The ship’s deck was a battlefield. There is fighting everywhere. But Miyojin can easily see that they are at a disadvantage.
“There’s First Brother!” Miyojin said, pointing at Zhujin who is fighting three assassins at a time.
“Let’s go. Keep your eyes open and stay close to me.” Xia Yu said as she cut down an assassin aiming at her.
As they walk to where the Crown Prince is, Xia Yu fights her way as if she’s just cutting down some vines blocking her way. Every strike she gave was fatal. It reminded Miyojin that she is indeed a descendant of the Chengs.
Miyojin, on the other hand, can only block an attack but doesn’t know how to follow it up. He instantly regretted not taking his sword lessons seriously. Lucky for him, Xia Yu was there to defend him and defeat the attackers. Eventually, they reached Zhujin.
“Brother, the guards at the cabin are all dead,” Miyojin reported.
Zhujin cursed as he struck down another enemy. With the other guards dead, they are greatly outnumbered. Though they were skilled fighters, he knew well that they would get overwhelmed soon.
He looked at Miyojin who was looking back at him with uneasiness. Then, he eyed his little sister-in-law who was giving her all in this battle of survival. Then, he looked back at Miyojin sadness written in his eyes. The younger prince could only assume what this means.
Zhujin turned away for a bit to cut down an approaching assassin. When he returned his gaze to his younger brother, his emotion was different. The sadness in his eyes is now mixed with renewed determination. He turned his sight to the battlefield.
“Captain!” He called.
The captain of the guards immediately heard the prince. Cutting down the enemies in the way, he went towards Zhujin.
“Yes, your Highness!” the captain answered with great dedication.
“It’s time.”
The captain’s resolve crumbled slightly when he realized what this meant. They had reached the worst-case scenario. Rebuilding his willpower, he made a short bow to the prince and said.
“My life is always in your hands, Your Highness!”
Then, the captain turned to the remaining guards.
“Guards!!! Drawback and protect His Highnesses!”
Subsequently, the guards drew near to where the princes were. They formed a loose circle around them. On the other hand, the captain used the moment as a distraction to race down to the corridor below deck.
Both Miyojin and Xia Yu saw the exchange. Though confused, they went in the loose circle with Zhujin. The circle of guards not only protected them from incoming enemies. But also gave them time to talk.
“Brother? What’s going on?” Miyojin was the first to ask.
After killing another attacking enemy, Zhujin looked at his brother and his sister-in-law.
“Both of you listen to me. The captain will activate the explosives below deck and will sink this ship.”
“WHAT???” Miyojin and Xia Yu reacted at the same time.
“There’s a hidden boat at the right back of the ship. One of the guards will assist your escape.”
“Our escape? What about you?” Xia Yu asked, fear starting to creep on her face.
“The enemy is too many. I need to stay with the guards to buy time for your escape.”
Miyojin and Xia Yu were stunned by what the older prince said. The Second Prince began to feel his body shake.
“But the bombs!” Xia Yu exclaimed in a panicked hiss.
“You- you can’t do this. You mustn’t sacrifice yourself like this!” Miyojin said in a trembling voice.
“I must. You two must go back to the palace at all costs. Tell them what happened here.” Zhujin instructed in a calm voice.
“No! If there’s anyone who should escape here, it’s you. You’re the Crown Prin-“
“Not anymore!” Zhujin disagreed as he placed a hand on the younger prince’s shoulder.
Miyojin couldn’t utter another word in shock. Tears began to pool in Zhujin’s eyes.
“Not anymore, Miyojin. Not anymore.”
Zhujin said it again in a calmer but heartbreaking voice. He then turned to Xia Yu.
“Little sister?”
“First Brother?” Xia Yu replied in a choked voice.
“Promise me you’ll protect the new Crown Prince and both of you return to the palace alive.”
“But Brother Zhujin-“
“Xia Yu, it’s the only way. You knew that as well, right?”
Xia Yu didn’t reply. Instead, a single tear fell from her eye. She couldn’t believe this was even happening.
“Please, my little sister.” Zhujin pleaded to Xia Yu making the latter’s heartbreak.
Miyojin looked at Xia Yu with alarmed eyes.
“No, Xia Yu! Don’t promise him anything!” He yelled in despair.
Xia Yu turned to Miyojin with tear-stricken eyes. She gave her husband a depressing smile. Then, turned back to Zhujin. She bowed her head in respect.
