The Tideless Island dwindled behind them. Now, the island was nothing more than a faint smudge on the horizon. Swallowed by the vast expanse of the ocean.
Jack rode his hoverbike over the restless waves. It was a sleek, metallic beast of his own design. The twin exhaust vents at the rear emitted white steam. And a steady thrum that vibrated through the frame.
The air, salty and invigorating, whipped past his face. Behind him, Reina was a comforting warmth.
Her arms were wrapped tightly around his waist. Her face was nestled against his back. Her long, black hair, unbound, streamed out behind them like a dark banner against the sky.
She felt like a true partner for him now. Not just a subordinate. Nor a prisoner.
Jack glanced at the compass. Set just beside the speedometer of the hoverbike. Ensuring that he didn't stray from the right direction.
They were not going back to Sapphire City. Instead, they were traveling to the Mainland of the Elrush Kingdom. Specifically, to its sprawling industrial-revolution-age capital, the Lonestone City. Getting there from Tideless Island, however, was a journey.
He could have used his artifact, the [Nine-Anchor Portal Ring], to instantly transport them to the outskirts of Sapphire City. He had placed one anchor point there after all. From there, a ship to the mainland would be simple enough.
But Jack had a different plan. One that allowed him to test his new creations. And enjoy the journey. Or at least control its pace. His hoverbike was one such creation.
It wasn't a mere floating machine. It was a marvel of Steamrune Engineering. A testament to his transcendent class. Its principles mirrored those of his original hoverboard. But it was scaled up, refined, and given greater efficiency.
Within its chassis, multiple runes were integrated. 'Levitation' to defy gravity. 'Balance' to maintain stability. 'Speed' to enhance the movement speed. 'Control' to maintain quick response over the steering maneuver. And many more.
The entire system ran on a small, fist-sized Runestone Core. A miniature sun of pure, efficient power. It was built for speed and endurance. For traversing vast distances that would exhaust lesser vehicles.
Even with such a machine, days of riding across open sea would be risky. A perilous undertaking for anyone else. Storms. Rogue waves. Colossal marine predators. Pirates... The open sea was a dangerous landscape. Without any shelter.
But Jack had his own unique safeguard. His [Mysterious Mirror World]. The ocean surface below them was an infinite, shifting mirror. Whenever fatigue threatened him. Or the distant hint of a trouble formed on the horizon... He could simply pull them into his personal Mirror Space.
Inside, threats ceased to exist. Rest would be absolutely safe. It was a private sanctuary. A cheat code against the world's dangers.
They rode for a day and a night. The hoverbike a tireless drone beneath them. The sun rose and set. Painting the sky in fiery oranges and bright red. Only to be replaced by the cold, distant gleam of stars.
Jack used the Mirror World twice for rest. Once for a few hours. Then another one for a full night's sleep.
Inside the Mirror Space, the air was still. The light was static. And they could eat and sleep in complete peace. Emerging refreshed later to the relentless, unchanging rhythm of the open ocean.
It was on the second day of their renewed voyage. Just as the sun climbed high enough to cast a glitter across the water. Something incredible appeared on the horizon. It wasn't a ship. Or a storm cloud. Or a distant landmass. It was a... moving island.
Jack slowed the hoverbike down. The engine's hum dropped to a low purr. The island was dotted with stunted trees and rocky outcrops. It drifted slowly. Majestically. Across their path. It was undeniably moving. A landmass adrift.
Reina stirred behind him. Craning her neck to look. Her eyes widened slightly in genuine surprise.
"The Turtleback Island." She murmured. A hint of awe was in her voice. "It was a legend, Jack Dear. Said to be formed on the shell of a gigantic sea turtle. A roaming island."
As a pragmatist. Jack immediately engaged his [Eyes of Judgement]. The world shimmered. Overlaying reality with streams of data, energy signatures, and hidden truths. The legend, as expected, was precisely that... a legend.
He saw no colossal reptilian form beneath the landmass. Instead, he saw complex, ancient currents. Deep underwater flows that converged and diverged around the island's submerged base.
The island wasn't on a turtle's back. It was merely caught in a fixed, yet complex, oceanic current pattern. Moving ceaselessly along with it. It was a natural phenomenon. Not a mythical beast.
"Just a myth, Love." Jack stated. Breaking the romanticism Reina had briefly shown. "Just a floating landmass. Caught in complex currents."
Reina sighed, a soft sound. "Yeah. Researchers said so too. It has been explored countless times. There's nothing interesting there. Just a few unique plants. And some strange rock formations. No hidden ruins, no valuable minerals, no ancient beast lairs. Just… an island that moves."
Her tone implied it was a waste of time to explore the place. For a clever, practical woman like her, efficiency was key.
Jack considered her words. For most, she would be right. But he wasn't most people. His [Eyes of Judgement] might reveal things others missed. Things that defied conventional understanding.
"Let's just take a break there." He announced. Steering the hoverbike towards the island. "Just for a day."
Reina didn't argue. She never did. Not when Jack made a decision. She was practical. Yes. But her devotion to him was absolute. If Jack wanted to explore a supposedly uninteresting rock. Then that rock suddenly held immense interest.
They cut through the water. The distance was closing rapidly. The island grew. Revealing cliffs battered by centuries of waves. Small, rocky beaches. And the dense, dark green of hardy vegetation.
Jack found a small cove and guided the hoverbike onto a sandy patch. The engine powered down. The silence of the island immediately settling around them. Broken only by the distant crash of waves. And the cries of seabirds.
