The forest still echoed with the distant roars of unseen monsters, the scent of pine mingling with the faint salt of the sea breeze. The towering trees stood like ancient guardians, their shadows flickering in the soft light filtering through the dense canopy above. The forest was vast, eerie, and unforgiving.
The announcement echoed in their minds:
“Bonus reward granted: First Kill – Rank 3 Monster.”
Lapulapu crouched down, his muscular frame radiating calm focus as he stabbed his Kampilan into the ground and picked up the golden medallion piece that shimmered faintly in his hand. His expression remained unreadable, the weight of the moment lost on him.
Musashi, still leaning against a boulder, blinked as if snapping out of a daze. His sharp eyes locked onto the golden piece.
“Did I just hear a voice…?” he thought.
“That must be a bonus reward for the first person to kill that monster. Guess this place runs on some kinda ranking system.”
Musashi mumbled softly to himself, rubbing his chin.
Beside him, Billy scratched his head, piecing things together.
“Right… that means there are bonus rewards if certain conditions are met, like being the first to kill something…”
Musashi turned toward him with sudden realization. “Hey, wait a damn minute!”
Musashi grabbed Billy by the collar, lifting him slightly off the ground.
“You prick! You purposely didn’t fully blind that thing, didn’t you?!” Musashi growled, a vein twitching on his forehead.
Billy, feigning innocence, whistled nonchalantly while still dangling in Musashi’s grip.
“Me? Naw… no idea what you’re talkin’ about, partner…”
Musashi’s glare intensified.
“I swear if I didn’t have this headache, I’d—”
Before Musashi could finish, both of them turned to look at Lapulapu. He stood silently beside the massive corpse of the fur-covered T-Rex-like monster, his sword planted firmly in the ground and his shield raised slightly, ready to block any incoming threats. In his right hand, the golden medallion piece glinted faintly, one of the three needed to reach the next stage.
Billy, still in Musashi’s grip, squinted at Lapu-Lapu.
“Wait… how’d he get one already? Ain’t we supposed to find those things?”
Musashi dropped Billy with a huff. “Didn’t you hear that voice earlier?
Billy dusted himself off. “Kinda? I was too busy not dyin’.”
Putting down Billy, Musashi crossed his arms. “I think he got rewarded for being the first to kill that monster. Like a bonus or something.”
Billy’s eyes widened. “So, you’re sayin’ if we pull off some crazy sh*t, we might get medallions without even findin’ ‘em?”
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Musashi nodded. “Seems that way.”
Billy chuckled. “Well, ain’t that somethin’. Guess we just gotta show off, huh?”
But the weight of what they had just learned hung heavy. The announcement had also mentioned a Rank 3.
Musashi narrowed his eyes, deep in thought.
“If that was Rank 3… what else is out there? Am I getting rusty? Damn retirement!”
Suddenly, the rustling of leaves interrupted their thoughts. All three men instinctively dropped into fighting stances, their weapons ready. The forest grew eerily quiet for a moment, then—
Out from the shadows emerged George Washington, Fu Hao, and Jeanne d’Arc.
Fu Hao, ever the loud one, smirked. “Oh hey, it’s the other sh*ts heads!”
Jeanne shot her a stern look. “Mind your words. Aren’t you supposed to be a queen?”
Fu Hao rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah, I’m a queen, but we’re all stuck in this mess together, so who gives a damn?”
Billy, waving both arms wildly, jogged over. “Well, howdy there! Look who’s back—my favorite gang of misfits!”
He threw an arm around George, Fu Hao, and Jeanne in one swift motion.
Fu Hao shoved him off immediately. “Ugh, get off me, creep!”
Jeanne raised an eyebrow. “What happened to your arm?” she asked, noticing Billy’s modified robotic left arm.
George, ever composed, gave a relieved smile. “It’s good to see everyone alive. But what happened here? Musashi, you’re injured.”
Musashi waved him off nonchalantly. “Nothing serious. Got caught slippin’ is all. Still functional.”
Billy, always eager to stir the pot, pointed dramatically at Lapulapu. “Yeah, but get this—our boy here already got a piece of the medallion!”
All three newcomers turned sharply toward Lapulapu, their eyes flickering with a mix of admiration, caution, and undeniable jealousy.
Lapulapu, noticing their gazes, stepped forward and held up the golden piece.
