Captain – Chapter 230 – The Price

“Forgive my frankness, Miss, but I truly can’t think of anything we have to discuss,” Berney said somewhat dryly, watching the young woman gulping down black rum, taking in the scent of cheap alcohol and her carefree demeanor that clashed with her elegant attire.

“I think we have plenty to talk about, more than enough for an entire night,” Roy tapped the empty bottle on the table and let out a long sigh. Then, leaning lazily against the chair back, she looked at the anxious Colonel with a smile. “For instance, how we should settle the score for everything you did to me ten years ago.”

Swallowing hard, the Colonel forced an awkward smile: “Miss, as you know, I was just an insignificant figure back then. Facing the Governor’s orders, how could I possibly disobey? So if you want to settle accounts, it shouldn’t be with me.”

“Oh? Orders? I think it was your inability to refuse his rewards that made you so zealous, wasn’t it?” The Captain narrowed her eyes, gently rubbing the raised characters on the bottle, her tone tinged with coldness. “You received the benefits from your stance back then, you boarded the Governor’s ship too. How is it that when it’s time to revisit old debts, you’re only thinking of shifting blame?”

“My relationship with the Governor isn’t as close as you imagine. I work for him, act as his pawn; he gives me support, helps me rise in position. At the end of the day, it’s all a straightforward transaction,” Berney picked up the wine in front of him and poured himself a small amount, his hand trembling slightly. “And since it’s a transaction, there will naturally be an end to it. You say I boarded his ship, but if that ship is about to sink, or if there’s no longer a place for me on it, of course I would jump off without hesitation.”

Hearing this, Roy blinked, unable to react for quite some time.

She hadn’t expected to hear such rational, even cold words from this seemingly spineless individual who embodied the essence of the word “wastrel” from top to bottom.

“I must say, your awareness is quite good. This makes things easier for me.”

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Roy nodded with satisfaction, pushing the empty bottle aside, then sat up straight, leaning on the table and looking directly into the Colonel’s eyes: “So I’ll be frank. Even if you were truly just following orders in the past…”

She paused for a moment, then sighed: “Although I’m quite certain that man wouldn’t be bored enough to torment a poor creature he’s already fully exploited, let’s just say I believe your words.”

“But even if it’s as you say, that he caused my misery in Morton Prison, you and those jailers were like a flock of vultures circling over my head, eagerly extending your beaks at the first sign of profit.”

“Whether it’s the whip marks left during interrogation or the brand burned during sentencing, they all symbolize the unforgettable pain and humiliation I suffered.”

Gazing at her fair hand, the Captain’s tone suddenly became somewhat reflective: “Though they’ve all disappeared, it doesn’t mean I’ll forget that time.”

At this point, Roy changed her tone, looking at the pale-faced Berney through her fingers: “Colonel, do you remember how I escaped from that iron prison?”

Hearing the young woman’s question, Berney seemed to suddenly recall something, his lips trembling slightly, his hand unconsciously moving to the short pistol at his waist.

“I killed a jailer.”

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Seeing the Colonel silent, Roy smiled and said: “I still remember, that guy had beaten me sixteen times, the most frequent and brutal of all the jailers. So when he unlocked my shackles, intending to drag me from the cell to the execution ground, I found my chance and killed him.”

As the young woman narrated, the Colonel’s breathing grew more rapid. Even though ten years had passed, he still couldn’t forget the horrific sight of that jailer.

He couldn’t imagine how an eight-year-old child who had endured such torture could find the strength to kill a burly adult man, or what kind of will could support her scarred body to escape from that lightless dungeon.

“Whether it was hatred or the desire to survive, what exactly I was thinking at that time, I can’t clearly remember. But I do remember that I used that man’s blood to write two words on the ground, words I still recall vividly today.”

As if guessing what Berney was thinking, Roy softly explained, then after a brief silence, she smiled: “The price. Those two words were ‘the price.'”

“Everything has a price. It might be good, something you can willingly accept, but it could also plunge you into the abyss, beyond redemption.”

“Isn’t it ironic? That ranch owner who made me commit crimes and land in prison didn’t teach me this. It was Uncle Robert who taught me. It was he who extinguished my fantasies, and he who introduced me to that opera called ‘The Black Lotus and Wine,’ making me understand the… terrible price of trusting someone.”

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Muffled thunder penetrated through the tightly closed wooden windows into the small tavern. The previously noisy soldiers finally noticed something amiss. Their gazes fell on Berney and Roy, and as they gradually quieted down, they began to rise and approach the two.

Roy seemed completely unaware of the soldiers’ movements and asked in a low whisper: “So what price should you pay, Colonel?”

Catching a glimpse of his subordinates gathering around, the Colonel took a deep breath and asked with forced composure: “In the Miss’s view, what should I pay?”

“That depends on the Colonel’s sincerity.”

When the soldiers approached the table close enough to clearly hear their conversation, Roy naturally changed her form of address, adopting a nonchalant attitude while smiling like a fox.

After his gaze flickered for a moment, Berney gently waved his hand: “You all go and rest.”

“But your safety, sir…” a soldier hesitantly said.

“What danger could there be in talking with this young lady from a great Federation family?”

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Hearing the Colonel’s rhetorical question, the soldiers exchanged confused glances, wondering why their orders to escort an extremely dangerous imperial criminal had somehow transformed into guarding a noble young lady from the Federation in their commander’s words.

Although the soldiers had their doubts, since Berney had given the order, they, as subordinates, naturally had to comply.

Military boots treading on the old wooden staircase produced a teeth-grating “creak,” and soon the first floor of the tavern was left with only Roy and Berney, even the innkeeper tactfully retreated to his room.

“A wise choice.”

Roy snapped her fingers, offered praise, then resumed her lazy demeanor.

Leaning against the chair back, she said unhurriedly: “So first, let’s exchange the intelligence we have. Tell me, dear Colonel…”

“What exactly is our destination?”