Sereman rose up in the ship, nodded and walked to the end of the boat to the tiller. His grip on it was hard, and he nudged it left only for the boat to turn right, to Northeast. Ulric's thoughts lingering, only wondering where they were sailing to. The sails undulating by the wind, and Ulric raised an brow when the man returned. He'd had many traumas in recent past, and he needed the answers of where his mother and sister were, what did they want from him, and most evident was why did the shadow wanted to harm him.
"I don't know if you'd know what I'm saying," Ulric began. "But I've been hurt in the past. If I know correctly, I was fainted but rescued or even harmed further. But looking at you, I know that you will not, will you?"
Sereman left a chuckle. "Of course not," he said. "Who would hurt a child?"
"They would."
Sereman's smile became a frown, a worry for a child. "I'm Normanda's brother."
Normanda? It sounded very familiar to Ulric. He thought when did he hear that word, that name, but shook his head when he could not. He raised his brow in order to realise Sereman he had no idea who Normanda was. Yet, it was a familiar word for him.
"Who is that?" Ulric asked, voice louder because of winds.
"He's the shadow who fooled you, as Lord Dragrinda had told you. I didn't expect you'd not remember that."
Ulric's memories returned quickly than expected. He expressed a quick smile, looked at Sereman, and said, "that slave? Was that your brother?"
Sereman nodded. "That's accurate. He is my brother, and I know that you have misunderstood it."
Ulric's confusion only increased by those words. "I don't understand what you mean by misunderstood?"
Sereman stood up again, his hair stirring from the wind. "You really don't know anything," he said with a smile. "But don't worry, Ulric, because you would know."
Ulric stood up too, glancing to the sea of blue, and the birds in the sky of blue. "You could tell me, you know, or I'll be confused like this forever."
"Still," Sereman began. "I can't understand you don't wonder how you reached the other side of earth after you opened your eyes from a faint?"
Other side of the world? That could not be possible. That meant his mother and sister were at the other side of Earth too. His brow raised, and his frown insanely increased. "Still, I don't know why you're talking in riddles," he said. "Please tell me everything, because I'm going to die of confusion if you keep the answers to yourself any longer."
Sereman chuckled. "Fine," he said. "I just wanted to clear one thing, to clear up that you're paranoid. Additionally, you really are."
"Okay," Ulric said, though he had no idea why Sereman wanted to know if he's paranoid.
Sereman sat down, and gestured Ulric to sit down too. "I'm brother of Normanda, and he's not really slave of Lord Dragrinda. He pretended to, to get you."
"Pretended to?" Ulric wondered. "To get me?"
"You need to be less paranoid, child," Sereman told him. "That's why you believed that Normanda won't hurt you. Lord Dragrinda has done that to every child who were the subjects of cruelty."
Ulric cringed back, and raised both his brows. "You're making it worse, Sereman. Now what is subject of cruelty?"
Sereman couldn't hold the laughing, but Ulric kept his face serious.
"Please tell you if you're joking or telling the truth," Ulric pleaded. "I really need to know."
"Kids who were named Ulric. It's a religious name in many places, so they were mistaken for you."
"Why am I so important to this Lord Dragrinda? What do I have? Am I made of diamond?"
"You can say that," Sereman conformed him, clearly hiding his smile, though his eyes showed it. "I'm not supposed to tell you why they wanted you now. You are supposed to know by yourself or it won't work."
Ulric let out a sigh. "Okay, so I'm supposed to know what is happening by myself," he said, clearly sounded like a mockery. "It is reasonable to know by myself that why am I in a boat of a stranger I just met, why am I in other side of earth, why those literally horrifying figures are after me with a Lord Dragrinda whose face freaks me out."
Sereman kept his smile, and rose up to the tiller, and checked if it was in right direction.
"Does it need to be nudged to opposite direction to sail there?" Ulric asked. "Well, I noticed that."
"That is right," Sereman corrected him. "Nudge left, go right. Pull right, go left. She likes opposite."
Ulric nodded and turned his glance to the sea, wind blowing. "Where are we sailing to?"
Sereman looked at Ulric, then said, "to northeast, in a city called Hadrindal. We have a business to do there."
"Is that a kingdom?"
"Yes, and considered one of most powerful."
"What business do we have there?" Ulric asked.
"We'll see when we reach there."