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The situation in the Empire was utter chaos in an instant.

The Royal Knights charged towards the Leviathan with nothing but their loyalty to protect the Emperor and the Empire, while the adventurers, perhaps responding to an urgent request, all launched their attacks together.

One would think that with such a terrifying size, fleeing would be an option, yet seeing the Leviathan still hadn’t moved, they probably felt they could fight after all.

Honestly, I also had no idea why the Leviathan remained still until now, but I had an inkling.

‘It must not understand the current situation.’

The citizens of the Empire would be confused by the sudden invasion, but they weren’t the only ones.

From the Leviathan’s perspective, it must have thought, “Why are these intruders throwing bombs into my home?” and upon coming out to eliminate the intruders, it instantly found itself in another location.

Naturally, it would be bewildered.

At that moment, a massive fireball came flying from somewhere and slammed into the Leviathan’s side. While the fireball was substantial, it felt somewhat lacking compared to the gargantuan Leviathan.

Nonetheless, fire was as good as a weakness for an ocean monster.

-────────────!!!!!!!

With a deafening roar, the Leviathan writhed in pain. However, the attack didn’t stop there. Giant icebergs, lightning, winds, and the earth—all manners of magic surged forth.

With that as a starting signal, both the adventurers and the Royal Knights began to unleash their assault on the Leviathan.

“Is this what you meant by asking for help…?”

A voice floated above me as I watched the raid unfold.

The owner of the voice was Lucia Marygold. She descended slowly from above after I had asked for her help before I set off.

“I told you that you would understand when the time came, didn’t I?”

If I still didn’t get it after all this, I might as well just die.

“I didn’t expect it to be like this…”

“Still, it’s not like you’re too busy with Academy work to help or anything, right?”

She said she couldn’t leave the Empire because she was busy, yet here she was, personally flying to the sea to bring me along.

“Is that an S-Rank Monster?”

“Yup. Its name is Leviathan. I just caught it, so it’s fresh, right?”

“What do you intend to do afterward with such a situation?”

“Will there even be time to say something to me once it’s over?”

I had deliberately dropped it in the middle of the road instead of on a building to minimize casualties. It didn’t matter to me where it fell, but Amy made sure of it.

After the raid, we would have to repair any collapsed buildings and treat the victims. The palace would be just as busy, so would there even be time to blame me?

Don’t you understand the effort I went through to go all the way to the sea to catch it just so you could get stronger? That’s just ridiculous.

The Leviathan had been lying on the Empire’s cold ground, taking blow after blow for a while. Was it not in pain? Well, if it were, it would have fought back long ago.

I understand now why humanity cannot hunt S-Rank Monsters. Even though they were attacking with such fervor, they were hardly dealing any meaningful damage.

“Why is it just sitting there like that?”

“Who knows? Maybe it thinks we’re a bunch of worthless insects not worth its time.”

“…You always have to say such things.”

What? I didn’t say anything wrong. If an ant crawled up my leg, I certainly wouldn’t feel like fighting back seriously.

Right now, to the Leviathan, the adventurers and Royal Knights probably felt exactly like ants.

At that moment.

-────────────!!!!!!!!

The Leviathan, which had been quiet until now, roared. Its earsplitting roar caused several adventurers standing nearby to faint.

And at that moment, shadows covered the Empire. To check what was happening, I looked up, only to see dark clouds forming in the previously clear sky.

“What the…!”

“Whoa~”

And then, water began to surge from various places throughout the Empire. The largest water column was directed towards the lake in the plaza.

“Is it controlling the water…?”

“Looks that way.”

“But how can you be so calm in this situation…?”

“Last time we caught Balarain, it was summoning the souls of the dead, so this is nothing.”

Changing the weather and controlling the water would seem ordinary compared to that.

Immediately after, the rain-heavy storm clouds began pouring down like a heartbroken girl shedding tears.

When viewed from below, it seemed like it was merely raining, yet the volume was enormous. Judging by the rainfall, it looked like the Empire would flood within a day.

Simultaneously, the Leviathan rose.

“You brought along a ticking time bomb.”

If we didn’t defeat it before the Empire flooded, it would mean the Empire’s demise.

“Then I’ll go try to stop it!”

Lucia took to the skies again, heading for the spot where the Leviathan was. Once again, a barrage of magic ensued, and this time, instead of just accepting it, the Leviathan retaliated.

While Lucia faced off against the Leviathan, the adventurers and the Royal Knights moved. They had now mobilized all the siege weapons they had prepared to attack the Leviathan.

Even if they were as insignificant as ants, they couldn’t be disregarded. Humans are even afraid of bugs smaller than themselves. The Leviathan might not be scared, but no matter how small the damage, it’s inevitable that even minor annoyances will build up.

