Of Lobsters and Changes

TILLY blinked in surprise when she saw Blake when she went out of her room.

[Ah, I almost forgot.]

She remembered that Kiho left the vice-captain to her as her personal knight.

It was actually a big deal because everyone in the empire knew that Blake would only follow Kiho's orders. But knowing his stubborn personality, she was surprised that the vice-captain accepted that kind of job.

"I'm Blake," he said to her. "Vice Captain of the Black Serpent Knights."

Isabella (who was standing beside her), glared at Blake. It was funny how the tiny girl tried to intimidate a huge guy like the vice captain…

… and it actually worked.

"Lady Prescott," Blake added politely. "Good morning."

Isabella looked quite satisfied.

Tilly laughed softly at the exchange.

She remembered that Blake, no matter how intimidating he looked, was actually afraid of ladies who had the courage to call him out or talk back to him. So the key to taming the vice captain was to simply hold your ground and resist his intimidation.

[Isabella did a good job, huh?]

"Good morning, Sir Blake," Tilly greeted him with a smile. "Would you like to accompany me to the pavilion?" She motioned for the pot that Isabella was holding. It contained the little fishes that she would feed her "children" in the pond. "It's time for my pets to eat."

"That's literally my job, Lady Prescott," Blake said. "I'll follow you anywhere, just like what Captain Kiho instructed me to do."

"Very well," she said, then she started to walk first.

Isabella and Blake followed a few steps behind her.

She greeted and smiled back at every servant that she saw while walking from the mansion to the garden leading to the pond.

"Sir Blake, did Kiho bring Damian with him?" Tilly asked Blake to make a small talk. "I forgot to ask the captain about the number of knights he'd be bringing with him."

"It's not a big mission so the captain only brought Damian and another knight called Whitton," the knight said. "Since they'd be using the portal in the royal palace, Captain Kiho was advised to bring a small company."

That made her feel relieved.

Kiho was the strongest captain in the empire, no doubt about it. But she didn't want him to overestimate himself and get hurt. Especially not when he was only going to a dangerous island to get her a fine engagement ring.

[Yeah, I figured him out when he not-so-discreetly measured my ring size.]

Last night, she asked her father about Pillas Islands since she hadn't been there even in her previous life. She knew that the duke had already been in the island for his trading business so she asked him to tell her about his time there.

According to her father, the Pillas Islands was known for its pearls and tropical fruits.

As soon as she heard about the pearls, she realized that Kiho may have decided to get her a pearl for her engagement ring. That made her worry because she also heard from her father that the finest pearls in the island could only be found in the nest of gigantic sea monsters.

She wasn't sure if Kiho really had a mission in the Pillas Islands or his sole purpose was to get her a pearl. But she was certain about one thing: the captain would definitely aim to get the finest pearl in the island even if it was in the heart of the sea monsters' lair.

[Well, it's too early to say that Kiho is in love with me. But I can tell that he's fond of me. And if he's still the same person as he was in my previous life, then he'd definitely give me all the best things in the world.]

Just like how he showered Lucina Morganna with love in the past…

She gently smacked her cheeks with her hands. She made sure to do it as lightly as possible but it still made a sound.

Isabella and Blake seemed to have heard it because they asked immediately if she was okay.

"I'm fine," she assured them while climbing up the stairs to the pavilion. Then, she walked towards the banister and looked over the colorful koi fishes in the pond. When she saw her ��pets," she remembered the time Kiho talked to them. That memory instantly put her in a good mood. "Hello, my dear children. For today, your mother is in charge of feeding you. I know that you miss your father but you have to understand. He's working hard for our family. Shower him with love once he comes home, okay?"

Tilly turned to Isabella to ask her for the vessel. But she stopped when she realized that the maid and Blake were looking at her strangely. Ah, they were probably shocked to see her talking to the fishes like they were real children.

She couldn't help but smile at their reaction.

[Kiho's adorable quirk has rubbed off on me, huh?]

"I'm fine," Tilly reassured Isabella and Blake with a soft laugh. Then, she turned to the koi fishes in the pond and wished that she didn't look as sad as she felt. "I wonder if the captain has reached the island by now."

***

"CAPTAIN!"

Kiho was having coffee in the ship's kitchen while trying to decide if he wanted to kick Damian out of the vessel or send him back to the Royal Capital. But one thing was for sure.

