Harpooning the Fleet
In the midst of the vast, wave-surging Dead Sea, water crashed relentlessly—whoosh!splash! Standing on my raft, I rotated my right arm in a full circle, and an incredulous sigh escaped my lips.
There, far off in the distance—a ship. The very one I'd spotted earlier approaching Monster Island from a different angle.
"No fucking way...?"
Ivan Hellenger. That name popped into my head first. And it wasn't just because of the family banners fluttering all over that ship, which seemed to be in a state of chaotic internal scramble right now.
A crimson pillar of light. A massive mana vortex piercing the sky from within that vessel. And amid the swirling energy, the silhouette of a woman floating into view.
'Karina!'
Faint, but the context made it certain. I'd been so fixated on this insane high-speed skimming across the water surface like a speedboat that I'd lost sight of that massive ship. It was Ivan Hellenger's vessel—with Karina aboard!
'Hah.'
I scratched my head with a complicated expression.
Why the hell hadn't I noticed? It was huge—turn my head just a fraction, and it would've been right there.
But that didn't matter. What did matter was that I'd unintentionally launched an attack on that ship.
Fwosh! Staring at the circular magic circles blooming once more along the ship's railings, I grimaced, recalling what had just happened.
A little earlier. A prickling sensation on the back of my neck, followed by a booming voice stabbing into my eardrums.
—Stop—!!
Like one of those old-timey megaphones on a warship. The resonance was so massive it made the seawater and air quiver faintly. I whipped my head around.
And there it was—a barrage of golden beams hurtling toward me like a rain of arrows, blanketing my raft.
Time to stay calm? Yeah, right.
"What the fu—!!!"
Freaking out, I'd swung my palm in a massive slap.
"Huurraaahhh—!!"
Whoosh! My huge hand, crackling with electric energy, smashed into the incoming light orbs the moment they closed in.
Crackle. A slight sting on contact.
Fwwoooom! And just like that, the light orbs rocketed back the way they'd come.
Following their path—tails of golden light streaking through the air—I spotted that ship.
No time for thoughts like Is this even possible?
Now that I'd pieced together the situation and the ship's identity, those aboard—probably magic swordsmen—were gearing up for a second attack on me.
Flash! Just like the novels described elite, well-trained troops, they seemed briefly rattled by my accidental counter but quickly reformed magic circles along the railings. Ivan Hellenger's magic swordsmen.
As those circular arrays reignited, aimed straight at me—
"Hoo."
I inhaled deeply, chest swelling like I was sucking in all the surrounding air. Then I bellowed at full volume toward the ship.
—Stop the attack—!!
—I'm just a normal guy—!!
My lion's roar shot out, the shockwave so intense it churned the sea below.
A moment later, the banners atop the ship fluttered.
My voice had reached them.
"Oh. Maybe we can talk this out?"
……Nope.
Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash! Flash!
Even more circular magic circles than before bloomed across the deck. From each one, eerie-colored light orbs began to spew forth.
"Fuck."
Dialogue impossible. And with an attack visibly far deadlier than the last incoming any second—
I simply bent at the waist.
Running away?
"... Hahat haha! As if!"
Cackling wildly, I snatched up a spare large oar from the pile behind me. Spinning on the spot, I hurled it straight at Ivan Hellenger's ship.
Ivan Hellenger's ship. Magic swordsmen lined the railings, swiftly casting spells with their blades.
"Faster! Pour it on, you idiots! No—this side's exposed! You! Layer the barrier spells up here, you moron!"
Ivan Hellenger darted around behind them, barking urgent orders in a panic.
The lines reformed. He'd been rattled when the binding spells they'd fired earlier all bounced back, but these were elite magic swordsmen. They'd swiftly dispelled the rebounding magic and were now prepping the second wave.
"Young master! That voice we just heard...!"
"You believe that?"
Cutting off his adjutant, Ivan Hellenger recalled the echo from across the water.
—Stop the attack—!!
—I'm just a normal guy—!!
"A 'normal human' who bats away spells barehanded and roars that loud without resonance magic? Does that make any sense?"
"Well, true, but—"
"Shut it!"
Ivan Hellenger's eyes blazed.
"A monster pretending to be human—maybe even a wanted dark mage with a bounty. No normal person would be near that island anyway, right?"
"Statistically, yes, but..."
"Capture it first. Could be a rarer, more valuable trophy than anything on Monster Island."
He glanced aft.
"That one..."
"Karina couldn't reset the spell's target right now even if she wanted— it'd just interfere."
"Who doesn't know that?"
He meant Karina, floating above the crimson pillar.
Crackle crackle.
The massive magic already gathered amidships would soon unleash on Monster Island. Casting nearly complete. Any moment now, an unprecedented massive AoE explosion spell would detonate.
