The great ship Walen Renge cut through the waves, carrying Sawerigading and his loyal crew. They had faced many trials, but nothing prepared them for the news from a supernatural mute: We Cudai, the woman Sawerigading intended to claim, was already promised.
"We must act swiftly!" Sawerigading declared, his gaze fixed. La Mappanganro touched his shoulder. "We should claim her as our friend, but this news is a problem." Sawerigading's emotions surged. "We cannot let this report defeat us. We have overcome many obstacles."
Meanwhile, across the sea, Setia Bonga, We Cudai's fiancé, felt his heart shatter. His honor was at stake. "I will find Sawerigading and protect my name!" he vowed fiercely, as his vessel rapidly neared the Walen Renge.
The two ships met, the air crackling with tension. "Sawerigading! You must admit your wrongdoings!" shouted La Bolong, Setia Bonga's advisor, his voice sharp. "We will not retreat without a fight!" He paused, then Sawerigading stepped forward. "Our purpose here is not conflict, La Bolong," he stated, his voice calm but firm. "We seek unity, a bond of friendship, not a clash of swords."
"Friendship with your kind?" Setia Bonga sneered, stepping into view. "Your people are nothing but usurpers, thieves of honor!" La Mappanganro's hand instinctively went to his dagger. "Watch your tongue, coward!"
Before another word could be exchanged, Setia Bonga, his face contorted with rage, seized a gleaming spear from his deck. With a furious cry, he hurled the weapon across the gap between the ships. It struck the Walen Renge's mast with a splintering thud, and the battle was joined.
The sea turned red as the two crews clashed. For three grueling days, the battle raged, a storm of steel and shouts. Sawerigading fought with fierce precision, his primary aim not to kill, but to capture Setia Bonga alive, to force a true reckoning.
Finally, with a powerful strike, La Mappanganro disarmed and subdued La Bolong, sending him sprawling. Seeing his advisor defeated, and his own crew faltering, Setia Bonga's defiance crumbled. He threw down his sword, signaling surrender.
Sawerigading approached the defeated fiancé. "You must acknowledge your defeat, Setia Bonga," he declared, his voice resonating across the bloodied decks. "End this conflict now, with honor."
Setia Bonga, humiliated, nodded stiffly. "I retreat," he conceded, though his eyes burned with an unyielding fire. "But know this, Sawerigading: my grudge will not fade. This is not over."
True to his word, Setia Bonga retreated, but his malice took a new form. He began to spread insidious, false rumors about Sawerigading and his loyal crew among the people of Ale Cina, poisoning their minds with tales of deceit and dishonor.
Though the battle was won, the war for honor was far from over. Setia Bonga's whispers spread like poison, and Sawerigading knew that proving his truth would be his next, greatest challenge. He and La Mappanganro stood ready, determined to face this new adversity, for their honor and truth were paramount.