North Coast of the Empire

"Ahhhhh.. what the fuck!"

Levy shrieked like a little girl, his voice so high-pitched it drew startled glances from nearby merchants and shipbuilders. He practically leapt three steps back, clutching his chest as his face turned pale. Right where he had been standing a moment ago, the shadows beneath his boots rippled, twisting like liquid ink. From that dark whirlpool, two figures rose, solidifying into men of flesh and blood.

The sight stopped the entire dock for a second. Carpenters hammering on a ship's hull froze mid-swing. Sailors hauling rope stumbled to a halt. Even the merchant scribes with ledgers in hand lifted their heads, staring with weird expressions.

Two men, stepping straight out of a shadow.

Razeal was the first, emerging calm as ever, his white hair catching the salty breeze. Beside him, directly walked to one direction his towering, broad-shouldered figure stretched his arms like a freed beast, his presence alone suffocating the air around him.

Levy gulped loudly, still panting as if he'd seen a ghost.

"You did your job yet?" Razeal asked without even acknowledging the chaos he'd caused, his tone flat, casual, as though he hadn't just emerged from an impossible void in the middle of a crowded dock.

Levy blinked, his lips twitching violently. "O-oh, it's you, boss!, I nearly killed.. good i saw it was you boss…" He slapped his chest a few times, trying to calm his racing heart.

Razeal's eyes didn't change. He just stared. Waiting.

Levy forced a shaky laugh. "Well, about the job… yeah, I got it done. Bought us a ship. And not just any ship.. the most expensive one docked here. Cost me everything. Every damn copper.. afterall our life be depending on it..." He gestured weakly toward the short, well-dressed man standing beside him, clearly the merchant.

The merchant.. plump, with an impressive beard and rings gleaming on his stubby fingers nodded politely, though his sharp eyes flicked curiously between Levy and Razeal. It was obvious he'd overheard the way Levy had addressed Razeal: boss.

Maria, standing just a step away from Levy, turned her gaze to Razeal's sudden entrance. Her eyes, however, drifted toward the other side where a bulky old man stood with his muscular arms spread wide, facing the vast sea. He drew in a deep breath, like a fish stranded on land that had finally found water again after years of thirst. The sea wind whipped against his face, tossing his long, strikingly beautiful hair so much so that even Maria, begrudgingly, felt a twinge of jealousy at how magnificent it looked.

Still, her eyes narrowed at the sight of his back. Since the moment he had arrived, he hadn't turned around once, only facing the ocean.

Is he that old man? she wondered. But shouldn't he look ancient by now? They said he was already old when he was taken into Eternal Hold… and it's been thirty years since then. Shouldn't he look like a corpse by now? Yet here he is muscular, imposing, alive.

Her doubt wavered as her eyes flicked back to Razeal, whose plain, steady gaze rested on Levy. If Razeal isn't mistaken, then it really is him, right? This guy wouldn't be here otherwise…

And then it struck her.

Wait.. Razeal was in Eternal Hold. Now he's here. Out?

Her stomach lurched. That prison was said to be unbreakable. No one even knew where it was.. only whispered it was buried somewhere in hell itself. And yet… he had escaped?

Her mouth fell open. No way. Just… damn.

At least she still had the time to feel the weight of that shock.

Shock pulsed through her chest, her breath catching. But she forced herself still, hiding her expression before anyone else could see.

Levy didn't even have that privilege. Razeal was grilling him directly, forcing him to explain everything while, out of the corner of his eye, he kept wondering about the old man standing behind Razeal.. only his back visible. Then came the shock: Razeal was free. And now, on top of that, Levy had a flood of questions he couldn't even begin to process. He didn't have a second to react.

"Alright, take the ship. We're leaving," Razeal said flatly, giving no time for anything, no room for bullshit.

Levy froze for half a second, then scrambled. "Y-yes, yes, of course! Lemme, uh… just get that pulled up.. yeah, right away!"

He spun toward the merchant, almost tripping over his own feet. "Release the ship into the sea. Now. We're ready to depart. Do it fast."

The merchant stroked his beard thoughtfully, his eyes gleaming with curiosity as they flicked once more to Razeal. The way the boy carried himself.. plain, detached, yet commanding was not the manner of some rich brat.

"Very well," the merchant said finally, his tone smooth, practiced. "You've paid in full. Consider it done."

He raised a hand, signaling.

Across the dock, workers immediately leapt into motion. One burly foreman nodded sharply and jogged toward the far side, shouting orders in a booming voice.

"Release the lines! Get her in the water!"

Within moments, men were pushing, pulling, and cranking ropes. The massive hull of the ship groaned as it was guided toward the sea. Chains rattled, pulleys strained, and the air filled with the creaking symphony of wood and iron.

Levy wiped sweat from his brow, trying to keep himself looking useful as he hovered near the merchant.

Still

The short merchant squinted at the strange group gathered before him. His eyes moved one by one first to Levy, who still looked half-nervous, half-irritated; then to the blue-haired woman with that haughty aura unmistakably belonging to the Grave family; then to the bulky old man who had just appeared, breathing in the sea air like it was more precious than gold; and finally to the pale-haired youth who stood silent, yet carried himself as though he was the boss here.

