I got myself back on track and surveyed the scene. We crashed by a beach of some sort, and the ship had finally turned into ruins. There was no forest. But as I set my eyes forward, there was a bulk of trees nesting near the mountains where the human settlement could be found. And when I lifted my head, the skies were dyed black. It was midnight. The stars and the oddly shaped moons illuminated the dark world. Although no sound seeped through the place, the echoes from the marine creatures and other places far from here travelled and reached this place. It was a warning, not a threat. And everywhere we would go, there would be a time to meet them.Most pirates would be asleep right now as Captain Israel demanded rest for everyone after landing in this area. I too fell flat on the sand, hoping that our endeavour had ended. And it did…I opened my settings and tracked down Horizon from Captain Israel’s previous instructions. My map appeared before me and marked a green circle around th
Just beside the hostages and the Kingdom camp, a fleet of ships approached the island. These boats cannot be seen by the naked eye, and they would need a telescope to view things that I could. But since I was gifted with a system that heightened my senses, everything became clear. Even Captain Israel noticed what was happening from afar… “We need to save them… all of them! I don’t have to bring anyone with me, since they’ve just recently fought a losing battle. I don’t want to drag them with me. But I would appreciate it if you still have the strength to accompany me.” “ARE YOU FUCKING NUTS?!” I raised my voice, nearly provoking and luring any pirates within the vicinity. So I lowered my tone and resumed where I had left. “Are you out of your mind? Haven’t you looked at yourself in front of a mirror? First of all, you’re wounded. Second, we’ve just came in a fucking battle. A MOTHER FUCKING BATTLE THAT NEARLY KILLED US!?” “But… they’re people, Arata. Aren’t we supposed to help them?
Just like what Francoise had promised, she told everyone about what happened to Captain Israel - how she would not be able to join us for this trek - and how I would act as the proxy Captain… leader of the pirate pack heading towards Horizon. I left the human… Kingdom settlement from the north and led the people elsewhere, far from any enemies. Captain Israel might have sacrificed herself, and she needed someone to protect her. But I wasn’t the guy cut for it. It wasn’t because I couldn’t do it, but because I didn’t want to stick my nose in someone else's business. Then again, my ignorance left a bitter taste in my mouth. And if I told everything to Kirameki, she would definitely freak out and be upset about it.Which happened right now.Before Francoise, Azure, and I could escort everyone towards the Horizon, we still had a few needed hours of rest to accomplish for everyone. So I used my precious time to visit Kirameki, which I initially wanted to do, and talked to her. The last ti
As soon as the conversation with Kirameki and I ended, I hit the sack and rest for a few hours before resuming our journey. The mattress was made of soft leaves found near the coast. It wasn’t like the palm leaves we had from the isolated island, and the trees we used as our bed and pillow seemed awfully nice to my skin. It was even bouncy for a second, but my eyes and mind had already wandered in my rem state, until the sun’s rays blinded my eyes and eventually woke me up.But even though my body had relaxed even for a bit, my mind was in complete shambles. My thoughts battled against each other, blaming myself after what had happened between Kirameki and me. The talk wasn’t supposed to end with a bad taste in our mouths, but it did. And it was mostly my fault. Upon rising from my cushion, I got up and checked on the entire group how they were coping up. It also looked like Kirameki also had a good night’s sleep, but her mind was pretty jerked up. By the time she saw me, everything
We were where we wanted to be, out in the wilderness, far from any monsters or humans acting like ones. By the time we arrived, a cliff caught my eyes. So before we could continue onward, I suggested we look at the view and see if the place was safe.But… “You don’t have too. This is Horizon.” Just like Francoise said, a town of some sort welcomed my eyes. As soon as I set my eyes for what was in front of me, my mouth couldn’t help but gaped open in surprise. The view was breathtaking. The moment that I stood on that cliff, Horizon greeted me with open arms.Similar to any other town, the place had a municipal hall belonging to the temporary leader of Horizon, assumed, and to Captain Israel. Beside the town hall were a bunch of stores right around the plaza. If I stretched my eyes, a field enveloped the village packed with rice, onions, potatoes, and garlic. There were some crops planted on the other side, but the place was far from my reach. Everywhere my eyes met, people came walk
The place was as good as it could get. Skulls was an inn made by pirates in this primitive area where no electricity persists and no engineers that could design the foundation of the tavern into a proper building. And yet, this world continued to amaze me. What was in front of me right now was the hut itself, worn out and filled with nests of dust that even spiders and rats would clearly avoid. My nose should be itching, but… my body never tingled or reacted. Not even my allergy from bullshit, err… from soiled things were activated. Something was not right.From the outside, this inn didn’t look like anything brand new at all. It had cobwebs like no other. And the door in front of us looked like it would break if someone, a kid, pushed with all its might. That was the state of this tavern.I loved hating this place. But the more we drew near to this area, the building finally revealed its perfection. “Are you sure we’re at the right place? Don’t tell me we’ll sleep on this piece of
