"Clawdia!"
Isis had been waving cheerfully just a moment ago, but now she leaned forward in alarm, staring at Clawdia as she fell into the sea. She looked as if she might jump in after her at any second.
"Calm down, calm down." Altaïr hurriedly grabbed her. "Clawdia can swim far better than you. Besides, a Felyne's body is light. A fall from dozens of meters into the sea won't hurt her. But if you dive in wearing that heavy armor, you'll really sink straight to the bottom."
Thankfully, a few seconds later, Clawdia resurfaced amid the foam.
She was like an agile fish, weaving between the waves. Sometimes she swayed her body and dove, sometimes she swam upside down on her back, looking utterly carefree and happy.
Isis finally breathed a sigh of relief, muttering that she would have to scold Clawdia later no matter what.
After the Airship descended a little further, it circled over the fishing village, searching for a spot to land.
If the Airship carried only Hunters, they could rappel down or even jump directly into the sea. But the delicate Princess had no such skills.
A remote fishing village like Moga Village did not have an Airship dock for medium and large airships. The small clearing at the village center could not even accommodate the Princess's ride, with its massive hull stretching over thirty meters.
Just as the Airship's pilot was fretting over the problem, a brawny, bare-chested man waved the clothes in his hand, shouting to attract the Airship's attention.
Then he sprinted a few steps across the wooden-plank pier and dove headfirst into the sea, swimming through the water at a speed far beyond that of an ordinary human.
In just a matter of minutes, he had swum nearly a kilometer, guiding the Airship to a crescent-shaped reef zone.
The reefs blocked most of the wind and waves, making the sea surface within the reef bay relatively calm and allowing the Airship to land there.
Although landing on the water meant the Airship would consume a huge amount of extra fuel to take off again, that was clearly not a concern for the Princess's ride.
The Airship made a smooth landing on the sea.
"What are we to do..." Gazing past the undulating sea toward the distant fishing village, Head Maid Lina's face was clouded with worry.
At some point, the Princess had changed into a one-piece fish-skin swimsuit and stood by the ship's side, stretching her limbs. "We'll swim over, of course, ja!"
"You can swim?" The Head Maid looked at the Princess in surprise.
Swimming a kilometer through the surging waves was no easy feat. This was nothing like the palace swimming pool.
"No problem, ja!" Under the horrified gazes of the guards and attendants, Her Highness the Princess hopped right into the sea.
"Your Highness!!" the Head Maid screamed.
The guards did not even have time to take off their armor before they were about to jump into the sea to save her. But one figure was even faster than them.
Hibiki had jumped in almost at the exact moment the Princess hit the water. He paddled his four paws, each the size of a dinner plate, nimbly swimming beneath the Princess and carrying her on his back.
Choking on a bit of seawater but still utterly delighted, the Princess looked back proudly and called out smugly to the Head Maid, who had rushed to the ship's railing: "See, ja! I told you it was fine. I can swim, ja!"
The Head Maid did not know whether to laugh or cry.
She could see now that Her Highness must have arranged this with the Palamute beforehand, but it had scared them half to death. One of the younger maids was practically in tears.
But before she could even breathe a sigh of relief, she saw the Princess directing the Palamute to swim off ahead.
Watching the pair, human and dog, rising and falling with the waves, the Head Maid's heart leaped back into her throat. She shot a tense glance at Nymera beside her. "Can you call the Palamute back?"
Nymera let out a whistle, but Hibiki in the sea acted as if he had not heard a thing and kept swimming forward with the Princess on his back.
At this, an embarrassed look crossed Nymera's face. "These past few days, Her Highness the Princess has been feeding him far too much. Hibiki now seems... to listen more to Her Highness's commands."
The Head Maid was speechless.
Just as the guard captain was preparing to jump into the sea with a few strong swimmers among the guards to go after them, the large man who had guided them here earlier shouted at them from atop a reef.
"Don't rush! The boats are coming!"
A few nimble sampan fishing boats, expertly handled by the fishers, came cutting through the waves.
The large man had clearly made follow-up arrangements when he guided them to land here; these were the little boats coming to ferry them into the village.
By all accounts, everything should have gone smoothly; the Princess was simply too playful.
