The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 240 Showing Weakness
Eric poured himself a glass of water and, as he passed his cabin, he pushed open the door and peeked in. Kasha was lying on his bed, clutching the book "The Chronicles of Sunset City."

He didn't say anything, closed the door, went back to Natalia's cabin, and handed her the water.

"Thank you."

She had already finished the whole loaf of bread, which was dry and sprinkled with fine salt. She took the water glass and drank most of it in one gulp.

"Would you like some more?" Eric returned with three pieces of bread.

Natalia looked at the bread, hesitated for a moment, and then shook her head.

What made her hesitate was not the food itself, but the process of eating it.

She couldn't help but want to indulge in it, but she knew she couldn't.

"Then leave them for now, Your Highness can eat them when you're hungry." Eric rewrapped the remaining two pieces of bread and placed them aside.

Natalia took another sip of water.

"I thought I would feel terrible, but after eating something, my stomach actually felt better."

“After all, my stomach is…empty.” Eric tried to avoid saying the word “vomit” directly.

Natalia would still unconsciously clench her fists to fight off the occasional nausea.

“How long do you think this condition will last, Your Highness?” she asked Eric.

Eric looked at her. "I can't guess. It's all up to you, Your Highness."

Natalia sighed, then suddenly felt something and covered her mouth.

"..."

Eric used his foot to push the barrel that had been moved aside back to its original position.

Natalia leaned against the headboard for a while, then lowered her hand, saying "It's okay" as if she didn't know whether to comfort him or herself.

Eric didn't mean to mock her, but he still wanted to laugh a little, while also feeling somewhat speechless.

“Don’t think about anything,” he told Natalia. “Or think about something else, shift your attention away from yourself.”

Natalia nodded, glanced at the little water left in the glass, and didn't dare drink any more.

What did Your Highness do this morning?

"Me? I'm just reading in the room next door." Eric looked around; there wasn't a chair in the room, so he could only stand by her bed.

Natalia offered to sit on the edge of the bed, and Eric accepted without hesitation.

"Your Highness, did you manage to sleep this morning?"

Natalia shook her head.

“If you can’t lie down anymore, you can go stand on the outside deck for a while,” Eric suggested.

Natalia looked at him: "I remember before we boarded the ship, His Highness said he wanted to take a closer look at how the ship worked, but I delayed him."

Eric laughed, "While I don't know if this is good news or bad news, we have plenty of time on the ship, so one more morning won't make a difference."

Natalia lowered her head. "Bad news..."

Eric tried his best to control himself and not stare at her weak expression, which was tinged with a hint of resentment and coquetry, but he still couldn't help but keep looking at her downcast eyes and slightly parted lips.

"Your Highness won't feel that way once you get used to it."

As she looked up, Eric looked away. "This time on the ship is probably one of the few times we can comfortably slack off on this trip."

Natalia thought for a moment and quickly understood what he meant.

"Because even if you don't slack off, you can't do anything else."

"Yes."

She slid down slightly from the headboard, saying, "I just hope I can get used to this feeling soon."

Eric looked at her and smiled. "So I suggest Your Highness take a walk outside more often."

"is that useful?"

"I think it's useful."

Natalia got up, stood for a moment, and said, "I rarely feel more comfortable standing than lying down, but this is the case now."

"Seasickness, isn't that amazing?"

She rolled her eyes.

She had been helped back to her room by Eric. Although she still secretly hoped for such treatment, there was a limit to how much she could show weakness. Natalia couldn't bring herself to ask him to help her when she was able to move on her own.

As Eric emerged from the cabin, he glanced at Kasha in his room. She was holding the book and seemed to be asleep, so he didn't wake her.

"So this is Miss Kasha's room?" Natalia also saw the girl lying on the bed.

“…This is my room.” Eric closed the door behind him. “She’s reading in there.”

Natalia glanced at him but said nothing.

As they left the cabin, they passed through the restaurant and saw other passengers gathered around a table, eating a simple lunch.

“There are so many people in the restaurant,” Natalia muttered to herself.

“We could eat first, since there was no one else around,” Eric said. “The food was also served separately.”

Natalia didn't think much of it, glanced at the crowded situation inside, and continued to walk out.

Once on the deck outside, the sea and sky stretched out before them. The weather was clear, the afternoon sun was abundant, and the view was excellent, allowing them to see very far. Natalia took a deep breath.

Eric walked to the railing and leaned against it, looking at her: "Are you feeling a little more relaxed now?"

Natalia walked over, gripping the railing with her left hand and placing her right hand on her chest. She breathed heavily a few times before saying, "I feel like it's still tense here."

“Psychological factors.” Eric led her toward the bow of the ship. “Look at other things, and you won’t keep thinking about that.”

Natalia followed, but before they reached the nearest sail, a crew member approached them and said that the area ahead was not safe for the passengers and they should not go there.

Eric recognized him as the same crew member who had brought Natalia seasickness medication that morning and told him to go to lunch at noon. Upon asking, he learned that the captain had indeed arranged for him and his two special passengers to be crew members, essentially acting as life assistants on the ship.

