The Pirate King's Daughter - Chapter 32

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 32
“My arm hurts…….”
When I whimpered, the man holding me—who looked less like a pirate and more like a brigand raised in the rough mountains—adjusted his grip on my arm loosely.
These were strange pirates indeed.
“Come on, the captain’s waiting.”
The pirate ahead turned back and called to us.
“But are you really a pirate, miss?”
His voice was incredibly raspy, but not particularly frightening.
Probably because I knew I wouldn’t die.
‘That transformation into a mermaid felt pretty good.’
Odd as it seemed, I was actually looking forward to what came next.
“How did you know I’m a pirate?”
“Besides our ship and the merchant vessels, there was only one other ship docked here. It had an oddly designed Pirate Flag. Is your crew called the Jellyfish, by any chance?”
I should have known they’d figure it out instantly. This is exactly why a Pirate Flag needs to have identity.
‘Pudding should be fine.’
My darling had bolted to find the others the moment they caught me, so she wasn’t at my side now.
Pudding had special abilities beyond her poison—she could sense the location of her contractor.
“But why did you kidnap me?”
Pirates usually avoid conflicts on this island.
“Well, that’s… oh, perfect timing. We’re here. Our captain will explain everything.”
As we emerged into a clearing deep in the forest, surrounded by trees, the sun broke through the canopy and blazed into my eyes.
“Fair warning—our captain’s rougher than he looks, so be careful.”
The pirate released my arm and shoved me forward.
“Captain, we brought someone from that pirate crew.”
As my eyes adjusted, I could make out a man sitting on a tree stump.
He had blue hair swept back sharply, like a clean wave.
‘He’s handsome.’
His appearance was utterly unpredictable given his subordinates. A beautiful man with a refreshing quality, the kind you’d imagine sipping a blue sports drink.
“This woman is a pirate?”
“That’s right. What do you want with me?”
I didn’t approach, but stayed at a distance and asked him directly.
“Quite the mouth on you.”
The man spread his legs and rested his arms casually across them, crooking a finger to beckon me closer.
“Why, what’s the matter? Just say it from there.”
Handsome as he was, facing him directly was genuinely frightening. No matter how roughly his subordinates looked, their captain’s presence was different—heavier.
“Come here. I won’t tie you up.”
“You’re planning to beat me unconscious instead.”
“That mouth really won’t quit.”
The man stood up and approached me slowly.
I stumbled backward, but the brigand-looking pirate blocked my retreat.
“Miss, long as you listen, you’ll be fine. Our captain’s actually quite gentlemanly—when he’s not angry.”
At the word “gentlemanly,” the pirates surrounding us burst out laughing.
“Female pirates aren’t unheard of, but are you really sure you’re a pirate? You’re so small and thin—you didn’t just hang up a Pirate Flag as a joke, did you?”
The man standing before me asked the question.
“You don’t really look like a pirate either.”
“My eyes work just fine.”
Why does he keep criticizing people’s faces?
“What’s your name?”
“Tatiana. And you?”
“Kai.”
Like the brigand-looking one, Kai didn’t seem like a bad person at first glance.
“Why did you kidnap me—agh!”
Before I could finish asking why, Kai suddenly hoisted me onto his shoulder and carried me deeper into the clearing.
“That was fast.”
Bang!
A tree along the path we’d come collapsed, sending up a cloud of dust.
Vines burst from all directions and rushed toward the pirates. Caught off guard, they tangled with the vines, the clearing descending into chaos in an instant.
Even while carrying me, Kai moved with practiced grace, dodging the vines before slashing them apart with a single stroke.
“A Mage.”
Excitement crept into Kai’s previously relaxed voice.
“Tatiana!”
Kiis burst out from somewhere, launching himself high into the air. With the sun at his back, his expression was hard to read.
As he swung his sword without hesitation, a crimson Aura flew toward the pirates.
“Damn it, you didn’t mention there was an Aura User!”
“You didn’t ask!”
Kai’s expression grew tense. He moved almost as if teleporting, placing himself directly in front of Kiis’s Aura.
“This insane bastard!”
“What are you doing?!”
I grabbed a fistful of Kai’s hair and yanked.
“No!”
