One week later…
{Wind runner: lvl 4: Manipulate and produce winds at an expert level. Speed is increased by 40%}
Leveling up this one skill made Sky produce stronger winds to increase his ship's speed.
What should have taken two and a half weeks they arrived in a week at the Land of the Dead's entry point.
The first few days were rough for Jericho; she was anxious, nervous, and worried the entire time for her family's sake. She was still worried.
"There's no one at the entry point so this'll be quick." Sky said.
Jericho was on top of the ship's flag. Being there by herself lets her stay calm, at least that is what Sky believes.
In front of them were what appeared to be two mountain-sized walls that acted as a barrier between the Land of the Dead and the Land of the Free. The walls were erected so high up that they pierced the clouds.
The entry point was the only entrance to the Land of the Dead, it was the only point in the mountains that were not connected. The passage was narrow but big enough for even a battleship to go through.
On the passage was a small stone barricade that prevented ships from using the path. On the side was a booth that granted the ship the right to enter or leave as long as they paid the fee.
Once Sky stopped his ship a Caribbean man jumped aboard his ship.
"Who is the Captain of this ship?" It was an old buff man holding a piece of paper on a clipboard.
"That'll be me." Sky said.
"Huh, you look young to be a captain. Sorry for intruding but it is standard procedure for us to check if you are carrying anything illegal in this ship you intend to smuggle between lands. Of course you can decline but we're gonna have to ask you to leave."
"What illegal stuff?" Sky asked.
"You know, drugs, human trafficking, human bodies… that's basically it, really."
"So wait, are slaves illegal now?" Sky was confused.
"I said human trafficking not slaves… oh, I see your point. By that I mean selling humans that were not legally recognized as slaves."
"Oh. No, we don't have anything of that sort. You can check."
{Search: lvl 5 is being used on the player}
Sky wasn't worried at all. He had nothing on this ship that was illegal… aside from the fact that the ship was stolen.
Weapons, scrolls, magical items were not illegal to carry as exterminator crews always carry such items for protection.
The Caribbean men searched every inch of the boat looking for illegal stuff, including cards that can be hidden.
"Thanks for your cooperation. I assume you have the money to enter? I should have said that from the beginning else if you don't have the money this would have been a waste of time."
"I have the money."
Jericho jumped down and handed the man the money Sky gave it to her beforehand in the form of cards.
Besides, he wasn't that poor anymore.
{Shells: 1.7m}
The red dungeon was a great source of money especially when Jericho finds hidden treasure chests.
The Caribbean man counted the shells by hand to confirm it was the correct amount.
"Yeah, I am not counting all this again. Money looks good to me. Have a safe trip, and good luck, you'll need it."
The man jumped off the boat and opened the passage to the Land of the Free.
The ship moved forward through the narrow passage.
Jericho climbed the mast and stayed above it the whole way.
"Captain, you think Jericho is okay up there?" Jay asked, concerned.
"She's worried about her family who is still a month or so away. Of course she's not okay."
"I know but I just feel she's also worried about something else. It's just a feeling."
Sky took a good look at Jericho.
"I'll keep that in mind."
It would take twenty minutes for the ship to cross the passage and make it to the end.
Once the passage was cleared Sky saw the ocean again.
{Special quest complete}
{G. Wants you to the Land of the Dead}
{Received: 1x player coupon}
Sky smiled to see another player coupon in his inventory.
But the ship stopped all of a sudden.
"Jericho, why did you stop the ship?" Sky asked.
There was no response from her.
Sky teleported beside her thinking she didn't hear him. He can teleport anywhere in any ship he owns.
"Why did you stop the ship?"
"I… I…" Jericho stuttered uncontrollably.
"Oh… you don't know the way home, do you?"
"No, I don't. When my dad stole the purple scroll we immediately moved to another island. A week later he ran away. Soon after that I chased after him for five months. I don't know exactly where my family is."
"Oh, no. Is that why you were acting weirder than usual?"
"Yeah."
"I remember you mentioned the name of your island, what was it again?"
"Winkad."
"And you're sure that's the name of the island your family is staying at?"
"I am. I really hope they're still there."
"Right. We'll go island to island asking for directions and a map."
The system map can only identify the islands they had seen while on the ship, the rest of the unexplored map was grayed.
However, they could see portals even in the gray areas.
Opening the system map Sky could see a bunch of red portals. It was fascinating to see so many red portals instead of green ones.
'We need to get stronger, strong enough for the three of us to be able to challenge a purple dungeon. But will the three of us be enough? I know we need more trustworthy members, but how many? Five? Ten? Ah I'll figure it out as I go.'
