Exploiting others with the party function

The next three days were repetitive.

Sky continued to level up his skills only stopping to buy food from other islands.

During the past three days Jericho had not come out of the room. Sky had no idea what to do, he wasn't sure what he could do but let her be and let her take her time to process her feelings.

Sky always left a plate of food on her door but the food remained untouched.

{Int: 206}

{Mana: 3.735/3,735}

His intelligence stat grew naturally by repeatedly using the same skill over and over again.

And he even got a new skill unintentionally in the first hour of using wind manipulation..

{New skill learned}

{Wind blower: lvl 1: produce and shoot out weak wind}

{Mana consumption rate: 15 mana/s}

It was a skill he did not know could exist. He did test it out but it was the same thing he has been doing.

Sky didn't think about it but with this ability he could make brand new abilities, he had always known this but was never able to do much with this knowledge as he had no idea how he could replicate new abilities.

In fact the first time he went into a dungeon inside that cave behind the waterfall Sky learned the ability {stomp} by stomping on slimes repeatedly.

Then a thought occurred, what new abilities could he learn and improve? 

He had pyrokinesis, wind manipulation, both of which could be used to make brand new abilities. 

And when is able to figure out how to manipulate his mana like Larry did he could make more abilities out of it.

Of course having more abilities doesn't mean anything if they're low level. The more abilities he has the more time he needs to spend to grind those skills to higher levels, and possibly evolve them. It's what gives him an edge when fighting people who are stronger and more experienced than him.

{Wind manipulation: lvl 6: able to manipulate stronger winds with ease}

{Mana grace: lvl 5: recover and increase max mana by 50%}

Sky wished he could increase mana grace faster but it had a long cool-down which made it difficult to level up.

{Time until destination: 25 days}

It should have been 26-27 days but instead it read 25 days, Sky was making progress.

Sky went over to Jericho's door to pick up the plate that he left outside her door, only to find the plate was empty.

Sky couldn't help but smile, she was getting better now that she's eating again. With no words to give her Sky took the plate and would fill it with food later in the day.

Seven days later…

'It's been ten days since I killed the Warlord. How time flies so quickly.'

{Time until destination: 11 days}

{Wind manipulation: lvl 9: masterfully manipulate the strongest of winds}

Sky wondered if this ability could also evolve. Nonetheless he was happy to see his destination cut down by 9 days. At this rate he'll be home in less than a week.

The past week Jericho had still not left her room. Sky did continue to leave food outside her door, sometimes doubling the portions, and the plate would always be empty by the time he came to pick it up.

As he was still producing wind from his hands he heard the door slide open. 

For the first time in 10 days Sky saw Jericho again. Her hair was a mess, greasy, the place beneath her eyes was dark, her eyes were dried up and red. 

"Evening." Sky was happy to see her again.

She slowly walked to Sky and hugged him again which caught him off guard.

"Thank you for saving me that day. I never got to say it but thank you so much! Thank you for everything you have done for me. Thank you for not abandoning me! Thank you for making me stronger! Thank you for everything."

If Jericho could still produce tears from her eyes she would.

Sky hugged her back with one hand. She did smell bad from not taking a shower the past ten days.

"You're welcome. And thank you as well for your help."

"Sky, I have to ask you something and I want you to be honest: did you kill my father?"

"No. When you warned me about the fishmen I quickly left the island."

"Do you think he's already dead?"

Sky didn't know what to say. The majority of the fishmen were slower than he is, but that fishman, Dei, was way stronger than Harvey, not to mention that all the fishmen had higher stats than him that were not related to speed.

"There's a high chance he's dead but I don't know."

"Hmm… good."

Sky let go of her and kneeled her to see her at eye level.

"How are you feeling now? Angry? Sad?"

"I was already sad for three days. I'm still angry at him for abandoning my family, me, and selling me out, and blaming me for taking the purple scroll when he shouldn't have stolen the scroll in the first place."

"I see. Jericho, it's been 10 days since we killed the Warlord."

"Wait, seriously? It doesn't feel that long."

"Yeah, I'm not kidding. "

"Woah."

"Jericho, I need you to do something for me: burn your sheets, because we are getting you new ones, as well as clothes and getting you a shower because you smell."