"Always useless when it matters most. Tsk."
Ignoring that it was his request, Ivan Hellenger grumbled about Karina.
That was when the deck beneath his feet shook.
BOOM!
He stumbled, face twisting in shock. His quicker-thinking adjutant shouted first.
"Young master! Over there!"
"What?!"
The railing aimed at the unidentified monster. A crack spiderwebbed across the air above it. The magic swordsmen who'd been forming arrays below all turned to Ivan Hellenger, yelling.
"The barrier there shattered!"
"What? You mad bastards! I told you to link them without gaps!"
"W-We synchronized everything!"
"Then—"
"We layered double barriers here, including dispel!"
"What?"
Ivan Hellenger's pupils quivered.
"So this was pure... no magic?"
As he and the adjutant turned—
BOOM!
The second strike rocked their bodies.
"Gah!"
"Damn it!"
Crack craaaack! A larger fissure spread across the barrier right in front of the railing. Swordsmen forming arrays everywhere whipped around, shouting.
"Young master! Coordinates unstable here!"
"Casting failed!"
"Shockwaves too intense!"
"Recast? Young master, give orders!"
"Same spell again?"
"Young master! What do we—!"
"Young master!"
"All of you, shut the fuck up!"
Ivan Hellenger roared at them. Eyes filled with irritation and frustration, he stepped onto the railing—
Just as something unidentified rocketed toward them from afar like a cannon shell.
Whiiiish!
"Sh-Shit! What the hell?!"
BOOM!
The staggering Hellengers and swordsmen. This strike hit right below the railing they'd been standing on—crack!—and the protective barrier shattered.
"C-Cannon fire!"
"Idiot, not cannon—it's a harpoon!"
"Insane! A harpoon doing that?!"
"It's a monster, a monster!"
"Escaped from Monster Island?!"
"Young master! That's a real monster!"
"Young master! Orders!"
"Hah..."
Amid the panicking swordsmen, Ivan Hellenger cracked his neck with a bizarre smile. Staring calmly at the distant 'something' hurling more at them, he quietly ordered the one watching him.
"Cancel all other casts. From now on, every single one of you switches to barrier spells. No exceptions. Cover from behind my railing to the entire sector."
"Young master!"
"Adjutant, buff me."
"Yes, sir!"
Ivan Hellenger drew the golden sword at his waist as he mounted the railing. A strange grin spread across his face.
Today's haul: Monster Island subjugation plus this unseen beast. He'd be the ball's center of attention in a month's grand dance.
'Whatever kind of monster you are...'
He was a monster among monsters. A man dubbed the next Swordmaster.
Ivan Hellenger was the type of magic swordsman far more accustomed to wielding his blade freely and smashing foes than herding rabble.
At the railing's edge, he drew a deep breath.
Another 'something' hurled from the monster hurtled toward the ship.
Shing! In an instant, something flashed from the sheath at his waist.
Slash! The incoming projectile—sliced diagonally below him—split in half and splashed into the sea.
"Y-Yes, young master!"
"Incredible!"
"Ooooh!"
Ivan Hellenger had cleaved midair the attack that cracked their ship barriers—with a mere flung sword strike. Cheers erupted from the awed magic swordsmen.
"Shut up and do what I ordered."
"Yes, sir!"
Smirking at the blooming barrier arrays around him, Ivan Hellenger gripped his sword two-handed atop the railing, locking eyes on the distant foe.
Huuuuh.
How long had he stood eyes closed, concentrating, drawing breath? Mana gathered so fiercely it stirred the air—and even the sea below.
Flash.
Eyes snapped open. Arms swung downward.
"Take this too, you monster fuck—!"
In the sword's arc, a colossal something erupted.
Sword wind.
A monstrous force burst from the ship. Crescent-shaped, warping the air faster than a gale, it rocketed toward the monster.
Kaboom kaboom kaboom!
The sea surface split wide. Waves on either side surged to ship height. Savage, downright vicious momentum.
"In...sane."
"To see that again..."
"A-As expected of the young master—"
"Whoa..."
Even his subordinates gaped in awe as the sword wind—flinging waves skyward—barreled toward the distant monster.
BOOM!
A massive explosion. The roar dwarfed prior clashes to mosquito buzzes. Waves shot sky-high. Sunlight shattered them into spraying droplets—hiss—birthing thick mist and rainbows.
Ivan Hellenger exhaled, savoring familiar triumph.
"What, that all you got?"
"Haha, no, young master, you're just that amazi—"
Then—
From the sword wind's blast, a bellow thundering through the air.
—You fucking bastaaard—!!
Crackle! Crackle crackle!
Bursting through the rising mist, something yellow flashed above the waves.
"………………Huh?!"