End Online: Volume 5 by D. Wolfin Page B

tri-cannon would be an utter disaster
against other ships, given the chance they fight head on.
    “IT BE DONE!! HOLD YER FIRE!!” CaptainGordon jumps down from the
helm onto the main deck with booming laughter that doesn’t match his scrawny
build.
    I am still standing in position to attack the sea monster at any
moment, with Fen right by my side. A small part of me disbelieves that the
battle is that simple, considering how difficult the last one was.
    “Surely that can’t be it?!” I cry out as the ship approaches the
dead sea king, ignoring the oncoming waves like they are nothing.
    “Har Har! That be it!” CaptainGordon shouts back at me. “It be
foolish enough to fight head on. This be the result! People usually be runnin’
when they see me, so I finally got to use it!”
    “What, so you’ve never actually used that thing?!” Lockon shouts
out in disbelief as he emerges from the ship’s bowels.
    “Never got me chance.”
    A small argument follows between Lockon and CaptainGordon, but I
don’t bother to pay attention to it. I instead move a little closer to Mikhail
the Stalwart, curious to hear what he is mumbling about as his voice tickles my
ears.
    “This is ridiculous. Since when did this game have cannons and
inventions like that? Sir, are you listening out there?… I know… one of you out
there must be monitoring… Go get Henry… speak with him…”
    I find it hard to hide the shock and surprise on my face. His
words make it sound like he isn’t here to play the game. Suspicious. Mikhail
the Stalwart must have noticed me inching closer, as he glances at me and
starts to wander off. As a result, I can only make out some of what he says
before he is too far away to hear anything.
    I am all the more curious about what he is discussing, but
moving closer again would no longer be passed off as coincidental, making it
blatantly obvious that I am eavesdropping.
    “Can you hear what he is saying, Fen?” I ask the wolf girl who
is currently staring off at the horizon on the ocean.
    She looks toward Mikhail with a look of concentration. “No… I
can’t…”
    “That is fine. It was worth asking,” I lean back against the
cast iron hand rail, finding a comfortable spot on one of the warped sections.
    Tilting my head back, I look up at the vast sky to let my mind
clear and relieve the tension that anticipating another boss fight caused. A
few grey clouds are spoiling the morning sky, drifting about in no particular
pattern. My thoughts shift toward earning money. Due to studies and exams, my
bank account has started to dwindle and only has enough funds to last me
another four or five months. That is still plenty of time, but I am not a
person to leave something so important to the last minute.
    I think about my two little sisters, and wonder how they are
doing at my aunt’s place. My biggest concern is my aunt and how she thinks. I
know she cares deeply for her nieces, but she has always been one to sacrifice
anything that would raise the family standing in the social ladder. She is a
prideful person who cannot find happiness when there are people higher than
her. If only she could stop looking up for a moment, and have a look at her
surroundings.
    A sigh escapes my lips, and Fen leans into me. My armor stops me
from feeling anything other than her weight, but a few strands of hair from the
back of her head tickle my throat.
    The rest of the day is peaceful, Mason and Matrix doing some
sparring on the main deck while the rest of us line the stern and quarter deck
at the front of the ship, treating it as entertainment. Both our party and Mikhail’s
party wager small amounts of gold between us against who will be the victor of
each bout. Considering both the contestants are from our party, we know them
much better and end up earning a total of fifty gold coins off the other party
by the afternoon.
    A low rumbling descends from the sky and the weather begins to
look grim. The dark clouds thicken and