Four years before… (Special Chapter) _______________________ My sister gave me a call. Even though my sister said nothing from the phone call, her voice trembled. She croaked and finally said a word, only to hang up and turn the damn technology off from the world. My chest pounded as if acting like a drum. I didn’t know what happened, but I was sure as fuck something terribled occur while I was out from my part-time job. Today was supposed to be the day where Kirameki would meet a few people around her age in the neighbourhood, wanting to make new friends along the way. It was the happiest day for my sister. But after what had happened - what I had heard - I rushed out from the convenience store where I was working and went straight back, only to find Kirameki huddled up in a blanket. She refused to show her face to me. But despite Kirameki having buried her face behind that blanket, her expression was as clear as day. “Why are you upset? What happened?” I asked. My phone kept v
“So aren’t you going to tell me about it?” There it was, Kirameki’s first line of question, which was akin to the calm before the storm. I steeled my heart and braced for impact, only to find myself dwelling deeper into the abyss as it swallowed me whole. “What do you want to know?” I threw a question back to my sister, as I lightly tapped my hand against the bed, enough to make a slight noise. “Come on. You can sit beside me. We had an awful and tiring day.”“Don’t worry. I won’t change the topic. And the two of us won’t sleep before we can resolve this… just like always.”Kirameki hesitated for a second after hearing my invitation. She thought I was driving her into something horrendous, but Kirameki was talking to me. I was not a stranger. So instead of rejecting my invitation, my sister fully accepted my instructions as she later on sat beside me, whilst staring at the ground. I promised Kirameki that she would never cry again before going to sleep. Right now, as I glanced towa
Arata wasn’t the type of person who could present a speech, nevertheless in front of the crowd. Owari, on the other hand, was a scientist. He had always showcased his research to everyone, and the entire world would be watching him. But the thing was… Arata had learned something valuable. And that was, he knew that these people would listen to him and cheer for his name. It wasn’t because he was willing to control the town, but he wanted to lead the place into a brighter future. Much so with Owari.That was why Arata had to be the first to do this. He was the one who paved the path.“Citizens of the Honeywood town!” Arata shouted. “My name is Captain Arata, leader of the pirates! As you may know, the pirates and the soldiers, at least, for this village of Honeywood, have decided to unite with one another! Although I have yet to live a long life, I know, for a fact, that my mentor, Captain Israel, the former Captain of the pirates, had wished this kind of thing to happen. And it happe
“Pirates… and soldiers working together for this global war.” Arata pondered to himself for a while before handing Owari his answer. “Don’t you think the Kingdom will be the one who gets to decide the last? If you’re asking me, I’ll… notify the pirates back from the Abandoned Barnacle ship and ask them about this. But knowing them, they will definitely agree to it too.”And that's what they did. As soon as the meeting ended, Owari and Arata got out of the town hall and told everyone they had to gather around the plaza. An announcement would occur in a few moments, and that was enough to attract the people’s attention, including Arata’s pirates.While that was happening, a messenger appeared before Owari and Arata, the two leaders of the Honeywood town and the pirates respectively. When Owari noticed this was the same messenger, Luke Formis, he greeted the mailman of this world and asked what was the matter.“We’re about to send a message to the King about the situation. You're just in
“Who’s going to go first?” Arata asked the most important thing of them all. “I suggest it has to be you, mister cowboy. “Stop calling me cowboy, Arata.”“Alright, cowboy.”Arata never gave Owari a chance to explain this sudden attitude. The man just saw Owari as a cowboy because of his cold demeanour with a gun in his hand. Nothing more, nothing less. Eventually, Arata stopped calling Owari names such as the recent “Cowboy” attempt and continued on with the meeting.Owari let whatever Arata wanted to call him slide and be the first one to elucidate what he had found out.“I got the chance to meet Sebastian.”“You did?” Arata couldn’t help but react. When he saw Owari’s eyes throwing daggers in his direction, Arata nodded to himself and muttered, “Yeah. I thought so. Sorry.”After a faint cough, Owari resumed his story. “I met Sebastian’s holographic image…” Owari paused for a second and studied Arata’s confused look on his face. “In your world, I assume you also have some kind of ho
