"Jae-ha," Gi-gan greeted her subordinate as he set foot on the ship, "where's Sen?"
"Captain, let me introduce you to Hak," Jae-ha began. "He is really, really strong and I thought—"
"Have you seen her anywhere?"
"As I was saying, Hak is a strong traveller who's willing to help us fight Kum-ji as long as we—"
"Do you know where Sen is?"
"Captain, how you do harp on that," Jae-ha said, running his fingers through his hair. "I don't know. She went to some village to the north hours before I went to Awa. Am I supposed to look after her?"
"No, but... you don't think Sen left us just like that, do you?" Gi-gan asked cautiously. "She said she'd be back early this time."
"Sen... Sen..." Hak muttered. "What did she look like?"
"As plain as mud," Gi-gan answered without the slightest hesitation. That description evoked the image of a person in Hak, a woman standing by the stream… Of course!
"My uh, friend might have met her." Hak nearly choked when addressing Ki-ja like that, but bore with it for the sake of simplicity. "She said she was escaping Awa."
"She really abandoned us?" the captain asked worriedly. Jae-ha shrugged.
"I doubt it," he said. "It's not the first time she's stayed out for this long."
In his heart of hearts, however, he did not think it impossible that she would leave just like that. It stung a little bit that she did not bother to say good-bye, but the pain would not last for more than a few days.
Just as he began to reconcile the thought of never seeing her again and even reviewing the positive consequences of her disappearance, a familiar figure appeared on the ship, followed closely by a human-sized bundle. Sen had a serious air about her as she greeted the captain.
"Excuse me, ma'am, I have a request to make," she said, bowing low. "I had no desire to stay away so long and will work twice as hard for you, but a detour had to be made for the benefit of all sentient beings."
"What is it?" Gi-gan asked. "You've got yourself a new boyfriend?"
"Although that too would benefit many, I spent the night alone," Sen replied with a sigh. "I was searching… I encountered many setbacks in my journey homewards when I came across this young girl alone in the streets, homeless and perhaps the next victim of Kum-ji."
"So you brought her back," the captain scoffed. "What is she, a stray cat? Come here, girl, let me take a look at you."
After being given an encouraging nod by Sen, Yona stepped forward and removed her hood and performed a flawless court bow with a certainty and grace that put even Sen's perfect form to shame. Her red hair shone like a crown in the sun, giving her figure its own touch of regal glory. Had she been a little bit taller and her face a little less childish, the band of disorganized pirates would have fallen to their knees and bowed before this woman clearly meant to be Queen. However—
"By the Dragons, she's so cute!" one pirate squealed. Another one added, "Can we keep her?"
"We promise to feed her and take her for walks!"
From the moment the two had appeared, Jae-ha's heart leapt and wouldn't stop beating like it wanted to escape his chest. At first, he attributed it to Sen's presence. He couldn't recall falling for her, but if this was a sign… His cheeks and neck flushed red when Sen bowed to Gi-gan, perhaps a symptom of an attraction he had never experienced before, most likely passing infatuation. But then when that tiny person stepped forward—each step of hers beat on his ears as drums, the wind from each movement of her skirt struck his heart like knives, the movement of her every fingertip drew the air from his lungs. And when she revealed her face—oh that face of a fairy, the charming curve of her nose, the depth of her eyes and the pink of her lips! And yet, despite all her beauty, Jae-ha instinctively knew her existence to be fatal. A word from those lips could tear out his heart, a touch of her hands break his neck, a smile of those eyes suck in his soul and erase him from existence.
All his strength drained from him, he dropped to the ground. His blood had reversed its flow and his heart pumped fire into his veins. His right leg, in which the power of the dragon was kept, ached as though pierced by ten thousand white-hot needles. A voice so beautiful, powerful and frightening that it was hard to tell if it was a voice at all, spoke to him:
"Warriors of the four dragons! From now on, you are our other halves. With Hiryuu as your master, protect, cherish, and never betray him as long as you live!"
Sen rushed to him and tried to help him up, but she jumped back with a sharp cry of pain when she touched him. Her hands had been burned, and blisters were already beginning to appear on her palms. She stared at Jae-ha in horror, not knowing what to do. Although she had not meant to, she had brought this upon him, and did not know how to compensate for her actions.
Yona knew none of the commotion she had caused. The only thing she managed to see was Hak running towards her, his eyes revealing a turmoil of emotions she could not fathom. Caught in his arms, her tears of relief fell on his sleeve, hidden from the outside world. At first, his touch brought comfort, but then...
