Three days later…
Xero would stay in his office trying to figure out where the Warlord would strike next. After searching relentlessly around the area he figured looking for him wasn't going to benefit him like going on a wild goose chase. Instead he is going to find Lucious, it has been far too long since his disappearance and frankly he suspects he is already dead, and the only one he suspects of pulling such a feat is the Warlord.
"First Lucious then the mermaid. Seriously, this has been a disaster for humanity. Well the kid, Sky, was able to bring us a hefty sum of money so we don't have to pay the Fallen God family what they demand for that scroll. God I wish the Fallen God family didn't take most of our annual earnings and scrolls, else we could have used that for good."
Xero could imagine the infinite number of wealth the Fallen God family has managed to accumulate for six hundred thousand years. They were like dragons, living in their own room filled with their riches. Xero once caught a glimpse of their treasure, what he saw could be worth ten times the amount that the Caribbean currently has, and that's the tip of the iceberg. With such wealth humanity would be unstoppable.
He was looking through reports. The number of pirate attacks has been happening frequently, more so than before. Many villages and people were suffering, the Caribbean was lacking the necessary resources to help them when they couldn't be everywhere at once and it was putting a strain on them financially.
"We need another miracle. Another Sky. How much would all this take to pay? Millions? Half a billion? Wait, how did he even manage to make that amount of money? I know he didn't do it illegally but it's just so weird."
Due to his moral code Xero couldn't just imprison Sky and force him to cough up his secret. They are Caribbean men, not pirates.
He grabbed a small rotary phone from his desk and called someone.
"Boris."
"What?" Boris said as he was standing on his ship eating cookies with tea.
"Can you find Sky Rouge again?"
"Didn't we agree to let him be? Besides I am headed towards Marjack as we speak."
They believe the mermaid, Jules, was caught by the Abyss family which is why they're not looking for Sky anymore. Some saw Sky fly away but no one saw a mermaid with him nor his crew. They could only assume he was the only living member.
Boris, who feels guilty that he caused Jericho to die and failed to protect them, is now going to visit her family and give her a huge amount of money. He knows they'll be pissed after what he and the Caribbean did to their family, but the guilt was eating him alive so he had to do something.
"I know. I want you to find him and offer him another job offer. This time it'll be a more generous job offer proposal."
"Come on, Xero. I told he hates the you-know-who family and therefore us. Also why do you want to employ him all of a sudden?"
"Okay I know he hates the Fallen God Family, I cannot change that. But we need money and we need to find a way for him to grant us that kind of money. As long as he didn't steal or kill for it it's all good."
"How the hell does that make sense? What kind of crappy job is that where you have to pay your employer?"
"You mentioned he wanted a ship, right?"
"Yeah?"
"Well, how about I make him a captain of a fleet and we provide him with one? I can give him three ships and a crew and a title. In return he gives us 50% of what he makes."
"Xero… he needs to be a Caribbean man for that, and with four tidal waves to command a fleet. And also you felt it, he's weak. I do admit it's strange he got that large sum of money but still, Xero, I don't think this is right."
"I know, but what else can we do? The Fallen God Family keeps taking our resources, Lucious is probably dead, the mermaid is gone and the nightmare sword might end up in the wrong hands soon! Boris, just finish your personal task quickly, then find him and offer him what I just said, and you can add more but we do need his wealth."
"You think he can make that kind of money again?"
"Didn't look like he was struggling when I saw him. But one thing does worry me."
"You're worried he might hate me for getting his crew killed and his mermaid taken away, right?" Boris said. The thought did occur to him, which is why he wasn't eager to see Sky again. It would be too awkward to face him, as well as the guilt he was feeling didn't help.
"Right, but you found him once you can find him again. Please, Boris."
Boris rolled his eyes.
Xero couldn't see it but he could Boris rolling his eyes at him.
"Aye."
"Good."
Xero hung up as he leaned back on his chair. The thought he had to ask a young man for financial help made him somewhat laugh.
"Haha… we are so fucked." Xero took out a whiskey bottle from his desk. He popped the corkscrew off and raised the bottle.
"Here's to getting fucked." Xero drank the entire whiskey bottle barely feeling anything from it.
Meanwhile…
Inside a red dungeon Sky was running away as fast as he could as if his life was on the line. Behind him were Jericho and Jay crying and holding their breath and on the verge of tears and throwing up.
They jumped through the entrance and left the dungeon as they could finally breathe. They flew towards the ship and dropped on the floor.
"Sky… how the hell did we get two portals, back-to-back, that smell like a skunk?" Jericho asked.
"I don't know. One second." Sky ran to the side of the ship and threw up. One second later Jay ran beside Sky and threw up.
"I am all for adventure, captain, but the smell… the smell. I will be smelling that for weeks." Jay said weakly.
"I'll be smelling that forever. I'll never be able to stop smelling it." Jericho said, lying face up staring at the blue sky. There was no emotion on her face as if she had given up on life.
"If we weren't forced to clear the dungeon I would have happily skipped it, trust me." Sky, who was still feeling grossed out, said.
