I do not own Odin Sphere or any of the characters depicted in this story (with few exceptions). That should be self-explanatory.
Chapter 7: Travel Plans
A couple more days had passed, and Princess Velvet was up and moving again. Cornelius couldn't have been happier to see her make a full recovery; in fact, he could hardly believe that merely a week ago he had found her in Elrit Forest on the brink of death.
While the two quickly became close friends, Cornelius's father Edmund began to worry.
"I just don't know about this," Edmund complained as he watched Velvet and his son take a walk through the busy streets of Titania. "She's a Valentinian princess, and we both know how eager King Valentine is to drag other nations into the war."
The man Edmund was speaking to was seated just behind him, reading a thick novel. The moustache of King Gallon twitched subtly at his son's remark as he flipped through the pages.
"Leave the boy be," Gallon insisted. "A woman in his life is just what he needs, and besides, she seems to have just as much against Valentine as we do. I only wish your brother had taken a girl of such high status as a wife."
"High status?" questioned Edmund which a laugh. "She was exiled! What status do you suppose she has now?"
"You seem to forget," countered Gallon, putting down the book he was reading, "that girl Cornelius has become friendly with is the princess of more than one nation."
Edmund sighed, watching Velvet and Cornelius round a street corner and disappear from his sight.
---
"Okay, let's go!" Cornelius whispered, taking Velvet by her hand and leading her to the Titania border. He had waited until he could no longer see the palace, for fear that his father might witness him fleeing the country with Velvet.
"Cornelius, where are we going?" Velvet asked curiously, not daring to let go of his hand. Other than Ingway and her mother, Cornelius had become her only friend, the only person that seemed to value her more than himself. They were now racing across an enormous meadow that blanketed the outskirts of the Titanian land, nothing on the horizon except sky and sea.
"I promised you that we would return to Valentine," Cornelius replied, as Titania's harbor came into view. "And now I'm going to make good on that promise."
Velvet gasped at the towering ship that was sheltered in the harbor, a royal vessel that Cornelius had arranged to use for their journey. The gold and black Titanian flags perched on the top fluttered gently in the spring breeze as the two dashed through the flowers toward the harbor.
"I... don't know how to thank you for everything you're doing for me," Velvet said as she boarded the fancy ship with Cornelius, squeezing his hand affectionately. "Are you sure you wish to go with me? If you try to stop my grandfather, he may use it as an excuse to attack your country..."
"Titania is very strong," Cornelius assured her. "Valentine is a powerful nation, but it would be foolish to fight wars on both fronts. Their attention is on Ragnanival... so we should be safe as long as they hold up."
A tall, muscular Titanian captain wearing the same black and gold as the vessel's flags approached Velvet and Cornelius as they talked.
"We're ready to set sail, Master Cornelius," he informed them. "But I'm afraid we cannot set a course directly for Valentine. We would be sailing directly between the warring nations, and inevitably get caught in the crossfire."
Cornelius's heart sank a bit at the news, but maintained his determination to keep his promise with Velvet.
"Are there any other routes possible?" he asked urgently. "It's very important that we make this trip."
The ship captain unfurled a map depicting the landmasses and oceans of Erion. An ink line marked the originally planned course, setting sail directly west of Titania and steering southward where Valentine's harbor was located, on the nation's northern coast. As the captain had explained to them, Ragnanival was northeast of Valentine, meaning they would be passing directly between them. An outbreak of battle during the trip would be cause for a watery grave. Cornelius took a good look at the map, an idea coming to mind. It would, however, be relatively risky.
"Do you suppose we could make for Ringford?" the prince suggested to the ship's captain.
"Ringford?" inquired Velvet, examining the map herself. "The land of the fairies?"
Cornelius nodded his head. "Yes, I think we could sail southwest toward Ringford and cut through the forest on foot. Valentine is just on the other side."
"If that's what Master Cornelius wishes," the captain responded, rolling the map back up and chuckling. "Your father really is not going to like you doing this."
"The responsibility is mine to bear," Cornelius insisted sternly. "I cannot rest knowing that the life of Velvet's mother is to be taken wrongfully."
Nodding, the captain left them alone. Velvet pressed herself against Cornelius's chest, strands of her golden hair drifting out from beneath her scarlet hood. She let out a trembling sigh as the Titanian prince hugged her protectively.
"Velvet, you're shaking..." Cornelius whispered. The girl in his arms looked up at him, the angle of her head causing her hood to slip off. Cornelius once again found himself lost in Velvet's sparkling eyes.
"I'll have to face my grandfather when we reach Valentine," Velvet explained. "I fear what he might do when he finds out I returned."
"You needn't fear anything," came Cornelius's comforting reply. "I won't let King Valentine lay a finger on you, I promise."
Velvet's hold around the man that had saved her life tightened as she gazed out at the horizon. The Titanian ship slowly began to drift out to sea, their voyage toward the fairy kingdom of Ringford commencing.
"Thank you, Cornelius," was all she could think to say. Velvet could only wish she could remain on that ship with Cornelius forever.