John and Kawao looked deeply into each other's eyes.

Unlike Kinto, he did not want to thank him.

Kawao had broken his promise to John not to get involved with the pirates.

John believed that his village had been destroyed by pirates.

And he wanted to maintain this lie for the time being.

"I know I broke my promise... And I'm sorry! When the wall fell, I couldn't just stand by and watch this place be leveled to the ground. I had to do something. I could have left it alone; there's always a second choice, but I didn't leave it open. I've only recently realized that many things are more important to me than my own life!... So I'm sorry I broke our promise! I hope you can somehow forgive me!" he said, bowing.

But John did not respond.

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

When Kawao tried to lift his head, John held him back.

"Wait a moment," he said.

"No matter what you say, I can never fully forgive you! Even if I wanted to! I can somehow understand you, but at the same time, there is this strong sense of honor within me that constantly tells me that I simply cannot and must not forgive you.... And I know that this voice is right... Just like you are!... So I will never be able to completely forgive you, but I still hope that we can remain friends!"

He let go of his head.

Kawao stood up and looked deeply into John's eyes again.

"Of course we can!" he replied.

Both smiled at each other...

Suddenly, a huge bang shook the harbor.

Some sparks flew in the sky above the harbor after a long whip of flame discharged there with a bang.

The inhabitants all cast fearful glances at the waters in front of the harbor.

The commander's ship was approaching them.

----------------------------------------

As the ship docked in the harbor, all the festivities had already disappeared, and the residents were all back in their houses.

The only ones still there were Kawao, Koru, John, Kinto, and his militia.

With a rumble, the soldiers on the ship lowered a gangplank, on which Paikon descended with loud, slow steps.

When he reached the bottom, he first looked at Kawao.

Both looked deeply into each other's eyes.