The Double Drop Buff Surviving The Endless Ocean novel Chapter 2

‘Double resources? Leeanne’s heart raced with excitement. This buff is straight–up active on me right now!”

A daily random luck boost. That had to mean she could come back every single day for a fresh one, and each day’s boost would be different.

Some might be absolute gold, others just solid.

She’d figure that out as time went on.

Either way, this Mystical Cherry Grove was already proving to be a complete game–changer.

Now she just had to see how crazy powerful Double Bonus actually was.

First things first though–how the heck did she get out of here?

“Exit,” she muttered, giving it a shot. The world blurred again, and just like that she was back on the raft.

Her eyes immediately caught a wooden chest bobbing along in the waves, drifting closer with the current.

The system chimed in right on cue.

[Survival Tip: Chests contain valuable supplies. Never let one pass. Use your fishing rod to hook it.]

“On it!” Leeanne snatched up the rod lying nearby.

–

She noticed instantly that this wasn’t any regular fishing rod. It was thick and sturdy, the hook massive and tough, and there wasn’t a trace of bait anywhere.

‘How am I supposed to catch fish without bait?‘ she wondered.

Then again, a chest wasn’t a fish–it wasn’t gonna bite the hook on its own.

‘Screw it. Only one way to know, Leeanne thought, brushing off her doubts.

She wasn’t some pro angler, but she’d watched enough YouTube to fake the motion. She drew back and cast the line smooth and clean.

The hook shot out with a sharp snap and latched straight onto the chest. ‘Are you kidding me? It actually worked, she thought.

She reeled it in slow and steady until the chest bumped the raft’s edge, then hauled it aboard.

It was lighter than she’d expected.

The chest was weathered brown wood with an old–fashioned latch but no lock at all. She flipped it open without any trouble.

Inside sat a single bottle of mineral water, a pack of cream–filled buns, and a can of oatmeal.

[Opening chest… Double Bonus active: Mineral Water x2, Custard Croissant x2, Oatmeal x2.]

In the blink of an eye, perfect duplicates materialized right next to the originals.

It legit doubles everything. This buff is absolutely ridiculous–in the best possible way! Leeanne thought,

If she rationed smart, this haul could easily last her a solid two days.

Grinning wide, Leeanne twisted open a bottle of water and chugged several long, grateful swallows.

The sun had been brutal, and she’d been running on fumes for hours.

When the thirst finally eased, she cracked open a can of oatmeal and dug in.

While she ate, she pulled up the local chat.

The holographic screen was alive with complaints, everyone unloading their misery in a nonstop stream.

[My throat’s straight–up on fire, dudes. This raft’s got zilch to eat or drink. How are you guys even holding out?]

55 vouchers

[I’m legit dying here–thirsty as hell, roasting alive, stomach growling like crazy. What kind of garbage game skips the starter kit? Just slaps you with this crappy rod that catches nothing. Whatever, I’m done trying. Fate can take the wheel.]

[I finally snagged a chest. Pulled out a bottle of water. Sipping it real slow… man, it’s hitting the spot.]

[Got one too, but mine only had a pack of soda crackers.]

[Mine coughed up some nasty tangled plastic. Completely useless. Yeeted it right into the drink.]

[Found an empty chest. Got so mad I hurled the whole thing overboard.]

The messages kept rolling in like that.

Leeanne scrolled through them for a solid stretch and quickly realized chests were rare for most folks. Even the ones who scored usually only got one or two measly items, nothing close to the jackpot she’d hit.

No one else seemed to have her luck boost or the Survival on the Seas system; they were all stuck starting from scratch with just a basic raft and rod.

The only downside was how cramped things were getting Her already limited spare felt even more squeezed now that the chest was taking up a big chunk of it, turning every movement into a careful shuille.

Leeanne settled in with patient focus, casting and waiting. She’d tried dropping the hook for actual fish multiple times, but every attempt flopped.

[Decompose chest? Yields Wood x3, Nails x3.]

Decompose? That wasn’t an option earlier, Leeanne thought, raising an eyebrow. ‘It probably unlocks once I have wood in my inventory.

That totally made sense.

She didn’t dwell on it. “Decompose,” she said firmly.

The chest fell apart in a satisfying clatter, leaving tidy stacks of materials on her raft.

Decomposition complete. Double Luck bonus: Wood x6, Nails x6.]

[Survival task unlocked: Expand raft to 100 square feet. Reward: Basket of fresh strawberries, 2 bread rolls.]

Leeanne’s eyes lit up with excitement. She’d already been set on expanding, and now a quest popped up with mouthwatering rewards attached. Talk about perfect timing.

Strawberries. I can practically taste that sweet, juicy burst already, she thought, feeling even more pumped

Suddenly buzzing with energy, she tapped straight into the Build menu.

Materials needed to build 10 square feet of raft: 10 pieces of wood, 10 nails |

She had more than enough wood now, but the nails were still coming up short. One more chest should do it

With nothing but endless blue stretching in every direction, she flipped local chat hack open to scope out what everyone else was managing.

[Just hauled up an empty chest. Absolutely nothing inside Im fuming!

[I’ve already nabbed five chests, guys. Two were total duds, one had a couple bread rolls, one had water, and one had some rope. So annoying; these huge boxes and barely a handful of stuff.]

[Bro, five chests? I haven’t even laid eyes on one. You’re basically the luck god.]

Five chests already. That player was no slouch.

Leeanne quietly filed away the details. Name: Jessica Atwood, ID XY000666.

Tapping the ID pulled up a bare–bones profile. Only the name, ID, and age showed; everything else stayed locked behind a deliberately fuzzy 3D avatar.

The game clearly took player privacy pretty seriously.