They dismounted. And Jack put the hoverboard in his Mirror Space. A habit he tried to stick to. It would be too late if he didn't do that. And the hoverbike went missing. Or damaged.
...
The air on the island was cooler. Damp with sea spray. And mixed with the scent of strange, marine-influenced flora.
The island was indeed much smaller than Tideless Island. Which had taken him weeks to fully explore. Jack estimated they could traverse this entire landmass in a single day. Perhaps even less if they pushed it.
They began their exploration. Jack was leading the way. His senses were constantly alert. Reina followed. Her subtle illusionary powers were active. Making their passage through the undergrowth disturbingly silent. Almost ghost-like.
As Reina had predicted, for normal eyes, the island seemed mundane. Rocky paths wound through low, scrubby trees. Patches of moss and tough, flowering plants grew in crevices.
There were no grand ruins. No towering mountains. No obvious signs of ancient power or hidden treasures.
But Jack's [Eyes of Judgement] painted a different picture. Subtleties, anomalies, faint energy signatures that eluded the naked eye... All became clear to him.
He saw faint ripples of arcane energy beneath certain rock formations. Echoes of ancient forces long dissipated. He traced the lines of unusual mineral deposits. Something that, while not immediately valuable, spoke of unique geological processes.
They walked for hours. Methodically covering ground. The sun climbed higher. Casting sharp shadows. Jack continued to scan. His attention drawn again and again to a recurring pattern.
A faint, almost invisible resonance emanating from certain, otherwise ordinary, boulders. Most were weak. Mere residual echoes. But one pulsed with a stronger, more focused signature.
It was no larger than the rest. A boulder that was sitting near a narrow, rocky crevice. One that led to a small, hidden pool.
Jack stopped. His gaze was fixed on it. It was a big chunk of granite. Weathered and ordinary. Indistinguishable from a dozen others they had passed. But in the center of it, according to his [Eyes of Judgement], was a 'treasure'.
Not gold, nor jewels. But something else entirely. Something that resonated with a peculiar, latent power.
"What is it, Dear?" Reina asked softly. Sensing his focus. She couldn't see what he saw. But she knew when he found something truly significant.
"An anomaly." Jack replied. His voice was low. He didn't elaborate. It was kind of hard to explain after all.
He simply walked towards the boulder. His steps were measured. He ran a hand over its rough, cold surface.
It felt like any other rock. But his sight told him otherwise. The energy signature was faint. Deeply buried. But it was undeniably present... and potent.
He decided on the direct approach. This wasn't a puzzle to be solved. Nor a trap to be bypassed. It was a barrier in the way of discovery. And Jack preferred to break barriers.
"Stand back, Love!" He instructed.
Without hesitation, Reina complied. Moving fluidly several paces away. Her eyes fixed on him. A silent question was in their depths.
Jack took a deep breath. His form shimmered. The air around him twisting as his body began to swell, to harden, to transform.
The already muscular frame of Jack Night was expanded. Replaced by something that was even more immense. More powerful.
Armor and of plates of bone and metal encased his dark-red skinned body. Blazing with hellish flame. His facial features transformed. Becoming more bestial. A cruel set of sharp teeth filled his mouth.
Thick mane-like hair grew on his head and back. His arms thickened into columns of muscle. And in his right hand, the Judgement Warhammer materialized. Its deadly head radiated a silent, crushing weight.
This was Judge Jack, his Black Buto form. The embodiment of brutal, righteous power. The boulder, huge as it was, suddenly seemed less formidable. In the face of this hulking, armored demon.
With a mighty roar, Judge Jack raised the Judgement Warhammer high above his head. The weight of it felt like a natural extension of his arm. Energy crackled around the weapon's head.
He brought it down with a single, devastating swing. The impact was cataclysmic. The ground shuddered. The boulder, ancient and seemingly very strong, exploded into chunks.
A deafening crack echoed across the small island as stone shattered. Fragments rocketing outwards like shrapnel. Dust and debris plumed into the air. Obscuring the impact point for a moment.
The dust began to settle. Revealing the raw, splintered remnants of the boulder. There, nestled among the rubbles, glinting faintly, was the 'treasure'.
It was a fist-sized transparent seashell. Crystalline and almost ethereal in its clarity. It vibrated with the faint, peculiar energy. It looked simply beautiful to the eye. Yet profoundly significant to Jack's enhanced senses.
Judge Jack shifted back into Jack Night. Leaving him standing in his mercenary gear amidst the scattered rock. He bent down.
His fingers were brushing aside the smaller debris. And gently picked up the seashell. It was cool to the touch. Smooth and strangely light.
The moment his fingers closed around it, a familiar, long-dormant sensation erupted in his mind. A system notification. One that hadn't appeared for six months.
[OBJECT OF POWER DISCOVERED!]
[NOT ENOUGH POWER INTENSITY. ABSORBED AND CONDENSED INTO 6 ARTIFACT SEEDS.]
Absorbing power into artifact seeds... Nice! At least it could be used later. He wouldn't know how to use a... seashell.
[DETECTED THE HOST POSSESSING 8 SEEDS]
[AVAILABLE CONVERSION OF 8 SEEDS TO A PERSONAL ARTIFACT] CHOOSE ONE:
[SHIELD OF DUAT]
[CHAIN OF VENGEANCE]
[GANJIANG-MOYE DUAL SWORDS]
Another artifact to choose. Great!