"Sky! Island up ahead! Please use your wind to hurry it up!" Jericho said.
"Sure." Sky did as she wanted. The sooner they could find her family the better it was.
Sky had a small goal to complete the quest he was given: to clear ten red portals, he only had one cleared after he took the mission.
The island they reached was rather large and was in the shape of an 'M' once they docked their ship they set out to find directions for Jericho's island.
"Jericho, Jay, the three of us will split up and look for a map, make sure it has the name 'Winkad' on it. If something happens, use the chat function."
"Yes, Captain."
The three of them split up.
Sky did not feel that the island was that different from the islands he visited in the Land of the Free. It had a lot of people because it was the first island people visit since it was the closest to the passage between the two Lands.
"You, sir!" An old, tanned, bald, bulky man called out to Sky from his little shop. "Can I interest you in some red scrolls? They're cheap."
"Cheap?" Sky was intrigued.
The man had on his stall many red scrolls hanging on his wall.
"They're cheap if you're able to complete a game! What do you say? It's only 10,000 shells per game!"
'Is he scamming me? It feels like a scam. Identify.'
{Red scroll}
{Red scroll}
{Red scroll}
'So they're genuine.'
Sky cannot see the contents of each scroll, he has to open them up and read them.
"What game do I have to play?"
Sky felt this might be a scam but the 10,000 shells for a red scroll was a great offer. Even if it had low numbers to increase his stats it was worth the price.
The man placed down a single metal ring.
"You see that bottle?" The man pointed to the back of his ship. Sky could barely see it but there was a stick sticking out of the ocean. On top of the stick there was a clear bottle taped to it.
"If you can use this ring to land it on top of that bottle you can have any red scroll you want hanging from my wall. You just have to pay up first."
"Hmm… okay." Sky handed the man the money, which surprised the man since not many wanted to take the gamble.
'YES!' The man was happy to receive the money.
"Remember, you only get one chance."
'Absolute shot!'
Sky tossed the ring and it landed perfectly on the bottle. It left the man's mouth wide open.
"Cool, thanks." Sky took a random scroll for himself.
The man kneeled to the ground and began to cry.
"HOW? HOW? HOW?!"
He has seen many people who have consumed a high number of dex scrolls but could never land the ring on the bottle.
Sky opened the scroll to read it.
{Red scroll: Increases Str stat by 16}
*RIP*
{Str: 126}
'I knew it wouldn't increase my stat points by that much but it was a good buy.' Sky smiled. He knew red scrolls were common but not that common for people to use it as a prize in a carnival game.
*Bleep*
A familiar noise rang through his head.
"Guys! I found a map!" Jay said through chat.
"Where are you?" Sky and Jericho said at the same time.
"Somewhere in the middle of the map."
"We'll meet you there."
In almost no time Jericho and Sky arrived at Jay's location. He was standing in front of a wall.
"Look, guys, a map. I can't see Winkad."
It was a grand map that had a detailed label of every island, kingdom, and important location. It was mounted on the wall for everyone to see.
"There it is!" Jericho pointed.
"According to the map it's two weeks away from here." Sky added.
"But with your help we can arrive in one week."
"Yeah but… notice how it's in the danger zone?"
On the side of the map they read a part as 'danger zone' as a warning to keep others away. And Winkad was an island located right on the edge of the danger zone.
"What does that mean, danger zone?" Jay asked Jericho.
"I don't know. I never noticed any danger when I left."
"They wouldn't add it there for no reason. Whatever the reason, we know where it is so let's go."
"Wait, don't we need to take a map with us?"
"I already memorized it, we don't need a map."
Sky had a good memory. As his intelligence stat grew, so did his ability to store information in his head.
"Wait!"
A familiar voice called out to the crew. It was the same bulky man that Sky won a red scroll from.
"You want your red scroll back? Because I already used it on myself." Sky asked.
He was expecting this man to attack him or something for taking his red scroll.
"What? No. I just want to ask how'd you do that? It was a metal ring, not to mention you had to take wind friction into account, the distance, it just doesn't make sense. How did you do it?"
"I mean I have good aim. I don't know what else to tell you."
'I could tell you that a system helped me achieve it but no one would believe me.'
"It's just amazing! I've seen a lot of people but no one could make that shot. I designed it to scam stupid people of their money because I did not think it was possible."
The man was indeed angry he lost a red scroll but he was just both amazed and curious at how Sky managed to land a perfect shot.
What he didn't know is that Sky could only make that shot once an hour thanks to his system.
"Thanks. Hey, can you tell me what this danger zone means?"
