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[color=1E90FF][b]Interactions[/b]:[/color] [@AliveFalling]
[color=1E90FF][b]Time[/b]: 1 pm[/color]
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No king? Sjan-dehk wasn’t sure if it was annoyance or delight that filled his heart. On the one hand, it meant that his crew’s over-hurried toil had been all for naught. On the other, it made the royal tutor look laughably foolish, and that was always something he could cheer for.

Ultimately, he decided on a mix of both emotions. The smile on his face was welcoming, but irritation laid shallow in his heart. How good of a king could this Edin be, if his royal word was only as good as sodden gunpowder? For a task as simple as a mere walk through his own city, no less. [color=1E90FF]“Stand the men down,”[/color] he said in a low voice to Mursi, his eyes never leaving the two men standing on the pier alongside their small contingent of guards. [i]Royal[/i] guards, Sjan-dehk noted. Their uniforms were not unlike the ones he had seen at the castle. 

[color=1E90FF][i]“Welcome to Sada Kurau. I am Wasun Sjan-dehk. Her captain.”[/i][/color] Sjan-dehk called back, holding up a hand. [color=1E90FF][i]“We ah…We thought the king was coming.”[/i][/color] He pointed to the [i]Celestine[/i] across from him and behind the men. [color=1E90FF][i]“No need to come. Ship to inspect is over there. Wait. I bring you.”[/i][/color] Behind him, Mursi barked a rapid series of commands. They were followed by plenty of grousing by the sharpshooters, but also an equal amount of relieved comments from the very same men. 

“Young marcher prince, should we not invite them aboard?” The royal tutor asked in a mutter. 

Sjan-dehk offered a minute, almost unnoticeable shrug in response. [color=1E90FF]“There’s no reason for them to. Only reason the king would’ve come aboard was to inspect the Sudah’s goods. These–”[/color] he surreptitiously tilted his chin towards the two men. [color=1E90FF]“–people said they want to inspect the [i]Celestine[/i].”[/color]

The tutor’s face wrinkled in a frown. “Still, it would be polite–”

[color=1E90FF]“The king’s showing us what politeness gets us in this city, most knowledgeable one.”[/color] There was a bite in Sjan-dehk’s words, but in truth, he didn’t feel particularly slighted. In fact, the king’s absence saved him the headache of having to use polite speech and perform the usual courtly nonsense. Granted, it would’ve all been greatly truncated – a ship’s captain was a king of kings when aboard their vessel, of course – but it would’ve still been a trouble he’d rather go without. Even so, he would’ve appreciated it if the king could at least keep true to his word. 

“They look like the king’s men,” the tutor pointed out. “We should treat them properly, at the very least.”

[color=1E90FF]“And I’m our queen’s captain. We’re equally matched, wouldn’t you agree?”[/color] Sjan-dehk flashed the old man a mischievous grin before starting to make his way down the gangplank. He hadn’t been joking; the king’s men were here to inspect the Celestine, and that was what Sjan-dehk would help them do. No more, no less. Once he was closer, he gave them a slight bow of his head that could be seen as apologetic. [color=1E90FF][i]“I must tell my men you are here. Excuse me.”[/i][/color]

Sjan-dehk walked around them until he was at the base of the Celestine’s gangplank. Looking up, he cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, [color=1E90FF]“Master Hai-shuun! The king’s men are here!”[/color]

The response was instant. “Yes, captain! The ship’s ready for inspection!”

That was quite the overstatement, to say the least. None of it was Hai-shuun’s or the crew’s fault; there was only so much they could do with the time afforded to them. Even standing on the pier, it was clear from the discoloured planking that the Celestine had seen far, far better days. Though her sails had been neatly furled and lashed to their yardarms, the gaping holes shot through them were still easily visible to even an untrained eye. That said nothing of the thin cracks appearing like vines gripping the hull which were, put simply, impossible to fix without more time and materials.

It would have to do. Besides, Sjan-dehk didn’t want her to look too good. 

[color=1E90FF][i]“This way,”[/i][/color] he said and beckoned for the two men to follow him up the gangplank. [color=1E90FF][i]“My men did their best, but ah…You can see she is still not good.”[/i][/color]