Captain – Chapter 149 – Change and Responsibility

“She has changed a great deal.”

Without giving the young man a chance to answer, Cecilia lowered her eyelids and continued speaking to herself: “This change may come from the curse, from the betrayal of her crew, or perhaps… from you. But whatever the reason, you must take responsibility for it.”

“Responsibility?” Caine repeated in a whisper.

“Yes, responsibility. For her emotions, her safety, her pursuits—everything.”

The proprietress’s voice was faint, her emotions unreadable: “Our Captain Roy is still strong and confident, but she is no longer her former self. Becoming a woman may not weaken her resolve, but it certainly affects her physically. More importantly, she is no longer without feeling.”

“And this could become a fatal flaw that leads to her downfall.”

Raising her eyes to look at the slightly wavering gaze of the first mate, Cecilia said coldly: “In the past, she would never have chosen such a risky battle approach. She wouldn’t have used reasons that could only fool children to convince me, to convince herself. She would have pushed all of you into the fire to give herself a better chance of winning.”

“But she didn’t do that. So for the first time, the first time ever, I feel she might lose. And if you truly are the Imperial Lion, if you really… love her as she says you do, I believe you have a responsibility to change all this, a responsibility to bring her back—a responsibility you cannot shirk.”

“At the same time, this may be the only opportunity to get her to open her heart, to emerge from a past that no one knows. And what you need to do is to be by her side when she needs you most, to fight alongside her, nothing more.”

The young woman finally left a question that sounded like a challenge: “So tell me, are you willing?”

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Emerge from the past…

Savoring these words, Caine seemed to look back at his own past over the last decade, seeing that boy immersed in hatred and grief, and that figure—the young woman who had parted the dark clouds and led him out of that darkness.

Suddenly, the young man smiled: “Of course, because this is my responsibility, isn’t it?”

Roy had once cut off his past, and now it was his turn to do the same thing. Naturally, there would be no evasion or difficulty.

Hearing Caine’s answer, the coldness on Cecilia’s face receded considerably. After a brief silence, she began to calmly relate everything she knew: “The Mermaid’s return is not at noon tomorrow. Although I don’t know the exact time, I think its arrival must be drawing near.”

“Captain Roy’s real plan is to have you all, with your threat deliberately exaggerated, draw their attention to the Yadris port, while she…”

Caine slowly placed the wine bottle on the windowsill, his brow furrowing as the proprietress spoke. With her final words, his azure eyes suddenly contracted, filled with disbelief.

“Will board the Mermaid alone.”

Rain flowed down the lush branches and leaves. In the dense shadows of the jungle, two figures were advancing at a measured pace toward the beach on the west side of Yadris.

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The two were, of course, Roy and Old John, who should have been waiting for news in the study of the council hall.

Certainly, the choice of such a slow pace was not due to any real leisure, but because the old sailor was aging, his physical strength had declined severely, and he could only maintain this pace.

“If Yadris weren’t close to that port, and if we didn’t have ample time, I definitely wouldn’t have brought along a drag like you.”

Looking at Old John who was leaning against a tree trunk, gasping for breath, Roy stopped, leaning against another banyan tree, complaining impatiently: “Besides, why did you come along? Your task is already complete. In a little while, my people will rescue your daughter. For an old man and a little girl wanting to leave, this downpour is the best cover.”

Wiping away the rain from his face forcefully, Old John panted, looking at the somewhat displeased young woman, and said with a bitter smile: “If I didn’t come, how would you know the crew’s sentry positions, the intervals between shift changes, and Captain Richi’s exact location?”

Stroking the wet raven, the captain said matter-of-factly: “Except for Captain Ilias, no one in this world knows the Mermaid better than I do. So, I would definitely find a way, but… that way certainly wouldn’t involve risking your old life.”

Glancing at the surprise on the old sailor’s face, Roy smiled and asked: “What? Surprised?”

“Yes, very surprised, even somewhat flattered.”

Old John shook his head lightly, quite emotionally saying: “If my feeling isn’t wrong, over the past half-year, you seem to have changed quite a bit.”

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“Change… perhaps. I think after seeing your daughter, I began to understand your thoughts, to understand their thoughts, but…”

Listening to the captain’s complex explanation, seeing that hint of faint regret in her eyes, Old John’s lips trembled slightly, and at some point, a struggle appeared in his deep brown eyes.

But soon, the struggle in his eyes turned into resignation.

“I still have to say, damn it, Old John, why didn’t you tell me earlier that you had a daughter, and such a beautiful, charming young lady with not the slightest resemblance to you? Damn, if I could…”

Old John’s face twitched: “Alright, alright, Captain, we should continue on our way.”

The young woman touched her nose, then broke into a mischievous smile: “I really hope that after this war ends, I’ll have the honor of meeting your daughter.”

Accompanied by the raven’s hoarse laughter, Roy gradually walked away. Looking at her back, for some reason, Old John felt an emotion called loneliness—profound loneliness.

What he said wasn’t wrong.

Although the incredibly powerful man from before and the young woman with the terrible personality before him were indeed the same person, there truly had been a great change between them.

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It was a change that could shake one’s heart, but unfortunately, it came too late—too late to salvage anything.

With a deep sigh, Old John suppressed his complex thoughts and quickly caught up.

Before long, the tree shadows ahead gradually thinned, and the sound of the tide became clearer. After circling around a sturdy locust tree blocking their path, the two’s vision suddenly cleared.

What greeted their eyes was a vast beach with several simple warehouses and dwellings built upon it. At the junction of the artificial embankment and the ocean were many spacious piers constructed for loading and unloading cargo.

At this time, the windows of those dwellings were completely dark, because the personnel who should have been on duty there had all been called back to Yadris by Old John’s arrangements.

Roy stepped forward, her gaze piercing through the buildings, past the piers, falling on that fierce ocean.

The downpour cascaded onto the black sea surface, stirring up terrifying waves. And in the near future, a warship with a beautiful, enchanted mermaid sculpture as its figurehead would break through the wind and waves, appearing amidst the storm, to attend this…

Fateful confrontation.