"It seems our Lieutenant Hood has had a bit too much to drink." At Horatio's reminder and Farida's cover-up, Captain Peru chuckled heartily, thinking she had simply overindulged.
"My apologies, Your Excellency. My alcohol tolerance is still a bit low."
Farida leaned back in her chair, swaying slightly, completely disregarding aristocratic etiquette and becoming more casual, yet her demeanor and speech generally maintained an air of grace and elegance.
This made her appear more like a seasoned Naval Officer.
"Alright, ladies and gentlemen." Captain Peru picked up a napkin to wipe his mouth, then used a warm, damp towel to clean his greasy hands.
"Rest is always brief and wonderful, but we've been off duty long enough. Once we return to Abyss Port, I'll invite you all to my official residence for a larger, more formal celebration!"
The Commodore raised his goblet, saluting the officers under his command: "To the Divine Emperor, to victory!"
"To the Divine Emperor, to victory!"
The officers took their seats one after another, raising their crystal goblets in a collective toast.
"Now, let's resume the navigation watch system. One person per post for navigation watch, and everyone else can go rest. All Midshipmen can return to rest."
"Thank you, Commodore!" Some young child Midshipmen shouted happily, as if just dismissed from junior high.
Facing the children's gratitude, Captain Peru nodded proudly.
Then, he said to Horatio: "Mr. Horatio, are you feeling alright now?"
"No problem, Your Excellency, just a little tipsy."
"Then Lieutenant Hood will be escorted back to her Naval Officer's bedroom by you. If I recall correctly, it's right next to your bedroom."
"Alright, Your Excellency."
Horatio carefully supported Farida, but she suddenly stood up, nearly knocking over the chair.
It was then that Horatio was certain she had truly drunk a bit too much, being past tipsy but still able to move on her own.
Horatio helped her.
"I'm fine," she said, adjusting her collar and striding forward.
Horatio quickly hurried to catch up.
Because… she had walked in the wrong direction again.
Or rather, she didn't know where the Naval Officer's bedroom was at all and instinctively headed towards the direction she had been once before—the elevator leading to the bridge.
"This young girl's alcohol tolerance isn't even a third of her Vice Admiral father's."
Captain Peru shook his head with a wry smile, arranging for a few servant girls to help Horatio escort the rather tipsy Farida back to her Naval Officer's bedroom, and instructing the kitchen to prepare a spiritual tea for sobering up.
Naval Officer's bedrooms were distributed throughout the officers' living quarters. Horatio and Farida's Naval Officer's bedrooms were in the Midshipman living area.
Located below the Captain's official quarters.
This area was no longer part of the bridge structure.
Because Midshipmen were usually deployed on command platforms across various compartments and decks of the ship, rather than the bridge, they were not part of the bridge command team.
Therefore, to minimize travel for these young people and reserve living space for commissioned officers serving on the command bridge, the Midshipman living area was designed to be below the junction of the bridge and the hull.
Nearby were the internal rail cars and officer-specific vehicle parking, making transportation quite convenient.
The area around the Naval Officer's bedrooms was very quiet; the buzzing of noisy equipment was gone.
The walls were thick, multi-layered soundproof armor plates. Not far from the door were lifestyle and leisure facilities such as a gym, heated swimming pool, library, and recreation rooms.
It felt like staying in a five-star hotel.
The only issue was that the Midshipman living area was within the ship's main structural core.
There were no external portholes here; above and around were domed armor belts.
The corridors and rooms only had holographic images made to look like windows, which could be adjusted at will.
Giving an unrealistic sense of 'birds chirping and flowers blooming.'
In non-high alert navigation status, Midshipmen only needed to work 6 to 8 hours a day, with another 8 hours available for reading, exercising, entertainment, or simply exploring, observing, and learning.
After all, for these young people of noble birth, successfully passing the Star Realm Navy Department Naval Lieutenant examination as early as possible was of paramount importance.
The Captain did not require them to have specific duties like commissioned officers.
"It seems we've arrived." Horatio gestured to the assisting servants, then opened the bedroom hatch.
One of the girls brought a glass pot filled with tea into the spacious and luxurious room and poured a cold cup for each of them.
After saluting the two officers, they retreated from the door, leaving the senior male and female officers their private space.
Horatio looked around the bedroom, which was about 200 square meters.
The floor was covered with clean carpet, perfectly cut to every corner and angle, with no blind spots.
The interior was divided like a noble's bedroom into a sleeping area, a study area, and a lounge area with sofas.
There was an image television and a broadcast sound array.
The windows were Victorian-style four-poster palace windows with canopies.
The duvet covers and pillows could be chosen by the officer's preference for color scheme and changed by the servants.
Farida seemed to have made her preferences known, as the room was decorated in a peach-pink color, looking very warm.
The girl's gait was wobbly, like she was dancing ballet.
She walked to the bed, plopped down, and lay back, spreading her arms on the soft bedding.
She just lay there with her eyes open, staring blankly at the velvet canopy above.
"Are you feeling better now?" Horatio picked up two teacups and walked towards Farida: "Drink some while it's warm."
Farida suddenly sat up from the bed.
"Why aren't you affected by the Untouchable?" She looked at Horatio, asking a question even Horatio himself didn't know the answer to.
"Hmm… perhaps… not everyone is affected," he shrugged, indicating he didn't know either.
Farida looked at Horatio suspiciously with hazy, drunken eyes.
"You're the only person I've ever seen who isn't affected by this power… maybe that prophecy isn't true after all. After all, aren't you a living example?"
"Your life's destiny is your own; how can a prophecy interfere?"
He handed one cup of tea to Farida, drank the other himself, then placed the empty cup on the coffee table, saying:
"I don't like or believe in fatalism."
Farida took a small sip, then drained the entire cup of tea.
She extended her hand, offering the cup to Horatio.
Just as he reached out to take the cup from her hand, the blonde girl grabbed his wrist, pulling him towards her, and the empty cup fell onto the soft carpet.
In that instant, Horatio found himself, completely unprepared, pushed onto the bed, with the young female Naval Officer in her uniform straddling his waist.
"Lieutenant Hood."
He opened his clear blue eyes in surprise, looking at her hazy, alluring emerald eyes, and asked with a wry smile, "What are you doing?"
"The curse on me means it's hard for me to find a suitable partner. But you, on the other hand, aren't affected by this curse of mine."
Farida's pink lips parted slightly, and a ripple of panic appeared in her calm, water-like eyes as she looked at him.
"I was thinking, if that's the case… if it's with your descendants, perhaps there won't be such a curse…"
She smiled bitterly, and a misty film of tears welled up in her bright emerald eyes.
Her lips twitched, she swallowed, and with a barely suppressed sob, she said:
"This curse… it's too painful.
I… I don't want to see my children bear the same damned suffering as me and live abnormal lives."
"…" Horatio stared into her eyes, raising his hands to cup her beautiful face.
The girl was startled, a flicker of panic in her eyes.
Her ragged breathing suddenly hitched, then she held it, her body frozen in place, not daring to move.
Horatio could tell she wasn't actually ready.
He cupped her face, using his fingers to wipe away the tears from her cheeks, like angel wings spreading from the corners of her tear-filled eyes.
The handsome young Naval Officer used his firm, strong abdominal muscles to help the girl, who was leaning on him, sit upright.
They were face to face.
Their cherry-like lips were very close, close enough to clearly see the delicate lines on them.
Her pink lips trembled slightly, slowly moving closer to him.