“I promise, Brother.”
Everything felt like falling apart for Miyojin. His senses felt numb as Xia Yu grabbed and dragged him away. A guard was leading them. While the remaining, including Zhujin, hold off the attacking assassins.
Miyojin began attempting to break free from Xia Yu. He kept calling his brother’s name. But even he couldn’t hear his own voice amidst the fighting. The guard leading them went back to help Xia Yu drag the protesting prince.
Eventually, Miyojin lost his strength and let himself get carried away. Soon, they finally reached the backside of the ship. The guard hurriedly cut down the rope of the boat dropping it onto the sea. There is only one last rope left to cut. Once cut, this rope will detach the boat from the ship.
“Your Highnesses! The boat’s ready.” the guard announced.
“Okay.” Xia Yu acknowledged. She then turned to Miyojin.
“Your Highness, let’s go.”
“No, I-I can’t leave him. I can’t leave Brother Zhujin behind!” Miyojin said in shaking determination.
“Then, I’m sorry.”
The moment Xia Yu said the last syllable, she grabbed both of the prince’s arms from behind. Then she ran towards the edge of the ship’s railings. Jumping from the railings, she threw herself and the prince overboard.
Both came plunging down the water. The coldness of the sea hit them like a block of ice. Xia Yu was the first one to resurface. But when she looked around, Miyojin was nowhere above water. Then, it hit her.
“Oh, you have got to be kidding me!”
Taking a deep breath, she dived into the water. After a few seconds, she resurfaced again with Miyojin who was gasping for air. The prince was clinging to her for dear life.
“I can’t swim! I can’t swim!” Miyojin said as he frantically held onto Xia Yu. The panicked prince had stirred a great deal of annoyance in Xia Yu.
“I know! So unless you want to die here, you better calm down!!!” Xia Yu screamed making Miyojin shut his mouth. She held the prince by his waist to keep him from sinking. This was the first time Xia Yu lost her composure to the prince. But soon after the prince behaved, Xia Yu also relaxed.
“Hurry! Grab onto me,” she said as she turned around guiding the prince’s arms around her waist. Not wanting to be screamed at again, Miyojin obliged. They swam to the boat that had already drifted away since the guard had already cut off the last rope. Miyojin soon realized how close he was to Xia Yu. This is the closest position they could have ever gotten. It was just too terrible that they weren’t in a more pleasant situation for him to appreciate this.
Soon enough, they reached the boat. With the help of Xia Yu, Miyojin got in the boat. Then he helped Xia Yu. When both of them were on the boat, that is also when it occurred. They saw the ship blow up in a chain reaction of explosions.
“Duck down!” Xia Yu screamed pulling the prince inside the boat for cover.
The impact of the explosion caused a wave that washed their boat further away from the flaming ship. They heard debris falling nearby. Lucky for them, nothing had fallen on the boat.
When they resurfaced from their hiding place, they looked at the ship as it began to sink. Not only was it in flames but the ship was also split in half. They saw people falling into the sea. But none of them rose back.
As they drifted away with the sea current, the shipwreck became smaller. It turned tinier and tinier until it was nothing more than a tiny flame in the distance.
After what seemed like an eternity of rowing, Miyojin and Xia Yu had finally spotted an island nearby. Seeing a shred of hope, their tired bodies were once again re-energized. They are finally rowing to a specific destination. By the time they came ashore, the night sky’s darkness started to lighten.
With the remaining strength they had, they pushed the boat onto the beach. Xia Yu went to the edge of the forest to cut as many palm leaves as she could. On the other hand, Miyojin pulled out the luggage in the boat. The luggage contained the very basic things they need to survive. Lucky for them, the items are mostly camping tools.
Afterward, they covered the boat with palm leaves. By the time they were all set to venture into the forest, the sun began to emerge. Both of them stopped to look at the rising sun. Miyojin stared at the bright light in awe.
This was the first time he saw the sunrise from the ocean. The bright yellow-orange light is like painting the dark blue sky. It was such a beauty. For a tiny bit of a moment, their troubles weren’t looming over their heads.
When the sun is completely out, they set out for the forest. With Xia Yu taking the lead, they eventually came across a small waterfall. After checking that it was freshwater, they took out the water bottle from the luggage to drink. They also found a large shady tree nearby.
Using the blanket from their get-away baggage, they both laid down to rest. Because of extreme exhaustion, both of them fell asleep immediately.
