"Do you know how worried I was! That was the Marine! What if you..."
Charlotte Linlin's heart softened, knowing she was acting out of concern, so she had to resort to her "trump card," lowering her voice:
"If you don't come down now, you'll sleep on the deck by yourself tonight."
These words were indeed effective. Gloriosa's body stiffened, and after weighing her options, she finally let go reluctantly, landing lightly on the ground. She glared at Charlotte Linlin puffing out her cheeks, but secretly vowed in her heart:
If I could fly... if I could possess even greater power, I would never again be like today, only able to watch helplessly as Linlin faces strong enemies alone, facing the threat of the Marine by herself!
She didn't dare imagine what would have happened to Charlotte Linlin if it hadn't been Zephyr today, but Garp, Sengoku, or even a Marine Admiral.
This sense of powerlessness and the fear of potentially losing Linlin made Gloriosa determined to become stronger no matter what, so she would never let her take risks alone again.
At that moment, Ripley walked over carrying a large plate of fragrant food and placed it in front of Charlotte Linlin.
Although Charlotte Linlin wasn't injured in her fight with Zephyr, her physical exhaustion was immense.
"Ripley, your cooking... has improved again!"
While devouring the food, Charlotte Linlin gave Ripley a thumbs-up with her free hand, praising her without reservation.
"Has it? Why didn't I notice?" Gölz, who was also eating dinner, asked in confusion.
She felt that the taste of today's food was no different from yesterday's.
"It's because our Captain has been hungry all day that she thinks my skills have improved." As the cook, Ripley understood Charlotte Linlin's current situation very well.
When a person has been hungry for a long time, even leftovers taste delicious. One must remember that Charlotte Linlin was captured yesterday and fought Zephyr for half a day today; she must be starving.
Having eaten and drunk her fill, Charlotte Linlin stretched. Seeing Vina come out to check the navigation route, she suddenly remembered something and said:
"Vina, that Marine warship you found docked at the harbor, I destroyed it on my way out."
She thought Vina would be happy, but instead saw a complex expression on her face, even carrying a hint of worry.
Charlotte Linlin asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"
Vina recounted the previous incident where they were held hostage by the Phantom Pirates and how Vice Admiral Tsuru led the female Marines to risk their lives to save them.
Finally, Vina concluded, her voice carrying a hint of confusion and realization: "Captain, I think... I now understand a bit of what you meant by 'there are good people among the Marines' too."
Charlotte Linlin instantly understood what she was worried about, smiled, and reassured her:
"Don't worry, I only destroyed the ship, I didn't kill the people on it. Even if those female Marines who saved you were on the ship at the time, with their strength, swimming back to shore would be easy. Besides, that warship was manned entirely by male soldiers."
Hearing Charlotte Linlin's explanation, Vina truly breathed a sigh of relief, a relieved smile appearing on her face: "That's good then."
She was not an ungrateful person. After learning that there were such self-sacrificing individuals among the Marines, the hatred in her heart toward the Marines was no longer so absolute.
In fact, before Charlotte Linlin destroyed the warship, she and the other three had already decided to give up on this revenge because of this complex gratitude, but they were unable to contact Charlotte Linlin at that time because she was in the middle of a fierce battle with Zephyr.
Seeing that they could have such a change, Charlotte Linlin was sincerely happy. Hatred should not be the entirety of these young girls' lives.
"Captain! I found it!" At that moment, Lilith called out excitedly.
---------------------------------
If you'd like to read the next 70 chapters in advance, you can support me on Patreon.
I regularly post chapter previews there, so you'll always be up-to-date and won't have to wait too long.
patreon.com/SolyuraMT
And if you enjoy the story, don't forget to give me a Power Stone. Your support really motivates me to continue translating!