Thanks to the intel from Xiao, Parang was well aware of the being occupying this space.
A starfish. It’s arguably the most famous species among the empty-sea creatures.
Its star-shaped, soft appearance is now an indispensable element in the painting of shallow waters.
At first glance, it looks cute, and many keep it as a pet at home.
But what appeared before Parang was the most horrific form a starfish could take.
———…!!!………!!!———
An irregular, chaotic monstrous sound. It was producing bizarre noises that seemed to frequently change in volume, pitch, form, and even quality as it moved.
And Parang’s ears weren’t deceiving him. Countless heads were taking turns making sounds, so it naturally sounded like that.
A three-thousand-legged monster fish, Gorgon.
Okeanos had traveled the world’s oceans, encountering and hunting all sorts of monsters.
Because of that, the topic of “what is the strongest monster fish?” often came up in conversation.
Putting Kraken aside, the debate became too fierce and endless to resolve.
However, everyone seemed to agree on one topic: “what is the ugliest monster fish?”
That would be the Gorgon in front of Parang.
Originally, the creature called a three-thousand-legged fish had five legs, with countless tentacles branching off, hence its name.
And the Gorgon sprouted ‘heads’ instead of tentacles.
And those heads belonged to the creatures it had devoured.
———…!!……—!!———
Five huge legs. From there, countless tentacles branched out and wiggled chaotically like limbs coming off a tree.
At the ends of those tentacles were the heads of Bellua, Galecus, Makula, and thousands of other monsters, moving uncontrollably.
It looked like a tree with heads sprouting from it.
From above, it resembled a massive tumor sprouting from the ground.
A single largest leg stretching directly from its body, measuring 150m.
Just like with Tubuka, the size of starfish-type monsters is measured by the length of their ‘largest leg’ rather than their body length.
Considering the original species has an approximate size of 8cm, this is grotesquely enlarged.
With such size, it’s only natural that the heads sprouting from its legs are proportionate to the original size.
For now, Parang hid his body. There was something Xiao had asked him to check.
“I couldn’t see it clearly because the connection with the skull was severed upon approach.”
That information was definitely not something to dismiss.
“There was a leg that resembled a human face.”
If he called forth Kraken now, it would start running away immediately. He wouldn’t have the luxury to observe leisurely.
Parang hid behind a nearby pillar and began inspecting the outstretched legs one by one.
Some were familiar, while others were unknown.
But the thing Parang was looking for wasn’t showing up.
After all, the Gorgon is the apex predator of the monster fish ecosystem. With the tyrant ruling freely in this enclosed ecosystem, it had no reason to be cautious. It was comfortably stretching itself out.
Thanks to that, Parang was able to carefully observe each leg.
During this, a red anglerfish monster gradually approached nearby.
With its massive mouth wide open, it displayed its fearsome teeth.
That one tooth is about 10m long.
And as it got closer to the Gorgon,
WHOOSH!!
A single enormous leg shot forth at terrifying speed, ensnaring the anglerfish.
———!!!!
Only then did it realize it was facing the Gorgon and began to struggle to escape, but it was too late.
The chaotic heads that had been swaying now turned abruptly to look at the anglerfish.
And just like that, the anglerfish’s struggles seemed to freeze as if it had hit pause.
Petrification. It’s too excessive a power for a living creature.
The faces attached to the legs dug into the anglerfish, each sucking its blood.
They had to get their crumbs before delivering the meal to the main body, after all.
Some time passed, and the anglerfish, with various holes all over its body, was finally released from the heads.
It looked like a sponge.
Then, the Gorgon’s massive legs started to slowly curl inward.
Unlike typical starfish, the Gorgon lived with its mouth facing upwards.
An oval-shaped hole, much like a squid’s mouth, opened wide.
As the curled leg brought the anglerfish closer,
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GULP!! CRUNCH!!
It began to chew the anglerfish. Flesh, fins, teeth, and bones all got mashed up.
The anglerfish, being sucked in like it was in a shredder, soon vanished from sight.
Eventually, from the leg that had just captured the anglerfish,
CRACK!! CRUNCH!!
The sound of something being crushed, like an insect being stepped on, rang out,
———!!………
The head of the anglerfish, which had just been consumed, sprouted through the skin.