"Oh, that? You don't know? Are you from the Land of the Free?"
"Yes, I am."
"Wow, you're from that place and you made that shot? That's cool! But the danger zone means it is not within the Caribbean's control. It is a lawless place."
"Really? Who owns that part of the sea?"
"Someone who calls himself a Warlord. He's a powerful fishman that the Caribbean has been wanting to capture for nearly two decades. The Caribbean has deemed that place too dangerous to enter. The fishmen and human race have been at war for hundreds of thousands of years. But recently this Warlord has been a sore spot for us."
"Oh." Sky and Jay looked at Jericho. How did she not know that?
"Thanks for the help but we really gotta go."
"Of course! Just wanted to say that shot was amazing!"
The three of them got into the ship and sailed off.
"Jericho, how did you not know that?" Sky asked.
"I don't know what to tell you. My parents did not exactly tell me this stuff."
"Now I am REALLY worried about your family! Why in the world would your father take you, and your family to such a dangerous place? It's right at the border of the danger zone. And if these fishmen are as powerful as the ones we saw on the Land of the Free, they're…" Sky couldn't finish his sentence.
"I think he did it because he knew his family would be in danger of whatever he did that pissed off the Caribbean? Maybe he thought they would be safer there and that the Caribbean wouldn't bother them?" Jay added.
"If he wanted his family to be safe he would have taken them to the Land of the Free with him, not abandon them."
Jericho looked down. The thought of her family being dead was getting worse.
Sky kneeled in front of her to console her.
"Sorry I said that, Jericho. It's just I am so angry how a father could treat his own family's lives so lightly."
"I am angry, too, at my father, even if he is not here anymore I get angrier at him. And I know there is a chance my family is already dead but… I still have hope they're alive."
"I know. I know. We'll get there as soon as we can." Sky walked away and sped up the boat with his wind ability.
A few days went by without a hitch. Sky controlled the boat and avoided every ship and dungeon on his path. Then something unusual happened.
{Quest}
{A red portal has broken out on a nearby island. The boss and its mobs have started to attack an island and they need your help}
{Quest reward: 400,000 exp, 600,000 shells}
{Additional quest info will be given once quest is accepted}
{Do you accept?}
If red portals are not cleared in a week after it appears the monsters and boss come out to wreak havoc.
"Hmm… hey, guys!"
Jericho and Jay looked at Sky.
"There is a portal outbreak and an island is paying the price for it. Do you guys want to check it out or nah?"
Jay has noticed how lightly Sky treats human life. He would be lying if he said that didn't bother him.
"What kind of monsters are they?" Jericho asked.
"I don't know. But the island should be near. Do you guys want to or not?"
Jay and Jericho looked at each other.
"Personally, I think we should. I wanted to clear some red dungeons on the way to be stronger but I know we want to make sure your family is alive and well, Jericho. Not to mention we still haven't bought any antidotes for the poison we might encounter."
'Not to mention all those human meatshields are the perfect distraction when I kill the boss and take the loot.' Sky smirked.
"If you want to, Captain, then I think we should do it." Jay said.
"I guess."
{Quest accepted}
{Your map has been updated}
{Quest timer: 26:33}
Sky saw the map where the island was being attacked by the monsters.
Standing on top of the mast was Jay with his spider glasses.
"Captain! I see the island! It's being attacked by alligators! And I see a big one which is the boss!"
"Good!"
{Exp share meter: Jay 100%}
'Now you can get stronger, Jay.' Sky wanted Jay to be able to use Betty without hurting himself again.
Sky didn't like this boss. It could negate 25% of all damage and it had 1,200 Vigor when he fought it.
As they got closer they saw the island. A lot of people were dead and fighting back. There was a small number of alligator men dead on the ground.
'Identify.'
{Giant alligator}
'Wasn't it crocodile the last time? I honestly can't tell the difference sometimes.'
{HP: 9,800/12,100}
{Mana: 120/150}
{Str: 300 Dex: 150 Spd: 90 Int: 30 Mind: 40 Vig: 1,200}
{Super dash: lvl 1: Increases speed by 100% for 1 minute}
{Passive: Bite force: lvl 1}
{Passive: Tough leather armor: Negates 25% of all damage}
"So exactly the same as last time. Lightning eagles go!"
Five eagles flew at the boss.
"You two handle the alligator men. I'll handle the boss."
"Are you sure you can handle it by yourself?" Jericho asked, worried. They barely made it out alive the last time they fought it.
"I'm stronger now than when we fought it the first time." Sky jumped towards the island.
