8
Chapter 8
Gurgle-
As soon as Parang jumped into the sea, the broadcast screen that was filming the pier naturally switched to her point of view.
And everyone who had been watching the broadcast with almost no expectations couldn't help but be surprised.
"Let me finish the explanation I was giving earlier. The main purpose of today's broadcast is to inform you about the danger of Monster Fish, the giant deep-sea species that have been bizarrely transformed by the influence of underwater Gates."
A steady breath, an appropriate pace, clear pronunciation, a soft voice, and a comfortable volume.
The person who couldn't even give a proper greeting was showing a prime example of 'excellent speaking' as soon as she entered the water.
- Wait, why is she suddenly so good at speaking?
"To show you the danger of the Monster Fish, it's best to face them directly and show you what they are. Today, I'm going to catch Galecus, a Monster Fish you might be familiar with since it caused a huge incident a while ago."
- Galecus? That freaking huge thing?
- She's going to catch that?
- No, how is she even talking underwater in the first place?
- └ She said it was a skill earlier.
Right now, a translucent display device for viewing the chat window was covering her left eye. When she first received it, she put it on and tried to measure Shin Yuna's combat power, but failed.
She could skim the chat window even underwater using the device, and thanks to her superhuman kinetic vision that only manifested in the water, she was able to read all the chats scrolling up at a terrifying speed.
"Yes, that's right. I'm going to catch that freaking huge thing today."
- Wait, do you even know where it is?
"Of course I know where it is. I wouldn't have come down here if I didn't. Oh, by the way, I turned off donation messages, so please don't send any."
Then, she immediately straightened her body vertically, faced downwards, and began to dive at an insane speed.
The depth of the water she was in was detected by radio equipment and displayed on the live broadcast.
200, 260, 300, 350...
The viewers couldn't hide their astonishment at the rapidly changing depth.
On the screen, all kinds of fish, corals, rocks, and unidentified objects were appearing and disappearing at an incredible speed with a swoosh-swoosh-swoosh.
- wtf, is that really a person swimming?
- I think I'm getting seasick.
- Am I the only one who saw what just went past?
- There were thousands of things that just went past, what are you talking about?
30 meters per second. She was diving at a speed of 108 km/h.
And in just 20 seconds, she reached 800m below the sea, the Monster Fish Zone.
The view, which had been full of stones, rocks, and fish, had suddenly transformed into the empty, ultramarine void unique to the Monster Fish Zone.
It was the depth where Yuna had faced Galecus.
"I can find it from here."
- She dives at that speed and says, 'I can find it from here'?
- What kind of broadcasting equipment is she even using? How is she transmitting from 800m underwater while keeping the video quality intact?
- └ Shin Yuna probably made it for her.
- 'S-Class Production Hunter' LOL
- So how is she going to find it?
"I am currently located at the exact coordinates where Yuna saw Galecus. It's a skill called 'Route Setting'."
- What a freaking OP skill.
"Because I've lived at the bottom of the sea for years. Even if I didn't want to, I ended up picking up several skills."
- This is the ocean version of Mapping, wtf.
- Now that you mention it, it really is, crazy.
Mapping. A skill that prevents you from getting lost inside a Dungeon. Just having this skill treats you as high-class personnel.
Parang intended to show off her strength as much as possible.
Considering what her goal was, Parang couldn't afford to be just a 'slightly strong Hunter'.
She had to appear as the absolute strongest in the sea, far surpassing any human, so that people would recognize how strong the sea monsters she caught were.
'Ah, you have to be at least that strong to stand a chance against them,' they would think.
The more she revealed her power, the more the sea would be imprinted as a dangerous place to the people.
However, the reaction in the chat window was still lukewarm.
It was because Galecus couldn't be seen anywhere on the screen.
- But it doesn't seem to be here.
- fr. I can't even see a shadow.
- Why would a fish stay still underwater in the first place LOL. Of course it moved.
