—Dari Pengantar Quest Utama—
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Grampus awalnya dibangun sebagai kapal kargo bernama 'Beatrice', namun kemudian mengalami beberapa modifikasi untuk menjalankan peran ganda sebagai kapal pemburu paus.
Kapal dengan dua tiang layar ini memiliki panjang 56 meter, lebar 15,2 meter, kapasitas 460 ton, dan dilengkapi dengan 14 meriam besar, serta mengangkut 88 awak kapal dan 4 warga sipil.
Selain Kapten Bernard, ada perwira navigasi, perwira dek, perwira meriam, perwira pertukangan, dokter kapal, navigator, petugas medis, perwira magang, calon perwira, sarjana, bintara jurumudi, jurumudi, anak buah kapal, penembak, tukang kayu, pelaut atas, prajurit persenjataan, prajurit administrasi, petugas pesuruh, koki, tukang daging, prajurit minuman, pelaut kelas satu, dan banyak lagi... orang-orang tak terhitung jumlahnya yang telah mengarungi lautan bersama kapal ini hingga sekarang.
Mereka dipersatukan di bawah disiplin yang ketat dan telah mempertaruhkan nyawa untuk melindungi kapal dari berbagai badai serta serangan monster laut.
Namun, mereka hampir tidak menerima kompensasi apa pun untuk perlindungan kapal tersebut.
Mereka yang bersembunyi di kabin nyaman saat badai dan melarikan diri ke tempat aman sambil sekadar berteriak saat monster laut menyerang justru naik ke posisi lebih tinggi serta mengambil jatah ransum yang dibagikan lebih banyak.
Para pelaut yang kehilangan teman akibat badai yang menyerang tanpa henti serta kehilangan anggota tubuh karena monster laut tidak mendapatkan penghormatan dan perlakuan yang layak.
Disiplin yang dibuat oleh kapten masih sangat ketat dan kaku, serta sistem kenaikan pangkat dan distribusi juga tidak dikelola dengan benar.
Kapten berkata bahwa ia akan melunasi semua upah tersebut secara penuh begitu mereka kembali ke daratan, namun kata-kata itu hampir tidak memiliki kredibilitas, dan benih-benih ketidakpuasan perlahan-lahan mulai tumbuh di antara para awak kapal.
Suatu hari, Grampus secara tidak sengaja menemukan sebuah pulau tak berpenghuni dan berlabuh di sana untuk mendapatkan air tawar serta kayu.
Putra kapten, Augustus, meraih kesuksesan dengan menemukan sejumlah besar pohon buah roti di tengah hutan lebat saat menjelajahi bagian tengah pulau.
Buah dari pohon-pohon ini rasanya mirip seperti roti putih yang baru dipanggang dan bahkan memiliki nilai gizi yang hampir sama persis dengan roti putih.
Sudah jelas bahwa memetik dan memakan buah dari pohon-pohon ini akan memakan waktu serta biaya yang jauh lebih sedikit daripada memanggang roti putih.
Selain itu, pohon buah roti di pulau ini tumbuh dengan mudah dan cepat di bawah kondisi terburuk sekalipun, dan membudidayakannya sama sekali tidak sulit.
Kapten Bernard, menilai bahwa membawa pulang bibit pohon-pohon ini ke daratan bukan hanya akan menyelesaikan krisis kekurangan makanan umat manusia tetapi juga menghasilkan banyak uang, mendapatkan sejumlah besar bibit dan benih buah roti, memasukkannya ke dalam peti, lalu memuatnya ke dalam lambung kargo ikan kapal.
Kapten Bernard dan para staf komando begitu fokus pada benih buah roti yang dimuat di lambung kargo ikan sehingga mereka gagal menyadari sikap mencurigakan dari para awak kapal yang tidak puas dengan perlakuan terhadap mereka.
Grampus kemudian meninggalkan pulau tak berpenghuni bersama hutan buah roti tersebut dan berlabuh di sebuah kota pelabuhan kecil untuk mengisi ulang air, makanan, serta tambahan awak kapal yang kurang.
Tepat pada hari Grampus kembali berlayar, peristiwa itu terjadi.
Pemberontakan di atas kapal.
Insiden yang akan membuat semua pelaut di dunia ini gemetar ketakutan pun terjadi.
[Kahahaha— Apa yang harus kita lakukan pada bajingan sialan ini?]
Dirk Peters. Seorang anak buah kapal berpengalaman yang telah bersama mereka sejak awal pelayaran.
