Cannon in Hand: Shattering the Deadlock
The Reason He Held the Cannon - Classic of Mountains and Seas Demonic Beast 5
📍 'Yamal' are this island's second-top predators. You've disrupted the ecosystem as an intruder, driving them out into the open.
📍 Defeat them in battle to claim this place as your domain.
🎁 Conditions: Assaults begin at night. No safe zone access during assaults. Eliminate all Yamal (1/4).
🎁 Reward: Ally 'Hendrick''s activity radius expands to the forest path entrance.
And the second reason the quest was dragging on was this:
"No, weren't these fuckers supposed to be brainless? Why the hell are they suddenly acting up like this?"
The sub-quest monsters were starting to test the waters.
Assaults, my ass? Up until now, the monsters invading for the "block the entrance" sub-quest theme had all charged at me mindlessly, hell-bent on eating me alive.
At first, their numbers and momentum had me spooked, but once I got used to it and upgraded my weapons, it felt like fun target practice on moving dummies.
Poke.
Like they were dead set on never taking a hit, the monsters were plastered behind massive tree trunks, peeking out just enough to watch this spot.
Of course, they hadn't started like that from the beginning. When the previous wave rushed in, I'd fired the Sage Cannon I'd mounted on the beach, and the iron shot smashed straight into one, pulverizing it so bad not even a shape remained—right next to its buddy.
Watching that, they must've instinctively realized it.
Charge in like that, and you'd end up just like the first guy.
Unlike small, unassuming guns, the cannon was huge with insane range, so the impact must've hit hard.
That led to this standoff: "Come at me" vs. "Nah, pass?"—a battle of wills stretching into a endless deadlock.
But ignoring them to do my own thing? No way that'd work.
If I even slightly turned my head to play it cool, they'd sneak peeks, then slowly close the distance.
Stare back, and they'd freak, bolting to their spots. This had happened dozens—no, hundreds—of times already.
"What the fuck? This ain't red light, green light. What're they even playing at?"
It was enough to make his outfit burst at the seams.
[This is a first for me too. Kinda thrown off here.]
Hendrick squinted as he scanned the beasts' movements too.
Then he eyed the shooting range they'd painstakingly cleared.
[Those hides look too thick for the Winner Cannon to scratch. But closing distance to reset the range? They'd bolt, and that's game over.]
Artillery work, east or west, ancient or modern, always starts and ends with hammer and pickaxe swings.
Unlike guns, mid-sized cannons have recoil and backblast on another level when fired.
"Ha, what the hell do I do now?"
Pulling an all-nighter in this staring contest left him sleepless and going insane.
Veins bulging, eyes bloodshot, nerves frayed—he was scratching his head in frustration when:
[Can't exactly charge their lines cannon-in-hand myself. Tch. No clue here.]
"Jeez, Hendrick. You call that a joke...?"
Wait a sec.
Hendrick's offhand words, tossed out without much thought. Normally, he'd brush it off as banter, but in his current unhinged state, it stuck.
"Good idea!"
His gaze, sparked with inspiration, locked onto the Sage Cannon mounted on the beach.
Loosening up his frame, he assumed a deadlift stance for the iron beast.
"One, two."
Whoosh. For a mid-sized cannon, hoisting it was child's play with his ridiculous Waigong muscles.
Modern training knowledge amped up, his body rose steadily, cannon at hip level in a stable firing pose.
[...What in the world are you doing?]
"What else? Charging their lines with the cannon myself."
[......]
Watching his disciple turn a throwaway joke into reality left Hendrick speechless for a beat.
He swung the cannon like a club, testing it, then visualized bracing for recoil and refined his stance.
Whoosh, whoosh. Hesitant at first, but damn, it felt solid.
"I'll be off then!"
To fire at odd angles, he bundled iron shots and powder in cloth, slung it over his shoulder, and left the beach.
The monsters, baffled by him closing distance instead of keeping it, hesitated on whether to charge.
Perfect timing. Right when they were dithering.
Gripping the cannon tight with his Waigong strength, he lit the fuse.
Sizzle—it caught, burning steady. Then,
—BOOM!
