August 10, 1496, Age of the Sea Circle
Orion, sitting on the edge of the bed, saw Giolla's placid expression, as she slept soundly. He then looked out the window and saw that it was already nighttime, which surprised him quite a bit.
Clearly, when he had arrived in Pacific Town, it was still morning. How long had he been showing his love to Giolla then?
He recalled the notifications that had sounded when he was fully focused on the artist's curves and opened the system screen to take a look.
Immediately, he looked at the contents of the notifications and raised his eyebrows in surprise.
*Host has had intimate relations with Named Character Giolla*
*Analyzing Giolla's information*
*It has been detected that Giolla currently does not qualify to become a wife. She has been registered as a concubine*
*Congratulations to the Host for registering the first companion: concubine. A reward will be given for this achievement*
*A new skill has been synthesized from the "age change" skill as a reward*
*Skill obtained: Marital Bliss (Level 0)*
Orion read the skill description before continuing to read the remaining notifications.
*Marital Bliss (Level 0): Allows the Host to enter an "ideal state" to satisfy his partner's needs. This state lasts as long as the lovemaking session continues. Cost: 100 SP. Cooldown: One week*
Reading the skill description, Orion gasped in surprise.
Wasn't this skill… The best skill he could ask for?!
His mind flashed back to the past few hours, and he finally understood why he had been able to make love to Giolla for so long despite not having that much SP.
Evidently, the "ideal state" included keeping him in his adult state, as otherwise he wouldn't be able to do anything.
Still, he wondered if this "ideal state" the system mentioned included other situations, such as maintaining his stamina or eliminating an injury that prevented him from having sex.
He was used to overanalyzing things, a habit he had inherited from his previous life as a philosopher, and immediately began to think of several different possibilities and ways to use this new skill.
Overall, he would be lying if he said he wasn't pleased with such a convenient skill. For starters, he wouldn't have to spend a huge amount of SP every time he wanted to be intimate with Giolla, but also, if he had multiple companions in the future, having this kind of skill could ensure he wouldn't "lose" battles against them, and his pride as a man would be safe!
He crossed his arms and nodded, completely delighted with his new skill.
Then he looked at his remaining SP to see how much he had spent before the new skill activated.
However, the amount of SP wasn't what he expected.
*Available SP: 21,508*
He counted the number of digits to check he wasn't making a mistake, but no matter how he looked at it, the SP count was still incredibly high!
Where had so many SP suddenly come from?
He turned his attention back to the notifications he hadn't yet checked, searching for the answer to this sudden increase in his system points.
*Mission 02 - Frustrated Artist, has been successfully completed*
*Do you wish to claim the rewards now? Yes/No*
*You have obtained 1,000 SP*
*You have obtained the special skill "Art Coating"*
*Giolla's favorability has exceeded 90 points by the host's own efforts and can't be increased anymore through the system. Another reward will be generated as a replacement*
*You have obtained a "favorability coupon"*
*You have decisively influenced the Named Character Giolla, completely changing her future, and thus managing to introduce a great positive change to this world. You have obtained 20,000 SP*
Orion's shock continued to increase with each new system notification he read, until he reached the last one, and his mind collapsed.
20,000 points for changing Giolla's future? That was an unimaginable amount for him, who had lived in poverty until this moment.
How great must his influence have been on the original history of this world to obtain so many points? And hadn't he influenced other Named Characters like this before? Did that mean that even though he had placed Rouge under his care, she and her baby were still on track to suffer the same fate as in the original story? Was that why the mission requiring him to save Rouge hadn't been completed?
A lot of questions began to arise in his mind, and his initial excitement at having won large rewards slowly turned to concern.
He didn't fully understand how the system worked, as it usually didn't answer his questions. So he could only figure everything out step by step, through trial and error.
At this moment, however, he wished there was an instruction manual to tell him if his fears were unfounded. How nice it would be to have the peace of mind knowing there would be no tragedies in the future.
But not everything could be as he wanted. Once again, he reminded himself that this was a cruel world, and that he must continue increasing his power as quickly as possible.
Luckily, he now had enough SP, so he could invest at least some of it into increasing his skills, and his power would rise to a new level.
Orion took a deep breath and put his negative thoughts aside. There was nothing to be gained by worrying more than necessary.
He checked the notifications again and reread the description of the mission he had just completed.
*Mission 02 - Frustrated Artist
Description: The character named Giolla has been traveling the world in search of the essence of art. Since she was a child, her great sensitivity to the arts had made her personality eccentric. Over time, her personality has become increasingly distorted, and is now on the verge of collapse.
