Chapter 523: Giant Island (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 523: Giant Island (2)
Two boats sliced through the silver water.
Shaaaaaa.
Our boat led the way at the forefront, and the Armin Adventurer Group's boat followed in our wake. After some debate, we had settled on a destination: the island where someone from the Hektz clan had sent out a rescue request using the Ghost Busters forums.
The reason I chose that island as our first destination was simple.
There's no reason not to go after acquiring such elite slaves.
Things were completely different now that the Armin Adventurer Group was with us. Plus, the highest priority of the adventurers stuck on that island was survival. They would be willing to do anything if it meant returning to the city.
And we'll need to explore that island at some point in the future anyway.
Basement Floor One was a very peculiar floor. I felt this way in the library and even that tree island we were at not too long ago, but the difficulty level of each area seemed to rise continuously, showing no signs of approaching any sort of ceiling.
Even on Tree Island, we started to see some rank-four monsters where we were.
We hadn't even gotten halfway up the tree, either, so there was a chance that we would eventually encounter a rank-one monster if we went all the way up. As such, we needed to increase our numbers. There was a good chance we'd need to completely clear each island to get even a clue as to how to escape.
"Auyen, how long until we reach our destination?"
"If the directions their navigator gave us are accurate, we'll arrive in about nine hours, Captain."
"I see."
With the time I had until we arrived at the island, I thought over how to divvy up our new members into groups and what formations we would use.
Three hours into my brainstorming session, a voice called out to me. "Mister! The Adventuring Group's boat! It's s-sinking!"
We suddenly had a problem on our hands—one that had come out of nowhere.
However, unexpected problems were par for the course for an adventurer.
"Erwen! Tell me what's going on over there!"
"Something in the water is pulling the boat down!"
"Is it a monster?"
"I can't tell! The things that came up out of the ocean looked like human hands..." Erwen took another look from her spot up in the crow's nest and shouted, "It's huge!"
"Is it as big as the giant we saw on the island?"
"Yes!"
Wait, was it really that guy?
If it was him, this was pretty ironic. We hadn't been able to find even a trace of the bastard when we went looking for him after rainy season, but now, we were suddenly encountering him in the middle of the ocean.
"Captain! It'll take some time to turn the boat around!"
"I understand, so turn as fast as possible. And Erwen! Can you support them from here?"
"I'll try!"
On my orders, Erwen began to fire arrows from the crow's nest.
[Erwen Fornacci di Tersia has cast Concentrated Fire.]
At one point, she stopped and held position, and the energy gathering at the tip of her arrow grew stronger and stronger with each passing second. However, unfortunately for us, she didn't get a chance to fully charge her attack before...
"H-Huh...?"
"Th-the boat is flying...!"
The Adventuring Group's boat, which had been half-submerged in silver water, suddenly jetted out of the ocean with two huge hands grasping it on either side like a sandwich. It was an unbelievable sight, but for some reason, I could vividly picture what was about to happen next.
Wait... Is it going to throw it?
I couldn't be sure.
Whatever the case, perhaps coming to the same conclusion I did, Erwen released her bowstring the second she finished charging her attack.
Pyooo!
The spirit-imbued arrow sliced through the air with a sonic boom.
Bang!
Then, with perfect accuracy, it sank into one of the wrists of the hands holding up the boat.
Uraaaaaah!
The creature hidden beneath the ocean's surface cried out, and the powerful sound echoed through the hull of the ship up out of the ocean.
Boom!
It let go of the boat in surprise, and the boat tilted in the air and fell straight down toward the ocean. But did they tend to invest a lot into their ships? Despite being in a situation where any regular boat would have started sinking, the Adventuring Group's righted itself like a gyroscope and landed in the water upright.
I guess we've dealt with the immediate problem...
Of course, it was too early to rest on our laurels. This giant didn't seem to be the type to run away after getting pricked by a single arrow. A second attack was bound to come.
