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“The tentacle… The tentacle is moving!”

A soldier reported as he peered over the deck. Jenis had plopped down onto the floor, staring down at it while panting heavily.

The sea was littered with chunks of meat and traces of tentacles scattered in disarray. It was fair to say that almost all of the Kraken’s legs had already been severed. Only two still wriggled, still very much alive.

“F…f*ck.”

With his mouth clamped shut, Jenis managed to rise slightly and glared at the two remaining tentacles. It was certain he had succeeded in cutting off six, but now, both Junjae on the first floor and Jenis on deck had nearly exhausted their magical capabilities. The wyverns in the sky were still intact, and the ship’s own armaments were too weak to contend with both enemies at once.

He hoped that the recent barrage would be the final blow to the Kraken. He had poured everything into that, risking it all one last time. However, the bombardment from the hellish cannons was just shy of strangling the Kraken.

The Ironclad Ship and the Kraken’s remaining two tentacles had been locked in a stalemate for about five minutes. One thing was certain: even with half of its legs lost, the sea dragon no longer had the strength to actively engage in battle. The Kraken groaned in unimaginable pain—a remarkable feat in itself.

Perhaps, if Jenis decided to retreat here, he could manage to finish the fight in a draw. A draw, in name only, but it could become a small victory that forced the enemy to suffer unilaterally.

A sweet temptation flickered across Jenis’s mind. If they withdrew now, the Kraken wouldn’t chase after them. Severing six of the sea dragon’s legs and killing two wyverns would certainly be something to brag about. It could serve as a stepping stone for the future.

But Jenis shook his head, shaking off all those thoughts.

“A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity doesn’t strike twice. All troops, ready your weapons again!”

“Yes, sir!”

At Jenis’s command, the crossbows and ‘Spear of the Sky’ readied for another launch. First, Jenis directed two crossbows to fire arrows at the surviving tentacles. The weakened tentacles writhed in response to the barrage of arrows.

“Expose your head!”

Jenis muttered as if casting a spell.

“Expose your head!”

At that moment, a wyvern soaring overhead, scanning the ship, unleashed a fierce blast of flames targeting the deck. Realizing she couldn’t block the wyvern’s breath with magic, Jenis hurriedly covered herself with her robe.

Fortunately, the flames shot by the wyvern were intercepted by the Grand Mage’s barrier, which had quickly ascended from the first floor to the deck.

“That was nearly disastrous.”

Junjae muttered, looking up at the wyvern in the sky. Jenis bowed her head toward Junjae with a bright smile.

“Thank you, Professor. I’m so relieved.”

“By the way, that thing is incredibly persistent. I thought for sure it would die from the last attack. Now I’m really worn out too.”

“We have to see this through. Leave the sky to me. I’ll face it directly.”

“Are you doing alright with your mana?”

“I’ve got some boost. I can still hold on.”

It was a lie. Jenis’s honest thoughts were that she wanted to quit the fight and curl up in a cabin and sleep. The fatigue pulled at her muscles as if dragging her into the sea, and a feeling of despair penetrated her mind, making her wonder if she could continue at all.

Yet, Jenis stood up. Junjae seemed to sense her thoughts just by looking at her expression.

“There are moments when we have to fight even if we’re barely holding on. Go. Tear its head off. If you really can’t, I’ll sing you a lullaby or something.”

“What are you going to sing?”

“Forget it. Just don’t mind me.”

Junjae waved his hand dismissively, and accustomed to his peculiarities, Jenis staggered toward the railing and leaned against it. The sea was boiling fiercely. The bombardment of mana that hadn’t yet dissipated mixed with the wrath of the sea dragon, churning the waters into a bizarre sight.

Rockets shot up toward the sky, and the Grand Mage blocked the fiery rain falling from above. The crossbow arrows flew forward, and the remaining tentacle’s legs loomed over the ship like fallen trees.

Jenis shouted.

“Don’t dare dream of returning alive! Wake up from the delusion that hiding your head will save you! I, the Great Sage, command! The lord of this sea is none other than me! Follow my order and reveal your face!”

Jenis’s cry was not a simple shout but a command that called upon all her power and magic. Logically, there was no reason for the Kraken to expose its face after hearing such a call. However, the moment Jenis’s shout ended, the bubbling of the sea intensified, and finally, something they had been waiting for began to surface.

It resembled the head of a whale and partially looked like a dragon’s head. It was as large as a mountain, although not overwhelmingly so considering its body’s length. It had a sharp snout and fierce teeth. One eye was mangled from being struck, while the other glared at Jenis with a fierce intensity.

Jenis gathered all the mana she could muster as she began to slowly turn the ship’s direction.

“I’ll burst its head with the ram. Brace for impact!”

“Prepare for collision! Prepare for collision!”

“Be careful not to fall off!”

Even without Jenis needing to give orders, the soldiers, witnessing the ship’s blade-like prow aiming straight at the Kraken’s head, could anticipate what would happen next. The largest ship in the world, the biggest blade on the continent, was charging toward the sea dragon’s head. It was increasing speed to cleave through the head of the sea king.

