Drums of the Savages
The savages bellowed roars filled with fury as they glared at their fallen comrade on the deck.
Pazzzik…!!
But Adel ignored their murderous stares and slashed his sword across the barrel of the rusty cannon on the deck.
Srraaak— Boom!!
The old cannon barrel split clean off like tofu under Nazas's blade.
"Kraaaah—!!!"
A savage standing behind the cannon swung his axe at Adel.
Clang! Clang! Kaang!!
Adel retreated under the ferocious onslaught—from left to right, then top to bottom.
"Kak!! Kyak!!!"
The man had crimson skin etched with tattoo-like scars across his entire body.
But even stranger was the fact that he had no pupils. Their eyes lacked irises, leaving only pure white sclera.
"As expected of the Forbidden Zone dwellers. They're not normal."
Adel slipped inside the axe-wielding savage's guard and thrust his sword into the man's armpit. The blade burst out through his shoulder in a spray of blood.
The severed arm spun through the air, and Adel snatched it mid-flight before hurling it aside.
Splat—!!!
Another savage lunging from behind got smashed by the flying limb and crumpled to the deck.
Clang…!
Kaang!!
Adel kicked up the sword the fallen man had dropped, slamming it against Nazas's side blade. It rocketed forward like a bullet with a sharp whistle, embedding in yet another savage's chest.
"I'll ask again."
Adel planted his foot on the downed savage's chest.
"No one here speaks the continental tongue?"
With their comrades dropping in seconds, the remaining savages no longer assumed aggressive stances.
"Hmmm. Look at that?"
But from their hesitant reactions to Adel's question, it seemed they couldn't understand him.
That was when it happened.
Adel sensed an inexplicable unease beyond the fog wall encircling them.
Dong— Dong— Dong— Dong—
A majestic drumming echoed from somewhere.
"Kyrk… Kyrk…."
"Kumchaka! Kum! Kum!! Kum!!"
The savages, who had hesitated moments before, suddenly slammed their weapons against the deck with renewed vigor at the sound of the drums.
Thud—! Thud—! Thud—! Kum—! Kum—! Kum—!
Their shouts blended eerily with the clanging of their weapons, amplifying the noise.
"What the hell?"
A massive black shadow pierced the fog wall right before Adel's eyes.
An enormous ship—dozens of times larger than the savages' small boats—emerged from the mist.
"Holy… that thing…."
Dozens of smaller boats orbited the giant vessel. Adel was speechless at the sheer number; it was hard to believe this was a lake.
[That thing's real.]
Kalderet smirked as he eyed the approaching behemoth.
"Kyacha!! Kyacharaka!!"
The savage on deck seemed reinvigorated by the main ship's arrival and menaced Adel once more.
Splat—!!
But before his threat could fully fade, Adel's fist smashed into the man's face.
Step— Step— Step—
The savage collapsed with a face caved in like shattered bone.
Adel stepped over the body and strode across the deck.
"Kum! Kum! Kum!"
"Kum! Kum! Kum!"
A rope dropped down to Adel's small boat.
[It's obviously a trap.]
The rope reeked of mildew, as if ancient. Up close, the once-imposing ship was battered and broken—a ghost ship, not hyperbole.
"I know. But look at that. They're openly inviting us aboard. Can't exactly say no."
Adel pointed to something dangling from the ship's prow.
"Traps depend on who you're trapping."
What he'd first taken for a figurehead was none other than the Leviathan Guild's placard.
Boom—!!
Adel yanked the rope and scaled the hull in a flash, landing on the deck.
"Kum! Kum! Kum!!"
Dozens of savages crowded the deck. They differed starkly from the earlier bunch—these were ogre-like behemoths roaring intimidating battle cries at Adel.
Like the others, they had no pupils, but theirs were pitch black, entire orbs of void.
[Corrupted by the rift.]
Kalderet remarked, staring at their ink-black eyes.
"Yeah. No idea what exactly, but they're definitely not normal."
Thud— Thud— Thud—
The savages parted like waves on the deck. A man strode through the gap.
Tattoos covered his body, and he wore a helmet of monster bone. Even among the giants, he was grotesquely obese. A feather-like ornament stood on his crude bone helm, and he smirked at the savages' cheers, as if proud.
"What a weirdo."
Adel clicked his tongue in disbelief.
"Kum! Kata! Rakha!!"
