking—so subtle that even he did not notice it. He said nothing aloud and simply returned to the conversation as though nothing had changed.
"You're right, it really is interesting. May I watch them with you?"
"Of course," the pilot replied, pleased that he had managed to draw the boy into his peculiar hobby.
Meanwhile, Catherine stood upon the bridge, gazing thoughtfully at the smooth surface of the ocean.
"What an interesting thought," she whispered to herself.
She did not move, continuing to stare toward the distant horizon. Her senses enveloped the entire Violet, keeping watch over the children, yet her mind drifted elsewhere. No one could have said with certainty what occupied her thoughts.
In such surroundings, days gave way to night. Weeks passed. The ocean stretched on like an endless watery desert. Not a single vessel ventured into these latitudes. No sea monsters pursued them. Everything was quiet and unchanging.
The children enjoyed watching how seamlessly the crew worked together while handling the ship. It made them feel as though they were living inside one of the stories they had heard. But when the wind blew steadily in one direction and the sails were already set, there was little to be done aboard.
"How boring! Water, water, and nothing but water! When will this ever end?!" Grace flung up her hands in frustration, unable to find another way to express her boredom.
For someone as lively and spirited as she was, the unchanging scenery felt like a torture chamber. The same endless view, no diversions. After months of travel, everything had begun to grate on her.
Training felt monotonous, card games had grown stale. Grace felt as though she were slowly losing her mind. The boredom made her want to climb the walls.
Her complaints did not go unheard. Sinbad knew the little girl would not leave him in peace until he found a way to entertain her.
"Little one, it is precisely because the sea is so barren that it is especially alluring."
Grace shot him a look of pure disbelief, as if she could not fathom how any sane person could utter such nonsense. The sea was the same everywhere. She did not even know how long they had been sailing, and all they had seen was a single sunken vessel. How could that possibly be alluring?
Yet she remained silent, waiting for him to continue.
Sinbad smirked. "It looks the same to you, but to me it hides endless mysteries.
For example, do you see that red speck in the distance? That is a school of fish. I will wager my breakfast that some monster will swallow it whole before long. And there, the waves are rocking a splinter of wood, and you will never know what misfortune is tied to that fragment.
An endless expanse offers endless nourishment for the imagination. That elusive changefulness captivates those who can see and anticipate it. Those with a rich imagination."
Grace laughed as though she had just heard something amusing. "Captain Uncle, I had no idea you were a poet. Hahaha."
Even so, her entire attention fixed upon the tiny red speck. She waited without blinking. Sinbad had made a bold claim, and she had no intention of letting him off the hook.
The waves rolled steadily, the sun shimmered across the water, and it seemed as though nothing was happening. But for her, the waiting itself was already thrilling.
And indeed, before long the smooth surface of the sea quivered.
A shadow rose from the depths—vast and heavy. A fish the size of a boat, resembling some hybrid of whale and shark, burst from the water. It opened a mouth as wide as a doorway and, in a single instant, swallowed the entire speck.
In the next moment, it sank back into the depths, as though it had never existed at all.
"WHOA!!!" Grace shrieked in shock, darting behind Sinbad as if the fish might swallow her next. "What was that?!"
"A Deep-Sea Whalewolf…" Sinbad leaned lazily against the railing and casually ruffled his hair.
His posture appeared relaxed, but inside he was shouting with triumph when his prediction came true. It was no easy task to impress the little demoness. He immediately decided to strike while the iron was hot.
Lowering his voice as though sharing a secret, Sinbad continued, "They call it the Wolf Without a Pack. It always swims alone, yet it needs a herd to satisfy its hunger. The flesh of that monster is incredibly dense, but highly nourishing. They say a single piece is enough to keep a soldier from feeling hunger for an entire week."
Grace's eyes widened. "Captain Uncle… why don't such monsters attack us?"
"Why would they?" Sinbad snorted.
The girl blinked, not expecting such a foolish question from the captain. "Don't sea monsters hunt humans in all the legends?"
"Heh-heh, don't believe everything you hear!" Sinbad chuckled. "In books, yes. Monsters hunt people. In reality, they think more simply. They want food. Tasty. Filling. Now look around."
He knocked his knuckles against the wooden hull. "Would you eat wood?"
"Ew, no. It's too salty."
Sinbad stared at her blankly, unable to believe she had actually tasted his beloved ship…
He promptly decided to ignore that and continue.
"Exactly. Most monsters would not even glance at a ship. Unless there is something aboard that smells… very delicious. Then we might have some lively adventures."
A dangerous gleam flared in Grace's eyes.
"Let's find something delicious! Let's lure a monster and fight it!" she said as though suggesting an ordinary game.
At her unhealthy enthusiasm, Sinbad clutched his head. He simply could not comprehend what went on inside that little mind of hers. What guided her? Why did every one of her ideas inevitably involve risking the sinking of his Violet? Had he somehow offended her?
Pulling himself together, he finally replied, "Only if your mother permits it."
Grace immediately drooped.
Though she was a mischievous child, she was not foolish. Mother would certainly forbid it; she would not even listen. Grace herself understood how absurd the idea was, but she had merely been testing her luck, hoping to provoke the captain into an adventure.
"How much longer do we have to sail?" she asked, trying to sound indifferent.
"About two months. Perhaps two and a half. It all depends on the wind."
==============
Dear readers, I have to inform you that this work was rejected when applying for a contract without the possibility of revision. Therefore, I was forced to create a second version of the book, where I will publish the latest updates.
I will not give up on this version, but some chapters will be posted a little later than in the main one.
The book is called "The Mad Immortal"
https://www.webnovel.com/book/the-mad-immortal_34969618200258905###
Many thanks for your support, active comments and reviews.
This will help more readers to get acquainted with my book, which means my chances of getting a contract will increase and you will receive content more often. (The author also needs to eat and provide for his family)