As the young lion roared in his ear, Federo finally looked up from the secret report. He narrowed his eyes at the young man, who had always obeyed his elders, and saw in him the dear friend he’d known many years ago.
Back then, it seemed that man had relied on those very words to defy His Majesty the Emperor’s authority.
But he still hadn’t grown powerful enough to command the entire Imperial Navy, and I’m no emperor who’d hold back out of regard for a friend.
As for that girl… she was certainly no meek, harmless slave from the Federation!
“So what? Kain, don’t forget how you got where you are. Remember how much the Empire invested in you, and how much your father and His Majesty hoped for you. And now you want to use the power they gave you to defy the Empire’s will?”
The old man didn’t give the young man a chance to answer. He tapped the tabletop again and again with his thin, withered fingers, his voice chillingly sinister. “Yes, she saved you and helped you time and again. She may even have bewitched your heart. But you know how many Imperial soldiers have died at her hands, and how many Imperial warships have sunk beneath the Mermaid’s guns!”
“Even if the legendary Golden-Eyed Devil is a woman, her violent, cold-hearted nature won’t change one bit. She’ll never become a docile rabbit like your mother. She’ll only wait for a chance to tear out the Empire’s throat.”
Kain fell silent. He’d never ignored the irreconcilable rift between them. Of course, he’d never intended to run from their grievances, either. That was why he’d done his best to find a way to ease the tension between the captain and the Empire.
He’d even thought of making himself a sturdy buffer between them. But now, it did seem far too naive. In the eyes of old men like Federo, anyone who’d ever provoked the Empire had no right to remain in this world.
Just as the oppressive silence settled over the room, the door opened at the perfect moment. Meri came in carrying a detailed map of Fran Island.
He spread the map between them and pointed to a spot marked with a blood-red cross. “Governor, Commander, we’ve confirmed the exact location of the Black Crow Society’s hideout. It’s inside a house in the town.”
“Good.”
Federo turned his attention away from the young man and gave a cold order. “Leave the musketeers behind to guard the ship. Order every other soldier aboard the Pilgrim to surround that building. Don’t let a single rat escape. Leave dealing with those rats to those people… and remember, don’t leave anyone alive.”
The major general took the order and left. Federo didn’t explain to Kain who those people were. He simply met his eyes and said, in a tone that brooked no refusal, “That’s enough about the captain. When this is over, you’ll come back with me to see your father and His Majesty.”
Kain lowered his eyes and dipped his head. “Grandpa Federo, by rank, I’m the highest-ranking commander on Fran Island. Whatever the order, the rules say it needs my approval.”
“That’s true. But you haven’t stopped me, have you, good boy?”
Federo’s expression gradually softened. “Besides, don’t underestimate the power of us old men. You can try giving Meri an order and see whether he listens to you or keeps following mine.”
When Kain didn’t respond, Federo sighed to himself and tried to persuade him in a rare gentle tone. “Deep down, you know this is all just a farce. Once that captain and the rats of the Black Crow Society are gone from this world, everything will fall back into place.”
“When that happens, I’ll give you all the credit for this operation. Then you should be able to command the entire Navy just as your father once did, becoming the Empire’s most powerful military force. With you and Naren—one in the military, the other in civil government—the whole Empire will dance to House Howard’s tune.”
Federo seemed to already see that future before him. A faint smile crossed his face. In all these decades, he didn’t seem to have smiled as much as he had today.
“When I die, the governor’s seat will likely fall to you. Just imagine: two governors from one family. What a glorious sight that would be.”
That might make His Majesty the Emperor deeply uneasy.
Kain thought this in silence, but didn’t interrupt the old man. In every respect, the path Federo had laid out for him and House Howard was the best one. Not a word he’d said was wrong. And the only price for reaching such a glorious future was a pirate captain he’d known for barely a few months.
Just a pirate captain…
For some reason, Kain felt a sharp pang in his heart. Scenes from the isolated island still lingered before his eyes. It had only been a few months since they’d depended on each other to survive, yet it felt as though a very long time had passed—long enough to make those days impossible to forget.
“All right. It’s late, and you must be tired. Go get some rest. If you need anything, ask Ivan to prepare it for you.”
Knowing the officer was still struggling inside, Federo bent over the secret reports again and dismissed Kain.
Kain left the study. With the worried-looking major leading the way, he departed the castle and returned to the residence that had once belonged to his father.
Having absorbed the military’s no-frills ways over the years, Governor Naren had never liked the luxurious castle built for him by order of His Majesty the Emperor. Instead, he’d had an ordinary-looking house built not far away, where he lived with his wife and children. He only went to the castle when honored guests came to visit or when military matters needed his attention.
He had returned to the home that held so many happy childhood memories, though it was no longer the place it had once been. But Kain didn’t go to his own bedroom. He went straight to his father’s room and pushed open the door.
Like Naren himself, the room was simply furnished. It held only a few pieces of furniture: a bed, a desk, and some chairs. The snow-white walls bore not a single proper painting—only portraits of Naren and his wife in their youth.
There was also a coat rack. A dark military uniform bearing a general’s epaulettes hung from it, along with a black tricorn hat patterned in gold.
The servants cleaned the room every day, so it remained spotless, as if new. Kain stepped inside, sat on the edge of the bed, lit the oil lamp beside him, and gazed at the portrait, lost in thought.
The woman in the portrait wasn’t his young, beautiful, highborn stepmother. She was his birth mother, a slave from the Federation who had been swept into the Empire by war. Beside her stood Governor Naren, dressed in a crisp military uniform, his silver hair as dazzling as Kain’s.
“Y-young master, I’ll be right outside. The soldiers are stationed around the house, too. If you need anything, just call for me.”
The major stood outside the open door and offered the reminder cautiously, afraid of angering the young man, whose mood he couldn’t read.
They called it protection, but in truth it was merely the old man taking precautions in case Kain tried anything. After all, he wasn’t his own captain, whose strength was beyond compare. And even if he could fight his way out, he couldn’t bring himself to attack these old subordinates of his father’s.
“I understand.”
Hearing that Kain sounded calm again, the major let out a sigh of relief. He didn’t know what had passed between the governor and the young master, but he’d heard their heated argument. At least now it seemed things hadn’t gotten out of hand.
The door closed softly. Raindrops still beat against the window, quick and urgent. Kain sat quietly, gazing at the portrait. The oil lamp’s flame burned warm and steady, its light falling on the two faces, yellowed a little by time, and on Kain’s calm expression.
If it were you, what would you do… Father?
The young man wondered in silence. The light in his eyes, once dim and unsteady, gradually brightened. He knew the answer had been in his heart all along.
Because Governor Naren had already given him that answer many years ago.
