“Cadel tried to extort me.”

Inside the cabin, Cadel, Van, and the humanized Lydon huddled together. It was a cramped and uncomfortable scene, but Lydon’s colorful wings prevented them from opening the windows at will.

“Cut the crap and give me my meal.”

Van snatched the plate from Lydon’s hand and clicked his tongue in annoyance. There was a grumbling voice beside him, but Cadel ignored it all and concentrated on inhaling the seafood pasta.

‘What did I do that for.’

Such a disaster would have been avoided if Van had said ‘It’s Van’ from the beginning. When Cadel sneaked a glance at the soaring resentment, Van, who received such gaze, looked puzzled.

“What’s the matter, Commander? Is the food not to your liking? Shall I ask for something else?”

“……Forget it.”

Cadell moved his jaws combatively, trying to chew and swallow the shameful memory whole. Lydon scratched at his temper, muttering words like ‘pervert’ and ‘sneaky human’ in a mocking way.

After eating under such stress, Cadel tossed the bag of treats to Lydon, who whined in hunger. The look of satisfaction on Lydon’s face made his anger surge for no reason.

Averting his gaze, he blurted out the question that had just occurred to him.

“What about Lumen?”

“Lumen? Umm…… I don’t remember seeing him. Since he’s a young master born with a silver spoon, wouldn’t he be getting seasick somewhere?”

Cadel wondered if he hadn’t come out of his cabin yet. It was a question he asked absentmindedly, only to have it sink in as he realized that Lumen was intentionally not showing up.

Couldn’t they be on good terms until the very end?

Cadel nodded, scraping his fork across the bowl, and Van spoke softly.

“Do you want me to get him?”

“Huh? No, it’s okay. I’m sure he’s doing fine.”

“I’ll get him.”

Van replied firmly, setting down his bowl and standing up. He could already sense that the atmosphere between Cadel and Lumen had become strange. Van didn’t know what it was, but he didn’t want to get involved since Lumen was avoiding Cadel on his own.

However, if Cadel became sullen because of that, the story changed. Van gently resisted Cadel’s repeated dissuades and set out to find Lumen.

How dare he dampens Commander’s spirits? That is unacceptable.

* * *

“I suppose noble young master has the sea breeze instead of rice?”

Van found Lumen at the stern of the boat. At the sarcasm carried on the cool breeze, Lumen’s gaze shifted slightly. The expression on his face, hidden beneath his flowing black hair, was surprisingly impassive.

“Since when do you care what I eat?”

“I don’t care now. And I never will.”

Stepping to Lumen’s side, he placed his hands on the railing and stared out at the sea ahead.

“But unfortunately, Commander seems to care.”

Lumen’s eyebrows twitched at the hint of irritation in his tone. The apparent agitation was quickly dispelled, but the dullness in his eyes was replaced by a new vitality.

“Tell him I’m eating well on my own.”

“You tell him yourself. I can’t believe you’re acting like a damsel in distress. How pathetic.”

Van booed openly, but Lumen made no further refutation. It was bad enough that the man who would normally have spouted off a barrage of condescending remarks without losing a word was silently listening to Van’s criticism. Lumen was always an *sshole, but never more so than when he was holding weights.

“What the heck are you up to? When you don’t know how to stay next to Commander, what’s the point of avoiding openly now?”

Despite the sharp tone, Lumen remained stubbornly silent. He stared off into the horizon as if there was something great beyond.

Normally, Van would have left Lumen in silence, unwilling to deal with him further. This time, the topic of conversation was Cadel. He let out an irritated sigh and leaned against the railing in a half-slumped position. Turning to face Lumen, he spoke in a low voice.

“Answer me, because if your mere whim has offended Commander, I’m going to drown you in the sea.”

“……You’re being persistent.”

“Because it involves Commander.”

A sigh escaped Lumen’s lips. Running a hand through his disheveled hair, he turned his gaze to Van. His dark, sunken eyes were unusually still.

“I’m leaving the mercenary corps.”

At the quiet but clear voice, Van’s brow creased. He stared blankly at Lumen, then slowly opened his mouth.

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah.”

“……Why? You stuck to him like you’d be with him forever.”

“You don’t need to know that.”

Ban slowly straightened up his body against the railing. As he stared at Lumen’s well-groomed side, who averted his gaze again, Van spoke with mockery in his voice.

“Great. Good riddance.”

Turning away coldly, Van said nothing more. Neither did Lumen.

With Van turning his back without regret, he completely disappeared, leaving Lumen alone on the deck. The bitter sea breeze whipped at his skin. Blue veins sprouted on the back of his hands as he gripped the handrail, and Lumen let out a long breath that he had been holding back.