Star Illusion | ATEEZ Pirate AU

Chapter 61 - Remember

Hongjoong clicks his finger on the table. "You want me to fight them?"

"Well, yes-"

"That's impossible. They possess battleships carrying over 100 guns. None of our ships can fight head on with them." Seonghwa cut off the governor.

"No, quartermaster Seonghwa, we just need captain Hongjoong's naval tactics to defeat them. And they are all going to join the fight." Governor eyes the other captains at the tables.

"And pirate king, you can be in the front line if you want." Captain Billy sneers. His companions snicker after him.

"My ship can be in the front line." Erik said and glared at captain Billy.

"What a loyal dog." A man beside captain Billy snorts, he blows a puff of smoke into the air.

Although Eric was provoked, he remained calm and smiled. "Captain Arrow, I heard your crew are planning to vote your quartermaster as the new captain. So I understand if you never had anyone loyal to you."

Captain Arrow throws his clay pipe onto the ground. He stands up and slams both hands on the table. On the other side of the table, Hongjoong's comrades also stand up to confront the opposite party.

"Ugh, pirates." Someone groans as the pirates are at each other's throats again. The governor at the head of the table massages his temples while the merchants look at the pirates with disdain.

One brave soul breaks the tension by turning to ask the governor. "And what about artillery supplies? You will provide for us?"

"That's why I'm here." A gun merchant replied back to Yunho.

It's a good choice to bring Yunho here, he knows how to do business and not end up on anyone's bad side. Hongjoong thought to himself.

The others lose interest to fight one another so they tune into the discussion once again. While they're conversing about supplies. Hongjoong quietly listens, something nags him about the whole situation.

"Aren't you blessed by Wonderland's power? Why don't you share it with us? So we can protect ourselves." Captain Billy picks up another fight with Hongjoong. He smirks and several people nod their heads in agreement.

The whole room then focuses on Hongjoong. The duo behind the pirate king turns rigid. They stare at their captain's back uneasily. However, Hongjoong lets out chuckles that make hairs on people's arms rise.

"The news sure traveled fast." Hongjoong crosses his arms and lean comfortably against his seat. The vague answer causes the room to fill with shocked exclamation.

"What do you mean? Did you really go to Wonderland?" Captain Billy doesn't give up and tries to force an answer out of Hongjoong.

"This is out of today's topic. I have a business to deal with. Farewell." Hongjoong abruptly rises to his feet and exits the room with Seonghwa and Yunho trailing behind.

Baffled, the occupants watch the trio leave. Captain Arrow and Billy glance at each other as they spot something eccentric in Hongjoong and his subordinates' behavior. They must be hiding something.

Thus the meeting came to an end because of the main character's sudden departure.

---

"Captain!"

Hongjoong stops in his tracks once he hears Erik yelling after him when he's heading to the carriage parking in front of the governor's manor. To his surprise, Erik embraces Hongjoong tightly. His arms hang in the air and he looks at the duo beside him. They give him a shrug and stifle laughter.