Might as Well

In short order Sam was escorted at crossbow point to the bigger ship, while the old man was left on his small skiff, looking after them with an unreadable expression. Just to be sure, the pirate next to him slapped a cuff on his wrists.

Sam sent the man a small wink as he walked up the gangplank, and he would swear that he could see a small smirk on the gruff sailor’s face.

The pirates’ ship was an old caravel with two sails and almost no decoration. Apparently, these criminals knew how to keep a low profile.

He was led up the gangplank, which was immediately removed, and several other pirates joined the one with the crossbow to escort Sam. Surprisingly, nobody stopped to give him a villainous monologue, and by the time he was led under the deck, he didn’t even glimpse the captain of the caravel.

In all honesty, Lucky could have destroyed the entire group, but as he read the notification screen before him, he simply bore the indignity and allowed himself to be chained up.

[The quest “Another seaside opportunity” has been completed!]

[You found nothing but rotting remains and disgruntled locals, and then you were captured by pirates! Oh, the humanity…]

[You received a new quest!]

[The booty of mystery!]

[You were captured by a mysterious group of pirates, who make up for their abysmal hygiene with their organizational skills. You are currently being taken somewhere. Make sure to survive! Also, if there is a chance, get some booty!]

[Time Limit: Until you die!]

[Reward: A handsome reward, survival]

[Penalty: Death]

As Sam was left alone in his new, but rather cramped home, chained to the ground, behind bars, all he could feel was bafflement.

‘Why would they leave a mage alone?’

Then he cautiously extended his Mana Sense, only to recoil as his mana made contact with the bars. They actively repulsed his mana. Hell, even under the wooden floor he could sense some of the same material. ‘Anti-magic metal… how cute…’ he mused with a smirk. Though why the cuffs on his wrist weren’t made from the metal slightly confused him.

Instead of stopping with his Mana Sense, he just took hold of it and began shaping it into a thin line, which he then threaded through the bars, making sure to avoid the anti-magic aura of the metal bars.

In better prisons, sheets of the same metals were used to cover the entire surface of the prison, exactly for this reason.

As soon as the mana was through the bars, he began inflating it at the end, like a balloon through a straw, then sent that mana through the ship as a pulse.

He processed the information he got back from it, then leaned back to the wall, and relaxed while casting a Clean on himself to get rid of the sand and gunk from the fight.

They were moving, away from the land, toward the open sea. Exactly where he wanted to go.

Smirking to himself he opened his notifications and continued checking it out to see his gains from the last few days.

[Mana Manipulation is now Level 30!]

[Mana Channeling is now Level 3!]

[Mana Shield is now Level 72!]

[Layered Mana Shield is now Level 4!]

[Mana Resonance is now Level 5!]

[Mana Tempered Body is now Level 28!]

[Synchronization is now Level 1!]

Sam was very satisfied when he saw that Mana Well has reached Level 4 with 99% experience. An auspicious timing, as in the Capital he would be able to upgrade it.

[Mana Gaze is now Level 8!]

[Controlled Slash is now Level 3!]

[Triple Mana Slash is now Level 3!]

[Mana Body Enhancement is now Level 66!]

[Mana Disruption is now Level 15!]

[Spell Layering is now Level 18!]

[Mana Construct is now Level 20!]

[Light Ball III is now Level 5!]

[Clean IV is now Level 7!]

[Wind Blade Storm is now Level 6!]

[Wind Explosion is now Level 3!]

[Wind Movement is now Level 37!]

[Aerodynamic is now Level 3!]

[Wind Edge III is now Level 8!]

[Greater Wind Affinity is now Level 17!]

[Gentle Wind is now Level 2!]

Another increase in magical skills. Honestly, he was most interested in the cleaning spell. Sam knew from his inherited memories that it was a skill that most people acquired while playing for convenience, but seeing how the spell evolved he wanted to see what a really high-level Clean spell could do. The other Sam never heard about anybody who leveled the skill above IV, but Sam suspected this happened because the spell turned out to be too powerful to share.

