There was a loud knock on my door.
“Are ye in there?” It was the same voice as earlier.
“Yeah, what do you want?” I called back.
“Cap says he wants ta talk t’you.”
“About what?”
“I dunno.”
I sighed, then got up to open the door. The man standing outside of it was younger than his voice indicated, probably still in his teens, and a little pudgy with the start of a beard growing on his cheeks. His brown eyes were pointed firmly at the ground and both his hands were buried in his pockets, seemingly very busy with something. There was a small window hovering next to his head, the effect of [Divine Eye of Pride].
Minor weaknesses:
Talking to people
Major weaknesses:
Talking to women
Reacts poorly to unexpected situations
Gullible
Fatal weaknesses:
Allergic to peanut butter
I only had a second to admire its thoroughness before I had to turn back to the messenger.
“Alright, let’s go,” I said.
“Uh, oh. Uh, ok,” he said, seeming confused. “Cap’s in the mess hall. He’s eatin’. You can go see ‘im now if you want, or you can go wait in ‘is cabin.”
“I’ll see him now,” I said, recalling the interior of his cabin.
“Uh… Ok follow me.”
He awkwardly pivoted and started walking slowly down the hall toward a door to the left of the stairs. The sounds of talking and laughter and the clatter of silverware echoed down the corridor as we walked, and when the young man opened the door, one of them called out to him.
“‘Ey Henry, how’d it go? Didja-?” he stopped as I walked around the corner and the rest of the crewmates burst into laughter.
The speaker gave my guide a look that made the boy wilt as he handed over a gold coin to his neighbor.
“Haha, I knew it!” shouted the coin recipient. “He just got lucky last time! Henry’s still as bad at talking as ever!”
“Dammit, Henry!” grumbled the loser of the bet. “It’s not that fookin’ hard! It’s 10 fookin’ words! Jus’ open yer goddamned mouth!”
“Ah, lay off the lad,” said the captain from the corner as Henry tried his best to become invisible. “He’s learnin’.”
“He’s been learnin' fer three months!” said the sore loser.
“Aye, but it’s not like you were any better,” said his neighbor, still waving around his coin. “Remember that girl back in Hengeberg-”
“Shut yer trap!”
“Settle down!” shouted the captain, standing up and walking toward me.
The crew did not settle down, but they did turn their attention away from Henry and me.
“Henry, be a good lad and watch me bowl,” said the captain.
“A-aye, Cap,” said the boy.
“Now, Ilsa, let’s head up to me cabin,” said the captain.
“I’m fine to talk here, if you want to keep eating,” I said.
“Eh, no. No, this is not a conversation fer the crew.”
“Alright…” I said, eyeing him warily. I could only think of a few reasons why he would want to talk to to me alone, and none of them were particularly pleasant.
He stepped past me out the door and started walking up the stairs. I took a few seconds to examine his weakness window
Minor weaknesses:
Intoxicated
Major weaknesses:
Alcoholism
Fatal weaknesses:
Loyalty to Freddy
Trust in his subordinates
I found it very interesting that whatever was gauging weaknesses had decided that the captain’s relationships with others were fatal weaknesses, while his alcoholism was only a major one. How was it defining ‘minor’, ‘major’ and ‘fatal’? Did that mean that he would rather die than betray Freddy? Or that he would be willing to die if Freddy ordered him to? And it was strange that it said ‘trust’ instead of ‘loyalty’ for his subordinates.
Unfortunately, I probably wouldn’t ever get a chance to experiment, and figure out what any of these meant, unless he somehow became my enemy.
“I just realized that I don’t think you ever told me your name,” I said as we ascended.
“Eh? Oh. Me name is Donald. Ye can jus’ call me Cap or Cap’n or Captain or whatever else ye’d like though. I’m not picky.”
“Ok, Donald. What did you need to talk to me about?”
“Jus’ some procedural things and the like,” he said, opening the door to his cabin. “And I’ve got a few questions fer ye.”
“What kind of questions,” I said, stepping inside.
He closed the door behind me then looked me directly in the eyes.
“When ye said you were thinkin’ about fightin’ the ancient beasts… Ye weren’t jokin’ were ye?”
“What gives you that idea?” I asked. From the way he phrased the question, he was not yet aware of what I had done.
He gave me a knowing look. “Whatever yer plannin’ on doin’, don’t.”
“I’m not planning on doing anything.” I already did it.
“Right… Well, we’ll be passin’ over the Ouroboros in a few hours. I want ye to get a good look at it when we do. These creatures aren’t somethin’ humans can beat. One look at the Ouroboros, and ye’ll see that.”