He called himself Barnabas, and judging from the fact that he didn't have to do any of the work like the other sailors and only had to keep an eye on them, Eric guessed that he must be a relative of the captain or someone the captain liked very much.

"It's okay. The biggest danger is people falling from above. I can avoid it."

As he pointed upwards, Natalia looked up at the massive mast and sails. Several crew members were standing on the mast and sail bar, pulling and tugging at various ropes to adjust the angle of the sails to withstand the sea wind.

Will it fall?

"Yes, Your Highness the Princess of the Empire."

Barnabas seemed determined to keep the two distinguished guests where they were, exaggerating the potential dangers.

“The mast is wet and slippery, and you could easily fall. At that height, even if it doesn’t hit Your Highnesses, your blood would splatter on you… Your body would be torn apart, with broken bones protruding from your chest or arms and legs. I don’t think you would want to see that scene with your own eyes.”

He thought his words would be enough to scare away the imperial princess who was seasick as soon as she boarded the ship, but she remained quite calm.

"So, just stay far away?"

Natalia looked up at the sailors on the mast again, "But I didn't expect the sailors' job to be so dangerous."

Eric looked up for a moment, "It's a sunny day now, the mast shouldn't be too slippery, right?"

"Can't we wear an extra rope to prevent accidents?" Natalia asked.

“It should be possible… but it might affect efficiency,” Eric replied.

Seeing that the two were not deterred and were chatting amongst themselves, Barnabas paused for a moment before replying, "The ropes are too heavy and affect movement and efficiency, Your Highness. On the endless ocean, the weather can change at any time, and what sailors must do is respond to the captain's every order immediately."

"Is that so?" Natalia didn't say much, but just looked up at the sailors' movements.

Eric walked to the mast, grasped one of the dangling cables, and looked at it.

"Such a thick rope, how heavy must it be?"

“The ropes on the ship have to be this thick,” Barnabas said as he went over, “otherwise they won’t be able to support the weight.”

“It seems to be a limitation of materials.” Eric looked at the thick hemp rope in his hand. “Those alchemists who want to make money should study this more.”

"Your Highness is right..."

Barnabas had no desire to continue lamenting about this matter. "It's not safe here. You should go back to the deck over there, or go to the stern. The view from there is enough to see most of the ship clearly."

The two princes exchanged a glance and decided to continue forward, passing under several towering masts while observing their surroundings, until they reached the other side.

Several sailors were wiping the deck back and forth, carrying out routine cleaning. Eric and Natalia met the captain of the Queen Vermeer, whom they had only met once when boarding the ship.

"Your Highnesses."

Neither of them possessed the genuine respect due to their nationality or religious affiliation, nor could they earn the captain's genuine respect as a native of Wimmer and a senior member of the Maritime Cult. However, their outward manners were impeccable. "It's too boring in the cabin," Eric said. "We'd like to see how this amazing ship navigates the oceans. Hopefully, we're not disturbing the captain's work."

No one dislikes hearing compliments, especially from someone of noble status. The captain smiled proudly, “No. The sea is calm now. Your Highnesses are free to look around the ship at will. If you don’t mind, you can also come to my captain’s cabin for a cup of hot tea.”

Eric looked at Natalia, who said, "I'd like to take a look first too."

"Barnabas!"

"Captain!" The crew member who came with the two immediately stood at attention and accepted the order.

"Take them to see whatever Your Highnesses wish to see, but of course, ensure their safety as well."

"Yes!"

Following Barnabas, Eric and Natalia toured the ship from top to bottom, seeing the cargo holds filled with goods, the cramped cabins where the crew lived, and even the live poultry and livestock kept on board.

"If we want to eat fresh meat, we'll have to keep these things on the boat... Hmm, these animals like to poop everywhere, it smells a bit here, let's go look somewhere else."

Natalia covered her nose as she walked and looked around. At one point, her hand moved down and covered her mouth again.

Eric looked at her, and after a moment, she shook her head with difficulty and lowered her hand.

"fine……"

The cabin was too stuffy, and it was starting to bother her again. Eric looked at Barnabas, who was walking ahead of her, and said, "Are we almost at the bottom?"

"The lower deck is below, Your Highnesses." Along with his voice came a creaking sound.

The two descended a little further and saw the source of the sound. In the lower deck, a group of sailors were pressing water pumps, drawing out seawater that was constantly seeping in from the gaps in the bottom of the ship.

"Actually, I wouldn't recommend that Your Highnesses come here..."

Barnabas's gaze lingered on Natalia's face for a moment. "Firstly, the air here isn't very ventilated, and the smell isn't very pleasant. Secondly, many people who are going out to sea for the first time will panic when they see water seeping into the bottom of the boat."

Eric, supporting Natalia who was already struggling to stand, calmly said, "To be honest, my heart skipped a beat when I first saw the water seeping into the bottom of the ship."

"Please rest assured, the sailors on board will work day and night to pump out the water, and the Queen Vermeer will absolutely not sink because of this small gap..."

