Chapter 146: I accept
Watching as the few survivors took their own lives, Kael remained standing on the roof of the command cabin.
The deck was stained with blood and corpses.
He had seen enough. Calmly, he climbed down from the roof, his steps steady, his expression indifferent.
The captain who had been steering the ship had died at the sword of the pirate leader. With his death, the route he was supposed to follow was cut off at the root.
I’ll have to readjust my plans. Kael thought calmly.
Without wasting any more time, he began to descend the wooden stairs. Each creak of the steps echoed loudly in the heavy silence of the deserted deck.
That was when Audrey’s soft voice broke into his ears. It wasn’t loud, but in that quiet environment, it sounded like a whisper breaking the stillness.
"I want to ask you a favor," she said.
Kael stopped in his tracks. His gaze fell upon Audrey’s beautiful face, so serene and bright in contrast to the bloody scene surrounding them. He watched her without speaking, letting the seconds out. Eight breaths later, he finally responded.
"What’s the order?" His voice was calm, but deep down, he knew what it meant. This was what he wanted. The pirates’ arrival had come at the perfect moment, an unexpected twist that offered him new opportunities.
Audrey rose from her seat and walked with firm steps until she stood in front of Kael. Her eyes met his without hesitation, and in a clear voice she said:
"I want to hire you to protect me until we reach Mount Vigerth. You and your partner are the most capable on this ship."
The mention of that place brought a memory to Kael’s mind. Mount Vigerth. The incident. The revelation of Princess Audrey’s existence, a mystery that had been hidden from everyone until then.
But his face showed not the slightest emotion.
"I refuse," he said calmly, as if talking about something trivial.
Audrey fell silent, her lips parted. She hadn’t expected that answer, although something inside her had already sensed it. After a few seconds, she asked in a firm voice:
"Why are you refusing?"
A slight smile appeared on Kael’s lips, but his eyes remained cold. He couldn’t accept so readily; it would be a wasted opportunity. She needed him, not the other way around. In other words, Audrey’s life was in his hands.
How could he not take advantage of it for his own benefit? His curiosity about her did not alter that fact. One thing had nothing to do with the other.
Audrey, noticing Kael’s silence, stared at him. And she said in a firm voice:
"I will place my life in your hands. If you agree to protect me until we reach Mount Vigerth, you will receive whatever you desire as payment."
Kael leaned forward slightly, his eyes shining with cold intensity.
"Whatever I desire?" His tone was calm, but each word weighed heavily.
"Yes," Audrey replied without hesitation.
"My lady! You can’t do that," Martha interjected, standing nearby, seeing her mistress’s recklessness. She couldn’t allow this.
"Silence." Audrey’s voice was cold, brooking no reproach.
Martha immediately lowered her head, biting her lips in frustration.
Kael smiled. It was the response he had expected.
"It seems you are mistaken about something. Your life already belongs to me from the moment you need it from me," he said calmly. "So that promise is worthless."
Audrey narrowed her eyes but did not reply. Kael continued, pressing precisely.
"Protect yourself until Vigerth... no, that’s not protection. That’s a risk, a waste of resources, time, and attention. If your destiny crosses mine, every obstacle that appears will be an added weight on my shoulders. Why should I bear that burden?"
"Because I’m useful," Audrey replied. Her voice didn’t waver. "I’m not a burden."
Kael laughed softly, without any warmth.
"Words are cheap. If you want me to take a risk, I need more than empty promises."
Audrey pressed her lips together. She knew she was being cornered, but her eyes shone with the same determination as Kael’s.
"What do you want then?" she asked.
Kael did not rush to respond. He watched her for several seconds, like a predator examining its prey before attacking. Finally, he spoke:
"I want three things. First, access to your hidden resources. I don’t care what form they come in: information, contacts, riches... I will use them as my own."
Audrey took a deep breath but nodded.
"Second, if you discover anything valuable in Vigerth, it belongs to me. Whatever it is, even if it’s the reason you’re traveling there."
A heavy silence fell between them. Audrey held his gaze, then nodded once more, though her eyes now had a sharp gleam.
