The port of Sel was bathed in the soft morning light, a pale sun rising behind the mist-covered mountains. Mero, the young prince of this island kingdom, stood on the quay, his feet firmly planted in the sand. The sea breeze blew through his black hair, and the salty scent of the ocean mixed with the fresh air. This was his last morning in his kingdom, on his homeland.

Beside him stood his nurse, Leila. She remained silent, but her gaze upon Mero left no doubt about the gravity of the moment. She had been by his side since his birth, a discreet but unwavering pillar in his life. The small islands they had left behind were already in sight, one last time. They were slowly disappearing into the horizon, a soft mist engulfing their rounded shapes.

Mero turned his head and glimpsed the great vessel that would take him to the Empire of Dauph. The ship, a towering three-masted vessel, seemed much larger and more imposing than anything he had ever seen in his island life. He straightened up, his gaze drifting, not wanting to appear too vulnerable, even though a knot was forming in his stomach.

"Your Highness, the ship is waiting," said Leila in a firm but respectful voice. "It’s time."

Mero nodded without answering. His gaze shifted to the man accompanying him, a distant member of the royal family. He had never really gotten to know this tutor, whom his parents had appointed. Mero had seen him on rare occasions during family celebrations, but never long enough to form any real connection. The man was tall, with rigid features, a distant air, as if his mind belonged to another world. He was not oblivious to the scrutinizing looks of the other nobles, who had always expected him to be more than just a child, but he remained distant and almost cold.

"Are you ready, Your Highness?" asked the man in a monotonous voice.

Mero turned to him, his face serious. "Yes. But... the journey will be long, won't it?" Doubt pierced his voice, despite his efforts to remain calm.

The tutor gave a slight smile, but it was a reserved smile, almost devoid of emotion. "Long, indeed. The journey will take several weeks, but you’ll get used to it. You must look beyond the familiar shores and islands. The empire is vast, and the future awaits you."

"I don’t know if I’m ready for this," Mero murmured, his gaze wandering one last time over the familiar islands of Sel.

"Your father and your grandfather chose this path, Your Highness. It is a road you must now follow," replied Leila, without a hint of excessive sentiment in her voice, but her words were there to remind him of the responsibility on his shoulders. "Your destiny awaits you."

Leila's final words struck Mero like a bolt of lightning. He turned his head and stepped toward the ship. The sea before him, calm and vast, seemed to call to him. Every wave that crashed against the quay was a harsh reminder that he was leaving everything he knew behind.

The great vessel, dark and imposing, awaited his departure. He would have liked to turn around one last time, run across the beaches, feel the scent of the land, but he knew that wasn’t possible. He had to face what awaited him. The Empire was an unknown, but everything he now knew pushed him to go. For his family, for the kingdom of Sel. A legacy, a duty.

As he boarded the ship, Mero felt a shiver of fear and excitement course through his body. The adventure ahead was just beginning.

The morning rose over a calm sea, almost still, as if the world itself hesitated to embark on the journey awaiting Mero. The South Wind slid silently over the waves, whose deep blue seemed to blend with the sky in the distance, with no clear boundary between the horizon and the infinite. The wind was light, a gentle breath that barely carried the sails, and the ship moved at a slow pace.

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Mero woke up in his small cabin, bathed in the soft light filtered through the canvas curtains. The sky, still fresh, hinted at the first light of day. The sea was calm, but the strange feeling of emptiness around him, this vast, endless space, didn’t fail to make him a little anxious. He was no longer on his familiar islands, nor in the busy streets of his kingdom. Here, everything seemed so vast, so far removed from what he had known.

The nurse entered the room quietly, as she did every morning. Her movements were measured, and her gaze always held the same softness, but Mero knew that behind this softness lay a form of discipline imposed by custom.

"Your Majesty," she murmured with her gentle yet firm accent. "Breakfast is ready. You must prepare."

He nodded, slowly rising. The room was small, but the bed was comfortable, and his belongings were neatly arranged. Mero dressed in silence, his thoughts drifting over the blue void outside. This sea, this vast ocean, made him feel so small, and a slight shiver of nervousness ran down his neck.

After dressing, he made his way to the table by the window. Leila served him hot tea and some fresh bread. The voices of the crew could be heard in the distance, their calls marking the morning with a familiar languor.

Breakfast was simple but sufficient. There was fresh fruit—a rarity on this journey—and some cheese, but Mero wasn’t hungry. He preferred to focus on the view. In the distance, the horizon still seemed unchanged. He stood up, made his way to the deck, and leaned against the railing.

The sea was an almost unreal shade of blue. No ships in sight, no sign of life, just the cry of a solitary bird in the sky. The sea breeze brushed his face, but he couldn’t shake the feeling of loneliness.

His eyes turned toward the crew. A few meters away, the cook, Baran, was peeling vegetables while chatting with another sailor. Mero hadn’t yet really taken the time to talk to them, but he knew these men had their own stories. Each one of them was a sea of hidden stories, worlds he hadn’t yet discovered.

He slowly approached them. Baran, seeing him coming, flashed a smile.

"Your Majesty, I suppose you’re still getting used to the vastness of this ocean," he said in a relaxed tone, without excessive respect, but also without arrogance. Mero noticed Baran’s strange accent, a mix of several maritime regions, distant shores lost in memory.

"Yes," Mero replied, his gaze still lost on the water, "it’s vast, much more than I thought."

Baran nodded, visibly amused by the young prince’s reflection.

"You’ll see, the hardest part is the first week. After that, you’ll start to see things in this sea. You’ll see, there are invisible waves that carry you."

Mero didn’t quite understand what Baran meant, but he just smiled slightly, a discreet smile he hoped would suffice. Baran patted him on the shoulder with a camaraderie he hadn’t asked for, but that was nonetheless comforting.

"You’re young, but you’ll learn quickly," Baran added before returning to his vegetables.

Mero then turned toward another crew member, a man a little older, wearing a red shirt and arms covered in tattoos of various maritime symbols. He was near the ropes, observing the sea with an intensity that echoed Mero’s solitude.

"You seem to know the sea better than anyone," Mero dared to say, feeling a little ridiculous for not having approached the crew members earlier. "You’ve never been afraid of this endless ocean?"

The man turned his gaze toward him, a smile almost imperceptible playing at the corners of his lips.

"No, Prince. The sea, it takes you or it leaves you. If you’re afraid, it will swallow you. But if you understand it, it will give to you."

Mero remained silent, thinking about these words. He felt closer to this man of the sea than to many others he had met in his kingdom. These people, even without frank words, seemed to know deep truths about life, truths Mero had yet to grasp.

As the day progressed, the sun began to lean toward the horizon. Mero, tired of his solitary thoughts, made his way back to his cabin, but not before casting one last look at the horizon. The wind was stronger now, and the waves more pronounced, as if the sea itself was reacting to his presence.

This was just the first day at sea, but for Mero, it was already a new world, a world he would have to tame, just like a sailor with his ship. He fell asleep that night to the sound of the waves, but also, for the first time, with a sense of anticipation, a curiosity that mixed with his anxiety.