"Emily! We're going for the dive maneuver we talked about!"
"Got it! I'll get ready on this side, so you go ahead!"
Since we had already practiced and prepared for a situation like this just in case, we didn't need to waste time getting on the same page.
I immediately stepped off the bow of the ship and leapt high into the air.
[You have cast Transcendence.]
[You have cast Giantization.]
Right before I hit the water, I cast Transcendent Giantization.
Bang!
A loud, cannonball-like boom reverberated as my body made contact with the ocean, and large spouts of water shot into the air.
Yeah, that was what a proper dive looked like.
The moment I went under, my armor-clad barbarian body quickly began to sink, and the darkness of the ocean's depths swallowed me whole.
Of course, that was only for a brief moment.
Swoosh!
Dozens of light orbs summoned by Versyl dove in after me to brighten my surroundings.
Well, even with that, it was still pretty dark down here.
What can I see?
The Records Archives' ocean was different from a regular ocean. The silver color of the water alone was a massive deviation from the usual blue. No, honestly, it was difficult to even call this stuff water. A few experiments I ran a while ago revealed that Elemental Barbarian (Water) mode didn't work on it. Whatever this silver stuff was, it was just something with water-like properties.
"H-Huh...?"
"Th-the boat is flying...!"
The Adventuring Group's boat, which had been half-submerged in silver water, suddenly jetted out of the ocean with two huge hands grasping it on either side like a sandwich. It was an unbelievable sight, but for some reason, I could vividly picture what was about to happen next.
Wait... Is it going to throw it?
I couldn't be sure.
Whatever the case, perhaps coming to the same conclusion I did, Erwen released her bowstring the second she finished charging her attack.
Pyooo!
The spirit-imbued arrow sliced through the air with a sonic boom.
Bang!
Then, with perfect accuracy, it sank into one of the wrists of the hands holding up the boat.
Uraaaaaah!
The creature hidden beneath the ocean's surface cried out, and the powerful sound echoed through the hull of the ship up out of the ocean.
Boom!
It let go of the boat in surprise, and the boat tilted in the air and fell straight down toward the ocean. But did they tend to invest a lot into their ships? Despite being in a situation where any regular boat would have started sinking, the Adventuring Group's righted itself like a gyroscope and landed in the water upright.
I guess we've dealt with the immediate problem...
Of course, it was too early to rest on our laurels. This giant didn't seem to be the type to run away after getting pricked by a single arrow. A second attack was bound to come.
"Emily! We're going for the dive maneuver we talked about!"
"Got it! I'll get ready on this side, so you go ahead!"
Since we had already practiced and prepared for a situation like this just in case, we didn't need to waste time getting on the same page.
I immediately stepped off the bow of the ship and leapt high into the air.
[You have cast Transcendence.]
[You have cast Giantization.]
Right before I hit the water, I cast Transcendent Giantization.
Bang!
A loud, cannonball-like boom reverberated as my body made contact with the ocean, and large spouts of water shot into the air.
Yeah, that was what a proper dive looked like.
The moment I went under, my armor-clad barbarian body quickly began to sink, and the darkness of the ocean's depths swallowed me whole.
Of course, that was only for a brief moment.
Swoosh!
Dozens of light orbs summoned by Versyl dove in after me to brighten my surroundings.
Well, even with that, it was still pretty dark down here.
What can I see?
The Records Archives' ocean was different from a regular ocean. The silver color of the water alone was a massive deviation from the usual blue. No, honestly, it was difficult to even call this stuff water. A few experiments I ran a while ago revealed that Elemental Barbarian (Water) mode didn't work on it. Whatever this silver stuff was, it was just something with water-like properties.
[Versyl Gowland has cast the rank-seven spell Oxygen Tank.]