[Active Meditation is now Level 49!]

[Spirit Link is now Level 40!]

[Spirit Connection is now Level 4!]

[Advanced Shadow Footwork is now Level 15!]

[Shadow Grace is now Level 7!]

[Shadow Burst II is now Level 4!]

[Shadow Mirage is now Level 19!]

[Mirage Obfuscation is now Level 1!]

[Shadow Transformation is now Level 17!]

[Shadow Shield is now Level 24!]

[Shadow Cloud is now Level 4!]

[Greater Shadow Affinity is now Level 18!]

[Shadowstride is now Level 1!]

Reading over the Active Meditation skill and seeing how close it was to maxing out, Sam made a note to also seek out a trainer for that too. It would be a waste to ignore the potential of the skill.

[Advanced Sword Mastery is now Level 18!]

[Basic Armor Mastery is now Level 50!]

[You thoroughly made use of your armor in multiple environments, granting you the sub-skill Resistant Armor!]

[Resistant Armor: Level 0/5 (0%) (Passive) Thanks to your practice, you can fully utilize everything that your armor provides, granting your increased resistance against the environment. Grants 2% increased environmental resistance per skill level. Environmental resistance protects against environmental effects only.]

[Flow is now Level 50!]

[Thanks to going with the flow, the flow is now going with you, granting you the sub-skill Controlled Flow!]

[Controlled Flow: Level 0/5 (0%) (Passive) Your read of the flow is more controlled, allowing you to see the flow much better. Increases the flow visibility by 20% for every skill level.]

[Surprise Strike is now Level 6!]

[Multitasking is now Level 83!]

Satisfied with his growth and with a few notes made for the future, Sam closed the screens and then reached into his inventory and removed a few snacks for Lucky who was gazing at him with big dewy eyes from the shadows.

After satisfying his shadow shark, he closed his eyes and began to relax. After they arrived he would be neck-deep in action so he wanted to rest a little.

‘I wish I could sing… a sea shanty would be perfect for the situation…’ he mused as the ship under him sailed through the waters toward an ‘unknown’ destination.

A few hours later he was woken from his light rest by the pounding of boots on planks as several pirates came down to the brig with grins on their faces and crossbows in their hands.

“Well, moron, it is time to leave!” one of them called out, stepping up to Sam.

He eyed the people aiming their crossbows at him as the first pirate took out a key and unlocked the chain that he pretended held him down.

Now only in metal cuffs that were for some reason not made from anti-magic material, he was dragged up to the deck into the glaring sun.

Squinting he stopped for a second and tried to readjust to the abundance of light. His respite was short as he was immediately shoved forward by one of his jailors.

“Move!”

“Sure, sure… no need to throw a hissy fit…” Sam murmured under his breath as he moved toward the gangplank that was connecting the caravel to some basic wooden docks where more people were waiting for them, dressed in proper, if a little mismatched, armor.

The man leading him stopped in front of them a threw a half-hearted salute.

“We’re back, boss! Here is the guy!” he reported, motioning toward Sam.

The guy in the middle, wearing visibly better-quality armor, frowned and then nodded.

“He doesn’t look like much. Was he really looking for information about the Morrisons?”

“Yeah, he was…”

The man scrutinized Sam and the pirate for a while then nodded.

“Good. Take him to the usual place!” the man gave the command, then turned around, and then Sam watched him walk away, leaving the armored guards behind.

The pirate who ‘captured’ him grinned again and began nudging Sam. “Come on, idiot. Let’s get you a nice cozy place to… rest…hehehehe!”

As they also began walking in the same direction the rest of the people also laughed along with the man.

Sam simply ignored them as he walked and looked around with interest.

They were on an island, that was without a question. He could see palm trees as the gentle slopes of the sandy beach turned into something resembling a tropical jungle. Naturally, aside from the simple wooden docks and a stone path leading deeper into the jungle, there wasn’t anything visible anywhere he could see. Though, thanks to his Mana Sense he could find the hidden guards and protection that was concealed on the beach.

