After dealing with the pirates, Ryu returned to his small wooden cabin. He had instructed the village chief not to reveal his existence; he didn't want to complicate matters. For now, everything was just fine.
"Congratulations on your victory, you have gained 50 experience points."
"Congratulations, host! Your level has increased, and you have gained 5 free attribute points and 1 skill point."
"Congratulations, host! You have completed the side quest (Drive off the invading pirates) and received rewards: 100 diamonds, 100 experience points, 1,000 berries, and a random white weapon."
Once Ryu returned to his cabin, he carefully reviewed the system notifications. After knocking out the pirate captain, he received 50 experience points, which was just enough to level up.
For his newly acquired attribute points, he allocated 2 to energy and 1 to health, while the remaining 2 went into speed. During the battle the night before, he realized that if it weren't for the presence of firearms, he would have fought head-on without any trouble.
He had tested it out; now that he could use his agility, he could dodge ordinary rapid-fire pistols from the front. However, ambushes were another story, and he certainly couldn't guarantee dodging other types of rapid-fire weapons or any other armaments. Thus, increasing his speed was a priority.
As for the white weapon that appeared in his inventory, it was a standard steel knife. It didn't have any special attributes, but it was still better than the weapons he had confiscated from the pirates. Plus, it could be equipped, so Ryu decided to use it for the time being.
Besides these, he had accumulated 400 diamonds. After reaching level five, a lottery interface appeared in the shop. One draw cost 1,000 diamonds and could theoretically yield anything. Ryu considered giving it a try, although he didn't hold out much hope for good results.
He knew all too well that these kinds of domestic trash games merely trick players into spending money, and now it had become his golden finger that he had no choice but to use.
Why take a chance? Ryu thought it through. If he didn't try, what was the alternative? The advanced martial arts and ultimate techniques in the shop were way beyond what he could afford with just a few hundred diamonds. It was better to test his luck—who knew? Maybe he'd strike it lucky.
After resting for a day, Ryu resumed his normal life. Besides practicing, he occasionally went out to fish. Now that he had a little money, he purchased a small boat. He didn't need any advanced sailing skills; he could handle it all on his own.
This tranquil lifestyle not only slowed his training speed but also left him without any tasks to trigger. Ryu decided that once he mastered the basic agility technique, he would set sail.
A few days later, after the last bit of agility proficiency had increased, Ryu went back to the village chief's house to discuss his plans to set sail.
"Although I'm a bit reluctant, I know you have to go out to sea eventually!" the village chief sighed.
Ryu smiled gently and bowed, saying, "Thank you all for your care over the years. Because of the pirates, it hasn't been easy for me to say goodbye, so I'll leave it to the village chief to handle things!"
The village chief smiled mysteriously and said, "Go on, there's a gift for you at the harbor!"
Ryu was taken aback and asked, "What is it?"
"A small boat. You'll need one to sail alone!" The village chief revealed without any hint of mystery.
After expressing his gratitude with a bow, Ryu exchanged a few words of farewell and left.
As he passed through the village, he noticed the villagers looking at him strangely. Although he had gotten close to the pirates for information before, making the villagers somewhat wary of him, today felt different. They were watching him with unusual gazes.
When he reached the harbor, Ryu found the small boat the village chief mentioned, a small triangular sailboat that was far better than the one he had used for fishing.
After boarding the boat, the owner gave him a brief rundown of some safety tips and the operating manual, and Ryu quickly mastered how to navigate it.
"Hey there, kid! Are you really going to leave like this?" Just as Ryu was about to set sail, he noticed that more and more people were gathering at the harbor. The bar owner called out to him from the nearest position.
Ryu paused and smiled, saying, "I'll come back to visit when I have the time!"
Seeing the crowd, he realized that the village chief must have informed everyone about his departure.
"When you come back, be sure to stop by for a drink!" the bar owner said, his eyes misty as he smiled.
"Little Ryu, if things don't go well out there, remember you can always come back. I'll still buy your fish!" said the restaurant owner.
The village was small, and everyone knew each other, so they all had some connection with Ryu. Their blessings felt incredibly precious to him at that moment.