[I regret bringing him with me.]

But then again, he couldn't leave the young knight at the Prescott Estate. It wasn't that he no longer trusted Damian. He just wanted Tilly to have the knight in his troop to be her bodyguard.

And Blake was the most suited for the job.

"Captain, what should we do?" Damian asked when he entered the kitchen, face pale with fear. "The lobsters here are so huge and so wild. They're trying to climb the ship!"

Kiho's ears perked up. "Oh."

He immediately stood up and walked fast to get to the ship's deck.

He heard that the sea creatures in the Great Sea of the East were very different from ordinary "sea food." If there were "wild lobsters" now, then they must have reached far enough from the coast and closer to the "nest." Which also meant that they were about to meet the infamous gigantic sea monsters in the area.

[Well, I also came here to slay them anyway.]

Emperor Aku "ordered" him to slay the sea monsters that had apparently left the nest and started to pass through the barrier that the folks of Pillas had put to keep the coastline safe.

The emperor had to give him a mission for him to gain the permission to cross the Great Sea of the East. Even if Pillas Islands was a part of the empire's territory, they still had to respect the island's rights to the sea.

[If I succeed to slay the sea monsters that threaten the island's coast, the ruler of Pillas said I'm free to take home any pearl or sea life that would pique my interest.]

"Captain, look at those lobsters!" Whitton said as soon as he got on the deck. The knight was holding his sword while facing three giant lobsters. "They managed to climb up here by using their claws!"

Kiho was amazed when he saw the biggest lobsters he had ever seen. They were probably ten to twelve kilograms each. "Catch them alive," he said while pulling out his sword in the holster attached to his hip. "Tilly would love to eat lobsters that huge."

***

TILLY let out a sigh while looking outside the window of the carriage.

Right now, she was on her way to the royal palace to have an afternoon tea with Her Royal Highness Princess Nia Moonchester. The princess sent her an invitation a few days ago. There was no way she could turn down a request from a member of the royal family so here she was now, suffering in silence.

It wasn't like she could suddenly change her attitude towards the princess.

[Father and our servants are pleased by my good relationship with Her Royal Highness.]

As a duke's daughter, she belonged to same social circle as Princess Nia. Even in her previous life, she was always invited by the princess in every party, banquet, or gathering that she had organized.

And as far as she remembered, they were good friends.

Not until she betrayed the princess.

Remembering that today was the day she was supposed to "discover" Princess Nia's "royal secret" was enough to dampen her mood.

She let out another sigh.

"I hate to ask but the captain strictly told me to prioritize your well-being, Lady Prescott," Blake said. The knight was sitting across from her. He was inside the carriage because she insisted. "If something is bothering you, I can take care of it, my lady."

"I'm just tired, Sir Blake," Tilly lied because she couldn't tell him the truth. "The maids made me take a bath twice."

That was true.

Since she was going to the royal palace to meet the princess, her maids paid extra attention to her bath. They chose the newest dress and the fanciest jewelries in her collection. They also decorated her hair carefully. Even her makeup looked prettier than usual.

[I'm pretty confident with my looks but once I'm next to Princess Nia, I would surely look like a couch potato.]

"Ah, I see," Blake said in an obviously uninterested manner. "If you need something, don't hesitate to tell me, Lady Prescott."

She just smiled at the knight, then looked outside the window again.

Based on the road she was seeing, she could tell that they were about to enter the premise of the royal palace. She remembered that in her past life, she came a little earlier than her scheduled meeting with the princess. Because of that, she witnessed something that she shouldn't have…

[Wait. I discovered the princess' secret because I was early. But what if I came late? That would be rude of me but if it could change the event that's supposed to happen today, then it's worth the risk. Coming on time is also an option but I want to arrive when "that" incident is already over.]

She immediately turned to Blake who looked like he was monitoring her every move. "Sir Blake, can you help me get into a little "accident?""

Blake looked surprised by her request. "Lady Prescott, I'll do anything but that." He motioned his hand as if it was a knife slashing his neck. "Captain Kiho will kill me if you get hurt in any way under my protection."

"Trust me, Sir Blake," Tilly said sweetly in hopes of charming the vice captain to do what she had in mind. "I have a brilliant plan."

***

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