The merchant frowned. So this white-haired boy is the leader? He thought

Still, curiosity itched at his tongue until it spilled into words. "So…" he drawled, rubbing his stubby hands together as though weighing coins, "what sort of crime did you lot commit to be running to sea? Was it so bad you'd rather choose death over facing it?" He let out a half-laugh, half-chuckle, a dark sort of humor clearly more for his own amusement than theirs. "Don't mind me.. it's just a habit of mine. Heh."

The question hung in the air.

From his tone, it wasn't just curiosity it was the strange thrill he got from brushing shoulders with people who had made names for themselves through blood, crime, or rebellion. Bigger criminals made him feel as if he himself was part of something grander, even if his only role was selling them their last ship.

He tilted his head, eyeing them like livestock at market. "Strange though. None of you look like the type. From your faces, none seem hardened by crime. So… what did you do, exactly?"

At his words, both Levy and Maria instinctively shifted, their gazes sliding toward Razeal.

The young man, pale-haired, calm-eyed, turned his head slowly toward the merchant. His expression was unreadable.

From the look in Maria and Levy's eyes, the old man, understood immediately. So this boy… he's the main one.. Now Fully clear. The others are tangled just side shows. Maybe unwillingly, maybe willingly… but it all stems from him.

The merchant rubbed his hands again, leaning closer as though he might see the truth etched into Razeal's face. His little eyes narrowed, trying to recognize him. Usually, when people fled to sea, they were names faces already infamous in the Empire. But this boy… blank. A stranger.

Weird?

"I'm sorry," the merchant said at last, his voice oily, polite but probing. "But can I ask.. who are you? And what crime exactly did you commit?" His tone brightened unnaturally, as if making it a friendly question. "Ah, don't mind me asking. It's just… I love it when I get to see a great figure pushed to sea by my hands. The bigger the name, the greater the accomplishment. It makes me feel I've done something important." He laughed awkwardly, but his beady eyes gleamed with greedy interest.

The words settled like a heavy stone.

Suddenly the air felt dense, awkward thick with silence. Levy and Maria both glanced at Razeal again, their faces tense, their lips twitching as though they wanted to intervene but dared not. A cold, strange quiet pressed down on the group.

"My crimes…"

The boy finally spoke. His voice was low, even, almost casual. He let the words hang in the space between them

The merchant perked up, leaning closer. "Yes, yes?"

Razeal's face didn't move.. Eveb being very casual. "Well… it's not worth mentioning," he said with a shrug, dismissing the question as though brushing away dust. "Don't worry about it."

Levy's lips twitched violently. Maria almost choked on her breath. Both stared at him sideways with looks that screamed not worth mentioning?! If the merchant knew the truth.. that this "not worth mentioning" crime was enough to ...Weill leave it.. Its indeed not 'Worth' mentioning.

The merchant blinked, dumbfounded. "Really?"

"Yes," Razeal replied simply. His eyes didn't shift or tone wavering.

The silence stretched. Then, as if bored with the conversation already, Razeal reached into his coat and pulled out a folded letter. He held it out to the short merchant.

"Leave it at that. There will be people coming after me once I've gone. So Take my advice: don't lie. And if someone comes at you violently.. if they torture you give them this."

The merchant blinked again, slower this time, as though caught in a daze. He reached out and took the letter with weird expressions, staring at the sealed parchment

Before he could even form a question, Razeal had already turned his back. "Let's go," he ordered, his tone final.

Maria followed. Levy, still unsettled, stumbled after him.

"You too," Razeal said without looking back, his voice directed at the old man who still stood, arms spread wide to the sea breeze. "We don't have time to linger. Or do you want your old acquaintances to come here and greet you?"

Yograj chuckled low, dropping his arms at last. His nostrils flared as he released a final deep exhale. "Oh, no," he said, almost amused. "I've no interest in meeting them either." He relaxed, finally stepping forwar.

Five minutes later.

The coast had already begun to fade, the land behind them shrinking into the horizon. The ship, freshly purchased and freshly released, creaked as it cut through the waves. The ocean stretched out endlessly ahead, its surface glittering beneath the light.

All of them were on deck Razeal, Maria, Levy, and Yograj.

The old man broke the silence first, his deep voice rumbling like distant thunder. "So… is my daughter still coming? She isn't here." His brow arched as he turned toward Razeal.

Razeal's reply was calm, almost careless. "She'll be here in the next two minutes." And with that, his body sank down into the shadows beneath his feet, vanishing without a sound.

The air shifted.

Maria, Levy, and Yograj were left standing together in the awkward silence his disappearance left behind. None of them spoke at first, the creak of the ship and the splash of waves filling the space instead.

Finally, Yograj broke it, turning his gaze toward the other two. "So," he said slowly, his lips curving into the faintest of grins, "what crimes did he commit, exactly?"

Maria froze. Levy looked down, scratching his head. Both opened their mouths, but no words came out.

"Well… that…" Levy began, then trailed off, helpless.

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Sorry, everyone only one chapter today. Had some urgent work and couldn't even spend time with my girlfriend.

I hope you all understand. Sometimes it's just too much. Well, not really work this time I actually spent the day with my family.

Apologies from this poor author.

Thanks for reading!

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