Chapter 186: They Said Running Is Good For Business

I stared at them for a few seconds, blinking. My mind was still catching up to what had just happened.

I hadn’t expected this level of support. Not from any of them, but especially not from Derry. From Derry, I’d expected one hell of a scolding — I’d eavesdropped on his conversation, ignored his orders, and struck people we could’ve just passed peacefully.

But here he was. Not angry. Not even disappointed.

It wasn’t my fault though. I knew myself well enough to recognize when something had shifted in me. I’d always been like this — enraged and uncontrollable — whenever people spoke ill of what was mine. I’d tried not to care so much over the years and just et things slide.

But this was different.

Kassie was the one person who had stormed into my life and made everything feel right. She wasn’t slavery. She wasn’t property. No one got to reduce her to that word, not after the life she’d lived and the person she’d become.

My jaw tightened as I thought about it. That little standing up of mine had been deeply unsatisfying.

’But it’ll have to do. For now.’

I turned to Derry, still slightly confused by his reaction.

"That’s going to be all? You’re not going to scold me?"

Derry folded his large arms across his chest and looked at me with genuine confusion, like I’d asked him why water was wet.

"Scold you? Why would I do that?"

"Won’t this affect you all in the future?"

"Most certainly will." He shrugged those massive shoulders. "But when has anything not affected us? Think about it. We are criminals — we don’t just enjoy living this way. We enjoy this life!!"

He shouted the last part for no reason I could understand.

’You could’ve gotten the point across without the volume, pal.’

Po materialized beside me. I hadn’t heard him move at all — the boy just appeared in places like he had silent steps stitched into his boots.

"And Mr. Cade!" Po said, leaning in conspiratorially. "There’s no way Derry will scold you. He hates Mr. Fargo. That man is so..." His face scrunched up like he’d bitten something rotten. "Urgh!"

I couldn’t help it. A chuckle escaped me.

’Urgh indeed.’

I gave Derry a more serious look, forcing myself to focus on what came next. "So... what’s the way forward?"

"Nothing special." Derry rubbed his chin, unconcerned. "It’ll take a minute for the message to reach the dock. In that minute, we’d have to bypass them once again. It’ll be one hell of a race."

I tilted my head slightly, considering. "Or we could just fight them. My win, at the very least, is guaranteed."

Derry shook his head, eyes half-closed like a teacher dealing with a promising but naive student.

"You know nothing, kiddo. This is the life of a criminal — running comprises the most part of it." He raised a finger before I could interrupt. "We do not run because we are weak. We do not run because we’re scared of engaging. If anything, after seeing the prowess of you and your summon, I’m confident in our ability to win."

He paused, letting that sink in.

"But we are a service company. This isn’t about fighting — it’s about providing service and avoiding damages." His voice took on a practiced rhythm, like he’d explained this to hotheaded passengers before. "When we engage them in combat, we don’t worry about who will win. None of that matters. What matters is damages. We have to calculate the damages — and trust me, battles with these kinds of people come with plenty of them. Damages affect our services to other clients. It’s a bad name for us as a company."

I stared at him for a moment, processing the strange logic of professional criminals who ran not from fear but from good business sense.

"I guess... that makes sense."

Even I could hear the uncertainty in my own voice. But there wasn’t much I could do about it. They had their rules, their way of operating, and I was just a passenger here. At the very least, they knew what they were doing.

A mischievous grin spread across Derry’s face — the kind of grin that preceded a sales pitch.

"Although..." He drew the word out. "You could always place a service request if you want us to fight. Direct confrontation usually costs a lot of money." He held up a finger. "Starting from one thousand gold."

"Oh."

’They don’t miss a single opportunity to make money, do they?’

You’re right — my mistake. They’re on the Black Snow Company’s ship, approaching port. Let me rewrite this properly.

The conversation faded after that. Everyone settled back into the rhythm of the voyage — Derry returning to the helm, Po disappearing into the cabin with that silent-step movement of his.

I found a spot near the railing and watched the water roll past.

Kassie came beside me, her red hair catching the wind and streaming behind her like a banner. She didn’t say anything. Just stood there, close enough that I could feel the warmth of her presence against the ocean chill.

’I wonder if she heard what I said back there.’

The thought came unbidden, and I pushed it away. It didn’t matter. What mattered was that I’d meant every word.

The sea stretched endlessly around us, but the horizon ahead had begun to change. What had been an empty line of blue and grey was now broken by shapes — distant at first, growing clearer as the hours crawled by.

Every time the ship crested a wave, I found myself tensing.

Word traveled fast when people had something to gain from it. A Naval Prefecture officer, bloodied and humiliated on a Black Snow Company vessel — that was the kind of story that spread like wildfire. Even though Derry said not to worry, I was really curious if truly there was no way for the ship to contact the port authority between here and Crystalis or Derry had just said that to prevent me from worrying.

Anyways, the sun traced its arc across the sky, bleeding from white to orange as afternoon bled into evening.

"You’re thinking too hard."

I glanced at Kassie. She was still watching the horizon, her expression unreadable.

"Am I?"

"Your jaw’s been clenched for the last hour." She tilted her head slightly, wind whipping strands of crimson across her face. "Either you’re thinking too hard, or you’re developing a grinding habit. Neither is attractive."

I grinned. "You wouldn’t happen to consider me attractive before now."

She turned away from me. "Relax your jaw."

I sighed and forced my jaw to relax. She wasn’t wrong — there was a dull ache spreading through my teeth that I hadn’t noticed until she pointed it out.

"Just thinking about what Derry said... is there any world where running is right?"

Kassie glanced at me and scoffed.

"I have fought many battles. Many of which I had been wise enough to run. It indeed is foolish to run. But it’s wise to know when to run and when not to. Many are not wise but a lot of people are foolish."