chapter 46
Her hand trembled against the ground.
Her vision blurred—
not from heat.
From tears she refused to let fall.
Princess (whisper): "…Say something…"
Silence.
Assassin: "You're weak."
Cold.
Final.
That—
hurt.
More than everything else.
Then—
A voice tore through the battlefield.
Marco (screaming): "PRINCESS—!!"
Everything froze for a fraction of a second.
Marco's voice broke—raw, uncontained.
Marco: "THE SHIP—!!"
A pause.
Then—
Marco: "IT'S GONE—!!"
The words didn't land immediately.
Marco: "They destroyed it—!!"
His voice cracked.
Marco: "Everyone on it—!!"
Silence.
Then—
Marco (low, hollow): "…They're dead."
---
The battlefield didn't change physically.
It changed something deeper.
Emotion.
Reality.
Meaning.
---
Bochy didn't fire.
Didn't move.
For a second—he just stood there.
Then slowly—
his weapon lowered.
Captain Bochy: "…Say that again."
No one answered.
They didn't need to.
His grip tightened.
Hard.
Veins rising along his arm.
Captain Bochy: "My crew…"
A breath.
Shaky.
Unstable.
Captain Bochy: "…You're telling me…"
His voice dropped.
Low.
Dangerous.
Captain Bochy: "They're all dead?"
Something inside him cracked.
His breathing turned uneven.
Shallow.
Uncontrolled.
And then—
The world slipped.
---
FLASHBACK
Rain tapped softly against worn wooden planks.
A small boy sat beneath a broken dock.
Knees pulled to his chest.
Barefoot.
Shivering.
Not crying anymore—
because he had already cried too much.
A voice called from behind him.
Rough.
"Hey."
No response.
Footsteps came closer.
"You deaf?"
Still nothing.
A pause.
Then—
a sigh.
"…You lost?"
The boy finally looked up.
Not with hope.
With suspicion.
With survival.
"…No."
A lie.
Small.
Learned.
Because admitting it made people leave faster.
Bootsteps gathered above him.
A group of pirates.
Wet cloaks.
Rough faces.
One laughed.
"Still trying to act tough."
Another crouched.
"Kid. Where's your crew?"
Silence.
His fingers tightened.
"…I don't have one."
A pause.
That answer should've been simple.
But it came out heavier than it should have.
"No family?"
The boy hesitated.
Just a fraction.
"…No."
Rain grew louder.
Like the world was listening.
"Useless."
A turn.
"Leave him. He'll die here anyway."
The boy didn't react.
Because he had already heard that verdict from life itself.
But then—
another voice.
Not loud.
Not kind.
Just tired.
"Hey."
The captain stepped forward.
He looked at the boy for a long moment.
Then asked—
"What's your name?"
The boy froze.
No one had asked gently before.
Not like it mattered.
"…I don't know."
A pause.
The captain exhaled.
"…That's a stupid answer."
A flicker of defiance in the boy's eyes.
The captain crouched down.
Close enough to be seen clearly.
Scars. Old ones. Not proud ones.
"…Everyone's got a name."
The boy whispered:
"I don't have anyone to call it."
That sentence changed the air.
Even the rain seemed quieter.
The captain stood.
"Alright."
"…From now on, your name is Bochy."
He turned away.
"Come with us."
The boy blinked.
"…What?"
The captain didn't look back.
"Because you'll die if you stay."
A pause.
Then—
"Also… you're annoying me sitting there like that."
A few pirates laughed.
The boy didn't understand.
But he stood anyway.
Because standing hurt less than staying.
---
Years Later
Food was never enough.
Beds were never soft.
Words were never kind.
But—
no one left him behind.
One night, he asked:
Bochy: "…Why are you keeping me?"
A pirate scoffed.
"Don't get emotional. You're just extra hands."
Another added:
"If you die, we lose nothing."
That should've hurt.
But it didn't.
Because they said it while giving him food.
Actions contradicted words.
And that confused him.
Later—
the captain found him sitting alone.
"You like doing that?"
Bochy shook his head.
Bochy: "…I don't know where else to go."
The captain sat beside him.
Not as authority.
Just presence.
"…That's fine."
A pause.
"You don't always need somewhere."
Bochy looked up.
"…Then what do I need?"
The captain smirked faintly.
"…Just don't die on me."
---
The Day Everything Changed
Cannon fire.
Shouting.
Metal screaming.
The sea turning red under stormlight.
Bochy was trapped under debris.
Wood pinned his arm.
He couldn't move.
Tried.
Failed.
Tried again.
Footsteps approached.
Slow.
Heavy.
The captain stood above him.
"…Kid."
Bochy reached up.
"…I can't move."
The captain looked around.
The battle was collapsing.
Everything burning.
He smiled.
Not teasing.
Not joking.
Just real.
"…I've already lived enough for both of us."
He turned.
Walked into the fire.
And didn't come back.
---
BACK TO PRESENT
Bochy's breath shattered.
His knees hit the ground.
Hard.
Like his body finally remembered pain.
Bochy (broken whisper): "…You promised…"
His voice cracked.
Bochy: "…you said I shouldn't die…"
His hands trembled violently.
Bochy: "…so why are you gone…"
A pause.
Then—
a scream.
Not of rage.
Of loss.
Of everything he never stopped carrying.
Captain Bochy: "…That ship…"
His voice broke completely.
"…was my home…"
Silence.
"…My family…"
He looked up at the sky.
Not angry.
Not loud.
Just empty.
Captain Bochy: "…I promised…"
A breath.
"…to protect it…"
Then—
he screamed.
Not like a captain.
Not like a warrior.
Like someone who lost everything twice.
---
Nearby—
The Princess stood still.
No more questions.
No more shaking voice.
Something inside her had changed.
Grief remained—
but it sharpened.
Focused.
Cold.
Princess: "…I'm done asking."
She stepped forward.
Slow.
Controlled.
Her aura steadied.
No longer flickering.
Now—
stable.
Unshaking.
The assassin moved.
For the first time—
he felt alert.
Not distant.
Not mocking.
Present.
He blocked—
but slower.
Just slightly.
She saw it.
And used it.
She twisted—
cut through his guard—
and reached for his mask.
A pause.
The battlefield itself seemed to hold its breath.
Fire. Smoke. Steel.
All still.
Princess: "…I see you now."
She pulled.
The mask came off.
Silence.
...CHAPTER 46ENDS...