19 NOVEL BELLE (1/2)

Dillo, the owner of the booth rubbed his eyes and took another look, but there stood the Darling Twins staring at him in a muted body language. His heart sank into his stomach and chest heated up like the frying pan he daily used to roast loaves of bread on.

The next moment, he ended up shifting his head by a few degrees, only to find Lirzod staring at him in a similar fashion. His eyes broadened. ”You are...”

”I have to finish my bath first!” Lirzod wasted no time in entering one of the rooms, and almost at the same time, the Darling twins dashed away in the opposite direction. Dillo stood still and had a puzzled expression, unable to get his head around what just happened.

The members of the crowd looked at each other in disappointment, as all they could do was watch the Darling Brothers snatch a layer of the cake as they made themselves scarce.

”The cake from the 30th deck... half of it has already been wasted.”

”Did they have to take away the butterscotch layer of all?”

”They didn't even wish Dillo, yet snatched a big chunk of the cake. Taking such privilege for granted, hmph.”

”Idiot, this is too little of what a Major[1] is privileged to do.”

Men blurted out their opinions and those who disagreed with each other's views began to quarrel. A few others were rather interested in stuffing themselves with the cake. The rest focused on slapping Dillo's rear end separately and in succession which served as an additional gift for his birthday.

Inside a bathroom.

”Che, I ended up coming here when I should have run away instead,” Lirzod bit his nails. ”What do I do now? What if the brothers are waiting for me outside?” He looked around and his stare stopped on the rapidly-running ventilation fan which appeared to be made out of plastic. A corner of his lips curled up just a little. ”Now I can get to my room without getting noticed.” He couldn't help but chuckle.

A couple of seconds later.

Something got sent flying out of the ship and traveled in a complex path before ending up in the sea at a spot quite far away from the ship. From a teeny hole, Lirzod's head popped out and he took a look around only to meet darkness that laid everywhere ahead. With wild air whipping at him, he could barely see against the wind. He immediately pulled back his head. ”What's the hell? Why is it so windy outside?” He tapped his finger on his chin and pondered for a moment. ”Surely, the ship isn't traveling at this speed. It must be going through some wild region. Tch, what now?”

Meanwhile, at someplace else on the same deck.

A thin-lipped, glossy red-haired, oval-faced, milky smooth-skinned girl with delicate hands hanging from small shoulders supported by the petite body, walked down the corridors and attracted lots of attention. Even if she were to wear a hood, her floral-patterned white dress alone would have made her easily stand out. Her pink purse was simply an added asset. Most men were unable to take their eyes off her and in their eyes, she appeared no less resplendent than a laughing rose.

”I may be living for this day—a nautical day when I get to meet a novel belle built with bits of all rights and praise a mien of your magnificence.” A yellow-haired man brought a fresh-looking lotus and knelt before her, his arms raised high, carefully holding the flower. ”May I have the pleasure of knowing the name of this novel belle?” His eyes showered bountiful of warmth.

She stared down at him with a blank face.

”Oi, isn't that the Flower Knight's brother?” Some of the men standing nearby their rooms felt disappointed upon seeing that man. ”So, he's fetching her already?”

”I guess, we can never get a girlfriend as long as we linger here.” Some others were downright sobbing on the inside.

The red-haired girl bypassed the kneeling man, startling everyone including himself. He swiftly stood and came to her front. ”What's wrong, miss? Do you not like flowers?”

”I do,” The girl said, her tone turning wintry by the second. ”But not hypnotizing ones.”

Her words shook the hearts of most people around, especially the ones who didn't know of the fact. The yellow-haired guy forced out a smile and quickly slid the flower into his coat pocket.

The other men could only look at each other's faces with slackened jaws. But none dared to utter a word, fearing the thought of their words reaching the yellow-haired man's ears.

”Now, if you step aside, I will—” The girl was saying, but the guy took out a tiny piece of paper and exhibited its details to her. A name was written on it which read ”Sariyu Basuvu.” A teeny picture of her was drawn on it as well.

The girl's eyes slightly enlarged. She looked up at the man who was one-and-half feet taller than her. ”How do you know my name?” Her voice strained a little.

”Kyle Bilburg. You can call me Kyle.” He smiled, and put his hand forward expecting a handshake, but didn't receive it. He relaxed his arm and forced out a whimsical smile. ”If you want to know how we know your name, you can come with me. I will straight away take you to the upper decks.”

Sariyu paused a moment. ”What's expected in return?”

”Nothing much. You just have to work as we tell you to for one month, that's all. By the end, you will be eating with a golden plate, drinking with a golden glass.”

She let out an impatient snort. ”So, all I get is a couple of golden kitchenware.”

Kyle snorted even louder and said, ”It all depends on the quality you put in your work.”

”Uh...” She raised one of her brows. ”And I presume this work involves nothing fancy.”

”Like I said, it varies from person to person.” One moment they traded smiles and the next moment, cold glances replaced the smiles. None of the two seemed like they would back down.

”Oh, you mean like for those who smell the flowers daily and for those who don't.”

Kyle's makeshift smile faded away as his face turned redder by the second. ”Look, girl,” He leaned forward and darted an ominous gaze at her, pointing his finger at her face, and spoke in a low tone. ”Like your appearance, you obviously belong to some weedy clan who's identity I don't even give a f*ck about. So, either choose to come with me and I'll be gracious enough to throw some gold biscuits now and then for you to gnaw on, or just get the f*ck off my face... Unless you want me to pummel you into a pulp and serve you to seals.”

Sariyu stared at him, clenching her jaw.

Kyle stepped back, spread his arms wide open and laughed in a playful manner before speaking out loud. ”So, what do you say, beauty?”

Sariyu stepped to the side and went past him without saying a word. Kyle just went into a deep thought before walking in the other direction. (F*ck! Another failure.)

A few minutes later.

Sariyu stopped by at a Bread Booth.

”Excuse me, is there any shop here where I can sell goods?”

The owner of the booth, a blind man replied, ”No, madam. You must head to the 15th deck before you get to sell anything as we don't have markets on the lower decks.”

”Mm,” She mused to herself. (So, I have to wait for now.) ”Where can I buy a map of the decks?”

”Map?” The blind man laughed in a transparent manner. ”Madam, no floors of this tenth belt has a map.”