The Lord of the Seas - An Isekai Progression Fantasy [ Currently on Volume 2 ]

The Outer Cities stretched wide before them, low stone homes and wooden shacks spread like freckles across the lands just beyond Nozar's towering wall. The chaos of the Inner Cities now lay days behind them, and the further they were from it, the lighter the weight that Lukas had carried heavy on his shoulders. Not gone, not yet—but certainly less suffocating.

That weight would not be lifted completely from him until they were truly free of Nozar's reach. Not until the waves of the open sea cradled their ship once more, would Lukas allow himself to believe they were truly safe.

Their ship had stopped briefly on the fringes of the Outer Cities to replenish supplies—rations, medicine, charms for warding off storms, and even new rigging for the sails. In their haste of departure from the Inner Cities, the Merchant Guild had not yet gotten the supplies they needed for their journey back to Easthaven.

While the Merchant Guild's men loaded crates and bartered with locals in the crowded markets, Lukas and Rosalia walked along those streets to some place familiar. At the very edge of the Outer Cities, tucked between the sandy shores of Nozar and the seas, stood a small stone cottage. Modest, but cared for. Painted by hand. And there, standing on a crooked little porch, was a woman with wild frizzy hair and an even wilder smile.

"Aunty Aurelia!" Rosalia called, her voice lifting with joy.

Lukas had promised that he'd visit Darren again. And he was going to keep that promise.

Aurelia gasped the moment she saw them, turned on her heel, and shouted back into the house. A heartbeat later, the door swung open and a young girl came sprinting out, bare feet slapping against stone, arms already outstretched for Rosalia. The princess laughed as she crouched down, barely catching Andrea before they both tumbled backwards into the sand.

"Is that for us? You know you didn't have to. This little gremlin does not need to be spoiled any more than she already is." Aurelia remarked, eyeing the satchel Rosalia unstrapped from her side; now spilling with carefully wrapped sweets, carved wooden animals, and soft fabric dolls from the Inner Cities.

"I'm sorry," Rosalia teased, handing Andrea a sparkling candy stick, "I couldn't help it Aunty."

Andrea squealed. "Wow!"

Even Aurelia, who tried her best to act unimpressed, couldn't hide the softness in her gaze as she watched her daughter marvel over each gift.

Then Darren stepped out. The man walked over and gave Lukas a tight, familiar hug—the kind that needed no words.

"Are you two staying the night?" Darren asked, hopeful.

Lukas hesitated. The sky was already turning amber. He wished he could. He wanted to say yes. But he knew that he could not.

"We can't," Lukas answered softly. "But...we can stay for dinner."

They ate outside as the sun dipped below the horizon.

Darren had cooked a stew rich with spice, and Andrea refused to sit still long enough to finish her food.

Once done, Aurelia braided Rosalia's hair by the fireplace. Laughter echoed across the small room. And though Lukas said little, he smiled as he watched them. Peace was a rare thing in his world. Lukas rarely found it, especially as of late.

Tonight, it had found him.

The sun had long since disappeared and the warm hum of the firelight flickered softly against the walls of the little home.

In the kitchen, the scent of herbs and stew still lingered in the air as Lukas stood at the washbasin beside Darren, sleeves rolled to the elbow and hands submerged in soapy water.

"I'm sorry that Aurelia's roped you into dish cleaning duty," Darren apologized with a dry chuckle, scrubbing at a pot that had clearly survived a few too many meals.

Lukas smirked. "Wouldn't be the first time."

"Oh?"

He nodded. His mind when to Kairos Castle, how he would clean the dishes after he and Styx had eaten dinner. How she had always forced him to clean the dishes but never truly leaving his side. Of course, Styx had always ended up joining Lukas halfway through. Said he looked pathetic doing it alone but he knew that she just felt bad for making him clean the dishes.

Darren raised an eyebrow as he passed over another plate as he caught the look of fondness on Lukas' face, a look that softened his hard features. Lukas just smiled as he rinsed the dish, ignoring the eyebrow that had been raised in his direction.

"You have a missus?" Darren asked him.

Lukas let out a quick laugh. "I do."

Darren was about to dig into that when Lukas changed the subject with practiced ease. "By the way—Rowan sends his greetings."

That pulled a sharp smirk from Darren. He tilted his head slightly, the firelight catching in his eyes.

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"Well, well, well. I never thought I'd heard that name again. I didn't know he was in Nozar. Glad to hear the Beastkin still in good spirits."

Lukas took the moment to press further. "You really gave him that limp?"

Darren grinned and looked down at the pot he was drying. "He told you that?"

"He mentioned it."

"Yeah. I did," Darren confirmed, tone quieter now, less triumphant. "I just did what I had to do to break away from the Ittriki Clan. And I'd do it again if I had to."

The former prince did not elaborate, and Lukas could sense the edges of that story were still sharp. Lukas simply nodded, respectfully letting it rest. But the silence between them gave way to topic, one far more difficult for Lukas to address.

