"Row like your life depends on it!!" Panicked shouts echoed all over the shop, unfortunate sailors working their asses off.
— SHISHISHI! —
In the distance, strange cries resounded from the creatures chasing them. Just the sounds were enough for many to soil themselves, their faces turning ghostly pale.
"What the hell is that?!" Jack questioned.
"Probably what annihilated the previous crew! I bloody knew that following after them was a TERRIFIC idea! TCH — We already have plenty to worry about!" The old man cursed.
Jack now had to survive.
He didn't just row; he gave it his all. His taut muscles quickly dripped with sweat as he worked the oar. But would this be enough?
"AH!! A monster!!" A scream came from the crew quarter, wounded sailors bursting out of the crew quarters terrified.
Plenty of soldiers clenched their weapons, gulping heavily. That's when IT came running through. A creature with eyes of flames, fangs of steel, and glowingly mighty.
Before anyone could react, the monster charged straight at the rowing crew with a bloodthirsty howl! It sounded a bit like…
"WOO!" (Masssteerrrr!!! I finally found you!)
"Noooooo!" Time seemed to stop. This beast was so cunning! It was targeting their means of propulsion, and then the other monsters would catch up and—
But then they all stilled. What the heck was happening?! The devilish beast was…licking one of their Newbie sailors?! The guy looked so unremarkable too!
The shock was big enough to slow down the vessels, too many busy gawking.
"What the hell are you all doing?! Is this the time to be polishing your wood?! Work those oars!" Jack brought them back to their senses.
"R-right! S-sorry!"
They all resumed working, many still glancing at the wolf with unease. Except they'd soon have a bigger issue than a strange pet: they were far too slow.
"They're still catching up…." The guy with the whip muttered solemnly.
The man glanced at their position and at their sails with regret. He knew they'd be useless around that cursed windless Island. All they could do was prepare themselves to fight…
That's the moment Jack rose from his rowing seat, only to stare at the empty air oddly.
[Use of Inventory Restricted! Good Luck!]
[Clear the Mission to Unlock!]
How annoying.
He turned toward the sailors that were busy glaring at him as they warned: "Newbie, return to your seat and—"
"I don't have time for that bullshit." Jack bypassed the angry guys, stepping up on a wooden barrel to be visible to everyone. "Now, all you bitches, listen up if you want to live!"
— Gasp! —
Had the guy lost his mind?!
The crew-master was already holding his whip, ready to handle it.
"Have you guys never learned how to row properly?! We're going all out! I'll teach you all how to go into overdrive!"
What was he even talking about?! But then he began teaching. "Use your life essence and…" Wait, was this really possible?! "Follow the rhythm and…."
The NPCs intently listened to him. He spoke of a crazy technique that seemed too good to be true, but they didn't have much to lose at the moment anyway.
[Error! Unknown Energy Detected!]
[Error! User doesn't have the capabilities to—]
'The capability to teach such advanced knowledge?' Jack inwardly snickered at the system. Oh, he really didn't. But this wasn't the real Infinite world. It was a mirage!
A mirage was, in essence, a reflection of the real world.
It was as if he was a bystander playing out a scenario that had happened long ago. This meant that it was tough to influence for a few reasons:
1. No inventory!
2. Unable to play it as a party!
3. General flow of events set in stone!
But, there was one large loophole to the whole thing, one he'd exploit! He'd teach the actors, teach them forbidden knowledge, and they would affect the mirage in his stead!
He went into a heated speech, teaching them how to "unlock" their true potential. They'd put their all into this moment of life and death, not caring about backlash!
"Everyone, focus! Row like you mean it!" Jack repeatedly shouted as Moon Moon kept howling to regulate their cadence.
Before long, their bodies started oozing blood pearls as their muscles bulged powerfully. It seemed as if they were all taking magical steroids at once!
All of this really couldn't be healthy, but they were way too taken with the feeling of ecstasy that came with power to complain.
"Wow! I'm overflowing with energy!"
"Row, row, fight— leave this island!"
"Less talking and more rowing!
Under Jack's teaching, it didn't take long for the ship to increase pace visibly. It was such an increase that even the Captain left his post at the helm to check the miracle.
Everyone was all smiles, knowing they finally had a chance at surviving! Well, all but the poor system that was having another mental breakdown.
[User Taught NPCs Blood Magic Variation?! How?!]
[Lifespans Consumed! They're Doomed!]
[What Have You Done?!]
What had he done? He had made them row fast as fuck! He'd be out of the mirage before they started dropping like flies anyway, right?