Kiis rushed forward to stop his own Aura from hitting me.
Crash!
The collision sent up so much dust that visibility dropped to nothing. The area fell into a deafening silence at the impact’s magnitude.
“Let go of my hair, you insane woman!”
In the quiet, only Kai’s voice rang out in pain.
As the dust cleared and my vision returned, I was simultaneously relieved to be alive and witnessing something extraordinary.
“You’re an Aura User too?”
Kai’s blade was surrounded by a golden Aura.
Aura Users were so rare that some nations had none at all, yet here everyone seemed to have it.
“Yeah. So now can you please let go of my—ugh!”
Clang!
A crimson Aura-wrapped blade collided with a sword wreathed in blazing light. The collision produced not a simple metallic ring, but a heavy, resonant metallic tone that reverberated through the space.
“Listen, didn’t you come to rescue Tatiana? If you keep fighting like this, she could get hurt.”
Kai’s tone was so infuriatingly smug that it only made things worse.
“Don’t you dare speak her name so casually.”
“Really, for just saying a name—ugh! Stop pulling so hard!”
When I hooked my fingers tighter and squeezed harder, the hand Kai had wrapped around me tensed as well.
“That hurts! Don’t pinch my skin!”
“You started it—ugh!”
As Kai exposed an opening, Kiis’s blade cut across his flank.
“Captain!”
“This really isn’t my style.”
Kai stepped back and set me down on the ground, then wrapped his arms around my shoulders from behind.
Hiss.
He pressed a blade near my throat.
“There we go. Much quieter.”
Berto and Dilshard, who’d been fighting multiple pirates, Pudding concealed in the shadows still firing poison, and even Kiis himself—
They all stopped fighting and stared at me held in Kai’s grip.
“Just to be clear about one thing: I’m not normally the type to do this. I want to talk…….”
Clang!
Kiis threw his sword far away.
“Ha.”
Kai let out an incredulous laugh.
“Is that it?”
“Is what it. Not giving people a chance to speak—is that just how your pirate crew operates?”
I bit my lip as I looked at Kai, who seemed far too at ease.
I didn’t know what he wanted, but between the kidnapping and now taking me hostage while claiming he wasn’t normally like this—the hypocrisy was infuriating.
“Stab me.”
“What?”
I looked up and met those bewildered blue eyes directly.
“Stab me. Why, can’t you? Getting cold feet now that you’re actually going to do it?”
“What overconfidence. Where does it come from?”
The corner of Kai’s mouth twisted upward. A Dagger pressed against my neck, barely not breaking the skin.
“You’ll survive. You’re an Aura User. But your subordinates—not a single one will make it back alive.”
When I tilted my chin slightly, I felt the blade graze my skin. A sharp sting followed by a burning, searing pain.
“Stop, Tatiana!”
“You maniac……!”
Kai pulled the Dagger away from my throat.
“Coward.”
“You’re completely insane. Why throw your life away so easily? I’m trying to have a conversation here. Even for pirates, this is excessive—how can your entire crew be so hotheaded?”
“Tell me what you want.”
Kiis still hadn’t approached, wary because Kai was still holding a blade.
“Don’t you think that question came a little late?”
“Just tell me. My neck is starting to hurt.”
Kai sighed and looked toward Kiis.
“I need a doctor. To treat my crew—including the people that Mage and the large one injured. We have critical patients.”
“Is that all?”
“That’s all, but your hotheaded crew turned it into a mess, argh!”
I drove my elbow into Kai’s solar plexus.
“Tatiana, please stay still.”
Kiis pleaded urgently. He seemed to believe Kai could still kill me without hesitation.
“If you’d just asked from the start, none of this would have happened. Why did you kidnap me?”
“That hurt. Your personality is really…… Most pirates won’t help. I figured taking you hostage and threatening would work.”
Kiis advanced carefully, one cautious step at a time.
“Hand over Tatiana. Then I’ll treat them.”
“You’ve got the order backward. Treat them first, then I’ll hand her over.”
“Take me as a hostage instead.”
“If you’re going to say things like that, at least stop looking so murderous. Treat him first. If you don’t move fast, this woman will get infected and die—is that acceptable to you?”
What poison did that madman put on his blade?

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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