If this were any other situation the system would have given him a type of resistance, but he wasn't getting a skill for it for some reason.
"I blame whatever it is you have that is making us do this." Jericho said.
"I can't take it anymore." Jay jumped to the ocean hoping the smell would go away. He even stripped completely and threw the clothes away.
Even the slaves, who were close, didn't want to get near Sky and the others and were holding onto their breaths. The smell was indeed too pungent and horrid for anyone to experience. They did however already prepare them a bath and some new clothes.
Jules was hiding far from them and she even took her alchemy equipment so she wouldn't even see them unless she had to.
Sky set course once again to Servus Terra which is now six days away. They could have been there sooner but Sky was making detours by clearing dungeons every now and then which cost them time. Sky and Jericho would just lie there unmoving, while Jay, who is still naked, was holding onto the side of the ship hoping the water would quickly rinse out the smell from his body.
"Master." One of the slaves walked up to Sky slowly and covered her mouth with a piece of her clothes so she could avoid the smell.
"What?"
"We're almost out of soap." She said, they are learning to not fear him as much as before, but they were still scared of him.
He doesn't hurt or scream or hurt them when they make mistakes, as long as it's nothing major he just expects them to do it again right. They learned Sky won't kill them unless they betray him like the others did. All they had to do was clean, cook, and maintain the ship's appearance well. If they finish early they can do anything they want, even eat and prepare food for themselves.
Sky told them he doesn't mind what they do, they could shower, eat anything and any amount, draw, sew, as long as they get their work done. He has even started to pay them a salary that they can use when they stop at an island.
The salary was a surprise to the slaves since slaves don't get paid. At first they thought it might have been a trick, a test of some kind. But after Sky told them three times he wanted to give them a salary they accepted it wasn't a trick.
Sky did this because he not only wants to get them to be loyal to him, but he also wants to learn how to treat his underlings better that includes his crew.
"I'll find an island to buy more. Can you go buy them for me?" Sky gave her a card filled with an abundance of shells.
"Yes, Master."
"You can keep the change. It's only 100,000 shells."
"Isn't that too much?" She asked.
"No, Phoebe, I want you to use all the money there to buy as much shampoo as you can. Clear their inventory, I don't care. If that's not enough money just tell me and I will give you another hundred thou."
"Okay."
"And here." Sky tossed at her three green scrolls. "That will make you learn the card technique. Use one on yourself and share the rest with the others."
"Thank… Thank you, Master." Phoebe ran towards the other slaves not knowing how to feel.
"I'm going to shower. Jericho please set course to the nearest human island to buy soap."
"Already on it." Jericho said as the ship changed directions.
"Good. I'm gonna shower."
Sky entered the ship where there was a shower installed. He stripped and took a long hot shower till the stinge was off his body. But then a thought came to him.
He took out a reg gem from his inventory and examined it once again.
"Should I?" Sky asked, wondering if this was a wise decision.
{Red gem of the Dragonsky King}
{Able to unlock a special purple+ dungeon once used}
Sky really wanted to explore another purple dungeon, but this was a purple+ dungeon. Were they ready for something like that?
"We're already going to Servus Terra but what Madame said is still bothering me… the Abyss family…"
Sky realized that Balthazar is part of that family, and he cursed him with the evolved sloth curse. Chances are they can only get rid of it by killing him. Not to mention they are after Jules for the nightmare sword.
"System, how do I use this?"
{Crush it}
"That easy?"
Sky crushed the gem.
{Map updated}
The map opened by itself and it scrolled to an island called "Niggonpo" the island was two days away and it had a purple+ grade. There was a tiny dot on the island indicating that the dungeon was there.
"Interesting. Everyone!" Sky quickly teleported on the deck of his ship wearing a white towel.
Jericho was sitting down eating some fish trying to ignore the smell. Jay was on the ground naked but someone covered him with a warm blanket.
"Jules, get over here now!"
Jules appeared before him smelling of herbs and potions.
"Yes, Cap'n?"
"What is it, Sky?"
"Ugh…" Jay groaned.
"We're going to another purple dungeon in two days. Be prepared."
Hearing that Jay jumped up in excitement.
"YES! That means another adventure."
"Jay…" Sky pointed down.
Jay looked down realizing he was wearing nothing. Everyone was staring at him with no expression on his face.
"Oh… one second." Jay entered the ship and seconds later he appeared before them again.
"So what kind of dungeon will it be, Captain?" Jay asked as if nothing had just happened.
"I am not sure but I think dragons have to do with it."
"D-Dragons?" Jericho, Jay, and Jules stammered.
"What?" Sky asked, confusedly. Dragons are famous as they are known to be powerful winged monsters that can spew fire and are known for their towering size and strength.
"Captain… I love you man." Jay was on the verge of tearing up. He would be lying if he said he didn't dream of an adventure with dragons. Ever since he heard of them he always wanted to fight one.
Jericho however seemed worried for their lives.
"Captain, a dragon is too powerful. Are you sure you want to do this?" Jules asked, cautiously. She has never fought a dragon but she has heard about them from her ancestor.