Objective: Help Giolla satisfy her desire for knowledge of art and stabilize her personality by showing her the beauty of the world.
Reward: Increased favorability of Named Character Giolla, system points, a random special ability.
*
For a long time, this quest had been frozen, showing no change.
He had undoubtedly satisfied Giolla's desire to increase her knowledge of art, but her personality remained very volatile and had not yet fully stabilized.
He had hoped that their romantic relationship might help stabilize her mind, but until today, it had had the opposite effect, destabilizing her even further.
Seeing the moment the notification indicated that the mission had been completed, Orion did a little mental calculation, guessing the moment it had happened would have been approximately after the fifth time they had expressed their love for each other.
A strange expression appeared on Orion's face, which was in his default childlike form, making his expression look somewhat humorous.
Didn't this mean that what was needed to stabilize the beautiful artist... Was just a little unbridled sex?
It didn't take Orion long to accept this as true; after all, there had been an entire psychological theory about it in his previous life. The results were right in front of him, and they were positive, so why waste his time questioning them?
It was great that Giolla had finally stabilized, and it was great that he had been able to change her future for the better. Perhaps his original intention to stabilize her with their relationship was correct, but only when he appeared in his adult form and they consummated their love could she truly feel the reality of their bond and feel at ease about her future with him.
Orion returned his attention to the quest rewards and wondered when he had accepted them? After all, when the notification had appeared, he had been in the middle of making love.
Suddenly, he thought of something and blushed slightly. There had been a moment where he had exclaimed "Yes" several times, but clearly he hadn't been thinking about the rewards!
Just thinking about the soft sensation of Giolla's tongue, kneeling in front of him and looking at him with lustful eyes, Orion felt like waking the artist up and fighting a hundred more battles! But his new skill needed a week to recharge, and he didn't want to spend SP so irresponsibly. No matter that he now had a large capital, he needed to use it responsibly and not waste the opportunity to increase his skills.
In addition to the 1,000 SP, he had received two rewards for the quest.
He looked at the descriptions of the two new additions on the system screen.
*Art Coating (incomplete): The appearance or shape of any inanimate object can be altered. This skill can only be used on one object at a time. If the skill is used on a second object, the first object will return to its normal state. Cost: 100 SP*
*Favorability Coupon: You can use this coupon on any Named Character you have come into contact with. That Character's favorability will increase by between 10 and 50 points. The amount increased depends on the Character*
Orion's eyes lit up. These were good rewards!
The coupon could certainly come in handy when he needed a Named Character to think more highly of him, which would greatly facilitate the chances of establishing friendly contact.
And as for the new ability, it was just what he needed to camouflage the cutlass "Ace" that Roger had given him!
Until now, he hadn't dared to use it for fear of being recognized and getting into serious trouble with the Marines, but if he could alter the sword's appearance with this skill, he would have nothing to worry about in the future, and he could use it openly!
Ace was one of the twelve supreme-grade swords, so his combat power would increase a lot when he used it.
Orion, pleased with the large number of rewards he had obtained, stood up with a smile and stretched, trying to combat the fatigue that had been attacking him.
While his new skill was in operation, he hadn't felt any fatigue at all, and he had soundly defeated Giolla in their battle in bed.
However, now that the skill was deactivated, some of the fatigue he should have felt was affecting his body.
Obviously, he would have to be careful in the future when he had romantic encounters, since the skill didn't completely eliminate all fatigue. He couldn't be too dissolute, or his body wouldn't hold out much longer.
Although with his passive ability "Strong Body," he probably wouldn't have as many problems once his body was that of a real adult.
He saw Giolla sleeping peacefully and didn't wake her. He, too, wanted to lie down beside her and just sleep, but right now he had to get back home to see his parents, who would surely have heard of his arrival and would be eagerly waiting for him.
He wrote a note informing Giolla of his departure and added a small drawing to the paper.
Then he left the note on her pillow, kissed the beautiful artist affectionately, and sped off toward home.
Looking at the moon in the clear sky, he estimated that the night was well advanced, probably already past midnight.
The houses in the small town were dark, and there wasn't a single sound, proving that most people were probably already asleep.
Orion arrived at his house and paused for a moment to look at it, feeling a great emotion.
Finally, after more than half a year, he had returned home.
He reached out to open the door, but before he could, it swung open violently, and a figure appeared before him.
It was his mother, Lira, looking at him with tears in her eyes.
Before he could say a word, Lira threw herself at him and hugged him tightly.
Orion remained petrified, while Lira sobbed with a mixture of bitterness, reproach, and relief.
