The Pirate King's Daughter - Chapter 80

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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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Episode 80
The banquet was nearly upon us.
‘Perian…’
I hadn’t caught a glimpse of him since our fight.
Judging by how the three of them reacted, it seemed they hadn’t been told I wouldn’t be accompanying them.
I’d sworn not to let Perian drain my emotions anymore, yet somehow I couldn’t stop thinking about him.
‘I’m far too soft-hearted.’
Mulling that over, I did a final check with the maids.
“Captain, we’ve prepared a necklace in gold to match the bracelet—what do you think?”
“No. I’ll wear this one as it is.”
I gazed at my reflection in the mirror.
Long blonde hair cascading down, a sapphire settled across my forehead where the locks parted.
A two-piece dress of blue silk wrapped around my chest, and though it exposed my midriff, so many jewels adorned it that it looked like a single garment entirely.
‘Like a film character.’
The only differences were the Heart-shaped Pendant at my throat and the Snake Bracelet coiled around my wrist.
“Captain.”
I was admiring my ornate reflection when the Head Maid approached.
“His Majesty has arrived.”
“I’ll be right down.”
I stepped out of the room and collided with Perian emerging from the adjoining chamber.
“Ah…”
He hesitated briefly, then his brows softened and he drew near with a gentle smile.
“You look beautiful, Tatiana.”
Though his warmth was surely false, it struck me as genuinely tender—and yet my chest twisted with unease.
‘I don’t even understand my own heart.’
What good would understanding do, anyway?
“Thank you. You look stunning yourself.”
I smiled back at him.
“I already arranged to enter with someone else. I’ll go on ahead.”
“Tatiana.”
Just as I turned toward the staircase, Perian caught my arm.
“What?”
I pulled away, putting distance between us.
“…Would you just listen to me once? That’s all I’m asking.”
The way he watched me—like a guilty dog—made me forget my vow entirely. My resolve crumbled.
But I had made a decision.
If I yielded now, I’d only have to part ways again. And again.
“I’m sorry.”
“……”
Perian’s head bowed.
“You know, I was always meant to leave anyway. It’s sudden, perhaps, but maybe that’s exactly why this parting feels…easier somehow. Even a little lighter.”
He simply stood there, silent.
I approached him slowly and drew him into a brief embrace.
“Don’t blame yourself. This isn’t because of you.”
My goodbye with Perian complete, I turned to leave.
“Thank you for everything.”
Downstairs in the Entrance Hall, Azael was waiting for me.
He wore not his customary robe but something regal and magnificent—resplendent yet dignified in a way that felt entirely unfamiliar.
“It has been an age since I waited this long for anyone.”
He genuinely enjoyed watching me squirm with dread.
I was half-tempted to sock him one and shape-shift out of there.
“My apologies. I could have escorted you to your palace instead.”
“Ha—one jest and out comes such absurdity. Is there a kingdom where women escort men to dinner?”
“Is there a kingdom where a man invites a woman to dine and then makes her dance the night away?”
“I didn’t realize you could actually dance.”
Since when did kings say such things?
I was about to brush past him when Azael extended his arm to stop me.
I fixed him with a look that asked ‘what now?’ and he laughed dryly, extending his hand.
“Even a commoner ought to know what an escort is, surely?”
“I doubt I’ll ever have another chance for such an experience anyway.”
I took his hand readily, and Azael stepped outside.
“Who’s to say? I could grant you a title—even a countess’s seat.”
“No thank you.”
A pirate king is still a criminal. And this insane kingdom wanted to give me a noble’s rank.
At my dismissal, his expression darkened.
“I have never met anyone quite so arrogant as you.”
He continued his reproach all the way until I climbed into the carriage ahead of him.
“I’m showing you so many new things. Since you seem to be enjoying yourself, I trust you’ll keep your promise.”
As he settled into the carriage, the wheels began to turn.
“I’m leaving very early tomorrow morning—could you give me the jewel once the banquet ends and I return to my room?”
“We’ll see.”
“Fair enough.”
Now that I had defected, the world had a high chance of collapsing.
Whether the Treasure Artifact controlled anyone or not no longer mattered.
‘I don’t care anymore.’
