Episode 482: Downtown Naval Warfare (4)

Who says that the first life came from the sea?

In this worldview dominated by creationism by God, few would agree with the above proposition.

However, many people agree with the statement that the last life perishes in the sea.

…kwakwang!

The final battle against the demon began with a naval battle.

The black swirling sea, the storm blowing like crazy, the pillars of fire rising up as they break the sea surface, and the monsters of the deep sea baring their teeth.

Don Quixote’s Invincible Armada and the Tochka Alliance are engaged in an all-out war against the demon’s minions.

The location is the highest center of the empire, the ‘Empire Capital’.

The city, once a gathering place for all cultures and fashions, where the richest and most sophisticated walked with graceful strides, was now in the midst of a fierce naval battle with tidal waves, winds, and torrential rains.

And in the midst of all this great chaos, there was one great chaos, the biggest, heaviest, and most vast of all.

A monster that appears most often in sailors’ epics.

A terror that no one has ever seen, but everyone has heard of.

An unknown being that can pull an island into the deep sea with each of its eight legs.

<Kraken>

Danger Rating: S+

Size: ?

Found in the deepest part of the Lower Sea

-Also known as the “Great King of the Deep Sea” or “Antagonist of Nouvelle Vague.”

One of the two monsters born with light and darkness at the creation of the world.

It is by far the best among the various strange creatures that frequently appear in sailors’ epics.

It lies alone at the bottom of the ocean floor, too cold and dark for anything to live, but once it begins to move, it changes the landscape of the six oceans.

No one knows why this terrifying creature, which belongs in the depths of hell, is living in the oceans of the human realm.

Huge and round, its head resembles a rocky island from a distance, with countless attached oysters, barnacles, and seaweed.

Eight tentacles, each one a tributary of a mountain range.

Two enormous, circular eyeballs burn a fiery yellow as they feed on the darkness of the great deep.

Kraken.

One of the two monstrous creatures that resulted from the separation of darkness and light in the creation of the world.

A great king who rules the entire deep sea.

Another name for the kraken is ‘the Antagonist of Nouvelle Vague’.

eudeug-

Orca gritted his teeth.

kwakwakwakwang!

He swung his club with all his might, meeting the Kraken’s tentacles as they fell toward the ship.

Not even the mightiest Orca could fully defend against the Kraken’s tentacles.

Even the barrage of artillery from the Knights of Usher pales in comparison to the Kraken’s overwhelming size and defense.

How long had it been deposited over time?

The Kraken charged, tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of layers of armor of oyster shells, barnacles, and coral shells encasing its entire body.

peopeopeopeong!

A hole opened up in the Usher family’s fire net, and countless monsters began to pour in.

As they tore through the netting of the bombardment, they tore holes in the ship’s sole or clung to the railings to pull themselves up onto the deck.

Several ships in the Invincible Armada were already showing signs of sinking.

But the Allies were no slouches either.

D’Ordume, Souare, BDISSEM, and Flubber stepped forward.

“Leave it to us. That’s a demon of the deep who used to raid our Nouvelle Vague regularly, and he owes us a debt of gratitude.”

“We’ve fought him a few times before. See that scar over his eyeball? I made it for him about ten years ago.”

“My God, I never thought I’d see you here again.”

[……! ……! ……!]

D’Ordume created a whirlwind of strikes and began scraping the oyster shells and barnacles off the Kraken’s body.

Waggigigigigig-

The thick, carapace-like armor of the Kraken’s body, seemingly made of time itself, is sliced away by the axe blade.

The living ones shattered with a burst of fluid, and the dead corals beneath them crumbled lightly.

Souare, too, drew on her dwarven strength.

She lifted the skyscrapers from the bottom of the Imperial Capital, now a sea, and stabbed the Kraken at the base of its body with a spear of earth and stone.

peopeopeopeopeog!

The Kraken let out a dull roar beneath the water.

BDISSEM took advantage, wrapping countless chains of seaweed around the Kraken’s body.

Flubber, too, spread out, covering and dissolving parts of the Kraken’s body.

o-ooooo-

The sound of a boat horn coming from under the sea.

This must be the roar of the Kraken in pain.

The water boiled over, and an earthquake began to rage.

…peoeog!

Vikir sliced through one of the tentacles falling toward the ship with a single blow.

Black blood splashed, leaving a cold, sickly taste in his mouth.

Just then.

“My friend, now!”

Tudor shouted from behind him.

Vikir turned his head to see a ship, driven by Tudor himself.

