Voyage Of The Villainess

A week later back at the fort of Taleba at Nicholas\' Shipyard...

"Here are your golds," Malaya said as handed Iris a pouch of gold. "Thank you for your help all this time and..." Malaya looks sideways as if contemplating whether to continue her words or not.

"And?" Iris crossed her arms waiting for Malaya\'s next words.

"Nothing." Malaya shook her head. "What are you going to do now?" 

"I believe whatever I do now has nothing to do with you anymore," Iris said flatly.

"Yeah right." Malaya chuckled lightheartedly. After a few days with Iris, she had already gotten used to her attitude. "I just hope that you won\'t do something like conquer or destroy the world or even overthrow an empir..." 

Iris raised her hands towards Malaya. "I learned my lesson enough. Hah."

Malaya nodded her head. Iris then put her hand inside her pocket. "I will take my leave now. There is also that one guy I need to handle." Iris started to walk away. 

Malaya just watched her walk away. 

\'What a very difficult person to handle.\' Malaya thought as she watched Iris retreating back.

"Milady." Malaya turned around when she heard Dorris\' meek voice. A week later had passed when Rein told them what transpired with their fight.

And until the time they met again with those two, Malaya told Dorris to make her decision during that time.

\'A life will continue and the other will perish.\' That certainly would be a hard choice for Dorris to make. But whose side she chose in the end, it doesn\'t really matter, if that is where she would be truly happy.\'

"Dorris," Malaya said. "What brings you here? Where\'s Rein?"

"About that Milady," Dorris meekly said. "Sir Nicholas and Rein wanted you to go to the harbor now."

"I see," Malaya replied. "Then let\'s go there." 

The two of them started to tread on the way. The scenery inside the shipbuilding was still the same as before. But Malaya knew too well that was not the case for them.

With things that happened, Dorris was feeling a bit awkward with her even though Malaya tried to act normal with her. As for Rein...

"Milady! How is your walk? Is there any problem? Anything hurting with your wound." 

Rein became more of a worrywart. Malaya calmed down her nerves inside her and gave them her casual gentle smile.

"I\'m already fine," Malaya said as she gave her signature calm and gentle smile.

And there was this suspicious guy who was now added to their group. Malaya turned towards Elred who graced her with his nonchalant smile.

\'They say that people who always smile could be dangerous and have so many secrets behind them? Who said that? Just me. Since I\'m always like that.\'

When Malaya thanked Elred for his help, instead of leaving them, the latter told them if he could join their group. After weighing the cost, Malaya agreed. With her journey having an additional capable person would be an advantage to her.

But...there was this feeling she couldn\'t shake off around Elred. Yes, Malaya knew that Elred was an elf in disguise but that was not what she was worried about. \'Hah. I felt like everything that happened before was just some terrible nightmare. But regretfully it\'s all real.\'

"Lady Malaya!"

Her line of thoughts was cut when she heard that nonchalant cynical voice of  Nicholas. The voice that could only belong to him.

Nicholas dropped in front of them as the cards surrounding him returned to his sleeves.

"All the repairs are complete," Nicholas said with his usual business smile.

"Thank you for your help, Sir Nicholas."

"I am just doing what I have paid for," Nicholas said. "And now that there are no problems and hindrances like before, can we go on to the ritual?"

"Ritual?" Dorris asked, confused.

"It would be the naming ceremony of the ship," Malaya said with a smile. 

"Have you thought of the name of the ship now?" Rein inquired.

"Yes." A smile graced Malaya\'s lips. For four years she already considered and reconsidered every bit of a good name. "It\'s a name that I have been carefully thinking about."

"Then let us hear about it," Nicholas said as he brought out an empty scroll from his pocket and a quill and ink. He put it on the barrel that was on their side. Once he did that, he opened the blank scroll and dipped the quill on the ink already.

"What will be her name?" Nicholas asked as he readied his right hand to write.

"Bituin." Malaya simply said which gained her weird looks from the other people.

"Bitwin? Does that come from another language?" Elred was the first one to ask.

"Yes," Malaya replied. "I\'ve stumbled upon it in some book back at Marina." She lied. She couldn\'t exactly tell them that it came from a language back on Earth right?

"I see. It\'s my first time hearing such words, what could that mean?" 

"It simply means star," Malaya said with a smile. "Bituin will be the guiding star who will be with us when we start our travels."

Rein and Dorris looked at Malaya with happy faces.

"That is a beautiful name, is that the final?" Nicholas asked.

"Yes. It is." Malaya replied.

"Then Bituin," Nicholas said. "Then let\'s begin, please spell it out and please," he emphasized, "no one should disturb me while I write."

Everyone nodded.

Malaya spelled the letters of Bituin and Nicholas started to write them on the blank scroll.

Now with the last stroke, the last letter N was finally done but then...

"U-u-u ah ah!" Someone suddenly jumped on Nicholas\' barrel. The quill he was holding created a line in the next space to the N.

"No!" With his quick movement Nicholas quickly wrote something on the unwanted line, making it letter S. Instead of only Bituin, it became "bituins."

Once he was done with his writings, the scroll glowed as the letters of Bituins started to emerge from it. Then it flew directly to the open right side of the ship.

Everyone was surprised to see how the name got misspelled because of the white monkey who suddenly jumped out of nowhere.

"Monkey!" Iris\' voice resounded behind.

As everyone was looking at Iris, Malaya and Nicholas\' gaze was fixated on the S that got added.

"Bituins," 

"Accidents do happen sometimes," Nicholas said, sounding apologetic. Writing a name on the scroll was a delicate matter. It was like a permanent seal on the ship that wouldn\'t be able to change anymore. That\'s why he had been telling anyone no one should interfere with him.

But instead of disappointment, what they hear from Malaya was completely different. "Bituins. It\'s perfect, " she turned towards them.

"It only means that not only one star would guide us but plenty of them."

\'Well done, my daughter.\'

\'Sister,\'

\'What?!\' Malaya was surprised when she heard the soft whispers of her deceased father and brother? She shook her head. \'That couldn\'t possibly to happened right? But if it\'s really them. Please continue to watch over us as our guiding stars.\'

Malaya took a deep breath. \'Now, to the person who nearly ruined the naming ceremony..\' She turned to Iris\' with a smile that didn\'t reach her eyes.