After leaving the stone path, they walked through the forest for a while until reaching a wooden fortification, guarded by even more pirates in towers that were just big enough to see the surroundings cleared of trees, but not tall enough to be seen from far away.

After a minimal frisking, he was led deeper into the infrastructure.

Sam watched with interest as the pirates simply lived their lives, trading coins and other precious resources as they played with cards, dice, or with chickens fighting it out in small fenced-off areas.

‘A hive of scum and villainy,’ Sam thought as he watched a pirate take up some obviously expensive paints and go to town on a beautifully painted nature scene.

Not that it all mattered as he was taken deeper until they reached a robust-looking wooden building, guarded by dozens of pirates, all decked out in armor and weapons that felt enchanted to Sam.

Another frisk and he was led inside. Surprisingly the entire building was there to provide cover to the entrance to what seemed like a mine.

Naturally, they took him down there.

Half an hour later, and deep underground, Sam and his escort were standing in a hallway which was filled with prison cubicles, lined with the same anti-magic material that the brigs were made of on the ship that brought him to the pirate island.

Some of the cubicles were empty, but some contained people. People looking disheveled, tired, hungry, and despondent, as if they had given up on life. They were either laying on uncomfortable-looking cots or sitting on the ground staring at nothing.

Sam was led to one of the empty cells and shoved in without hesitation.

As the door slammed close behind him he turned around and the pirate spoke up.

“Enjoy your accommodations, because you’re going to live and die here, moron!”

Sam just looked back with a blank look on his face.

The other man frowned at the lack of reaction, then spat at the ground in front of Sam’s feet.

“Fine, play being badass… But after one shift in the mines, you’ll be begging to be let out!” The grin that spread on the man’s face was rather ugly. “Not that we will!”

His jailor spun around and left him standing in the middle of his cell.

The moment the pirate was out of sight the prisoner in the cell next to him got up from his cot and spoke up with a raspy voice.

“Hey!”

Sam looked at the man and took him in. An old shirt that may have been white at one time, but now looked brown with a few suspicious-looking shapes that could have been dried blood. He was wearing shorts with frayed ends and sandals that looked like they would come apart the moment someone did something more than walk in them.

“Hello!” he returned the greeting while still looking around, using his Mana Sense to keep an eye on everybody in the vicinity.

“Why did they bring you in?” came the expected question.

Sam just shrugged.

“Asked the wrong questions. Was looking for the Morrisons’ ship, and a few hours later here I am!”

The man visibly swallowed upon hearing that then snorted.

“Hah! You’re not the first one. I think I saw a dozen people with the same story.” The man thought for a moment then continued. “Though they were rather more vocal when were they brought in. Yelling about all sorts of things…”

This time it was Sam’s turn to snort. ‘No doubt other players…’

“What happened to them?”

“Dead…” the man stated plainly without emotion. “The people here don’t really appreciate backtalk…”

“Doesn’t surprise me too much…” he replied with a small smile. “What’s your name stranger?”

The man looked back at him and then bowed his head a little.

“Gregory Morrisons, at your service. It appears you found more than my ship.”

‘Hell yeah! The memories were right!’

Inwardly celebrating, but outwardly showing his poker face he nodded.

“Pleasure to meet you!”

There was a moment of silence as they both processed the information.

Then Sam spoke up.

“Ready to go home?”

“If you weren’t aware, they got a magic inhibiting handcuff on you.”

Sam stared down at the cuffs and with a flex of his will two small Wind Blades materialized in front of his gaping prison mate and cut the cuffs off his wrists.

“It seems I got lucky and they gave me the wrong cuffs,” he said with a grin.

Then Sam began stretching, starting to circulate his mana while a notification screen popped up in front of him.

[You accidentally received the wrong handcuffs, not that you needed the advantage! You gain +1 LUCK!]

Looking back at the still gaping Gregory, Sam spoke up.

“Ready?”