Ships did not have a shower system installed, people took showers using nothing more than a bucket, towels, and shampoo. It was how they did it back then and it's how they do it now.

But this time he's willing to sacrifice a bit of time to let Jericho have a proper shower to make her happy. 

"Yeah, I bet I do." Jericho chuckled, her mood was improving. "But before I go, can we eat? I'm hungry."

"Sure."

Sky set course to the nearest island where there were people.

'I was running out of ingredients anyway so this is good for me as well.' 

Once they docked on an island that was full of people everywhere. 

It was nowhere near as grand as the kingdom of Harbot's but it was better than some islands he had been to.

"We can take it easy for two hours. I gave you 100,000 shells so do whatever you want."

Sky and Jericho split. Jericho went to shower while Sky went to buy some supplies.

By the time Sky was done buying everything he needed he came across a group of exterminators. The group was arguing with some of the Caribbean men.

Sky could care less about the troubles of other people, but lately he had been thinking of expanding his party/crew members.

According to the system he could have an infinite amount of crew members and ships at his command. If he could exploit that and invite exterminators to hunt down monsters, he could earn money and exp by doing nothing, and the best part his crew members would have no idea they are exploited.

Of course he won't invite anyone to personally join him and Jericho in his journey, he doesn't want to level them up again like he did with Jericho, but he plans to have them join his crew and have them do whatever they want while they're under his name.

But someday he does plan on having more people join him on his journey, people he could trust, strong people, and hopefully talented people.

There is one flaw in this plan of his, anyone in his crew will grow stronger under his system's influence. They can level up their skills faster than other people while on his party.

The system rewards hard work which is why Sky cannot disable that function, but he can take away their money and exp they didn't even know they could earn when killing monsters.

And on the off chance they do become power and cause him trouble, Sky could always kill them. They might grow stronger but they cannot grow as fast as he does.

'Hmm… this might work.'

Sky walked over to the group of people arguing, it seemed that at any moment they would start to fight.

The exterminator crew were a bunch of middle-aged men and their stats were average and could clear green dungeons. Their stats were horrible compared to Sky's but Sky couldn't afford to be picky.

'So there's 17 of those guys. The more people who join my crew the better.' Sky smiled.

"This is what happens when exterminators are self-employed. You made your bed now you're gonna have to lie in it."

"But the repair costs and fees are higher than usual! It should be at most 50,000 but you're charging us 80,000 shells?" 

"We found many parts of your ship that weren't properly fixed, they were most likely done by an amateur. If we left the ship in that state it wouldn't have lasted long at sea."

When he heard that the crew turned to face the youngest man in their crew.

"Timothy, you said you knew how to repair ships!"

"I told you I didn't know how. You just assumed I did."

"So it's true."

Sky knew what was happening.

Exterminators work two ways: there are those who work as self employed and those who are contracted.

Those under contract work for the Caribbean. They get many benefits: cheap fees when docking their ship(s) on islands governed by the Caribbean, cheaper repairs, free health care, cheaper supplies, they're given a salary, access to portals of the land they own. Depending on where one is, the costs for such necessities can be reduced by 60-70%.

The downside was that they had to give the Caribbean 50% of their shares plus scrolls. In the Land of the Free they had to give the Caribbean 5 green scrolls a month. However in the Land of the Dead 5 red scrolls were required.

There was also heavy competition between both contracted and self-employed exterminators alike. Sometimes fights break out over the valuable items inside the portals.

Self-employed is practically the opposite of contracted exterminators: they keep all their shells, scrolls, items, they're free to go wherever they want except land that is already owned. But the fees to repair their ship, paying for food, paying their crew members, and everything does add up eventually.

Sky walked up to the Caribbean men.

"Hey, these guys are my friends so I'm willing to pay whatever they owe you."

The one in charge sized up Sky. Sky was a young man, how could a young man afford to pay 80,000 shells?

"Listen, kid, this isn't your busi-"

Sky took out cards and handed them to him.

"There are 80 cards and each one has 1,000 shells."

Everyone was baffled to see Sky hand out so much money. What was more baffling was how he managed to produce cards out of nowhere.

Sky likes to transform his shells into cards, it was much more convenient than simply making them appear in piles.

The man took the money and handed it to his men.

