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Chapter 6
Angelina Agate.
The only daughter of the late Count Antoni Agate, and the future empress.
Her beautiful appearance and lyrical voice had captivated the entire Kingdom of Latria.
Wherever she went, reporters followed her, and every movement she made was published in newspapers. The dresses she wore became fashion trends, and the items she used were sold at high prices.
But she had a secret that no one knew—this dazzling life was actually her second.
In her past life, she had been an actress in a country called Korea. A completely unknown, unpopular actress. She bowed and scraped to producers just to get minor roles and did anything necessary on variety shows to survive.
Eventually, she was cast as the lead in a noir action film directed by a Cannes-based filmmaker, and spent over a year training at an action school. Thanks to the intense training, she reached a level where she could perform all stunts without a double.
But she died in an accident during filming. At the age of 25.
Her character was a versatile female warrior who had mastered all forms of combat and handled various weapons with ease—especially firearms.
The claim that she could shoot falling snowflakes was fictional, but she was truly skilled with guns. The director even once told her she should quit acting and join the national shooting team.
The moment Captain Blaske fired his shot, Angelina snatched the gun from Alexei’s waist. It was pure instinct.
And before the captain could even aim through his sight, she racked the slide of the pistol and pulled the trigger.
“Argh!”
Direct hit.
Captain Blaske clutched his hand and collapsed.
“Angel… you—”
“Are you going to keep sitting there like that?”
“Ah.”
Only then did the men on the boat and the pirates on the ship snap out of their stupor. Alexei helped pull Franz, who was hanging off the boat with Angelina, aboard.
“Alright, let’s go. Hurry.”
The boat, pushed by the waves, was drifting away from the pirate ship, but it was still too early to relax. The two of them grabbed the oars and rowed hard. The pirates, shaken by the captain’s injury, began firing into the sea.
But the shots fell short and sank harmlessly into the water. Furious, the pirates shouted curses, while the waves mockingly pushed the boat even farther away.
Once the pirate ship disappeared from sight, the three of them finally relaxed and shifted their posture.
“Are you alright?”
Franz’s body was dripping wet. His teeth chattered violently, either from shock or cold, and he couldn’t answer. Angelina unfolded a blanket Franz had thrown earlier and wrapped it around him.
“Feeling better?”
Only then did he nod slightly. Angelina wrapped another blanket around him. Franz looked at her gratefully.
“What happened?”
“What do you mean?”
“About shooting the captain.”
Alexei’s expression was serious. It was an expected question, but she hadn’t prepared an answer.
How do I get out of this?
“I didn’t know you could use weapons. So this gun is mine now?”
“Did you learn somewhere? Why didn’t you say anything earlier?”
“It was so long ago I even forgot myself.”
The moment her hand touched the grip, Angelina knew. Maybe her skills were still there. Of course, she fired the shot without even realizing she was thinking that.
“I suppose your father must have taught you shooting, considering the times. He must’ve anticipated war could break out anytime. I’m really surprised. You keep surprising me.”
“Wait a second.”
Franz raised his hand.
“I feel nauseous from all the seawater… can I get some water?”
“Water?”
The word sounded strangely unfamiliar.
Angelina looked into the sack.
They had hurriedly packed food, cooking tools, weapons for self-defense, lanterns, paper—everything essential.
But she didn’t remember packing water.
“What is this?”
Franz asked nervously. Angelina stammered.
“Water… why are you asking? Isn’t… that water right there?”
“Don’t tell me you didn’t bring drinking water?”
“……”
“Seriously?”
Franz looked between the two of them and suddenly let out a disbelieving laugh.
“No water is the most basic thing… how could you forget that?”
“I brought it.”
For a moment, Angelina thought she was hearing things.
“What did you just say?”
Alexei asked. She hadn’t misheard.
“No, I didn’t.”
She shook her head vigorously and looked around.
It was definitely a young girl’s voice—but she was the only woman on the boat.
“I’ve heard that on nights with a full moon, water spirits appear in the Isty Sea.”
The men swallowed nervously.
“Don’t say things like that.”
“Yeah, who are you calling a water ghost?”