As a side note, there are actually fish that stay perfectly still. They even belong to the rather dangerous category.
"Monster Fish as large as Galecus have very long behavioral cycles. It couldn't have gone far, so I can definitely find it."
Parang continued her explanation without resting.
"Galecus amplifies the small amount of light coming from its body with its glassy Scales. And those Scales are quite prone to falling off, so..."
When Parang turned on the light at her belly button with a click, fragments shining brightly as if there were mirror shards underwater could be seen.
"Like this, it sheds its Scales along its trajectory."
The fragments were stretched out long along the path the Monster Fish had moved. It looked like a glowing path, a Shining Road. Hyungnim, this bastard...
"The older Galecus's Scales are from when they fell off, the less effectively they reflect light. Therefore, the Scales over there are the ones that fell off recently."
After finishing her explanation, Parang started swimming at a tremendous speed.
She even encountered a Bellua on the way.
- wtf what was that long thing that just passed wtfwtff
- So I wasn't the only one who saw it, crazy
"Bellua Marina. People commonly call it Bellua. It's the most common and well-known Monster Fish. Not today, but I'll catch one later."
- Everyone is collectively going what-what and she's just like 'I'll catch one later'
- LOL she's so hilarious
And time flowed on. Ta-da, the figure of Galecus could really be seen in the distance.
Just like when Yuna discovered it, it stood alone in the empty void like a skyscraper underwater.
- wtf she actually found a fish in the sea, Shiver
- Wow, but looking at it again, it's freaking pretty
- The vibe is insane, is that a Monster Fish?
"Yes. It's the Monster Fish Galecus. Its size looks to be about 70m... You could say it's the exact same entity that Yuna saw back then."
- How the heck is she supposed to catch that?
- It looks like it wouldn't even bleed if you stabbed it with a spear.
That was something she just needed to prove from now on. Parang didn't bother answering that.
"As I explained on the way, Galecus is a creature that drags its prey 'to its nest' to kill it. As you've seen before, it uses mental attacks, so you have to be careful."
- But why was Yuna mesmerized? There's no way an S-Class wouldn't have a single mental resistance skill.
- fr. No matter if she's a Production Type, if she's S-Class, shouldn't most attacks not work?
"That's because she looked at Galecus directly in the water for a long time. In reality, there was no problem for those of you who watched it through the screen that day. If even one of these conditions isn't met, it's just a pretty fish."
- Then why is the Streamer fine?
Parang stared at the window in front of her eyes.
[Skill, 'Waterproof Sanity', is activating.]
"Because I'm an Undersea Hunter. Since my mental skill only activates underwater, it's incredibly powerful. You can consider me immune to most mental attacks."
An amazing fact. The more terrible a Hunter's skill constraints and activation conditions are, the exponentially stronger the effects become when fulfilled.
The condition that 'it can only be used when the whole body is submerged in water' belonged to the rather tricky side.
'Isn't this a win?'
Of course, Parang's case was a bit different.
Didn't it mean her skills got stronger just by being underwater?
It was a completely different story, but she took it in whatever way favored her.
- If you get dragged to the nest, is there no way to make it out alive?
At some point, talks of the A-Class Artifact began to disappear from the chat window. As it has always been everywhere, the essence of internet broadcasting is 'entertainment'. The viewers found the current situation incredibly interesting and entertaining.
A space they had never been to in their lives, and the monster living there. Just filming and showing it directly was entertaining enough, but wasn't she saying she'd catch that monster herself? They couldn't take their eyes off it.
At that moment, a bolt of lightning struck Parang's mind.
'Isn't this an opportunity to show them how strong I am?'
The faster the decision, the better.
And so, the statement that popped out of Parang's mouth was enough to shock everyone.
"A way to make it out alive after being dragged to the nest... For a normal Hunter, you could consider it death the moment they're mesmerized upon encountering it, and if they're dragged to the nest, they'd already be a corpse."
"However, if you all want it, today we'll take a look around the nest before I hunt it down."
