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It had been an hour since departure.

Given the size of the ship, even traveling at high speed, we couldn’t cover vast distances in a short time.

However, after some time had passed, we had reached a point where land was no longer visible from any angle.

“Soon, we’ll be entering the waters where the Sea Serpent appears, so frontliners who have finished loading the shells should rest a bit and conserve stamina! Mages, stay vigilant so the frontliners can relax without worries!”

Although Hazel issued the rest order, among the adventurers who had come this far, was there really anyone weary just from carrying shells?

In fact, neither I nor the other frontliners looked the slightest bit tired.

Well, to be honest, I hadn’t used any energy at all except when juggling, since I had just stored everything in my inventory, so I actually felt more energized.

I even felt it might be a bit too boring.

“Hey, guys. Doesn’t this feel just like a trip?”

“Is there any other trip as aggressive as this…?”

“Well, who knows? Even passenger ships might have a cannon or something for self-defense.”

“We’ve decided to call such a ship a pirate ship.”

If that’s a social agreement, there’s nothing we can do about it.

“What about you, Yui? Isn’t this your first time on a ship?”

“If it were just a trip like Luke said, it might be different… But thinking that a huge monster will appear soon makes me tense, and I can’t think straight…”

“When you’re tense, write ‘human’ (人) on your palm and swallow it three times. It’s a folk remedy to relieve tension that people used in my previous life.”

“Hee… There are so many interesting things where Luke lived.”

Yui actually wrote ‘human’ on her palm and swallowed it.

“Luke, is that really an effective method?”

“No? Of course not, it’s a lie.”

If something like that could relieve tension, then something like calming medicine would never make an appearance.

“Are you having fun teasing Yui…?”

“Yeah.”

Yui was so innocent that her reactions were quite delightful, and perhaps because of her small stature, she was cute enough to watch, bringing me some healing.

“Ugh… But it is boring. I want something fun to happen━━.”

“Monster invasion!!”

“Oh, it’s started.”

What the heck, how did they know?

Hearing the sailor’s shout, we immediately headed to the railing.

What we saw was a multitude of shadows swimming rapidly toward the ship’s direction on the surface of the sea.

And soon.

– Splash!

-Kiiirrrrrr!!!

The creatures leapt high from the water and landed on the deck.

Monsters that seemed to match the number of people on the ship looked like anthropomorphized fish.

And all the monsters were armed.

Some wielded tridents, while others brandished cutlasses.

“It’s Mermen!! Frontliners, get into position quickly!! Mages, assist with low magical power!! They’re nothing special, so handle them quickly so we can rest!!”

I couldn’t tell their ranks, but judging by how they were considered nothing special, they must be around C-Rank.

Adventurers positioned themselves as ordered by Hazel.

I quickly took my place in front of a Merman.

I pulled out a Greatsword from my inventory, gripping it with both hands.

Then, I twisted my waist to the limit.

“Luke, what are you planning to do…?”

“Urf! Kaboom!”

Right now it’s trashy, but those who know all recognize its once-treasured essence.

I twisted my waist back in the opposite direction.

It was a rotating attack using centrifugal force.

“Formation!! Formation!! Formation!!”

“What, what is happening!?”

– Grrrrr!!!

With this level of rotation power, Mermen—soft-bodied monsters—would be cut in half the moment they touched the sword.

Like a human tornado.

It swirled over the deck.

“Everyone, dodge! He’s insane!!”

Of course, there was no distinction between friend and foe.

Honestly, how could a person rotate and go only in the direction they wanted?

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

Experience wasn’t gained much.

I took out about half, and the remaining half was handled by the other adventurers, leaving the deck filled with Merman corpses.

“Everyone, rest! The Merman corpses will be collected by the crew and distributed later!”

After a brief hunt, we immediately took a rest in preparation for the upcoming raid.

And Hazel, who gave the order, approached me.

“Hey. Are you out of your mind? You need to identify friend or foe!”

“Waaaahhh━━.”

“Ahh!?”

After spinning dozens of times, the consequence was seasickness.

*

Tap, tap.

As I rested, my back was being patted by Luna’s gentle hands as she leaned against the railing.

“Why didn’t you hunt in a more normal way…?”

“How is this not a normal way!?”

