It truly was paradise.

  The Floaters kept swarming, and I sent Don in as our tank, letting me practice my whip swings freely. Don charged forward like an idiot, tripping over a loose board and sprawling across the deck.

  Just as a Floater lunged at him, I swung hard, feeling the satisfying crunch as my whip connected with its skull.

  The system kept interrupting with messages of XP, so I silenced it.

  Annoying.

  Eventually, I ran out of mana after one last healing spell, forcing us to take a break. The disappointment must have shown on my face because the Captain looked over, intrigued. “What’s got you down?”

  “I want to help; I want to fight, but I’m out of mana,” I said, watching the sailors fend off the relentless XP bags as I clenched my fists.

  Damn it, the rankers are probably way ahead of me now. I know the future, exploit every trick, and still I’m lagging behind?

  The Captain chuckled. “Luckily, we’ve got a whole stash of mana potions on board. For you?” He fluttered a potion in front of my face. “One’s yours for five coppers. The only condition is that you keep fighting them.”

  I jumped at the offer, nodding eagerly, and practically snatched the potions from his hand, slapping a few coppers into his palm.

  This quest is perfect!

  “If you need more, just holler, and I’ll get someone to bring them. Keep fighting, Hero!”

  With a grin, I downed the potion and leapt back into the fray. Every time Don’s health dipped too low, his high-pitched cries for healing echoed across the deck. Useless brat. I moved my shield hand in a quick pattern, letting mana flow and golden energy wrap around him.

  With a quick flick of my fingers, the runes for Ice Dance shimmered to life, filling the air with a familiar blue glow and a crisp layer of frost.

  First try!

  Even my Ice Dance was improving. Though my runecrafting was slow, I kept up a steady rhythm, just as that creep had once told me. The memory of his gaze on my exposed body made me shiver.

  Stupid system, stupid people.

  For a moment, I clenched my teeth and swung hard, decapitating the nearest Floater to reclaim a sense of control.

  I knew my runecrafting speed needed work, but right now, I reveled in the thrill of success. The sharp crack of the whip, the adrenaline rushing through my veins, and the steady flow of experience points kept me wide awake. The Floaters didn’t stand a chance; my whip was everywhere, striking one after another.

  “Can I buy more mana potions?” I asked after dispatching the latest creature.

  “Princess, aren’t you tired?” The Captain’s voice held a hint of concern as he handed me a towel. “You’ve been at it for ten hours straight. That’s a lot of brawling. You’re welcome to rest… we can handle it.”

  That long? Eh, when you are having fun as a battle priestess... Oh! Battle sister! Wasn’t I basically a nun?

  “Captain, I’ll always be ready to fight. If my God wills it, and if there’s an enemy, I’ll face them,” I replied, flashing a smile to mask the real reason for my determination. It wasn’t exactly a lie, but I wasn’t here out of some heroic sense of duty. My restless heart had other goals.

  “Very well,” he nodded. “I already sent a man to bring more supplies for you. You’re a true hero!”

  Not quite. I was here to grind,Ice Dance, Ice Blood, Heal proficiency, all of it. I’d pushed the Ice Blood effect to its limit and was now racing against the clock to strike down another enemy within five minutes.

  Hurry up, you slowpokes!

  I took a seat on a nearby bench, pouring myself a glass of wine to keep a steady buzz going. Somehow, that slight haze helped me power through the monotonous grind. That, and the satisfaction of the system’s muted notifications stacking up in the background.

  Bring it on, dear system. Let those rewards pour in…

  “Don, isn’t this the best thing that could happen to us?!” I shouted, feeling pure exhilaration as I leveled up. The thrill washed over me, and I couldn’t help but dance right there on the deck.

  Don just smirked, his eyes lingering a bit too long before he turned and disappeared below deck, probably to catch some sleep.

  Whatever.

  He’d barely stepped away when a sailor brushed past him, hurrying in the opposite direction… perfect timing! Mana potions quickly filled my hands, and coins left my purse.

  Again.

  “There you go, Hero! Keep up the fight!” the Captain said with a grin, handing over the potions. With a wild smile, I jumped back into the fray, ready to face off with the ugly creatures swarming the deck.

  As night fell, the river became as smooth as glass, perfectly mirroring the stars scattered across the sky. For reasons only he knew, the Duke insisted on pressing forward to the seashore; and more floaters crawled up because of it.

  I wasn’t complaining!

  Long sessions were my specialty, and with each hour, I felt more alive. Blocking a claw strike with my trusty shield, I dispatched another Floater in a clean, fluid motion of my whip.

  Then something shifted.

  The steady howl of the wind suddenly dropped to silence, and every other sound faded into an eerie hush. Sheets of rain fell, and the distant rumble of thunder grew louder, like a storm charging our way with the roar of a drunken Irishman.

  The Captain’s brow furrowed as he scanned the horizon. “I have a bad feeling about this,” he muttered.

  Why?! Why did you have to say it?