The Kraken also had prior experience of being severely sliced by that blade, so it didn’t underestimate its power. The enemy was drawing nearer. All the crew, including Junjae, swallowed hard, anticipating the results of the impending collision.

Three seconds, two seconds, one second. Just when it seemed they could split the head of the sea dragon. At that moment, it felt as though HMS Victory could truly stand tall as the lord of the sea.

Two tentacles blocked the ship’s prow. Junjae suddenly shouted in surprise.

“It… couldn’t break through?!”

“I-I’m sorry…”

Jenis crumpled to the ground, muttering with a dying voice.

“I… I couldn’t get any speed. I did my best, but I just can’t get the same speed as before. At this pace, I can’t clear that tentacle…”

“Give me the sword.”

“What?”

“The sword of Margaret. Lend it to me, Jenis!”

Jenis drew the longsword from Eramenia at her waist and handed it over to Junjae. Holding the sword tightly, Junjae approached the ship’s prow, grappling with the Kraken’s tentacle with all his might. Junjae cast a strengthening spell on Jenis’s sword as he exclaimed.

“I’m done with this octopus tentacle!”

With one swing, Junjae’s sweeping blade severed one of the tentacles, sending it plummeting into the sea. As he aimed for his next strike to clear the ship’s path, the Kraken’s head slammed into Junjae, sending him flying backward with a powerful repulsion spell.

Normally, such magic would have been ineffective against Junjae, but he was not in peak condition now. He was flung back and crashed to the very back of the deck with a loud thud. Jenis turned to look at Junjae, her eyes widening in concern.

“Are you alright?”

“Uh, but I accidentally stepped on the pedal.”

“That doesn’t really matter…”

Junjae had accidentally fired a ‘Spear of the Sky’ into the sea, wasting it. As she watched the harpoon splash down, Jenis muttered.

“That should have enough piercing power…”

Jenis looked back toward the tentacle still grappling with the Ironclad Ship. The ship’s prow was embedded deep into the remaining tentacle, leaving scars, but due to Jenis’s mana shortage, it lacked the power to penetrate completely.

But it couldn’t cover its entire face with just one limb. If they aimed for that gap, the area available for attack was vast as a mountain. A single, precise strike could pierce the Kraken’s brain and deliver the final blow.

Jenis began to crawl toward the ‘Spear of the Sky.’

“Jenis? What are you thinking?”

“That harpoon. It’s our most powerful penetrating weapon right now.”

At Jenis’s words, Junjae looked back at the triangular tube of the Spear of the Sky. This weapon was essentially designed for anti-air use. It’s meant to be used while fixed on the ground and connected to the pedal, but if it were just once, it could be detached and used as an artillery piece.

“Firing an anti-air cannon in a straight line, huh.”

“Do you have a problem with that?”

“No, it’s Rommel’s method. I like it.”

Jenis did not bother asking what that was supposed to mean this time. Instead, she boldly ripped the ‘Spear of the Sky’ off from the back of the ship and dragged it toward the prow. Several soldiers took it upon themselves to help her bring the Spear to the front. However, ultimately, only she was audacious enough to approach right in front of the Kraken.

“The King of the Sea.”

Jenis aimed the long spear toward the Kraken’s forehead. The Kraken, already struggling merely to fend off the ship’s ram, exhaled heavily as if it sensed its impending doom upon seeing the Great Sage approach so close.

The sea dragon’s breath reeked of salt, saltier than the sea itself. Jenis lit the gunpowder fuel attached to the spear’s tip and aimed it precisely to penetrate the Kraken’s brain.

“Farewell.”

With a whoosh, the sound of a solid rocket launching rang out as the spearhead pierced the dragon’s forehead. Though it was just a small hole for the Kraken’s head, that small hole was more than sufficient to penetrate the skull and shatter its brain, taking its life forever.

The tentacle that had been blocking the Ironclad’s attacks slowly relaxed its grip. As the sea dragon’s life flickered out, the force holding the ship at bay dissipated.

The blade rushed past the tentacle and charged toward the now-dead head. Cleanly, the sea’s great cleaver passed down a solid sentence of death upon the sea’s former king.

Soldiers who witnessed the Kraken’s head splitting in half cheered madly. While it was the Spear of the Sky that had actually brought an end to it, it was this ram that had vividly shown the soldiers that fact. The Kraken’s decapitated body began to sink into the depths, painting the sea a splendid red.

Junjae approached Jenis and said, “Legend has it that you captured this monster with the ram.”

“I don’t care. The important thing is that I’ve become a legend.”

Jenis sat down on the floor with a relieved expression. She rested a hand on her forehead, a fatigued look spreading across her face.

“I think I need to get some sleep. Please tell the soldiers we won. From this moment on, our humanity is the true master of the sea.”

Only twenty soldiers. But their cries felt powerful enough to overturn the seas. The fleet of Koesernis needed no separate signal. Jenis had triumphed. There were now no obstacles at sea. The wyverns prowling the ocean, seeing that the Kraken, who would directly give orders, had disappeared, turned and vanished toward the continent to return to the Demon King.

“We’ll join you too.”

Koesernis commanded. Their landing was confirmed. The Demon King’s Army would now have to clash against this invigorated legion on land.

 

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