In my previous life, if people needed to grind a large quantity of something, did they use a knife to grind each one, or did they use a blender?

I hunted in the most efficient way possible.

“Ugh. So, when is that Sea Serpent supposed to show up, damn it?”

“Well, according to the information I just heard from Hazel, we’ve already entered the waters where the Sea Serpent appears.”

“Damn it, I’m getting anxious.”

I started to wonder if it was being cautious or just waiting.

I wanted to quickly finish hunting and go rest, but it wasn’t appearing at all.

“This won’t do. I need to blow off some steam.”

“Uh… what?”

I pulled out a bomb I had hidden in my inventory and lit the fuse.

Then, I tossed them indiscriminately into the sea.

– Boom! Boom!

Pillars of water erupted as the explosions created ripples.

The ship we were on shook slightly as well.

“What’s going on!?”

“Hehe. That means I’m blowing off steam.”

The first to run over at that commotion was our commander, Hazel.

Following her were the adventurers who had also come running at the disturbance.

“I was just tossing some bombs out of frustration.”

“What…?”

“They’ll come if we make a ruckus.”

“Don’t use precious resources like that!”

“Isn’t it just waste anyway?”

Hazel seemed to have reached her limit.

Couldn’t bombs be expensive? Isn’t time expensive?

Isn’t time money?

Right now, our precious time was flying away, and if tossing a bomb could lure them out, wouldn’t that be worth the gold we’d save?

If we ended up not encountering them and had to return without doing anything, that would be truly infuriating, right?

I’d blow up the ship out of rage instead of raiding!

“Commander! Something’s coming!!”

“What?!”

“Did you see it?”

I shrugged.

Hazel shot me a glare full of unspoken words but directed her attention toward the railing to observe whatever the sailor had mentioned.

I took the opportunity to watch as well, but the size of the shadow no longer required a telescope; it was large enough to be seen with the naked eye.

And that monster was swiftly approaching the ship.

“It’s the Sea Serpent!! Everyone, prepare for battle!!”

What was there to hide? It was evident that beast was indeed the Sea Serpent.

Since they said it was 40 meters long, such a large shadow could only belong to the Sea Serpent.

“Don’t give it an opportunity to attack! We will attack first! Frontliners, get the cannons ready and Mages, gather your magical power!!”

The adventurers moved as coordinated as if they had rehearsed to respond to Hazel’s command.

I thought about firing a cannon as well and glanced around, but—

“There’s no space.”

All the cannons were claimed.

Soon, a massive column of water erupted.

As the column of water subsided, the Sea Serpent revealed its imposing presence.

-Kiiiiiiaaaaaaak!!!!!

Its roar was a chilling sound that made one’s face wrinkle instinctively.

It felt like my brain was being pierced, akin to the screech of nails on a chalkboard through a loudspeaker.

“Oh wow…”

As I resumed my expression after initially recoiling, I could only let out sounds of admiration.

Brilliant blue coloration, a fin running straight down its back.

It was indeed a colossal 40 meters long.

Of course, its teeth were sharp, and its pupils were thin, vertical slits.

To describe it more simply.

‘Mega Gyarados?’

It was a similar sensation.

“Fire!!”

– Boom! Boom! Boom!

However, there was no time for admiration.

In a world governed by the survival of the fittest, the outcome of combat is determined in the blink of an eye.

At Hazel’s command, the cannons erupted into fire, one after the other.

And it wasn’t just that.

The Mages waiting behind also unleashed their spells all at once.

The scene resembled what I had witnessed when we captured the Iron Golem before.

Fire, water, ice, lightning, wind, earth.

All sorts of elemental magic rained down on the Sea Serpent.

-Kieeeeeeek!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Having taken all that damage from its very appearance, the Sea Serpent let out a painful scream.

However, if it were to end like this, it wouldn’t be called a raid.

“Their attack is coming!! Frontliners, shoot your blades to intercept and Mages, prepare for the next attack!!”

Ice began to gather around the Sea Serpent’s face, soon taking the form of spears.

Eight ice spears.

Each spear appeared to be at least 10 meters long.

Even one would create holes big enough to sink the ship.

Thus, the frontliners gathered together and launched their magical-infused sword attacks, intercepting one spear for every two people.

By the way, Hazel used her fire magic to intercept two spears with a single blade of flame.