The man puffed out his chest and jabbed a finger at Adel, then mimed slitting his own throat with a thumbs-up.
"…Huh?"
No words needed—the meaning was clear.
"Kopha!!!"
He charged with a bellow, gripping a hammer three times Adel's size.
Thud! Thud! Thud!!!
The deck groaned and shook with each step, threatening to splinter.
Whoooosh—!!!
The blow was mighty but slow. Adel dodged leisurely.
Splaaang!!!!
As Nazas sliced the hammer's haft, Adel was stunned. The wind sword that cut iron like tofu bounced off harmlessly.
Thud…!!
The recoil shoved Adel back. A heavy numbness throbbed in his wrist.
"Kum!! Kata!!!"
The man beckoned mockingly, as if daring another try.
"U-! U-! U-!!"
The savages cheered like cartel arena spectators.
"…."
Adel was baffled.
He'd never visited Cove in his previous life, but he had explored the desert Forbidden Zone's Forgotten Ones' Temple. Linked to the demon realm, it was hellish—lifeless, suffocating, monsters baring fangs at intruders.
But here, they seemed to welcome intruders—in their own twisted way. Like toys to alleviate boredom.
"Thought a second life meant nothing could surprise me anymore…."
Adel shook out his aching wrist and gripped Nazas tight.
"World's full of freaks. Makes it fun."
Splaaang—!!!
The hammer hurtled at him impatiently.
Craaack…!!
Adel twisted aside; it pulverized the deck and sank deep.
"Hup!!"
As the man heaved it up, his thick muscles bulged grotesquely. Deck splinters flew; the savages howled, heedless of the ship.
Squish…!!
But amid the debris, Adel's sword flashed out. He'd closed the gap in an instant, appearing behind the man.
"Guh… Guhek…!!"
Adel clung to his back, jamming Nazas between nape and collarbone. Twisting hard yielded a clear rrrip of tearing flesh.
Thud…!!
Adel yanked Nazas free; blood fountained. The man shuddered and pitched forward, dead.
"Kum!! Raka!!!"
Despite the fatal wound, he tried to rise. But blood pooled beneath him, gushing faster with each strain.
Srraaak—
Adel grabbed the man's mask and slit his throat atop the writhing body.
"…."
"…."
The rowdy savages fell silent as graves.
"There we go."
In the lake's hush, Adel finally sounded satisfied.
"Last chance. Anyone speak continental?"
The savages glanced at each other and shook their heads.
"No one steps up, I kill you one by one till someone does."
Srring— Nazas sang.
But they only looked panicked, ignoring the warning.
[No one who understands?]
"Enough."
At that moment, as if answering Kalderet, a voice rose from behind the savages.
"Look there."
[Heh heh… there really was one.]
Adel frowned slightly at the familiar tongue.
"So there was someone who could, and he just watched till now."
Ting—!!
A flying sword shot from Adel's sleeve, grazing a man's cheek amid the savages before embedding in the black wheelhouse wall.
"…We're just Cove outskirts dwellers. We follow the master's orders only. We have no authority to decide."
"So you couldn't answer even if asked?"
The man said nothing, but his silence confirmed it.
Outskirts dwellers… means there are core dwellers separately.
Adel eyed the man. Slender and out of place among the hulks.
"Name?"
"…Binraka."
He whispered as if it were a secret not to be overheard.
"How'd you know?"
"That on your ship. It's the guild name I'm seeking, hung blatantly. Means you know its significance. And you anticipated a rescue team."
Clever ploy. Primitive island or not, sharp minds lurked here.
Wrong opponent, though.
"…Even so, there might not be continental speakers on this ship."
"Then I kill everyone."
"…."
"Hop to the next visible ship and search again. Fog hides it, but you're not the only ones."
"Not scared?"
"Why would I be?"
Adel sneered.
"What if we captured your boat's comrades?"
"Not comrades. Kill 'em. Just remember this: kill one of mine, I kill ten of yours. Two, and it's a hundred."
Binraka knew the boy meant it.
"I'm looking for people. They came here recently—you'd know."
Adel walked to the prow.
"Large group, so survivors for sure. Deny it, you die."
He sliced down the Leviathan placard.
"The ones who hung this crap."
Splash—!!
It plummeted into the water amid spray.
"Take me to your chief."
He turned to Binraka.