Waking up as a Pirate?

“Chief, you hear me out—this is how it went!”

“I’m not from your world!”

“And your world isn’t even real! It’s just a virtual world inside a game!”

“I’m a player! You’re all NPCs!”

“You know NPCs, right? The ones who give players quests and hand out rewards?”

“Like ‘To the Stars and the Abyss,’ ‘Welcome to the Adventurer’s Guild,’ ‘Thank you for completing today’s commission…'”

“I seriously don’t know how I ended up inside the game!”

Black rambled on, mouth dry from exhaustion, desperately trying to make the woman before him understand.

The woman wore her signature short crimson coat, her deep red hair whipping wildly in the sea breeze.

She was dressed in sleek black leather from head to toe—tight leather pants and jacket, a broad belt cinched at the waist, a diagonal gun holster across her torso, delicate starfish-shaped chains around her ankles, and sturdy leather boots planted firmly on the deck.

Her eyes were dark and sharp, like a hawk’s, and her ample chest strained against her top. Tall and statuesque, she had long, slender legs that seemed to go on forever.

“……”

After listening to Black’s story, Captain Loyre fell silent. A surge of anger brewed inside her, and she nearly screamed at this lunatic crew member.

But there were too many crewmen watching. She had to maintain the dignity befitting a captain.

“How much rum did you drink last night?”

Loyre swallowed her fury, her red lips parting with calm precision.

“(⊙o⊙) Huh? What rum?”

Black was utterly confused. How had this turned into a conversation about rum?

“Fine. Turn around.”

Puzzled, Black hesitated—but obeyed.

The next moment, Loyre extended her long leg and kicked him straight into the sea.

“Glug glug glug……”

Though Black had learned to swim back on Earth, the sudden shock left him flailing and gulping seawater.

“Hah! That cracked me up!”

The surrounding crew burst into laughter, howling and doubling over.

Loyre’s gaze turned icy. She swept her eyes across the crowd, and instantly, everyone fell silent.

“How many times have I said—no drinking rum until you’re drunk!”

“One more incident like this, and I’ll feed you lot to the sea dragons!”

With that, she turned and strode away, leaving behind a striking, elegant silhouette.

After a few steps, she paused, glancing back at the sputtering boy.

“First Mate, go fish him out.”

“Aye, Captain Loyre!”

The burly middle-aged man serving as first mate responded promptly, then dove into the water to retrieve Black.

“Damn, only the captain could pull that off—what a ruthless little move!”

“But don’t let her tough act fool you. She’s all bark and no bite, hah~”

The crew resumed their chatter and laughter…

Beneath a vast, cloudless sky, on an endless expanse of blue sea, a pirate ship sailed forward, its flag bearing a white skull on black.

The hull cut through the waves, churning the water into foam as it surged ahead. Schools of sardines darted along in the ship’s wake.

Dolphins leapt from the surface now and then, hunting for food, splashing back down in bursts of spray.

A gentle sea breeze carried the crisp, salty scent of the ocean.

“Sigh.”

Black stood in tattered coarse cloth clothing, his skin burned red by the sun, his eyes hollow and lifeless.

In one hand, a wooden bucket; in the other, a ragged cloth. He listlessly scrubbed at the grime on the deck.

Where should he even begin?

Thinking back on the past two days, Black felt utterly speechless.

That day, he’d just failed the civil service exam.

Disheartened, he’d gone out to sea to fish.

Caught a bluefin tuna.

The tuna snapped his fishing rod.

He jumped into the water, yelling “Pump it! Pump it!” as he tried to catch the fish—

And then drowned.

Next thing he knew, he woke up aboard the pirate ship White Pearl.

Fine. Whatever. So he’d been reincarnated. These days, who hadn’t been reincarnated?

But when he asked a few crew members about this world, Black’s world collapsed.

This world—was the exact setting of that otome game he used to play, Dragonblood!

But being trapped in a game wasn’t the worst thing.

Maybe he’d be an overpowered protagonist—invincible, conquering all!

Yet after carefully sifting through the memories of this body’s original owner, Black’s soul shattered.

