Pirate: Crew of Desire and Bonds

Chapter 74: Chapter 74: Julian Vance Solaris (2)

Jake had stayed mostly quiet the entire time, carefully observing Julian’s movements and the surrounding flames while trying to find a way out of this trap.

He wasn’t sure why or how this bastard was here, but their priority now was to escape this place.

But seeing the once-elegant noble completely lose control like this... a cold sneer slowly formed on Jake’s face.

He stepped forward slightly, positioning himself protectively in front of Grace with his sword held steady.

"Change her?"

Jake repeated mockingly, his voice calm but dripping with contempt.

"I didn’t change Grace. I simply helped her become who she was always meant to be... someone free from a pathetic, obsessive bastard like you."

At those words, Julian’s face continued to contort and twist hideously with his veins bulging, eyes bloodshot and teeth bared in pure rage.

But then, in the next second, everything stopped.

His expression eerily smoothed out, returning to an unnatural calm.

The twisted, psychotic look vanished as if it had never existed.

His bright smile slowly returned, wider and more unsettling than before.

Julian let out a soft, chilling laugh.

"...Heh."

"Hehehe..."

He straightened his luxurious robes with deliberate, slow elegant movements as the chaotic flames around him suddenly stabilized once more under his control.

"You’re quite good at provoking people, aren’t you, stray?" Julian said, his voice regaining its smooth, aristocratic tone.

"But no matter how sharp your tongue is... it won’t save you."

His crimson eyes gleamed with cold, calculated malice as he stared at Jake and Grace.

"Since my dear Grace has been so thoroughly corrupted... I suppose I’ll just have to break her again from scratch...."

Julian smiled brightly.

"...And this time, I’ll make sure to kill you slowly in front of her. That should be an excellent first lesson... so she learns to never run away again."

The fire walls around them began to constrict slowly, burning hotter as Julian raised one hand.

Crackle!

A massive orb of concentrated solar flames started forming above his palm.

The real fight was about to begin.

Grace’s face paled, but she quickly raised her gun beside Jake, golden light gathering as she prepared to fight.

"Jake... be careful," she whispered urgently. "He’s really strong."

Jake didn’t take his eyes off Julian for even a second, his body tense and ready.

To be honest, Jake had instinctively known from the very first moment that this guy was bad news.

The overwhelming aura, the way the flames obeyed him, and that obsessive gaze... everything screamed danger.

The reason Jake didn’t stop Grace from speaking her mind, and even deliberately provoked Julian further, was simple.

For one, it helped Grace become stronger and overcome her trauma.

She had carried the scars Julian left on her for far too long.

So facing him head-on and rejecting him with her own words was the first step toward breaking free from that nightmare and reclaiming herself.

And secondly... he was hoping to create an opening.

A person consumed by rage would inevitably revealed flaws.

If the enemy lost his composure, there might be a chance... a small window where they could strike or find a way to break through the fire walls.

It seemed to have worked... at least for a moment as Julian had quickly regained his charming smile.

’This bastard...’

’He’s a complete psychopath.’

Jake thought, his grip tightening on his sword.

Julian’s soft, chilling laugh echoed once more as he looked at the pair with renewed composure.

"How adorable. The little stray actually thinks he can protect her."

He raised his hand again, and several smaller but extremely fast Solar Flame Orbs materialized around him, spinning menacingly.

"Fine then. I’ll play with you for a bit before I take back what’s mine."

With a casual flick of his wrist, the flame orbs shot forward like homing missiles, forcing Jake and Grace to move.

BOOOMMM!

BOOOMMM!

BOOOMMM!

The ground exploded violently as the orbs detonated one after another, sending clouds of dust, debris, and scorching heat in every direction.

But suddenly from within the thick dust and smoke, Jake suddenly rushed forward like a shadow with his newfound strength.

He raised his sword, eyes locked on his target, and closed the distance toward Julian with explosive speed, using the chaos as cover.

"Haah!"

Jake swung his sword in a powerful horizontal slash, aiming straight for Julian’s neck.

The air whistled as the sword cut through the lingering smoke.

Julian’s eyes narrowed, but his smile remained.

Clang!

A flaming barrier materialized instantly in front of him, blocking Jake’s sword with a resounding clash.

Then sparks flew wildly as the two forces collided.

"Not bad," Julian said calmly, almost sounding impressed. "But far too slow."

He countered immediately by thrusting his palm forward.

A concentrated blast of solar flames erupted at point-blank range, threatening to engulf Jake completely.

But before the attack could fully engulf him—

BAM!

BAM!

BAM!

A barrage of Light Bullets streaked through the battlefield.

Grace had reacted instantly.

Golden projectiles rained toward Julian’s side and head in rapid succession, each one striking his flaming defenses with explosive force.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

The relentless assault forced Julian to divert part of his attention to reinforcing his barrier.

As a result, the point-blank blast of solar flames weakened, its trajectory shifting just enough to veer off course instead of striking Jake head-on.

Jake didn’t hesitate.

He seized the opening immediately.

Twisting his body at the last moment, he narrowly avoided the heart of the attack.

The blazing flames grazed his shoulder and side, instantly burning away part of his clothes and leaving scorch marks across his skin.

A searing pain shot through his body.

"Ughh..."

But Jake gritted his teeth and endured it, using the force of the blast to propel himself backward and widen the distance between them.

"Grace! Keep pressuring him!" Jake shouted as he created distance.

Grace didn’t stop.

She kept firing Light Bullets relentlessly, her awakened power making each shot faster and brighter than before.

The continuous barrage kept Julian on the defensive, preventing him from immediately following up on Jake.

Julian clicked his tongue in annoyance, his smile twitching again as he waved his hand to create a swirling wall of flames that absorbed the incoming Light Bullets.

"You’ve both become quite the annoying pair," he muttered coldly.

But at that moment, Jake’s eyes glinted with sharp focus as he saw the perfect opening.

While Julian was distracted, Jake channeled his aura and activated the trump card technique he had developed in secret.

Then,

A small ball of light slowly formed in his palm.

With a swift motion, he threw it straight toward Julian.

WHOOSH!

Seeing the strange ball of light, Julian frowned slightly.

Even though he didn’t feel any immediate threat from it, there were always many kinds of strange skills in this world, so he wasn’t taking any chances.

With that though,

He gestured, sending one of his flame orbs to intercept it.

And the moment the two energies collided—

FLASH!!!

A brilliant burst of concentrated light exploded right in front of Julian.

It was not an attack meant to damage, but a disorienting, blinding flare.

"AAHH!! My eyes!" Julian cried out, instinctively throwing his arms up to shield his face as panic flooded him from the sudden loss of vision.

"Now!" Jake roared.

In that split second, Jake flooded his sword with aura.

Tzz...

A dense layer of sharp, glowing red aura surged along the edge before igniting into radiant golden-white light after combining with Light Manifestation.

The sword hummed with lethal intent, its edge crackling with condensed energy that made the air itself shimmer.

Then—

BOOOMM!

Jake exploded forward in a burst of enhanced speed like a cannonball and delivered a devastating, empowered slash across Julian’s chest.

Slash—!

The glowing blade cleaved through the air with frightening momentum, leaving a brilliant arc of light in its wake.

Victory seemed only an instant away.

Yet...

Just before the sword could sink into Julian’s flesh—

The panic on Julian’s face vanished.

And the corners of his lips slowly curled upward... into a mocking smirk.