Chapter 12. It's All Fake
My first mate was attacked by an unknown creature and remains unconscious. His condition doesn't look too good. It'd be a miracle if he can survive this ordeal with all those injuries. I'm not sure if he'll ever wake up.
Click.
Charles capped his pen and slipped it back into his pocket. Letting out a sigh and the helplessness of the situation, he then picked up his diary and flipped through it casually. But when he came across a particular page, his breath caught in his throat, and his heart raced.
At that moment, he regretted ever reading that page.
Closing the diary, he let out a psychotic chuckle and shook his head.
"What's so amusing?" Anna, standing a distance away, curiously asked.
Charles stared at her for a few seconds before walking over to Bandages and took the black blade from his hand. With a finger, he gestured for Anna to step outside. Emerging from n0v@lbin☆, this material harbors clandestine details.
"Didn't you say it'd be safer if we all stay together? Why are we going out again?" Anna asked as she walked out of the pilot house.
Charles cupped her fair face in his hands and planted a gentle kiss on her lips. Anna's eyes widened slightly in surprise.
As Charles pulled away, Anna's cheeks were slightly flushed. She playfully tapped his chest with a fist and purred, "What's gotten into you all of a sudden?"
"Jiajia, we've been childhood friends. Have you only liked me all these years?" Charles leaned against the ship's wall with a calm expression.
Anna snuggled into his embrace and replied affectionately, "Of course, silly. I've liked only you ever since you handed me a shovel in the kindergarten sandbox."
Charles tenderly held her as he gazed into the darkness beyond. "Jiajia, you're such a perfect wife. Beautiful, elegant, loyal."
With a smile, Anna reached up and wrapped her arms around Charles' neck. "I love these cheesy compliments. Keep them coming."
"Do you remember the brands of those lipsticks you own?" Charles asked.
"Why are you asking that? It's been so long, how would I remember?" Anna replied in a slightly annoyed tone.
"Yeah, of course you don't remember. Because I'm a clueless guy, so I don't remember any brands," Charles said, his mouth twitching slightly. Suddenly, tears welled up in his eyes. His left hand reached for his waist, and a revolver appeared in his grasp. The dark barrel pointed steadily at Anna's flat abdomen.
"Gao Zhiming, what are you doing?" Anna's face displayed a hint of displeasure.
"You even know my real name, so why did you have to be fake! Why?!" Charles' contorted face twisted further as he forced himself to pull the trigger.
Just as he lifted his revolver, and aimed it at the creature's mouth, the front end of the fleshy abomination reshaped itself into the face of the ship's doctor, Anna.
Anna's expression twisted into a sorrowful smile, and greenish-black blood dripped from the corner of her eye. "Gao Zhiming, I'm sorry... I didn't even know I was fake..."
Those words pierced Charles' heart like a dagger as a pained expression appeared on his face. He would much rather the monster cursed and lashed vulgarities at him.
The others gathered behind Charles with solemn expressions.
"I can't control it. I'm just its bait. It's buying time. Aim below its eye, that's its weak spot," Anna said.
Looking at his companion and recalling the countless memories in his head, he felt the weight of the revolver in his hand increase a thousandfold.
"Gao Zhiming! Hurry up! It has strong regenerative abilities!" Anna urged.
Growing anxious at Charles' hesitation, Anna turned toward Dipp and said, "Boy, you do it."
Just as Dip hesitated, Charles clenched his teeth, raised his gun, and pulled the trigger.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
As the bullets struck her, a sorrowful smile crept across Anna's face. "Thank you... I really wanted to go home with you..."
As her words faded, her face began to melt and merged into the lifeless body of the fleshy monster.
Charles suddenly erupted into maniacal laughter. He rushed forward, grabbed the creature's corpse and hurled it with all his might into the sea.
"Don't try to deceive me again! I won't fall for it anymore! You monsters who alter memories! It's all fake! All fake! Fake!"
Charles's abnormal behavior worried James. He looked at the captain with a sense of concern and carefully chose his words. "Captain, are you alright?"
"I'm fine, hahaha! How would I be not alright? The crisis is over, the flesh-eating monster is dead! That's cause for celebration! Chef, prepare a feast. Dipp, work with Jack to clean up this place. I'll take the helm!"
For the rest of the day, the crew of S.S. Mouse tiptoed around their captain. They were fearful that they might accidentally trigger him.
But Charles appeared to be completely normal. He steered the ship and ate his meals as usual. Only his behavior was noticeably different. He seemed overly animated.
After finishing his food, Charles retreated to his quarters. Despite the darkness in his cabin, he didn't turn on the lights. With a bitter expression, he retrieved the liquor bottle at the bottom shelf. Sitting on his bed, he drank one mouthful after another.
"Anna, why do you have to eat humans..."
"If you hadn't eaten my crew, I could have pretended not to know..."