Ia akhirnya menampakkan wajah aslinya.
Ia memimpin 13 rekan selain dirinya dalam sebuah pemberontakan dan mengikat Kapten Bernard beserta seluruh pimpinan kapal.
Pria kulit hitam berkepala plontos di samping Peters melangkah maju.
[Ayo kita tempatkan mereka di atas perahu kecil dan kirim ke mana saja.]
[Oh, Koki Seymour! Ide bagus!]
Peters mengulurkan lengannya yang sebesar batang kayu lalu mendorong Kapten Bernard dan seluruh pimpinan ke dalam perahu.
Kemudian ia menyeringai, memperlihatkan gigi hitamnya.
[Tetap saja, kita punya masa lalu, jadi aku biarkan kalian hidup. Aku melihat beberapa layar di balik cakrawala, jadi kalau kalian mendayung dengan kuat, mungkin kalian akan diselamatkan oleh kapal lain. Semoga beruntung!]
Tak lama kemudian, ia membuang semua tahanan itu ke tengah samudra luas.
...Kecuali satu orang.
Kecuali Augustus.
Ia dengan berani melangkah maju dan berbicara kepada Peters.
[Aku seorang pendeta sekaligus mahir dalam bahasa kuno dan ekologi monster laut. Tolong biarkan aku tetap berada di kapal ini untuk bekerja sebagai asistenmu.]
[Ho? Anak kecil yang cukup berani. Bagus, aku suka. Sebuah kapal butuh setidaknya satu pendeta.]
Peters mencengkeram tengkuk Augustus dan menjatuhkannya ke atas dek.
Dengan ini, Augustus terpisah dari ayahnya, Kapten Bernard, untuk selamanya.
[...Ayah.]
[Oh, anakku! Apa-apaan ini! Peters! Kau blasteran berdarah iblis! Kembalikan anakku! Sekarang!]
[Kenapa kau menyalahkanku? Anak ini sendiri yang ingin tinggal, bukan?]
Kapten Bernard berteriak putus asa, tetapi Peters hanya tertawa lepas.
Yang terpenting, karena Augustus secara sukarela ingin tinggal di kapal, tidak ada hal lain yang bisa dilakukan.
[Aku harus tinggal di kapal ini, Ayah.]
[Kenapa! Mereka bilang pelaut mati bersama kapal mereka, tapi ini kasus yang berbeda!]
[...Ada sesuatu yang kutinggalkan di kapal ini. Aku tidak bisa meninggalkannya.]
[Apa yang sampai membuatmu mempertaruhkan nyawa! Seberharga apa pun harta, tidak ada yang lebih berat daripada nyawa!]
[Maafkan aku, Ayah.]
Itulah percakapan terakhir antara ayah dan anak tersebut.
Augustus dan Kapten Bernard pun terpisah secara total untuk selamanya.
Tak lama kemudian, Peters berteriak dengan suara lantang kepada bawahannya.
[Dengar! Aku tahu satu orang yang menguasai lautan luas yang bahkan tidak dapat dikendalikan oleh naga, iblis, raksasa, dan malaikat!]
Niat membunuh yang ganas, ambisi, dan kilau kagum terpancar di mata Peters.
[Orang itu adalah penguasa abadi kita, 'Blackbeard'! Aku adalah wakil kapten ke-108 yang melayani bajak laut agung Blackbeard!]
Beberapa orang tampak terguncang oleh kata-kata itu, sementara yang lain tidak.
Peters telah menyembunyikan identitasnya hingga sekarang.
[Cara untuk diakui sebagai wakil kapten di dalam kelompok bajak laut Blackbeard kita itu sederhana! Kalian hanya perlu memiliki kapal sendiri dan jumlah bawahan yang cukup! Jadi aku menyamar sebagai pelaut yang setia dan naik ke atas Grampus ini! Kalau-kalau aku perlu merebut kapal ini dan menguasainya! Serta untuk memimpin kapal ini, perbekalan, dan para bawahan untuk bergabung dengan kelompok bajak laut Blackbeard!]
Gemuruh bisik-bisik di antara para pemberontak menjadi sedikit lebih tegang.
Peters mengangkat tinjunya tinggi-tinggi sambil mengenakan sarung tangan pelindung yang terbuat dari kulit cakar beruang.
[Dengan ini, aku telah memperoleh semua syarat, dan sekarang aku berencana menuju ke markas kita di Benua Timur! Siapa pun yang punya keluhan, majulah sekarang!]
