Back under the surface, at the undersea palace, Haddock sat alone at his throne, lost in thought. He knew that getting Tintin to understand that he could not go up to the surface would help, but he never thought it would go so far as for Tintin to leave. He had sent almost every guard on a search party in order to find Tintin and bring him home. Still, even though what he had to do to Tintin was enough, Haddock was worried.

One of the guards swam hurriedly up to Haddock. "Any sign of them?" he asked, worried. "No, Your Highness," the guard replied. "We searched everywhere. There is no sign of Tintin, or his friends." "Then keep looking," Haddock said. "Leave no stone unturned, no shell unexplored. No one sleeps until the boy is brought back home, safe and sound." "I'm on it, sir," the guard replied. Then, he left the palace.

After the guard had left, Haddock went back to his throne. At that moment, Haddock felt horrible for what happened to Tintin. "What have I done?" he muttered to himself. "I just wish I could tell him how sorry I am. I just want him back."

On the next morning, Tintin woke up bright and early, eager to see the kingdom. After straightening his hair, he began to find some plain clothes to wear for the day. After looking in his closet, Tintin finally emerged, wearing a white shirt with a light blue vest, brown trousers, and brown shoes. He secured his pants with a black sash round his waist, and after staring in the mirror, he was ready.

After getting dressed, Tintin waited eagerly outside his room, expecting Alex to come. Minutes passed, and she didn't seem to come. Tintin grew worried. While exploring the corridors, Tintin began to hear a woman's voice. And he guessed it must have been Treasure. He trailed the voice all around until it led to one room at the end of the hall.

The door was open, so Tintin peeped inside. He found Alex seated at a desk littered with books, papers, and envelopes. Of course, Tintin thought. Alex is having one of those, um…princess lectures. Her mother's obviously teaching her how to be a princess! That's kinda like me…back home. I wonder when she'll come out. He also saw that Alex was getting pretty bored by her lessons right now.

"…as you've no doubt seen," Treasure was saying, "a princess must know when the perfect time comes for her to choose the perfect suitor in order to be happy for the rest of her life. But before that time comes, it is essential for a princess to be knowledgeable of her own kingdom."

Tintin tried to come up with a diversion to get Alex's attention. He noticed a button on the floor and picked it up. Through the open doorway, Tintin flicked the button at Alex's head. At that moment, Alex snapped right back. "Huh?" Alex asked, coming around. "Again, really? You know a princess does not daydream," Treasure said. She then noticed Tintin. "Oh, I see now," she said. "Alexandria, since your friend seems so eager to see the kingdom, I guess we can conclude our lesson for today." Alex then got up and walked out the door.

"Finally," Alex told Tintin. "I thought she'd never stop. Okay, let's get on with that tour, okay?" She then led Tintin out of the castle.

After hopping on a carriage pulled by horses, Alex then took Tintin on the tour of the kingdom. Tintin was awestruck by all the sights and places. Everything looked so much bigger in the human world! Alex smiled; she knew that Tintin would enjoy the sights and wonders.

Not too far from a bridge built over a lake connected with the ocean, Yan and Chang popped up from behind a large boulder. "Has he kissed her yet?" Chang asked Yan. "No, no yet," Yan said. "Oh," Chang said as the two swam upstream, leading to the village.

At the village, Alex showed Tintin around the town square. Tintin was amazed at how many booths and stalls sold many interesting items. At one booth, he picked up a flowered drape and spun around in it, looking as if he were wearing it as a dress. The saleswoman smiled as Alex told her about her new friend. Music was playing through the village, and as Tintin heard the music, he took Alex's hand, and the two started dancing.

As Yan and Chang were following Tintin, the Thompsons hovered above them. "Oy, you two!" Thompson yelled, landing on Yan's head. "Has that lad kissed his princess?" "Not yet, he hasn't," Yan said. "Hmm," Thomson said, shaking his head. "Well, they better move on with it." They noticed the carriage riding on the bridge above them. Tintin thought it would be fun to drive the carriage himself, so he took the reins and tried to steer it, which almost got him and Alex into an accident. But the two laughed it off for once.

Later that evening, Alex thought it would be time for her and Tintin to get to kknow each other better, so she asked him if he'd like to go on a boat ride. Tintin eagerly accepted. Soon, they were on a small boat, rowing through a still lagoon. As the sun was setting, the sky was slowly dotted with white stars.

Behind the tall reeds of a bush, Yan and Chang peeped through the reeds. They had to bring Castafiore along, so that they could use a little "assistance." The Thompsons even stopped by as well, with Thompson landing in front of Chang. "Hey, move over!" Chang whispered. "Move your feathers, I can't see anything." "Nothing's happenin'," Thompson said. "Only one day left, and that lass hasn't puckered up. Okay. This calls for a little romantic stimulation!" "Precisely," Thomson said.

The two seagulls then flew over to a nearby branch. Drawing in their breath, they began to sing a song. A pretty awful song, for their notes were sung out of tune. Alex then took notice and feigned pity. "Wow, somebody oughta find that poor animal and put it out of its misery, eh?" she said. Tintin could only shrug in reply.

Castafiore could only watch in embarrassment. "Uh, I am surrounded by amateurs!" she said. "If something has to be done, you must do it yourself. First, to create the mood. Percussion, strings, winds, words…" Soon, the fish that were instantly summoned began to play a delightfully romantic tune. Castafiore's plan was being perfectly executed:

There you see him

Look at him, you know you do

But there's something about him

And you don't know why

But you're dying to try

You want to kiss the boy

From above, Alex noticed the music playing. "You hear something?" she asked. Tintin had no idea what was going on.

"Yes, you want him

Look at him, you know you do

Possible he wants you too

There is one way to ask him

It doesn't take a word

Not a single word

Go on and kiss the boy

Aaaah, sha la la la la la

My, oh my

Looks like the girl is too shy

Not going to kiss the boy

Sha la la la la la

Is it too sad?

Isn't it a shame?

Too bad, she has to kiss the boy

Alex then faced Tintin. "You know, I feel pretty bad that I didn't catch your name," she said. "Maybe I could guess. Is it, um, Howard?" Tintin shook his head no. "No?" Alex asked. "Okay, how about…Richard? Edward?" Soon, while approaching the boat low enough to stay hidden, Yan whispered, "Tintin. His name is Tintin." "Tintin?" Alex said. "Hmm, that's not half bad. Okay, Tintin."

"Now's your moment

Floating in the cool lagoon

Girl, you must do it soon

No time will be better

And he won't say a word

Until you kiss the boy

Aaaah, sha la la la la la

Don't be scared

You have the mood prepared

Go on and kiss the boy

Sha la la la la la

Don't stop now

Don't try to hide it now

You want to kiss the boy

Sha la la la la la

Just float along

And listen to the song

The song says kiss the boy

Sha la la la la la

The music plays

Do what the music says

You have to kiss the boy

You've got to kiss the boy

You want to kiss the boy

You've got to kiss the boy

Go on and kiss the boy."

For the first time, Tintin and Alex's eyes were locked, facing each other in a lovely way. Now Tintin felt such a romantic mood coming along, even Alex. And, just as they were about to lean in and lock lips together, their boat suddenly tipped over, sending the two overboard! "Don't worry! I got you!" Alex said, grabbing Tintin and helping him back on the boat.

From a distance, Tom and Allan watched, sneering with glee. They congratulated each other on executing their plan perfectly.