What on Earth Is This? This Is Too Much!
"Wh-what on Earth is this?! This is too much!"
He had already transformed due to the curse of being half-demon, but now, with the addition of Black Dragon scales, his appearance had become truly bizarre. Watching this, Choi Sang-yun muttered under his breath.
"Somehow, you're looking less and less like a human..."
"You guys were the ones who egged me on to drink it!" Cain protested, his voice dripping with dramatic betrayal.
"Hahaha. Did we? I don't really remember..." Choi Sang-yun slyly shrugged it off.
Toooooot—
"...?"
"...??"
A horn blew from behind them!
Tae-hyun and his party turned their heads to look. A pirate ship they had never seen before was tailing them.
"What's that?"
"Is it one of ours?"
"No," a pirate from the Kada Pirates shook his head. It didn't seem to belong to their fleet.
"Then who is it?"
"Do you think we're the only pirates in these waters? It's probably another crew. There's an unwritten rule that pirates don't attack each other, so you don't need to worry about them."
Lee Da-bi tilted her head as she listened to the pirate, then leaned in closer to Tae-hyun.
"Tae-hyun. Tae-hyun."
"Yeah?"
"Aren't you the Vice-Captain right now?"
"I am, right?"
"Then shouldn't he be speaking to you with a bit more respect?"
"You're right. Hey. You, get over here."
"Y-yes? What is it, sir?"
His tone shifted instantly! But Tae-hyun wasn't about to let him off that easily.
"I'm the Vice-Captain, and you don't even know your place?"
"Ah, n-no. It's just that I'm an uneducated bastard..."
"Uneducated? Well, I have the perfect cure for that. Here. Drink this soup."
"...!!!"
The pirate looked utterly horrified.
Earlier, when he saw them feeding that bizarre concoction to the merchants who had been sold as rowing slaves, he had thought, This new Vice-Captain is a total lunatic who just rolled in. But now, those demonic hands were reaching for him!
"No, thank you! I will learn! I'll be educated from now on!"
"And this is the soup for such a commendable attitude! Drink up!"
Stau, looking absolutely thrilled, shoved the soup bowl right up to the pirate's face.
I want to kill him! The pirate glared at Stau, but Stau didn't care in the slightest. The pirate was in a desperate, life-or-death crisis! What saved him was the other pirate ship pulling up behind them.
"Hey! Hey there!"
"What?"
"Huh? I don't recognize your face. You a rookie?"
"I'm the new Vice-Captain."
"????"
The other pirates tilted their heads at Tae-hyun's words. Who was this random guy claiming to be the Vice-Captain?
"W-well, whatever. You guys are heading to the meeting spot too, right? Regarding Gardu?"
"Yeah."
"I knew it! You guys must also agree to join hands with the great pirate Gardu, right? I was so impressed when I heard his ambition! How could anyone have such a grand plan..."
"..."
"..."
Tae-hyun exchanged glances with his companions. Then, he nodded.
"Attack! Attack! Attack!"
"!?!?!?"
"Are you guys crazy— cough!"
Tae-hyun immediately pulled out his musket, fired a shot, and then quickly summoned Yong-yong. Grabbing onto him, he flew over and leaped onto the enemy pirate ship. Then, he drew his Dae-man-bul-gang-geom and swung it.
Slash!
"Circle of Attack!"
• Overwhelming damage dealt! A veteran pirate warrior is critically wounded and collapses!
• Successfully bypassed a rookie pirate warrior's armor and slashed them! Swordsmanship skill has increased.
His attack speed was already incredibly fast due to the weapon's options, and with a chance to bypass defense altogether, not a single pirate warrior could survive more than one hit.
"Aaargh! You crazy bastard!"
"Stop him!"
Once he activated Circle of Attack and began hacking away indiscriminately, the pirates were sent flying like windmill blades.
"What is that?! What on Earth is that?!"
Choi Sang-yun, who had followed him over, was shocked to see Tae-hyun rampaging like a madman. The sword itself looked completely ordinary, but it was slicing through the pirate warriors as if they were radishes. No matter how strong Tae-hyun was, Choi Sang-yun had assumed that he, as a dedicated combat class, would have better swordsmanship skills. Yet, the burst damage defying all common sense was unfolding right before his eyes!
