They set off relatively promptly after bidding farewell to the others, and went at a good speed, having not been burdened by a carriage full of supplies.
"So, why'd you bring me along lad?"
Morohira questioned, asking the obvious.
Gengyo took his time in replying, thinking it through clearly, so that his father would not get the wrong idea.
"I plan to put you in charge of our ship-related business. And, more importantly, the first raid will be done under your command."
"Eh? Why?"
Morohira asked, baffled. He had not done anything to warrant such a position, or so he thought. Surely the likes of Jikouji or Togashi would be more fitting.
"The men respect you, father. And your temperament is perfect for this line of work. There will be times when your ship is being blasted to pieces by cannon fire. They need someone to lead them who will not feel fear when that happens."
There was another part to his reasoning as well: reputation. If they were led by Morohira, then a fear for their vessel would develop. Morohira was a wild man, who cared only for slaughter. And more than that, he was effective. He would not be held back by the probability of danger.
"…Why don't you just do it? It'll be weird for everyone having me in charge."
He protested seriously for once.
"Togashi brought up a valid point yesterday – I need to take a step back, and leave more things to you lot. I need you to ensure we have a steady stream of income, and whilst you are working on that, I will expand our forces."
The mention of expanding the forces was what captured Morohira's attention. There had been too little progress in regards to their army, and even he was a little dissatisfied. If he could do something to ensure that their forces would grow, and they would once more have an army at their disposal, then he was only too happy to.
"Alright, lad. But I'm no thinker. I won't be spending all night coming up with strategies. I'm just gonna batter people, you know?"
Gengyo grinned at his straightforward response.
"Aye, that's fine. All you need is one tactic: and that's the disguise we're working on. After you've finished engaging an enemy, change the sails, and you'll be home free."
"Good. That's about as much as I can be bothered to manage."
Morohira decided. The more he thought about it, the more he was warming to the idea of being in charge of a ship. There was a lot he'd have to learn, but he had no doubt that there would be a good amount of chaos.
And that was a problem for Gengyo too. Now that he had decided to take a step back, he did not have an outlet for his rage. He needed to set things in motion, and occupy himself quickly, whilst the rest were busy.
"The woman we're going to meet – you'd do well to make a good impression. From now on, she'll be reporting directly to you, and you will be the one paying her. Treat her well father, but do not be taken in by her."
Morohira frowned.
"You don't have to tell me that – I'm a lady's man. Any woman is bound to love interacting with me."
"..."
He didn't bother to respond to that, and merely lead the way home. They made good time, and arrived before midday, slowing down as the guards opened the gates for them.
"Welcome back, Master Miura. A woman came looking for you a few minutes ago, but she went away after finding out you weren't home."
One of the guards informed him, bowing.
"Oh? Which direction did she head?"
"She went down the path by the field, Miura-sama."
"I see. Father, go inside ahead of me, I'll go and get her."
Morohira nodded, and urged his horse inside. Gengyo set off down the road at a gallop – he knew exactly which field she was referring to. He hoped that Isabella had not left too quickly – which he doubted she would anyway, because there was nothing that required her attention.
He sped down the hills, controlling his horse expertly so that they would it would not lose it's footing on the loose stones. He left the road, and clambered to the top of the hill that bordered the field, allowing him a view of the area around.
It was then that he spotted her, trotting despondently towards the trees of the forest. He was about to call out, but she was too far away, and he doubted that she would hear him.
"Yah!"
He pushed his feet to the horse's sides, sending them galloping down the hill. The horse was quite the sure-footed beast, though it was sprinting down a hill, it maintained it's balanced to perfection.
He went around the field, briefly acknowledging that it had been flooded, and the water level sat a few centimetres below the top of the wall. It looked unbelievably vast now that it was filled with water, and he felt a small pang of pride looking at it. They had achieved such a field in an incredibly tiny window of time.
"ISABELLA!"
He shouted out, now that he was getting closer. But her horse had already disappeared inside the trees, and he wondered whether she had heard him at all. But still, he pushed his horse forwards, in a seemingly futile attempt to catch up to her.
But just before he entered the trees, a familiar face peered out, brightening up upon seeing him.
"Ha. I thought I heard that miserable voice of yours."
She said coldly, disguising her true feelings.
"Sorry I missed you, I only just got back."
He said, lowering himself to the level of apologising.
"Hmph. I'm a busy woman, you know? I can't keep coming here every day just because you're late."
He dared to smile at that, knowing it to be a lie.
