Chapter 78

|| SANCIA'S POV || I could feel the sun beating down on me as I stepped onto the rocky shore of the pirates' island. The heat was oppressive, but it wasn’t nearly as heavy as the dread settling in my chest. The island was nothing like I’d imagined—a jagged landscape of sharp rocks and windswept cliffs, with a few shabby wooden huts scattered near the center. The air smelled of salt and decay, a stark reminder of how isolated this place was from civilization.