Aochi
This ship was even more surreal than ours.
Ours had a classical, stylish interior. This one, if I’m being generous, was futuristic. Less generously, it was just an eerie, metallic silver everywhere—lifeless and cold. It felt less like a ship floating on the sea and more like one floating in the sky.
Lying face down on that cold, hard floor was a man in white.
He hadn’t moved at all since Harvester had tossed him there so roughly. Had he died?
I rushed over and dropped to my knees. I placed my hands on his shoulder and waist, trying to turn him over. He was unexpectedly light for someone of his height. When his pale face came into view, I felt a strong thump in my chest—my heart pushing out blood all at once.
"Hey, you alive?"
The man stayed still, eyes closed. I couldn’t tell if he was breathing—neither his chest nor his mouth gave any clues.What the hell was I supposed to do in a situation like this? Shaking him probably wasn’t a good idea, but I had zero medical knowledge. —Wait, should I check his pulse?
Carefully, I placed my fingers against his pale neck.Where exactly do you check? I wasn’t sure, so I slid my fingers around.
"That tickles."
"...Huh?"
His face suddenly broke into a childlike smile, and the tension in me released all at once.
"Thank god. You’re okay."
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Then his smile vanished, and in a flat, mechanical voice, he said:
"If it were me, I would've chosen you without hesitation."
Sunlight streamed in, lighting up his gray eyes.They were unsettling—like looking out into the ocean. They reminded me of Harvester’s.
"What… are you talking about? Did you hit your head? Maybe you should lie down. Right, where’s the infirmary on this ship?"
I tried to stand, keeping my voice calm, but he grabbed my arm and stopped me.
"Keep what I just said a secret. If he finds out, he’ll really kill me this time."
"‘He’—you mean Harvester? What the hell even happened here? Was it because you rammed our ship?"
The man’s expression softened again into a friendly smile. Each time his face changed, those creases near his eyes looked oddly charming.
"He didn’t get mad about the crash. He got mad because I tried to extend the ladder."
"The ladder? My junior's the one who lowered it from our ship. Thanks to him, I made it over here."
"Do you like that junior of yours?"
He suddenly sat upright as he asked.Both his movement and the question came out of nowhere—no sign of someone who’d just been choked unconscious. I felt dumb for worrying he was dead.
"Of course I do."
"Then just say you were the one who extended the ladder. Come on, let’s go outside."
He got up with a lightness that made his earlier collapse seem like a lie. Just as I was impressed, he staggered, and I instinctively caught him.
"Don’t push it. I’ll help you."
Out on the deck, Harvester’s broad back was the first thing I saw. I averted my eyes and looked toward the other ship—searching for Oomi, and found him right away."Good. He hadn’t said, "I lowered the ladder," yet.
If he did, I’d jump in and say, "No, it was me."I didn’t know why, but if it meant Harvester’s anger would be directed at me instead of Oomi, then I had to take the blame."
The man stood next to me, still unsteady on his feet. From a distance, Oomi was glaring at him."What’s going on?Did Oomi, with that sharp intuition of his, sense something off? Was there something wrong with this guy?
I glanced down, trying to read the man’s expression—But before I could, Harvester grabbed him by the collar and yanked him off the ground.
Not good.He was still furious. What the hell kind of person gets this mad over a damn ladder?
"Don’t just waltz out here like it’s nothing, you damn half-dead freak."
His voice was low and threatening, his face so close it made me shiver. If I didn’t step in now, he might start strangling him again.
"Hey, stop it—"
Then Harvester said something that froze me in place.
"I won’t stop. You want me to just let a killer roam around?"