"Everyone, I'll see you again!" Ryu didn't dare linger, as farewells could be rather bittersweet.
…
Time flew by, and several days had passed since Ryu set out to sea.
"Today's weather is nice—perfect for fishing!" Ryu emerged from the small cabin, glanced at the sky, and said to himself while taking out his fishing rod.
The cabin was small, and Ryu used it as his bedroom. His only space to move around was the compact deck. As for navigation and course plotting, he paid no mind; his backpack was filled with ample food and fresh water, so he wasn't in a hurry, opting instead for a carefree sailing method.
Well, to be honest, he couldn't read the nautical charts at all. Although the village chief thoughtfully left one in the cabin, Ryu found it utterly incomprehensible. Thus, he had no choice but to sail randomly.
After fishing for a while without any luck, Ryu yawned and decided to lie down on the deck. He had meditated all night, and his basic energy level was nearly maxed out, making him feel a bit drowsy under the sun.
Before long, he was startled awake by the sound of cannon fire. Opening his eyes, he saw a small boat not far from him being pursued by a Marine warship.
"Oh? A pirate ship?" Ryu raised an eyebrow at the skull flag flying on the small boat. "Never mind, they're being chased by a warship. I'd better not get involved!"
Since going to sea, Ryu had decided to become a proud pirate hunter. By capturing pirates, he could earn berries and gain experience—who knows, he might even trigger some quests!
"Hey, they're coming right at me! This little boat must belong to a rookie pirate! Well, even a small mosquito is meat, so I won't hold back!" Ryu smiled, taking out a long knife from his backpack as he watched the pirate ship approach.
His three basic skills were nearly maxed out, which gave him a significant confidence boost.
But when he finally recognized the person on the small boat, his initial underestimation vanished.
"No way, it's you, Ace!" The boy in front of him, freckled around the nose, was indeed Ace.
Even though he looked slightly different from his future self as "Fire Fist Ace," Ryu recognized him immediately.
"Eh? You know me?" Ace looked at Ryu in surprise. He didn't remember anything about him, but being a bit scatterbrained, he shrugged it off, thinking maybe they had met at some point and he had forgotten.
"With your abilities, you shouldn't be chased by this sort of trash, right?" Ryu pointed at the Marine warship, where a commander with a metal gauntlet, pink hair, and a striped suit was barking orders.
Ryu didn't know the Marine officer's name, but he recognized him as a weakling. In his previous life watching the anime, this guy seemed to have been made a fool of by Sanji at the Baratie restaurant.
"Ah ha! There are special reasons, so I can't attack the Marine." Ace scratched the back of his head, a bit embarrassed.
It seemed a bit shameful for him to be chased like this, but Ryu knew it was because he didn't want to go after his grandfather Garp's men.
"Hey, fishing boat, get out of the way! There are fierce pirates ahead!" A Marine soldier shouted loudly as Ryu's boat was about to intersect with Ace's.
"Great, what do I do now?" Ryu felt a headache coming on. He wasn't sure if Ace had eaten the Mera Mera no Mi yet, but his strength was definitely not to be underestimated, and he didn't feel confident about winning.
On the other hand, the Marine's strength was lacking. Even with their numbers, defeating such a large crew would yield quite a bit of experience!
Just as Ryu was pondering, Ace's pirate ship brushed past him, and the warship chased after Ace. By the time Ryu snapped back to reality, there was no chance of catching up with either Ace's little boat or the warship.
"Ugh! Have I been at sea alone for too long and lost my mind?" Ryu dramatically clutched his head. Two whole waves of experience just slipped right past him!
Frustrated about losing such a big chunk of experience, Ryu returned to the cabin with a heavy heart. He resolved to continue training and max out his basic energy today to make up for the loss.
"Bang!"
He didn't know how long it had been when his little boat suddenly made a sound as if it had bumped into something, waking him from his training.
When he stepped out of the cabin, he was taken aback by the sight of a small boat parked next to him and the cheeky grin of Ace.
"ACE!!"
Ryu shouted excitedly, rushing toward Ace.
If not for the fist Ryu was raising toward Ace's face, everyone would think they were long-lost friends reunited.
.......................
Started editing the chapters now ^^
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