Empress of the Sea|✔️

Chapter 37

***

Jules and Maya head into the market, astonished as if they had never seen it before. They hadn't, except for the time they were getting away from the castle after being attacked by men in black.

The rest of the group walked past them, wondering where they had gone off to.

It had been a week and five days since they left Waihg, and now they were a few minutes away from the Arce Ace.

"Hey!" Iona yelled into the market. "Stop wasting time. You can go exploring some other time. You literally live here."

Flinching, and reluctant to disobey Iona, both royals returned to the group with droopy steps, their focus on the mango stall in the line of shops.

The team tried hard not to get distracted by the performers on the streets. Auber's national festival of Egork was coming within days, so people had already started performing on the streets, throwing coloured powder around, selling traditional foods.

Once they reached the main entrance of the castle, its size much bigger up close, the guards recognized both royals.

But they weren't welcomed with smiles and "Thank goodness you've returned!" They were welcomed with the stern tone of voice saying, "The king has been waiting for you two."

The guards tied their hands behind their back and attached handcuffs to their wrists, completely disregarding Iona, Reyna, and Illorin.

Maya tried to resist, tried yelling and shouting for Illorin, but the utter shock stole her memory of how to fight. When she turned to Juele, he betrayed no sign of fear. He remained unfazed, indifferent to the cuffs on his wrists. He hung his head down, kicking a pebble on the ground. "I hardly believe these are necessary," Jules said, shaking his hands. "You should know that better than anyone, Faris."

"I'm sorry, Your Highness," replied Faris, the guard who had tied him up. "It's your father's orders."

"Shocking."

Both Iona and Reyna hard a hard time watching the look of defeat on his face. Both had befriended the friendliest person they'd encountered in the few weeks they spent on the White Crow.

But Reyna was the one to step up and call out for Juele, Iona and other guards that had come holding her back.

As the royals got dragged into the castle, Maya putting up more of a fight than Juele, Illorin jumped to catch another glance of Maya. "Mayal!"

She snapped her head at him, offering a fierce gaze before the gates to the castle closed, separating the pirates from the royals.

A few more minutes of chaos went on in front of the castle's entrance.

Iona, Reyna, and Illorin threw questions at the wall of castle knights.

"Why did you arrest them?"

"Why would Juele's father arrest him?"

"Why won't you let us meet them?"

"Why would the king risk war with Tereline?"

***

October twenty-fourth arrived, and so did an overly large grin on Sehyun Han's face.