Jay aimed his weapons at the alligator and shot them down dead while aiming for their hearts and heads.
Jericho did not do much unless she had to. The magnetism ability must not be shown in public unless she had to use it.
"Ice trident! Ice trident!" Sky was behind the giant alligator who was fighting his lightning eagles while simultaneously killing people
{Lightning eagle has dealt 1,400 damage → 25% negated: 1,050 damage dealt}
{Lightning eagle has dealt 1,050 damage}
{Lightning eagle has dealt 1,050 damage}
Sky saw the boss's HP plummet down as it struggled to kill his birds.
"I really have grown stronger, haven't I?
He threw both at the same time hitting him.
{Dealt 6,000 damage → 25% has been negated: 4,500 damage dealt}
His tridents did 2,000 damage each, but his critical damage increased the damage by 50% each.
{HP: 2,150/12,100}
The alligator turned around when he felt a great amount of pain from his back.
'Dang, the tridents didn't freeze him.'
The boss dashed straight at Sky.
{Boss has used super dash}
{Super speed has been activated! Increased speed by 100% for 30 seconds}
This is a passive ability that has a 25% chance to activate when Sky fights an enemy at a close proximity.
'Super dash! Super strength! Mana grace.'
{Speed has increased by 55% for 10 minutes}
{Strength has increased by 25% for 10 minutes}
{Max mana has increased and recovered by 50% for ten minutes}
Not to mention his wind runner ability gave him a passive speed boost.
{Wind-runner: lvl 4: 40% faster. Able to manipulate winds masterfully. Able to produce strong winds}
An evolved ability was naturally tougher to level up.
Sky jumped high and conjured two more ice tridents, throwing it at the boss.
{Dealt 4,000 damage → 25% negated: 3,000 damage dealt}
{Boss has been felled}
The alligator boss, as it was running, died and crashed onto a few more houses.
{Received: 400,000 exp, 330,000 shells, 1x red scroll}
{Jay Press has leveled up}
{Jay Press has leveled up}
{Jay Press…}
{Level 32}
'From level 24 to level 32, and it just keeps going.'
'System, don't I get a final hit reward from that? Or the additional dungeon chest rewards?' Sky asked.
Final hit rewards do not exist on ordinary green bosses, but he has seen it happen to both secret bosses and red bosses twice now.
According to his system all non-green bosses drop final hit items.
{Final hit rewards only happen if the boss is inside a dungeon when it is killed. And since there is no dungeon anymore there is no chest for you to take either}
'Oh. Bummer.' Sky was disappointed.
Then he noticed the quest wasn't completed yet.
"Guess I have to keep killing. But first."
Sky took the alligator boss's body for himself and searched for more alligators to kill.
Jericho and Jay finished killing every single alligator on the island.
{Quest cleared}
{Received: 400,000 exp, 600,000 shells}
{Level up}
{Sky Rouge}
{Level 128}
{Stat points: 5}
{Shells: 2.6m}
"Woo! We did it guys!" Sky cheered.
"That's great… but Captain, nearly everyone is dead." Jay pointed out.
Sky turned around and he was right. Almost everyone on the island was dead.
"Oh, right. There was nothing we could have done about that. Search for survivors."
'And for any valuables we can sell.' Sky had an ulterior motive to 'look' for survivors.
Jay, Jericho, and Sky split up.
Sky could not sense anyone alive.
'Man, this is worse than the time I saw those people get slaughtered by that fishman.'
Jay was getting heavily affected by the sight of dead people lying on the ground. He had never seen a dead human before, and to see families, children, innocents slaughtered made him feel horrible.
'Is this what Captain and Jericho see every day?' Jay thought both of them were too used to the sight of dead people that it barely fazed them.
Jericho did not look for people but instead valuable metals she can sell off for profit.
Jay saw someone's hand sticking out and waving at him.
"GUYS! CAPTAIN! SOMEONE IS ALIVE!"
Jay ran to the hand and gently pulled it out, but he was able to pull the hand cleanly, too clean. The hand wasn't connected to the rest of its body as it had been bitten off.
"AH!" Jay threw the hand away.
The hand wasn't moving at all, Jay thought he saw it move.
Jay couldn't help but throw up a bit.
"Ugh… sorry but I can't take this. I'm going to the ship." Jay said.
'At least he helped.' Sky thought. Not everyone was immune to seeing dead people like he was.
"Sky, I feel something heavy." Jericho said.
"What?"
"It's like a chest but heavier and more… metal-y."
"Where?"
"Here. Where I'm standing."
Sky pushed away the rubble using his wind and telekinesis.
