Keith lowered the compass and glared at me with a fierce look.
"The Black Sea is on the left. Are you planning to throw me there and kill me?"
Kill him? He looked more likely to stab me at any moment.
Why was I given this ridiculous mission when the world should be entrusted to that Crown Prince?
"The fact that the Black Sea is on the left, not the right, means we've already crossed it."
"Nonsense. Every living thing that enters the Black Sea dies. I saw it with my own eyes."
Well, unless the fallen angel who created the Black Sea saves them.
I had no choice.
"I overheard my father talking to someone. At the ship party last night, they said they were going to throw Your Highness into the Black Sea. I didn't know they planned to throw me in as well."
"You expect me to believe that..."
I tossed the key that had unlocked the handcuffs onto the table.
"Judging by the direction, this ship seems to be heading toward Hivery Island. You can't operate a ship anyway. There should be an escape boat somewhere. Take it and farewell."
After speaking quickly, I opened the navigation room door.
I still had things to do and no time to argue with someone who wouldn't believe anything I said.
Hivery Island was the nearest island. If Keith wasn't an idiot, he would head there.
"Wait!"
As I stepped out of the navigation room, Keith hurried after me.
"Then why did the Duchess abandon me? Was it your doing that I survived the Black Sea? How did you do it? If you knew a way to survive, have you simply watched people die all this time?"
This guy talks too much.
Keith followed close behind me, firing questions nonstop.
"It wasn't me."
"Then who saved me?"
A fallen angel.
"How should I know?"
I descended to the first floor and entered the dining hall directly below the navigation room.
We should reach Hivery Island tomorrow. But with two people who knew nothing about sailing, it could take much longer.
In the original story, Keith and I wandered for two weeks before finally reaching the island.
Therefore, the most important things were drinking water and food supplies.
"Are you really uninvolved in all this? Normally you would be throwing tantrums, but you're far too calm."
"If Your Highness were the Empress, would you throw me into the middle of the sea with you and order me to kill you?"
"That's..."
For once, Keith had no answer.
Taking advantage of his silence, I opened a door beside the kitchen and found a small pantry.
There was plenty of food. Even the fish in the restaurant aquarium could be used if necessary.
Assuming we arrived on time.
"Good. Next destination."
As I left the pantry, Keith blocked the doorway.
"Where are you going now?"
"To the weapons storage."
Keith narrowed his already sharp eyes suspiciously.
"I'm not planning to kill Your Highness. We were captured by pirates as soon as we crossed the Black Sea. Don't you think weapons might be useful in these dangerous waters?"
"I understand your reasoning. But you're still suspicious. You'll remain under my watch for now."
So that was why he kept following me.
Since we'd be living together for a year, it was probably time to stop fighting.
"Fine. Then let's go to the infirmary first."
"...Are you hurt? Earlier, I was on edge and couldn't control my strength. I didn't mean to shove you that hard."
Was he always this considerate because he was the protagonist?
"Not me. You. Your wrists are all scraped."
I pointed at the handcuffs still attached to his wrists.
"Those injuries happened because you fought pirates while wearing those."
"I'll go to the infirmary first—"
"Come with me."
A troublesome leech had attached itself to me.
We removed the handcuffs and entered the infirmary on the first floor.
"Your Highness, clean your wounds properly."
After washing my hands, I searched for disinfectant and bandages.
"Sit down and give me your hand."
"I'll do it myself."
Keith calmly applied medicine to his wounds without even changing expression.
"It seems to have been the Empress and Duke Frye who planned this. Do you know anything else?"
"Not really. Maybe I hit my head when I was thrown overboard."
"Are you claiming amnesia?"
"Maybe."
"What a convenient excuse."
After finishing the bandaging, Keith stared directly at me.
"I'm returning to the Empire. I don't care how long it takes. What about you?"
"I guess I'll go with you for now."
Though I planned to leave before reaching the Empire.
Unlike the original story, I wanted a peaceful life.
"Then don't lie to me. And I won't tolerate the behavior you've shown in the past. If you do anything suspicious, you'll regret it."
His voice was stern.
"Is there really nothing else you remember?"
"Actually, there is one thing."
I quickly spoke.
"There are two more people who were thrown into the Black Sea besides us."
"Who?"
"Marquis Berto Cedorf and..."
He was a naval commander who supported Keith and played an important role as navigator in the original story.
"And Perian Orde, eldest son of the Orde Viscount family."
A genius physician aiming to become the youngest director of the Imperial Medical Institute.
He had been endlessly kind to the heroine and mercilessly cold to me.
"If it's those two..."
A shadow crossed Keith's face.
Because they had been abandoned due to their support for him, he probably assumed they were already dead.
"They're alive."
Keith looked at me, clearly unconvinced.
Unlike us, they had awakened directly on Hivery Island and were probably living comfortably after defeating pirates with help from the villagers.
"Even a weak person like me survived. Have some hope."
"On a battlefield, false hope can get people killed."
Pain hid beneath his calm words.
"But this isn't a battlefield. First, we need to survive ourselves."
I stood up.
"I'm going to check the route again. Oh, may I use the bathroom first?"
"Now that you mention it..."
Keith looked me over openly.
"What exactly are you wearing?"
I was dressed in ragged clothes whose origin I didn't even know.
Meanwhile, Keith still wore the elegant uniform from the previous night's party.
"I'm not sure. Amnesia, remember?"
"I specifically told you not to lie..."
"Anyway, I'll take that as permission."
"Sigh. I'll check the navigation room. Search the cabins for something to change into. There will probably only be men's clothing."
"Thanks."
As I walked away, I could feel Keith's gaze following me.
He was probably wondering why the notorious duchess was acting so differently.
As long as it didn't interfere with my role as guide, he could suspect me all he wanted.
I wiped the steam off the mirror.
"Wow. This is the first time I've seen my face."
Six months ago, I had transmigrated into Tatiana while she was imprisoned.
Then I was thrown into the Black Sea.
"My beauty is insane."
I had just washed my hair, and I looked incredibly pure and elegant.
"Shut away in prison, yet blessed with snow-white skin, golden hair like sunlight, and turquoise eyes like the sea!"
I was thin from confinement, but staring at my reflection would keep me entertained for a long time.
Good. My mood improved.
The oversized shirt hung below my hips, so I treated it like a dress and rolled up the sleeves.
"I'm finally free."
Once the protagonists safely returned to the Empire, I would sell the pirate treasure Keith eventually recovered and find a place to settle down.
Just thinking about it made my heart race.
Growl—
My stomach growled.
"Finally, I can eat proper meals instead of hard prison bread."
Excited, I rushed out of the bathroom looking for Keith.
"Your Highness! Where are you?"
"Up here."
Keith's voice came from above.
"Were you in the navigation room this whole time?"
Shielding my eyes from the sunlight, I looked up.
"I thought I might find some useful information. More importantly, why were you looking for me?"