After sailing for a while, the initial excitement gradually faded.
The familiar rhythm of the sea returned, and with it, Reid's boredom crept back in.
Back then, life at sea had meant constant battles. If he were still in that era, he could have fought those legendary pirates head-on. He knew them, understood their strengths, and even how to defeat them.
But now, piracy had become something else entirely.
Especially the groups they had run into so far. These so-called pirates were either charging recklessly toward death or fleeing in terror the moment they saw the blood-red flag or Annie freezing the sea with a single gesture.
They were too weak.
So weak that Reid felt like he was bullying children. There was no challenge at all.
He had yet to encounter anyone truly strong. The battles he remembered were clashes between kings and veterans, or titans facing one another.
Even that guy… Joy Boy… had been hunted by both royal forces and the old powers.
Damn it, why were their lives so eventful?
What exactly was he lacking compared to that guy?
"Ah… I'm so bored…"
Reid collapsed flat onto the deck, sprawled out like a lifeless fish.
He didn't even bother using his blood mist to steer anymore, letting the boat drift wherever the currents carried it. It didn't matter where they went.
He just wanted to witness this blank century for himself.
Even he didn't know where he should be heading.
The sea breeze swept across the deck, carrying a faint chill.
Annie stood quietly nearby, watching her captain lying there like a corpse. A flicker of confusion passed through her ice-blue eyes.
She could feel it.
That overwhelming sense of boredom radiating from him.
It made her feel… uncomfortable.
Not in a painful way. Just… wrong.
She wanted to do something.
Tilting her head, she thought hard, but she had little to draw from. The only reference she had was how the women in the tribe took care of others, along with her own unreliable instincts.
Then, she walked over and crouched down.
She reached out her hands.
Not to pull him up.
But to push him.
Reid was still immersed in his thoughts about how lonely it was to be invincible.
When people are deep in thought, they often respond instinctively to outside actions. Like handing something over when someone asks for it during a phone call.
Reid did the same.
His body unconsciously cooperated.
He rolled.
Or rather, he was rolled.
Like a piece of driftwood, nudged along by a small but persistent force, he was pushed across the deck.
Reid blinked.
"...?"
He was pushed all the way to the corner of the deck, next to a makeshift lounge chair.
Annie stopped, looked at the chair, then at Reid lying there in confusion.
Apparently, she decided this position was acceptable.
She raised her hand again.
A wave of cold air gathered, forming a thin layer of crystalline ice over Reid's body, wrapping him from head to toe like a blanket. Only his face remained exposed, filled with silent question marks.
An ice blanket?
It radiated a faint, steady chill.
After finishing all this, Annie seemed very satisfied with her arrangement.
She glanced at the chair, then at Reid, now wrapped up like a cocooned ice silkworm.
Then, without hesitation, she climbed onto the lounge chair and carefully nestled into his arms, adjusting herself into a comfortable position.
And just like that, she lay there quietly.
The entire sequence was smooth and natural.
Reid finally snapped out of it.
He felt the cold layer covering him, then looked down at the girl resting peacefully against him, as if everything made perfect sense.
Three invisible lines appeared across his forehead.
"Hey… little one…" His mouth twitched. "What exactly are you doing? Who taught you to push people around like that?"
Annie lifted her head from his chest and blinked at him, her clear eyes filled with confusion, as if she didn't understand why he was reacting this way.
She raised one finger and pointed toward the sky, then pointed to herself.
Her meaning was simple.
You seemed uncomfortable. I'll stay with you.
Reid stared at her, then at himself, holding what was essentially a human-shaped cooling pack.
For a moment, he didn't know what to say.
He sighed.
Trying to move, he realized the ice was surprisingly solid.
"Alright… alright…"
He gave up struggling and adjusted his position slightly, making both himself and the small "ice pack" in his arms more comfortable.
"…I guess this counts as a new experience."
He closed his eyes, feeling the sea breeze.
This level of cold wouldn't bother him anyway.
Maybe… it wasn't that boring anymore.
Well, whatever. No one was watching.
And just like that, the two of them stayed like that for an entire day.
Night eventually fell.
Reid yawned, stretched, and headed toward the small cabin.
"Alright, time to sleep."
Annie heard him and naturally followed behind.
But just as she was about to step inside, strands of blood mist gathered into the shape of a small hand.
It grabbed her by the collar, gently lifted her, and stopped her at the doorway.
Annie blinked.
She turned, watching the tiny hand of mist dissipate, then looked at Reid blocking the entrance.
He crossed his arms.
"Listen, little one. You're an adult now. You understand that, right? You can't sleep with me like before."
Annie stared at him silently. No reaction.
Reid sighed and continued, trying to explain something that was… complicated for her.
"Boys and girls are different. That means they shouldn't sleep together."
This time, she reacted.
She tilted her head slightly, processing his words… then nodded.
Reid let out a breath of relief.
Good. She understood.
He had been worried she might never become independent. Turns out, he wasn't so bad at this after all.
"So, you need to learn to sleep on your own. I've already prepared the room next door for you. It's even bigger than mine. If anything happens, just come find me."
He pointed toward a nearby door.
But Annie shook her head.
Reid frowned. "Wait. Didn't you just nod? Why are you shaking your head now?"
Annie raised her finger again.
She pointed at him.
Then at herself.
Then toward the inside of the cabin.
"Say it again."
Reid paused, confused, but repeated, "So you have to sleep alone."
She shook her head again and pointed inside.
"The sentence before that."
Reid thought for a moment.
Then he tried, "Boys… and girls are different. You understand?"
This time, Annie's reaction was immediate and intense.
Her head shook rapidly from side to side like a rattling drum.
Her eyes were filled with firm, undeniable rejection.
No.
I don't understand.
Reid fell silent.
He felt a dull ache forming at his temples.