{Killed Roger Bushell}
{Jay Press has leveled up}
'Ah, crap. I accidentally killed someone just now.' Sky closed his eyes out of frustration.
Sky searched the spot Jericho pointed and it was a heavy safe.
"I'll take the safe with me. We'll open it up when we get on the ship."
"Sounds good."
Sky took the metal safe with him.
They searched for more people and ended up finding seven survivors in total.
"Thank you so much for saving us!" A woman said, grateful to still be alive.
Behind her were two children, three other women, and two men. The only survivors in the island out of the few hundred.
Sky felt he could have saved more people if he was notified of the outbreak sooner. But he was glad that he made it before everyone got killed, otherwise he would not have had enough meat shields.
"All in a day's work. Let's go, Jericho. We need to go to your family."
"Hm."
Ignoring the woman's pleas for them to stay, Jericho and Sky made it to their boat. They saw Jay lying down on the boat looking at the clouds.
"Sorry, Captain. But I am gonna need a few hours or days to process what I've seen." Jay said with no emotion in his words.
"I understand. Jericho was the same, sorta. Take your time."
After setting course to Winkad again Sky took out the metal safe out of his inventory that was in the form of a card.
"Jericho, open it."
"Aye!"
The safe was split open to pieces. Inside it had a letter that read "To George" signed by someone named "Roger Bushell…"
Seeing the name Sky closed his eyes. That was the name of the man he killed by accident.
There were also some cards in it that contained stuff.
"Let's see what the letter reads: "Dear George, by the time you see this I am most likely dead. I hid this metal safe underneath the floorboards of the house for you. By now you should know your birthdate is the code to the safe. I just wanted you to know I love you son. What I have in this safe is my life savings. There is enough money for you to live on a nice island where you can find a nice home, a nice wife, once you're old enough of course. I just want to tell you I love you son, wherever I am I will always be with you." huh, nice father." Sky tossed the card away.
"Better than mine." Jericho added.
"Is it bad I want to see what he left his son inside the cards?"
"I mean… according to the letter he must have left a lot of money for his son, but his son doesn't know that, right?" Jericho asked.
"Jericho… you make me proud." Sky wiped a tear from his face.
'They grow up so fast."
Although Sky and Jericho did feel bad to screw over a dad for trying to help his son, they needed the money.
Besides, the man was dead(thanks to Sky) and his son and wife were most likely already dead on that island.
Opening the cards they saw an abundance of money, scrolls, and weapons.
"Damn! The guy wasn't kidding!" Sky's eyes widened to see the items.
Jay glanced at the items for a second before turning his head back to the clouds.
'That cloud looks like a fluffy cloud. How nice.' Jay was in his own little world.
"How much money is this?"
"Uhh… hold on."
Sky placed all the shells inside his inventory since it was easier than counting it.
{Shells: 32.6m}
"That's 30 mil." Sky looked at Jericho with a shocked expression.
"Woah." Jericho liked the sound of that.
There were also 3 red scrolls and a bracelet.
"The card says it was his life savings but I thought it would be more than that." Sky said.
It would have been more but the man was still saving up for his son.
"What do the scrolls say?"
Sky kept the red scroll that he got from the boss.
{Red scroll: Grants 46 str}
{Red scroll: Grants 50 spd}
{Red scroll: Grants 48 int}
"Woah. The man's father wanted to give his son the best scrolls he could find. Not bad. This one grants you so much strength, the other one speed, and the last one intelligence."
"How much do you think they'll sell for?"
"Much more than the one you're carrying right now. I'll keep the intelligence scroll."
"I'll take the speed scroll to sell it." Jericho said
"Jay, this strength scroll is yours. It'll do you well to use Betty."
Jay waved his hand but didn't say anything. Sky knew people processed death differently and there wasn't much he could do at the moment.
"I'll keep it for him until he gets better." Sky said.
*RIP*
{Int: 288}
{Mana: 4,185/4,185}
"Neat. Next stop: Winkad."
Sky waited for everyone to go to sleep to pull out the red scroll he got from killing the boss.
'Please be good! Please be good!' Sky prayed for a useful ability, specifically 'dispel curse' because he knows it would be useful to have in the long run.
{Red scroll: Increases vigor by 26}
'OH COME ON! I mean I don't want to complain about getting stronger but I have come across a few red scrolls and none of them gave me any new abilities!' Sky groaned.
When a red scroll drops supposedly it's supposed to be a fifty-fifty chance whether he gets a stat or ability scroll. He ripped the scroll to obtain its power.
{Vig: 267}
{HP: 8,410/8,410}