Under their crazed state, it didn't take too long to reach the open sea. This allowed them to unfurl their sails, the wind sending them forward!
They were out! They had left whatever enemies were behind them back then….and yet red-eyed half-naked berserk rowers were still working.
"Eh…you guys, you can stop now…."
"No way, I can still go on! I'm powerful!!!" They were like those hamsters that killed themselves running in their ball. #Perfect Employees! #Working till they dropped!
"What's up with them?! Why are they shedding bloody tears?!" The sharp Captain's voice echoed.
Jack quickly considered his potential answers:
A) "I thought them forbidden Magic, no biggie!"
B) "No worries. They're expelling impurities in their blood!"
C) "They're just very motivated. I'm sure they'll return to normal eventually…."
What kind of lie could he even spin here? There was clearly something wrong with them! But just as he was thinking….
"Woo!" (That's obviously because they're hungry!)
"I-is that wolf…talking?! They're hungry…?" The Captain couldn't help but be taken aback by the little [Survived Phase One! Left the Dangerous Island!]
wolf's expression. How could it convey emotion so well?!
Moon Moon nodded vigorously with such intensity and conviction that even the skeptic Captain couldn't be taken aback.
Just hungry? This sounded so stupid, and yet….it was true that overexertion while lacking energy would lead to injury. Perhaps it was worth feeding them first.
"Alright, bring them food ASAP!"
Jack wasn't sure how to react to this. As if food would do anything! They weren't just tired or overworked. They were dying, all of them! Oh, and it was his fault too.
This only left him a few options:
1. Leave the mirage (Best)
2. Heal the affected crew (Impossible)
3. Find something else to blame their demise on (Enemies?)
While the others busied themselves preparing rations (or drooling in Moon Moon's case), he approached the edge of the ship, observing the sea.
An endless red.
Red sea?! Totally normal, right?!
Huge waves kept rocking the ship, creating thud sounds as they battered the wood. As for the water (?), swimming in that red liquid didn't seem safe at all!
[Survived Phase One! Left the Dangerous Island!]
[Welcome to the Open Sea!]
Tch— There went option 1 of leaving the mirage. He had only finished phase 1?! At this rate, the crew would turn against him in phase 2…
He felt fell into deep thoughts, the salty wind ruffling his hair.
"Woo?!" (There will be food! Are you coming?!)
Moon Moon came nearby, large sausages filling its mouth. Eating really was the best part of any mission for sure!
"You brought me food? Thanks!" Jack gently ruffled the wolf's fur. "Alright, I'll be right there. Wait for me…."
"Woo!" (Alright!)
— Happy Wolf Noises! —
But before joining the party, he had a slight detour to make.
Jack went headed inside the ship, heading for the kitchen, no one bothering to stop him. After all, they were about to have a victory feast, so it wasn't that strange.
He waited to be alone…
"Sigh, such a lack of vigilance." He muttered to himself.
He then decisively grabbed a long rope, attached lots and lots of food to it, and shoved it through a porthole window! There went their previous food!
But that wasn't the worst of it…
He had effectively created one gigantic and very appetizing fishing line. But instead of being fixed to a fishing rod, it was linked to the ship itself!
[Error! Error! Unrecognized Action!]
[Calculating Mirage Evolution!]
"You do that. Keep calculating. Still, never seen fishing before? I'm expecting fishing XP as soon as I do manage to catch something!" Jack teased the system.
He quickly cleaned the place, draping over the window and hiding his monstrous "fishing line".
"Yep, this will do!" He praised himself on a job well done, only to be interrupted by the clanging of the kitchen door.
"What are you doing here?! The feast has started already!" The crew master stared at him full of suspicion, the latter giving a radiant smile. "Oh, just exploring! Shall we go?"
"Fine, follow me…." The man grumbled after a quick inspection, not thinking of checking outside the ship.
The feast began….
Smelling the food, the crazed crew members finally dropped the oars. They were even hungrier than a stoner after smoking a castle worth of weed!
"Woo!" (Eat and regain your strength!)
As Moon Moon encouraged them, Jack couldn't help but sigh inwardly. Food wouldn't help regain their lifespan, their brains mistaking it for hunger.
The more time passed, the more anxious Jack became. The crew's condition obviously wasn't improving, and they were about to kick the bucket!
The Captain was already getting ready to order his men to apprehend him for lying to them.
'C'mon! I need a disturbance, anything!' Jack inwardly prayed. That's when it happened…
[Gained 468 943 Fishing XP!]
[You've caught a BIG Fish!]
Wasn't this a little too much XP?!
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