"Oi."
Austin crouched there, looking at Little Sand lying motionless on the recliner, and poked her cheek.
"Move a little and eat something. You don't want to starve to death aboard the Oro Jackson, do you?"
Austin snapped his fingers.
A plate of seafood egg fried rice appeared on the table before her.
Austin simply stared at her, while she stared back at him with a world-weary expression.
Austin: "..."
Little Sand: "..."
Perhaps she was truly too hungry to bear it, or perhaps Austin's antics had finally driven her mad. Suppressing her weakness, she finally spoke.
"You... bastard... I can't even lift my hand. How am I supposed to eat...?"
Austin's eyes lit up at once.
Holy shit.
I forgot!
"Then... can you promise to behave if I let you go?"
Little Sand nodded as though she had resigned herself to it.
Austin did not believe her. It was not that he feared anything else; he was mainly worried that if she suddenly went crazy and damaged the Oro Jackson, it would break his heart.
A red glint flashed through his eyes. After confirming it, Austin nodded and snapped his fingers.
The black Seastone bracelet around Little Sand's ankle vanished instantly.
And as expected, she did nothing unusual. She merely picked up a spoon and began eating in silence.
Austin interlaced his fingers beneath his chin and watched Little Sand eat with great enthusiasm as he gently coaxed her.
"So? Do you want to join us?"
"I know what you're thinking. After realizing that you could never become king through your own strength alone."
"You became disheartened and instead wanted to build a utopia, a pure land untouched by any force in the world. So... you're looking for that, aren't you?"
Austin supported his chin with a gentle smile.