I leaned against the window, peering out at the darkening landscape.
There were fewer servants about than usual—likely all occupied with banquet preparations.
“What is your objective?”
The sudden question pulled me from my observation, and I turned to Azael.
“My objective?”
“Yes. Doesn’t the path close once you achieve your goal? You’ve reached the Pirate King’s seat—surely you’ve obtained what you desired?”
My goal…
Guide the protagonists and settle in a peaceful place, living a quiet life until I die of natural causes.
The first part is done, more or less.
“To settle in a peaceful place and live a quiet life until I die of natural causes.”
I spoke the unfinished second half as it was.
Azael let out a short, soft laugh.
‘That’s not even funny.’
He’d asked me from the start to entertain him—it seemed his thirst for laughter ran deep.
“Not a bad aspiration. Perhaps that truly is the essence of life and happiness.”
Azael’s face kindled with an unexpected vitality, as though he’d become an entirely different person.
He continued to ask me various questions, listening intently to each answer with visible satisfaction.
‘Perhaps he’s simply had an unhappy childhood, not a psychopath after all.’
I was musing to myself when something caught my eye through the window.
“You’re holding the banquet here?”
All the glittering buildings that had shone even at midnight had vanished; in their place stretched an expansive Garden.
“Hardly.”
Azael shook his head with casual certainty.
Before I could grasp what he meant, Pudding’s voice cried out my name.
“Tatiana…!”
In that moment, a crimson glow emanated from Azael’s chest beneath his garment.
“I have found a new objective.”
His lips curved upward, his refined eyes narrowing with a soft smile.
“I shall keep you by my side.”
The moment his words finished, I threw open the carriage door and hurled myself out.
“Ugh—!”
I crashed to the ground, skin tearing. But there was no time for pain; I scrambled to my feet and ran.
“That you believe you can escape brings me such joy—the Mother’s jewel truly does drive one mad.”
Azael’s voice drifted from the carriage behind me with a genuine happiness that made my skin crawl.
“Handle with care.”
The casual murmur of his command was all it took; I was caught before I’d gone far.
“You bastard…!”
The moment Pudding charged at one guard, another anticipated the venom and struck precisely at its source, capturing Pudding instead.
“Pudding!”
It had all been planned—Pudding was sealed into a Glass Bottle prepared in advance.
The bottle passed into Azael’s hands as he drew near.
‘I miscalculated.’
I’d thought that satisfying him would suffice. Once he gained emotion, the next stage was supposed to be enslavement by the artifact.
“If you kill it, do I go to hell?”
I thrashed with all my strength.
But arms pinned both mine from behind, making escape impossible.
“Listen well.”
My breath came ragged and sharp.
“If Pudding dies, so do I.”
The Treasure Artifact beneath Azael’s robes flared violently in response.
Conversely, Azael’s gaze turned colder than ever before.
“I shall have a Mansion prepared across the river for you. Settle there and live out your days in peace until you pass away naturally. Isn’t that what you wished for?”
“No. There’s no clause in my plans about becoming a king’s plaything.”
“Still that, then.”
Azael’s laugh was almost pleasant.
“Had I wished to possess you, I could have done so whenever I pleased. I merely wish to look in on you from time to time.”
With my arms bound, I couldn’t reach the Revolver I’d smuggled in past the maids.
‘What can I do?’
Fighting was futile. I’d learned that lesson well enough.
‘Pretend compliance and find a way to escape.’
I opened my mouth to speak, and then—
“Kies, Berto, Dilshard, Perian.”
“…!”
The protagonists’ names fell from Azael’s lips.
“Don’t you wonder what became of them?”
My heart seized. Because of me, they were in danger once more.
I didn’t deliberate long.
“Please… release them.”
Powerless. Pitiful. I despised myself.
And yet again, this time too, there was nothing I could do. Three fighters, no matter how skilled, could not stand against an army.
The taste of blood filled my mouth—I’d bitten the inside of my cheek to keep from crying, following the advisor’s counsel.
“Whether it’s the Mansion across the river or a countess’s title or whatever else you wish, Your Majesty, I will obey. Just please release my friends and Pudding.”
But the moment I spoke those words crawling on the ground, my tears fell—one, then another.

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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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