A ship with a large, pointed spear at its head was charging furiously towards the Kraken.

kwakwang!

Tudor’s small fleet had managed to sever one of the Kraken’s tentacles.

It was a feat not even the mighty Orca or Sade could accomplish.

Tudor turned to Vikir and shouted.

“We’ll take care of this gatekeeper on our own lines, you go forward!”

“…….”

Vikir watched Tudor’s face as he did so.

He’d been a mere little chick when they’d met at the Academy, but he’d risen to hero status in recent years.

Seeing him now commanding so many ships against the Kraken made him realize that he no longer needed to worry.

With a little more time, he could be as great a hero as Tudor was before his regression, or even greater.

For in this life, he survived, not died.

And Sancho and Bianca’s presence alongside Tudor only strengthened Vikir’s conviction.

“Vikir, I need you to follow me!”

“You said there’s no time! We’ll do something about it!”

Finally, Tudor closed the conversation with a tremendous shout.

“My friend! Go and become a myth!”

At the same time, the Invincible Armada and the Kraken engage in another ferocious battle.

The sky and the waters are turned upside down in a frenzy of thunder and fire, tidal waves, and earthquakes.

Morg’s magic, Quovadis’ holy shields, and Bourgeois’ supplies continue to burst forth.

The hounds of Baskerville were also tearing at the Kraken’s massive body with all their might.

Soon, Vikir is in a small carved boat.

He plans to sneak through the gap in the Kraken’s line of sight and march on the palace.

Then.

chwa-ag!

The Kraken’s body suddenly flipped over.

One of its giant eyeballs turned toward Vikir.

In addition to its two visible eyeballs, the Kraken had hidden a third giant eyeball in its tail!

kugugugugugugu-

Then, eight legs stepped back from the front and faced Vikir.

The severed and charred legs swung wildly at Vikir, aiming for him as they were.

“……!”

Vikir gritted his teeth and drew his sword.

kwakwakwakwakwakwakwang!

The surface of the water behind Vikir shattered with a loud crash.

Octagon(八脚). Eight legs.

Eight gigantic legs jutted out from the sea floor, blocking the Kraken’s tentacles.

[Kaaaah!]

Baby Madame. How had she gotten this far?

Leaving her children behind, she followed Vikir alone, and, stepping over the Clock Tower of the Imperial Capital, where they had once glided together, she drew out her eight legs.

peopeopeopeopeopeog!

As soon as she emerges from the water, she stamps down on the Kraken’s legs.

The Kraken was very surprised to see another creature as large as him, let alone the venom spreading through his body.

Suddenly, as he struggled with the Madam, another barrage of Allied artillery began to rain down on his back.

Oo-oooooo!

The Kraken was forced to turn around again.

Naturally, Vikir was out of the way.

“……Thank you.”

The first words out of Vikir’s mouth were his first acknowledgment of indebtedness.

His friends, who would have been jumping around in joy if they had heard those words, didn’t actually hear them.

Next thing you know, Vikir’s boat is racing furiously downwind, fueled by the southeast wind.

The wind was strong enough to snap the masts, and the small craft sped along at the speed of an arrow.

And then.

kung!

Vikir’s boat, riding the high waves, crashed into the solid steps and shattered.

Vikir leaped onto the deck and landed on the steps before the boat broke apart.

A golden staircase so high it seemed to reach the sky.

Though it had been flooded by the sea halfway up, it still stood tall and majestic.

Above it was an imperial castle that was usually hidden by clouds and was not visible.

teog-

Vikir stepped onto the stairs leading to the imperial palace.

…Drrrr!

The sound of a coffin being dragged on chains.

Vikir climbed the stairs, dragging a coffin.

……And Kirko, seeing Vikir’s backside shrinking in the distance, scratched his head in desperation.

“What is that coffin? Who’s inside?”

“Come to think of it, I think he’s been carrying that coffin since he came out of Tochka.”

It was Sinclair who answered the question.

Dolores spoke up in a tone that suggested she was puzzled as well.

“I was wondering the same thing last night.”

“Mmm. Me, too. So he said it’s the souls of all his dead comrades?”

Aiyen nodded in agreement.

Then, for the last time, Camus’ eyes narrowed.

“Hmmm. I have a bad feeling about this.”

If a great mage of Camus’ caliber had a bad feeling, it was a bad one.

Aiyen, Dolores, Sinclair, and Kirko’s gazes were demanding to know why.

Finally, Camus opened her mouth to answer their questions.

“…… I guess it’s my feelings as a woman?”