One thing that was a relief was that Dungeon and Stone's signature snorkeling spell still worked in this weird ocean. Well, in a way, it would be weirder if it didn't work. Unlike Erwen's Water Breathing ability, this one was more about "providing oxygen" than anything else. In fact, in the game, this spell could also be used to counter gas-type poisons—
Boom!
It was then that my feet touched the ground.
I sort of figured this was the case after seeing the giant reach up above the water, but this ocean wasn't actually that deep.
Step.
The outline of the hulking figure in the distance came into sharper focus as I ran toward it.
Hipramajent.
It looked the same as the one I caught a brief glimpse of on the island—two arms and two legs, a long neck, and a head attached at the top. Its general proportions weren't too different from a human's... but its skin was rotten and writhing with maggots, and there were weird warts growing all over its body as well. Not to mention the fact that it didn't have any of the facial features that a normal person would have, like eyes, ears, or a nose—just a huge mouth filled with sharp, fearsome teeth.
So that's what its head looks like.
Back then, I hadn't been able to see it in the dark.
Even though I used Transcendence and Giantization to get huge, I only come up to its thighs. Ah, is this guy using Giantization right now too?
But still, this was too much.
In the case of the Lord of Chaos, Riakis, I hadn't been too weirded out since it moved on four legs, but the sight of something that huge walking on two legs was pretty disturbing.
But, hey, is this your first time seeing a barbarian or something?
Strangely, he seemed equally as surprised to see me as I was to see him. He just stood there staring in my direction as if in a daze.
Step.
I stepped off the ocean floor, which crumbled away like mud as I ran across it, and swung my hammer down on its Achilles tendon.
Boom!
Damn, even though I had used Swing, he didn't budge at all. This guy was tougher than I expected. Still, that wasn't a huge problem. Just as I was hoping, I managed to draw his aggro.
Uraaaaaah!
He no longer seemed interested in the boats on the ocean surface above us, now completely locked in on the new enemy posing a threat to him. He let out a zombie-ish groan before slamming his palms down.
Why is he so fast?
I wouldn't have been surprised if we were on land, but personally, there was a limit to how fast I could dodge with water slowing me down. All I could do was lift my shield up and defend against the attack.
Bang!
The ground under me broke and I was buried up to my waist, but I didn't take that much damage. Though I got the sense that if I got hit a few more times, my hips would probably break.
I guess its Strength is pretty average despite its size.
Of course, by 'average' I meant compared to other rank-two monsters. That one hit alone easily put him on par with Ogres, which were considered the strongest physical damage dealers in rank three.
[Versyl Gowland has cast the rank-seven spell Oxygen Tank.]
One thing that was a relief was that Dungeon and Stone's signature snorkeling spell still worked in this weird ocean. Well, in a way, it would be weirder if it didn't work. Unlike Erwen's Water Breathing ability, this one was more about "providing oxygen" than anything else. In fact, in the game, this spell could also be used to counter gas-type poisons—
Boom!
It was then that my feet touched the ground.
I sort of figured this was the case after seeing the giant reach up above the water, but this ocean wasn't actually that deep.
Step.
The outline of the hulking figure in the distance came into sharper focus as I ran toward it.
Hipramajent.
It looked the same as the one I caught a brief glimpse of on the island—two arms and two legs, a long neck, and a head attached at the top. Its general proportions weren't too different from a human's... but its skin was rotten and writhing with maggots, and there were weird warts growing all over its body as well. Not to mention the fact that it didn't have any of the facial features that a normal person would have, like eyes, ears, or a nose—just a huge mouth filled with sharp, fearsome teeth.
So that's what its head looks like.
Back then, I hadn't been able to see it in the dark.
Even though I used Transcendence and Giantization to get huge, I only come up to its thighs. Ah, is this guy using Giantization right now too?
But still, this was too much.
In the case of the Lord of Chaos, Riakis, I hadn't been too weirded out since it moved on four legs, but the sight of something that huge walking on two legs was pretty disturbing.