"We need time to count out the shells."

"Of course. I'll just have a small chat with my friends."

The Caribbean men left them alone.

Sky turned to face the exterminators.

"We're not really friends, are we?" The man in charge, whose name is Roberto, asked.

"No. We have never met before."

"I knew it. What do you want?" 

"Well obviously you're gonna have to pay me back. But you guys can pay me back in a year."

Hearing him, the exterminator crew looked at each other. They could easily save up 80,000 shells in a year. But why would anyone do that for them unless they had another reason.

"And also… I want you all to join my crew."

The rest of the crew had a face of "I knew it" because it meant they had to work under him.

"I don't think we can do that. I am happy you paid for us but we don't want to work for anyone else besides ourselves. We can pay you back the 80,000 shells in a few months instead."

"I think you're misunderstanding, I don't want you to work under me like you're in a contract. I just want you to continue to be exterminators but under my name. You can still be your own captain of your crew but you'll be doing it in my name. I won't ask you guys for money, or scrolls, or anything except the money you owe me."

The entire crew looked at Sky like he came from another world, because in what world does that make sense? 

"So let me get this straight: you want my crew to join you, but I will remain captain of my crew, and we don't have to give you anything aside from the 80,000 shells in a year?"

"Yes."

"That's it?"

"Yup." Sky repeated.

"What's the catch? There has to be a reason you're doing this."

"I used to also be an exterminator crew before they were… killed in a dungeon. I guess I just want to honor their memories and help you guys out. Do you guys agree to join me or not?"

Sky almost chuckled because he was the one who killed his entire crew. But then again they were about to die so he didn't feel too guilty about it. Besides they are still living, as exp.

{You have invited Roberto Swan to join your crew}

{You have invited Omar Rilestone to join your crew}

{You have invited…}

Sky didn't care if the guy remained captain of his own crew, as long as the system recognized himself as the one in charge they could say whatever they want.

Once the invitations were handed out no one could see the system. That was only available to Sky and the quartermaster.

Roberto looked at his crew and they all gave him a small nod. The deal was weird but it did benefit them.

"Alright, we agree."

{17 people have agreed to join your crew}

{You now own {exterminator} ship}

Sky eyes widened a bit. He just wanted a crew, when did he get a ship?

{The crew who joined you owns a ship, since they are part of your crew the ship now belongs to you as well}

'Well… that worked out better than I thought.'

The Caribbean men returned and said to the crew, "we counted the shells and you've paid back what you owe. Enjoy your day."

"Guess we will be leaving now. What's your name?" Roberto asked.

"Sky."

"Well I'm Roberto."

"I know. Bye."

Sky left to see if he could buy anything else.

"Captain, what did you think about the kid?"

None of the crew members took his words seriously. They just said yes without any thought. But that was enough for the system to recognize them as official members.

"Weird, but rich, and maybe stupid, but mostly weird. I mean I'm not a thief but how are we going to pay him back when we don't even know where he lives?"

"Agreed. Wait, Cap'n, wasn't our flag different?"

"Hm? Well I'll be damned. You're right. When did that happen?"

Looking up they saw another flag that wasn't theirs. It was a black swirl, the same flag that Sky made when he made his crew the first time.

Whenever Sky owns a ship the flag of the ship, even if doesn't have one, changes to a black swirl.

"System, if those people were to enter a portal will it become a dungeon?"

{No. Dungeons are exclusive only to the player. Only your presence can transform portals into dungeons}

"Oh, sweet. But will they be able to find items from killing bosses and such?"

{That is also exclusive to the player. The only thing you'll automatically get from them killing bosses and other beings is shells and exp. The item they earn when clearing portals are for them to decide}

"That also brings the question: what if they decide to leave the crew and betray me?"

{You'll get a notification that says a certain crew member has left the crew, died, or has taken damage. I must also tell you if your ship is taken from you, you have 24 hours to retrieve it before it becomes someone else's property and you lose control over it. Of course that doesn't apply if the ship is destroyed}

"So it's like when I steal someone else's ship without killing the entire crew. Will I be able to teleport to my stolen ship within those 24 hours?"

