At the cabin of the Slash Pirates ship, two men jolted awake from their dreaming state.
“Ah!” Ambrose gasped loudly and touched his chest, feeling the racing heartbeat.
“Hah…” Adam let out a short chuckle and leaned on his chair, his blind eyes glancing around the cabin. “You killed us both, huh?”
“Who died first?” Ambrose asked.
“Doesn’t matter.” Adam smirked. “Since that was basically a suicide attack, the result is a draw, and the bets are nullified.”
Ambrose sighed and nodded. He wasn’t happy with the outcome, but he was certain that nothing good would come from arguing against the result.
“You’re indeed Reinhardt’s disciple.” Adam chuckled. “Your creativity is indeed top-notch, but there is a limit to how far that takes you.”
“I ain’t counting on creativity to become strong.” Ambrose said and crossed his arms.
“Oh?” Adam turned around and stared straight at Ambrose. “What then?”
“Strength.”
“Strength…” Adam repeated the word, his eyes narrowing in thought. “Strength has its limits. The human race is one of the weakest races when it comes to physical strength.”
Ambrose nodded as if he agreed with him, but his confidence didn’t disappear.
“Well, if that’s your path,” Adam shrugged his shoulders and stood up. “It’ll take around a day for us to reach Sea King’s Island. Your cabin is located on the lower deck; I left the door open so you’ll know which one it is.”
Ambrose nodded and left the cabin.
After the door closed, Adam walked over to the window and looked over to the vast seas.
“Argh…” Adam reached over his shoulder to scratch his itching back. He felt like the itching had become much worse lately.
He took off his shirt, dropped it to the ground, walked over to the full-body mirror that was mounted on the wall, and turned around.
He looked over his shoulder, and in the mirror, he saw a mirrored tattoo on his back that covered it entirely. It was a trident tattoo with a crown on top of it.
“…” Adam squinted his eyes as he could only see bluish colors, but still, he managed to see the tattoo rather clearly.
He then turned away from the mirror, plopped down on his chair, and crossed his legs.
At the desk, there was a transmitter used to communicate between Sea King’s fleet.
He flexed his fingers and began typing a message to the Sea King himself.
…
At the Sea King’s castle.
“Boss.” A man wearing an orange skull mask, a black hoodie, and a black jacket walked in. He was around two meters tall, with dual machetes strapped to his back.
“What is it, Dreadnought?” Tyrannus asked while looking out of the ornate window, seeing the raging waves crashing at the rocks below as if they were having a war of their own.
“A message from Adam,” Dreadnought said in his deep, raspy voice, like he had something stuck in his throat. “Mars is coming here for a deal.”
“Deal?” Tyrannus turned around, confusion written on his face. “What deal?”
“Adam didn’t go into details, but Mars is apparently coming here with the mace.” Dreadnought said. “Adam suggested talking with him.”
“Adam was supposed to bring the mace back to me!” Tyrannus roared loudly. “What is that fool doing?”
Dreadnought stayed silent, as he was certain that nothing he would say would change Tyrannus’s state of mind.
Tyrannus sat down on his throne and tapped his finger impatiently against the armrest. He then wrapped his other hand around his battleaxe and raised it to his shoulder.
“What do I say to Adam?” Dreadnought asked.
“Hmm…” Tyrannus clicked his tongue and dropped his battleaxe back to the ground with a loud thud. “Fine, let me have an audience with this Mars. Since he is coming here, it means he really has my mace and killed one of my commanders.”
Dreadnought bowed and left the throne hall.
“What a ballsy guy…” Tyrannus rested his head on top of his palm and looked at the tall painting on the wall.
The painting described an old scene of battle between the Ancient Grounded Gods and the last remaining forces of mortals. The painting showed a scene of hellish destruction that eventually changed the landscape of Dark Waters completely.
Below the mural painting, the painting’s name was written.
[The Battle of Reichfaith]
…
Jesse opened his eyes and removed the VR headset before placing it gently on the bed.
He sat on the edge of the bed, rubbed his itching eyes, and let out a short yawn.
“The back and forth rocking of the ship is starting to make me unwell.” He said, his voice showing the fatigue of a long sea voyage.
Recently, he spent most of the time he had spent on the sea, so when he finally logged off, he felt rather dizzy and discombobulated when he walked on steady land.
He only did morning jogs, late-night swordsmanship training in the World of Souls, and meditation training. He found that his body was still adjusting to the drastic change in environment.
Jesse then stood up and staggered to the bathroom, where he took a quick shower and changed into a fresh set of clothes.
He then left his room, and as he was about to reach the elevator, one of the doors opened, revealing Emma with the familiar bunny in her embrace.
“Brother!” Emma exclaimed, not expecting him.
“Ah, Emma.” Jesse pressed a button to call for an elevator and then looked at his little sister.
He felt rather guilty, as he was spending almost every waking moment inside Martial Online and couldn’t really spend time with his new family.
“Where’re you going?” Emma asked as she hopped next to him, also waiting for the elevator to arrive at their floor.
“Some fresh air, you?”
“I’ll follow you!” Emma exclaimed, eager to spend time with him.
Ding—the elevator arrived and its doors opened.
They entered the elevator, and Jesse pressed the first floor button.
“Where’re you currently?” Emma asked, as neither she nor Bella were sure where Jesse was heading.
“I am at a place called Pirate Battleground.” Jesse said with a smile. “It has treacherous seas, dangerous creatures lurking in the depths, and pirates—lots of them.”
“Oo!” Emma exclaimed, looking thrilled after hearing about the new place. “Can I come next time?!”
“Hmm…” Jesse acted like he was thinking. “Perhaps, perhaps.”
Ding—the elevator’s doors opened, and they walked out, heading to the front door. They soon exited the mansion and entered a chilly evening air.
The winter was nearing, and it was already getting somewhat cold.
“How are things in Amaterasu?” Jesse asked while walking side-by-side with his little sister. They were heading towards the garden, as it wasn’t long before the first snow fell, and they wanted to see the plants before it was too late.
“Good!” Emma said in excitement. “We’ll open our bookstore soon. I think it’ll be a busy day because Bella has gotten quite popular.”
“How so?” Jesse asked curiously.
Emma pouted and said, “Some vermins have taken a liking to Bella and have tried attracting her attention. She became rather popular as she had recently been seen standing by the entrance of Amaterasu, basically every morning, and she had become somewhat of a legend among players.
“She is called the Wandering Lady, and many come there just to see her.
“She is a mysterious figure, and many players are drawn to her for her beauty and grace.”
Emma crossed her arms angrily and humped loudly. “Those vermin think they have a chance with Bella. She is already taken!”
Jesse’s lips twitched, as he hadn’t seen her this angry before.
However, he wondered about one thing.
“Taken, by whom?”
“By you, of course!” Emma proudly smirked. “No worries, brother. I’ll chase those vermins away!”
“Oh…” Jesse wryly smiled and slipped his hands inside his pockets to protect them from the cold. ‘Taken by me, huh.’