The ship cut through the morning tide as the distant outline of Nasha Town slowly grew clearer.
Jake could see wooden watchtowers standing along the coast like silent sentinels.
Behind them, rows of tightly packed buildings climbed upward along the slope of a small hill, their rooftops uneven and weathered.
Thin trails of smoke curled lazily into the sky, carrying the scent of salt, charcoal... and something faintly metallic.
A row of medieval buildings stood near the waterfront.
On the docks, merchants shouted over each other, children ran barefoot between crates and fishermen hauled in their morning catch.
Jake stood at the railing, his eyes widening slightly.
"So this is Nasha Town...." he murmured, immersing himself in the sight of this new world's town for the first time.
He had already known the name of this town after Henry told him, but now, seeing the lively bustle of people moving around, he couldn't help but feel... strange and excited.
"...This is nicer than I expected."
Behind him, one of the pirates laughed loudly as they heard his murmur.
"Of course it is! Nasha Town's the best damn place to spend your coins!"
"...And lose them," another added.
"And your pants!" someone else shouted, earning a round of crude laughter.
Jake just shook his head with a faint smile.
These pirates seemed like they were truly living their lives.
If it weren't for the fact that they were the same jerks who dumped their work on him, he might have thought they were actually quite nice.
"Oi! Stop daydreaming!" Henry's voice rang out again, but this time it lacked its earlier irritation.
He sounded almost... excited.
Jake turned to see him grinning broadly, and also actually bothering to tie his coat properly for once.
"Once we dock, you're free till sunset," Henry shouted to his crew, stretching his shoulders.
"Just don't cause trouble that I have to clean up."
Then Henry turned to look at Jake and smiled.
"I know what you want," he said, pointing toward a building in the distance.
"See that tall building? That's the Merchant Guild. They practically have everything you might need, from information to... other realistic things."
Jake nodded after hearing this and couldn't help but glance at Henry.
"...You knew?"
Henry grinned and laughed aloud.
"Haha! I don't know why a noble son like you didn't even know how to awaken a class, but it's nothing too big."
Then he tossed him a small pouch.
Jake hurriedly caught it.
"...?"
Feeling its weight, he curiously opened it to find one gold coin and ten silver coins inside.
Jake looked shocked and turned toward Henry.
"...This—"
"Shh... Just keep it and go."
Henry waved his hand dismissively, pretending he had just tossed him something worthless.
Jake nodded and gave a small, quiet..
"Thanks."
He knew this was Henry's way of showing goodwill.
Even though Jake understood there might be some intention behind it but a favor was still a favor.
And he would never forget this.
Soon, the ship bumped lightly against the dock.
Thud.
"Alright, move! Move! Move!" Henry clapped his hands sharply.
"Let's not look like a bunch of corpses crawling out of a grave!"
The pirates wasted no time.
Within moments the deck turned chaotic as men jumping off with ropes, others rushing to secure the ship, a few already shouting toward familiar faces on the dock.
"Hey! You still owe me money, bastard!"
"Shut up! You lost fair and square!"
"Drinks on me today!"
"....You said that last time too!"
Jake stepped off more calmly, his boots landing firmly on solid dock.
For a brief moment, he paused and just stood there.
The noise.
The warmth.
The sheer liveliness of the place.
After everything that had happened recently, it felt... oddly grounding, almost normal.
"Welcome to Nasha Town~"
A familiar, teasing voice slipped in beside him.
Jake turned just in time to see Lady Scarlet walking past.
Instead of her usual loose robe, she was now dressed in something far more modest.
The red fabric swayed gracefully with each step as she made her way onto the dock.
Unlike before, she didn't linger.
She only gave him a brief, knowing glance, half amusement, half something unreadable before continuing ahead without a word.
Behind her, the other women followed in a loose, casual group as they were chatting lightly among themselves.
Their earlier eerie presence had vanished completely; now they blended seamlessly into the lively morning crowd.
All of them looked like proper ladies as they were all nicely dressed in flowing skirts and embroidered blouses, their movements poised and far less wild.
It was as if that entire "horror" scene from the ship had never happened.
Jake almost couldn't believe his eyes at the sheer transformation.
He blinked once, twice then exhaled slowly,
"...Yeah."
He adjusted his sleeves slightly and began walking forward as well.
Then he looked back one last time.
The pirates were staring at him with expressions that almost seemed... like they were going to miss him.
Jake broke into a bright smile at the unexpectedly moving sight.
But then he murmured under his breath,
"Ain't no way I'm coming back to this shithole."
He didn't want to sleep surrounded by rough men anymore.
He wanted a comfortable bed, soft sheets and if possible, a beautiful woman who wasn't secretly a monster in human skin.
With that thought, still smiling brightly, he raised his middle finger at the pirates as he walked backward.
Henry, who had been watching Jake, looked puzzled and turned toward Dan the cook beside him.
"What is he doing?"
Dan scratched his head slightly. "Maybe... it's a farewell gesture?"
Henry blinked, then smiled widely.
He looked at all his men.
"Come on, everyone! Let's give Jake, our temporary crewmate a proper farewell!"
At Henry shouted, everyone nodded.
Even if they hadn't gotten along perfectly, he had been one of them, at least for a while.
So he deserved a proper send-off.