- ?
- ??
- ?
- ?
- Why does the conclusion end up like that?
- ?
- Casting 'Let's just do it' LOL
- What kind of messed up conclusion is that LOL
In an instant, the chat window flipped upside down.
- Wait, aren't you overdoing it? What if something goes wrong;;
Naturally, there were also concerned reactions. Because she was saying she would walk into that monster's nest on her own two feet.
However, perhaps thanks to successfully portraying the image of a 'professional Undersea Hunter' so far, there wasn't much of that public opinion.
That meant they believed in Parang's bold claims that much.
And Parang was a genuine professional Harpoon fisher, fully capable of answering their trust.
"I've actually been inside Galecus's nest a few times already. It was decorated quite nicely, so it was fun to look around."
Only half true. Galecus's nest is completely disgusting. As the tension eased, Parang's mischievousness kicked in.
- Am I the only one who doesn't understand what she's saying right now?
- I understand, but I don't get it.
- I didn't understand, but I get it.
- Is this person even human?
They were right.
Before anyone knew it, Parang had reached right under Galecus's nose.
At this distance, she could hit it by throwing her Harpoon.
"To do that, I need to provoke it first. It would take too long to let Galecus lead me to its nest-"
Parang gripped the Harpoon in her hand, an S-Class Artifact, and took a stance as if she were throwing a javelin.
On the screen, the tip of her Harpoon aiming at Galecus poked out from the corner of the view.
- Wait, you're going to throw it?
She was going to throw it.
"Anchoring."
As she chanted the skill name in that stance, something amazing happened.
From right in front of Parang's eyes all the way to Galecus, the water inside a long, thin cylindrical space disappeared.
"It's the skill, Anchoring. It makes throwing attacks effective even underwater."
- What kind of skill is that?
- You have to be at least this good to be a fisherman.
- That skill is freaking bizarre.
"It's not my skill. It turns out it's built into the Harpoon."
- Wait, a skill is built into the weapon? What kind of Artifact is that?
"Yes. Yuna made it for me."
- It must be S-Class.
- It is S-Class.
- It's totally S-Class.
The reactions were basically, 'I knew it.'
It was a masterpiece that Yuna put her heart and soul into creating. There was no way it wouldn't be overpowered.
And Parang had been asked by Yuna to promote this Harpoon.
"You could call it the underwater version of the ranged Hunters' 'Sure Hit' skill."
- Now that I hear it, you're right.
- No, wtf, she attached Sure Hit to an Artifact?
- What kind of hybrid skill is an underwater Sure Hit, ma'am...
Honestly, Parang didn't really know what Sure Hit was. She just recited her prepared lines. This was where Yuna's foresight shone.
Anyway, the promotion went well, so whatever.
Into the cylindrical space created by Anchoring, Parang threw the Harpoon.
Parang threw a powerful S-Class Artifact underwater, so even with a casual toss, its power was beyond imagination.
The hole in the water, which was clearly only wide enough for an arm, turned into a tunnel as large as a gate when the Harpoon passed through.
Swoosh--!!!
The Harpoon was thrown at a formidable speed.
And the Harpoon, flying in an instant-
Thud!
Lodged deeply straight into Galecus's torso.
Then, the bastard that had stayed still the whole time twitched.
Just as it seemed to move,
It soon began to emit a light several times brighter than before and started twisting its body like crazy.
At that, Parang opened her eyes wide.
"Ah, right."
It was literally going absolutely berserk. Because of that, the surroundings were as bright as if the lights had been turned on, despite being in the deep sea.
"Yuna! Mute the broadcast! Right now!!"
And, 'that thing' began to scream.
----!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A sound like hundreds of people wailing together, the sound of a ship's horn, the sound of wind, the sound of waves.
It sounded as if all those noises had been forcefully mixed together at once. It was so bizarre that even Parang frowned.
The chat window, which had been scrolling up like it was on fire the whole time, temporarily stopped.