He hugged her back, and felt a warm sensation in his eyes. He had missed his mother too, and the tears welling up in his eyes were the best proof of that.
A long moment passed, until a somewhat hoarse voice said in a serious tone:
"Lira, you'd better come inside, it's cold outside."
Orion looked up and saw his father, Paul Lysander, staring at him. His eyes were a little red, but he maintained a solemn expression. Knowing his father, he was probably trying his best not to break down and maintain his paternal dignity and authority.
Lira heard her husband's voice and entered the house, still hugging Orion.
Rouge, standing in a corner of the room, didn't interrupt the family reunion taking place in front of her. She simply remained silent and watched with a warm gaze as the situation unfolded. She placed a hand on her belly, which was completely flat, and wondered if she would ever have to worry about her baby like this.
The night dragged on, and the family stayed awake until dawn. Orion explained his adventures to them, but left some details out of his story.
Although he didn't want to lie to his parents, there were certain things he couldn't say no matter what.
He told them he had gone on a voyage out of curiosity and gotten into trouble in a storm. He had then been helped by a kind man, who had taken him on as his student for six months.
He didn't tell them about the identity of his teacher, his conflict with the marines, or his encounter with part of one of the world's greatest pirate crews.
In the future, perhaps he could tell them more, but for now, there was no need to worry them further.
His parents, on the other hand, accepted his story without asking too many questions.
There was a tacit understanding between both parties. The important thing was that the family was reunited.
Of course, after the initial excitement and relief of seeing their son returned safely, came the reprimands he had been waiting for.
Orion simply hung his head in guilt and let his parents vent.
Finally, for the first time in his life, he was grounded by his parents.
And his mother strictly forbade him from sailing again.
Orion didn't argue with them; he accepted the reprimands and the punishment.
He had promised Gion he would visit her in the coming months, so he would have to return to the sea, but there was no need to overstimulate his parents right now. There would be time later to talk things over calmly.
Finally, Orion went to sleep in his bed, which he hadn't slept in for a long time. A big smile appeared on his face, betraying the relief of feeling that everything was going well.
...............…
August 11, 1496, Age of the Sea Circle
Somewhere in the South Blue, there is a gigantic bridge called "Rum Wolf."
This bridge has been under construction for centuries, and countless people have sacrificed their lives during its construction.
Today, a new group of workers has been brought in to bolster the ever-dwindling workforce. The terrible conditions in which these people live lead to all kinds of "accidents" regularly occurring, which reduces the number of available workers.
Inside the large ship belonging to the Umit Shipping company, a large group of people was preparing for the arrival at their destination.
Mario Lysander, who had been working for this company with his son for over a year, came out onto the deck and looked at the imposing bridge that rose like a mountain in front of him.
His son, Lolo Lysander, approached and patted him on the shoulder.
"Dad, we're almost there. This time, the trip was a bit long, wasn't it?"
Mario nodded, agreeing with his son.
Over the past year, they had made numerous trips around the South Blue, transporting all kinds of merchandise. The Umit Shipping company was growing by leaps and bounds, and many people wanted to get a job there.
The competition was quite fierce, and a job that paid that much was hard to come by.
For that reason, Mario and his son had decided to take one last job before enjoying a well-deserved vacation. A superior at the company had given them the opportunity to participate in one of the company's main businesses, transporting construction materials for the world government.
Now, they had finally reached the delivery site, and once they unloaded the materials, their mission would be over, and they could return to Pacific Town for a couple of months to enjoy a well-deserved rest and see the rest of the family.
The ship anchored in a port, and a large elevator appeared from above, descending slowly. Mario, along with his son and the rest of the employees, began unloading the construction materials, which would then be raised using the large elevator.
However, once the elevator descended completely, they weren't greeted by workers or engineers, but by world government soldiers, who looked at them grimly with sarcastic smiles.
The man in charge of this delivery stepped forward and shook the hand of the soldier in charge of the bridge construction. Then he said with a flattering smile:
"Sir, I have brought the shipment as requested."
"Very well, as always, you can count on the professionalism of your company," said the soldier.
"Thank you for your compliment, sir. We always try to provide the best service!"
The soldier nodded and then signaled to his subordinates, who immediately advanced, pointing their weapons at the group of unsuspecting workers.
The leader of the soldiers placed his hands behind his back, raised his head haughtily, and said in a powerful voice:
"Welcome to Rum Wolf, this will be your new home!"
Mario clenched his fists in anxiety. His heart was pounding. Images of his youngest son and his little grandson, whom he missed so much, appeared in his mind.