Location: Crimson Sea Ridge – Two Days After Tide's Maw
The Red Blade cut across rolling waves, the deck alive with new energy. The crew had grown.
Benn Beckman, now officially back at Shanks' side, leaned silently at the mast with a cleaned rifle strapped across his shoulder.
Ankit stood nearby, sparring against wooden training poles tied with weights. Each motion with his twin blades was precise—sharper than before.
Shanks watched both men from the helm, arms crossed.
"Feels like we're finally starting to sail like a real crew," he muttered.
From below deck, Makino—who had joined temporarily for logistics—called out, "You say that every time someone joins!"
Shanks laughed. "That's because it gets truer every time!"
Location: Red Blade – Below Deck
Later that night, as waves rocked the ship gently, Ankit sat cross-legged in his quarters, a dim lantern flickering beside him.
The system pulsed softly.
[System Update Available]
Hepta Relic Signature Pulse Detected – South-East Quadrant
Distance: Approx. 3 Days' Sail
Warning: Hostile Entity Within Proximity
Ankit's breath caught. He tapped the side of his blade's hilt. "South-East, huh... What's waiting for us now?"
He glanced out the porthole. The moonlight sliced through dark clouds. There was a strange calm before the next storm.
Location: Scarlet Hook Island – Three Days Later
They arrived at Scarlet Hook, a crescent-shaped island surrounded by jagged coral reefs and submerged ruins.
Locals spoke in hushed tones about a creature dwelling inland—"The Bonewalker", a creature part man, part beast, responsible for vanishing travelers, fishermen, and even Marines.
"Sounds like nonsense," Beckman said, though his hand rested subtly on his rifle.
"It's never nonsense when relics are involved," Shanks replied.
Ankit was already staring into the jungle.
"There's something here," he said quietly.
The system confirmed it.
Relic Detected: Shard of the Bone Gate Key
Threat Level: Class B – Organic Relic Guardian
Recommended Party Strength: High
Ankit frowned. "It's being guarded. Not hidden."
Location: Forest Depths – Nightfall
They pressed deeper into the forest. The crew stayed cautious—only Ankit, Shanks, Beckman, and one rookie swordsman named Korr ventured into the ruin-laced center.
Old statues marked their path—headless figures holding blades across their laps. Most were moss-covered, but their eyes still felt alive.
"Why do I feel like we're being watched?" Korr whispered.
"Because we are," Ankit said, drawing both swords.
A howl echoed from within the canopy.
Then—it charged.
[Fight: Jungle Clearing – Bonewalker Ambush]
The creature burst into the clearing. A massive, skeletal figure draped in shredded pelts, bone horns protruding from its skull-mask. Its body was stitched together—half man, half beast.
Its eyes glowed orange.
Beckman fired first—a shot to the knee. The bullet sparked against bone. Ineffective.
Korr lunged but was swatted away like a fly.
Shanks stepped in with Gryphon, deflecting a wild axe swing.
Ankit darted behind the creature, slashing both swords upward—bone chipped, but the creature didn't bleed.
[System Combat Alert – Organic Relic Hostile]
Vulnerability Detected: Exposed Core Joint – Base of Spine
"Beckman—cover me!"
Benn fired at the base of the neck to draw its attention. Ankit rushed in, slid under its legs, and delivered a twin-cross slash at the exposed spine.
CRACK!
The Bonewalker screeched.
Shanks yelled, "Now, Ankit!"
He flipped upward, using one blade to vault, the other to strike downward in a vertical cleave—
—straight into the weak joint.
The Bonewalker fell with a bone-crunching thud.
Aftermath – Ruined Shrine Chamber
Inside the forest shrine, Ankit found the Relic.
A bone-shaped key, still warm to the touch. It vibrated faintly in his hand.
Relic Acquired: Bone Gate Key – Fragment 1
Effect: Unknown
Echo Signature: Oureval Confirmed
Relic Set Progress: 3/7
He stared at the key, a growing chill forming in his chest. The closer he got to these fragments, the louder the whispering became inside his mind.
The system didn't list it, but he could feel it—a consciousness watching through the relics.
And it was waking up.
Location: Red Blade – Night
As the crew celebrated their victory, Ankit remained at the bow of the ship, silent.
Benn Beckman approached.
"You handled yourself well out there."
"Still almost got Korr killed."
"That's leadership," Benn said with a shrug. "You think I never screwed up? Hell, you think Shanks didn't?"
Ankit looked down at his hands.
"Everything is getting harder."
Benn lit his cigarette.
"You're doing it right then. Nothing worth it ever gets easier."
After a long pause, Ankit asked, "Why'd you join Shanks?"
Benn looked up at the stars.
"Because I believed in what he wasn't yet."
He turned.
"Same reason I'm watching you."
Location: Southern Ports – Parallel Scene
Elsewhere, in a dark chamber lit only by blue torches, a group of bounty hunters gathered around a relic-bound map. One figure, half-covered in burn scars, pointed to Scarlet Hook.
"The Red-Haired Pirates were there."
Another, cloaked in white, hissed, "Then they're already finding the Seals."
The scarred man grinned, gold teeth flashing.
"Then it's time we show them… we're not the only ones with knowledge of Oureval."
They nodded.
The hunt had begun.
[SYSTEM PANEL – USER: ANKIT]
System Sync: 16.4%
Relic Acquired: Bone Gate Key Fragment 1
Relic Set Progress: 3/7
[Skill Proficiency – Dual Sword Style]
Level: 5
Efficiency Rating: 72%
Flow Reading: ★★★★☆
Off-Hand Coordination: 84%
Passive: Intercept Timing
New Trait: Predatory Reflex – Temporarily heightens enemy attack pattern prediction (activated subconsciously under stress)
[New Entry – Foreshadowed Faction: The Silent Hunt]
Underground bounty guild specializing in pre-World Government artifacts
Led by unknown masked leader with access to forbidden Void Century knowledge
End of Chapter 16 – The Monster Hunter's Pact
Next: Chapter 17 – The Crimson Whisper