“I got it from killing that beast,” he said simply, his tone emotionless but firm.
As they gathered around, Musashi, Billy, and Lapulapu explained what had happened.
Billy, in typical fashion, exaggerated every detail. “So there I was, dodgin’ death left and right, bullets flyin’, claws swipin’. Then this big guy shows up outta nowhere and—BOOM—sends a freakin’ tornado of death at that poor beast. It spun in the air like a damn top! Coolest thing I’ve ever seen!”
Fu Hao, impressed, grinned widely and slapped Lapulapu’s back with enough force to startle a normal man. “Well, damn! We gotta fight each other sometime, big guy!”
Lapulapu nodded slightly. “When we are not busy.”
George, thoughtful as ever, rested a hand on his chin. “You received a bonus reward still colludes me.”
The group exchanged confused glances.
George continued. “If being the first to kill a Rank 3 monster earned Lapulapu a medallion piece, then perhaps there are other criteria for earning bonuses.”
Billy’s eyes lit up. “So you’re sayin’ there might be other ways to score these medallions without just findin’ ‘em?”
George nodded. “Exactly. Unique actions, achievements… anything that might hit a certain point might be rewarded.”
Musashi, leaning against a tree, muttered, “But we will be just relying on luck for just finding bonuses and might as well be dangerous. We need to be smart.”
Jeanne nodded. “It’s risky. If it’s all based on being the ‘first’ or meeting certain conditions, we can’t rely on it.”
George added, “Not to mention, none of us received a bonus for killing lesser monsters. That means someone outside our group might already have one.”
Fu Hao let out a frustrated sigh. “Great. As if this place wasn’t bad enough.”
The realization hit them all. This forest, vast and filled with unseen threats, wasn’t just a battlefield—it was a reminder that they weren’t alone.
Suddenly, a massive explosion echoed through the forest, the shockwave shaking the ground beneath their feet
“What the hell was that?!” Fu Hao shouted, turning toward the source of the explosion, a great distance, a huge smoke rising above from the treetops.
Lapulapu narrowed his eyes. “It’s from the other groups… it must be their doing.”
Musashi’s grin returned. “Looks like the fun’s just getting started.”
Billy reloaded his revolver with a chuckle. “Well, sh*t. Guess we better hurry before they take all the good prizes.”
George tightened his grip on his sword. “We need to move carefully. This is only the beginning.”
Jeanne whispered a quick prayer under her breath. “May God guide us through this trial.” While holding a spear wrapped around with some type of soft fabric.
Fu Hao cracked her knuckles. “Let’s see what those other sh*ts are made of.” While talking out a small jade color hand axe.
And with that, the group prepared themselves for whatever lay ahead, knowing full well that the true challenges had only just begun.
At the source of the explosion, a massive crater spanning 50 meters in radius scarred the forest ground. The once towering trees had been reduced to splinters, their remains smoldering amidst the swirling dust. Smoke still lingered in the air, rising in thin, ghostly tendrils. The acrid scent of gunpowder mixed with the unmistakable odor of charred flesh, the remnants of whatever unfortunate creature had met its end here.
The forest around the crater was eerily silent, as if every living thing had recoiled in fear from the sudden destruction.
Perched high above the devastation, balancing effortlessly on the branch of a massive tree, stood a woman. Her figure was poised, yet commanding, her sharp gaze scanning the aftermath with a satisfied grin.
In her right hand, she held a gleaming cutlass, but its hilt was unlike any traditional sword—it was circular in shape. In her left hand, she flicked a few gold coins, the faint smell of gunpowder residue inside it hinting at the source of the explosive.
Her fiery red hair, streaked with hues of orange, was braided tightly down her back, resembling the embers of a fire that refused to be extinguished. A tied-off cloth covered her left eye, giving her the unmistakable air of a pirate who had seen countless battles and lived to tell the tales. A loose-fitting jacket, draped over her shoulders and left open, exposed her collarbone and a portion of her chest, adding to her wild, untamed allure.
Her lips curled into a wide, mischievous grin as she surveyed her handiwork.
“Yes… this is going to be a bonus!” she declared, her voice carrying the thrill of a conqueror who knew no bounds.
This was Zheng Yi Sao—the legendary pirate who commanded a fleet so vast and powerful, it nearly brought China to its knees.
And now, in this new world, she was ready to claim yet another empire.