Tepat pada saat itu, insiden lain terjadi.
[Huhuhuh, begitu rupanya. Jadi kau adalah pesuruh Blackbeard?]
Navigator yang berdiri di samping Peters tersenyum suram.
Itu adalah cemoohan yang terang-terangan.
Peters mengerutkan kening.
[Apa yang lucu, Navigator Poe?]
[Memangnya aku tidak boleh tertawa semauku? Sungguh pantas untuk kelompok bajak laut Blackbeard yang terkenal kejam dan tiran.]
Hei, Poe. Kau sudah gila? Mau mati ya?]
[Gila? Aku sangat waras. Makanya aku tidak terombang-ambing oleh pesuruh dari kelompok bajak laut karbitan tanpa fondasi dan tetap mempertahankan keyakinanku seperti ini.]
Kemudian tawa cekikikan terdengar dari berbagai sudut.
[Kalau dipikir-pikir, aku juga dengar. Kelompok bajak laut Blackbeard tidak punya uang untuk membeli kapal.]
[Makanya mereka menyusupkan anggota tingkat wakil kapten ke kapal lain untuk mencurinya dan memperbesar armada mereka.]
[Karena mereka pengemis tanpa fondasi, mereka benar-benar melarat.]
[Tapi kita berbeda. 'Raja Erik' kita adalah kaum bangsawan kaya dari fondasi yang kuat.]
Ketika nama 'Raja Erik' meluncur dari mulut para bawahannya, ekspresi Peters mengeras.
Setakat kemudian, 13 orang yang tersisa kecuali Peters berdiri di dek seberang.
Seorang pendekar pedang berwajah pucat dan seorang prajurit kapak berkulit hitam legam memelototi Peters lalu berkata.
[Kami adalah bajak laut di bawah Raja Erik.]
[Kami sudah mengintaimu, si pesuruh Blackbeard, sejak awal.]
Mendengar itu, wajah Peters berubah murka karena amarah.
[...Sejak kapan?]
[Sejak awal. Semuanya adalah strategi untuk menangkapmu.]
[Pemberontakan di dalam pemberontakan? Ini sungguh menarik.]
[Mari kita lihat apakah hal itu masih menarik setelah kami merobek jantungmu dan merendamnya dalam gentong garam.]
Ke-13 awak kapal dari kelompok bajak laut lainnya itu masing-masing mencabut senjata mereka.
Bulir keringat dingin mulai mengalir di wajah Peters.
Ia berbisik pelan kepada Augustus yang berdiri di belakangnya.
[Hei, Nak.]
[Ya?]
[Cepat pergi ke ruanganku, ambil makanan dan air, lalu melarikan diri. Seharusnya ada satu perahu penyelamat yang tersisa di buritan. Aku akan membelikanmu waktu, jadi pastikan kau bertahan hidup. Jangan bermalas-malasan dan mati konyol.]
Peters menunjukkan kesetiaan yang tak terduga kepada Augustus yang tetap tinggal untuk mengikutinya hingga akhir.
Tak lama kemudian, ke-13 bajak laut itu mulai mempersempit lingkaran pengepungan di sekeliling Peters.
Tepat pada saat itu.
...Duar!
Ledakan keras meletus dari bawah dek.
Papan-papan dan pagar pembatas hancur berkeping-keping, diiringi ekspresi bingung dari para bajak laut.
Di tengah kekacauan itu, sang tokoh utama cerita pun muncul.
—From Main Quest Intro—
※This content cannot be [SKIP]ped
The Grampus was originally built as a cargo ship named 'Beatrice', but later underwent several modifications to also perform the role of a whaling vessel.
This ship with two masts, 56m in length, 15.2m in width, 460t capacity, and equipped with 14 massive cannons carried 88 crew members and 4 civilians.
Besides Captain Bernard, there were the navigation officer, deck officer, gunnery officer, carpentry officer, ship's doctor, navigator, medic, apprentice officer, officer candidate, scholar, helmsman petty officer, helmsman, deck hand, gunner, carpenter, topman, ordnance soldier, administrative soldier, orderly, cook, butcher, beverage soldier, first-class seaman, and many others... countless people who had led this ship together until now.
They were united under strict discipline and had risked their lives to protect the ship from numerous storms and sea monster attacks.
However, they received almost no compensation for protecting the ship.
Those who hid in comfortable cabins during storms and fled to safety while just shouting during sea monster attacks climbed to higher positions and took more of the distributed rations.