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Good thing I’m not human, I thought.
“I look forward to it,” I said. “The way you’ve been describing it, I’m sure it’s a sight to behold. Why are you so convinced that I’m going to try fighting these things though?”
“Instinct,” he replied. “Ever since ye left me cabin last night, I’ve been uneasy, and me gut’s never wrong. Ye seem like a smart lass. Don’t get yerself and all of us killed doin’ somethin’ stupid.”
“I would never do something that would get myself killed, and I certainly wouldn’t do anything that would get others killed.”
He sighed. “Well, if I can’t get through to ye, then can ye at least promise to wait until we pass over the Ouroboros to do anythin’?
“I’m not planning on doing anything.”
“Then promising to wait isn’t a problem is it?”
“...No, no it’s not.”
“Good,” he said, nodding. “Now, for the borin’ stuff. We’ll be dockin’ at the island about an hour after we pass the Ouroboros. The crew’ll unload the old cargo, get the new cargo, then we’ll leave. That should take about two hours. Ye can stay on the ship, or explore the island, but if yer not back by the time we leave, we’re leavin’ ye behind, and ye can find another ship out.”
“That won’t be a problem,” I said. “Anything else?”
“Aye. If ye can, try to find the master of the island. He’s always happy to talk to travelers, an he’ll be able ta convince ye that ye shouldn’t try to fight any o’ the ancient beasts.”
“Still on about that?”
“Aye. Until me gut says I’m in the clear, I’m gonna keep warnin’ ye.”
“Have you considered stomach medicine? Maybe you’ve been drinking too much.”
“Ha.” he laughed humorlessly. “That’s all I’ve got to say. Unless ye’ve got more questions fer me, I’d like ta get back ta me food.”
“Yeah, I’m good,” I said, reopening the door. “Enjoy your food.”
“I will,” he said, following me back out onto the deck. “Yer welcome to join us, if ye’d like.”
“No thanks,” I said. “I’ve got my own.”
“Suit yerself,” he said, shrugging. “I’ll send Henry down to get ye when it’s time.”
“Alright, I’ll see you in a couple hours then.”
A couple hours passed without incident, and I soon found myself standing on the deck with the rest of the crew looking out over the moonlit water at the enormous pale serpent below us. Had I not seen Jörmungandr on the map in a completely different location, I might have assumed that this was the world serpent by its size. Each of its scales was larger than the ship, and its body appeared to be over a mile wide.
It was so large that it didn’t even seem like it curved; It seemed like it just went straight out in either direction, as far as the eye could see.
“Amazin’, innit?” said Donald from my left.
“This is insane,” I said. “How is it so big? It shouldn’t be able to support itself at that size. And I don’t sense any aura or mana from it.”
“That’s just how it is,” he said. “Still think you can fight it?”
“Maybe…” I said, looking at its weakness window
Minor weaknesses:
Preoccupied
Major weaknesses:
Severely injured tail
Fatal weaknesses:
Requires enormous sustenance to survive
My eye told me that it needed enormous amounts of food to survive, which must have been why it was always eating itself. Theoretically, if I could bother it for long enough, and keep it from eating itself, it would starve to death. With its size though, the results of such a strategy would be disastrous. Right now, it was peacefully rotating, and the water around it was relatively calm, but if it let go of its tail and started fighting…
And even if I wasn’t worried about the consequences, I didn’t know if I even had enough power to pull it off. Even [Nature’s Wrath] wouldn’t do much damage to it, relative to its size. Even if I did hit its head, it wouldn’t be enough to kill it. Maybe if I had the full force of a real hurricane at my disposal, and I were 30 levels higher, I’d be able to do it.
“Yer insane,” said Donald. “Ye see how big that thing is? Even if ye could beat it, imagine the damage. A monster that size thrashin’ around…”
“Yeah, I know,” I said. “I was joking.”
“Sure ye were,” he said. “Ye know what? I’ve changed me mind. When we dock, I’m takin’ ye to see the island master. I’m not lettin’ ye back on me ship until he talks ta ye.”
“Not letting me on?” I asked. “If I’m really strong enough to consider fighting these monsters, then how are you going to stop me from getting on anyway?”
“If ye were really that strong, ye wouldn’t be on me ship in the first place,” he said. “Ye’d have a much fancier ride, or ye’d just teleport.” He sighed deeply. “Ye make a good illusion, I’ll give ye that, but ye’ve got a lot to learn about the world if ye want to survive.”