{Yes. Even if the sub-crew dies, the ship will still be under your control for 24 hours. However you won't be able to teleport outside or inside portals/dungeons because you cannot teleport to different dimensions}

"Ha, sub-crew, I like that."

As Sky was talking to the system he smelled something. Something beyond delicious.

"That smell... *LE GASP* Shrimp!"

Sky ran to the source of the smell. It was a restaurant.

Sky darted inside and immediately sat down without waiting to be seated.

"Umm…" The waitress, an old but overweight lady, saw Sky and was weirded out but walked up to him to take his order while keeping a smile.

"Can I take your order?"

"Shrimp! Tentacles! And steamed rice!"

"And to drink?"

"Anything with sugar I don't care."

"I'll see what I can do."

Sky eagerly awaited for his food to arrive.

The inside of the restaurant was dim. Apart from him there were a few customers. 

'Identify! Weak. Identify! Traitor. Identify! A gambling addict…'

Sky continued looking for talented individuals. So far he has only seen two talented individuals, and both times they were fishmen. However the search for powerful, trustworthy, and talented crew members will not stop.

'Identify! A thief. Identify! He has a talent. Identify! Decent but not what I want… wait, talent?!' Sky stood up.

The man who has a talent is sitting alone in the corner of the restaurant with his head on his table resting on his arm. On his hand was an alcoholic beverage that he had not even taken a single sip.

Sky couldn't see his facial features because he had a hoodie covering his head.

{Jay Press}

{HP: 150/150}

{Mana: 25/25}

{Str: 6 Dex: 9 Spd: 6 Int: 5 Mind: 7 Vig: 5}

{Kind, loyal, adventurous}

{Talent: Marksmen: 100% increase in range and accuracy of any weapon. Learns long-range related skills 100% faster}

Sky was worried about his personality being terrible but was glad he had good traits. However this man had no abilities, nor are his stats higher than average, which meant he has not even touched a single scroll.

'Man, so much for having powerful crew members… but it'll be worth it if I can have a talented sniper in my team.'

Sky swore he would not help another crew member level up but he should have seen this coming.

The waitress came back to give Sky his drink.

"Excuse me, is he okay?" Sky pointed to Jay.

"Him? He's been like that since a few days ago."

"Why? Something happened?"

The waitress had a gleam in her eyes. It was clear she liked to spread gossip to others. She sat beside Sky and leaned close to him.

"Well for some context, his name is Jay. He's been living on this island all his life, I still remember seeing him as a little kid. He was a cute kid but he has grown to be a fine man indeed. Anyways, since he was a kid he has been in love with this girl his age, Abigail, and they were the bestest(not a word) of friends since birth! 

Everyone thought they would end up together. Abigail is a sweet girl, kind, likes kids, beautiful, long blonde hair, fair white skin. And Jay is dependable, works hard, is a great cook, gentle, and has a great body. So Jay was practically in love with Abigail, you could say she was his first crush. Ever since then he has professed his love to her again, and again, and again, and again…

I don't know how long he has proposed his love to Abigail but every time she rejected him, but he never stopped asking and his love for her never wavered, and the next day he would continue to profess his love to her. Everyone on the island thought Abigail would say yes to him soon. After all, every girl wanted to be with Jay, but Jay only wanted to be with Abigail and ignored every girl on the island except her. You could say he only had eyes on her…

Then a few days ago he asked her to be his girlfriend one more time. I don't know the exact details but I heard this time he asked her out in a grand manner, he literally did not hold back at all. Then she said something to him and broke his poor heart to pieces…

That was five days ago and he's still there. Not once has he taken a sip of alcohol. Every day at closing time he goes home. Then the next day he comes back. Orders food. Orders one beer, never drinks it, and cries himself to sleep. The first few days his friends and family come here to cheer him up but he is too depressed. Honestly the only one who could cheer him up is Abigail, but not once has she come here to see him. I don't know… Anyways, gotta go now. Your food will be here in a few minutes."

"Thank you. That was well detailed." Sky smiled.

Once the waitress left Sky walked and sat beside Jay.

"I don't know who you are, but please let me wallow alone." 

"So, Jay, I heard what happened. It sucks, doesn't it?"

Jay didn't say anything, he was too sad to feel anger or retort.

