The torrential rain had finally passed.
The little stone cave was still damp, but it was countless times better than that awful darkness where they couldn’t tell day from night.
And there was even better news: after passing through the stages of freezing and burning up, Kain’s temperature had finally stabilized and was gradually returning to normal.
The next morning, the cold air snuffed out the little flame. The captain and Jackdaw, worn out by everything that had happened, were still deep in sleep. The young man, on the other hand, woke first.
Kain rubbed his aching temples. It took him a while to shake off the weakness that came with recovering from his injuries, but once his mind cleared, he froze.
He could calmly give orders even when faced with the raging sea and storm outside Devil’s Island. He could watch lightning fall from the sky like the wrath of a god without so much as a change in his expression. But the sight before him made him feel truly at a loss for the first time.
Golden hair spilled over his shoulder in waves, flowing down his arm like water. That fair, delicate face—so lovely it could make the Empire’s noblewomen jealous—was right in front of him. He could even feel the woman’s soft breath, and the faint tickle of her long lashes brushing his cheek.
Roy was nestled in his arms, both hands wrapped tightly around his not-so-broad back.
The conditions around them were dreadful, but a tender, intimate atmosphere still began to bloom—and refused to fade.
As luck would have it, Jackdaw, who’d curled up beside them to escape the cold, woke at his slightest movement.
It hopped a few steps away and tilted its head at the pair locked in each other’s arms. It seemed to see again those scenes from all the different fancy hotels they’d stayed in: the captain in bed with one beautiful noblewoman after another. Only now, the pretty girl in that lovely picture was gone, replaced by a “Mambo”—the person it hated most.
So Elfie started squawking at the top of its lungs, hoping to snap its captain out of this strange state of hers.
“It’s morning! It’s morning!”
“Ugh… I know. Quit squawking, you stupid bird.” With too little sleep, Roy woke reluctantly, her voice thick with drowsiness and fatigue. She pulled her arms away from the young man, then braced one hand against his chest while rubbing her bleary eyes with the other. “Is he awake?”
“I’m awake.”
The young man’s voice, edged with confusion, reached her ears. Roy immediately came out of her daze. When she opened her eyes, they met his blue gaze head-on.
She was startled for a moment, then felt a guilty little pang, like a thief caught in the act. But the feeling was soon swallowed by her composure. Without changing position, she calmly asked, “How are you? Still cold, or running a fever?”
Roy’s act was so natural it barely counted as an act at all—just a little scheme she’d deliberately played up. Kain didn’t notice anything odd, let alone catch the fleeting glint of mischief beneath the calm of her dark golden eyes. He gave a slight shake of his head. “I’m fine now.”
“Good. Then it was worth the sacrifice of letting you hold me all night.”
Hearing that, Kain gazed at the pirate captain who’d taken such good care of him ever since they’d been stranded. His feelings were complicated. Before they’d met, they’d been mortal enemies. Now the First Fleet had been destroyed, the Mermaid had abandoned her, and somehow the two of them had become a pair of unfortunate souls with only each other to rely on.
Over the past few days, Kain had realized that he and the captain had grown much closer. Still, a thin veil remained between them, woven from their opposing sides and their preconceptions.
But after yesterday’s downpour, faced with the woman’s joking words, spoken as if she’d finally let out a breath, that thin veil had finally been pierced.
Kain didn’t struggle with the decision. He sincerely thanked her. “Thank you for taking care of me. But… could you get off me first? This is a little inappropriate.”
Roy was secretly thrilled by his thanks, but deliberately ignored the second half of what he’d said. She brushed aside a few disheveled strands of hair and asked, “You think a simple ‘thank you’ is enough to repay me?”
“I know it’s nowhere near enough. But now that we’re stranded on a deserted island, I don’t have anything I can give you in return.” Kain could guess what she meant, but this time he didn’t reject her outright. Instead, he steered the conversation elsewhere.
Roy wasn’t about to let this rare opportunity slip by. But rather than forcing the conversation back on track, she followed his lead. “Even if we get out of this wretched place, what could you give me? And don’t say gold or treasure. You know I don’t need that stuff.”
The truth was, she needed it very much. Who ever thought they had too much gold and treasure?
Her heart gave a small, hidden ache, but Roy kept a foxlike smile on her face. “As for the governor… I doubt he’d find a pirate a government post. And let me make this clear: I won’t accept any favors from your Orlan Empire.”
Seeing Kain fall into thought, Roy didn’t rush him. She only watched with a bright smile, waiting for his final answer.
“I can—no, I can ask my father to open a unique trade route just for you.”
“Only your people and ships would be allowed to use it. I promise you, whether you trade along it yourself or lease it to others, the value it brings you will far surpass the wealth you’ve amassed as a pirate.”
“Oh, you—” The captain nearly agreed on the spot, but she caught herself with a sudden breath and changed tack, looking disgruntled. “Do you really think I’m nothing but a money-grubber?”
Don’t be tempted. Don’t be tempted. Once you’ve got the person, everything else will fall into place, won’t it?
Roy kept reaffirming her resolve, but couldn’t help regretting it a little. The benefits represented by a special imperial trade route were simply too great. After all, the Great Captain who now ruled the Southern Islands had befriended the Emperor and received several secret routes linking the eastern and western seas. That was how he’d gained wealth beyond anyone’s imagination.
Kain, of course, had no idea what Roy was thinking. He figured she might truly be displeased that he was still using benefits as a bargaining chip. Pirates always claimed to be people of principle, didn’t they? Yet they’d draw blades over a few copper coins. What a contradictory bunch.
Roy didn’t dare let the officer offer any more generous terms. She was genuinely worried she’d lose control and throw away the favorable position she’d worked so hard to create. Pretending to have a headache, she rubbed her temples and looked utterly helpless. “You know what I want. Why does a grown man like you always have to beat around the bush?”
The young man thought for even longer this time, but his answer still left Roy bitterly disappointed. “I won’t become a pirate. I have my own principles. I can’t accept things like looting and slaughter.”
“Can’t you stop being so stubborn? You wouldn’t have to do any of that yourself. Besides, you know I’m called a gentleman among pirates. I follow the pirate code better than anyone. As long as our prey doesn’t put up too much of a fight, we can get by without spilling blood.” Roy looked like a cat with its fur standing on end.
“And in the navy, your title is the Golden-Eyed Devil,” Kain said without batting an eye.
“That’s just slander from your lot! If your ships hadn’t chased me like sharks on a scent of blood, going completely mad, why would the Mermaid have sunk them?”
“That’s because…” Kain’s brow furrowed slightly. He wanted to say that she’d been the one to raid the Empire’s merchant ships first, causing bloodshed, and that his side had only fought back. But Roy’s words cut off everything he’d meant to say.
“Enough.” Roy raised a hand to stop the navy man from arguing further. Her face turned expressionless. “That’s all in the past. Now your fleet is gone, and my crew betrayed me. What’s the point of arguing over it?”
“Anyway, you’ve slept with me, so you’re mine now. You have to… you have to take responsibility for my chastity!”
