Location: Open Sea – Aboard the Red Blade
Three days after the ambush at Jagged Isle, the sea had gone silent. No seagulls. No drifting wreckage. Just salt, wind, and the endless blue.
Too quiet.
Ankit stood alone at the prow, watching the water.
System Alert: "Environmental Distortion Detected – Non-natural current. Observation advised."
A flash in the water.
Then another.
A shape… submerged and massive. Not a ship.
A presence.
Shanks's Warning
Below deck, Shanks sat with Benn and Makino over an old map—one etched in faded etchings tied to ancient sea routes no longer used.
"We're being shadowed," Shanks said plainly. "And it's not pirates or bounty hunters."
Makino leaned in. "Government?"
Benn Beckman shook his head. "Worse. They're not human."
Location: Upper Deck – Midnight
A thick fog rolled in again, but unlike last time, the air felt wet, as if the sea itself had risen to taste them.
Suddenly—
Boom.
A harpoon of black coral impaled the mast.
Screams erupted.
From the sea climbed pale humanoid figures, cloaked in kelp and wearing masks made of bone and barnacle.
Silent Cultists.
One of the crew shouted, "They're the ones from the Whisper Coast legends—sea cultists!"
They did not speak. They only pointed—at Ankit.
And lunged.
[Fight: Red-Haired Pirates vs Sea Cultists]
The cultists didn't bleed like humans. When cut, they oozed black ichor. One grabbed a crewmate and dove into the sea—vanishing with him.
Shanks drew his sword, eyes ablaze. "Pull them back!"
Benn barked orders from the crow's nest, shooting the ones closest to Ankit.
Ankit fought fiercely, his Twin Flow style creating wide arcs of defense, spinning strikes that kept attackers at bay.
System Trigger: "Sea Affinity Combat Test – Passed."
+3% Proficiency
A cultist grabbed Ankit's arm—and hissed something in a dead tongue.
His system flared.
"Relic Reaction Detected. Speech Decoded: 'Stormborn, the tide seeks your gate.'"
Then the cultist collapsed into water… and dissolved.
Aftermath:
When dawn came, the sea was still again. But five crewmates were missing.
Makino slammed her fist on the table below deck. "This is escalating. We're not just being hunted. We're being studied."
Benn leaned over the map.
"They came for Ankit. But more than that… they came for the relic inside him."
Shanks placed a hand on Ankit's shoulder.
"You're getting closer to the truth, kid. But the closer you get… the deeper the sea pulls back."
🔹 SYSTEM PANEL – Ankit 🔹
System Sync: 27.2%
Skill Level (Twin Flow Style): 7.8
New Trait Unlocked: Seaform Balance
Stability and movement bonuses when fighting on unstable or wet terrain.
New Lore Added:
"The Deep Relic Path – Mentioned by Sea Cultists. Linked to a sunken gate."