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HEL SCANS
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Chapter 173: Voyage (4)
Boom!
The sea erupted.
The ship swayed from the impact, more intense than when the harpoon was thrown.
The sailors were tossed aside.
The ship teetered on the brink of capsizing but managed to regain its balance.
“No, no way.”
Valkran looked at the erupting sea in disbelief.
A simple punch had made the ship sway like that.
What kind of monstrous strength was this?
Rumble…
The sea settled.
Ketal, having returned to the ship, looked down below the railing and murmured.
“It’s gone.”
“Did we take it down?”
“No. It ran away. It’s quite sturdy.”
He had adjusted his strength considering the proximity to the ship.
The underwater impact had also weakened the force.
But even considering that, it was a powerful strike.
A blow that could have ruptured the innards of a large whale, yet the monkey had managed to escape.
Fear slowly crept onto the faces of the sailors, who had just begun to calm down.
A giant monkey had been holding onto the ship from below.
It was incomprehensible, and they didn’t want to understand it.
The sailors moaned as if they had experienced a nightmare.
Aquaz looked at the sea and muttered.
“Something like that was ruling the seas around here.”
A lifeform they had never seen before.
“…It’s tough.”
The attacks from Aquaz and Baker hadn’t even pierced its hide.
They hadn’t been able to exert full force due to the urgency of the situation, but even so, it was incredibly tough.
And it had completely bypassed their detection.
Baker murmured in disbelief.
“How can a creature like that exist?”
A being beyond the scope of their understanding.
That was the true nature of the forbidden land.
Valkran gritted his teeth and regained his composure.
“We need to repair the ship first. Water is coming in from the bottom.”
Though they had driven the monkey away, the bottom of the ship was torn open, and water was flooding in.
At this rate, they would sink.
The sailors, belatedly realizing this, scrambled to move.
“Sorry, but it looks like we don’t have time for that.”
Ketal was staring blankly at the sea in the distance.
“It’s not over yet.”
“What?”
They realized it belatedly too.
The sea in the distance was parting.
Three monkeys were approaching them.
Their faces turned pale.
“It’s not just one?”
The monkeys were not individuals but a group.
Three monkeys were closing in fast.
The sailors let out cries of despair.
One was dangerous enough, but with three attacking, the ship wouldn’t stand a chance.
The only fortunate thing was that, unlike before, they weren’t sneaking up on them.
They had time to respond.
Aquaz quickly raised her hand towards the sky.
“Material, Chapter 1, Verse 1. Behold the birth of the radiant golden realm!”
Wheeeng!
A golden light enveloped the ship.
It was a divine barrier, the shield of the god that had withstood the devil’s attack when facing Ashetiar.
The monkeys collided with the shield.
Boom!
The shield trembled.
The monkeys ferociously pummeled it from underwater.
Cracks began to spread across the shield.
Aquaz’s eyes widened.
“How dare you strike the shield of a god!”
Even if they had a natural advantage, Ashetiar hadn’t managed to breach it, and had targeted her directly!
But it was still the shield of a god.
Though cracks spread, it held firm, protecting the ship.
It bought Baker enough time to prepare his magic.
[Oh stars beyond, I open this space so your realm may manifest here! Rain of rocks! Descend upon this place!]
A space opened.
From a distant, hot, and solid star, a rain of rocks was summoned.
They all aimed at the monkeys.
Boom!
The sea shook violently.
The magic cast by a magician with a full incantation had immense power.
“Whoa!”
The sailors cheered at the powerful display.
No matter how formidable the monkeys were, they couldn’t have emerged unscathed.
But Baker’s face was filled with disbelief.
“This is impossible!”
As the power subsided, the monkeys reappeared.
They had only minor scratches on their bodies.
That was all.
The full-force magic of a magician had only managed to inflict slight wounds on the monkeys.
Instead, it seemed to have enraged them, as they began to wail.
[Screeeeech!]
Their cries reverberated underwater, shaking the sea.
Boom!
The monkeys pounded on the shield fiercely.
The cracks on the shield grew larger and larger.
Ketal’s expression turned grim.
“This is troublesome.”
“Ketal, can you drive away the monkeys?”
Aquaz hastily looked at Ketal.
If Ketal, who had driven away one monkey with a single strike, could handle three, there should be no problem.
But Ketal shook his head.
“I can do it, but the ship will capsize.”
Even when facing one monkey, the ship nearly overturned.
With three, even if he succeeded in driving them away, the ship would likely capsize.
“We might survive, but the crew will die.”
“But—”
“Moreover, even if we drive them away, it won’t solve the problem.”
“…What?”
Aquaz looked in the direction Ketal was staring.
Her face turned pale.
“No, it can’t be…”
“It was a cry to call their kind.”
From beyond the sea, dozens of figures were approaching.
They were all monkeys.
The crew couldn’t even scream anymore.
“Hmm.”
Ketal pondered for a moment before looking at Valkran.
“For a ship this large, there should be an emergency escape boat.”
The ship they were on was very large.
Traditionally, in case of emergency, an escape boat would be prepared.
“There is.”
Valkran nodded promptly.
“It’s below the deck.”