He’d been reborn as a minor villain!

Not even a real villain—just a nameless, faceless grunt.

The original owner was also named Black: 18 years old, born in the Year 1010 of the Dragonheart Era, in a poor coastal fishing village of the Dragonheart Kingdom. His family had lived in poverty, constantly struggling with hunger and cold, exploited by the local baron.

His father had been eaten by a sea dragon while fishing. Only three remained: him, his mother, and his younger sister.

His mother worked as a servant, washing clothes and cooking for the wealthy, earning just one silver coin a month.

His sister had learned sewing and made a few copper coins stitching clothes—barely enough to help at home.

And him? He spent his days idling around, hanging out with lowlifes, squandering what little money the family had.

Notably, though his sister was born in a backwater village, she was stunningly beautiful—so radiant that even coarse linen couldn’t hide her natural charm. She was known as the village beauty across several nearby towns.

But in a poor family, beauty was a curse.

One day, when she was out, the fat, greedy baron spotted her and tried to abduct her right on the street!

Upon hearing the news, Black rushed to the scene.

He might’ve been a wastrel, but family was his one untouchable line.

He beat the baron within an inch of his life.

Then, with his family, fled to a more remote village.

Shaken by the incident, he realized how powerless he was—unable to protect those he loved.

After leaving a farewell letter, he slipped away in the dead of night and joined the pirate crew known as the White Pearl.

His dream? To become the greatest pirate king in the world!

In a shonen manga, this would’ve been the start of a fiery, inspiring journey.

But in the game’s prologue, this minor antagonist was instantly killed by the player-controlled protagonist with a single basic attack.

Experience +3!

The only reason Black remembered this insignificant grunt was because, upon death, the character dropped a letter.

The letter was a readable item called [“A Mother’s Thread, A Wanderer’s Garment”], along with ten silver coins.

It was sent by the original Black’s mother.

In clumsy but heartfelt words, she fretted over her son, afraid he was suffering out there. The love poured from every sentence.

Thinking of that letter, Black felt utterly miserable.

Not for the original Black.

For himself.

He got reincarnated—so why couldn’t he be the protagonist?!

Wait!

This was an otome game! He didn’t want to turn into a girl and get romanced by some male lead!

Then again, maybe being romanced by a man was still better than dying at the very start.

Black sighed, mulling it over.

According to his memory of the game’s plot, this should still be the very beginning of the prologue.

The White Pearl was currently preparing to ambush the Royal Fleet of the Dragonheart Empire.

And the outcome of that ambush? No question.

The White Pearl would be completely wiped out.

The original Black died in that battle.

He still couldn’t understand what grudge Captain Loyre held against the royal family.

Why would she recklessly attack an entire imperial fleet with just one tiny ship?

Thinking of that beautiful captain made Black furious. His backside still ached from her kick.

He’d definitely kick her right back—harder—just for revenge.

Imagining Loyre whimpering and rubbing her sore butt, Black broke into a smug, ridiculous grin and scrubbed the deck with renewed vigor.

“Good work, Black. Admitting your mistake? That’s real progress!”

Hans, the White Pearl’s first mate, patted Black on the shoulder as he admired the now mirror-like deck. The force nearly knocked Black’s heart out.

“Ah… sure! Of course!”

Black forced a smile that looked more like a grimace.

“Get ready. Tomorrow’s the day we face off against those damned imperial dogs!”

???

What?

Black froze at those words.

Face off? Imperial dogs?

Did he hear that right?

According to his calculations, they shouldn’t encounter the royal fleet for a few more days!

“Bro, what did you just say? What’s the date today?”

“June 30th, Year 1028 of the Dragonheart Era. Given the White Pearl’s speed and the fleet’s route, we’ll catch them off guard tomorrow!”

Hans’s voice was thick with murderous intent—clearly, his hatred for the empire ran deep.

“Shouldn’t it be June 28th? How did we jump straight to the 30th?!”

“Did you forget? After I pulled you from the water, you were unconscious for two whole days.”

!!!

Black’s pupils shrank to pinpricks.

F***.