"Gasp... gasp... just now... what... was that..."
Yuna, who was in the control tower, panted heavily.
Fortunately, thanks to her swift action, Galecus's cry was only broadcasted for about 0.5 seconds.
Nevertheless, the aftermath was immense.
- wtf was that sound just now
- wtf was that just now
- What is that
- Ah, my freaking ears
'I forgot to tell them in advance.'
If I had known this would happen, no, I did know this would happen. I should have told Yuna in advance.
Galecus will be in that state for the next two minutes.
- No, why is that thing suddenly throwing a fit just from getting hit by one spear?
Hmm, that statement has a bit of room for misunderstanding.
Parang narrowed her eyes slightly.
But she couldn't unmute it just yet, so she put it on hold for now.
And before long,
- Uh-oh
- Where is that bastard going?
- Where is that punk going?
In contrast to how it had been standing straight up the whole time, Galecus started swimming rapidly toward the deep water.
Its swimming method also changed from staying still while standing upright to the swimming style of an ordinary fish.
In other words, it wiggled as it went down.
Only then did Parang make an OK sign with her hand and wave it around in front of her eyes.
Then she retrieved her Harpoon and immediately dived down after Galecus. Befitting an S-Class Artifact, it flew right back into her hand as soon as she stretched out her arm.
In the meantime, Yuna unmuted the broadcast.
"Ah, ah, can you hear me now? I think you might need an explanation for what just happened."
- Yes
- We freaking need it
- wtf happened all of a sudden
"As you can see, Galecus has started to run away, so I'll explain as we follow it."
Then Parang increased her speed even more. She intended to swim right next to Galecus at the same speed.
"First of all, I am heading to Galecus's nest right now. This guy has recognized me as a threat and is running away to its nest."
- So you have to do at least this much to be recognized as a threat by a Monster Fish...
- The way she's talking so calmly while swimming at this speed gives me major cognitive dissonance.
Just as she said, Parang's current depth was steepening rapidly.
"The estimated diving depth is about 2km. That's the depth where these guys usually build their nests."
- wtf, 2km?
- 2km is crazy LOL
- But why is that thing making such a fuss over getting stabbed by a spear once?
- I know, right. With that huge body.
- From afar, it didn't even look like it got hit.
"Ah, I'll explain that to you while showing it directly."
Since she had just caught up to Galecus, Parang slightly slowed down and swam alongside it.
Then, like a curator, she slowly pointed her finger toward the spot where she threw the Harpoon earlier.
"This is the hole I made when I threw the spear earlier. If you look closely here, ah. This might be a little gross."
Then she put her hand into the hole and stretched it out with a pull.
As she did, a white, highly viscous liquid oozed out from the inside.
- wtf is that
- Now the Streamer is starting to scare me more than the Monster Fish.
- └ You noticed fast.
"This flowing liquid right here are Galecus's eggs. Since I stabbed its Egg Chamber accurately, it felt an extreme threat and is running away to its nest. Oh, as for how I distinguished its sex or pregnancy status..."
- I'm seriously getting scared of her. Is she human?
- I'm really sorry for teasing you about stuttering on land earlier...
"And since the goal is to get to the nest, I appropriately adjusted my strength just enough to poke a hole in the Egg Chamber. If it had popped completely, it would have gotten enraged and attacked me."
- So she didn't just throw it randomly.
- She's showing her nasty personality to a fish LOL
- Wait, that throw just now only made a hole this size???
Whether they said that or not, Parang was relaxed. Now she even read the chat directly.
"Someone asked, So what was that sound just now? It's Galecus's unique 'threatening behavior'. When attacked, it distracts the attacker like that and quickly flees to its nest."
Rambling on like that, she also showed its eyes and fins while she was at it, and even plucked a few Scales to keep before opening her mouth again.
"Ah, we've arrived."
Before long, the vague shape of something massive began to appear in their view.
"It's the nest."