Chapter 79
As I reached the deck, the cold night air stroked my skin .
I looked around but a thick white smoke blinded my sight . It appeared that a fog had surrounded the ship .
Not only that . The islands nearby provided the perfect cover, especially at night . It seemed this ship had ran out of luck when it got stuck in this mess .
As I approached the watchman, I saw a body leaning against the fence . Was he dead or was he just unconscious? I couldn’t make it out from this far away .
Watching out for any arrows, I lowered my body and approached . Then I saw the body moved slightly . So he’s not dead yet .
The moment I breathe a sigh of relief and put my hand on the ship’s mast, a loud explosion reverberated . The ship shook greatly and swayed to one side .
I got hold of the mast immediately and endured the rattle .
Another deafening explosion roared and a rugged bridge was cast over the hull of the ship .
“Enemy raid!!”
I stood up and hammer the bucket I grabbed repeatedly as I shouted . After confirming that the downstairs were becoming noisier, I threw it away .
Inhaling deeply, piercing cold air filled my lungs .
My thoughts were clear . While listening to the sound of my heartbeat pulsing strongly, I stared at the clouded fog in front of me .
Beyond the hung bridge, another ship and its crew could be seen . Their quick footsteps were silently heard resonating on the wooden floorboards .
The uninvited guests had arrived .
’The imbeciles who dare to defile my Lord’s important journey…’
When I thought that, my palm tightened the grip on my sheathed sword and I gritted my teeth .
I immediately unsheathed my sword .
Stepping forward . Next step, next step, just one more step before charging-
“Hey! Get more boats!”
“A ship like this rarely comes by! Don’t let a single one escape!”
As the distance shortened, men with vulgar faces that matched their disgusting behaviour could be seen .
“Out of my way! I’ll go first!”
Pushing down the guy who was in front, the man raised his voice before dropping down onto the deck . The man blinked in surprise as I ran out and grabbed him . Even before his smile could turn into a frown, my sword slashed his throat open .
Red blood coated the deck . Not knowing what happened, the man stumbled backwards a few steps and fell against the fence . His throat agape . The lifeless body dropped to the floor and a fancy fountain sprayed out from his neck .
“Wha-What!?”
From the top of the bridge, the guy who was pushed away saw me . He pulled out his sword to fight back, but I easily caught his leg and tripped him over .
I stepped on his back and thrust the tip of my sword through his heart . A high-pitched scream followed .
The pirates were stirred by the enemy that suddenly attacked . When I kicked one of the bodies into the sea, they suddenly came charging at me . The sound of clashing swords rang in my ears .
“What the fuck did you do! Die!”
“That’s my line . ”
To the shouting man, I calmly replied .
I pushed back his sword that was repeatedly flung down at me . As I swept his sword to the side, the man slightly broke his posture . Immediately closing the gap, I pulled out the dagger from my waist and stabbed his right eye .
I finished him off as he gave a pitiful cry . As I was about to step forward, something caught my collar and pulled me back . I fell on the ground, dumbfounded . In the next moment, an arrow pierced through the spot my face would have been with a dry sound .
I was dragged back towards our ship .
A man stood behind me . His hood thoroughly covering his face .
However, I recognised his attire . When that maid collapsed, he was the guest that surrendered his room .
“You’re rushing in too soon . ”
The figure released my collar and spat out in disgust .
The voice definitely belonged to a man .
“Sorry, I was saved . ”
I obediently thanked the man, but in return he just gave a sigh as if he was amazed .
“You’re not fit to be an escort . ”
“Ha?”
I raised my voice to the unexpected words but the man pushed my head down and told me to ‘stay down . ’
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly as I said . Right now, you’re not suited to fight while protecting others . ”
“I’m-“
When I tried to retort, the man faced towards me . Even if I couldn’t see his face, I could still felt a sharp gaze from him .
“You only know how to kill, not to protect . A beast that only run through enemies can’t protect anything it leaves behind . ”
“!”
As soon as he said what he wanted to say, the man took his eyes off of me .
The man reached into his pouch while still crouching down and pulled out three weapons in one hand . Sandwiched between his fingers were three slender knives… No, rather, were they needles?
The man grabbed a wooden bucket from nearby and flung it up in the air .
Two sharp arrows flew through the air . One hit the tub and rolled away . It takes a few seconds to knock another arrow . The man raised himself up .
He whipped his hand as if to strike the sky, then an archer had one of the needles in his throat . The other archer got one stabbed deep between his brows .
“Let’s go . ”
Following the urging man, I got up, but inside my head was a complete mess .
’I’m not suitable to protect others?’
Even though I wished to be her sword and shield .
On the battlefield, any slight distraction was fatal . I know that, but I couldn’t think straight . I was feeling uneasy as I slashed the enemies around me .
I wanted to protect Rosemary .
I wanted to protect her wishes . I wanted to protect the precious people around her . I wanted to protect them all .
But I didn’t know how to do that .
I only knew how to kill the enemies in front of me .
“Kuu…”
Amidst the turbulent situation, a bitter voice escaped my lips .
Looking back, a sailor was being overwhelmed by a pirate . I pushed the enemy in front of me away and cut him down .
I ran over to the pirate and slit his neck .
“Are you okay?”
“O-Oh, thanks . ”
I helped the sailor up .
I firmly tapped his shoulder as if to say ‘pull yourself together!’ The sailor soon ran off towards another enemy .
’I won’t let anyone die . ’
I looked over the deck that was a battlefield and swore in my heart .
Please don’t die .
Don’t scar her heart .
A dead person doesn’t bother me in the slightest . But for Rosemary, she will surely be very sad .
I lamented and blamed myself for not having the skills to protect her .
This was not a delusion but rather facts and was clearly shown in the past .
At the time of the kidnapping incident, she was desperate to save the lives of the maids who were at the hands of the enemy . But I focused on only saving Mary’s life and ignored her wish .
Though I didn’t outright fail . If you asked if I had saved her, then I would say I had . However, there were also circumstances .
‘Do not expose Rosemary-sama to danger no matter the cost . ’
For that goal, one or two maids were deemed a low price to pay .
And I made a big scar on her heart .
Even though you knew she’s a kind person . And exactly because she’s kind, wasn’t that why you wanted to protect her in the first place?
’…I’m really not cut out to be an escort . ’
“Hey!”
*Gan!*
A clash rang out beside me .
Realising that a slash towards me had been repelled, I glanced at the direction of the sound . A man dual-wielding a huge knife in each hand stood there with his weapons crossed, receiving a pirate’s sword .
Parrying back with overwhelming force, the man struck his enemy through the heart . After wiping off the blood on his cheeks with the back of his hand, the man glared at me with a sour face .
“Stop fucking around already! Do you want to be laughed at by your sister?”
“!”
It was that one passenger who made friends with Rosemary recently . I remember his name being Wolf?
“My sister?”
“She’s doing her best downstairs . I didn’t expect she would have the guts to do it . ”
We stood back to back and kept on talking while cutting down enemies .
“That child is also fighting with you . What would she think if she sees you being such a coward?”
I didn’t feel angry nor provoked at those words .
However, my eyes were glued to the stairs leading down below .
Actually, I didn’t want to avert my eyes from those stairs at all .
But I knew in my heart that I was not worthy to be by her side .
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