Chapter 173 :

Episode 34 : ‘Atlantic’ World (3)

Somewhere on the ocean, there was a group of people who were above the water, standing on top of nothing but thin air to stay safe from the deep ocean.

"I gotta hand it to you. If it weren't for your skill, all of them would have drowned." 

Despite the crowded people, there was someone different from the rest who was sitting down on a pole. In actuality, it was a scythe in two portals to support the weight of a human.

"Lucky for me, I don't have to stand with creeps." 

The one sitting and speaking the whole time was Asher. She was being entertained by the people standing above the ocean crammed together into a small area.

It was a sight to behold for her, and it was an opportunity for a murder spree if Asher were to make up her mind to slaughter everyone.

"Reaper, could you not?" 

"Haha, yeah right. It's already hilarious watching prey in one spot." Asher snickered with malicious intentions.

"If you help me, I'll allow a rematch between us."

"Allow? What? Do you think I'm fair enough to ask permission for a rematch? I'll fight whenever I want, Zeon. So polish your ‘Numbers’ because I'm going to take it."

"Hey, hey. Did you say my name? I just got goosebumps from that." 

"Got a problem with that?"

At long last, the guy who was with Asher all this time and fought against JoonChul in the previous stage, was Zeon. 

"Forget it, I'll just handle the situation myself unlike someone who is too burdened by a simple task like this." Zeon purposely provoked Asher.

Obviously, Asher didn't fall for Zeon's trick in provoking her as she scoffed. "Wow, great thinking there, dumbass. Did you think I was as dumb as you or something, Mr. Zeon?"

"Don't ever call me that. Hearing it coming from you really sucks."

"No way, dude. I'm just getting started on the fun."

"Just wait until I get my rematch against you again, Reaper. I'll punch you hard until your mask breaks."

"Oh my devil, I'm so scared~!" Asher dramatically and sarcastically gasped.

Seeing how Asher acted, it really triggered Zeon a little which lowered his concentration on the most important part..

And that was the platform that all of the people were standing on.

"Oi, oi, oi. Why aren't you focusing on your duty, guild leader?" Laughing in delight, Asher sneered to taunt Zeon.

"Will you shut up for a moment?"

At that moment, Asher smirked while leaping into her portal. "Haha, that's cute." 

"Where did you go, Reaper?!"

STAB!

Right in that short timing, Asher hopped out of her portal before swinging her scythe not toward Zeon, but toward a shark that had surfaced, saving Zeon in the process.

"Bruh, I can't have you dying by a mere sea animal, can I?" Asher exclaimed with pleasure while blood splattered on her mask.

Zeon, baffled by Asher's action, was reminded of her rescuing him amidst his battle against JoonChul, and thus, dazed at Asher as if what she did was unnecessary.

"What is with that face? I only saved you because I wanted to have your ‘Numbers’ all to myself. So don't get any weird ideas in that tiny head of yours." Asher mentioned, sending an ominous glare toward Zeon.

Undoubtedly, Zeon shrugged and joked around. "I would have no problem dealing with that fish, Reaper. You, saving me the trouble of killing it, give me spare time."

"Bastard, not even a thank you. Welp, not like I did that just to get a 'thank you' from my target."

"You're just selfishly sinful."

"I don't need to hear that from the person who created a guild full of brutal mongrels."

"Funny you said that when you're the one who chose to join my guild, ‘Fatal Savages’."

"Oh my fuckin' sake, why that name, Zeon? Tsk, I better win our next fight just to beat sense into you for picking such a ridiculous name."

As their conversation was going nowhere, someone within the crowd finally spoke up to these powerful pairs. 

"Can you both shut up, guildmaster and Reaper?" 

"Ha?!" Irked, Zeon and Asher grunted.

"Have you dumbasses not noticed we're surrounded by sharks and whales?! There are literally other creatures beside them!"

Irritated, Asher calmly bawled. "Is that a big problem to ruin my conversation with Zeon? Goddamnit, I'll take care of those shits. But just so you know, Zeon, we'll be setting a date for a rematch. You got that?" 

"Fine by me if I get to leave it to a sinful murder to take care of the mobs." Zeon smirked with pleasure.

"You're so fucking dead, you hear me?"

"Nope, don't give a damn." 

"Fuck you." 

With a curse as her response, Asher had immediately jumped into the portal to bring down the sharks and the other sea creatures that reside in this ‘Atlantic' World.

Not long after, Zeon, who was left with Asher's inappropriate reply, replied back with a savage and rivalry smile. "Fuck you too."

———

Rustle~

As luck may have it, an entire guild filled with ladies and a dozen men were unexpectedly stranded on an island.

Unlike the rest of the guilds where they fall from the sky and land on the ocean, for this one guild to be able to arrive on an island without heaving to the trouble of drowning and dying from the sea creatures, it was as though Lady Luck was on their side.