I watched the water as the ship finally made it past the snake, while trying not to laugh. He meant well, and if he were talking to almost anyone else, he would have been right, which is what made it so funny. Only a few people in the world could safely ignore his words, and one of them just so happened to be the one he was talking to.
“So what’s this island master like?” I asked. “Does he own the island, or is he like an elected official or something?”
“He made the island,” said the captain, smiling at my look of surprise. “What, ye thought the Ouroboros just happened to start circling with an island in its dead center?”
“Well, I didn’t really think about it, but I guess that makes sense. He must be quite powerful then. Is he an elf?”
“Aye. But he’s not like the noble, proper knife-ears ye’d find on land. He’s a self-servin’ scoundrel through and through. Ye’d best keep yer wits about ye or he’ll take ye fer everythin’ ye have.”
“Interesting,” I said. “If he’s so self-serving though, why would he care if I went off and got myself killed?”
“He wouldn’t,” replied Donald. “But he loves to tell stories, and his stories are better at stoppin’ reckless folks like yerself than anythin’ I can say.”
“I look forward to meeting him then. I’m always down for a good story.”
“Aye. Ye’d better not become one of those stories though.”
“If I did, it would be because I won.”
He stared at me incredulously. “If I had half yer confidence, I’d either be a king or I’d be dead.”
“Probably,” I said, shrugging.
He shook his head, as he took a step back from the railing. “If me gut weren’t tellin’ me otherwise, I’d think ye were jokin’ and I’d be laughin’ me ass off. I’m startin’ ta rethink what I said before. I don’t think I’ll let you back on, even if ye do talk to Vitaly.”
“So his name is Vitaly…” I replied. “And don’t worry. I won’t do anything. I already said I wouldn’t do anything to put you in danger.”
“Aye. But ye also said ye weren’t interested in fightin’ and ye weren’t tellin’ the truth about that.”
“You don’t know that.”
He sighed again. “I don’t have the time to sit here and debate with ye. We’ll be dockin’ soon, and when we do, I’m takin’ ye to Vitaly.”
“Ok,” I said. “I’ll just wait up here then.”
“Ye’d better. Don’t even think about goin’ back to bother the Ouroboros.”
“Well, I wasn’t thinking about it before…”
“Hey!” he said in a warning tone.
“I’m kidding,” I said, waving him off. “Go yell at the crew or whatever. I’ll just be counting fish.”
The captain glared at me while slowly walking away, and soon after, he began barking orders at the crew. The deck, which had been fairly peaceful while we observed the giant snake, was now a flurry of movement, with crewmen running around, and going up and down the stairs, double checking whatever was in the cargo hold, and monitoring the various ropes and spells around.
Half an hour later, the island finally came into view. It was not an especially large one, but was lush, and green, and from the center rose a tall rock spire with a house at its tip where I assumed Vitaly, the island master likely lived. There was a bay lined by a small town and filled with wooden piers and ships, but our ship was not heading towards it. Instead, we went to the left a quarter of the way around the island toward what appeared to be an empty beach. However, I could sense a layer of mana coating the area, and with a little concentration, I could see through the illusion into the hidden bay. While only half the size of the visible one, it didn’t seem much different otherwise.
Nearly every pier was occupied by a ship, but there was one free space near the edge opposite us that our helmsman steered us toward. There was a group of people already standing on the wooden planks, most seeming like simple laborers, but one man stood out among the rest. He was taller, and his clothes were clean, and his eyes seemed to glow silver in the moonlight. His ears were covered by a bandana, but he was still fairly obviously an elf.
When the ship pulled into the dock, he leapt up, landing lightly in the center of the deck. As he did so, the captain came running down from the steering wheel to greet him.
“Vitaly!” he said. “It’s good ta see ye. I was actually goin’ ta come find ye.”
“Yes, good to see you too, Donald.” The elf spoke to the captain, but stared at me.
“Is there anythin’ I can help ye with today?” asked Donald. “Lookin’ at our passenger, eh? Interesting character, that one. I was goin’ ta take her ta meet ye. Ye see-”
The elf ignored the captain, instead walking toward me. I leaned back against the railing, ready to make a move if necessary, but seeing his weakness window, it likely wouldn’t come to that.
Minor Weaknesses:
-
Major Weaknesses:
-
Fatal Weaknesses:
-
He stopped a few feet away from me, and stared at me. I stared back, keeping track of every single move he made, and a strange tension and silence fell over the crew until finally, he broke it.
“You’re the one who killed the Kraken.” It was not a question.
“Yep. You got me.”