Chapter 81: 81

Ed was taken aback when Lil, whom he met while strolling around deck, said that. A stormy wind ripped over the ship and blew between them. Ed narrowed his eyes to see if this was a deliberate strategy by her or if she truly suffered from memory loss due to the heavy drinking.

“What do you mean?”

Lil shot sharply and pushed his forearm with the tip of the telescope she was holding.

“Get out of my way.”

“…”

***

As a result, Ed hadn’t had a proper conversation with Lil until two days after their departure. She was even colder than before, so he immediately thought she was feigning ignorance. The first time they had a proper conversation was after Anunchio had left the recruiting tent back on Panichi. 

‘At that time, Liloa was sober, and I bet our sincere conversation must’ve broken down her walls to some extent. However, the fact that she’s hiding behind an even tighter iron wall now means that there’s something she’s hiding.’ 

Ed made a wild guess. 

‘Is it because she’s embarrassed?’

“If that’s true… Hmm, I think it’s rather cute? I really hope that’s the case.”

Ed chuckled with a strange laugh. He sat down against the main mast and started playing a lively tune. One of the sailors sitting on the lowest bow began to sing.

“…Tomboy Miss Bobo!…”

In the absence of a patient, Ed spent most of his time playing his Surihe on deck. Although he also jotted and scribbled sceneries on the ship in his notebook, he preferred performing with his instruments. That’s why sailors who have never been treated by him called Ed ‘the musician’ instead of ‘the doctor’. His performances were all very well received on the Bell Rock. Sometimes, the hard-working sailors on the bow also enjoyed playing the Surihe themselves. When someone from the bow hummed the lyrics of ‘Miss Bobo’, the whole deck suddenly began to sing the cute song with full commitment.

Ed listened to lyrics about a tomboy who crossed hills and streams as he watched Lil climb the stairs of the stern, coming his way. Of course, Ed had set himself up on the tailwind in anticipation of this encounter. When Lil got close enough to hear the singing sailors, she groaned and stared at Ed, who was excitedly holding the Surihe in his hands like a guitar.

“Why are you playing this song? It’s gross.”

Ed chuckled, trying to ignore the lyrics, and glanced back at Lil, leaning on the railing. The chorus was repeated endlessly.

“…How cute she is, that tomboy lady!… How cute she is, that tomboy lady!…”

Ed ended the performance only after all the voices that sounded like a long-play record had faded away. He then stood close to her. Lil straightened her spine and gripped the wood with her fingertips, unable to let go of her tension for even a second. It was the kind of tension she wouldn’t have had to deal with if Ed hadn’t come to this railing to obviously wait for her.

“Captain. How are you?”

“I’m fine.”

“I have something to ask today.”

“Let me guess, you will ask me that same thing you asked me yesterday or the day before. ‘What do you remember from that night,’ isn’t it?”

“No… Calm down first, you should loosen your fists.”

Ed tapped on the back of Lil’s hand, but she flicked his finger away with her other hand.

“You’re bothering me again, why are you always looking for me?”

“Looking for you? I was here first?”

“But still, you always come here, so stop it.”

“…”

“It’s my spot, but you’re taking it away from me. It’s like I’m pushing away a stone using another stone.”

“That’s strange. According to the Captain, you only need my permission to get me to leave. Why don’t you ask for my permission?”

“Your permission can only be given after I make a request… However, this spot is like the Captain’s seat. What kind of bum tries to take the Captain’s seat in the first place?”

Lil stared at Ed’s beautifully curved lips and thought about how he must be a man who knows how to seduce women with his face. 

‘He knows he’s extraordinarily good-looking and knows how to sharpen and wield it like a weapon, especially with distracted opponents. Such a skilful and seductive smile… Was Admiral Retiro perhaps planning to conquer the Anatole Sea with Ed’s beauty?’

“You remember that too, right?”

Lil, who was analysing Ed’s features, was startled and raised her voice.

“What?!”

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“That ‘permission’ was the highlight of our conversation. For someone who doesn’t remember, you understand me very well. I even think before that night, the word ‘permission’ had never been uttered.”

