Captain – Chapter 397 – The Hero’s Song

“Alright.”

After who knows how long, after traversing what kind of emotional journey, in the end, the young woman lowered her brow and spoke softly.

Courage and fearlessness are both beautiful qualities.

But if at the end of that path lies an abyss of unfathomable depth, an almost certain death trap, then the choice becomes rather easy.

Yes, she hated her ancestor.

Hated him for manipulating her life, for shattering her family with his own hands, leaving only grief.

Hated him for carving a curse upon her, leading her into a seemingly warm but vast deception.

Hated him for deceiving her, using her, hated his cruelty, hated him…

Truly endless hatred.

But what difference did it make?

The chess match between deity and devil had ended, the devil had won, and from beginning to end, she had been held in his palm. Even the one chance to kill him had been squandered by her own hands.

Truly a series of mistakes, a complete defeat.

At this point, there was nothing she could do anymore. Forget revenge—even her survival depended on the devil’s whim.

Could she really expect the great power in her bloodline to awaken? Deep down, she knew that was mere fantasy.

Just a fantasy to rekindle her courage.

So, what choice did she have other than acceptance?

To act like a hero, draw a blade against the devil, then die defiantly, and drag down everyone on the ship to perish with her?

Forget it, I’m just a pirate.

A pirate who cherishes life.

Rеаⅾ οո KаtRеаԁіոgCαfе

Roy’s eyelids drooped slightly as she looked at the wet deck, thinking silently that never seeing each other again might actually be a fairly good ending.

At least she would live, everyone would live, and the curse carried by the devil’s descendants, the inescapable fate, would also come to an end.

This way, there would be no need to pursue anything further, she could just…

Return to how things were before.

Recalling her past life roaming the seas freely, the gloom in the captain’s heart gradually dispersed, and her body also relaxed.

Was this truly the end… this time?

“Oh, by the way, child.”

The devil’s voice inopportunely rang out, but no longer as indifferent as before, instead returning to his customary flippancy, even affection.

Her thoughts abruptly interrupted, the young woman looked up somewhat bewilderedly toward the devil, who had turned around with swirling formal attire, as if dancing.

Seeing the captain’s confused expression, the devil’s lips once again wore a gentle smile, as if he had never spoken those words of farewell.

As if he had found room for reconciliation between himself and the young woman.

“Look at me, perhaps I got too excited and forgot such an important matter, nearly causing a complete rift between us.”

It was hard to imagine what “important matter” could make the devil feel it sufficient to dissolve the hatred between them, even putting him in the mood to create suspense.

“Ancestor, what exactly is this important matter you speak of?”

Seeing this, Roy became increasingly bewildered and asked with some frustration.

Anyone who had just been discussing life and death, saying things like “better not to meet than to look upon each other with loathing,” only to turn warm and affectionate like family moments later, would inevitably feel somewhat at a loss.

“Child, if I’m not mistaken, although you dislike my influence on your life, the real reason you hate me, to the point of deciding to betray me, still has to do with your father, doesn’t it?”

Instead of immediately answering the young woman, the devil smiled and spread his hands, asking in return.

“Yes.”

Rеаⅾ οո КαtRеαdіngСαfе

Hearing this, the captain was silent for a long time before finally nodding slightly and answering.

Whether it was the childhood tragedy or the bumpy road of fate, fundamentally these things had passed, and to this day it remained impossible to verify how much the devil had influenced them, so they couldn’t be considered the main cause.

And although before boarding Satin Island, Roy had already made up her mind, saying she was done with this ancestor of hers.

Even so, her feelings toward this ancestor remained complex, and one could even say that at their reunion she truly had thoughts of negotiation.

The turning point came with that question.

That question about her father.

At that time, she vaguely sensed and was convinced that the devil had lied, and afterward, countless warm feelings became illusions, all promises scattered like sand.

She had completely given up on him.

This led to her defection, led her to prefer siding with the Lady in order to eliminate this ancestor, ultimately resulting in the current situation.

“I admit, I lied to you.”

