The Stolen Amulet

10 | A Narrowly Averted Disaster

Fourth time. This was the fourth time Sarah had fallen off the bed due to the ship's continual tilt. The sun had already risen when she slumped for the fourth time. Her body landed on the wooden floor with a loud thump. Some strands of her dark brown hair entwined with the other strands like a nest formed by a bird out of little twigs. Sarah groaned in pain and chose to lie on the floor rather than get up and return to bed, as she thought that she would fall off again. But as she closes her eyes, the door bursts open. Sarah squints her eyes in the harsh sunlight, catching a glimpse of a tall figure standing by the door.

"Rise and shine," said Euros in a singing voice. "I prepared breakfast. Now make haste, unless you want me to throw yours if you're not out of this room within a minute."

Sarah sighs in irritation when Euros shuts the door on her once more. She rose up from the floor, fixed her hair, tidied her dress, and reached for the door, wasting no time or food. Her eyes peered again because of the glaring light, but she was capable of dealing with it.

"You slept like an infant there," Euros remarked. Sarah turned to her right and spotted the man by the stairs, holding a milk biscuit. He took a mouthful and pointed to the stairs. "Hurry up. The tea is about to get cold."

Sarah followed him from behind, using the railings for support as she slowly walked up the steps. Once on the higher ground, Euros approached her with a cup of tea, which Sarah graciously took. The airship slowly began to tilt once more, just as Sarah was about to take a sip. Euros rushed to the helm and managed to maintain the balance of the flying ship. Sarah's dress was stained wet because of the hot drink, but she wasn't able to feel the stinging pain of the tea because only a small amount was splattered on her. It'll just dry up, she thought.

Euros breathed a sigh of relief before adjusting his clothes and turning to Sarah. "In roughly two hours, we'll be arriving in a small town called Hillfar. In relation to its name, you already have an idea on where it is. I know how to repair the airship myself, but after seeing how much damage had been done, I knew I couldn't do it alone because it would take many days. So now, I have to turn to those who I know from that town to help me finish the job in no time. They are exceptionally skilled and rather underappreciated."

Euros was about to walk away again when he suddenly remembered something. "I had almost forgotten, Ms. Sarah," he said. "Do you still remember the crates that you threw off the ship?"

Sarah, who was trying to take another sip, stopped herself. "Yes. What about it?"

"Well, I've been thinking about it since last night. Was there a crate that felt somewhat... heavy?

The young woman began to think it through. "Now that you mention it, the ship was struggling to slide down, and I was thinking of a way to stop those men. That was when I spotted a crate. When I lifted it up with my magic, it honestly felt heavier than the ones I carried. But I assumed that perhaps it was because I was using only one hand to heft it."

"Oh, I see."

"And-"

Sarah slowly became alarmingly concerned when she noticed that his face had changed. "Is there something wrong, Mr. Euros?"

"Oh, no! Not at all!" Euros assured her in a sarcastic tone. "It's just that..."

Sarah simply raised an eyebrow, waiting for a response. "I can't seem to find a large crate full of gunpowder inside."

Less than a second later, Sarah's face fell into a shocking realization. "Wait. You don't mean..."

Sarah gasped in horror. "Bloody hell! I had never known! I had no knowledge about the gunpowder being inside!" Sarah frantically explained. "I was so concerned about the ship's condition that I had no choice! I should've cast a sleeping spell on them! Oh, but I can't use it all at once; it's dangerous for a magician who is not highly skilled enough!"