"I just want to tell you something: I am going to leave this island in an hour and I am not coming back. I am going to venture out to the seas with my crew. I don't know where fate will take me but I want you to join us. And I don't know, maybe this will help you with your… current situation."

"Adventure?" For the first time in days Jay looked up.

Jay was a good looking guy. He was 19 years old, tall, with a great body build due to years of swimming and intense physical labor. His hair was short but blonde. On his cheek there was a scar from a deep cut that had healed years ago.

Sky knew Jay was adventurous which is why he mentioned the seas and adventure. But if he was adventurous, why was he on this island all his life?

Something told Sky the reason might be because of Abigail.

"I know this is on short notice but I want you to join me. You have talent and I can make you stronger, god knows I did it for my crew member. Now you can continue to wallow here in self pity, hope this girl will take you after all these years of constantly rejecting you, or you can come with me. My offer still stands for an hour. You can find my ship docked in the docking area. Think about it."

Sky patted his shoulder and sat on his chair again.

Jay stared at Sky but Sky did not look back. 

Sky was really hoping he would join him but cannot seem desperate. If he doesn't want to join his crew that is fine for Sky, after all there is a saying that fits well in this world "there are plenty of fish in the sea."

Jay stared at him while contemplating what he said.

'Adventure… to the sea.' Those words resonated with him.

When Jay was a kid, the idea to venture to the sea, to the Land of the Dead, to the Land of the Gods was a childhood dream of his. He loved the sea. He loved to find and explore new areas. He loved the idea of clearing portals. He loved the idea of making new friends. He loved all of it.

But Abigail forbade him from following his dream, not to bring him down but to protect him. Because everyone knows how dangerous the sea is. Abigail might have rejected him all his life but it did not mean she didn't care for him.

His love for Abigail far exceeded his love for his childhood dream since he didn't want to make her sad. Eventually the idea of the sea faded into his memory. 

Once Sky was done his food he left after leaving the waitress a huge tip. 

Jay was really contemplating whether or not he should accept his offer. Jay has friends, his family, his home, and Abigail on this island. He loved this island and everyone in it…

After an hour passed Sky was waiting on the ship for Jericho and possibly for Jay.

"Sky!" Jericho had a bright smile on her face and waved at him. After taking a long and relaxing shower she returned to her usual self, but it didn't mean that the emotional scars weren't still there.

She had bags of stuff after splurging all the money she earned.

"I know you like squids, tentacles, shrimp, and rice, so I got a bunch of it." 

About 80% of the stuff she carried was related to the foods Sky liked.

"Woah, I didn't find a squid store. Where did you find it?" Sky was happy to see his favorite foods and was happy for the awesome gesture.

"There was this store in the corner that was run by this nice old man."

"Wow, you have a good eye cause I did not see it. Thank you so much for this."

Jericho smiled, after placing the bags down she hugged him again.

Sky was weirded out again. Jericho wasn't this physical before.

'Wait… does she see me as a father figure?' Sky wondered, but asking her about it would be too weird. But rejecting her hugs would hurt her more after what she experienced with her father.

"I had a dream about my dad that same day. I saw him waving goodbye to me before fading into darkness. I don't know why but I think he's dead." Jericho started to cry again.

Sky didn't know what to say. There was a high chance he was dead but neither of them truly know for sure.

"Do you miss him?"

"I do. I know I shouldn't after what he did to me and my family… I hate him, but I still love him and miss him. I don't know how to feel."

Sky stood there for a while with one hand caressing her head gently. Sky really had no idea what to say or do in this situation. 

Jericho let go of him and wiped off her tears.

"I'll go set up my things."

Sky nodded and she ran off.

Sky sat in his boat and waited for a potential crew member to appear.

'It's almost time.' Sky thought.

After some more time passed Sky decided it was time to go back home.

"Set course to Peeves."

"Aye, Captain!" 

The ship's flags fell and the boat began to move. 

Just then there was a figure rushing towards the docking area. 

"Wait! Wait!" The figure was shouting to Sky.

Sky couldn't hear him and didn't bother to look back.

The figure, who was obviously Jay, panicked. He saw an ordinary clam shell beside his foot. He grabbed it and skillfully threw it at Sky aiming at the back of his head.

Before it could hit Sky the clam shell stopped mid air.