Furthermore, the pirate warriors didn't even look low-level.
Looking at their gear, they must be at least level 130! How is he taking them down so easily?
Thud! Meanwhile, Cain also managed to leap over.
"Aaaah! A monster!"
"A m-monster!"
"..."
Cain felt a bit hurt by the pirates' reactions. Sure, he was currently afflicted by a demon curse and covered in Black Dragon scales, but calling him a monster was a bit uncalled for, wasn't it?
Tae-hyun paused mid-swing when he saw Cain.
"Whoa. I thought you were a mob."
"Hey!!!"
"Hey, it's not my fault you look so hideous."
"..."
Tae-hyun resumed swinging his sword. With every sweep, pirates collapsed in heaps.
"Aaaagh! Argh!"
"Die, you monster!"
"I'm not a monster, you bastard!"
Clang!
• The Black Dragon's scales have deflected the opponent's weapon!
• The pirate warrior has entered a Stunned state.
"...?"
Seeing the additional effects trigger from a simple headbutt, Cain was stunned. Huh? Wait, is this actually good?
"Die, monster!"
Thwack, thwack, thwack! Arrows flew at him from behind. Cain didn't even use a defensive skill, opting to just block them with his arms.
Thud, thud, thud—
The Black Dragon's scales have deflected the opponent's arrows!
"Ohhh!"
An unexpected physical damage resistance! Cain charged forward in delight. Who cared if he looked like a monster? As long as the stats were good, that was all that mattered!
Meanwhile, Choi Sang-yun was staring intently at Tae-hyun's weapon.
"Hey, what on Earth is that weapon?"
"Huh? This? It's called the Dae-man-bul-gang-geom."
"That sounds like an incredibly powerful name!"
Choi Sang-yun, completely unaware that it was a ridiculous abbreviation, gasped in admiration.
"Make one for me too! What materials do you need?"
"Hmm? If you want to try it out, go ahead."
"What? Really?"
"Yeah. I have plenty of them anyway."
"???"
He didn't understand what Tae-hyun meant by having "plenty," but since he was offering, Choi Sang-yun gratefully accepted. Choi Sang-yun equipped the weapon. Although the weapon had restrictions requiring Blacksmithing and Engineering skills, Choi Sang-yun also held a sword-related class, allowing him to wield it despite taking a penalty.
"Here I go!"
Slash!
• Bypassing armor...
• Striking vital point...
"...!"
The sheer power sliced through the pirate boatswain in a single strike! Choi Sang-yun's eyes went wide. This weapon was easily on par with the legendary-grade weapons carried by top-tier rankers.
Wait, how did this guy even craft this when he's not even a dedicated blacksmith?
As he was marveling, a system message popped up.
• Equipment durability has decreased significantly!
• Equipment has been destroyed!
"Huh?"
"Wh-wh-what???"
"Ah, seriously. You should take better care of your weapons. Why are you so rough with it?"
Tae-hyun scolded Choi Sang-yun for breaking the Dae-man-bul-gang-geom. Choi Sang-yun felt incredibly guilty. To think he had ruined such an amazing weapon!
"I-I'm sorry. I'll pay you back for it!"
"Forget it. I use them fully expecting them to break anyway. The durability is extremely low."
"How low is it?"
"Fifteen, I think..."
"..."
Any trace of guilt vanished instantly. Who on Earth used a weapon as fragile as a sheet of paper?
Wait, but how is he still using his perfectly fine?
The sword Tae-hyun was swinging showed no signs of wear as it continued to slice through the pirates.
Is that a different weapon? No, it looks identical. Don't tell me... is he actually wielding it with such perfect technique that he's preventing any durability loss?!
Choi Sang-yun was utterly astounded. There was a rumor in Pan-On that if you swung a weapon at the perfect angle, its durability would decrease at a much slower rate. Of course, that was strictly theoretical. No sane person would actually try to calculate that in the middle of a fight. In a chaotic battlefield where skills flew everywhere and monsters lunged from all directions, worrying about such micro-details would only get you killed. It was far more practical to just use it and repair it later. But if he was actually doing that, even a paper-thin weapon like this could...!
He's... he's incredible!
