Pirate: Crew of Desire and Bonds

Jake’s eyes lit up with even more excitement as he realized such a potential.

It seem like he really hit a jackpot.

Grace’s words finally cleared some of his doubts.

In the fight against the Bone Crusher, he had managed to form a sword made of light itself, but he couldn’t do it again no matter how hard he tried.

It must mean that at Lv.1, he still needed a medium... like the short sword he had used to create a solid weapon of light.

”So that’s why...” Jake murmured, understanding dawning on him. ”At this stage, I can infuse and strengthen existing things, but creating something from pure light requires higher mastery.”

And that mastery should come from upgrading the skill to Level 2, but...

He shook his head at the insane amount of Upgrade Points it cost to reach Lv.2 for Light Manifestation.

At least it didn’t seem to require gold coins.

That gave him some relief.

With his newly risen Rare Class, the cap on his stats should also rise, but he wasn’t planning to rush upgrading himself yet.

....Not only was he poor as a beggar right now, with only around 50 gold coins left and roughly a thousand Upgrade Points... he was saving them specifically to upgrade Grace’s class.

He knew that despite her not saying anything, as her man, he understood how important it was for her to overcome her past.

Jake dispersed the orb and looked at Grace seriously.

”Grace... speaking of upgrading classes. I want to upgrade yours from Trash to Common as soon as possible. With the gold we looted earlier, it should be enough... Would you like that?”

Grace who heard the words suddenly froze.

”You... you want to use the gold to upgrade my class?” she whispered.

She looked down, biting her lower lip hard as a flood of painful memories rushed through her mind.

...Trash Class.

For as long as she could remember, that label had haunted her.

Her family, the proud Lightborn lineage had looked at her with disappointment and disgust the moment her class was revealed.

”Fail Gunner.”

A worthless, broken class.

They called her a failure, a stain on the family name, unworthy of carrying the Dawn Knight’s bloodline.

She had been mocked, ignored, and eventually cast aside... to the point where even her own mother blamed her for not bearing the family skill and... ultimately sold her away.

For many years, Grace had dreamed... and cried in secret about one day changing that humiliating class.

She wanted to be strong.

She wanted to be someone her mother could be proud of.

Someone who wouldn’t be a burden.

And now...

That dream was suddenly so close she could almost touch it.

...Yet when it was right in front of her, everything felt unreal.

But... the person making it possible was standing right in front of her ... the same man who had protected her, cherished her, and never once called her useless.

Grace slowly looked up at Jake.

Seeing that serious, sincere face... the man who had promised to fulfill his words...

Her golden eyes slowly overflowed with tears, shining with a depth of emotion she had never shown anyone before.

’N-No, I can’t cry...’

She quickly wiped her tears away with the back of her hand, trying her best to hold the emotions back.

She didn’t want to stay as a crybaby anymore.

She wanted to be a strong woman... someone who could stand beside Jake, support him, and protect him instead of always needing to be protected.

Taking a shaky breath, Grace forced a bright, determined smile even as her eyes remained wet.

”...I’m sorry,” she whispered, her voice soft but steadying. ”I just... got too happy for a moment.”

She hugged him again, this time with more strength, pressing her face against his chest so he wouldn’t see her struggling expression.

”You’ve done so much for me already. You saved me, you accepted me, and now... you’re even willing to use your gold to change my worthless class. I don’t know how to thank you enough.”

Grace pulled back slightly and looked straight into his eyes, her golden gaze filled with fierce resolve despite the lingering tears.

”But I won’t just cry and say thank you anymore. I want to become stronger. I want to be someone who can fight with you... someone you can rely on. So please, Jake... upgrade my class. I’ll work harder than anyone to make sure you never regret it.”

She took his hand and held it tightly against her chest, right above her heart.

”And from now on, I won’t be Grace the failure anymore. I’ll be Grace... your woman... your crew and your partner.”

Her voice trembled with emotion at the end, but this time it wasn’t from sadness... it was from pure determination and love.

Jake sighed slightly, a flicker of worry crossing his face as he saw Grace’s eyes tearing up again.

For a brief moment, he wondered if he had pushed her too hard or brought up painful memories.

His hand gently cupped her cheek, thumb brushing away a stray tear.

But then he saw it... the determination burning in her golden eyes.

The way she was forcing herself to hold back the tears, not out of weakness, but because she wanted to be stronger.

She wanted to change.

And she wanted to move forward.

A soft, proud smile formed on Jake’s lips.

”...Alright,” he said gently, acknowledging her resolve. ”I see it. You’re not the same person who was hiding or running away anymore. You really want to grow... and you want to leave the past behind.”

He leaned down and kissed her forehead tenderly, then rested his own forehead against hers.

”I won’t treat you like someone fragile anymore. From now on, we grow together... as Captain and crew... and as a partner.”

Grace’s breath hitched, but this time her tears didn’t fall.

She smiled brightly through the emotion, nodding firmly.

”Yes... together!”

Jake pulled back slightly and opened her status window.

With the gold they had looted earlier and the remaining Upgrade Points, he focused on the class upgrade.

[Ding!]

[Grace Lightborn’s Class Upgrade Initiated!]

[-200 Upgrade Points]

!-50 Gold Coins?

Then,

A soft light enveloped Grace’s body. She gasped quietly, closing her eyes as warmth spread through her.

[Ding!]

[Grace Lightborn class evolution met!]

[Please choose the following Common Classes:]

But then,

Jake blinked, his mouth opening slightly in shock as he looked at the choices for Grace.