“Then lead the way. Aquaz, hold them off a little longer.”
“Understood.”
Ketal followed Valkran below the deck.
Descending quickly, they found a large boat in a spacious storeroom.
“This is it.”
“It’s quite large. Enough for everyone.”
“But how do you plan to use this? Even if we sneak away, we’ll be discovered quickly.”
This sea was within the monkeys’ territory.
Even if they launched a small boat to escape, they would be discovered quickly.
“I have a plan. But we need to carry this up.”
Ketal clenched his fist as he contemplated for a moment.
“The situation has come to this, so breaking things doesn’t matter.”
Ketal swung his fist, not towards the sea, but towards the sky.
* * *
[Screeeeech!]
Aquaz gritted her teeth and strengthened the shield.
Crrrkk. Crack.
But the cracks continued to spread.
The monkeys clinging on kept pounding, and it was reaching its limit.
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Just when she was wondering how much longer she needed to hold on, the bottom of the ship broke.
Crash!
“Ketal?”
Ketal came up from the broken floor, carrying a small boat.
“Sorry. It took some time.”
“No, it’s fine. But we’re at our limit. What are you planning to do?”
“Everyone, get on this boat.”
“Yes!”
The crew hurriedly ran over and boarded the escape boat.
It wasn’t very large, but it was enough for all the crew members.
“Aquaz, you come too.”
“Yes!”
Aquaz boarded the boat.
At the same time, the shield shattered.
Crash!
Crunch. Crack.
A terrifying sound came from beneath the ship.
The crew realized the monkeys were devouring the ship.
Baker trembled and asked,
“What do you plan to do with this?”
“If we go through the sea, we’ll be discovered quickly. So, we’ll fly.”
“Huh?”
“Hold on tight to the boat if you don’t want to become ghosts.”
“…!”
The crew, realizing the meaning of his words belatedly, hurriedly grabbed the boat and tied themselves with ropes.
Ketal held the boat and kicked off.
Boom!
“Whoaaaa!”
The boat flew into the sky.
Ketal, holding the boat, jumped with force.
But it wasn’t an ordinary jump.
In an instant, the boat soared high into the sky.
Unable to withstand the force, the ship split in half and sank.
Looking down at the sea while holding onto the boat, Valkran swallowed his breath.
Dozens of monkeys gathered around the ship, tearing apart the deck and stuffing it into their mouths.
The boat, which had soared high into the sky, began to descend slowly.
“Baker.”
“Huh, yes?”
Baker, who was staring blankly at the sea below, turned his head.
“I can’t make a safe landing. So, I’m counting on you.”
“…Open up! Empty space between the stars!”
Baker, startled, began chanting a spell.
Just before the boat collided with the sea, an empty space manifested below it.
Woooong!
“Whoaa!”
“Eek!”
The boat shook, but it rested on the empty space without breaking apart.
After a moment, the mana dissipated.
Sploosh.
With a small splash, the boat landed on the sea.
Ketal smiled in satisfaction.
“We did it.”
“No way…”
‘He could have told me beforehand.’
Baker looked at Ketal with an aggrieved expression.
“Well done, Baker. It was perfect timing.”
“R-really?”
However, Baker’s aggrieved expression quickly disappeared, replaced by a slight smile at Ketal’s praise.
The crew, realizing they had survived, collapsed in relief.
“We… we’re alive…”
“What on earth just happened…”
They were too exhausted to speak for a moment.
After a few minutes, Valkran managed to pull himself together.
“Where are we?”
“I don’t know. I just aimed for the direction of the mermaid city.”
“…I can’t see anything.”
Valkran murmured, looking dismayed.
Their ship was nowhere in sight.
They had flown out of visible range with a single jump.
The power was hard to comprehend.
“I understand why we couldn’t see the ship’s wreckage.”
It was because the monkeys had devoured it completely.
“But… what do we do now?”
“Uh…”
“Can we navigate?”
“There’s nothing to get our bearings. The compass… seems to have been lost during the jump.”
“…What about provisions?”
“Do you think there are any?”
No provisions.
No way to determine their coordinates.
Essentially, they were adrift on the open sea in a small boat.
They had survived, but now faced another problem.
The crew began to panic.
Valkran gave a helpless laugh.
“We’ll have to fish, I guess.”
“No. I don’t think that will be necessary.”
Ketal spoke up.
“Our host has come to find us.”
“What?”
“…You mean the monkeys?”
Had they come here to capture them as well?
The crew was about to panic when Ketal shook his head.
“Not the monkeys.”
The rightful inhabitants of this area, those who were here before the monkeys, had come.
Plop.
A small splash sounded next to the boat.
From beneath the sea, a woman emerged.
“…I was told the sea, which should remain silent, had become noisy because of those creatures. It seems dear guests have arrived. I’m curious how you managed to come here on this small boat.”
The woman revealed her half-naked upper body.
Her legs were those of a fish.
Ketal smiled.
His heart was racing.
“Nice to meet you.”
“Welcome, humans.”
The woman greeted them softly.
“I am a survivor from the city occupied by the monkeys. I am called merow. You may know us as mermaids.”
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