On the first night, shortly after Yuna had dragged Fin away, she shoved both herself and the pirate captain into a humble room. It was dark, with only the moonlight’s strong rays illuminating his surroundings.
Fin scanned the room, and felt somewhat at home. It was devoid of all expensive ornaments or decorations. There were wooden tables and chairs that looked like they were put together by an inexperienced carpenter. The bed had old sheets and seemed like it could fall apart at any time.
Perhaps the noble placed him in this particular room to insult the pirate, a way to say that she did not trust him, despite her clingy words back at the grand hall. However, Fin couldn’t take it offensively, no matter how his mind twisted the intention. If anything, he felt like it was something he would have done if he were put in a similar situation.
“This is my room, right? Thank you.”
He said as the tension in his body deflated. Upon turning around, he saw the golden noble standing in front of the door with her arms crossed. She looked every bit mad, as if she was ready to smash his bones if he moved even an inch.
“Hm? What’s wrong?” said Fin with a smile.
“What’s your deal?” Yuna asked condescendingly.
“Who are you to Miss Lemonia? I have never seen nor heard about you before. My gut tells me you seem close to the pirate captain, but how can I be sure she’ll be able to feel at rest here?”
“Pirates are filthy scoundrels who know only how to steal, betray, and hurt others. How can I be sure that you’re any different from the rest of them?”
Fin stared at her curiously. “Huh, how do you know Maria’s different then? I have no problems explaining myself to you, but you’re not making much sense to me right now.”
“Miss Lemonia and I went through our own rough patch before. The mystery to me right now is you.”
“Well, I guess there isn’t much I can do to guarantee that she’ll feel safe. I can say that we were childhood friends, though,” replied Fin.
“That doesn’t tell me anything. Years of built rapport between friends and family can be broken through promises of power, greed, and personal disdain. The fact that you’ve grown up together means absolutely nothing to me.”
“Answer me this, Fin B. Orangg. What kind of trust can I have to ensure you won’t hurt her, physically or mentally?”
“I may seem like I hate her from the surface, but I am actually quite fond of her.”
Fin grinned softly. “Yeah, I could tell immediately. I think the only other person she’s ever been like that towards has been me. I’m really happy you’re her friend, even though she stole half your treasure.”
“As for trust, I suppose you can only have my word for it.”
Raising her brow, Yuna asked, “And what might those words be?”
It took a moment for Fin to gather all the courage in the world to speak. Despite being extremely forward, he wasn’t someone who was devoid of emotions. To say it in front of Maria would be too embarrassing for him to utter, but since he had just met Yuna, there was a sense of pride pounding in his chest, screaming for him to admit what he had felt his entire life.
“That I love Maria Lemonia the most in the world.”
“I want to make her happy. I want to protect her, even if my own life is at stake.”
“If we were both in danger, I would gladly sacrifice myself to save her.”
Yuna was taken aback by his sudden confession, but before she could squeeze a word in, Fin continued.
“All my life, I spent training as a mage, hoping to get stronger for her sake. I wanted to be by her side and protect her from any harm. I didn’t want her getting hurt by bullies anymore.”
“But the more I lived with my teacher, the more she gave me a certain perspective on life. What truly defines strength isn’t how hard you can punch, or how big your spell can grow.”
“It’s about doing the right thing, even if it isn’t the right time.”
“When I left Maria’s side as a child, I did the wrong thing at the wrong time.”
“So this time, I want to make things right. I want to make sure I can make her smile. I’m not entirely sure how I’d go about doing that, but I’ll do my absolute best. Not because I owe her anything, but because I want to.”
“She’s been hurting long enough, so it’s about time I do something about it.”
“I was a selfish boy. But I like to think that, over time, I slowly became a man who had become selfless. I’ll make mistakes along the way, I’ll make people cry, I’ll disappoint people. But what truly matters to me is that I don’t repeat those mistakes again. If I have to make a mistake, I want it to be because I’m sacrificing myself for her sake.”
Fin’s expression lit up, his eyes burning with determination.
“For ten years, all I could think of was her face, her smile, and her heart. So now, I’ll actually do something to make up for all that lost time, and make sure to apologize to her through my actions.”
“Words aren’t enough anymore. Which is why, if I ever have to put down my life for her, I will.”
“I’m not confident in many things. I’ve failed her and others so many times. I’m not worthy to be by her side. But there’s one thing that I’m absolutely confident about.”
He spoke louder, practically one octave away from shouting.
“And that’s the fact that I, Fin B. Orangg, love Maria Lemonia the most in the world.”
“She’s my everything.”
“I’ve felt this way ever since I first laid eyes on her. Whenever she defended me, whenever she smiled at me, whenever she encouraged me to move forward. It always moved my heart to tears.”
“So you can choose not to trust me. You can kick me out if you want.”
“But no matter what you do, it doesn’t, and won’t ever, change the fact that I love her with all my heart.”
“She might not feel the same way for me, but that’s okay.”
“As long as she’s happy, then that’s all that matters to me.”
Catching his breath, he slumped over. He couldn’t believe he blurted out ten years’ worth of pent-up emotions to someone he had just met. A part of him wanted to stab himself out of pure embarrassment, but there wasn’t a single smile colored on Yuna’s face.
In fact, she remained unchanged, still standing with her arms crossed and a stern look on her face. It was all too clear that she still hadn’t been convinced.
Smiling, Fin slowly made his way towards Yuna. He stopped right in front of her, bending his knees down onto the ground. His forehead touched the cold stone pavement, showing the utmost respect to the estate’s lord.
“If the time ever comes to make that sacrifice…”
“Will you help me?”
“I won’t have the strength to do it all alone.”
“I’ll probably hesitate.”
“So if it means keeping her happy, then I want you, her good friend, to help me.”
Yuna sighed. “Get up. I’ll make that promise with you.”
Despite her command, Fin’s head stayed low, unwavering from his bow. It’s not that he wanted to stay on the ground, but simply put, the weight of his heart prevented him from lifting his head, let alone his entire body.
“Good for you, Miss Lemonia,” she murmured to herself. “Guess I’ll tease you a bit more from now on. This boy’s making me jealous of you.”