"What was that?" Sky looked back and saw he stopped a clam shell from hitting him. In the distance he saw Jay waving to him.

"Well… he actually took up my offer. Jericho, return to the island."

Sky was impressed Jay could throw a shell from far away without having any skills or that much stats. It proved how talent was important and that he made the right decision to invite him.

"Sure, but why?" Jericho was confused.

"Because we're getting a new crew member."

Jay yelled at Sky, "I want to take your offer. I want to venture to the sea with you!" 

Many people who heard him scream were shocked. Many of those people knew Jay, and obviously they knew what happened to him since it was an island, almost everyone knew each other and knew what was going on in each of their lives.

"Jay, is this true? You're leaving?" A middle-aged man couldn't help but ask.

"Yes, Mr. Shapiro! I'm going to the sea! I'm going to fulfill my childhood dream."

"What about your parents?"

"I already told them my goodbyes. I am a grown man now and I want to go to the sea. But someday I'll be back to visit."

Jay did say his goodbyes to his parents. Without giving them a chance to process he hugged them, and ran before they managed to stall him and make him change his mind.

"What about Abigail?"

The smile on Jay's face immediately turned into a frown. Nobody had seen such a mood change from somebody that fast.

"What about her? I've been chasing her for all my life. I think it's time I started chasing something else that will accept me from now on."

Hearing his words many were shocked. Jay was always honest, kind, gentle, and never spoke wrong about anyone especially about Abigail. It was as if they heard a little kid say a curse word.

Then again he isn't saying anything bad about her but just stating facts.

"HEY!" 

Jay turned around and saw Sky yelling at him.

Jay immediately ran to the ship not letting anyone stop him.

"Wait, Jay! Wait! WAIT!" 

Jay heard a familiar and painful voice. But that did not stop him in the slightest.

Jay jumped on the ship and they immediately set sail.

Turning back he saw a beautiful girl chase after him. It was none other than Abigail.

By chance she saw Jay run to the dock, which she found strange because she heard how he was still sitting in the corner of that seafood restaurant.

Out of curiosity she dropped her basket full of bread and ran to see what was happening. To her shock and horror he was leaving.

"JAY! PLEASE DON'T GO! I LOVE YOU! BUT PLEASE DON'T LEAVE! I ACCEPT YOUR PROPOSAL AND YOUR LOVE BUT PLEASE STAY WITH ME!" 

Those words… how he would have loved to hear those words all those years ago. If this was 6 days ago he would have been the happiest man in the world.

Now those words… How was he supposed to feel?

All he felt was absolutely nothing.

Jay looked at her and her voice was getting more distant by the second until he couldn't hear her anymore. He had never seen her or anyone else cry so much. He squinted his eyes but did not shed a tear even though he wanted to.

'No… no more tears for her.' Jay thought.

"I take it she's Abigail?" Sky asked. He couldn't help but admit she was really beautiful.

"Who?" Jericho was the only one who did not know what was happening.

"Yeah… it's funny, really. I mean she has had all this time, and I've waited all this time to hear her say those words… now that I am finally leaving she says that to me to make me stay?"

"If you want to go back now I don't mind, but if we go any further I won't return since I want to go someplace quickly."

"No, I won't return. Maybe in a few years I will visit my parents again. So, what's your name?"

"I'm Sky, or you can call me Captain. And she is Jericho." 

"Hey." Jericho awkwardly waved her hand once at him.

"Hi, there. My name is Jay. So it's just the two of you here?" 

"Yes, now with you it's three."

"Cool… wait, how are you steering the ship? There's no one at the wheel?"

Jericho smirked. She had the same reaction every time Sky introduced some new weird ability of his.

She walked up to him and said, "You'll get used to it… eventually."

"Wait, Captain, I never got to ask but what kind of ship did I join? An exterminator crew, pirate crew, or…?"

"We just do what we want. If we want to clear a portal we do it. If we want to fight pirates we fight them. If we want to explore distant lands we do it. In fact, Jericho here is from the Land of the Dead."

"No kidding! Jericho, please tell me everything about the Land of the Dead. Is it really as dangerous as they say it is?" 

The words Sky spoke were music to his ears. This was the kind of adventure he wanted to join, even if the number of crew members were not that high.