The Seventh Voyage

Chapter 4 Mired

He spoke little...It surprised her that a man like him didn't feel the need to assert any form of dominance, even in the face of danger.

More interestingly, his coldness matched hers. That was a first.

He was making it immensely difficult for her to figure him out when breaking people was usually Yeo Wol's forte.

But, Yeo Wol was determined.

"Where did you get this sword?" Yeo Wol demanded a minute later as she pulled out the sword in question.

Out of self-preservation, Jeongjo decided to play dumb, recognising the dire need to analyse the situation he was in before he throw himself into deep waters yet again. Containing the recognition in his eyes, the man cleverly dismissed the sword despite the history it held.

"How bold of you to assume it is even mine, to begin with. If I knew how to wield a sword like that, would I even be in this situation? I could have used that to defend myself." Jeongjo spoke seriously despite his racing heart.

He could only hope that a Captain with eagle sharp eyes like hers, wouldn't see past his lies and call him out for betraying her trust...

...not that she trusted him yet.

But she would. Winning her trust was vital to his survival. Of course, that was easier said than done, for it wasn't easy to win her trust in the first place.

But Jeongjo was determined.

Each with their agenda in mind, who will emerge victorious?

Right now, Jeongjo was determined to keep the truth from her and she knew that.

Yet, would the truth change anything?

Even if the man was a threat to them, Yeo Wol was confident she could take him down single-handedly. Besides, the man was injured; grievously so.

A fight against him would be optimistic, ergo, he was no threat to them as of now.

Since Yeo Wol wasn't heartless enough to toss him overboard, she settled for the next best alternative.

Probation.

Squatting next to the man's face, Yeo Wol pulled out her dagger, using her trusty blade to lift his head by his chin, such that one wrong move would send him to his demise. Similarly, her words bore the same harshness of her actions, as she fixed him with a cold gaze.

"Listen, I don't intend to keep you prisoner here. If you're on this ship, you have to earn your keep. If I ever catch wind of foul play on your end, trust me when I say that you will be as dead as a rat once I get my hands on you."

Just like that, she started to walk away, but his soft baritone stopped her movements.

"You could have left me there. Why did you save me?" The man breathed weakly, his tone curious yet dark.

Indeed, why did she save him?

Truthfully, Yeo Wol didn't have an answer to that.

So, she left, without so much as turning her head back; a lone shadow meant to walk alone.

The door stayed open; ajar with the promise of freedom to the man in the dungeon.

But at what cost?

Would he take this freedom?

☠☠☠

That night

The night was wild.

They had expected a storm, of course, but none of them had been prepared for a storm that held all of Poseidon's ferocity.

The winds were strong; unforgiving as they tossed their sails back and forth against the flashes of white on grey, as the crew onboard tumbled with every step.

Beneath them, the briny waters were equally treacherous; turbulent as they threatened to rock their ship past its tipping point.

Around them, the air pulsed, whereas the roiling waves would erratically grow in crescendo, before crashing down on them with their magnificent glory. It was concerning, how the waters were breaking and flowing all at once, for the rage of the seas was too much to bear for a band of pirates trying to build a home on their ship.

The clouds darkened.

The gales screamed.

Onboard, shouts could be heard amidst the roaring winds.

Yet, while all this was going on, Captain Yeo Wol was in bed, waiting for sleep to claim her as their ship continued to rock shakily against nature's fury.

She had been tossing and turning the past hour.

Yet, her sleeplessness had nothing to do with the storm, for she was confident that their ship was sturdy enough to survive this. No, the reason behind her restlessness was because of him.

Her senses were on overdrive. It has been since she left the dungeons.

She was simply infuriated. Not just by his speech, but by his actions and his impassiveness too.

The more she thought about their exchange, the more infuriated she felt.

The hissing wind was doing nothing to contain her frustrations, and Yeo Wol found herself sitting up a second later.

With one swift motion, Yeo Wol untangled herself from the blankets and swung her legs over her makeshift bed.

Her calfskin boots met the ground with a dull thud, and a heavy slam indicated that she had left the Captain's quarters for goodness knows where.

She walked with no destination in mind, letting her feet carry her to the very man who was the root of her restlessness that night.

She stopped.

"Why are you here, Yeo Wol?" She seethed beneath her breath until a gentle snore snapped her out of her fury.

Momentarily, all the anger left her, when she found the man curled up uncomfortably against the wall, sleeping past the choppy night that they were sharing.

There was something so vulnerable about the man as he slumbered on, that left the Captain wondering why she was so mad at him in the first place.

Now and then, the man would shift in his sleep, trembling slightly at the drafts of winds seeping into his cell.

She wondered why he never left.

She wondered why he chose to sacrifice his freedom for such discomfort.

Above all, she wondered why the thought of him infuriated her, yet enthralled her so.

Perhaps it was because he was her mystery to solve. Or perhaps, there was some physical attraction hidden beneath the surface. Whatever it was, it caused Yeo Wol to let down her guards momentarily, as she picked up a stray blanket and dumped it on him.

Startled awake, Jeongjo could barely make out the Captain's lone figure walking away from the cell door through the haze in his mind. He too was confused why she was in his cell in the middle of the night.

Yet, he thought little of it as he slipped back into his dreams, subconsciously tightening his hold around the warm fabric that made up the blanket she had given him.

With that, the last lingering thought in both their minds was:

What now?