The Seventh Voyage

Chapter 1 Cursed Hell

Curse the heavens!

When Jeongjo and his band of pirates decided to stop by the market to gather more supplies, they expected many things.

Dirty looks, fearful glances, parents pulling their children away, shopkeepers bargaining with them...

You get the idea.

Pirates were feared by the common masses after all. They were the assassins and robbers of the sea, skilled in combat and known for their ruthlessness and barbaric acts – or so the children were told.

But to Jeongjo, it was the way of living.

To Jeongjo, being out at sea was safer than being on land, but that was a story for another day.

Now, back to the story.

Jeongjo and his pirates expected many things.  What they did not expect were the assassins currently hot on their tails. It was a no-brainer who sent them but that doesn't make the situation less dangerous than it was.

He really should have brought more than a damned dagger.

"Captain! They're catching up!" Gap Soo, his second mate shouted.

Cursing underneath his breath, Jeongjo leaped over a wagon of oranges whereas Gap Soo used the oranges to their advantage, throwing them like grenades behind their back. 

That momentary distraction was enough for the pirates to put some distance between them and the assassins, allowing them to continue running full speed ahead to get back to their ship.

That was until...

"Captain?" Gap Soo halted when Jeongjo stopped running.

"Enough is enough. We can take them. Cowardice is not a colour pirates should wear." Jeongjo dictated in his usual authoritative drawl whilst panting hard from their run.

Swallowing hard, Gap Soo eyed his Captain wearily before he nodded his head. If their Captain chose to fight, he would fight too. The rest of the pirates followed their Captain's lead, bracing themselves for the fight against the assassins.

Again.

You see, the northern pirates were a popular target for the assassins. This wasn't the first time they had to fight the people who were out to behead them.

Perhaps he let his guard down this time. Jeongjo simply assumed that their fight in the Sakura village would be the last they would see of the assassins for a few months. Sparring with them again so soon alarmed Jeongjo greatly.

Exactly how was the queen dowager following his tracks this closely?

Unfortunately, Jeongjo did not have much time to dwell on the bad blood between him and the queen dowager, for the assassins finally caught up to them.

"Surrender now and perhaps I'll go easy on you." The man shrouded by his dark cloak and straw hat was who Jeongjo assumed was the leader of the assassins. 

"You ought to know the pirates' way by now. We pirates never back down from a fight." Jeongjo bit out harshly, spitting at the assassin's feet.

Armed with minimal weapons, there was no denying that his pirates were outnumbered and at a disadvantage. Yet, the determination and brutal confidence in their eyes, certainty made up for their lack of weapons.

With a quiet calm, the assassin dropped his hand and unsheathed his twin blades. "Very well." He spoke quietly.

That was the cue needed for the pirates and assassins to merge in the middle.