-──────────!!!!!!!!

The Leviathan let out a long roar before launching an indiscriminate attack. The rain falling from the sky transformed into huge water chunks, akin to hail, each capable of easily crushing dozens of people.

As everyone faced the threat of annihilation and stood frozen, immense magical power surged forth, counterbalancing the incoming water chunks.

Overhead, Lucia glided through the air, looking completely at ease.

-Wow!

In that moment, the morale of those watching surged as they caught a glimpse of hope.

“Whoa… as expected of an S-Rank Adventurer.”

I guess that’s why people want to have one as a proxy.

“Ah, this is comfortable.”

“…Aren’t we going to do anything?”

“Let’s just rest for a bit.”

We had just returned from a voyage, so we had to take a break. How could someone work all the time?

“To be honest, we could easily manage without us anyway.”

Normally, humans grouped together cannot hunt an S-Rank Monster. Yet, the reason they were holding up so well was that the Leviathan was an ocean monster.

It had ventured far from its habitat. It’s only natural that a sea monster would weaken significantly once it stepped onto land.

No matter how much it summoned rain and controlled the water to gather it all in the Empire, it was still utterly lacking compared to the ocean.

If Gideon had been here, I could confidently say it could be hunted.

“Then, while we’re resting, how about we have a late lunch?”

I had discovered and brought it just before lunchtime. It was about time to get hungry. Since it was raining, I made a makeshift tent and, pulling firewood and a pot from my inventory, I set a fire on the roof of a building.

“…I feel like I could die from guilt.”

“Me too…”

Luna, Riche! Don’t you still get it?! Throw away that guilt! Guilt is an emotion that doesn’t help you in life at all!

Be true to your instincts like me and Yui! Look at Yui! When I say it’s time to eat, she’s drooling like a hungry puppy!

-Sizzle.

I placed the emergency rations I had brought from the sea on the pot. Naturally, the emergency rations were meat.

-Boom! Bang!

-──────────!!!!!!!!

While I was cooking the meat, explosive sounds and roars echoed from somewhere.

“Ugh, who’s making such a racket? Talk about poor table manners.”

“”……””

Both looked at me with glazed eyes, yet when I offered them the meat on their plates, they gladly accepted. Yes, even the mountains of gold wait until after a meal. How can anyone work without eating?

While we ate, the atmosphere shifted. The dark sky that had seemed ominous was transforming to a turquoise similar to the Leviathan.

“Is this phase three?”

The first phase must have been skipped as we brought it over from the sea. Everything so far must have been the second phase. And now, it seemed we had reached the final phase.

“See? We’re doing fine even without us.”

The fact that phase three had begun meant the raid was progressing steadily. I watched the raid as if I were watching a YouTube video while I munched on food.

The rain falling from the sky began to swirl into a massive vortex. Lucia was continuously blocking the towering water columns, even suffering a nosebleed.

Next came an unexpected scale attack. The scales from the Leviathan’s body shot out. Given their size, each one could demolish a building. However…

“Oh, that’s not how you attack.”

Attacking by launching one’s own scales is like a knight throwing his armor away. What, are the scales going to make you lighter?

Of course, they would grow back, but not immediately.

In that brief moment, they would expose their weaknesses.

-──────────!!!!!

The human coalition surrounded the Leviathan in a circular formation. Thus, the moment even one spot was vacant with missing scales, it would immediately be attacked.

Brushing myself off, I retrieved my sword from my inventory.

“Where are you going?”

“Leviathan hunting.”

“Weren’t we resting…?”

“Just going to sneak in for some experience points.”

I had to bring the essentials. One can take a break but mustn’t become a fool, right? I caught that thing myself, and if I don’t gain any experience from it, then I’d be the ultimate fool.

I leaped off the roof and soared toward the Leviathan.

As I flew, the sight before me was not of humans weary from long battle, ready to collapse at any moment, but rather a rugged Leviathan, stripped of its majestic appearance from the first encounter.

I flew directly toward a spot on the Leviathan devoid of scales and crashed into it like a pile bunker. The Leviathan, wobbling like a balloon tied in front of a shop, toppled over, smashing its enormous face into the ground.

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

[ Level Up! Check your status… ]

Thus, the Leviathan raid ended.

For a final battle against an S-Rank Monster, it felt rather anticlimactic, but ultimately, being a living creature, it could not surpass its inherent limitations.

Honestly, for a creature that lived in the sea to come onto land and push the Empire to the brink of collapse, that was impressive in its own right.

Once the disaster fell, unusually, no cheers echoed. As I glanced around, I found everyone staring blankly at me, the one who had casually dealt the finishing blow.

“What are you looking at?”

 

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