The sailors who lost friends to endless attacking storms and lost body parts to sea monsters could not receive proper respect and treatment.
The discipline created by the captain was still strict and rigid, and the promotion and distribution systems were also not properly maintained.
The captain said he would pay all these dues in full once they returned to the mainland, but there was little credibility in those words, and seeds of dissatisfaction were slowly growing among the crew.
One day, the Grampus happened to discover an uninhabited island and docked there to obtain fresh water and timber.
Captain's son Augustus achieved success by discovering an enormous number of breadfruit trees in the center of the dense jungle while exploring the island's center.
The fruit of these trees tasted like freshly baked white bread and actually had almost identical nutritional value to white bread.
It was obvious that picking and eating the fruit of these trees would take much less time and cost than baking white bread.
Moreover, the breadfruit trees on this island grew easily and quickly under any adverse conditions, and cultivating them was not difficult at all.
Captain Bernard, judging that taking saplings of these trees back to the mainland would not only solve humanity's food shortage but also earn big money, obtained large quantities of breadfruit saplings and seeds, put them in chests, and loaded them in the ship's fish hold.
Captain Bernard and the command staff were so focused on the breadfruit seeds loaded in the fish hold that they failed to notice the suspicious attitude of the crew members who were dissatisfied with their treatment.
The Grampus later left the uninhabited island with the breadfruit forest and docked at a small port city to replenish water, food, and additional crew members who had become insufficient.
And on the day the Grampus set sail again, it happened.
A mutiny on board.
The very incident that would make all sailors in this world tremble with fear occurred.
[Kahahaha— What shall we do with these damn bastards?]
Dirk Peters. An experienced deck hand who had been with them since the beginning of the voyage.
He finally revealed his true colors.
He led 13 colleagues excluding himself in a mutiny and bound Captain Bernard and all the ship's leadership.
The bald black man beside Peters stepped forward.
[Let's put them on a boat and send them anywhere.]
[Oh, Cook Seymour! That's a good idea!]
Peters extended his log-like arm and pushed Captain Bernard and all the leadership into a boat.
Then he grinned, showing his black teeth.
[Still, there's old sentiment, so I'm letting you live. I saw some sails beyond the horizon, so if you row hard, you might get rescued by another ship. Good luck!]
Soon, he banished all the prisoners to the vast ocean.
...Except for one person.
Except for Augustus.
He bravely stepped forward and spoke to Peters.
[I am both a priest and well-versed in ancient languages and the ecology of sea monsters. Please keep me on this ship to work as your assistant.]
[Ho? Quite a bold little one. Good, I like it. A ship needs at least one priest.]
Peters grabbed Augustus by the scruff and put him down on the deck.
With this, Augustus was separated from his father, Captain Bernard, for life.
[...Father.]
[Oh, my son! What is this about! Peters! You demon-like half-breed! Return my son! Now!]
[Why are you blaming me? This guy wants to stay, doesn't he?]
Captain Bernard cried out desperately, but Peters just laughed heartily.
Most importantly, since Augustus had volunteered to stay on the ship, there was nothing to be done.
[I must stay on this ship, Father.]
[Why! They say sailors die with their ships, but this is a different case!]
[...There's something I left on this ship. I can't leave it behind.]
[What is it that you'd risk your life for! No matter how precious a treasure, nothing is heavier than life!]
[I'm sorry, Father.]
That was the last conversation between father and son.
Augustus and Captain Bernard were thus completely separated for life.
Soon, Peters shouted loudly to his subordinates.
[Listen! I know one person who rules the vast sea that even dragons, demons, giants, and angels cannot control!]
Fierce murderous intent, ambition, and the light of admiration flickered in Peters' eyes.
[That person is my eternal lord, 'Blackbeard'! I am the 108th vice-captain serving the great pirate Blackbeard!]
Some were shaken by those words, while others were not.
Peters had kept his identity secret until now.
[The method to be recognized as vice-captain in our Blackbeard pirate crew is simple! You just need to have your own ship and a sufficient number of subordinates! So I disguised myself as a faithful sailor and boarded this Grampus! In case I needed to seize this ship and gain control! And to lead this ship, supplies, and subordinates to join the Blackbeard pirate crew!]
The murmuring among the rebels became a bit more intense.
Peters raised his fist high while wearing gauntlets made from bear paw leather.
[With this, I have acquired all qualifications, and now I plan to head to our base in the Eastern Continent! Anyone with complaints, step forward now!]
