But as the ship sailed farther north, more and more clouds appeared on the horizon. At first, Alistair didn't think much of it. But as the wind picked up speed and the sailors grew visibly more nervous, he knew that they might be in trouble. Still, he hoped that perhaps they'd be able to reach Fenrora before the storm started.
However, as he found out, storms at sea started in what felt like the blink of an eye. Soon, the first heavy raindrops hit him, and the Captain began barking orders, commanding the crew to secure the sails, tie down everything that could be tied down, and prepare for the incoming storm.
Alistair didn't know anything about tying sails, but he knew he couldn't sit still. So instead, he helped to tie down and secure anything else that could be tied down. The most important thing was the cargo. This particular ship was carrying a shipment of goods from Sunglow to Fenrora. Anything loose could unbalance the ship.
"Heave to! Keep those sails secure! Plug any holes! Don't let anything roll loose!" The captain bellowed, steering the wheel and trying to keep the ship stable in the roiling waters.
Soon, everything turned into a blur. Water pelted him from the top as the storm increased in intensity, and seawater struck his sides, launching itself onto the deck. Sometimes he could just barely hold his footing; often, he resorted to
Sea and sky mixed while Alistair ran around with a bucket in hand, doing his best to throw the water seeping into the ship overboard. But the more water he threw out of the ship, the more it seemed to pour in. Then he heard a horrible crack, and he, along with many others, was thrown off their feet. One of the masts had broken, unable to withstand the onslaught.
"Cut it loose!" The captain commanded. Alistair wondered how he could even hear him over the roiling sea and the heavy downpour.
But others had heard him too. As quickly as they could, the sailors rushed to the broken mast, chopping into it mercilessly, trying to cut it loose. But the broken mast weighed the ship down heavily. Alistair saw how it was tilting into the sea, despite the captain's best efforts to keep it straight.
As the next wave hit the ship, he was thrown off his feet once again. His insides were churning—he was barely able to keep his stomach contents down. The smell of the wet wood, vomit, and sea water wasn't helping. He wished he could rest for just a second.
But then another wave hit, and he saw a man clinging to the slippery railing for their life. Another hit, and he would surely be swept into the sea. Alistair rushed towards him using
The damaged mast was finally cut loose—with a loud crack, it fell into the sea. The ship rocked violently, but Alistair pulled with all his might, managing to get the man back on deck. But in the process, he lost his own footing and tumbled towards the dark sea.
Dark waves swallowed him in a matter of seconds. He tried his best to swim to the surface, gasping for air, but the next wave swallowed him underwater.
No, no, no! I can't die! I can't leave Melina on her own. I want to build my life with her. I must return to her.
He pushed himself with the last of his strength, reaching the surface of the water one last time.
"MELINA!" He screamed out before the waves pulled him underneath again.
Melina was pouring warm glassberry jelly over a strawberry tart, eager to see whether a thin layer of the jelly would be enjoyable. Obviously, she wasn't going to wait until it cools naturally. Their chillbox was barely working anyway. So Melina tried to apply gentle coolness around the tart.
It was a bit tough trying to cool the tart. Her connection with Sienna was strong, so trying to manifest an opposing element was harder. She wondered whether she should try to reach out for Mango's mana. But then she dismissed the thought. It was too early.
The ice fox hadn't even manifested her icy powers, despite being able to do circles with mana. Pushing her was unlikely to result in anything good, so instead she mustered her concentration, trying to create cold on her own.
"Is it difficult?" Roxie asked, peering at Melina.
"I'm just not in tune with ice magic. It has always been my weakest element, so it's difficult for me to use it," Melina explained.
"Does every mage have strengths and weaknesses?" the girl asked.
"Yes. I imagine this task would be very simple for Leon, because ice is his element."
"Really? Even though you know way more about magic?"
"Yes. Affinities are very important," Melina nodded. "Although there are ways to influence one's affinity."
"How?"
"The most obvious is familiars. Sign a contract with one and you'll naturally get access to their affinity," she explained.
"But isn't Mango an ice fox? Her fur at least feels cold, and she looks like she is made from snow," Roxie noted. "Wouldn't that mean that you should be better with ice magic?"
"Mango hasn't awakened to her ice magic yet. So I can't access it either," Melina shrugged.
"Oh. That makes sense. I think," Roxie said, then her shoulders slumped. "I wish I could use magic. I wonder if I'll ever be able to. I'd love to know my affinity."
"Everyone has one. We can do a little experiment to find it out."
"Really?" Roxie asked.
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"Yeah. Just not today. We need to clean up the kitchen, and I need to gather a few things beforehand."
"Oh, I-I'm not in a rush or anything," Roxie shook her head, but Melina could see her eyes glowing with excitement. She was clearly interested in the topic of magic.
This made her wonder if Roxie could awaken to the System once she reaches adulthood. It would be great if she could, but even if she didn't, Roxie could still learn magic just like Leon. Whether she would succeed or not would depend completely on her grit and perseverance.
Melina gently touched the jelly on the tart. Somehow, she had managed to cool it down enough for it to harden.
[You've made
"Success," Melina cheered, eager to try the tart.
But suddenly her vision shifted. For a moment, she felt like she was being pulled under dark waves, water filling her lungs as she fought to stay afloat.
"MELINA," the scream echoed as clearly as if Alistair had been standing right next to her.
Melina fell to the ground from the shock, while Mango let out a pained howl and ran up to her, trembling in fear and confusion.
"Miss Melina?! Are you alright?!" Roxie crouched down by her.
Melina was gasping for air and had half the mind not to blur out all her emotions then and there. Instead, she got up to her feet, holding the trembling fox, which no doubt witnessed the same thing Melina did. It appeared that the familiar contract with Mango had forged a link between all three of them.
