It all began on a stormy sea.
The rumor that a countless number of people were swallowed by the storm while trying to cross the sea reached even my ears after I stepped down from being a saintess, and I headed directly to the sea to see this so-called disaster of the sea.
Moving islands, gatherers of spirits, graveyards of ships…
Numerous adjectives amplified the fear and terror of the sea, but when I actually met it, it was quite different from the rumors.
“The problem is them trying to enter my territory. Why discuss this with me?”
Logic.
“I sent them back. Those insignificant little creatures to their land. The fools who crossed the line simply died.”
Judgment.
“I can send those who are with you back. But don’t even dream of letting the insignificant ones enter.”
Coercion.
Back then, I hadn’t had much experience yet, but I was still quite competent.
In truth, most of those missing who had entered the Kraken’s sea were either drifting skinny nearby islands or in completely different places.
Surely, those who met their deaths were only the ones who forcibly tried to cross the sea through the storm.
Compared to other monsters that burned down unrelated villages or kingdoms just because they felt like it, it was definitely the better option.
Of course, since 90% of monsters are trash, it might not be surprising if they appeared a bit more angelic.
“Is that so?”
“Yes. So don’t tire yourself out and go. It’s pointless.”
“I think differently.”
“What?”
“Please open up a sea route apart from this one. Just the established route, not everything. I’ll understand anything else.”
“…Nonsense. Why should I do that?”
The Kraken refused, and I pulled out my hammer.
After an intense battle, he eventually opened the way, and people could travel to the continent via the established sea route.
Occasionally, there were those who met their death by going to other places that weren’t the original route, but it was unavoidable.
The world is filled with chaos and death, and if you insist on moving while ignoring warnings, from then on, it’s no one’s responsibility.
Self-overcoming is the only way.
Thus, for several years, people traveled the sea without danger.
“Until the Kraken dies.”
■
After the Kraken died, many things changed.
The safely maintained sea route encountered more dangers than usual, and the other sea monsters that had been suppressed by the Kraken took over the ocean.
“Lady Lily?”
In the end, the Kraken, called the disaster of the sea, was, at the same time, a guardian of the sea.
Of course, being more of a disaster than a guardian meant he could be called the unlucky Pharaoh…
The Unlucky Pharaoh is closer to disaster…
“Lady Lily!”
“Ah, Miss Yena.”
I woke from my reverie at Yena’s sharp call.
Weuwung…
With a slightly dissatisfied meow, Yena landed in front of me with cat-like agility.
The next day, we were moving quickly to prepare for the return broadcast and the second raid.
Since the alliance was in a brief lull, we were getting ready in the Eli Academy lecture hall instead of the alliance’s usual place.
“I’ve been calling you for a while. What are you thinking about?”
“I was just reminiscing for a moment.”
“Reminiscing?”
“Yes.”
Took.
I created a model of the Kraken out of mana and placed it on the table.
The model was small enough to hold in one hand.
With twelve legs and six eyes, the purple-bodied Kraken was glaring fiercely at Yena.
Yena’s sharp claws poked the Kraken model lightly.
“It looks cute like this…”
“The Kraken was my opponent. We fought dozens, hundreds of times.”
“…Huh?”
Yena looked up at me as if she hadn’t heard properly.
“No matter how many times we fought, it was fierce enough to maintain a win rate of fifty percent, but in the end, I didn’t get to see the conclusion of our battle before it disappeared.”
“…Oh. Is that about the alien days…?”
“Yes.”
“Aha…”
Yena nodded her head.
She had known before that I wasn’t an ordinary user, but now she had learned more about me since becoming a Cat Beastman under Myeosin’s teachings.
Of course, she didn’t know exactly what my identity was, but she was well aware that I wasn’t from this world.
“…But. Your win rate is fifty-fifty against Lady Lily? Is the Kraken really that strong?”
“Of course. It was a time when I was still growing, but looking at it now, it seems to have gotten even stronger.”
“So how do you catch it? If Lady Lily can’t…”
“There are ways.”
I may have lost my power, and the Kraken may have gained strength, but there is a ‘System’ here.
As long as the System classifies the Kraken as a ‘Disaster,’ numerous constraints will suppress it.
“If we continue as we are, we can catch it. Of course, that assumes everyone is working together.”
“But it seems the Lord Sword Saint is off on his own.”
“That is a problem.”
No matter how much we destroy its eyes and push our limits, ultimately, all six owners must gather.
Yet, one of the top-ranked owners hasn’t even shown up, and the whereabouts of another one are unknown…
Things have started off quite tangled.