Like a plant stem breaking through the soil.
What had now become a Gorgon swayed with other heads.
And at that moment, Parang finished his observation.
He had found what he was looking for.
……!!
A human face, clearly in agony, was extending from the Gorgon’s leg.
The beautiful platinum hair, thanks to the Gorgon’s movements, was now thin in patches, and while it had a sleek, beautiful face, the features had already been grotesquely crushed.
From the state of things, it appeared they had been consumed by the Gorgon at least three weeks ago.
If it had been intact, Parang would have tried to identify the person, but under these circumstances, what could he do?
Luckily, it didn’t seem completely crushed yet.
If he just cleanly cut off the head and handed the skull to Xiao, he would be able to not only identify but also view the person’s memories from their past.
For humanitarian reasons, he would rather not go that far.
After making his judgment, Parang moved swiftly.
……———!!!
Parang observed the Gorgon cautiously. If it weren’t for that head, he could summon Kraken and swallow the whole thing immediately,
But the Gorgon was fast. When it needed to catch prey or run away — meaning when it was required to move quickly, it didn’t think about anything behind it.
The many heads on its legs violently thrashed without caring if they got crushed or not, slamming into the ground.
If he triggered it and a head got crushed, it would be a disaster.
Parang took a moment to ponder.
Hmm, perhaps a surprise attack is the only way.
Parang distanced himself from the Gorgon and zipped back through the cave to reach the leg that held the problematic head.
More specifically, he hid behind a pillar right in front of that leg.
He carefully poked his head out. As he feared, the target head could be seen not far away.
Taking a deep breath,
BUBBLE!
He shot forth like a bullet, leaving only a small sound of bubbles behind.
WHOOSH!!
Immediately, all of the Gorgon’s heads turned to Parang.
As expected. If their heads are turning around now, it would delay their reaction time, which is beneficial for Parang.
Petrification?
[Skill, ‘Unsinkable Ship’ is currently active.]
Such a ridiculous debuff had no effect on Parang.
In fact, it wasn’t ridiculous at all. Among Okeanos, only Parang and Diego were completely immune to petrification.
Others may not be fully paralyzed, but they would still experience significant sluggishness.
Why did Diego give up? Because he simply didn’t want to face the Gorgon. Even if he picked up an artifact, he wouldn’t be able to use it properly. Artifacts aren’t compatible with enlargements.
That’s why upon hearing ‘Gorgon,’ everyone in Okeanos except Parang opted out immediately.
WHOOSH—AAAAH–!!
Parang’s harpoon swiftly sliced through the targeted head.
As soon as he cut it off, chunks of flesh started falling away from the bone, suggesting it had already started to decay from the inside.
He was swimming at an unreal speed and, being underwater, it only amplified that.
After all, biting through a monster’s shell with human teeth isn’t really possible, so naturally, it had been deprived of its nutrients. The more he thought about it, the more tragic the ending seemed.
And so, Parang became enraged.
That disgusting fish dared to do such a thing to a human. While it was eating, it could have made a fuss among its fellow monsters instead.
Of course, upon reflection, it would only be right to question how a human got here in the first place. But either way, Parang was human, which is probably where it mattered.
Seeing a human suffer so terribly right in front of his eyes stirred an instinctive feeling of rage in him.
And it’s not like he couldn’t find out how they got here if he focused his mind on it.
What mattered now was that damned starfish monster.
“…Kraken.”
Parang summoned Kraken while holding up the now skull-only head.
With a fierce expression reminiscent of a demonic slaughter, its unique vertical pupils overlapped, vividly revealing rage across its entire face.
———!!!……!!!———!!……!!!
And just like that, the battle concluded. With Kraken’s arrival, the Gorgon, which had been shrieking in panic, was captured by the tentacles and ripped into five pieces.
Blood, chunks of flesh, bones, and half-digested bits of meat flew everywhere.
Before long, the Gorgon would transform into a Kraken and disappear into some unknown abyss, leaving only Parang and the skull behind.
Its teeth were all ground down, leaving no intact remnants. Parang struggled again with his rising emotions.
Fortunately, excluding that, the preservation state was relatively decent. Parang took a moment to pray for the soul and began to examine the cave thoroughly to retrieve the artifacts.
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