But, hey, is this your first time seeing a barbarian or something?
Strangely, he seemed equally as surprised to see me as I was to see him. He just stood there staring in my direction as if in a daze.
Step.
I stepped off the ocean floor, which crumbled away like mud as I ran across it, and swung my hammer down on its Achilles tendon.
Boom!
Damn, even though I had used Swing, he didn't budge at all. This guy was tougher than I expected. Still, that wasn't a huge problem. Just as I was hoping, I managed to draw his aggro.
Uraaaaaah!
He no longer seemed interested in the boats on the ocean surface above us, now completely locked in on the new enemy posing a threat to him. He let out a zombie-ish groan before slamming his palms down.
Why is he so fast?
I wouldn't have been surprised if we were on land, but personally, there was a limit to how fast I could dodge with water slowing me down. All I could do was lift my shield up and defend against the attack.
Bang!
The ground under me broke and I was buried up to my waist, but I didn't take that much damage. Though I got the sense that if I got hit a few more times, my hips would probably break.
I guess its Strength is pretty average despite its size.
Of course, by 'average' I meant compared to other rank-two monsters. That one hit alone easily put him on par with Ogres, which were considered the strongest physical damage dealers in rank three.
The main issue is his skills...
According to the chief's records, this guy had three skills, including Giantization.
He definitely has more than that, though.
Even most rank-three monsters had around six active skills. I also didn't know anything about this guy's passive skills either.
What passives does he have?
It would be nice if it was something a shield barbarian could use—
[Hipramajent has cast the rank-three space-time ability Select Target.]
Boom!
He kicked me like a ball and sent me flying. That said, I didn't go that high. In keeping with the ball analogy, I was more like a ball filled with sand than a soccer ball.
Thud.
My body landed after tracing an arc through the water. At that point, support flooded in from above.
[Versyl Gowland has cast the rank-four detection spell Soul Outline.]
Kicking things off was Soul Outline.
This was a spell that was especially useful on the sixth floor, which had an ocean for a map. Once this spell was cast, you could see figures hidden deep beneath the water's depths even from above its surface.
Which was why I could see a clear outline of the guy in front of me now.
Uraaaaaah!
Like something through the lens of an infrared camera, the giant's body glowed an array of colors. As soon as the target was visible, a flurry of ranged attacks rained down on it from above.
[Sharlot Emblut has cast the rank-four attack spell Spiral Needle.]
[Myul Armin has cast Weaken Soul.]
[Garton Cultner has cast Stone Cannon...]
Many of these skills were ones I had never seen in person before, so I figured most of them were probably coming from the Armin Adventurer Group.
Well, we don't have many long-rangers.
Erwen and Versyl were the only people on our team capable of long-range attacks. It just so happened that everyone else preferred melee. We'd have to work on remedying that.
Uraaaaaah!
The giant let out another blood-curdling shriek as attacks rained down on it from above. I couldn't help but gulp at the sight. I never expected to end up in an aquatic battle like this when we hadn't even practiced fighting alongside the Adventuring Group yet.
Still, we have no choice but to give it a shot.
And so I steeled myself and prepared to officially begin the raid.
Uraaaaaah!
Then, all of a sudden, the giant moved at a speed unbelievable for a creature his size. I craned my neck to watch, staring up at him blankly as he fully extended his long legs to run—
Boom, boom, boom!
—in the complete opposite direction to the one I was standing.
***
He... ran away...?
At first, I thought he was maybe putting some distance between us to ready a skill. However, no matter how long I waited there, he showed no signs of coming back.
...What the hell?
I had no idea what just happened. Considering my Threat Level stat, even a rank-two monster shouldn't have been able to drop its aggro against me. Sure, monsters like Goblins who were running low on energy or felt like their lives were in danger were sometimes known to abandon a battle and try to run away, but...
I didn't even land a solid hit on him yet...
What was with that bastard? Was he a coward in giant's clothing?
