How the Villainous Consort Avoids His Death Ending - Chapter 85.1
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The slapping sound of water and the faint vibrations running through my entire body slowly brought me back to consciousness. I barely managed to force my heavy eyelids open, but my thoughts were tangled and my vision was still hazy. I blinked with effort, trying to steady myself.
Cold, damp air clung to my skin. From somewhere nearby, I could hear the repeated sound of oars cutting through water. I stared blankly into the air, then suddenly felt something was off. Oars? Our ship was a large sailing vessel. There were no oars aboard. The only time oars would ever be used was when…
“Tristan?”
I tried to sit up abruptly, but my head spun and I staggered. Perhaps he heard my voice calling out to him, because hurried footsteps rushed toward me. Gasping for breath, I clutched the railing and barely managed to sit up. In that instant, my heart dropped.
That was right. A railing should not have been here at all. And it certainly should not have been this low.
A small lifeboat was rocking in the middle of the sea. The blood drained from my face. A terrible premonition tightened around my throat as I stared out toward the open water with trembling eyes.
The fleet was drifting farther away, leaving behind only faint outlines.
“N no. The fleet… our ships…”
Fear and despair mixed together, pressing heavily on my chest. We had endured endless hardship just to assemble that fleet and make it this far. It was the hope we had finally grasped with our own hands, built upon Tristan’s and Hezekia’s sweat and sacrifice. And now, I had to watch those ships drift aimlessly across the dark blue sea, abandoned by their owners.
“Ruellin.”
When his calm voice reached my ears, I could not help but look up at him with resentment in my eyes. My vision burned and stung as tears welled up. With shaking hands, I grabbed Tristan’s arm and cried out in agony.
“Did you abandon the fleet? How could you do this? How could you? Those ships were… they were what we worked so hard to obtain…”
My voice cracked and trembled, thick with sobs. I could not even finish my sentence before I collapsed forward, gasping. Tristan hurriedly pulled me into his arms. His embrace was warm and steady, but the voice that fell from above was cold and unyielding.
“Ruellin, ships are not more important than life. As long as we live, there will be another chance.”
“We have nothing left. Without the ships, there is nothing we can do anymore. You know that too, Your Highness. Let’s go back. Let’s return to the ships. Tristan, please…”
I clung tightly to his waist, sobbing without end, pounding my fists weakly against his back. Yet Tristan’s composed demeanor did not waver. No matter how much I cried, no matter how I clawed at my chest and wailed until I could barely breathe, he remained rational to the end.
Gehardt and the knights approached carefully, unable to bring themselves to look at me, turning their heads away. As Tristan lifted my limp body into his arms, he issued a low but firm command.
“Everyone, focus and row. Do not look back. We have to move forward. We should be able to find land within a few days. Endure just a little longer.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
It felt as if the ground beneath my feet had collapsed, swallowing me whole. I covered my face with my hands, overwhelmed by helplessness. There was truly nothing left we could do. We had lost everything.
Time passed in unbroken silence.
My swollen eyes burned and ached. The sound of the waves and the splash of the oars grew distant, then faded away, leaving behind only hollow despair. I had no strength left to think about what lay ahead.
Then, Tristan’s solid arm suddenly trembled slightly. From the chest against which my cheek was pressed, I could feel the echo of his heartbeat. Startled, I slowly looked up at him. Tristan was staring intently out at the sea.
Following his gaze, I looked beyond the boat. Beneath the surface, schools of fish scattered in a single direction. Far off in the darker blue distance, white waves were surging and crashing. I stared blankly at the sight, then rubbed my eyes in sudden shock.
The sea, which had seemed dead and still, had begun to move.
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