The voice came again.
“Still not me this time?”
“…No.”
The three of them looked around in fear. Just as a chilling atmosphere began to spread, the cloth covering the back of the boat lifted.
“Talking about a living person like I’m not here.”
“……”
“Hello.”
A strange girl popped up, smiling brightly. Without thinking, all three of them moved closer together. The girl giggled. Her light laughter almost sounded like a ghost’s.
“Who are you?”
Angelina asked cautiously.
“My name is Naomi. I’m Captain Jin Blaske’s daughter.”
The moment she finished introducing herself, she looked at the situation and was dumbfounded. Even though she was clearly outnumbered, one person was holding a gun, another a knife, and another an oar.
Were they planning to push her into the sea if needed?
So land people really were different.
Maybe she shouldn’t have followed them.
But spending every day surrounded by dull, emotionless old men and nothing but endless blue waves was driving her insane. Whenever she asked when they’d reach land, her father only said it was none of her business.
So-called “great pirates,” huh.
They were just sea bandits.
So now, she needed to make herself useful.
Naomi slowly raised her hands in surrender.
“You’re not going to throw me into the sea, are you?”
Please, anything but that. I may be a pirate’s daughter, but I can’t swim.
“And about that gun—you shot my father and now you’re pointing it at a child? That’s not very nice, is it?”
She hadn’t seen it directly, but she had clearly heard everything under the tarp.
“And the knife too. Trying to stab a kid with that? Do you even want to live like that?”
“If you’re a pirate’s daughter, aren’t you a pirate too?”
the woman said.
“So you’re going to shoot me too?”
“Thanks to me, you escaped, didn’t you? I didn’t tell my father. So you should be grateful.”
The three exchanged looks and slowly lowered their weapons.
“Why didn’t you say anything? And why were you following us?”
“I wanted to escape too. I didn’t have the courage alone, but then I saw people escaping, so I hid on their boat.”
“When did you even get on?”
“When you were raiding the storage. I hid beforehand on the outer boat that was best for escape.”
It had been too dark and chaotic to notice. Even if they had looked, no one would have expected a girl under a tarp. The ladder hanging off the ship made sense now.
“Take me with you.”
“No. Go back.”
“Here? You’re taking me back to the pirate ship?”
Naomi’s provocation made Angelina click her tongue.
“How old are you?”
“Fifteen.”
“You’re a minor. Running away is not something kids do.”
“I do it, so it’s running away. If an adult does it, it’s independence.”
Angelina bit her lip.
A middle-school–aged pirate girl… unbelievable.
“Every day it’s just boring old men who don’t even talk properly.”
“You’re not supposed to be at home for fun. You’re supposed to be there for safety. There’s no one here who can protect you. So go back to the pirate ship.”
Angelina spoke like a responsible adult. Naomi scoffed immediately.
“So you’ll take me back, right?”
“No. Swim back yourself.”
Angelina grabbed the oar instead of the gun and pointed it at Naomi. The girl’s lips formed a small “o” in surprise.
“You’ll be a murderer if you kill me.”
“‘You’?”
“Then what, I should call you something else?”
“If I push you off here, there won’t be anyone left to call anything.”
A tense silence spread.
“Angel…”
Alexei’s voice cut through.
Probably telling her to stop.
The tip of the oar that had been pressed against Naomi’s chest dropped to the floor.
“For now, I’ll take you to shore.”
Naomi instantly smiled brightly, which only irritated Angelina more. She wasn’t actually going to throw her, but still…
She turned away and made the sign of the cross.
Amen.
But she couldn’t let her guard down around Naomi. The moment the girl moved even slightly, Angelina raised the oar again.
“Don’t move a single step. I won’t go easy on you just because you’re a kid.”
“Are you really going to push me this time?”
“Of course.”
Naomi stuck out her tongue in disbelief. Angelina clenched her fists. Alexei gently covered her hand and whispered:
“Finding land is the priority right now.”
“Right.”
Angelina agreed and looked around.
A vast, endless sea stretched in every direction.
How long would it take to reach land like this? Could they even make it before tonight?
