"You aren't serious Captain"

"But you see, I am"

"He is inept" She uttered. Her words came out lower than she had expected them to be.

Captain Crimson eye narrowed his eyes at her.

"He is not inept. He is by far the best person capable of training you right now. I can only teach you physical combat, but if you want to know how to handle your mana well, then he is the best option available" He said, smiling "And besides, weren't you the one that lost against this inept Prince? Doesn't that make you inept as well?:

"Well…T-That…." Annabelle was distraught. She never thought that the Captain- Her Captain would ever suggest such an insane idea.

As a Pirate, doesn't that mean the same thing as defaulting to the other side? So how could she join another Crew? Much less becoming a part of Prince Wyatt's crewmen!!

Looking at her Captain's expression, her heart ached.

That look. The expression on his face shows that he has already determined what actions he would take, and no other reason could change his mind.

Still, she needed to understand his reasoning.

"Captain, even though I believe that I don't need to train under Prince Wyatt to develop my skills, and although I understand that you are doing this for my own sake, however, I really need to know the reason why?" She asked.

Fortunately for her, her Captain wasn't the sort of individual to beat around the bushes or keep mute on a matter that would require the help of another.

For some reason, she knew that her Captain wasn't just sending her out there to 'just' learn from the banished Prince. It had to be something much more than that.

He slumped back in his chair.

"I was already planning to tell you the main reason from the beginning. But I first needed to know whether it would be worth telling you the reason now or after you have joined Prince Wyatt's crew" He paused.

He muttered under his breath as though he talking to himself. She had seen this scene before, more than a few times to be exact. Over the years she had spent observing him, she had deduced that her Captain believed that no one had the right to interfere with his decisions, except for the Jester at least.

Ten seconds passed, and she found his eyes staring at hers.

"Annabelle"

"Yes Captain"

"I need you to infiltrate Prince Wyatt's ship and become part of his crew. I need you to become my eyes and ears in there, report everything you see, from his habits, method of thinking, likes and dislikes, who he favours the most and who draws his ire the most. Everything. I need you to report everything to me. Please, this is a very important task that I am handing over to you, can you do it?"

Her heart!!

Her heart was pounding furiously. Like the many pieces of literature, she spent her time reading when there wasn't an enemy to capture or the zeal to get up and train, the words that made her mind and heart race faster than a stallion was closer to the feelings she felt now.

Her soul, her body, her--

"Alright Captain, I won't disappoint you" Annabelle replied. Her gaze possessed a much more intense glint in them.

She didn't need to know more. The fact that her Captain, a man of such calibre was pleading and entrusting her with such an important task to her, is all the conviction she needed. No more, no less.

"Good, I know you wouldn't, that is why I am entrusting such an important task to you. Be sure not to disappoint me, I don't want to regret my decision" He responded.

'Keep it together Annabelle. Keep it together..' She thought.

She could almost taste the sweet satisfaction in her heart by the time she completed her task. She knew that with such an important task, the reward given would be proportionally greater, or at most, equal to the difficulty level of her mission.

"Captain, how long till I return?…. I mean, how long is the duration of this task?"

Captain Crimon eye furrowed at his brows at her question. His lips turned into a frown. Fortunately, it didn't take him much before he put his thoughts into a sentence.

"There is no time limit for this task. You will do it for as long as you have to".

Her racing heart stopped. The icy chill she once thought was ethereal now pierced into her veins, turning her body cold.

With great difficulting, as though a lump of stone has been used to block the channel of the air passing through her throat, she spoke "….There is no time limit?".

"Yes, they aren't. You will stay and spy on him until I have decided that we have collected more than enough information to know who Prince Wyatt truly is" He replied. The words rolled off his lips as though he has just said the obvious.

Her soul went cold.

In just this single meeting, she had felt, happiness, shock, disappointment, acceptance, loyalty and now disbelief, all interchanging with one another until a gapping hole was all that was left.

And all she felt, filling the gaps in that hole was nothing more than anger. Raw anger.

Gripping the fabric of her robe, she tried so hard not to let her emotion show on her face. Pity!! It was however a pity that the raw sentiment leaked into her words.

"...Why?"

'Why do you want to send me away?' She thought, her emotion clashing faster than two knights testing their against one another under the pretence of honour.

"Because you are the only one capable" Captain Crimson eye answered.

'Because I am the only one capable' She thought and repeated.

"How long do you think that the mission would last?" Annabelle asked.

"I am not sure" He responded, taping his nails against the desk with a rhythm "But I can estimate that it would take a year and a half, or two years at most".

'A year and a half, or two years at most' She thought and repeated.

"What if I were to finish my task in just under one year?" She said with a sharp glint in his eyes.

Captain crimson eye smiled. A quick rumble followed his voice as he chuckled lightly before clearing his throat.

Looking at Annabelle, he locked his gaze with hers once more.

"If you can finish your task and get me everything I need in under one year, then I will give you double... no, three times the reward I was planning to give you. And also, I will grant one of any of your wishes that is within my power" He answered.

Of course, he knew that such a thing was not possible in under one year, since this was a man, together with the people behind him that had deceived the top largest information broker on the continent.

Gathering everything about the Prince in such a short amount of time was impossible however if she managed to finish such a task within that period then, it would be incredible. A terrific acomplisment.

Nonetheless, until then, he would keep his hopes and expectations low. Since you can not be disappointed by an expected disappointment.

Meanwhile, the same couldn't be said for Annabelle who coiled her lips into a tight smile, already portraying a self-assured victory.

"Alright, Captain. I will not disappoint you" She replied.

Standing from her seat, she had nothing more to say. No, she had a lot to say and pour out from her heart but at the moment, her emotions were torn.

Regardless, she continued working forward with a steady and predictable stride. Pulling the locks open, she stepped out of the room.

"And please, do whatever you need to make sure this mission is successful. I have given you free rein to do whatever you like as long as your actions don't put me and the Crimson Black-eye crew in danger" Captain Crimson eye voice sounded behind her.

She nodded her head in understanding and closed the door behind her.

"Click!!"

Like a vengeful spirit released from her chains, her face morphed into the countenance of a savage bull. A savage bull that is incapable of being quelled.

"Prince Wyatt" She uttered, grinding the words out of her teeth.

She couldn't blame her Captain. No, how could she blame him? For her Captain to allow her to join another crew, it was already clear who should be held responsible for her raging emotion.

"Prince Wyatt" The words were gnashed upon, beaten and spat out of her mouth like an ethereal arrow that could not miss its target.

He was the one responsible for all of this!!

Just a day after his arrival, all of the plans she had been brewing has already been thrown over its head. How would she be able to spend a week or a month away from her Captain?

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