"Don't say those two words on the ship!" a sailor who was pumping water vigorously shouted in their direction.

Barnabas raised an eyebrow, ignored them, and said to the two, "Does Your Highness wish to stay here a little longer?"

Eric was interested, but Natalia clearly couldn't hold out any longer.

"Go up."

"Alright. Your Highnesses, please follow me. We can go directly back to the deck from here."

As Barnabas ascended, Natalia lunged toward the ship's railing as soon as they reached the deck.

Eric deliberately slowed his pace and asked Barnabas to pour him a glass of water.

When the latter returned, he handed the water glass to Natalia.

She rinsed her mouth, then lay there motionless.

"Sorry, we've been at the bottom of the ship for too long."

She shook her head, still leaning on the railing, not wanting to speak.

Eric stood there for a moment, when a huge seabird flew past them, glanced at them clearly, and then soared into the sky, hovering at a height parallel to the Queen Vermeer.

"What kind of bird is that..."

Eric racked his brains for the names of the few seabirds he knew, "Albatross?"

“That’s our navigator,” Barnabas said.

"is it?"

Eric was about to ask the bird how it guided them when Natalia looked up and glanced at it, still looking unwell.

"Your Highness, why don't you stand at the bow of the ship for a while? It's windy there, and it might be more comfortable."

Natalia nodded, and the two stood at the bow of the ship.

Under the sunlight, the figurehead of Queen Wimer at the bow of the ship gleamed, as if it were made of pure gold. Eric guessed that it was at most plated with gold, but Barnabas insisted that the figurehead given by the Queen was made entirely of pure gold to show the Queen's glory.

"Such a large figurehead must have cost a lot of money to build."

“This is nothing to our Queen.”

Eric has a hundred ways to determine authenticity. The simplest way is to cut off a small piece with his weapon at his waist, and the difference will be immediately obvious. But there's no need for that; it would only anger the crew of the ship from Port Vermer.

He glanced at Natalia, wanting to understand her attitude, but saw that she had one arm crossed over her shoulder, frowning as she gazed at the sea ahead. The distinct knuckles on the back of her hand indicated that she was exerting force, resisting some kind of discomfort.

"Let's go back to the cabin, Your Highness."

Natalia didn't force him; she released her arm and instead grabbed his.

Eric glanced at her, said nothing, and was about to leave the bow when the huge seabird that had been floating in the air suddenly landed on the bow.

The next moment, it spread its wings and transformed into a middle-aged woman squatting on the ground.

As she landed, the captain emerged from the captain's cabin.

She stood up, bowed again, and said, "Captain, please prepare for a storm. The direction is..."

Before Eric could even be surprised that the so-called navigator was actually a druid, he saw the captain's expression harden, and the atmosphere around them instantly changed.

"First Mate—"

The captain, who looked to be in his fifties or sixties, had a surprisingly loud voice.

The first mate, who was standing on the deck, ran over quickly.

"Adjust course, due east! Spread the sails wide, we need to get out of this area at full speed before the storm hits!"

"Yes, Captain! Turn east! Hoist the sails and full speed ahead!"

Upon receiving the order, the first mate immediately began to carry it out.

Barnabas also became serious and urged Eric and Natalia to return to their cabin as soon as possible, as the real danger was about to begin.

Eric saw the druid navigator say something to the captain again, who looked up at the cloudless sky and shook his head.

"Helmet! Turn: East!"

"Yes, First Mate! Turn: East!"

Eric grabbed Natalia's arm and pulled her quickly from the bow to the stern of the ship, towards the cabin.

The first mate quickened his pace, passing the two men, and shouted before even reaching the base of the mast:
"Bock! Amy! Dobbin! Spread the sails wide, we're going full speed ahead!"

"Yes, First Mate! Full sails up, full speed ahead!"

The sailors immediately sprang into action, following Eric and Natalia to the cabin entrance. Barnabas pleaded with the two to return to their own cabins as soon as possible, and after receiving their assurance, he turned back to help.

Standing at the entrance to the cabin, Eric stared blankly for a moment. Natalia, who was beside him, suddenly made a sound. He looked at her, but she was gazing at the sky.

He looked up and saw that the clear blue sky from just a few minutes ago was now covered with dark clouds.

"This storm came too fast."

The sailors who were just raising the sails are now busy lowering them under the first mate's urgent orders.

Eric didn't linger any longer and pulled Natalia back to her cabin.

The ship suddenly rocked violently, and Natalia, who was about to get into bed, was thrown to the innermost part, her body hitting the wall before coming to a stop.

"Well……"

Between his head and the wall was Eric's hastily outstretched hand.

At this moment, most of his palm was stroking her face.

The two looked at each other from above and below.

“Your Highness.” Eric looked at her face.

Natalia lay on her back on the bed, looking at him, her heart pounding in her chest, "Your Highness..."

"Did you throw up completely?" Eric asked again.

"..."

"I hope you've thrown up completely."

Eric pulled his hand away and looked through the small window to the surging waves of the sea outside.

"Otherwise, you will suffer greatly in the coming period of time."

(End of this chapter)