?


    Yelena seemed hesitant as she asked cautiously, "Mr. Chavez, what should I say about my identity if the pirates interrogate us? Can I pretend to be your fiancee! That way, it won''t raise suspicion and might make things easier for us."


    Hearing Yelena''s words, Emmett frowned deeply as he thought, Pretending to be a couple! No way. If Yvette found out. she''d probably p you into oblivion. Knowing Yvette, it wouldn''t just be you-even Mr. Chavez might not survive her wrath


    Even when Jeremiah was dressed in tattered sailor''s clothing, his radiant aura remained undertiable, exuding elegance from within. His face betrayed no emotion as he steadied the ship, his deep gaze lingering on Yelena for mere seconds before pulling away.


    Then came Jeremiah''s words, sharp and unyielding, shattering Yelena''s fleeting delight like ss. He said, "No. You''ll pose the ship''s cleaner"


    Upon hearing that, Emmett barely managed to stifle augh. He turned his back slightly to maintainposure and thought. Truly, Mr. Chavez is as sharp-tongued as ever


    Yelena, for all her ws, did have a certain charm to her appearance. While she couldn''t hold a candle to Yvette, she was quite striking. Yet, in Jeremiah''s eyes, Yelena''s aristocratic elegance was reduced to that of a cleaningdy. His words were sharp as they were cruel.


    still


    When Yelena heard that, her smile froze, and her expression shifted through a cascade of emotions. After a moment of silence, she regainedposure like nothing had happened. "All right, Mr. Chavez. I understand. I''ll y my role well and won''t drag the military down," she said solemnly.


    Yelena''sck of argument was surprising though it meant little to Jeremiah. To him, ensuring her safe return to Betrico was enough to repay the Chavez family''s debt of gratitude.


    Emmett, however, found himself reassessing Yelena. Compared to the other women who had previously tried to ingratiate themselves with Jeremiah, Yelena seemed far more adept.


    Ten minutester, the ship was struck repeatedly. From the control room, Jeremiah watched on the monitors as his men outside were captured one by one.


    Jeremiah turned and gave Emmett a subtle nce. Catching the cue, Emmett immediately began to panic, shouting and iling to draw the pirates attention. As expected, arge group of them stormed into the room momentster.


    Bruno personally led the team this time, clearly uneasy. The timing was too coincidental. After they had hijacked a Clusian ship, another one appeared. It felt like a trap, so Bruno decided toe himself, ready for any surprises.


    As Bruno entered the wheelhouse, his gazended on three figures-Jeremiah and Emmett, dressed like fishermen, and Yelena in in clothes, looking visibly panicked.


    "Get down," a pirate ordered.


    "Down, now," another one chimed in


    "Hurry up, a third pirate joined in.


    The pirates, ustomed to raiding international ships, spoke bits of variousnguages. They had been honed through Bruno''s insistence on education. Each year, he hired instructors to teach the pirates foreign tongues and customs, cultivating a high-caliber crew,


    Jeremiah''s hands trembled faintly at his sides, though he forced a calm expression, while Emmett shrank timidly, his demeanor one of fearfulpliance. On the other hand, Yelena, half-acting and half-genuinely scared, cowered to the side.


    |||


    10 09 Thun —


    Bruno scrutinized the three captives for a few seconds before deciding they posed no threat. He immediately, his pirates stepped forward to cuff the unarmed Jeremiali, Emmett, and Yelena


    879%


    ved his hand, and


    Then, Bruno moved to Yelena, pinching her chin and examining her for a moment before he scoffed, "How ugly. Why are there no better-looking women from Clusia?"


    Yelena''s eyes flickered with anger as she wanted nothing more than to kill Bruno for insulting her appearance. She fumed. inwardly. How dare a mere pirate like him criticize my looks?"


    After a nce, Bruno lost interest. He released Yelena and walked over to Jeremiah and Emmett, focusing on Jeremiah and studying him thoroughly. Bruno''s gaze changed several times as he tried to make sense of things.Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.


    Bruno wondered, This man... Although he''s just a crew member, he has an unexpectedly handsome face. Why is he so good-looking?


    Jeremiah narrowed his eyes slightly, meeting Bruno''s gaze with a nk look. Bruno''s voice was deep andmanding as he ordered. "Take them back to Spaunia but separate them from the previous group. Also, keep these two men apart from this


    Woman.


    Yelena hadn''t expected to be separated from Jeremiah so soon. Reluctantly, she stole a nce at him. Bruno caught the subtle longing in her gaze and shot another nce at Jeremiah, thinking, ''So they''re a couple.


    The pirates quickly rounded up the three-along with the others and took them aboard the fishing boat, heading toward the nearest Spaunia dock, which was their base. Once aboard his ship, Bruno hadn''t even set sail before a distant rm red.


    Beep Beep! Beep!


    The sound was a signal from the pirates, announcing that another ship was approaching. Bruno''s brows furrowed deeply as he thought, ''What''s going on? Is everyone waiting for me to raid their ships?"


    Bruno quickly returned to his ship, and just as he boarded, he saw arge vessel slowly approaching from the distance.


    On


    the new ship, Yvette lowered her binocrs and raised an eyebrow with a casual elegance. The wind tousled her hair as she stood on the deck, but her beauty remained impable and divine.


    There was no sign of tension as Yvette nonchntly remarked, "Up ahead. We''ve arrived"


    Frankie and Chris struggled to keep their eyes open against the fierce wind. Meanwhile, Yvette seemed unfazed, though her hair was slightly tousled. Frankie couldn''t help but feel a pang of frustration, thinking, ''Great wind, you are biased:


    Chris squinted into the distance, nodding thoughtfully. "Yvette, do you really think that ship ahead is the target of Mr. Chavez''s mission? How are you so sure? What if we''re wrong


    It wasn''t hard to understand Chris'' concern. There were dozens, if not more, pirate gangs in the waters near the Gulf of Araquiel. How could they be certain that the ship ahead was the one responsible for kidnapping Clusian crew members?


    On the other hand, Frankie had no doubts at all. He knew one thing-Yvette had a golden touch, like a child of destiny. Whenever she said something, it was always right. Even if others doubted her, they would only end up eating their words,


    With a slight tilt of her head and a mischievous smirk ying on her lips, Yvette spoke, her voice calm and confident "Sunrise Group''s ship disappeared in this area. No one else would be here. Spaunia pirates have their own territories, and this is Bruno''s domain."


    At Yvette''s words, both Chris and Frankie were enlightened. Pirates were now even dividing their territories like any other criminal gang.


    As the ship loomed closer, Chris'' expression grew solemn. He asked, "Yvette, they''ll board our ship if they get any closer. Should we confront them head-on? I''ll grab the guns and weapons."


    Jan


    Frankie chimed in. "Chris and I will grabs our weapons, Yvette. Let''s teach these pirates a lesson today"


    Yvette lifted her gaze, studying the ship as it closed in. A wickednile curled at the corner of her lips as her eyes lingered on the imposing figure of the leader standing on the deck. "There''s no need," she said casually.


    SEND