Well, ever since coming to Basement Floor One, I'd been having experiences that seemed to defy logic practically every day.
...First things first, let's surface.
After wrapping myself in the specially-made, adventurer-grade rope sent down by the boat, I tugged on it three times and was promptly pulled out of the water.
"Mister! Are you ok?"
Once I was out of the ocean and back on the deck, Erwen rushed to my side as I wiped myself off with the towel Amelia handed me.
"Don't worry. I'm not hurt."
"What a weird monster..."
"We'll talk more about the guy who ran away later. How are the others doing? How much damage did they take?"
"Oh, well, I...! We didn't really have time to ask...."
Since the ships weren't too far away from each other, I turned off Giantization and hopped over to check on them.
"L-Lord Baron? Are you okay?!"
"Yeah, I'm fine. What about you lot?"
"We're all fine as well. However... with the boat in this condition, it'll be tough for us to continue sailing without completing some repairs."
"You can just get on our boat, so don't worry about it."
"Ah... thank you." The members of the Adventuring Group climbed aboard our boat, and we continued sailing. Even though our boat was considered a mid-sized vessel, it did feel a little cramped with twenty-seven people on board.
...What will I do when we pick up even more people?
I would definitely need a second boat when that time came.
While I was lost in thought, Myul Armin approached me and bent at the waist in a bow. "Your Lordship, I'm truly grateful. If we were alone on this ocean... I don't even want to imagine it."
It seemed that this incident had left a big impression on Myul.
"Haha, no need for that. We're allies."
As I laughed heartily on the outside, I inwardly thought, I think he might follow me even if I lower his share now.
Hmm, well, now wasn't the right time. Depending on what happened later, I could revisit our agreement—
"Mister! G-Giants! There's a swarm of giants coming toward us!"
"...Huh?" I quickly headed to the bow when I heard the news from the crow's nest. Even without having to use Giantization, I could spot the group of giant monsters quickly closing in on the horizon. Maybe it was because the ocean wasn't that deep, but their fishy-looking heads were poking out of the water...
Are they cosplaying that dragon poképet or something?
Anyway, I decided to count the heads floating above the water.
One, two, three, four, five, six...
There were seven of them, and among them was the one who ran away from us earlier. He was the only one currently lit up by Soul Outline.
Did he run away to call his friends?
I never expected these giants to live in packs. Filing that information away for later, I quickly snapped out of it and shouted to my crew.
Uraaaaaah!
"Auyen! Chuck all the mana stones we have into the propulsion system!"
We needed to get out of here immediately.
The main issue is his skills...
According to the chief's records, this guy had three skills, including Giantization.
He definitely has more than that, though.
Even most rank-three monsters had around six active skills. I also didn't know anything about this guy's passive skills either.
What passives does he have?
It would be nice if it was something a shield barbarian could use—
[Hipramajent has cast the rank-three space-time ability Select Target.]
Boom!
He kicked me like a ball and sent me flying. That said, I didn't go that high. In keeping with the ball analogy, I was more like a ball filled with sand than a soccer ball.
Thud.
My body landed after tracing an arc through the water. At that point, support flooded in from above.
[Versyl Gowland has cast the rank-four detection spell Soul Outline.]
Kicking things off was Soul Outline.
This was a spell that was especially useful on the sixth floor, which had an ocean for a map. Once this spell was cast, you could see figures hidden deep beneath the water's depths even from above its surface.
Which was why I could see a clear outline of the guy in front of me now.
Uraaaaaah!
Like something through the lens of an infrared camera, the giant's body glowed an array of colors. As soon as the target was visible, a flurry of ranged attacks rained down on it from above.
[Sharlot Emblut has cast the rank-four attack spell Spiral Needle.]
[Myul Armin has cast Weaken Soul.]
[Garton Cultner has cast Stone Cannon...]
Many of these skills were ones I had never seen in person before, so I figured most of them were probably coming from the Armin Adventurer Group.