“So, what do we do then…?”
“If we have no teeth, we’ll have to use our gums. Smash and break as much as we can.”
“If we don’t have anything, we’ll just have to use our gums. We’ll break as much as we can.”
“If we break all the eyes, it might somehow be possible.”
“Of course, the Kraken isn’t a beast, so it won’t fall for the same trick twice, but it’s definitely worth a try.”
“Are we all set?”
“Meow! All set!”
“Great.”
“Hehe.”
After checking countless maps drawn behind, I set up the camera floating in the air.
Yena, looking cheerful, was also setting up while humming, but suddenly realized how she was acting and covered her mouth with her hand, saying, “Hot!”
“…But.”
“?”
“Didn’t you say the Kraken disappeared earlier?”
“That was the case.”
“Why did it disappear? Just like that, without a reason?”
“Because it died.”
A silence fell within the lecture hall.
“…What?”
“It died. By someone else.”
The Kraken was torn to pieces by the Upper Celestial Race.
And now, that Kraken is trying to destroy the world.
■
[Lilha~]
[Lilha]
[rlhrhlhrhlhrhlh]
[Oh]
[Yena Land!!!]
[Let’s go to the return broadcast~ Let’s go to the return broadcast~ Let’s go to the return broadcast~]
[Yena Resurrection!]
[What are we doing today?]
[Shall we raid?]
[Where did the Sword Saint go, ah lol]
[The Alliance seems to be in chaos]
[Oh, lecture hall]
[Is it a joint broadcast today?]
[Meow meow meow]
“Lilha~”
“Hello?! Did you wait, brothers?”
As Yena pops out, her ears perked up.
With the chat exploding at her appearance, Yena laughs joyfully and sits down.
She sits as if she’s attending a lecture.
I directed everyone’s attention to the many maps and materials arranged behind me.
“Today, we’ve turned on the broadcast to talk about Miss Yena’s return and the upcoming raid. I’m sure you all have many questions?”
“That’s right.”
[Oh]
[I was curious about this]
[That’s right lol]
[Meow meow Yena is cute meow]
“First off, looking at the situation… two of the eyes are destroyed. The deadlines for each are 3 days and 5 days.”
Out of the 6 eyes of the Kraken model placed on the table, 2 of them are marked with an X.
“The Kraken’s eyes, being a light source and possessing the power of focus, must be destroyed unavoidably.”
Swish swish.
I mark all the eyes of the miniature with an X.
“Therefore, at the very least, the second raid must start again before 3 days pass, or at the latest within 5 days.”
“We need to hurry up…”
[Meow meow]
“We don’t need a lot of people. As you experienced in the first raid, having many members in front of a disaster is rather a detriment.”
“You’ve experienced it too; in the face of disaster, many people are actually a poison.”
“At least, someone who can take care of myself or minimize the damage.”
“That’s about the limit.”
“They say that even as we speak, duplicates are appearing. For those with weaker powers, dealing with duplicates might yield more benefits than facing the main body.”
“Right… so weak people coming here is a loss…”
Gorong… Yena rests her chin on the desk.
This isn’t something Yena would usually do, but it seemed completely natural for her.
[If you die, it’s a loss, lol]
[For real, lol]
[They say about 60-70 of the floating ships have been destroyed]
[Newbies, please stick to your role;;]
[Hahahahahaha]
[I had a feeling when Lily didn’t listen and went ahead]
[Big Lily]
[Yena is cute]
“If we look at this map, these are the locations where the owners of the bracelets found them. Each is different.”
“All the directions are different?”
“Yes, as you can see…”
Me, Heavenly Horse, Black, Magician, Sword Saint.
They are located in the highlands of the continent or elevated areas near the islands.
The peculiar thing is that they are not all gathered in one place; they’re all spread out.
“We’ve found almost all of the continent, so I recommend looking outside the continent as well. I found my bracelet on an island not on the continent.”
“Shall I look too?”
“That would be great.”
It would be nice to find it within three days, but it won’t be easy.
More importantly, there is something most crucial.
“And the most important thing is the spirits…”
“Spirit King! By the way, it’s been absent.”
The dupes of Kraken always accompanied the Water Spirit.
Thus, it was trickier to deal with than a typical Kraken, yet there were no spirits around the main body.
“That’s the strange part. The absence of not just the Spirit King but even the Lower Spirits.”
Even Naphras, who was holed up in the forest, or Naiad, who rampaged through the sea, ultimately could not be found.
Seeing that spiritual harmonization is maintained, it’s clear that the existence of the Spirit King itself is certain.
But where on earth could it have gone?
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