The Crown Prince In Hiding

Chapter 25

Tampa Bay

“Since you’re already here, it’s time you try some real work.”

“We’ll split up and head down. You go with Roma—stay close to him. Try to follow his instructions.”

“Yes, Mr.Fury.”

That was the promise Rafinya gave to her mentor before she leapt up onto the top deck of the ship alongside Totti.

The moment her feet touched the wooden surface—

Her nose caught a stale, damp odor. Not the scent of seawater or wet wood, but the foul stench of moss. It wasn’t nauseating enough to make her want to vomit, yet it made breathing feel unpleasant all the same.

Still, something like this wasn’t beyond what Rafinya could endure. Her father and older brothers were soldiers—they had gone through worse with ease. And she would do the same.

There was no one on the upper deck… but when she looked down through the opening—it was pitch dark and damp. Rafinya’s enhancement magic allowed her to pick up the sound of footsteps running below.

“Roma… the footsteps have gone quiet.”

“Is that so?”

Totti nodded, his silver longsword held close at his side. He and Rafinya moved along the wall, descending into the darkness within the ship—he led, she followed.

It was silent. Too silent.

But Totti knew.

[They’re aware of us now. Be careful.]

She nodded.

Then suddenly—

A loud thud! echoed from the far side of the ship… followed by a flash of golden light from Casca, bursting forth and illuminating the entire vessel for a brief moment.

Whatever Dan and Casca had encountered—she didn’t know.

But in that instant of light, Rafinya saw a man standing in the shadows, staring straight at her. His eyes were as large as billiard balls.

They were grotesquely disproportionate.

And his face twisted with a chilling rage.

Before the light faded, Rafinya saw him beginning to transform.

“That—!”

She didn’t even finish her sentence.

Another burst of golden light flashed.

This time… she saw the man lunging straight at her!

!!!

The light vanished—but crimson magic ignited around her body.

And in that instant, the red flames surged to the tip of her blade.

Rafinya swung her sword in a straight line, then cut left—causing the flames to shoot forward before bending sharply to the left along her strike.

The firelight revealed the truth—

That thing had transformed into a six-legged Shadow, crawling above Rafinya’s head.

!!!!!

It plunged down at her, intent on killing. The moment their bodies made contact, Rafinya felt as if her entire body was being constricted.

Just like Nora had described—its texture was like cotton, yet it could harden at will. And since she, like Nora, had never encountered such a creature before—

Her first instinct was to recoil in shock. One hand gripped the tip of her sword, bracing it against the creature to keep it from getting any closer.

Then suddenly—

Roma’s sharp blade pierced straight into the Shadow’s back. The monstrous creature let out a beast-like roar and turned toward him.

In that moment, Rafinya reignited the sacred red flames at the tip of her sword and thrust upward—piercing straight through its core.

The sensation was like stabbing into a cotton mattress… yet within it, there was something like a skull and spine. Her blade struck true, destroying the core of its body.

Then the intense pressure of the flames exploded from within. Red fire burst out from its eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. It burned… then collapsed beside her before slowly dissolving into liquid.

“Haa… haa… haa…”

Sweat drenched Rafinya’s face. Her eyes were wide, her mouth hung open, her breathing unsteady—

She had just… killed it?

“You see? They’re not that hard to deal with. It only gets difficult when there are many of them.”

Totti extended a hand to help her up.

“Roma… how many times have you encountered these things?”

“I’ve lost count.”

Rafinya: (swallows)

“Your magic is sacred. They’re incompatible with it.”

Which explained why it had burned so completely.

She glanced back at where it had died—now only a faint black stain on the floor.

“These ones are low-tier.”

Totti nudged the residue with his foot as he explained.

“The easiest way to tell—the more human they look, the more dangerous they are.”

“Their true form?”

“Yes.”

That was likely why Rafinya had been able to kill it.

“Don’t be afraid of them. If you’ve made it through His Majesty, then there’s nothing left to fear.”

Totti might have meant well, trying to lighten the mood—but judging from her expression, he quickly gave up. Someone like Rafinya wasn’t the type to catch jokes.