Owari sat parallel with Arata as the two exchanged what they had learned from the Empire and from Captain Blackbeard.It was already late at night, so the two had sent their family members to sleep. Kirameki insisted she should join the meeting, but Owari was the one who had advised her to have a complete bed rest. “If you want your brother to not worry about you, listen to what I’m saying. I’m a doctor, so...”With that Kirameki had no fighting chance against Owari as she returned to her room and went to the dream world for as long as she had remembered.Rex was drowsy to begin with, so there weren’t extra steps between Owari and Arata to be done besides reminding him about the time.Hence, Arata and Owari were the only ones inside the office of the Honeywood town. It was also the municipal hall, where there was a giant crater above their heads.Before the assembly would start, Arata had to suggest that they should bring more individuals in this room. Although the place was a bit cr
Third Person Point of ViewArata's and Owari's perspective………….As soon as Owari heard the Empire had someone who was aiming to kill him and the Kingdom, he immediately returned to the municipal hall. He also found out there was a sudden blast and smoke emitting near the plaza. "It could only be the townhall," thought Owari, as he raced towards the place. The man even met with the soldiers who wished to escort him. But Owari was too speedy. Since the townspeople already knew their Mayor's prowess, they didn't mind being tossed aside, since it was for the best interest of the town.While that happened, Arata had also ended his conversation with the strongest pirate, Captain Blackbeard. The moment Ahmya had bid Arata farewell, Arata looked at Kirameki and called for Rex. Just like what Ahmya had promised, the two children were unharmed. But a gigantic hole was left from the ceiling, marking Captain Blackbeard's breach from the office.Fortunately, during that time, Kirameki had woken u
Ahmya answered, “It’s because my people are dying. Unfortunately as it is, I cannot run the community with no money in my hands. We still have to purchase or hunt food that is not raw or collect edible monster meat. It’s disastrous.”“But… I know you. You’re planning on turning your back against Sebastian too… You’re the type of person that will ditch others as long as you find them useless or… they do not benefit you.”“Hardly so… But it depends. Right now, I do not see any advantage to relieving my ties from Sebastian. And answering that is not of your concern.”“On to the third topic - Sebastian. Sebastian Serra is, like I’ve mentioned, an isekaid person and the trump card of the Empire. He has mastered the art of creating weapons, much like from Owari. But better.Arata had a million questions in his mind. Samples of these were: Why, out of all people, Captain Blackbeard, the person who tried killing all male pirates, including Arata, to be invited to this catastrophic party with
Arata’s PerspectiveThird Person Point of View_______________________Owari had advised Arata to stay indoors and protect the people they cared about, especially Rex and Kirameki. And so he did. At first, Arata was sceptical about this plan. But the moment he remembered they were up against Captain Blackbeard, the Kingdom, and the Empire, having someone to look out for Rex and Kirameki was the best decision they could have.Kirameki was still unconscious, and Rex tried his best to stay awake. But he was just a child. His weariness got the best of him, so he slept on the extra mattress, right next to Kirameki. Arata and the two children were inside the same room, and all the guards were standing their posts outside the room, waiting to inform Arata and Owari of any intruders within the area. But the thing was… the trespasser had already breached themselves inside the town hall. And it didn’t take long before Arata could meet that person.Arata promptly sensed someone’s presence in his
And his son, Rex, was on the line.“I have heard… from my trusty information breaker that you have a son and a wife. It’s unfortunate that I couldn’t kill your wife before she could… But I leave my regards to Ahmya. And… And. You still have your son with you, right? I’d bet the world would press against you if you see your son, Rex, cripple and fall in front of your eyes… Now, wouldn’t that be a sight to behold, Owari Ryutarou?”“Also, I suspect that there is also another person who has been reincarnated just like us. Sebastian added, as he stood there, returning Owari’s gaze.Ahmya… Ahmya Shirahama was the name of Captain Blackbeard, the one who had murdered Owari’s life, Elizabeth. She was the one Owari had been looking for. But right now, the person in front of him, Sebastian, knew exactly where Captain Blackbeard was hiding.“You… You made a deal with the devil? You know Captain Blackbeard? What is your relationship with her…? TELL ME!”Captain Blackbeard was known to be a fraud
Owari’s Perspective Third Person Point of View ____________________________________ It didn’t take a genius to know that the Empire had acquired a new fellow that had the same intelligence as Owari, even greater! Owari was a scientist and a doctor, not an engineer or an inventor. He only had the blueprints of these firearms and mimicked what they could and couldn’t do in the process. But against a person who had studied far more books about machines and weapons would be the victor of this match. Not to mention, this supposedly reincarnated person was backed up with the Empire’s funds, making him or her the most powerful individual next to Captain Blackbeard. “I should tell Arata about this.” But the moment Owari tried retreating, his arcane detected something unusual in his surroundings. And when he checked for the anomaly’s origin, he had found a strange figure of a man appearing from the shadows. The odd part about it was that… this individual didn’t have any mana within him. I