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Chapter 44 - Will Turner
🕑 Added 2025-05-11 22:17:06 +0000 UTCPuss looked at Will with a smile.
"Elizabeth? Well, I didn't know her name, but we're probably thinking of the same person. Like I said, we didn't come here to steal—I was actually looking for you. Will you give me a chance to talk?" Puss spoke confidently, a corner of his mouth curling up as he extended his paw to help him up.
Will stared in confusion at the little kitten offering to help lift him—a full-grown man.
But realizing he had probably misunderstood them—after all, who would steal a donkey and an empty bottle of booze—he felt too ashamed to reject the offer.
Stretching out his hand and gripping the kitten's paw, he prepared to use his own strength to stand so as not to embarrass the little guy—only to be surprised when a tremendous force yanked him upward, making him hop into the air and land clumsily on his feet.
Puss, needing to jump backward due to Will's size, released his hand midair and landed gracefully on his own feet.
Will, now balanced, clutched his hand and looked at the cat in shock
"You're strong!" He blurted out without thinking.
"Gracias." Puss replied with a smile.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Will started to feel the pain and rubbed his chest with a grimace—right where the horse had kicked him.
Then, he began massaging his head with his other hand, feeling the ache from hitting it during the fall.
Seeing the pained expression on his face as he rubbed himself, Puss couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed.
"Ahem! Sorry about that." Puss coughed into his paw, apologizing politely.
"Huh? Ah! It's fine, don't worry, I'm okay—it'll pass soon." Caught off guard by the apology, Will took a moment to respond, but eventually nodded, forcing a smile that came out rather strained.
"Uh, well, if you say so…" With nothing else to do, Puss just scratched his head and decided to change the subject.
"Before we get into serious matters, let me introduce you. That troublemaker over there is Tornado, my horse." Puss said, pointing to the black stallion, who was looking proudly at Will, showing no regret for what he'd done.
"...Charmed." Will said weakly, choosing to be polite.
"Snort!" Tornado snorted and turned his head away arrogantly.
"I think he likes you." Puss said with an amused smile.
"Oh, really?..." The young blacksmith muttered bitterly. It was obvious the cat was messing with him.
"And that one over there in the back is Jack. Maybe you've heard of him." Puss said, pointing at Jack, who, upon hearing his name, approached in his usual Jack way.
As he neared the two, Jack pointed a finger at Will with the same hand still holding the empty bottle.
"Hey, lad, where does Sleeping Beauty over there keep his rum stash?" He asked, then looked at the empty bottle in his hand and wrinkled his nose before tossing it aside without interest.
"Huh? Old Brown doesn't have a stash—he drinks everything he buys." Will answered reflexively, surprised by the sudden change of topic.
Jack's eye twitched in irritation.
"Jack, didn't you bring a stash on the boat? Why didn't you bring at least one bottle?" Puss asked, amused by the scene.
The pirate gave him a strange look, then glanced around before his eyes settled on Tornado.
"I didn't forget it on the boat! It was your horse who drank it all!" Jack declared, pointing at Tornado with indignation.
"Whinny?!" The horse, suddenly accused, opened his mouth and pointed to himself with a hoof, incredulous.
"Who else here is a boot-wearing cat's horse?" Jack insisted stubbornly, locking eyes with Tornado.
"Neigh!" Tornado stomped a hoof on the ground, outraged, glaring furiously at the pirate accusing him.
Puss found the scene thoroughly entertaining, but he didn't want Tornado kicking Jack—even if he deserved it.
"Easy, Tornado, he's just messing with you. Don't get mad." Puss waved his paw, calming the horse.
"Snort!" Tornado huffed in irritation, still glaring at Jack, but did nothing more—his master's orders kept him in check.
Jack opened his mouth to say something else, but ultimately gave up with mild frustration, pulling a small bottle of rum from inside his coat and taking a swig.
From a distance, Tornado was still glaring at Jack, but the moment he saw the bottle in Jack’s hand, he couldn’t help but lick his lips with longing.
Puss didn't see the scene, as he was no longer paying attention to them—he had turned his focus to Will.
Will, too, was looking at Jack, and even the pain in his chest seemed to ease.