Seeing that made me clap involuntarily in amazement.

“Oh~”

“Why aren’t you working?”

“I don’t have any magical power, so I can’t fire any blades.”

“What? You, a C-Rank, have no magical power?”

“Isn’t that all the more impressive?”

An achievement no one else could accomplish!

The world’s first C-Rank adventurer with no magical power!

Soon to become the world’s first ever no-magic B-Rank adventurer!

“Quit talking nonsense and shoot a cannon!”

“Sure.”

I took out the cannonball I had put away when I moved it earlier from my inventory.

Then, I threw it by hand.

If I could throw it by hand, shooting it from a cannon would be inefficient.

Adjusting the cannon’s position, loading the cannonball, lighting the fuse, waiting, and then firing.

The whole process was practically a loss.

– Crack!

“You… really have no magical power at all?”

“Yup.”

As the back-and-forth continued, the Sea Serpent opened its mouth wide, gathering bluish particles inside.

“Breath!! Mages, help me defend!!”

‘What kind of sea serpent can unleash a breath attack…?’

The magic of the Mages and Hazel’s fire magic combined to counter the breath.

Without a doubt, Hazel was the key player in blocking the breath.

Her flaming sword rays nearly matched the power of the serpent’s breath.

-Kieeeeeek!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

“This is insane…! Another breath attack!! We won’t be able to defend if we delay!! Cast protective magic on the frontliners and defend!!”

This time we wouldn’t be able to block it like before.

“Okay~ Cancel~”

I pulled out an orc barrel from my inventory and tossed it toward the Sea Serpent’s face, which was gathering its breath.

“What is that, Luke?”

“Red pepper powder.”

Crunch. The orc barrel broke, causing the red pepper powder to scatter across the Sea Serpent’s face like flower petals.

-Kiiirrrrkk!!!

The serpent sneezed, canceling its breath.

“That’s absurd…”

“It’s even more absurd that you’re watching it gather breath.”

It’s something I always wondered in fantasy when dragons charged up for their breath attack.

Why don’t they just cancel it?

There are all sorts of magical canceling and reflecting techniques, yet breath attacks were always direct hits.

“I don’t know what this is, but now’s our chance! Mages, get ready! Let’s hit it with a big attack!!”

There was nothing left for me to do now.

Should I help Yui a bit?

I walked over to Yui, who was in the back of the Mage formation.

“Yui, let’s do some bloodsucking.”

“Umm…? I don’t want to…”

“Do you want to die here, or suck blood?”

“Okay, I’ll do it!!”

Naturally, a Vampire grows stronger through sucking blood.

That’s why even though Yui couldn’t obliterate the Count’s territory, the Vampire Queen Yui could wipe it out.

Squelch.

Yui sank her fangs into my neck.

“Slurp, slurp.”

“Oh~♡”

This was the first time I was sucked like this, and since she sunk her fangs, I expected it to hurt, but surprisingly, it felt nice.

“Hehe… Luke, your blood is quite sweet. With this, I might just keep you as livestock.”

That was Yui’s first line after pulling away from my neck.

Since she was sucking blood, her queenly personality seemed to peek through.

Thwack!

“Ouch!”

So I put her fangs back in again.

“Don’t squirm.”

“U-Understood…”

Yui’s eyes, which were lovingly patting my head with both hands, were no longer the usual brilliant sapphire color, but a blood-red hue like mine.

“Go! Yui-mon!”

“Yes~!”

As Yui spread her arms, blood adorned the air and morph into a large spiky sphere.

Although it looked a bit like a Spirit Bomb.

“The name ‘Spirit Bomb’ feels negative. Let’s call it ‘Giant Spike Ball’ instead.”

“Anything’s fine with me~!”

“Go, Yui! Giant Spike Ball!”

Along with the Mages’ spells, the Giant Spike Ball flew toward the Sea Serpent.

-━━━━━━━!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It felt like it would end soon.

This attack felt like it was well-placed.

I was snacking on some popcorn while hanging on the railing.

-Kiiiaaaaaaaak!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Sea Serpent let out a frantic roar, opening its mouth wide.

“Uh?”

It bit down hard on the railing where I was standing.

“Luke!!”

“Yikes…! Luke!!”

With that, I was swallowed whole by the Sea Serpent.

 

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