Lil fought to calm down her pounding heart. She had to answer gently, so she lifted her chin and rubbed it profusely with her thumb and index finger.

“Is it? Is ‘permission’ that special a word? Permission, permission, permission, permission, permission. I must say it at least ten times a day, I’m not so sure why you think I uttered such a common word for the first time that night.”

When he didn’t respond right away, Lil gazed triumphantly at her opponent. Only, Ed had inclined his head with an uncertain smile, waiting for a proper counterargument. His exposed bangs cascaded down the slope of his brow. He wore a narrow-brimmed, circular hat on top of his head like the lads currently do, so he didn’t have to style his hair. Resulting that his bangs could flow naturally like that… It was only then that Lil noticed his outfit. He wore a tight vest over his shirt and a sailor’s scarf. He appeared to want to give someone a cheerful and refreshing impression, it was a great combination that would work on anyone. Lil averted her gaze and pondered.

‘Why is he trying hard to dress up stylishly in a place without any women? Did this man really come from the Navy?’

While Lil was thinking about such a trivial thing, Ed scratched his head and rubbed his earlobe, before placing his elbow on the railing and leisurely resting his chin on his hand.

“Captain, you don’t have to try so hard to deny it. If it’s not your first time saying it, how do you know exactly what I’m talking about?”

“Do I? What a petty argument; don’t you think that’s an unduly subjective guess?”

“So?”

“Of course, when I told you about ‘permission,’ what I meant was…”

“..!”

Ed grinned broadly and buried his mouth in the palm of his hand. Lil realised at the same time, or perhaps a fraction of a second earlier, that she had committed a grave mistake that cannot be corrected or covered up by other words.

She exclaimed out of desperation.

“Damn it!”

Ed was now laughing aloud. Lil thought it was ridiculous how joyful he was that even his brows were wiggling, it took all her strength to stay composed while her blood was starting to boil. Ed, who normally would have pacified her by saying things like ‘calm down,’ didn’t even flinch today as he started to push her buttons.

“You were so ashamed of that?”

“…”

“Why are you looking at me so fiercely? What did I do wrong?”

Then Lil’s eyes expanded even further, and her rage became unfathomable. With his tempted fingers, Ed wanted to stroke Lil’s hair. No matter how manly she looks, the way he caught her was incredibly cute, and her actions keep tickling his side. Ed bashfully scratched the side of his back.

Lil merely glared and pulled out her telescope from her waist. She first pointed the telescope towards Ed’s nose and then used it to slowly push his forearm as a gesture of giving a grim warning. 

“You’d better get out of here right now.”

Ed took off his hat and bowed down deeply in an exaggerated move.

“Well, let’s call it a day, Captain.”

“Don’t mess with me again.”

“Why is that?”

As Ed tilted his head, Lil pretended to toss her telescope at him. However, Ed just pretended to be surprised and took no defensive action. Lil, who began to notice his increasing likability, became disgusted and clenched her teeth to the fullest. She clearly knew the difference in how she felt about him before going to Panichi and now.

Ed took a hesitant step back, bringing the Surihe he was carrying on his shoulder to the front. He then slammed the string hard and started the prelude. 

“…Tomboy Miss Bobo!…”

Oozing with excitement from his victory, Ed scurried around among the busy sailors working on deck. As soon as the lyrics began and when several crew members sang along, Lil turned her head irritably.

“…There lived a very pretty girl next to the path of the yellow hill…”

She couldn’t even tell him to stop singing, so Lil diverted her attention to the horizon, where she couldn’t see anything. Naturally, there was a straight line separating light blue and dark blue, but nothing else. On the other hand, the sound of Ed’s stringed instrument didn’t go away, simply squeaking within audible range. Lil clenched her teeth.

“…How cute she is, that tomboy lady!… How cute she is, that tomboy lady!…”

‘But was there really nothing?’ 

Just before Lil lowered the telescope, she vaguely recalls having seen a whitish figure. She quickly raised her telescope again and checked the horizon. A few seconds passed… Then without hesitation, she turned to the deck and cried out at the top of her lungs.

“There’s a ship in the northwest!”

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