I feel like this guy is seriously misunderstanding something.
Tae-hyun noticed the bizarre look in Choi Sang-yun's eyes but decided to let it slide.
"You bastards!!!!"
"...!"
• Pamrak has used the skill Pirate Captain's Roar.
• Successfully resisted the skill!
• You possess the title: One Who Knows No Fear. Resisting fear effects...
"The boss is here! Get ready to—"
Choi Sang-yun urgently called out to Cain. The pirate captain looked formidable indeed! He possessed a massive build and wielded a heavy, single-edged sword in each hand. They needed their tank, Cain, to block him from the front while they poured in their damage.
Regardless of any plan, Tae-hyun simply dashed forward.
"...?"
"Lucky Strike, Lucky Strike, Lucky Strike, Lucky Strike, Critical Explosion!!"
"Aaaaaaargh!"
Pamrak screamed in agony as the burst damage from the Dae-man-bul-gang-geom struck him. Over 80% of his HP vanished in an instant. It was a catastrophic amount of damage.
"This is impossible..."
But it didn't end there. Tae-hyun twisted the embedded blade and activated his skill.
"Blade Detonation!"
BOOM!
The Dae-man-bul-gang-geom erupted in a brilliant flash of light.
• Catastrophic damage dealt! Pamrak has collapsed!
• You have defeated Pamrak, a wanted criminal of the Atali Kingdom. You can claim a bounty by presenting Pamrak's head to the Atali Kingdom.
• Reputation has increased.
• Item acquired!
• Item acquired!
With a single sword, he had wiped out both the boss monster and his lackeys! Tae-hyun whistled. It was definitely worth all the trouble he had gone through to craft it.
"W-what did you just do?!"
"What was that?"
"W-what did you do, sir?!"
The subordinate pirates behind him cried out in shock. The moment Tae-hyun glared at them, they instantly switched to a polite tone. That was just how desperately they wanted to avoid Stau's soup!
"Why? We're pirates. We're allowed to do some pirating."
"But pirates aren't supposed to fight each other!"
"What happens if we do?"
"The other pirate crews will mark us as a common enemy!"
"But they're all dead anyway. No one will ever know."
"...!"
A natural-born pirate mentality! Cain marveled at Tae-hyun's flawless logic.
"No, but still, the unwritten rule..."
"You're pirates, why do you care so much about rules? Between this and that meeting, are you guys even real pirates?"
"This is a sacred tradition! Even our Captain will be furious if he finds out!"
"I doubt it."
"...And so, realizing that they were cowardly traitors, spies, and absolute scum bought off by Gardu, I drew my sword with tears in my eyes."
"Oh! Is that so?! I knew I was a good judge of character! A true pirate needs that kind of righteous spirit!"
"..."
"..."
The pirate subordinates looked utterly dumbfounded, but Kada showered Tae-hyun with praise. He was already completely blinded by his affection for Tae-hyun!
"We might not have gold, but we still have our pride! How dare a pirate like Gardu, who doesn't even sail these waters, come here and try to push us around!"
"Captain. About that unwritten rule, though."
"Yeah? What about it?"
"If Gardu comes here and attacks other pirates, would he be the one breaking the unwritten rule?"
"Of course! No matter how powerful Gardu is, he can't just come here and break our rules!"
"Ah! I see!" Tae-hyun clapped his hands. "By the way, would it be alright if we sailed that newly captured ship?"
"How could I refuse my own Vice-Captain? Do as you wish!"
"Thank you!"
"Mmph, mmph?!" Pelmas stared at Tae-hyun with panicked eyes. He was still trapped here, so why was Tae-hyun leaving for another ship?
"Captain. Since we've received this new ship, would it be alright if we went on a quick patrol around the area?"
"Go right ahead! Bwahaha!"
As soon as Kada gave his permission, Tae-hyun quickly returned to the newly acquired pirate ship.
"Da-bi. Could you look up some information for me?"
"What kind of information?"
"Where Gardu is located."
"That kind of information will be hard to find... and even if we do find it, what are you planning to do? If you're trying to avoid him, wouldn't it be better to just run away right now?"
"No, I'm not trying to avoid him."
"...?"
"I'm planning to go get hit by him once."