"I-I'm alright," Melina said, doing her best not to show her growing inner panic. "I-I just remembered something really important I had to do. Do you mind cleaning up the kitchen?"
"No, I don't mind," Roxie said, still looking concerned.
"Wonderful. Thank you. I-I'll go deal with the thing I remembered about…"
"What about the tart?" The girl asked.
"You can sample it without me. I'll try it later," Melina said hurriedly, rushing towards the exit.
She couldn't hold herself back anymore. She mentally summoned Sienna, ordering her to take her large form. Sienna came from the enclosure outside, already in her large form and confused about the turmoil of emotions within Melina.
"Something happened to Alistair. I felt it! Mango felt it!" Melina said to her wyrm in panicked gasp. "I saw him, no, felt him. He was drowning in the sea! I-I have to go to him!"
Sienna looked more confused than before, but allowed Melina to ride on her back. Together, the three of them rushed towards the port. A dark voice within Melina was whispering that there was nothing she could do for him now. But she wasn't going to just sit here and wait. She wouldn't lose him. Not again.
Alistair felt like he had been hit by a quake mammoth. His muscles ached, his lungs burned as if they had been scrubbed by a metallic brush from the inside, and his head was pounding as if a thousand tiny hammers were hitting him at the same time.
"Alistair," a soft, familiar voice called out to him.
He groaned, and for a moment it felt like something wet and slimy touched his forehead. But the feeling quickly faded, as did the surrounding cold. Instead, he felt a gentle hand caress his face.
"Alistair, are you alright?" A voice asked. Melina's voice.
Alistair opened his eyes, or at least tried to. They felt heavy, as if lead was trying to hold them shut. But he forced them open, trying to discern Melina's figure, but it took a while for his eyes to adjust. At the same time, he pulled his body up to sitting position while Melina helped him sit.
"Slowly, don't rush," she said in a gentle voice.
Alistair blinked his eyes several more times and finally was able to look around properly. They were located on some sort of beach, seagulls screeching around them, a distinct smell of seaweed permeating all around, and light rain falling from the sky. Melina was sitting right next to him, her clothes soaking wet and covered in sand.
"M-Melina? How are you here?" He stared at her in disbelief.
"You called for me," she said, her expression twisted in pain as tears welled in her eyes. "I thought you would drown."
She threw her arms around him, her hands cold. Alistair pulled her close, hoping to return some of the warmth to her. To think that she had somehow heard his scream from across the sea. He felt embarrassed that once again he had to be saved by her. No doubt she had to use her teleportation to get to him so fast and then more magic to get them out of the storm.
"I-I'm sorry. I didn't wish to scare you like that," he said.
"Silly, don't apologize for that. I'm just glad you are safe," Melina said, pulling back.
He felt that her hands were still cold. Even her lips looked pale, nearly blue, and her usually rosy cheeks had lost all their color.
"You must have been in the water for quite a long time. Let's find some place to warm up," Alistair said, looking around the unfamiliar place. "Only… where are we?"
"I don't know," she said. "I just dragged us to the closest shore. But I did see a house nearby. Perhaps we could go there."
"I suppose it's as good a place as any," Alistair said, slowly getting up to his feet. His head spun a bit as he stood, and he still felt very weak. But they couldn't just remain on the beach. Despite the warm weather, their clothes were wet. Unless they changed out of them, they'd likely get sick.
He'd never forgive himself if he got Melina sick. She was so busy with the bakery at the moment. The girl would probably force herself to work through the illness, and he doubted he'd be able to stop her this time.
Melina also got up, but stumbled a bit. He had to reach out and catch her so she wouldn't fall.
"Are you alright? Did you use too much mana?" He asked. "You feel so cold."
"I might have pushed myself a little," she said with a strained smile.
"Come, let's get you someplace warm and dry," Alistair said, holding onto her hand.
Together, they slowly made their way to a small house near the beach. It looked abandoned, but Alistair hoped they could at least get dry there. He knocked on the door—it barely held at the hinges—and waited for an answer. But none came.
"I think it's abandoned," Melina said.
"Then I suppose nobody would mind if we barged in," he said, pulling the handle. The door opened without any resistance, and they went inside.
Everything was covered with a thick layer of dust—the place had been abandoned for a long time. There was a small wooden bed in the corner and a small hearth in the other, with a table next to it. A home for a small and poor family.
"Can you get the fire going in the hearth?" Alistair asked, seeing a bit of firewood near the hearth. He tossed the logs in, but they all felt damp. Would they even burn?
"M-Me?" Melina asked nervously.
He found it strange, but then he realized that she must have used up all her mana to save him. Pushing her any further could be dangerous, even for something as simple as sparking a flame.
"Sorry, you must be exhausted. I'll try to get it going myself," he said with a smile.
"You must be tired too. We don't need fire. The weather is quite warm," she consoled him, taking a look at the logs. "Besides, I don't think these will burn."
Alistair looked at the logs again and sighed. "You're right."
"Let's worry about that stuff tomorrow. You must be tired. There's a bed. We can rest for today," she said, sitting down in the bed.
"Yes, you're right," Alistair nodded, feeling his eyelids grow heavy.
"Come here," she said, shaking the dust out of the old blanket.
For a moment, he felt disgusted, sleeping in a place like that. But he was tired, and Melina was already lying down in the bed. He could think about better accommodations tomorrow.
For the time being, he crawled into the bed next to her. She covered them both with a damp blanket and cuddled close to him. Their clothes were still wet. He felt like he should object. That they should remove their wet clothing at least. But before he could muster the energy, he fell asleep, feeling wet and cold.