Predation in the Lake

It was already night by the time I made it back to the lake.

The fourth night on Rainbow Island.

The players who had finished hunting had settled down here and there around the lakeshore in small groups.

Every face was heavy with exhaustion.

Hunting was never an easy job.

Even though they had received the Tower’s invitation, they were still modern people who had grown up enjoying every convenience civilization could offer.

Hunting monsters with their own two hands? Without all the resources the Babel Tower provided, players would never have become this popular.

As I drew closer to the water, the resting players’ gazes locked onto me.

“Is that Yu Jinho?”

“The tutorial rank one?”

“Yeah, it’s him. The guy who soloed four bosses.”

“He even took down the Blood Mountain Lord. Insane.”

“But why does he walk around half-naked like that? Some kind of exhibitionist?”

“……”

I decided the last remark never happened.

I had covered myself head to toe with Thorn Carapace just to be safe, but apparently I still looked strange.

I slowly circled the lake.

The black mist wriggled and pointed toward the center of the lake.

Nessie’s domain.

“Ah, I can’t head straight there.”

“And why is that?”

“I already told you. If I just swim in, I’ll become fish food.”

Underwater combat was heavily disadvantaged.

Fighting in the water would let me use maybe thirty percent of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my full strength at best.

Against normal fish monsters that might be fine, but going up against the lake area’s boss monster like that would be suicide.

“Then what do you intend to do?”

“I’m going to devour their essences.”

Same as always.

The monsters living ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in this lake were Iron Carp and Tyrant Catfish.

With luck, one of them would drop an essence that could help with underwater fighting.

“You already know what essence those fish will provide?”

“No. I don’t.”

Before my regression I hadn’t even dared approach the lakeshore.

Even if I devoured the essences of the Iron Carp and Tyrant Catfish, there was no guarantee I would gain any power related to “water.”

“I am worried.”

“Come on, I’ve got a Plan B, so don’t stress too much.”

I waved my hand dismissively.

I wasn’t relying solely on Devour.

Still, I needed to taste the fish monsters’ essences first.

“To fish properly, you have to pick the right spot.”

The water belonged to the lake monsters.

Venturing into the deep would be certain defeat. I’d flail around until a pack of them tore me apart.

Not being able to breathe underwater was another huge penalty.

Even if I held my breath as long as possible, I would only last a few minutes.

I needed to stay close enough to the surface that I could poke my head out and gasp for air.

A depth where the fish could still swim freely, yet not too deep.

After circling the shore for twenty minutes, I found a suitable spot.

This should work.

“Yu Jinho player!”

While I was staring at the water, a familiar voice called out.

“Who—?”

“It’s Oh Jiwon. The one you helped in the wasteland.”

A man fully armed in plate armor.

Oh Jiwon lifted his visor and broke into a bright smile.

I had seen that expression often before the regression.

Eyes filled with admiration.

The look people gave the pinnacle of Tower climbers.

The same expression they wore when they gazed at me after I became a Monarch.

Come to think of it, during the erosion when Earth was collapsing, the people I saved from certain death had looked at me with those same eyes.

It left a strangely bitter taste in my mouth.

“Is something wrong?”

“Ah, just thinking useless thoughts.”

I shook off the memories.

Since I had returned to the past, that tragedy would not repeat.

“Your performance has been incredible! Overwhelming first place!”

“By the way, how does everyone recognize me?”

A question that suddenly occurred to me.

It wasn’t as if I had a sign reading Yu Jinho floating above my head, yet the moment players gathered at the lakeside they knew who I was.

“Ah, haha. Well… rumors have spread.”

“What rumors?”

“That the half-naked guy walking around in gray carapace is Yu Jinho.”

“……”

I didn’t even need to ask who started it.

Maybe I should have killed Park Jongwon instead of stopping at an intermediate potion.

“It’s that Park Jongwon bastard’s work.”

“Yes. He’s been telling everyone we need to keep the number one in check.”

Besides Hwarang and Phoenix, this tutorial had promising rookies funded by various guilds.

Park Jongwon had apparently been inciting them and spreading rumors nonstop to undermine me.

“We refused, of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠course.”

“At least you know how precious your life is.”

“We’re not shameless enough to turn our blades on the person who saved us.”

I let out a short laugh at Oh Jiwon’s words.

“Even if they’re trying to check me, I haven’t seen anyone actually do it.”

“You soloed both the Talon Flame and the Blood Mountain Lord.”

“Well, that’s…”

“Who would challenge the Blood Mountain Lord one-on-one?”

The Blood Mountain Lord was a powerful boss monster that remained nearly impossible to solo even if you maxed your level by the last day of the tutorial.

It only dropped a single martial arts manual, and the reward was poor compared to the difficulty. Strategy guides outright recommended avoiding it.

“The players this round already consider you the undisputed number one.”

“You think so too?”

“Yes. I’m aiming for second place.”

Oh Jiwon gave an awkward laugh.

Since the topic had come up, I decided to check the tutorial rankings.

“Second place?”

“The gap is small enough that if I relax even a little I’ll be overtaken. I need to work harder.”

Apparently changing his fate of being devoured by the Deep Slime had paid off.

He had earned more points than I expected and taken an early lead this round.

I didn’t know how far he would rise in the distant future, but this was the first meaningful change I had created since regressing, and it felt good.

“By the way, what brings you to the lake?”