At that very moment, another incident occurred.
[Huhuhuh, I see. So you were Blackbeard's lackey?]
The navigator standing beside Peters smiled gloomily.
It was blatant mockery.
Peters frowned.
[What's so funny, Navigator Poe?]
[Can't I laugh as I please? Truly befitting the Blackbeard pirate crew, famous for being brutal and tyrannical.]
[Hey, Poe. Are you crazy? Do you want to die?]
[Crazy? I'm perfectly sane. That's why I'm not being swayed by a lackey from an upstart pirate crew with no foundation and am maintaining my own convictions like this.]
Then snickering laughter flowed from various places.
[Come to think of it, I heard too. The Blackbeard pirate crew doesn't have money to buy ships.]
[So they infiltrate vice-captain level members into other ships to steal them and increase their fleet size.]
[Since they're beggars with no foundation, they're truly impoverished.]
[But we're different. Our 'King Erik' was wealthy royalty from the foundation.]
When the name 'King Erik' came from his subordinates' mouths, Peters' expression hardened.
Soon, the remaining 13 people except Peters stood on the opposite deck.
A pale-complexioned swordsman and a black-skinned bald axe warrior glared at Peters and said.
[We are pirates under King Erik.]
[We've been tailing you, Blackbeard's lackey, from early on.]
At those words, Peters' face contorted with rage.
[...Since when?]
[From the beginning. It was all strategy to catch you.]
[A mutiny within a mutiny? This is interesting, indeed.]
[Let's see if it's still interesting after we rip out your heart and pickle it in a salt barrel.]
The 13 crew members from the other pirate crew each drew their weapons.
A bead of cold sweat began trickling down Peters' face.
He whispered quietly to Augustus standing behind him.
[Hey, kid.]
[Yes?]
[You quickly go to my room, take food and water, and escape. There should be one lifeboat left at the stern. I'll buy you time, so make sure to survive. Don't dawdle and die a dog's death.]
Peters was showing unexpected loyalty to Augustus, who had stayed to follow him at the end.
Soon, the 13 pirates began gradually tightening their encirclement around Peters.
Just then.
...Bang!
A loud explosion erupted from below deck.
Planks and railings shattering into pieces, and pirates with bewildered expressions.
Into the center of all that, the protagonist of the story appeared.
"Ta-da."
Choi Museon. That's me.
No matter what happens, absolutely do not come out of there
—Your ally, Augustus—
Despite this memo, we had no choice but to come out of the fish hold.
Water was rising behind us, so there was no helping it.
After breaking through the deadly maze created by chests, followed by the berserk Cerberus, and even the seawater time attack that rose at tremendous speed, coming up to the deck revealed a completely new scene.
"So this is why they told us not to come out."
No Name said, swallowing hard.
A mutiny was taking place on deck.
It seemed that internal strife had broken out even among those who had staged the mutiny.
[Augustus!]
[Pym!?]
The two friends also reunited.
Augustus, who had stayed on the ship for his friend in a difficult situation, and Pym, who had trusted him and endured painful time in the fish hold until now.
Both began tearing up as they looked at each other.
Meanwhile, I quickly analyzed the situation.
'The overall story hasn't changed much from what I knew.'
It was exactly like the strategy guide I had seen before my regression.
Although there were some different sub-NPCs, the main NPCs were the same.
But if you click on their hidden NPC names.
New NPC names appear in red like this.
So-called 'Red-grade NPCs'.
Those whose distinction between ally and enemy is ambiguous are marked in red like this, and during this time, karma points don't increase even if you harm NPCs.
In other words, they're treated as monsters.
Peters' NPC name had also changed.
These two red-grade NPCs were in opposition to each other.
If you side with one of them, the opposite side remains red-grade, and the NPC that becomes an ally changes to normal grade.
—Ding dong!
<You have discovered the hidden quest 'Blackbeard Pirates VS King Erik Pirates'.>
<Hidden quest discovery condition: Clear all phases of 'Grampus—Suspicious Fish Hold'.>
<Hidden quest achievement condition: Help one side and eliminate the opposing faction that interferes.>
The notification sound alerting me to the hidden quest was tick-ticking— urging me with a time attack.
'Now, which side should I take?'
I was at a crossroads of choice.
...And I knew.
These choices, which might not seem very important at first glance, were actually big triggers that connected to the main story of this worldview.
And depending on which of the two I chose, our fate would change greatly.
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