With that, the entire crew on the ship copied Jake's gesture.
Dozens of middle fingers rose in unison, saluting him with enthusiastic "goodwill."
Some even dropped what they were doing and used both hands to really drive the point home.
Now facing this overwhelming wave of heartfelt..."affection".
Jake: "...."
His smile stiffened... then slowly twitched.
"…Yeah. Definitely not coming back."
Behind him, the crew's roaring laughter exploded across the dock, loud enough to turn heads from merchants and passersby nearby.
Even some of the dockworkers paused, staring at the bizarre mass display of raised middle fingers like it was some strange foreign ritual.
Jake didn't turn around again as he continued walking toward the town.
He simply waved lazily over his shoulder one last time, letting the pirates' roaring laughter fade into the background like the receding tide.
The wooden planks of the dock gave way to packed dirt and cobblestone.
The salty air slowly mixed with the smells of fresh bread, roasted meat, spices, and distant forge smoke.
For the first time since waking up in this world, Jake felt the weight of real choice settle on his shoulders.
...no ropes, no monsters in disguise, no forced crew duties.
Just him, a pouch of coins, and an entire unfamiliar town stretching out ahead.
And finally....
Jake's journey truly began.
_
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After Jake had left for some time,
The pirates finished unloading their goods into one of the prepared storage rooms, where the crates would wait to be transported later.
Inside, the storage was already stacked high with wooden crates and their contents still remain a mystery.
Henry stood with his arms crossed, with a faint satisfied smile on his face.
"Here's all the promised goods. As per our agreement, time to pay the other half."
He spoke casually, eyes fixed on the cloaked figure standing before him.
The figure remained silent.
A moment later, several more cloaked men approached and leaned in to whisper something.
The leader listened, then nodded once and turned back to Henry.
"We've inspected the goods. Everything is correct."
Henry's smile widened, until the next words came.
"...And I hear you've been in contact with the Viscount's people?"
The tone was calm, but a cold threat laced underneath the words.
But Henry just gave a short laugh and waved a hand dismissively.
"Haha, yeah, they reached out. Hard to say no when they're offering high-quality women to be my crew's slut."
The cloaked leader said nothing for a long moment
Then, he quietly whisper.
"I only hope you understand what you're doing, Captain. Because if you ever betray us..."
The air in the room suddenly grew heavy, thick with killing intent.
Henry let out an exaggerated sigh and rubbed his face.
"Look, buddy. I work for everyone and no one."
Suddenly,
Crack!
An invisible pressure slammed down on the entire storage room.
The cloaked figures staggered as their knees buckled.
Some dropped to one knee, grunting as they fought to stay upright.
Henry's eyes glinted faintly red as he stared down at the leader.
"And I think you're misunderstanding something..."
He took one deliberate step forward.
Crack!
The pressure doubled as wood groaned.
Breath came in short along with pained gasps from the cloak figures.
"You're just another dog. And it was your boss who came crawling to me, begging for this favor."
"Ugh! You bastard!"
The cloaked leader snarled, but before he could finish—
Bang!
Henry's boot slammed into the man's chest with a sickening crunch of ribs.
The figure flew backward and crashed to the filthy floor.
Henry stepped forward, planting his boot on the man's head and slowly pressing down.
"And also..." he said, voice low and dangerous, "...who the hell do you think you're talking to?"
"Y-You!"
The other cloaked men drew weapons in an instant and was about to strike.
But then a calm, weathered voice cut through the tension.
"Put your weapons down."
Everyone turned.
An old man entered the room, leaning on a simple wooden staff.
He was completely bald, back slightly stooped with age yet no one dared underestimate him.
The faint aura of an Advanced-Class holder rolled off him like quiet thunder.
Henry glanced over and grinned.
"Geez, old man Hector. You really ought to train your underlings better. If I wasn't feeling generous, this one would already be dead."
"I know how to discipline my own people," the old man, Hector replied coldly.
"Now remove your foot."
For several heartbeats the two powerful men locked eyes.
The air between them seem to crackled.
In the end, it was Henry who broke first.
"Yeah, yeah." He lifted his boot with a casual wave and stepped back.
But the moment his foot left the man's head—
The injured leader lunged, sword flashing toward Henry's throat.
"Die!"
ZING—!
A blinding silver arc sliced the air.
Spurt—
The charging man was cleaved cleanly in half from shoulder to hip.
Both halves hit the ground with wet thuds.
Henry let out a low whistle.
"You sure don't mess around, old man Hector."
Hector didn't respond.
He simply swept his gaze across the remaining cloaked figures.
"I told you... check the goods and move them. That's all you had to do. Now get to it."
"Y-Yes, sir!"
The men saluted frantically and scrambled to load the crates onto the waiting carts.
Hector tossed a heavy coin pouch toward Henry.
"Here's the rest of your payment."
Henry caught it, weighed it briefly in his palm and flashed a satisfied grin.
"Pleasure doing business."
He tucked the pouch away and turned to leave, still smiling.
But as he reached the doorway, Hector's voice followed him.
"I hope you choose wisely... when the time comes."
Henry paused for half a heartbeat.
Then, without turning around, he raised a hand in a careless wave and stepped.
Hector watched the pirate captain's retreating back.
His wrinkled brow could be seen deeply furrowed.