“Is coming to the lakeside such a big deal?”

“You don’t look like you’re here to rest.”

Sharp as ever.

It was hard to believe this was the same guy who had struggled against the Deep Slime.

“I’m here to fish.”

“Fish…?”

“Yeah. There are plenty of fish to catch right there.”

I pointed at the lake.

Dark shadows flickered beneath the surface in several places.

The highest-difficulty creatures on Rainbow Island.

“How are you supposed to… A fishing rod would snap instantly.”

“It’s fine. I’m using something sturdy.”

The fishing rod and the float were the same thing: my own body.

This was the second time I had entered the lake.

Maybe because it was night, the water felt quite cold.

Still better than a dry sauna.

After returning from the volcanic zone, stepping into the lake felt like alternating between hot and cold baths.

The fish in this area were diurnal.

But even while sleeping they weren’t insensitive to external stimuli.

When I had gone to find the Midron Company I had been nervous about waking them.

This time I needed to wake the sleeping ones on purpose.

“Good luck.”

Oh Jiwon’s voice drifted from behind me.

He seemed worried.

If this “fishing” trip went wrong, he was ready to jump in and help.

What a busybody.

As I moved to water too deep to touch bottom, one of my blessings lost its effect.

It had been such a constant buff while traveling across Rainbow Island that I had forgotten about it.

“Oh? So you have received Gaia’s blessing as well?”

Come to think of it, Nyx was a goddess on the same level as Gaia.

“No, it appeared after I devoured an essence.”

“A mortal consuming a god’s essence… Well, you can handle divine power, so it is not impossible.”

“I’m just that talented.”

I answered Nyx and pushed through the water with my arms and legs.

In the middle of the silent lake, the sound of splashing echoed.

One of the sleeping monsters twitched.

An Iron Carp.

A species with scales as hard as steel—the most common monster in the lake.

The freshly awakened Iron Carp glared at me.

“Only one is coming.”

“Perfect.”

I had been worried that bad aggro management would bring a whole school of them.

Looks like the noise level was just right.

The Iron Carp spread its fins wide and propelled itself forward with a powerful thrust.

Swoosh!

The distance closed in an instant.

It was like watching a Thorn Boar or Horned Rabbit charge.

If this were on land I could have reacted easily, but with nothing to brace against in the water, all I could do was flail.

I expected this.

Without panicking, I lowered my waist slightly and stabilized my stance underwater.

High strength stats didn’t make someone omnipotent.

In a situation where I couldn’t plant my feet properly, even ninety strength could only exert twenty or thirty.

The difference between standing on solid ground and floating in water was that large.

Still, I can hold out.

In a situation where I couldn’t plant my feet, Herculean Strength was more efficient than the Blood Claw Technique.

I wrapped my arms around the Iron Carp and squeezed its body with both hands.

Once it was this close, it was much easier to apply force.

I’ll crush you.

The Iron Carp had excellent defense.

Instead of trying to cut its scales, crushing it from the inside was far more effective.

The carp’s eyes bulged.

Its exterior looked fine, but its internal organs were already being pulverized.

It twisted left and right, trying to dive deeper.

This was exactly why I had chosen a relatively shallow spot after circling the shore.

When the Iron Carp was at a disadvantage, it would try to dive.

Going too deep would be dangerous.

I stayed calm, continuously applying pressure and squeezing its body.

Two minutes. Three minutes.

As time passed, the carp’s movements grew sluggish.

The only problem was—

This is ridiculously exhausting!

My own stamina was starting to run out.

Forced underwater combat without the Earth Mother Goddess’s Blessing.

Because that blessing had helped me constantly throughout the tutorial, its absence felt especially heavy.

But I was almost there!

I could feel the carp’s strength fading.

Finally—

Crunch! Its scales collapsed inward, exposing its internals.

Its organs had been turned to mush.

Its unfocused eyes stared at me with resentment.

What can I say?

If we had fought on land I would have given it a quicker, more painless death.

When I devoured the Iron Carp’s essence, its bulging eyes turned to powder.

“Haa…”

Catching a single Iron Carp had taken more stamina than I expected.

I returned to the shore.

“A-amazing…”

“Amazing? It took me over four minutes to catch one.”

“No one else would hunt an Iron Carp that way.”

“That almost sounds like an insult.”

“Ah… by the way, your clothes are completely torn. Are you all right?”

Hm?

Only after Oh Jiwon mentioned it did I notice the draft.

The clothes I had barely been wearing had been shredded while I grappled the carp.

I let out a short groan.

Since I was wrapped in Thorn Carapace there was no risk of embarrassment, but…

It still feels gross.

I hadn’t expected the clothes to rip.

I hadn’t brought spares.

“Um, Yu Jinho Hunter. Would you like some spare clothes I brought?”

“Spare?”

“Yes. They might be a bit large since I’m bigger than you, but they should fit.”

I looked at Oh Jiwon with genuine gratitude.

“Hey, you’ve got some honor after all.”

“If I think of it as paying back my life, clothes are cheap.”

The kid hadn’t meant to, but saving him had been worth it.

“Wait. Give me the clothes later.”

“Huh?”

“If I keep going ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in and out of the lake they’ll just get torn again.”

The monsters in the lake were no pushovers.

I would put on proper clothes only after I had devoured the essences of every monster that lived near the shore.

I stared at the calm lake, burning with motivation.