Frydam stood on the ship's deck, the sea breeze slapping against his face with its salty sting.
The sudden shouting of the crew echoed in his ears. In this moment, they looked powerful, full of spirit—so different from the past few days.
Until now, he had only seen them as a bunch of lazy drifters lying around the deck, but his view was starting to change.
"Is this... what real pirates are supposed to look like?" He murmured to himself, his gaze drifting toward the distant merchant ship floating on the waves.
A burly pirate slapped him hard on the shoulder and laughed. "What are you standing there for, kid? Grab this and get ready to fight."
Before Frydam could even react, the man tossed him a heavily rusted cutlass.
New recruits, of course, didn't get any special treatment. If you wanted a good weapon, you had to steal it yourself. The crew wasn't about to hand one over.
"Me… fight?" Frydam pointed at himself, stunned.
Fight? He had never fought anyone in his life. He was a mining slave, and digging was the only thing he'd ever been trained to do. Anything outside that was a complete mystery to him.
He swung the rusty blade a few times, careful not to cut himself. He knew well enough that a wound from corroded metal could be deadly.
Meanwhile, the crew took up their oars and began rowing faster and faster. The ship surged toward the merchant vessel with unstoppable force.
"Throw the hooks!" Velda raised her spiked mace and shouted.
The pirates—usually looking like a bunch of aimless drunks—moved suddenly with sharp precision, their actions perfectly in sync like trained soldiers.
"Everyone, follow me." She said it, then leapt directly onto the merchant ship.
The others dashed across the taut ropes that connected the two ships. The lines swayed wildly in the sea wind, yet the pirates ran over them as if they were solid ground.
Frydam stood at the back, frozen, watching the assault unfold. Once again, his understanding of these people completely changed.
"Truly… extraordinary," he muttered without realizing it.
Back in the mines, everyone had been ordinary. Even the guards were just regular men holding guns.
But now, he was shaken to his core by Velda's overwhelming strength, by the agility of those seemingly average pirates.
"Hey, rookie! What are you staring at? Move it!" A pirate barked, shoving Frydam toward the rope.
Frydam swallowed hard. The ten-meter gap suddenly felt like hundreds. The rope swayed with every wave, and below it was the ocean—a deadly place for someone who couldn't swim.
His body trembled slightly, beyond his control. He wanted to move like the others, to leap with that same boldness, but his fear held him back.
"Rookies are always the same, pathetic every time." The pirate scoffed and ran across the rope with ease, leaving Frydam behind.
Frydam froze, clenching his eyes shut as he recalled the moment an old slave had kicked him off a cliff.
That situation had been far more dangerous than this one—and he'd still survived. Someone had saved him back then, but the point was, he'd lived.
He took a deep breath, and his gaze shifted. Instead of focusing on the swaying rope, he looked straight at the opposite deck.
"Let's go." He gritted his teeth and jumped onto the rope.
"Damn it!" The moment his foot landed, the rope swung hard to the left and he immediately lost balance, falling off.
Luckily, his reflexes were fast enough. He grabbed the rope midair and hung there, dangling helplessly.
"Pff—hahaha!" The pirates burst into laughter at the ridiculous sight.
"Watching the newbie really makes the day better." One pirate chuckled, patting his comrade's shoulder.
Frydam had no time to care about them. His heart pounded as panic set in. It was his first time on a rope, and he had no idea how to move forward or back.
'Damn it, if only my arms could reach all the way across…' A wild thought flashed through his mind.
Then suddenly, his eyes widened. His bright blue pupils gleamed as if something unseen—some strange force—was calling to him from the opposite deck.
He let go with one hand, his mind filled with the desperate thought of wanting to reach the other side—wanting his arm to cross that impossible distance and touch the wooden railing ahead.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, his arm shot forward like a bullet, stretching endlessly as if his body were made of some strange liquid.
The image of that translucent, jelly-like sphere he had once swallowed flashed through his mind. His body now felt eerily similar to that thing.
He grabbed the wooden beam of the merchant ship and pulled himself across in one swift motion.
"Ha, I did it." His lips trembled into an excited smile.
There was something strange about his eyes. Both irises now carried a faint, intricate blue pattern he didn't notice.
"Hey, hit me." A pirate patted his comrade's shoulder and spoke in disbelief.
Without hesitation, the other pirate punched him square in the nose, making blood spurt out.
"Ow! That hurt! So this isn't a dream?" Frydam rubbed his nose, wincing.
"Is that guy even human?"
"I've got no clue, but it looks like our newbie isn't ordinary at all."
The seas of this world were full of danger and countless oddities. Even if most pirates had never seen such things, they'd heard plenty of stories.
Velda, who was busy looting, turned her head toward Frydam, frowning slightly as she muttered, "A strange ability… Could that be the Relic of the Mythical Beast from the legends?"
There was a widespread tale across the ocean. Nine hundred years ago, the rulers of the seas weren't humans, but mythical beasts.
At that time, powerful humans arose from every corner of the world, sparking the greatest war between mythical beasts, gods, and mankind.
In the end, every mythical beast perished. Their blood became a curse, dyeing the most dangerous sea in the world a crimson red. That sea was now known as the Red Sea.
It was said that fragments of their souls turned into powerful weapons called Relics of the Mythical Beast. Whoever possessed one would gain supernatural abilities.
However, not everyone could wield them. Only those recognized by the relic itself could unlock its power.