Ⅵ
Why had she come aboard the Eastern?
To seek cooperation!
To save herself through cooperation!
Or rather...
To struggle!
Jacqueline knew exactly why she had come aboard the Eastern, so the elder twin had humbled herself as much as she could.
She had prepared not only to cooperate with Malinda as fully as possible, but also to give up everything.
Yet Jacqueline had never imagined Malinda would use a method like this.
She was actually resolving the desperate situation Jacqueline and Catherine faced in such a formal manner.
If she became Malinda's sworn younger sister, she and Catherine could seek Malinda's protection, while Malinda could openly intervene in certain West Berlin affairs, unless...
Her father cast her and Catherine out.
But wasn't that precisely what she wanted?
Still, this approach carried enormous risks.
First, they had to consider her father's attitude. Without sufficient strength, doing this would be tantamount to courting death... well, with Lord Credos here, that was beyond question, wasn't it?
Second, there was the matter of manpower!
No matter how powerful Lord Credos was, he was still just one person!
Even if Lord Credos could destroy all of Dordot Harbor, he couldn't possibly manage it!
As though she could see what Jacqueline was thinking, Malinda picked up her orange tea, and a flame lit her pipe.
As the fire flickered, ships appeared on the Inner River, not far from the Eastern.
These were the escort fleet Malinda and Arthur had agreed upon.
Seeing the fully armed crew aboard each ship, Jacqueline breathed a sigh of relief.
But there was still a third concern!
Her elder sister!
The eldest daughter whom her father regarded as his true heir: Yekaterina Otto von West Berlin.
Malinda smiled.
"Do you trust Arthur?"
"Of course I do!
I trust Lord Credos