"That's Jack Sparkle?" He asked, surprised.
The pirate in question immediately lowered his bottle upon hearing that and turned toward the young man.
"It's Captain… Captain Jack Sparrow." He corrected with a slightly haughty expression.
"Sparrow? Isn't that the same person?" Will asked, confused, wondering if he was mistaken.
"Same person, just changed the name. Don't worry about it, it's not important…" Puss said simply, then slipped a paw into his boot and pulled out a necklace. "But this is."
At that moment, seeing the golden necklace with a carved skull, both Jack and Will widened their eyes.
"Where did you get that?!" They both shouted in unison, stunned.
"The girl I rescued—Elizabeth— was wearing it around her neck. My instincts tell me this necklace holds a powerful curse, and that curse is closely tied to someone in this town... you." Puss said, his face growing serious as the information clearly shocked the two. "So tell me, what do you know about it?"
But Will's shock quickly turned to anger.
"Cursed?! Nonsense! I know that necklace—it was a gift from my father that I lost when I was a child. Elizabeth must have taken it for some reason, but don't you dare call my father's gift cursed." Will growled, rushing toward Puss and reaching out, trying to grab the necklace.
But before he could touch it, he was forced to stop abruptly—there was a rapier pointed directly at his nose.
"Better calm your nerves, amigo." Puss said calmly, staring him down.
Will, cross-eyed as he looked at the small blade, swallowed hard and stepped back, but it was clear he had other plans, glancing sideways at the sword he had dropped earlier.
But he was naive to think he wouldn't be noticed.
"No need to look. Even if you pick it up, the result will be the same." Puss said, amused, one corner of his mouth lifting.
Will narrowed his eyes, and without caring about the cat's words, he immediately rolled across the ground, snatching up the sword mid-spin, then stood and pointed it at Puss.
"Well then, if you don't believe me, come at me!" Puss smiled, raising his sword with one hand while provocatively dangling the necklace with the other.
Will gritted his teeth and charged, swinging his blade—which Puss met with calm precision.
Their swords clashed again and again, becoming little more than afterimages to the untrained eye. Though it was unclear who held the advantage, Will's retreating steps were all the proof needed.
"Faster!" Puss shouted with a grin, speeding up his strikes, forcing Will to sweat as he tried his best to keep up.
And just like that, a private lesson began.
"Your feet are too far apart."
A strike from Will's right side caught him off guard, making him stumble.
"Don't just watch the sword! Track your opponent's footwork!"
Puss shifted directions mid-fight, catching the young swordsman unprepared, forcing him to awkwardly defend—and once again lose balance.
"Grip your sword tighter."
Taking advantage of Will's loose hold, the rapier twirled gracefully and disarmed him, sending the blade flying.
Before Will could even register what had happened, a sword was pointed at his chest, held by a cat with a casual expression.
"I told you. Picking up the sword wouldn't change the result." Puss smiled.
Will stared at the cat, stunned. He trained three hours every day without missing a single one, and he already considered himself a sword master. So to lose so easily shocked him to the core.
But while he was dazed, his opponent pulled him from his thoughts.
"Don't be disappointed. You're probably the best swordsman I've ever faced. Unfortunately for you, your opponent was me." Puss said sincerely.
The corrections he had made weren't really weaknesses—just areas with plenty of room for improvement. Will was already very good, far better than anyone Puss had fought in single combat until that day.
As for everything he said earlier about sensing the curse through instinct—that was just nonsense. He knew the plot. But he didn't want to make his meta-knowledge too obvious, so he went with a cheap lie.
He could've followed the story and pretended he knew nothing, but he hadn't trained all those years just to let things unfold without interference. He trained to have the confidence to walk into the story—and crush it whenever and however he pleased.
As Puss was lost in thought, and Will was still reeling from his swift defeat, a third party arrived, interrupting their silent stare-off.
"Wait, wait! You said your father gave you that necklace? What's your name, boy?" Jack rushed in, his dark eyes now serious as he stared at Will.
But the answer he got made him raise his hand to his mouth, biting his nails in thought.
"My name is Will Turner, pirate."