Knowing that the young woman was thinking about their final exchange in the captain’s cabin, the devil frankly admitted, then continued in a gentle voice: “But now, you must also know that it was part of my plan.”

“Only this way would you hate me, only this way would you, at the moment of final choice, fall into the trap I had laid for thousands of years, inconspicuous though it was.”

As if concluding a lecture, the devil slightly raised his hands at his sides, becoming extremely, rarely serious: “But I think you misunderstood.”

“When it came to matters concerning your father, I only lied to you about one thing, the most trivial thing, which was that I didn’t know where he was.”

Hearing this, Roy’s eyes showed a slight ripple, her breathing somewhat quickened, and she asked: “So, you actually know where my father is, and…”

“He’s really still alive?”

Like sweet rain falling from the sky into an abyss named despair, after countless reversals, the young woman could no longer control her emotions.

And because of this, her iron will finally revealed a crack.

A fatal crack.

Rеаԁ оո KаtRеadіոɡCαfе

“Of course, Gerard that child is not only alive but safe and sound. It’s just as I said, he’s still trapped in a corner of the Cursed Sea.”

“In the past, trapped in the seal, with my perception blocked by the great fog, even if I could vaguely know his situation, I couldn’t help him much.”

“But now it’s different.”

As if not to startle the captain, the devil gradually lowered his hands, his movements slow and gentle, and looking into her eyes, he whispered.

“The seal weakens, the great fog will disperse. Although I am not yet fully restored for the moment, if it’s just to relieve his predicament, it is more than sufficient.”

“So…”

The devil extended his hand to the somewhat dazed Roy, calling with utmost gentleness: “Come, child, I’ll take you to see your father.”

“To save him.”

The soft words of invitation reached her ears, and the young woman took a step forward in her daze, then suddenly awoke, but it was already too late.

The devil’s dark golden eyes seemed to possess magical power, rotating slowly like a whirlpool, making it impossible to look away once you met his gaze.

Looking at the approaching whirlpool, on the eve of her thoughts also ceasing, the young woman couldn’t help but recall this word, bitter and puzzled.

Why?

Perception fading, consciousness blurring, Roy clearly didn’t want to, yet she couldn’t stop herself from moving forward, step by step, slowly but steadily.

Why had her ancestor deceived her again, why wouldn’t that devil just leave him alone, even now at this point, what necessity was there still?

Didn’t you say I was the closest to you, your most perfect child?

Oh, so that’s it…

That dark golden whirlpool drew ever closer, ever deeper, gradually transforming into pure darkness.

Whether from the devil’s mercy or not, at this moment so close to the end, Roy suddenly understood, seeing through everything.

The reason for this sudden change ultimately came down to bloodline.

Rеаⅾ оn КatRеaⅾіոɡCαfе

This bloodline, originating from the devil, like a curse, though it brought countless misfortunes, similarly bestowed upon her power close to divinity.

Just as the devil said, she was the ultimate achievement of the devil’s bloodline, truly flawless, perfect, even approaching him.

If at some point she changed her mind, truly awakened, then in this world where Isaac would soon pass away and the deity was no more, she would become the only one who could potentially threaten him…

A true devil.

He would not allow such a thing to happen.

So regardless of the negotiation’s outcome, regardless of whether those complex feelings were true or false, she, Elizabeth Roy, was destined to disappear.

Just like her father, just like all the devil’s descendants since ancient times.

This was their fate.

But although the restrictions of the seal were gradually retreating, dealing with a child who was unwilling to awaken was easy, the devil still didn’t want to take any chances.

Hence the earlier scenes.

It was truly an excellent performance, effortlessly dispersing the young woman’s fighting spirit, lowering her guard, even adding cracks to her indomitable will, finding a weakness.

Truly worthy of the devil’s methods.

So, in this world of stagnant time, in a desperate situation with no hope in sight, who could save the young woman, who could change everything?

“Crackle…”

Suddenly a sound was born in the dead silence, faint, yet incredibly clear.

Listen, it was the sound of fire igniting.

It was the final song of life’s end.

It was the hero’s song.