"Hak... I-I can't breathe..." she gasped. Hak reluctantly loosened his iron grip, allowing Yona to look around. She first noticed her saviour crouching next to a green-haired man, clearly worried but not daring to touch him. She then felt people staring at her—lots of men, strangely dressed, and an old lady with a pipe. She turned to Hak with a questioning gaze.
"I'll tell you later," he said. "Let's get out of here."
"Forgive me for the trouble I've caused," Yona said, smiling at Gi-gan. She then turned to Sen, bowed and said, "Thank you for all your help. I don't want to impose any longer."
She was about to go when they heard a familiar voice cry out with joy from the land. It was loud, cheerful and all too proud.
"The Green Dragon!" Ki-ja exclaimed. "He's here, I can feel it in my blood!"
Sen grew pale. She ran to Jae-ha, who seemed to have cooled down considerably and started to drag him toward Gi-gan's cabin. Just before she managed to shove him in, Ki-ja appeared on deck, his innocent face beaming with triumph. He immediately hurried to Jae-ha, only to notice Sen looking at him with an uncomfortable expression.
"You!" Ki-ja cried. "You lied to me! You said you never even saw the Green Dragon, let alone live with him!"
"I might have," Sen admitted with a sour expression. "I have a strange habit of not being honest to strangers."
She stood protectively before Jae-ha. Ki-ja took a fighting stance. A few pirates gathered around them, hoping for a good fight.
"Sen... why is the white dragon here?" Jae-ha asked, in a low tone. He had just woken up and felt like he had fallen into a nightmare. Sen was glad to see him awake, but didn't care to show it. As she opened her mouth to explain, Yun, who had came over to observe the situation, asked Ki-ja,
"Are you sure this is the Green Dragon?"
"Don't doubt my powers," Ki-ja told him coldly. "He certainly is the one. Right, Shin-ah?"
"Shin-ah is currently occupied with feeding his pet squirrel," Yun told him. Yona hurried to them as well, Hak following reluctantly.
"You're the Green Dragon!" she cried with joy, pushing Sen gently aside to see him. "We've been searching for you for so long! I wanted to ask if you'd be so kind as to lend me your power and help Kouka's people."
Sen expected Jae-ha to indignantly, maybe coldly refuse the girl, but to her surprise and utter distaste, he smiled. His eyes held nothing but a wistful longing. An unpleasant feeling welled up in her heart, one she knew well and one she feared.
"Please take him with you," she said with the most generous of smiles. Of course, this was a joyous event, for Jae-ha had a chance to live longer. Giving him a push in the right direction is something a friend would do, right? "He has no other wish but to follow you wherever you go, may it be to the end of the world or beyond!"
"Sen, that's enough," Jae-ha told her. "I have no intention of giving up my freedom to follow king Hiryuu—even if he is now an attractive lady."
"Are you insane?" Sen asked, feeling guilty for the joy bubbling up inside her. "This is a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity—no, not in a million lifetimes will you have this chance again!"
"I'm wasting my life, not yours," he said, feeling somewhat irritable. "I'm extremely sorry, Miss, but I must decline your offer."
He expected to see her expression darken, but although her smile faded, she did not seem torn up about it. He frowned. What was going on?
"Oh, that's okay," Yona said indifferently. "I'm not going to force you, anyway. It was nice meeting you."
She turned to hear teammates and added, "Let's go."
They nodded and started towards the shore. Sen waved good-bye, a sense of relief overcoming her. Although she enjoyed Yona's presence, Ki-ja she held no love for and would not mind never seeing him again.
"I'm afraid that won't do!" Jae-ha called, hurrying in front of them. "Hak is supposed to help us defeat Yang Kum-ji."
Sen couldn't believe what was happening. Was letting those dragon- hunters go really that hard?
Hak wore the same stupefied expression. He hoped to be let off, but this Jae-ha was way too persistent.
"Kum-ji?" Yona asked, her eyes wide. That name seemed a bit familiar.
"The overlord guy," Sen explained bitterly. "The man who's soldiers killed that kid."
"Then we're fighting too. I'm going to save Kouka and I'm starting with Awa. When are we going to fight? Let's attack tomorrow," Yona said, sitting down. She tossed her small bag of belongings to the floor and looked up expectantly.
"Huh, someone is used to ordering people around," Sen muttered. Yona turned red. Gi-gan came back to life after standing like a statue for fifteen whole minutes.
"Wait," she said, sternly. "This is my ship. It's my food you'll be eating, so you'll have to follow my rules."
Yona nodded obediently.
"We'll do whatever we need to do."
"I want to see if you're capable of helping us," Gi-gan told her. This little girl's eagerness interested her greatly. "If you want to join us, you'll have to pass a test first."