Looking at the Box filled with PS Vita, my mind was trying to process what was going on.
'When I used literal gold, The Box didn't respond, but when I used a futuristic-looking phone, I got all of that. Even though I ordered only one.'
Taking one of the PS Vita, I found out that it has all the marks and characteristics of my Vita-chan that I am familiar with.
Not only that, when I opened my Vita-chan, I found out that it is working, and not only did it have all of the games I ever had on it, but there were many more games on it, like it had a way larger memory.
'It is not exactly my Vita-chan, but an upgraded version of it.'
And there were many of them, all of that from a single one of the Devil Fruit phones.
'Looks like there is a criteria of what can be obtained at what cost, and I can't use my normal monetary sense of judgment with this.'
But is it an equal exchange? According to the Box's rules, of course?
To answer that question, I decided to do an experiment.
'If it was what I think it is, I might have a way back home with this Box!'
First, I asked for a large bag made of cloth, then I placed all of the Phones and Vita-chans inside it.
It was a big bag filled to the brim. When I tried to stuff a side of it inside the Box, both the bag and The Box disappeared.
And in their place, the Box sat on the ground like an ordinary, unassuming item.
It was like the Box had stopped time, swallowed the bag, sat down in its place, then resumed time, all to appear as an ordinary Box.
Not caring about appearances, I took the Box in my hands and wished for something.
Click!
To my hope, the Box opened.
Inside, it was the thing I hoped for.
The red Devil fruit from before.
'So it was an equal exchange!'
This is good news! It means that as long as I fed the Box Items of equal value, I will have a way back home!
'However…!'
But before I get too happy with it, the implications of this hit me.
'First, I have no idea what the criteria the Box uses for this equal exchange.'
This one could be anything, and from what I saw now, it could be Superpowers or technology.
'I don't know about the first, but my Vita-chan doesn't have any superpower other than keeping me happy and entertained. Nevertheless, I don't think that Devil Fruit has any technology either.'
This will require some time to research, which brings up the second problem.
'Time…'
Who knows how many days, weeks, months, years it will take to collect all the necessary things and get back home.
Until then, I will be stuck in this place. Moreover, I will have to venture out in this dangerous world if I want to get what I need.
"Damn…"
At this thought, sorrow overtook me.
Maybe I could use whatever that could send me back home to the moment I disappeared from there, but I will still have to spend time here.
'I don't want to! I just want to go back!'
'You can take this "Wonderful Opportunity" to a Chunibyo like Zaimokuza! He will be very happy, I swear, and I will be very happy for him!'
My mind is being over-drowned by sorrow, and I could barely muster the thought of anything else.
This is bad…
'No, get yourself together, Hachiman, you have a lot of things to do now.'
Yes, there are a lot of things that I have to do now. My current status doesn't allow me to mop in sadness yet.
Taking a deep breath and slapping my cheeks, I start reviewing my situation to get my mind working.
'First, I am now on a chased pirate ship in a fictional ocean(Not Fictional any more) at the edge of a dangerous sea zone.'
'Secondly, I have no base/home/shelter to be my center of operations. And also no assets or resources. While this could be encompassed by The Box, I don't want to rely entirely on it, or I will be in deep trouble if I suddenly can't.'
Wow, what an independent thought from me, Komachi will be very proud of me if she knew.
'Wait, this is not the time for that! Focus, focus!'
Being on a pirate ship is already a problem, adding to that it is currently being chased, this makes it more of a no.
'So I have to get out of this ship as soon as possible.'
However, I still need this ship to survive on the sea, or I will die. Therefore, abandoning this ship is also a no.
But I have no way to operate this ship, nor do I know anything about seafaring or navigation.
'I could ask the pirate crew for cooperation, but they are untrustworthy, finding a way to get them to help me will be hard. However, if I could simply…'
Turning my head to look at the Devil Fruit and The Box, I have a thought in my mind.
'If I could simply control the ship to the place I wanted it to go, that would save me a lot of trouble, and make my task of getting to a land easier.'
I have a few things in my mind that could help with this, nevertheless, it would depend on whether the Box could help me or not.
Holding the Devil Fruit and putting it inside the Box, I quickly make my wish.
'Okay, this is the moment of truth!'
On the first time, I asked for the Stand 'Strength', but the Box refused me.
Strength is a Stand that can transform a small boat into a giant ship, and give the user complete control over everything in the ship. Perfect for my current needs.
But the Box still refused.
'Like this, I can rule out any spectral or living things like Pokémon, tsk!'
Predictable, I can say.
And if I think about it too, items that require a bloodline and supernatural energy like Mana and Chakra are a no too.
'I don't have a bloodline or some supernatural power, so I can't make use of the items. Maybe I can go around it in some way, but I don't know how, nor do I have the time if I know.'
Then the best thing I have left is this one. Maybe there was a better option, but this is the best thing I can think of to help me out of my current predicament.
'Now, please work...'
Click!
The Box opened, and inside it I can see a protected handle of a sword.
Holding the grip and taking the sword out of the Box, I could see the full shape of its design.
It resembled a large broadsword, it was broadest at the point and narrowed all the way down to a jeweled, solid-cupped broad steel handguard.
