“Find those two damn bastards and shoot them on sight. Bring the girl to me.”Caylass swallowed hard, her hands cold, trembling slightly. Gold, somehow, looked relaxed—almost sulky—as if what was hunting them out there wasn’t a killing machine, but just some lunatic.

Adamas’s men began spreading across the deck. Some went down to the cabins, some checked the corners of the ship, and some even lifted wooden crates as if two human beings might be lounging inside.

Caylass drew a sharp breath, unsteady. “We have to get out of here. Now.”

“Relax,” Gold replied calmly, even though he could hear his own heartbeat pounding in his ears. “Just don’t make a sound.”

When Caylass fell silent, Gold glanced at her.

“Are you sure you're not scared?”

The softness in his gaze made her feel like any answer would be accepted without mockery. Still, she refused to admit weakness.

“No,” she said shortly.

“Does what you said in the bathroom still stand, Caylass? Or are you reconsidering your options with the diamond mafia?”

Wait—that’s what he was thinking right now!?

Caylass shot him a glare. “If you mean I suddenly want to hand myself over to the mafia whose family murdered my mother and my entire household—no, thank you,” she snapped, deeply offended.

Outside, Adamas spoke again—his tone had changed. No longer amused, no longer enjoying his own party. There was impatience now. And within that impatience lurked danger, so tangible it made the air feel heavier, tighter.

“If you don’t find them in five minutes…”

Without looking at anyone, he raised his gun—

BANG!

He fired into a wooden pillar beside one of his men. Splinters exploded in every direction.

“…I’ll shoot you, one by one, as a warm-up.”

The silence fell instantly.

Caylass closed her eyes for a brief moment.

“I’ve spent my whole life pretending to be crazy,” she whispered. “But I don’t want to be with that madman, Gold.”

Adamas’s footsteps grew louder—closer. Caylass felt terror crawl up her spine. She could feel the heat of death waiting by the second. Gold, however, felt fine.

He clicked his tongue softly—more annoyed than afraid.

“Don't worry. IIf he finds us, We're jumping into the sea first, got it?” he whispered quickly.

Caylass, who had been terrified, suddenly laughed without any sound.

“No, I don't want to do it. You think the ocean is a warm spa? You’ll freeze to death—”

“Haha. Better frozen than shot by that clown and his ugly circus,” Gold cut in sharply, eyes unwavering. “Relax. I’m not planning to die. If there’s a chance, I’ll burn this ship down first.”

Caylass stared at him. Why was this idiot so reckless?

“What’s your plan? Tell me.”

Outside, Adamas stopped just a few meters from their hiding place. His voice dropped an octave—the tone that usually preceded something horrific.

“You think I don’t know you’re here?”

Gold instantly yanked his pistol from his back pocket—ready to fight to the death if necessary.

But behind him, Caylass accidentally spotted Lucifer watching. He raised a hand, signaling wait.

For a moment, Caylass waited—unsure what would happen until—

CRASH!

Something slammed violently into the starboard side of the ship. The entire deck shook. Adamas’s men stumbled, losing their footing.

Adamas looked up, eyes narrowing. Angry—but more disbelieving.

“What now…?”

But Caylass knew instantly.

From the sound. The rumble. The unmistakable roar of engines.

That wasn’t another enemy ship.

That was her father’s ship.

The Shine flag shimmered under the lights, flying high—look very cool.

Gold grinned, instantly.

“The moment I saw him, I knew your father was a man who arrived right on time!”

"Hu-uh. Funny."

Caylass peeked out—and her eyes immediately found a familiar silhouette on the deck of the Shine ship.

Her father.

Even from a distance, she could see his eyes: calculating… and wrath held just barely in check.

Something stirred in her chest.

Her father… came personally for her?

Lucifer remained still, clearly awaiting orders.

Adamas hissed, gripping his gun tightly.

“Tch. That decrepit Shine bastard is annoying as ever—always sticking his nose into other people’s business.”

A small smile tugged at Caylass’s lips—dark rather than warm. She wasn’t offended. Not at all.

For the first time that day… she felt stronger.

Her people were here.

Her family was here.

The sound of the anchor dropping rang out—clang, clang, clang—shaking the entire ship. Adamas’s men instinctively stepped back, unprepared to face the arrival of the giant known as the Shine Family.

Her father descended calmly, dressed in a black suit the wind itself seemed reluctant to touch. Behind him, twenty elite Shine operatives moved in precise formation, fully armed.

Adamas lifted his chin slightly. His smile was thin, hollow—danger radiating from every inch of him.

“A big guest,” he murmured—not respectfully, but appraisingly.

Caylass’s father stopped a few meters away. No handshake. No bow. No one yielded—because they were equals in reputation, both devils born from the underworld.

The tension between them wasn’t senior versus junior—

It was two alpha lions with no reason to retreat.

In a calm voice, her father said, “I’m asking only one thing.” He raised one finger slowly. “Where is my daughter?”

Adamas met his gaze briefly. “Well, she’s obviously on this ship.”

Her father didn’t move. “Listen carefully, Diamond. I want my daughter back,” he said flatly, clearly, coldly. “Unharmed. Uninjured. Untraumatized.” He glanced at his men and continued, “Anyone who touched even a single strand of her hair—eliminate them.”

One by one, Shine operatives raised their weapons in perfect unison. The formation alone made Adamas’s men tense, though none dared move.

From her hiding place, Caylass gaped slightly. Her father hadn’t just come himself—he’d brought his full force.

Still, Adamas chuckled softly, coldly. “You speak as if I touched something that wasn’t already mine.”

Caylass’s father stared at him without blinking. “If you truly are my equal, you know this isn’t the time to play with fire. You know what I want, Young Man.”

That phrase—you are my equal—was both acknowledgment and challenge.

Adamas wasn’t one to refuse a challenge.

But he also wasn’t one to accept blindly.

He tilted his head, like a predator deciding whether prey was negotiating… or provoking.

Then Caylass’s father added something that made the air snap tight. “My daugther or ... the sea becomes your grave "