Captain – Chapter 11 – First Mate

Caine was stunned.

He quietly gazed at the self-righteous captain, seeing in that fair face the virtues that the great bishops of the church earnestly proclaimed—steadfastness and courage. Illuminated by the light streaming through the cave entrance, her resolute and fearless expression greatly resembled the valkyries described in holy books.

Except these virtues seemed to be applied in the wrong place.

“Don’t you spout nonsense.” After a brief mental blank, Caine recovered and pointed at the young woman before him with a trembling finger.

Although this officer had an almost cold-hearted psychological preparation for this great enemy of the empire, he clearly underestimated how difficult the other party could be. At least other so-called legendary pirates wouldn’t use such contemptible tactics.

“I’m not.” Roy spoke with righteousness and solemnity.

“Get off me first, then we can talk properly.” Caine took a deep breath, suppressing the irritation and anger in his heart, trying to persuade her as calmly as possible.

“I won’t. You must take responsibility for me.” Not only did the captain not get off him, she moved even closer, clearly intending to cling to him like an octopus.

“Stop, stop, stop. I get it, don’t come any closer.”

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The naval officer’s consistent composure since awakening was finally broken. He grabbed Roy’s wrists, pleading in a low voice to the pirate who seemed ready to pounce. At this moment, their posture was almost lying flat on the still-damp ground, looking extremely intimate.

“So you agree to be my first mate?”

“Let’s talk after you get up.” Caine was extremely vexed.

Having finally escaped Roy’s clutches, Caine sat upright against the cave wall, patting his crumpled and tattered uniform. His expression was as unpleasant as a politician who had been pelted with eggs, though his situation wasn’t much better.

Seeing that the naval officer was truly angry, Roy naturally didn’t thoughtlessly provoke him further. She just sat nearby, hugging her knees and looking at him expectantly. If her former subordinates had seen this scene, they would have given thumbs up, praising the captain for reaching new heights in her acting skills.

“Look, we just slept embracing each other for one night, and I was so sick I was barely conscious. How could I possibly have done that kind of thing to you?” Unable to bear Roy’s pitiful gaze, Caine frowned slightly, asking her both annoyed and amused.

“On this desolate island with no sign of human habitation, with the sky as our quilt and the earth as our bed, isn’t sleeping in an embrace the same as sharing a bed?” Once again, Roy excelled at her convoluted reasoning.

“What kind of…” Caine held his forehead, instinctively wanting to refute her argument, but was interrupted by Roy’s voice, which was much lower than before.

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“Last night when you were holding me, you kept calling my name. Now you’re just refusing to acknowledge it.”

At this, Caine fell silent. He vaguely remembered that he had indeed called out a name. It was when he was feverish and somewhat dazed, half-opening his eyes to see that peaceful face in sleep, thinking he had returned to his carefree childhood days, back to… his sister’s side.

That name was Elizabeth, but he wasn’t calling for the captain before him.

“You weren’t calling for me. I know.”

Roy sat upright, slightly stretching her limbs. The slight grievance on her face disappeared like bubbles, as if it had never existed, replaced by a nonchalant smile: “Forget it. Since you’re so unwilling, I won’t force you.”

Lowering her head slightly, Roy looked at the black charcoal remaining after the wooden sticks had burned out, and calmly said: “I don’t want your trading route either. When the time comes, I just hope that once you contact the imperial navy, you won’t turn me in—if we can leave here, that is.”

This was clearly another attempt at psychological manipulation. In the eyes of Alfie, who had been watching the show for a long time, this “Mola” was pitiable to the extreme. After being schemed against by the captain for so many days, even the most experienced naval officer dealing with pirates would likely reveal flaws, let alone this nameless nobody they had never seen before.

Of course, under the captain’s almost murderous gaze, the raven didn’t shrilly cry out as usual to make her lose face. It could clearly distinguish what was important. So after a few placating low cries, Alfie fled from there.

Only the two people who had fallen into silence remained in the small cave.

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After a while, finding that the naval officer still had no reaction, even Roy couldn’t help but feel some disappointment.

She was very certain of her own charm, which could be verified by those noble young ladies who were captivated by her. Now, although turned into a woman by the devil, the advantage of her appearance wouldn’t change because of this.

Or to put it another way, after becoming a woman, her social weapons might have become even stronger, making it easier to play some pitiable, endearing roles—though she deeply detested such methods, she didn’t deny the enormous benefits they might bring.

But all these principles seemed to be ineffective before this mysterious young officer.

Sighing gently, Roy lowered herself and crawled towards the exit of the small stone cave, saying without looking back: “I’m going to prepare the food and fresh water we need today. Your injuries haven’t fully healed, so don’t stray too far from here. Although there are no wild beasts on this isolated island, still…”

“Why?”

“Huh?” Roy almost hit her head on the upper wall of the cave entrance. She turned back, looking somewhat puzzled at Caine, only to find a serious expression in the naval officer’s ocean-blue eyes, as if he were asking a philosophical question concerning existence.

“I want to know, why are you so eager for me to join you?”

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Just one question, yet Roy’s dark golden pupils gradually brightened. She smiled and said: “What else could it be? Even though I’ve been betrayed by my subordinates, I am still a captain. But a captain alone is somewhat undeserving of the title, isn’t it?”

“Yes, just like an officer without an attendant.”

Caine closed his eyes, and the corner of his mouth actually curved upward slightly. Even though the arc was very small, it didn’t escape Roy’s keen observation.

She looked at this scene with some astonishment. Since rescuing him, that seemingly eternally calm face had never shown such an expression, as if he simply couldn’t smile.

Soon, Caine reopened his eyes, his face returning to its usual calmness. He gazed at the captain who was slightly dazed, as if she had witnessed a miracle, and said, like ordering an attendant to fill his glass with red wine: “I’ll follow you for now, as long as you don’t do anything that crosses my bottom line, Captain Roy.”

Only at this moment did Roy awaken from her daze. She whistled and responded with a smile: “Finally you’ve come to your senses. So, may I ask, my dear first mate, young master of the Howard family, what is your name?”

During their long time on this isolated island, apart from discussing the tragic fate of the little girl named Elizabeth Howard, they had not talked about anything regarding personal history or the past. So Roy wasn’t even clear about the young man’s name.

“Caine,” Caine replied solemnly. “Caine Howard.”