The tip is wide and pointed like it is broken, and the edge at the handle was on the thinner side, giving the sword an exotic design.
Yet, what made the sword really stand out was the cupped handguard that was full of jewels.
Many jewels, however, there were three Jewels with three different colors that were bigger and shone more brightly than the rest.
This sword was the magical sword of one of the characters I saw in the last movie I watched with Komachi.
But what took me back was not the artistic and admittedly cool look of the sword, but the feeling of power I got from the sword.
This sword was the magical sword of one of the characters I saw in the last movie I watched with Komachi.
Komachi liked to watch this movie series because she thought the Main Character was cool, but I feel it was something else.
She, however, didn't like the last Movie, and in turn, I found it interesting.
So when I thought about the options I could be making use of in my current predicament, this cool-looking sword was my first pick.
But what took me back was not the artistic and flashy look of the sword, but the feeling of power I got from the sword.
It was like I suddenly discovered a hand I didn't know existed, it is a strange feeling, but it was a relief as it meant my idea worked.
Walking passed the pirate I interrogated, opening the door of the Captain's cabin to the main deck of the ship.
Looking around, I found that a lot of the crew had woken up, but it didn't matter to me now.
Tightening my grip on the sword, I feel like I am connected to the ship mentally, as if I could control the ship, water, and air around it.
Making a slow slashing motion with my hand, feeling the power of the sword and conveying my will to it.
The ropes of the ship began to untie, and the helms, wheels began to move on their own, the anchor was being pulled up, and the sails began to unfold.
Making the stabbing motion with the sword, the wind and water started to push the ship forward at a very high speed.
The chained crew shook by the sudden change from stillness to top speed acceleration, if not for them being tied to the side of the ship, they would have been piled atop each other.
Lowering my Magic Sword(I will start calling it that from now on) down while keeping the high speed of the ship going, I start walking down the stairs of the ship.
Sounding taps of my steps echo on the deck as I walk down slowly, the ropes start moving and creeping with my every step, creating an eerie atmosphere.
Upon reaching the main deck, I look at the crew who were all wide-awake now, but none of them wanted to meet my eyes.
I should be looking extremely scary for them right now, even the Captain, who is awake too, is lowering his head, looking only at my foot.
'Good, this will be helpful in my next step.'
"So, who among you is the Navigator of the ship?"
***
Whoosh!
On a small rowing boat in the sea, a person can be seen rowing the boat to get to the large island behind.
That person is me, and in front of me, is the ship of the Storm Axe Pirates, which I got to know as the Bronze Wave.
The ship was getting farther and farther. And even if you look closer, you won't know it is a pirate ship unless you know it.
It is because I changed every trait that could make it recognizable as a pirate ship. From the flag, the sails, the canons, the decoration at the front of the deck, all of it was changed much to the seething wrath of the Captain which I didn't give a shit about.
I even wanted to change the signboard of the ship name at the back, but all of the crew begged me, crying to not do it, so I ended up only putting a cloth on it.
'Maybe it is some kind of sea lore, something like the Going Merry of the Straw Hats.'
Anyway, I also got rid of every weapon on the ship. Whether it is swords, pistols, canons, I put all of them in The Box and replaced them with dried food and fresh water.
Pure gold was the first idea, but I refused it instantly as it would bring a lot of attention. And the food will look like a good cargo if we were ambushed before I can get to the land.
Furthermore, I don't know how the gold I could conjure from the Box would compare to the real gold.
My guess would be it is the same, but who would know? I need to see if there is a way to test this.
As for what money I would use until then, that would be the Captain's treasury, of course.
Lots of money and jewelry—mostly cash—some food and clothes are inside the big bag in front of me right now, the generous Captain Johnson sponsored all of it.
Not to be ungrateful for his generosity, I put a fake Devil Fruit in the place of the one I took, this way he will have something to surrender when he gets caught and it will make it harder to expose that I have taken the Devil Fruit.
I also changed my clothes to something like Johnson, he was the most well-dressed out of the crew, so I had to take one as an example, and he was the best around.
Surprisingly, the one I had the most interaction with is the navigator, the one who was named Swanwick.
When I was talking with him, I was trying to keep vigilant and not be tricked, from what I could gather from my 'talk/interrogation' with the pirate named Brent, the Navigator was a witty one. So I was extra careful.
Turned out that I didn't need to, Swanwick was pretty straightforward with me, answering all of my questions honestly, to the point I was a bit suspicious.
However, there was no need for me to be. The guy was just scared. The show I put with taking the whole crew down, and controlling the ship with my mind, was enough for him to not think of playing games.
I was grateful for that, my current priority should be to find a safe haven in some densely populated island to hide for now, but I have no knowledge of seafaring, even if I can control ships.
He taught me some basic things, and that was enough for me, and I was able to choose which one of the nearby islands I should go to.
After not much deliberation, I chose an island from the few close ones.
One that could fit my needs perfectly.
It was called Pearl Lagoon.
…
A/N: So, can anyone guess what the Box is? There should be enough hints already~
But well, thank you all for reading! Hope you enjoyed this one!
Have a good day!
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