"There's something else that I've been meaning to ask you," Lukas declared, quieter this time.

Darren gave him a glance but said nothing, waiting for him to go on.

"It's about Varian. The Archmage."

Darren turned his eyes back to the pan in his hands. "Master of Potions. Geezer's been around since my father was a young'un. He's older than the Head Mage if I'm not wrong. He travelled here with you, didn't he? What about him?"

"He's dead."

The water sloshed softly as Darren froze.

"He passed in his sleep," Lukas added. "Natural causes."

Darren looked at him carefully now, his brow furrowed. "Were you close to him?"

Lukas stopped, letting the sponge from his hand drop to the bottom of the basin. Rowan had asked him the very same question. And yet again, he had no answer to give him.

"I don't think Varian died due to natural cases, Darren."

Darren's jaw tightened slightly as he set down the dishcloth.

There was a long pause before Darren spoke again. "You think someone killed him."

Lukas didn't answer right away, but his silence said everything. And Darren saw through it. He turned to face him fully.

"Don't dance around it, Lukas. Ask the damn question." Darren demanded, a hint of irritation creeping into his voice as he scrubbed a handcrafted ceramic plate with a little more force than necessary.

The fire crackled in the other room. Andrea's laughter rang out like wind chimes, Rosalia's voice following close behind. Another reason why he didn't mind doing the dishes was because it meant that he could have this conversation alone with Darren. Lukas dried his hands slowly, gaze steady.

"Varian knew things. Things...that I don't think your father wanted to be revealed. Would it be possible that your father was behind this?" Lukas asked quietly. "What I'm asking you is would Daerion silence him to bury truths he did not want revealed?"

Lukas didn't shy away from it, just like Darren had asked him to.

A part of him almost wished Darren would tell him he was wrong; to tell him that the fear he felt was paranoia and that his suspicion had no grounds.

Darren stopped scrubbing. The dish in his hands slipped slightly beneath the water. The silence stretched, long and brittle.

For a while, Lukas thought he might not answer. Maybe the subject hit too close to home.

Then, Darren let out a breath, slow and weary, and set the plate aside. His eyes didn't meet Lukas'. Instead, they drifted toward the window, to where the distant light of the Wall shimmered in the far-off dark; to the Inner Cities that lay within it.

"I want to say no," Darren finally told Lukas, voice lower now. "I want to tell you that he wouldn't…because he's still my father. And I still love him. He will always be my father, Lukas."

Lukas stayed quiet, letting the words come at Darren's pace.

"But I would not lie to you," Darren continued. "The only reason why Nozar is as powerful as it is today is because of my father. And power does not come easy. My father, he is no saint. He is no good man."

The former prince's jaw tightened. His next words were hard to say.

"I...I wouldn't put it past him."

Lukas nodded once. That was all he needed. No confirmation, not even a direct accusation. All Lukas needed to know was that his instincts had not been born out of fear, but necessity. Whatever had happened to Varian, Lukas knew now—leaving Nozar had not been a mistake; rather a testament to their survival.

Later that night, the wind had picked up and the lanterns on the ship's deck began to sway gently with the coming tide. The supplies had been loaded and the crew had returned.

It was time.

The warm orange glow of Darren's house spilled out from its open doors, casting long shadows behind them. Andrea clung to Rosalia's side, her tiny arms wrapped around the princess's waist, teary-eyed and sniffling.

"I don't want you to go," Andrea whispered.

"I don't want to go either," Rosalia murmured, kneeling to her level, brushing away a strand of hair from the young girl's face. "But I promise I'll come visit again, alright? I'll bring you something even better next time. I'll bring you gifts from Easthaven unlike anything you've seen before."

Andrea gave a teary smile. "Okay…but you have to come back soon."

Aurelia stood behind her daughter, her smile soft and full of gratitude.

Lukas stood opposite Darren, arms crossed, eyes tired but clear.

"Stay safe, my friend." Lukas told him with a smile.

"You too, Lukas." Darren stepped forward, pulling him in for another hug—firmer this time, less formal, less reserved. "Danger seems to follow you wherever you go."

Lukas smiled faintly. "You aren't wrong."

"Promise me that you'll visit again."

"I will," Lukas said. "We will see each other again, Darren."

They broke apart reluctantly.

Lukas started walking, turning back one last time as they reached the slope that led to the ship's dock.

Just as he did, Darren called out from the doorway, voice laced with amusement. "And the next time you visit, make sure bring your missus."

Lukas chuckled under his breath, shaking his head as Rosalia looked at him curiously. He'd tell her about Styx one day. But that day was not today. For now, he just kept walking, the night wind brushing over them both as they made their way toward the ship.

Lukas would come visit them again. And maybe...just maybe, he'd visit them with the love of his life.

He'd visit them with Styx, he'd visit them with his missus.