The massive shot rocketed out, smashing the opposite tree and crushing the Yamal hiding behind it—head obliterated.
(2 / 4)
"It works! Fuck yeah!"
The unpredictable recoil sent him tumbling back with a roll, but who cares.
He felt it—this body could tank the kickback no problem.
That Waigong he'd dismissed as useless, cursed by others and himself? Its moment had come.
Now he could tote and fire the cannon barehanded, no mount needed. Lesson learned: learn everything, grind hard— it'll pay off somehow.
With that tiny epiphany,
"Now I can finally sleep."
The end of this long tunnel was in sight.
Time to pay those asshats back—with iron shots right up their asses.
"Where you going? Stay put!"
"Eek! Squeak!"
BOOM!
Each blast knocked him back, but the monsters didn't dare counter—instead, they panicked and fled.
Skilled hands reloaded as he chased, leveraging superior range to pepper their backsides.
[...Heh, well now.]
Hendrick could only groan at the sight.
Who was the intruder here? Defender? And who the hell charges around firing a handheld cannon like a madman?
Sure, he'd suggested it offhand, but who could've guessed he'd actually do it?
What lunatic tanks cannon recoil with bare flesh? And that body taking it—insane.
[Knew he was a few screws loose from the start. Best for my sanity not to question it.]
With that, Hendrick wandered off somewhere.
"...So, smart monsters wouldn't come close, so he straight-up carried the cannon in to hunt them? That's why I'm staring at this freakish contraption now?"
"Yep, literally."
"Hmmm."
He'd clocked this guy as anything but ordinary early on, but this idea was next-level.
Crude as it sounded, "crazy bastard" fit perfectly.
Anyway, the story had dragged too long. Not that it was boring—Pang Yujin's surprisingly smooth talk and wild tale had Joo Hyejin hooked without realizing.
But duty called; time to wrap up.
"Reckon it's time to end the tale and judge."
"Ah, this is the end, really. Just hear this last bit!"
But he showed no sign of letting her go till he'd spilled it all. Fine, whatever—might as well indulge a bit.
Plenty of business with this guy anyway; a little generosity wouldn't hurt.
Thus, his final tale began.
Hendrick's activity radius expands to the forest path entrance.
Linked quest unlock conditions unmet. Fulfill them.
Thanks to that, the season-long quest finally wrapped. Like smashing through a bottleneck, things accelerated.
His uninhabited island fateful encounter was racing toward its close.
Clang, clang! Screech.
That day, too, he hammered iron relentlessly, honing his craft.
◈ Thick wire forged into a sea urchin-shaped throwing weapon. Versatile for various uses.
"Why craft these after big, beautiful firearms? Blockers at the end?"
[You wouldn't get it yet. Never planned to teach oddball crafting, but your absorption's top-notch.]
He'd doubted at first. With powerful guns in hand, need cold weapons like this junk?
But seeing Hendrick add, "Figured it'd come in handy for a guy like you someday," he had to nod.
[Reckon I've got nothing left to teach.]
"Heading down the mountain?"
[Down the mountain? For a sailor, it's disembarking, haha!]
They just bantered pointlessly like that.
But contrary to Hendrick's claim of nothing left to teach, the fateful encounter quest showed no sign of ending.
Unlock conditions unmet.
Progress stalled dead.
He'd done everything possible now: quest advances, Hendrick's favor up, scoured the island for what else to do.
In this limited space, undone things? Enter the captain's cabin or the inner forest. If the cabin was just a reward room,
'The forest.'
Only the monsters' central forest lair remained.
That thought recalled Hendrick's repeated warnings: 'Never think of going inside, lad.'
Seemed like a prep warning at first, but probably more to it.
"...Let's check it out."
Normally foraging and maintenance time, but today he told Hendrick he had "business" elsewhere.
Stammered through "what business?" with cold sweat, but bullshitted a raft excuse smoothly enough.
Couldn't tote the Sage Cannon, so he armed light like usual forest runs—just the Winner Cannon—and headed to the path entrance.
Thus began the turning point of his uninhabited island fateful encounter.