"Prince charming~!" 

Hundred or so, ladies were grouping up to chant the nickname of their guildmaster while the men were frustrated and vexed by the ladies' constant fangirling and the so-called guildmaster.

Among the chanting, the guildmaster who received the affection and chants of all the ladies, were none other than Felix.

As Felix flipped his hair with grace, he proclaimed proudly and charmingly. "Dear sweethearts, do not fret. I'll make sure everyone here will have a sweet time on this island!" 

"Gah~!" 

A few ladies fainted, a ton nosebleed, and a lot were still fangirling and wheezing from Felix's fabulous looks. Nonetheless, Felix used this chance to go into the forest to explore the island.

Leaving the ladies behind, Felix was left alone in the forest to finally have some time alone. Considering Felix isn't the type to leave the ladies hanging, much less takes a step away from those fans of his..

"Am I alone now?"

There was a reason why he wanted to be out from the crowded ladies, and that was the chance to utilize his item that he got a loot box.

"Finally! I can use this without having to be forced by my sweet Asher!"

"Even if she was crude, I fancy her very much."

At last after enduring the cruel yet sweet Asher, Felix finally got a chance at using the ‘Rota Fortunae’, otherwise known as ‘The Wheel of Fortune’.

Thud.

Slowly but surely, Felix immediately took out his special item, and placed it carefully on the ground before preparing himself to give this wheel a good spin.

"I reckon I only get one try each week, and I need something that can catch the attention of Asher who denies my beauty." 

Right after that, Felix took a deep breath before placing his hands on the wheel, giving it a hard spin.

Swoosh~!

Obviously, Felix was looking forward to an item or anything that could charm Asher unlike his useless charm skill. 

Beyond doubt, his excitement was written all over his face. "What is it? What might it be??" 

Tick!

With a slow stop to the wheel, Felix suddenly witnessed a glow of light flashing in front of his eyes which blinded him in the process.

"My eyes..!"

Once the light vanished, Felix rubbed his eyes for a bit until out of the sudden, he heard a system message popping up right before his viewpoint.

[You have hit a jackpot!]

"Bloody hell.. What is this..?"

As shocked as one can be, Felix was gazing at the sight of the next system message, reading it with a surprised and expectative glance.

[You have required a ‘Lifetime Supply of Food’!]

From anyone's point of view, they would be exuberant to not have to worry about food for the rest of their life and not put much effort into hunting for them anymore.

"..This.."

However, in Felix's eyes, it wasn't what he had wanted and he was rightfully furious about it.

"You have got to be kidding me! I used my hidden skill and this is what I got?! This is pants!" Felix grumbled in rage.

As Felix was grumbling and groaning because of the unexpected item, he proceeded to store ‘The Wheel of Fortune’ back into his inventory.

..It was at that point that Felix heard something unforeseen. 

"Laaaa~"

A voice which was echoing toward Felix, resonated inside him as if the rhythm and everything about this voice was bewitching..

"What a fancy voice.." Felix murmured with amazement.

"La~ Aaaaah~!"

As though the voice was purposely guiding him toward its source, fueled Felix with curiosity and the longing of wanting to be closer to that seductive voice.

Rustle! Rustle!!

Felix walked without a thought before he reached the spot. Upon seeing a silhouette of a person behind the vines wall, his hands moved.

Rustling!

The vines that were blocking his view, were moved away to finally reveal a beautiful lady on a rock.

Splash!!

For a moment, the waterfall rained down on her body as her cotton-like hair was as visible as the cloud to Felix's charmed eyes.

"Laaaa~ Ah..? Who..?" 

Startled and alerted, the beautiful lady went into the lake to hide. It wasn't long until she poked half of her head out of the water to see whoever it was to intrude on her singing section.

Unbeknownst to her, she gave Felix a chance to witness a view that was out of this world, a scene with a lustrous lady as well as her sky blue irides that bent into the lake was as breathtaking as Felix was.

..To think that there was such a fanciable lady in the middle of an island. It shocked the heck out of Felix who is known as ‘Prince Charming’ to witness this sight.

"Magnificent.." Agaped, Felix complimented. "Who might you be?"

Sadly, the lady didn't answer and glanced at Felix with cautious eyes, watching his every move carefully.

Chik!

In a flash, the sound which was caused by Felix stepping on a stick, caused the swan-like lady to unfortunately escape from the area.

..Splatter!

"..huh?"

And in that one fateful moment, Felix couldn't believe what he had seen with his own eyes.

While the water splashed because of the lady swimming, a part of her body was revealed in its glory. 

..A fish tail. No, more accurately, a mermaid tail.

Bewitched and bewildered, Felix fazed in the path where the supposed mermaid went, pinching his cheeks as though he clearly thought he was in a dream.