  I screamed internally. And then it hit, the enormous shriek of something far worse than the Floaters, something lurking beneath us.

  The entire ship shuddered as an enormous, grotesque tentacle shot up from the ocean, flinging seawater across the deck. Rows of massive suckers lined its length, each rimmed with tooth-like projections and each as large as my head. I inhaled deeply, tasting the warm, salty air.

  We’d already drifted into ocean waters.

  Sea monsters.

  With a sickening splash, the tentacle slammed down, hurling dozens of floaters onto the deck.

  What a welcoming party!

  I was out of luck. Ice Dance was still on cooldown, but I joined the melee anyway, diving into the chaos.

  “Form up! Second line, take position!” the Captain barked. The warriors fell back into formation, shielding the mages who arrived to reinforce us. Spells lit up the night as they clashed with monstrous shrieks, tentacles thrashed the water, and the salty air filled with the sounds of a classic world Boss fight.

  “Let’s get a slice of this pie!” I shouted, downing a super-potion before diving back into the fray.

  A strange surge of courage took over, and I charged forward, whip at the ready. The entire ship shook violently beneath me, the vibrations rattling through the deck. A swishing sound caught my attention from the right, and I knew I had seconds to act.

  A powerful gust of wind swept past as a massive tentacle tore through the deck, ripping everything in its path.

  My heart skipped as I watched the tattered sails flapping wildly, and I grabbed onto the nearest rope to steady myself. But before I could get my bearings, the rope swung with the broken sail, now caught on the monster’s tentacle, and suddenly I was soaring through the misty rain.

  As I flew, another ship appeared to my left, its enormous sails unmistakable… it was the Duke’s flagship.

  My chance to impress him!

  I lashed out with my whip, and the end wrapped securely around the Duke’s ship’s mast. Clutching the handle with both hands, I felt the sudden jolt that stopped my flight. With a deep breath, I swung and crashed into the massive sail; the impact knocking the air from my lungs as I struggled to keep my grip.

  Below me on the deck, the Duke and his party engaged in a fierce fight against a swarm of Floaters and what appeared to be elite versions of the creatures.

  Gasping, I tried to steady myself. Ice Dance was finally off cooldown. As I clambered up the rigging, I urgently traced the runes in the air.

  Thankfully, this wasn’t Earth; with my potion-boosted agility, I scaled to the top with ease, relying more on speed than strength.

  From my new vantage point, I caught my first full glimpse of our enemy.

  An enormous octopus floated ominously on the sea’s surface, its eight massive tentacles plunging in and out of the water. I’d fought similar creatures back on Kari Island, but those octopuses were epic rare monsters at level one hundred… and at least a hundred times smaller than this behemoth.

  Just as I finished tracing the last rune for Ice Dance, my eyes locked onto the monster’s level, and a chill ran through me.

  Oh, damn. The first marvel monster… and a World-Boss to the boot!

  Taking down one of these beasts was normally a job for thousands of level-fifteen players, not for someone stuck at my measly level seven. As I finished the last rune, the effect of my marvel-level spell burst into action, casting a brilliant blue glow that lit up the night sky atop the Duke’s flagship.

  Whoopsie-daisy.

  The monster’s gaze snapped to me, and a heartbeat later, I heard the terrifying rush of its tentacle slicing through the air.

  I had no time to think, just to react. I leaped and prayed for a safe landing. As I fell, I caught the ripping sound of sails being shredded to tatters. My descent wasn’t remotely controlled, and I crashed onto the deck; right into a pair of Floaters.

  Above, a deafening slap of flesh met resistance, and a surge of mana flared so powerfully behind me that it nearly knocked me off balance. Then, a beautiful glowing shield enveloped the ship.

  Istvan’s work, probably.

  No time to check. At least ten Floaters had noticed me, their grotesque, bulbous eyes fixed on me with chilling intensity.

  Luckily, Ice Dance’s newly upgraded form was even flashier than before. The runes glowed with a deeper frost, casting an icy aura that chilled the air around me and turned the rain into snowflakes as it fell. Not that the Floaters stopped to admire it—they charged at me without hesitation.

  With practiced ease, I swung my whip. Its crack split the air with a supersonic bang as it connected, crushing a skull instantly. The thrill of that fatal blow was intoxicating, more potent than the dozens of wine bottles I’d downed.

  Come at me, you ugly bastards.

  “Fear me, Floaters! I am the Hero of Ice-Blood!” I shouted like Don, smashing my whip down onto their skulls without a second thought.

  They crumpled like level-one Bearbits under my strikes, falling one by one as I leaped back toward the railings with deadly precision. Only one word described the scene: massacre. And the XP poured in like tea, spilling from an endless pot.

  From the top of the deck, a voice rang out over the chaos. “I’ve heard of you, niece… our new heroine.” It was the Duke, his gaze fixed on me with a hint of expectation. “Lend us your strength to defeat this monster.”

  Niece? Eh, probably misspoke. Nothing important.

  “Gladly, my lord!” I called back, heart racing as I prepared for the next round.