56. Tampered Weights

This is the 6th day of Buggy's mountain climbing with added weight. He goes to the location and checks the weight. He feels that nothing is wrong with the weight, so he ties it to his body.

If Buggy has a system like normal other worlder, his system will detect that his weight has been tampered with. It has been added with another 1 kg weight. So the weight is 621 kg, a slight addition that Buggy miss to realize.

He starts to climb the mountain, and his pace is the same as yesterday. He doesn't show any difference in his climbing even with a 21 kg weight addition. Buggy's growth is very fast that it scares even Chinjao.

'How can this kid keep climbing with such ease like this every day? He used all his power to climb up, but it's like he always has the energy to climb again and again. This is not just a weight lifting, you know," thinks Chinjao warily.

Climbing a mountain cliff with weight is different from just weightlifting. It is a lot more difficult because their holding places are very small. A single mistake can make Buggy fall from high altitude.

But even though it's different, it is still connected. Buggy can lift a deadweight of 1000 kg and lift 500 kg for some repetition. The 500 kg is more important because it's his threshold.

He can lift 500 kg repeatedly, so it can help him climb using up to 500 kg weight with more ease. The difficulty will raise after that 500 kg. But he can lift to 1000 kg, so that might be his limit.

Above 1000 kg is a new territory that he never reach. He never lifts more than 1 ton, so he knows it will be very difficult. It's been a long time since he work this hard to surpass his physical limit.

Buggy climb the first mountain without any problem. It's just that his time is slower than yesterday. It takes him 2.5 hours to finish the first mountain. He needs half an hour more than yesterday.

Buggy doesn't think much and continues on the 2nd mountain. The Happo Navy has added 2 kg more on this weight. So now the weight is 643 kg, 3 kg heavier than the agreement.

Buggy doesn't realize it again, because the 2 kg is very low compared to the 640 kg. He ties the weight on his body, and he starts climbing again. Now he finishes it in 2.5 hours again.

The next 3 mountains also have some additional weights that make them heavier than the agreements. The 3rd weight becomes 666 kg, the 4th weight becomes 688 kg, and the 5th weight becomes 711 kg.

Buggy doesn't realize it at all because the added weight increases slowly. However, he can finish climbing that day even if he needed 13 hours. He starts at 7 AM and finishes at 8 PM.

"Captain, your time has slowed down again," says Jude while eating together with the crew in their ship.

"Yeah, it became more difficult since I used 600 kg weight. It will just get harder from now on and my time will increase too," says Buggy while eating his roasted meat.

"Will this be alright? Do you have any plan?" asks Dina.

"Well, the only thing that I can think of is to start earlier. I will start to climb at 4 AM. The first climbing is always the easiest climb of the day. So I can climb easier even if the sun hasn't risen. It's better to do the first climb in dark rather than the last climb," says Buggy.

"If you think that's the best, then we will follow you. Just make sure to tell us if you feel that it will be impossible. We will think of a way to run away from here. So you don't need to force yourself to finish this," says Cricket to Buggy.

"Heh, don't worry, I will finish this challenge," says Buggy while grinning.

Buggy then goes to his room after he finishes his meal. He needs to rest soon to save energy for tomorrow. His crewmates are still in the dining room and discuss their backup plan.

"Captain won't quit from this challenge, because our safety is at stake here. But at least, we need to have a backup plan if something happens," says Mantis.

"The best thing, well, the only thing that we can do if something happens is running away from here," says Cricket.

"I know, but we need to plan how we will run away. This is the enemy's home ground and they have a lot of troops. So we need to plan our escape carefully," says Mantis.

"Well, the escape plan is needed even if the Captain wins the challenge. Happo Navy won't just accept their loss and will try to get us," says Dina while drinking her coffee.

"You're right. Even Captain has told us about this and gave us a plan," says Jude while remembering Buggy's plan.

"Then, we just need to use that plan. His escape plan is really good and the success rate is high. We just need to increase the scale and plan the details," says Dina.

"You're right, that plan is really good," says Mantis.

"Alright then, Dina & Robin, I want you guys to use more of that item to increase the scale. Jude, I want you to find the best route for escape. We won't be able to stay on West Blue too long after this, so we will find the fastest way to South Blue like what Captain said.

"Mantis, I want you to just focus on cooking high-nutrient food for Captain. He will need a lot of energy every day for his mountain climbing. Meanwhile, I will keep an eye on Captain when he climbs. If something happens, I will contact you guys immediately. However, you guys still need to train and prepare for any situation," Cricket instructs the others.

They all nod and understand it. They immediately do what they need to do while the sky is dark. Dina & Robin leave the ship and move stealthily to avoid detection from Happo Navy's spies.

Mantis is preparing Buggy's food for tomorrow. Jude is trying to find the best route for escaping from Happo Navy. Cricket is training on the deck while guarding the ship.

The next morning, Buggy wake up at 3 AM. Mantis has prepared breakfast for him, so he eats it. Then he does some warm-up before he goes to the first mountain with Cricket. Buggy feels something is different with his crew, but it is not something bad so he ignores it.

'Maybe they train hard when I sleep. Well, that's a good thing,' thinks Buggy.

Around the first mountain, many people have gathered. It's just 4 AM, but the crowd has been formed there. The number of people also increased a lot now. Maybe it's because Buggy has started to struggle with his climbing.

"Cricket, bet higher from now on. With these many people, we can get a lot more money," Buggy instructs Cricket.

"You're right, these people seem to want to see you fail. So they will bet on it," says Cricket while looking around.

"Yeah, but I will not fail. So they will need to lose their excitement and money," says Buggy while grinning.

Buggy then goes to take the weight that has been prepared. His first weight is 720 kg, or at least that's the agreement. But in reality, his first weight is 733 kg. Buggy doesn't realize the 12 kg because yesterday he use 711 kg from 700 kg agreement weight. So the cheating weight is just 2 kg now.

Buggy wears his head flashlight and gets into position. "Let's do this!"

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