“…Let’s stay serious.”

“Can you use your fire to guide us?”

“You mean spread it throughout the ship?”

“Yes. I believe the Lady on the other side is doing the same.”

As they spoke, Rafinya heard loud banging that shook the ship. She flinched, turning in all directions.

Then suddenly—the entire vessel trembled.

A blinding golden flash erupted once more, forcing her to shut her eyes.

Along with it came a distant scream—its source unknown—carried through the wooden structure of the ship.

Then a thunderous sound, like a wall being shattered.

And gradually—the ship stopped shaking.

Then… stillness.

Totti, who had been listening intently, turned back to her.

“Seems His Majesty partially transformed.”

“You could tell just from that?”

Though he didn’t answer—she believed him. She could feel it. All the monsters within the ship had shifted their focus toward that direction instead of her.

That was why she and Roma barely encountered any enemies afterward.

With the chance to illuminate their surroundings, Rafinya noticed something—

Since entering… the interior of the ship had almost no rooms.

Everything was like a labyrinth of corridors.

Compressed between narrow wooden walls.

When she knocked on them, she could tell they were hollow inside.

It felt strange… she had never seen a ship structured like this.

And when she and Totti reached a junction—

They began to hear Dan and Casca more clearly.

At the same time—

Rafinya noticed streaks of red blood… the metallic scent of flesh… and black splatters coating both walls.

And scattered everywhere—pieces of human body parts… with black dust slowly evaporating from them.

It was impossible to tell whether it was Dan’s doing or Casca’s.

The young woman covered her nose, her stomach tightening. Combined with the mossy stench, the smell was enough to make her gag.

And finally… they met Dan and Casca coming from the other side.

“This ship is filled with nothing but low-tier ones.”

Dan said, brushing off his clothes. Casca stood calmly beside him—but both of them were stained… Rafinya saw blood as well.

“Looks like we came up empty… tch.”

Dan seemed irritated—but the reason was obvious.

After being nearly wiped out, it wasn’t easy for them to recover strength in just ten years… the higher-ranked ones had all been killed by Fury. What disappointed him was that the Shadows in Snowhaven had been far stronger than these.

“There are no document rooms or anything here, Mr.Fury.”

“They don’t use written language. But they can read yours. If it’s internal information, don’t expect anything beyond magic scrolls.”

Crack!

Rafinya turned first. She heard footsteps running away across wood. Twisting on her heel, she dashed after the sound immediately.

A fight broke out. The figure turned and fired a flintlock pistol straight at her face.

“Rafinya!”

But—

She had already reacted, dodging with her enhancement magic. The next moment—

The man cried out in pain as the tendons in his ankle were severed.

Red flames engulfed his body. He screamed.

“Don’t! Please don’t do anything to me!!!”

A man… just a sailor. Not a Shadow.

A human.

Rafinya pressed the tip of her blade against his throat, circling behind him while leaning against the soft wooden wall.

She glanced up… toward Fury.

The young man raised an eyebrow—hesitating slightly, though not toward his wife.

The red flames extinguished, replaced by a gentle golden light from Casca’s magic.

“There’s nothing left alive on this ship except you.”

Casca said.

“I don’t know anything about this! I’m not involved! I just came here to trade with them! I—”

The man was cut off as Totti struck him in the face with a knuckle guard. His nose broke, and he collapsed unconscious onto the damp floor.

“Take him out.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Totti obeyed, lifting the man over his shoulder and carrying him off the ship.

That left Rafinya alone with her two mentors.

“So you’re not just good in the classroom, huh.”

Rafinya: “!”

“See? I told you, Fury.”

“Good. I may have misjudged you. But I’m not taking back my words yet.”

That was praise.

Rafinya fell silent… but deep down—

She was happy.

However… at that moment—

Her eyes caught something.

At the edge of the wooden wall, there was a crack.

It had likely formed when the man earlier slammed into it.

Ordinarily, it wouldn’t have mattered—

Except…

Inside that crack—

Rafinya saw a human face.