"I honestly don't know. But if the worst comes I can force us to leave the dungeon. If we can do this it'll benefit us in so many ways. If not, we can try again once we get stronger."
"Very well." Jules folded her arms.
"First we resupply on items on the nearest island. Jules, can I see the best potions you made?"
"I can. They're the best ones I've made yet."
"Ooh, show me."
"Sky… clothes." Jericho said.
"Oh, right." Sky was still in a towel.
Meanwhile…
In the middle of a fortified island was a young man around his mid 20's. He was average in build and size and in looks. He was in his house wearing an apron sweeping the living room which didn't need sweeping from the looks of it.
It was a luxurious living room filled with high-end furniture, plastic fruits in a bowl on top of a coffee table, and a fireplace with a mantle with photos of him and his family.
Hanging on the wall was a painting that looked like it had been drawn by a master artist. It showed an asian dragon flying across the islands and swallowing people. On his tail was something shiny although one could not tell or see what it was.
"Mom, I am done sweeping." The man wiped the imaginary sweat from his forehead.
Then the painting moved as if it were made of water. It rippled all but a few seconds making no noise.
An old lady that was shorter than him and somewhat chubby with a round face walked downstairs to find a spotless living room. It was so clean there was no dust in sight.
She examined the room with a satisfied look on her face.
"Do it again, this time better. And we clean the walls and the doors and the rails. Oh and we can do the dishes and sweep the stairs next. Oh and we can wash and dry the clothes, and do my room and your sister's room please, hon."
The man let out a small sigh. Whenever she says "we" she really means him and him alone.
"Mom, the dishes are already done."
"I know. Wash the dishes that are in the kitchen cabinets."
"But… those are already clean."
"I noticed some dust on them yesterday. Wash them thoroughly please, hon."
"But I also did the walls and doors yesterday."
"Well… do it again. I gotta go now, hon. Loretta, let's go."
"Coming, mom!" A young girl that looked similar to the lady came running down the stairs.
"We're going shopping now for the rest of the day. Oh and also make the food while you're at it. Bye. love you!"
"Bye…" He waved at them helplessly. They left the house and him alone.
He sat down and wanted to rip his hair out.
"Again… with the cleaning… it's never going to end. Cleaning, and cleaning, and cleaning, and cleaning, and more fucking cleaning. Do people clean houses for ten hours a day?"
He didn't see the point of cleaning so much every day. His house was already spotless but was forced to clean it again, and again. He has been doing this ever since he was a kid.
He opened the window trying to let some fresh air in. He saw many people outside having fun and living their own lives.
Just then a yellow bird flew into the house and stood on the mantle.
"Hi Sarah." He walked up to the yellow bird and pet its stomach. He has always loved birds and has adopted the yellow bird as his own for years now.
He grabbed some bird seeds in his palm and fed them to Sarah. Sarah ate the bird seeds happily making the man chuckle.
"How I envy you, you can fly yet I am here. I want to leave this place… but can't." He got sad all of a sudden. He has no friends at all. He only stays in the house like a prison. He cannot leave the island for many reasons, and he cannot even leave his house without his mom's permission because he is deadly afraid of her.
Just then he noticed the painting. He didn't see it move but he noticed the Asian dragon was in a different position.
"Strange, was the dragon always there or am I going crazy?" He said as he squinted his eyes. Thinking he is crazy he didn't pay much attention to it.
Sarah finished the bird seeds and flew on the man's chest.
"Awww…" He grabbed the bird gently with both hands and petted him with his fingers. The yellow bird seemed to enjoy it very much as it closed its eyes.
"Wish I could keep you here but no one deserves to be in a cage, especially not you."
Then he noticed the drawing again, this time the islands were in a different spot.
"Okay, what the hell? I know the drawing wasn't like that." The man stood up which shook the bird. He gently went to the window and released the bird.
"Bye, Sarah, see you tomorrow." He closed his window and examined the drawing very closely.
"Mom bought this painting ten years ago yet it never changed. I've seen it thousands of times yet this is the first time it does this…"
He took the painting down and went down to his basement. He put the painting on a long white desk that was there and examined it from all sides.
"It's not haunted. Is it a prank? But how?"
He touched the painting, but at that moment his finger entered the painting.
"AH!" He retracted his hand quickly. He saw his fingers were still intact and sighed in relief.
"Fuck that shit." He ran away and locked the basement door. He sat on the ground thinking it might be his imagination, but it wasn't.
"Was that real? What?" He stood at his finger for a while.
He ran to his room hurriedly and took out two swords from his closet. The two swords were identical, both have a dark grip with a black sheath covering it. He unsheathed one of the swords, it appeared to have been used many times.
"Okay…"
After a while he let out a breath and went down the basement again. There he saw the painting again. He approached it cautiously and touched it. Just like before his finger went through the painting, as if it were a liquid but he felt nothing, it was as if he was touching the air.
He didn't retract his hand, instead he continued going forward. He didn't know what to expect.
"I wonder." With no fear in his eye he put both arms and his face in the painting and it swallowed him. There were traces of the man left to be seen.