Secret Talk

Under the eyes of Rayleigh, Gaban, and everyone else on deck, Roger and Rock's conversation "vanished" without warning.

They had not lowered their voices.

It was as though an invisible barrier had sealed the two of them off from the outside world.

The wind still blew.

The waves still rolled.

Even the occasional clink of a flask against the deck remained perfectly clear.

And yet—

Roger's and Rock's lips moved, their expressions changed, but not a single word could be heard.

It was as if their conversation had been pulled out of the world.

Rayleigh frowned slightly. The other members of the Roger Pirates soon noticed something was wrong.

Someone instinctively tightened his grip on his sword.

Others exchanged looks and whispered to one another.

The mood on deck quietly grew tense.

But in the end—

They trusted Roger, and not one of them made a move.

At the center of the deck.

Roger's expression changed slowly and unmistakably throughout the conversation no one could hear—

At first, he froze for a moment.

As though he had heard a question he had never expected.

Then came obvious confusion.

His brows drew together, his gaze shifted away without thinking, and then—

For an instant, he looked stunned.

His pupils contracted sharply. Even his breathing stopped for a moment.

It was a shock Roger himself had not seen coming.

And finally.

Every expression seemed to be pressed down beneath a heavy weight.

All that remained was an almost frozen solemnity.

Even Rayleigh and Gaban had rarely seen that look on Roger's face.

Time seemed to stretch endlessly.

Until—

Gulp.

Rock drained his last cup of wine.

The sound of the cup leaving his lips was unusually clear.

He rose slowly to his feet.

The next instant, the invisible field of silence receded