"Yes, what about it?"
I continued. "I’m the first customer you guys have had in months, and I’m paying quite a large amount. But I’m only one person. I can’t possibly pay as much as an organization— especially one that’s after Lisa and Jack, like the Elise."
He paused, and Lisa took a step back. "What are you talking about, Aria? He’s loyal! He’s been working with us since the beginning!"
"Maybe," I said, taking my eyes off his hand and meeting the Captain’s face. "But money is a convincing tool. And it just so happens you guys have been low—"
I never got to finish. The Captain unsheathed his saber, and in one swift motion stabbed at me. I was prepared for it— I specifically looked away from his waist to bait him into an attack. To be honest, I wasn’t sure if he really was paid off by the Elise or another group, but I was spitballing after his suspicious behavior for the last five minutes.
Especially once he harped on how this other ship was definitely not trouble, when we barely even saw two ships earlier in the day— both of which were heading to port, unlike this one that almost looked like it was following us.
I sidestepped the attack, pulling out my own dagger in an instant. I struck back at the Captain, but he managed to block it. I ignored Lisa’s screams as she fell to the ground in a panic, and swept at the Captain’s feet.
The large man fell, his sword clattering on the ground. I brought my dagger down on him, but he caught my arm mid air. He was strong! He was even stronger than me, and I was pretty strong. It was a contest of strength, and I felt him pushing my arm back up. There was no way I was going to win this fight.
I let go of my dagger.
The gray blade fell straight at his face. He just barely managed to move out of the way, before I kicked him in the groin. The Captain recoiled in pain, grasping at his most vulnerable area as I swiftly picked up my dagger with a flourish and slit his throat.
Always works, I thought, ignoring his last gasps of air before he died.
I turned to Lisa who was on the floor, staring at me wide eyed with her back against the wall.
"I—" she started, but I cut her off.
"I know you didn’t do this. Just steer us out of this fog and away from that other ship!" I pointed back at the direction we came from.
She stopped shaking for a moment, before nodding. She got up as I ran down to the main deck. The other crew men had obviously seen what happened, and they were already swarming Gennady.
"Kill them!" a man yelled, charging at the Dwarf.
Gennady stumbled back in a panic, confused and shocked at the sudden situation he found himself in. I pulled out the gun at my side and fired a few shots at the attacking men, distracting them for just a moment.
It bought enough time for Gennady to pull out a mana tool from his side, and throw it at a group of men, binding them all together in a net made of mana energy. Half of them were caught, but the remaining half continued their rush at him.
I was about to fire another shot when someone dashed at me from the side. He tackled me, knocking me into one of the rooms as the boat rocked from Lisa turning the ship. We rolled on the ground for a moment, as the man tried to grapple with me.
I managed to push him off, grabbing on a table with a mana lamp to pull myself back up. The man pulled out a cudgel as another four men entered the room to support him. My eyes darted between the five of them, as I stood there, waiting.
It looked like the first man was about to charge, when another figure entered. It was Jack, and he looked at the men in anger.
"Oi, what’s going on? Lisa said you guys are trying to mutiny against us for the Elise? What in Hell is that about?" He brandished two short swords as he approached the men.
They hesitated, but three of them charged him anyways. The other two turned around and attacked me, the one with the cudgel striking at my face. I ducked under the attack, slicing up with my dagger at his arms.
He dropped the weapon in pain as his companion tried to grab for me. His hand somehow found my mask, and I panicked. I headbutted the man, almost knocking the mask loose, but managing to keep it on regardless. He tried to reach for me again, but I managed to plunge my dagger deep into his chest.
I didn’t manage to catch a breather as the other man leapt onto me. He managed to push me back, and I knocked the table down to the ground. I fell to the floor, losing grip of my dagger as the man managed to pin me.
Need. To. Use. Magic.
I was in a bad spot, but I couldn’t. Jack was still there, fighting the last of the men that attacked him. Perhaps if I could hold out long enough he could save me. But was that a good idea?
I held his hands back as he tried to strangle me, barely managing to push it aside; we struggled there for a moment, before a glimmer of light caught my eye. I saw the mana lamp rolling on the ground right next to us.
I let go of the man’s arms, letting him grab my neck. I grabbed the mana lamp, and held it up against the man’s face. His eyes widened, but it