"Sorry. Let's head back, shall we? There's someone I would like you to meet."
Her eyes narrowed, as though distrustful. What merit could there possibly be in her meeting someone other than him?
"I suppose I can spare a few minutes."
She decided. In truth, she had been rather bored. Watching sh.i.p.s was not the most thrilling of tasks. Nor was waiting in forests.
"Let's head off then."
He allowed his horse to trot on the way back, as he had been pushing him rather hard for the past few hours. He rode in front of her, in silence, looking lost in thought. She attempted to speak a couple of times, but seeing the look on his face, she grew discouraged, not wishing to irritate him.
"I found her due to your directions, thank you."
He nodded toward the guardswomen as he returned through the gates, with Isabella in tow. The woman bowed deeply in response. It paid to be polite toward your servants, even if you sat far above them.
A servant man was waiting to look after their horses, apparently having been alerted to their coming by Morohira. His father had not bothered to wait standing on the porch, and had instead opted to relax in the reception room, savouring a cup of tea, as he nursed his bottom that was thoroughly bruised from the saddal.
He looked up as they walked in, and paused before saying anything. Apparently he was taken aback by the magnitude of Isabella's beauty, as he shot his son a sly questioning glance, wondering what the relationship between the two of them was.
Amusingly – out of some imagined respect for Fuku – he forced himself to stop looking at her, and only spoke directly toward Gengyo.
"So this is the woman, is it lad?"
"It is. Isabella, this is my father."
She bit down on her tongue, swallowing the insult that she had felt compelled to deliver.
"I see."
Was all she could manage instead.
"The reason I brought him to meet you, Isabella, is… Well, he's in charge of the Red Feather's navy. And, obviously, as your recent information gathering has been in regards to shipment times, then there would be some commonalities in your line of work, would there not?"
He said, attempting to explain. Explaining things was certainly not his strong suit, and he used far more words than he should have. He did not know how much he needed to say in order to make others understand, so he ended up overcompensating.
Morohira perked up upon hearing his new title. Perhaps that would be changed to 'Admiral of the Red Feather navy', in time? He liked the sound of that even more.
"As the lad says, I'm in charge of the navy. You and I will be working together in the times ahead, so I hope we get along with one another."
His father put in, shooting a pointed look toward Gengyo as if to say: "see, I'm doing it?" It was not quite what the young man had in mind when he issued those instructions – he had expected something more subtle, rather than demanding. But Isabella smiled. His straightforwardness was intriguing, and she rather enjoyed it.
"Is that so..?"
She said, feeling some amount of control over the flow of the conversation, as she poured herself some tea, and swirled it around. She was quite the conniving woman, and preyed on any weakness that presented itself.
"He put it truthfully. He will be your direct employer from now on, and handle all the payments. The amount you are paid will be given as a 5% cut of the total they manage to acquire. So, the better targets you manage to identify, the better the quality of your profit."
Isabella did her best to keep a straight face at that. Apparently she was trying to give a good impression to Morohira who did not know her yet, and wished to come across as in control and experienced. But Gengyo noticed the small twitching of her lip as he mentioned the gold. It was a good deal for her indeed. She'd spent the past few days logging the cargo of certain sh.i.p.s, and if any of those were sold, 5% would be quite the handsome profit.
Morohira, for his part cared not for the small subtleties of such a conversation. Even if they were explained to him, he would not have shown any desire to learn more. Such things were far too tedious for his tastes.
"5% is it? Mm, that's quite reasonable."
She decided with a sip of tea, staying her quivering hand.
He was not entirely sure, but she did not seem too upset by the prospect of having her employer changed, but he added one thing just to seal the deal.
"If there is anything you are discontent with, you may come and see me. But, I do not foresee such things happening. If you work hard, Isabella, then we can become quite rich together."
That was more than enough for her. That was all that she desired. Enough gold so that no one could push her around. And if she could work for a man like him in the process, would she turn it down? I think not. His umbrella of influence, and the competence that he oozed was something that she was attracted to, as a rabbit was attracted to its warren for safety.
But still, she worked so that she would not seem too eager.
"Hmph. We will see how it goes for a while, but I am not expecting much."
She said coolly, tapping her fingernails on the table.
"However, I have a request."
She spoke, though her voice cracked as she said it, betraying her lack of confidence.
"…I would like a permanent residence, somewhere protected – so that future enemies will not find it so easy to isolate me."
Her reasoning blamed it on the business, but it was not that at all.