Kael let the silence linger for a moment longer before delivering the final blow.
"And third... from today on, your decisions will be subordinate to mine. I don’t want any arguments, I don’t want any justifications. If I say move forward, we move forward. If I say sacrifice, you sacrifice."
This time, Audrey took a while to respond.
The air between them tightened like a string about to snap. Finally, she smiled. It was a cold smile, a perfect reflection of Kael’s.
"I accept."
Kael nodded, satisfied. He had achieved exactly what he needed.
In the end, they both knew it. Neither of them trusted the other. And that was precisely why they were the perfect allies.
...
Descending onto the deck littered with corpses, both pirates and crew members, Kael advanced with steady steps. At his side, Audrey accompanied him in silence, and behind her walked her maid Martha, her face pale at the bloody scene.
Michel was standing there, leaning against a broken railing. His expression was bored, disinterested, as if the scattered corpses were nothing more than part of the landscape.
However, sensing Kael’s presence, he turned his face toward him. His eyes first rested on Kael, then on the beautiful woman accompanying him, and finally on the maid walking behind them.
"Take your sword," Michel said reluctantly, throwing him the coin sword. Then his gaze sharpened as he asked, "Who are they?"
Kael caught the weapon with ease. The metallic glint reflected in his eyes as he replied without hesitation:
"We’ll help her to Mount Vigerth."
Michel narrowed his eyes. His confusion lasted only a moment, replaced by suspicion. Kael, help... When had something like that ever happened? For someone like him, the word "help" was meaningless. Michel knew that all too well. Even on Mount Kiran, Kael had abandoned his own people without batting an eye.
No... impossible.
His thoughts swirled, dark. His gaze returned to Audrey. A beautiful, radiant woman with a presence that stood out even amid the blood and corpses.
Could it be because of her? Was he swept away by her beauty?
Michel shook his head almost immediately. It was absurd to think that Kael would be moved by something so trivial. He was not the type of man to be seduced by appearances.
Most likely, she has something that caught her attention... he concluded silently, frowning.
Yes, that must be it. With Kael, there was always an ulterior motive. Never a gratuitous gesture. Never an uncalculated move.
"So our next destination is Mount Vigerth," Michel said, after coming out of his thoughts.
Kael simply nodded. His eyes shifted to Audrey.
"Tell the survivors to throw all those bodies into the river. Have them check the supplies and organize them as you see fit." His voice was calm, devoid of emotion. He then turned around and headed toward the room, with Michel walking beside him.
Audrey remained silent, watching Kael’s figure walk away. There was no hesitation in her gaze: she accepted his words as inevitable orders.
"My lady... are you sure about this?" Martha spoke softly, afraid of being heard. Her eyes rested on Kael’s back with hidden fear. "I don’t have a good feeling about that young man. He’s too dangerous."
"Don’t worry," Audrey replied calmly. She was well aware of the situation she had been in since the pirate attack. Her life, like that of the others, was in the hands of those two young men. Young men who, despite their appearance, far surpassed her in strength.
So, without further ado, she turned her gaze to the survivors. There were still some who had not committed suicide; they were crying, clinging to the bodies of their dead relatives, unable to let go of the past. Audrey showed no compassion.
"Enough tears." Her voice was firm, unyielding. "Throw them into the river! And then check the supplies."
The survivors hesitated, but under pressure from Audrey and Michel’s shadow, they had no choice. With tears in their eyes, they began to drag the bodies and throw them into the river.
Each body that fell generated a damp echo, mixed with the muffled cries of the living. The river, indifferent, devoured them one after another, taking entire families, names, and memories, as if they had never existed.
The boat, heavy and silent, began to move slowly forward. The current guided it, breaking the bloodstained surface that stretched as far as the eye could see.
A deathly silence reigned on the deck. The metallic smell permeated every corner, floating in the wind. No one dared to speak. No one wanted to challenge the fate that had sealed the presence of Kael and Michel.
And so, the ship continued on its course, advancing like a specter on a river of blood.
High above, the sun shone brightly, relentlessly, illuminating the scene with a glare that brought neither warmth nor hope, but rather the tragedy of men’s insignificance.