"..I'm gobsmacked." He mumbled as he felt too stunned.

"..A mermaid.. She was fit.." 

Enchanted by the beauty of a supposed mermaid, Felix already forgot about the misfortune of not getting his wish from the fortune wheel.

His anger dispersed as soon as his admiration rose. By then, Felix stood for as long as he could daze up till he was snapped out of it by a shout.

"Prince charming~! Where are you??!"

Rustling!!

The ladies who were wheezing earlier, had finally caught wind of Felix's disappearance and were searching desperately in every nook and cranny to find him.

Meanwhile, Felix chuckled as he formed a smile on his handsome face. "Oops, I can't let my sweethearts wait, can I?" 

"But I do wonder.. When will I get the chance to see you again, Miss mermaid?"

Then, Felix arrogantly smiled. "It would bring about a miracle just to see you, sweetie. And I'm a miracle itself." 

Enough with that, Felix slowly walked away from the spot where he had unexpectedly discovered another person to pursue other than Asher, and it brought him joy to add another lady's heart to capture.

"Wait for me, Miss Cotton Mermaid and Asher. I'll shower you with my love and charm to you both." 

While as cocky as he was, Felix understood that he would acquire whatever he wished for because he's player ‘777', a blessed ‘Numbers’.

His power of luck and fortune were his strong point, and with those in the palms of his hands, he will inescapably use those to gain the two ladies who he dearly desired.

..Felix is really looking forward to that future. 

———

Fwoosh~

Far away from anyone, there were dozens and dozens of people aboard a strange ship, sailing with a black and white flag of a skull.

..Those people were no Earthlings.

They were people who lived within this ‘Atlantic’ World, and they were striving perfectly well with how amazing they looked despite what they actually are.

..Yes, they were greedy pirates.

"Arrrr! It's time for harvest, matey!" 

A captain aboard the ship exclaimed to his shipmates as he was steering the wheel toward the north. Not long after that, the cheers of the pirates resounded louder than the crashing waves.

Whoosh~

Cheers with the beers, the pirates were celebrating as if they knew they would be in for a treat. 

By treat, it meant that treasures had arrived within this world, prompting the pirates to be ready for a harvest of bounties and thousands upon thousands of loot.

Sooner or later, no mere players would be able to escape the pirates' greedy eyes.

..They were pirates, after all.

Swoosh~!

"Me mouth is drooling for them booty!"

"Ye be greedy for booty while the captain be hungry for lass! Right, captain?!"

In a moment where they were sort of celebrating, these pirates drank and drank until their faces were redder than a cherry.

Their time was enjoyable, yet it didn't last..

SPLASH! CRASH!!

"Arrrr! What in tarnation is going on?!" The captain shouted when the ship bumped into something hard as a rock.

Even though the pirate ship knocked into something much like a giant rock, it wasn't actually that. In fact, it was something smaller than that when the pirates took a glimpse of it.

"Captain! We hit a lad!"

"Shiver me timbers! Go get his buttload of booty!"

"Aye, aye! Captain!"

From the captain's order, several pirates rushed to go check out the person from the forecastle, thinking that he was dead from crashing into the ship.

..Lo and behold, that person was still alive.

CRASH!

"C-C-Captain!! That lad is aboard the ship!"

At that point, pirates who were screaming in greed, were now shrieking in fear toward their mates and captain, groveling by the one person who they assumed was easy prey, but was not.

"Ackk! This lad is bad ne—" 

..CRUSH!!!

Not even allowing that pirate to speak, the prey turned into a predator and slammed down the pirate's head onto the pole of the ship's sail.

"Arrrr!!?! Surround that lad, matey! Show 'em that we pirates are mighty!" 

In a blink of an eye, the Captain's roar strengthened the pirates' morals which graced them to charge at that one lad, slashing crazily with their cutlass in hope of murdering that lad.

..But the captain's roar was no match for..

RAWRRRRRR!!!!

..That lad's roar.

… 

..

CRASSSHHH!!!

Crumbling by the sheer loudness of the roar, the pirate ship was quaking with each second which forced the pirates to lose their footing on their ship.

"Noooooo!!!"

The pirates screeched in fear of death as they bumped and fell off the ship while their supposed prey was perfectly fine aboard their own ship.

Right at that moment, the captain who had fallen into the deep ocean, glared in pure fury at the troublemaker.

"Whoa." The red haired lad whistled.

The man who had destroyed the moment of celebration and peace for the pirates, was now standing with a greedy sneer and was gazing back at the pirates' captain.

"Cong jintian kaishi, zhege zei chuan shi wo de."

* ( "Cong jintian kaishi, zhege zei chuan shi wo de" Chinese → English "Starting today, this pirate ship is mine." )

..Whoosh..