Captain – Chapter 23 – Argue When Idle, Reconcile After Arguing, Endlessly

Roy wasn’t wrong.

Earlier, Caine had gripped her wrist tightly, not to protect her, but to protect those soldiers who had burst into the tavern without any precaution.

When he suddenly realized the level of danger this captain posed, and then saw Todd bringing people through the door, Caine made this decision almost instantly. He was determined to use himself to restrain Roy; if she truly wanted to pull away her hand to draw her sword, she would have to dislocate his hand first.

In his view, this was the best way to prevent conflict, but to the captain, this was an unacceptable act of collusion with the enemy.

“They didn’t recognize you, and even if it had come to that point, I would have been able to resolve it,” Caine removed the wooden cork from the wine bottle and filled Roy’s glass to one-third.

“So I hope that when encountering issues related to the imperial military, Captain, you can leave them to me to handle.”

Hearing her first mate’s sincere statement, the hidden fire in Roy’s heart diminished somewhat. With a slight gesture of her hand, the raven originally standing on the young man’s shoulder obediently jumped onto her hand, sending Caine a look of helpless sympathy.

“What if you can’t handle it?” Roy placed Alfie on her shoulder, cut a slice of cooked beef to feed it, and asked, her words still sharp.

“Then I will die before you, consider it repaying you one life.”

Caine said it with complete naturalness, but these calm words caused the captain’s movements to pause slightly.

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“Tch, I don’t want you to die for me, it sounds creepy.” Although Roy spoke with some disdain, her anger had clearly mostly subsided. After satisfying Alfie’s needs, she began to reward her own stomach that had been empty for an entire day.

The conceptual conflicts between the captain and her first mate were constant, but they always resolved them in a relaxed manner, as if those principles-touching issues were just daily squabbles between lovers—argue when idle, reconcile after arguing, endlessly.

Having resolved the matter concerning the Auran military, Caine recalled the conflict in the tavern earlier, and the Baron who was the main character of that conflict. Remembering that powdered pale face, his appetite decreased considerably.

“By the way, if I hadn’t arrived in time earlier, were you really going to go back to the Baron’s estate with him?”

Thinking of this possibility, Caine felt somewhat vaguely uncomfortable, and even he couldn’t explain the origin of this emotion.

It was like… like his cabbage was almost rooted by a pig?

“Hmm?”

Roy swallowed the food in her mouth and said: “Yes, why not?”

Feeling the captain’s “innocent” gaze, Caine’s face gradually darkened: “Those two guys were clearly not good people. With your experience, you couldn’t have failed to guess their dirty thoughts. Even so, why did you still insist on going?”

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Roy blinked, hearing the displeasure rising in her first mate’s tone, somewhat puzzled: “Having finally hooked a big fish, why couldn’t I go?”

“Big fish?” Caine was momentarily stunned.

“Yes, I certainly knew what that Baron was thinking about me, so I planned to turn the tables, figure out the location of his estate, and then pull off a heist…” Roy picked up a napkin and wiped her mouth, enthusiastically explaining her plan, but suddenly froze, her eyes widening as she looked at the naval officer across from her.

“Wait, why are you angry? Shouldn’t I be the one who’s angry? You’ve once again successfully ruined my plan. The funds I was hoping for have gone down the drain again. When will you ever be of help, instead of…”

“It’s all been resolved.” Caine interrupted the captain’s complaints, then quietly gazed at that fair face.

“Huh?” Roy let out a bewildered gasp, looking at Caine with confusion, not quite reacting: “What’s been resolved?”

Caine took out a parchment ship contract from his bosom and handed it to the confused captain, listing as if reciting a menu: “Funds, food and fresh water sufficient for two months at sea, and a double-masted civilian ship with simple armaments. This is the ship’s sales contract. We now lack nothing; we only need to recruit some crew members, and we can set sail.”

Roy took the ship contract and carefully checked it, finding no issues. This was the most commonly used ship transaction certificate in the Auran Empire, with a stamp that hadn’t fully dried yet, presumably applied not long ago.

“Is… is all this arranged by you?” Roy swallowed, her previous air of authority disappeared who knows where. She felt she might have underestimated the weight that the surname Howard represented within the Auran Empire.

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“Yes, my esteemed Captain. Do you still want to drive me away now?” Caine looked at Roy, who was clutching the contract tightly, with a rare hint of teasing.

“Not at all, I’m always very good to my subordinates. Even those who have lost their ability to work due to war, I would give them enough compensation to eat and drink until they die. You can ask my former crew members about this.”

Roy’s former crew members had already betrayed her and were now floating somewhere on the seas, so they couldn’t possibly answer Caine. This was obviously an unsolvable question.

“And you’re so capable, I cherish you more than anything. How could I bear to drive you away? Isn’t that right, Alfie?”

The captain seemed to feel that what she said was somewhat inappropriate, so she awkwardly shifted her gaze away, looking at the drowsy raven on her shoulder that had eaten its fill.

“Alright, don’t disturb it.” Seeing the raven so tired it could barely keep its eyes open, Caine helplessly drew the captain’s attention back.

“According to my plan, we’ll spend a day simply hiring some sailors, then set sail the next day. As for the formal crew, we’ll make plans when we reach a territory where we can truly recruit pirates. What do you think?”

A territory where pirates could truly be recruited naturally referred to the Southern Islands. Based on Caine’s many years of experience in the military, he knew that legendary pirates like Roy would possess a territory bestowed by the Great Captain, exclusively their own.

Recruiting people on one’s own turf was obviously much better than on Frans Island, which was controlled by the empire.

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The first mate’s proposal didn’t have significant flaws, or rather, this was exactly the itinerary Roy had already planned. The only issue was that recruiting people in just one day was really quite pressing; even for just temporary sailors, this timeframe was very tight.

Moreover, although Caine’s tone was calm, Roy still discovered a hint of something unusual with her excellent insight. Her first mate’s arrangements seemed as if he was avoiding something.

“I have no problem with it. Let’s proceed as you said, but…” Roy hesitated for a moment, but still couldn’t help but voice her judgment: “You seem to be hiding something from me?”

Caine was silent for a while, not deliberately concealing: “Governor Federo will come to Frans Island in three days, then hold a ball. Many noble persons will accompany him at that time.”

Roy had certainly heard of the name Federo, but for her, this deadly viper of the Auran Empire didn’t have much deterrent effect. So she asked puzzledly: “As far as I know, Federo and your father have a good relationship. Why are you avoiding him?”

“It’s simple: if you don’t want me to be chased and taken back by thousands of naval officers, it’s best not to expose me within the empire’s view.” Caine played with the wine glass in his hand, watching the blood-colored wine that swayed incessantly within, explaining calmly.

“Uh… if you’re really that important, we’d better run away as soon as possible.”

Roy didn’t want to easily let go of this capable assistant she had finally managed to trick into joining her. But suddenly remembering something that was almost forgotten, she said with some regret: “Just that, in this way, we might miss a good show.”