[Third Person POV]

“Oooooh! Seventy-nine bottles of beer on the wall, seventy-nine bottles of beer!” Lucian sang at the top of his lungs, swaying slightly as he leaned lazily against the green-painted railing of the ship. His voice broken and off-key, but filled with obnoxious enthusiasm. “Take one down and pass it around, seventy-eight bottles of beer on the waaaall!”

“LUCIAN! SHUT! UP!” Annabeth shouted, her voice cracking with the sheer force of her frustration. Her fingers clutched at her golden hair as if she was seconds away from yanking it all out, her storm-gray eyes flashing dangerously. “Oh my gods, you’re driving me insane!”

Thalia was practically doubled over behind the steering wheel, laughter spilling freely from her lips. She adjusted her grip on the helm, steadying the ship as the salty sea breeze whipped through her dark spiky hair.

“Ugh, fine, fine…” Lucian grumbled dramatically, crossing his arms like a scolded child. He fell silent for several moments, though his eyes darted left and right with suspicious energy. Then, slowly, a mischievous grin tugged at his lips.

He raised one hand, letting wisps of mist curl lazily between his fingers, and with a little flourish, shaped it into a small harmonica. Without hesitation, he pressed it against his mouth and blew—loudly, obnoxiously, filling the deck with a screechy, off-pitch noise that echoed across the water like an irritating sea bird.

Annabeth didn’t even hesitate. In a single fluid motion, she yanked off her sneaker and hurled it across the deck like a professional pitcher. Lucian ducked with a laugh, and the shoe whizzed over his head, sailing past the railing before plopping unceremoniously into the waves below.

Her eye twitched violently as she glared at him.

Lucian, realizing she might actually kill him in his sleep if he continued, quickly dissolved the harmonica back into mist. He raised his hands in surrender. “Alright, alright, I’ll stop. Jeez, you’re touchy today…”

He grumbled under his breath as he trudged up the steps toward Thalia, muttering, “Someone’s on her period…”

“I HEARD THAT!” Annabeth’s furious shout followed him, her glare burning holes into the back of his head.

Thalia rolled her eyes, though the corner of her mouth twitched in amusement. She kept her eyes on the endless horizon, her hands steady on the wheel. “How bored are you, exactly?” she asked dryly.

Lucian slumped against the railing beside her, letting out a groan loud enough to rival a dying whale. “Incredibly. It’s been—what? An hour since we set sail? And I’m already bored out of my mind.” His head dropped back with exaggerated despair. “I think the ocean is trying to kill me with monotony.”

Thalia gave him a quick sideways glance before returning to the waves. “Just so you know, the reason Annabeth is so cranky is because she stayed up all night weaving wards for the camp. She hasn’t had a wink of sleep, so cut her some slack”

Lucian pouted but nodded reluctantly. “Yes, mom.”

Thalia didn’t even bother hiding the smirk as she lifted a booted foot and gave him a swift kick on the backside. “If you’re that restless, why don’t you make yourself useful? Climb the watchtower and keep lookout. Maybe you’ll spot something other than your own reflection.”

“I’m starting to feel very unloved at the moment,” Lucian complained in a mock-wounded voice, shoulders slumping.

“Don’t worry,” Thalia replied, scoffing lightly. “Once we patch you up and get you healed, I’ll shower you with all the love you deserve “

His head immediately snapped up, a grin spreading from ear to ear. “Now that is something to look forward to.”

His shadow swirled and writhed beneath him, lifting him effortlessly off the deck. The dark mist carried him upward, depositing him into the crow’s nest high above the sails. From this vantage point, the world stretched endlessly: the shimmering expanse of the ocean, the horizon where the sky kissed the waves, and the rolling sails below.

Settling into the basket, Lucian leaned back, letting the breeze tug at his crimson cape as it flared behind him. Then, as another ridiculous idea struck him, he smirked and summoned more mist. In seconds, an eyepatch appeared over one of his eyes, and a brass telescope materialized in his hand. He planted one boot firmly on the edge of the railing, raised the scope dramatically to his face, and for good measure, conjured a flamboyant pirate hat atop his head.

“This is the beginning of the great pirate era—the search for the One Piece! The greatest pirate treasure in all the Seven Seas!” Lucian declared, standing tall in the crow’s nest like some self-proclaimed king of the ocean. His red cape flapped dramatically in the wind, his eyepatch gleaming in the sunlight.