Well, we don't have many long-rangers.
Erwen and Versyl were the only people on our team capable of long-range attacks. It just so happened that everyone else preferred melee. We'd have to work on remedying that.
Uraaaaaah!
The giant let out another blood-curdling shriek as attacks rained down on it from above. I couldn't help but gulp at the sight. I never expected to end up in an aquatic battle like this when we hadn't even practiced fighting alongside the Adventuring Group yet.
Still, we have no choice but to give it a shot.
And so I steeled myself and prepared to officially begin the raid.
Uraaaaaah!
Then, all of a sudden, the giant moved at a speed unbelievable for a creature his size. I craned my neck to watch, staring up at him blankly as he fully extended his long legs to run—
Boom, boom, boom!
—in the complete opposite direction to the one I was standing.
***
He... ran away...?
At first, I thought he was maybe putting some distance between us to ready a skill. However, no matter how long I waited there, he showed no signs of coming back.
...What the hell?
I had no idea what just happened. Considering my Threat Level stat, even a rank-two monster shouldn't have been able to drop its aggro against me. Sure, monsters like Goblins who were running low on energy or felt like their lives were in danger were sometimes known to abandon a battle and try to run away, but...
I didn't even land a solid hit on him yet...
What was with that bastard? Was he a coward in giant's clothing?
Well, ever since coming to Basement Floor One, I'd been having experiences that seemed to defy logic practically every day.
...First things first, let's surface.
After wrapping myself in the specially-made, adventurer-grade rope sent down by the boat, I tugged on it three times and was promptly pulled out of the water.
"Mister! Are you ok?"
Once I was out of the ocean and back on the deck, Erwen rushed to my side as I wiped myself off with the towel Amelia handed me.
"Don't worry. I'm not hurt."
"What a weird monster..."
"We'll talk more about the guy who ran away later. How are the others doing? How much damage did they take?"
"Oh, well, I...! We didn't really have time to ask...."
Since the ships weren't too far away from each other, I turned off Giantization and hopped over to check on them.
"L-Lord Baron? Are you okay?!"
"Yeah, I'm fine. What about you lot?"
"We're all fine as well. However... with the boat in this condition, it'll be tough for us to continue sailing without completing some repairs."
"You can just get on our boat, so don't worry about it."
"Ah... thank you." The members of the Adventuring Group climbed aboard our boat, and we continued sailing. Even though our boat was considered a mid-sized vessel, it did feel a little cramped with twenty-seven people on board.
...What will I do when we pick up even more people?
I would definitely need a second boat when that time came.
While I was lost in thought, Myul Armin approached me and bent at the waist in a bow. "Your Lordship, I'm truly grateful. If we were alone on this ocean... I don't even want to imagine it."
It seemed that this incident had left a big impression on Myul.
"Haha, no need for that. We're allies."
As I laughed heartily on the outside, I inwardly thought, I think he might follow me even if I lower his share now.
Hmm, well, now wasn't the right time. Depending on what happened later, I could revisit our agreement—
"Mister! G-Giants! There's a swarm of giants coming toward us!"
"...Huh?" I quickly headed to the bow when I heard the news from the crow's nest. Even without having to use Giantization, I could spot the group of giant monsters quickly closing in on the horizon. Maybe it was because the ocean wasn't that deep, but their fishy-looking heads were poking out of the water...
Are they cosplaying that dragon poképet or something?
Anyway, I decided to count the heads floating above the water.
One, two, three, four, five, six...
There were seven of them, and among them was the one who ran away from us earlier. He was the only one currently lit up by Soul Outline.
Did he run away to call his friends?
I never expected these giants to live in packs. Filing that information away for later, I quickly snapped out of it and shouted to my crew.
Uraaaaaah!
"Auyen! Chuck all the mana stones we have into the propulsion system!"
We needed to get out of here immediately.