Lifting her cumbersome long skirt, the Head Maid scrambled hastily onto a sampan. At that moment, in the midst of her anxiety, she felt a strange sense of resignation.
Ah... she has been like this since she was little. I'm used to it.
The fishers of Moga Village were all master boatmen, and it was not long before the swiftest sampans caught up with Her Highness the Princess, who was crossing the water astride the Palamute.
The Head Maid tried to persuade the Princess to climb aboard, but her refusal came as no surprise.
The boats had no choice but to circle within ten meters of the pair, ready to assist at any moment should an accident occur.
Thanks to Hibiki's reasonably good skills in the water, the group ultimately made it ashore without any real trouble.
After this long-overdue indulgence, the Princess, surrounded by her entourage, reined in her girlish, willful mood.
She glanced around. "Too many people will disturb the lives of the village residents. That's no attitude for a guest, ja."
"Hunters, and Lina, you stay. The rest of you take the Airship to Port Tanzia to resupply and await word. Only come back to pick us up when you receive a letter."
"But Your Highness's safety..."
"There's nothing unsafe about it." The Princess cut off the Head Maid, rubbing vigorously at Hibiki's dripping-wet, massive head. "In any case, isn't Hibiki still here?"
The guard captain shot a look at the Head Maid, and the latter said nothing more.
She knew he would take a few men and stay behind to guard them from the shadows, and that would be enough.
At the Princess's urging, most of the retinue departed. Just then, a man with dark skin and a strange, knotted hairstyle walked over.
"I am the Village Chief of Moga Village. May I ask what business brings you esteemed guests here?"
Head Maid Lina stepped forward, gave a slight bow, and explained the group's identities, their purpose, and their needs. "If possible, we would like to borrow a few vacant houses. It would be even better if you could provide us with some local food. Of course, we will pay ample compensation."
"Those are trivial matters." The Village Chief waved his hand magnanimously.
Seeing such a large, luxurious Airship and so many attendants and guards earlier had made him somewhat apprehensive, and the identity of Her Highness the Princess had given him quite a fright. Fortunately, the other party proved unexpectedly reasonable. The village did have some vacant houses; they just needed to call people to tidy them up so they could be lived in.
"Moga Village is a small, humble place with rather poor conditions, nothing like those major cities. Guests, please don't find it too shabby." After calling someone over and giving a few instructions, the Village Chief walked ahead to lead the group.
After sending away that large crowd of attendants and guards, the Princess's words and actions became noticeably more casual. She waved a hand. "I don't mind such things. I've spent plenty of time in the wilds, and I've even slept in icy mountain caves. Lina, however, can't manage that. She always gets herself lost, and she loves to cry."
Altaïr and the others could not help but cast surprised looks at her. The Princess's words did not sound like mere boasting.
The Head Maid, following close behind the Princess, had an expressionless face, as if recalling some unpleasant memory. "Please, by all means, do not do those kinds of things ever again."
They followed the Village Chief on a tour around the village. Just as he had said, the living conditions in this fishing village were rather modest. Even the best house in the village was no different from a tent to the Princess. But she seemed to quite enjoy this "rustic charm." She was not even frightened upon seeing a sea slater crawling in through a gap at the corner of the wall, and instead pointed at it excitedly, asking if it was edible. Hibiki lunged at it with a "Woof!", licked the sea slater into his mouth, and then nodded at the Princess. The Princess declared with great interest that she wanted to try it too, which made the Village Chief somewhat awkward. Who eats these? These things are usually used as bait for fishing.
"Ah! Lina, don't move! One climbed onto your skirt! I'm going to catch it!"
The Head Maid's face instantly turned green.
The master and servant, who were as close as sisters, were amusing themselves there, so Altaïr and the others felt it inappropriate to spectate and silently withdrew from the small house that had just been tidied up.
"By the way, where's Clawdia?" Isis suddenly spoke up. "A moment ago, she said she was going to look for the house where she was born. Where did she get to?"
"Who knows." Altaïr shrugged.
Just then, a loud cry suddenly came from the distance.
"Clawdia?! It really is you, Clawdia! I said your fur color looked familiar! Come and let Grandpa give you a hug!"
"Meow meow meow?! Who the meow are you! Let go of me! Mew–!"
(Translated by yourtl.app)