“I thought we were searching for the Golden Fleece?” Nox appeared from his shadow, his wisp-like body floating in lazy circles around Lucian.

“What’s the One Piece?” Lucerna chimed in, floating up, hovering closer with wide, curious eyes.

Lucian grinned, lowering his voice as if unveiling some ancient mystery. “Gather round, my children, and listen well. For I shall tell you of the legendary pirate, Gol D. Roger—the man who started an era that changed the seas forever!” His tone dripped with theatrics, and soon Nebula and Aerarius appeared too, perching nearby with eager anticipation.

All four sat around him like attentive students at storytime, their tiny faces lit with wonder as Lucian painted vivid pictures with his words. He waved his hands dramatically, one moment gesturing as if wielding a cutlass, the next holding his mist-forged telescope to scan the horizon.

From the deck below, Thalia glanced upward and caught sight of the scene. She smiled despite herself. ‘For someone that was initially against and cringing at being called Father, he’s taken the role well’

“And so,” Lucian continued, his voice dropping low for dramatic effect, “on the day of his execution, Gol D. Roger laughed. He looked out at the world and proclaimed: ‘You want my treasure? You can have it! I left everything together in one place. Now you just have to find it!’ His death ignited the flames of ambition across every sea, sparking the Great Pirate Era!”

“Wooooah!” the four children exclaimed in unison, clapping their hands together, their eyes sparkling with awe.

Immediately, Nebula conjured tiny pirate hats out of starry mist and plopped one onto each sibling’s head. Aerarius turned one of his feet into a peg leg, stomping proudly across the crow’s nest, while Nox gleefully formed a curved hook for a hand.

Lucian leaned forwards, watching with a faint warm smile as they whirled around him, pretending to duel invisible enemies. With a little help from Nebula, he created miniature telescopes for them, and soon they were zipping through the air like pint-sized scouts, shouting excited reports of “enemy fleets” and “treasures spotted!”

“Father!” Lucerna cried, saluting sharply with his tiny toy telescope. “Enemy ship spotted, west of us! What are your orders, Captain?”

Lucian raised an eyebrow. “What?” He blinked, a little thrown off by the sudden seriousness. Snatching his real telescope, he extended it and peered toward the horizon.

Sure enough, far off in the distance, a massive white ship loomed. Even at that range, its sheer size was impossible to miss. The gleaming hull stretched at least ten stories high, crowned with another dozen stacked decks glittering with lights. The ship cutting through the waves like a moving fortress.

Painted boldly across the bow in black letters, illuminated by floodlights, was its name: PRINCESS ANDROMEDA.

Lucian’s lips curled into a sharp grin. “Ha! You’ve got to be kidding me. This just got ten times better.” He snapped the telescope shut and laughed. “As for my orders—we’re going to approach it. Obviously!”

Without hesitation, he leapt from the crow’s nest. His shadow flared beneath him, carrying him down in a smooth arc until he landed on the ship’s railing beside Thalia with a solid thud. The sudden appearance startled her for a second, but when she looked up and saw him—cape fluttering, eyepatch in place, pirate hat tilted at an absurd angle, and hands planted proudly on his hips—she couldn’t stop the twitch at the corner of her lips.

“Guess what~” Lucian sang out, voice brimming with excitement. “There may be a chance I’ll get to hear Luke scream again. Isn’t that just wonderful? And so soon, too!”

“What?” Thalia blinked in surprise, eyebrows shooting upward.

“West,” Lucian said with a grin so sharp it could cut steel. “There’s a cruise ship out there—the Princess Andromeda. And if I’m right… Luke is on board. So what do you say we pay our dear old friend a visit? Maybe rattle him up a bit, torment him like the good old days.”

Thalia burst out laughing, shaking her head in disbelief. “There’s something seriously wrong with you… but fine, I’m in. Let’s go.”

She yanked the wheel sharply, and the ship lurched with a violent spin. The ship groaned under the strain, sails whipped around, and the whole vessel cut across the waves like a predator turning on its prey.

A loud thud echoed inside, followed by Annabeth’s furious voice: “Ow!! A little warning would’ve been nice!”

Lucian and Thalia froze for a split second, then glanced at one another. Their sheepish expressions lasted only a heartbeat before they both broke into chuckles. Without another word, they guided their ship full speed toward the Princess Andromeda.

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep