Read Novel Full Chapter 495: No Retreat Against the Sea Beast? [3 - END]
Chapter 495: No Retreat Against the Sea Beast? [3 - END]
After I was taken off the shark, I was interrogated inside Noah’s Ark. Fortunately, the interrogator was the man I had met, who seemed rather casual.
"Well, shit! Yar been stuck in that darn thing for an entire year!?"
Once I had told them of what I’ve been up to inside the shark, the people here were more or less impressed. They also seemed to be surprised by finding another person out at sea.
Was it... That weird? Pirates weren’t a common sight on Earth, even going out of their way to seek them for plundering resources. But anyway, after my interrogation, I was shown to my quarters.
To say my life on Noah’s Ark was splendid would be an understatement. It was far better than when I was held captive! Although there were a few downsides to being taken out of the shark’s stomach, it was ultimately overwhelmed with upsides.
By trading in the bones of the monsters I happened to have on me, I was able to afford myself actual cooked food—masterfully done ones! The inside of Noah’s Ark had an entire market where people could trade their goods and even areas of entertainment and work.
After about a day on Noah’s Ark, my place of residence was approached by a crew member from the Blackbeard Cutlass. At first, I was confused, but that was only when I was told why.
"You... You guys want to recruit me?"
Apparently, my achievement of surviving inside the stomach of the shark had earned me a notable reputation and proof of strength, allowing me to become a warrior for Noah’s Ark.
And that was where I learned two things. Warriors were split into two categories, Wavers and Blesseds.
Wavers were those who weren’t granted any abilities from the Gods, thus staying at the lowest Mana Core rank, while Blesseds were those granted abilities.
The Captain who had saved me was a Blessed. Apparently, he had been able to kill the shark I was inside by himself.
It... It was something I couldn’t have hoped to imagine.
After boarding his ship, I was immediately taken into a spar. And to say that I lost instantly would be more than correct. Despite a year of experience inside the shark’s stomach, I was taken down near instantly by the Captain.
However, unlike my captors, who might’ve discarded me for my incompetence, the Captain and his crew took me in and welcomed me. They trained me, fed me, and even gave me advice plus literacy material.
It was like we were family.
And just like that, half a year had passed.
"KAHAHAHA! Come on, y’all! Time for another tale for the night!"
Everyone who had heard the Captain’s call put down their things for the night and got around. This was something everyone usually looked forward to at the end of a day’s work besides sleep.
Well... Except one person.
"Tch..." A tall blonde man with red eyes dressed in proper noble clothing clicked his tongue. This man was Vulcrum, otherwise known as the Blackbeard Cutlass, second in command—the Warden of Souls.
Or that was what they called him, at least.
He was a man of seriousness and would rather do something productive than sit around listening to some tale.
While the Captain was my teacher in sword play and combat, Vulcrum was my teacher when it came to magic-related topics.
"KAHAHAHA! What’s with that look, Vulcrum? Yar pissy again? That bladder of yars ain’t gonna survive if yar keep holding it in—"
"Silence yourself, Captain. Get on with your story quick or else I’ll just leave to go rest."
"HMM...! Rather impatient today again, huh? Not surprised! KAHAHAHA!"
Vulcrum pinched the gap between his brows as he listened to the Captain’s ridiculing laughter. "What a fool..." He muttered under his breath.
Sitting nearby, I listened closely.
It was a simple tale about sea creatures, similar to fairy tales. But, as basic as they were, there was a certain charm to listening to them—even Vulcrum would agree.
Perhaps it was because, as they listened, the worries of whether or not they would face a terrifying sea creature went away.
After that, another few months had passed.
"Nearlo, my boy! What do yar know about the Farlands?" The Captain asked as he swung a fishing line into the sea.
"The Farlands?" I asked, "That’s your last name, isn’t it? Well, uh... Not much, I think."
"KAHAHA, alright, then! I’ll tell yar. The Farlands are those that had kept a strong hold over the title of Captain of the Blackbeard Cutlass. Generations after generations, we were unstoppable against anything but age!"
"Hm... Then, what about the other ships? What about their captains?"
"They’re about the same... Well, except for them Leviathan Drowners. A few years ago, their Captain—his wife and children—along with his entire crew and ship, were lost in a horrid storm. It was... A detrimental loss that none of us could have done to prevent it."
’A storm...’
At that time, I didn’t know much about the sea. All I knew was that there were Three Mighty Sea Kings in the world currently, individuals who ruled over the three seas.
The chances of meeting them were usually null, considering they acted in secret.
"KAHAHA, look, crewmate! Look at this fish I caught!"
My life on the crew was something I would be glad to live for all my life. There wasn’t much reason for me to finish my Trial if I had a home here. A home with nice people who would treat me fairly!
...
But that was a dream. And like most dreams, I eventually had to wake up to the cold splash of reality.
Through surveillance, the news of a rising Sea King had emerged, someone who was able to go toe-to-toe with the Storm King during a large-scale war.
While the reasons were unknown to us, what we did know was that we had detected the presence of an island at the centre of the Sinking Sea!
The Three Temple Island was what we called it.
...
We shouldn’t have gone to the Sinking Sea.
"GET THE WAVERS TO THE CANNONS! AND GET ME THE BLESSEDS! WE’RE SURROUNDED ON ALL SIDES!"
Some other humans that weren’t a part of Noah’s Ark had managed to reach the island first somehow and set off a chain reaction that caused all the Leviathans in the area to be aggravated.
The storm was heavy and the waves were turbulent, even enough to shake Noah’s Ark, which was braving through the storm of Leviathans.
It was a harsh battle. Ships were overturned, and blood was shed as countless crewmates were devoured.
Some who had died on the ship were fortunately brought back to life by Vulcrum with a wave of his staff. As long as he had a supply of living humans—criminals—as fuel, he could resurrect someone who had died within 9 minutes.
Even I was brought back to life countless times as I was put on the frontlines.
My body was ripped to shreds several times, far beyond what I could recover from using my abilities.
Fortunately, through sheer determination, we were able to brave through the storm of sea beasts...
But...
That wasn’t the end.
For we had encountered something we had hoped would not appear, the Drowned King, otherwise known as the Fourth Mighty Sea King. His home rose to the surface with the help of a massive bubble and wreaked havoc on Noah’s Ark.
"This isn’t looking good... Arr..." The Captain brushed his bloodied hand through his beard, wounded but still alive.
After muttering something into a device, he narrowed his eyes, looking far in the distance before looking back at the young boy standing behind him.
I was shaken with fear at that time; even if I was fighting, it was only for the need to survive. With the area densely drenched in Predatory Aura, everyone was affected with fear.
But not the Captain.
"NEARLO! STRAIGHTEN YAR BACK, BOY!"
He walked over and placed a firm grip on my shoulder, staring down at me with a serious expression.
He then asked me:
"TELL ME! WHAT’S THAT GUT OF YARS TELLING YAR?"
"My... Gut?"
At that time, I didn’t understand what he meant. Why was he asking me such a sudden and irrelevant question at a time like this?
"Do yar think we lose? Is that what yar gut is telling yar?!"
"O-of course not!"
"WELL, YAR GUT IS GAD DAMN RIGHT!"
With a rapid spin, he turned to the front.
"A pirate’s guts is their compass out at sea, follow what yar gut is telling yar and believe in it! No matter the situation, follow it!" The Captain looked back and grinned a toothy grin, "Put that trust in yar gut into me, I’ll get us through all of this! And I’ll make sure to tell yar all about the tale of my battle!"
He then drew his cutlass, which seemed to glint in my direction, and pointed it at me.
"In the meantime, hold down the line, my potential successor... NEARLO FARLAND! The future of the Blackbeard Cutlass is now resting on your shoulders until I get back!"
...
Once he left with the other Captains, he was able to accomplish his promise. My gut was right, we would win this battle...
However... What my gut didn’t tell me was that... Not all of us would make it out alive.
Only half of the Captains were able to leave with their lives... Captain Righthook wasn’t one of them. And since Vulcrum wasn’t there to revive him... He was gone.
The only thing we could retrieve was his cutlass...
***
[Nearlo Farland’s POV]
’I can’t die now...’
As Nearlo sank deeper and deeper into the abyss that was the sea of the Mana Realm, a burning desire to keep fighting burned inside his heart. His role model’s killer was right here!
’My gut...’
His gut, which was seemingly crushed earlier, burned with both pain and vigour. How dare he lose hope? How dare he think this was his end!
He had waited years for this moment! YEARS TO GET REVENGE!YEARS TO GET REVENGE!
With the tickling sensation that could only mean victory, he summoned a glowing blue pill from his spatial ring.
And right before the Leviathan could reach him, he roared out with a booming voice that travelled through the water:
"I AM NEARLO FARLAND! THE SUCCESSOR TO THE BLACKBEARD CUTLASS, YOU ACCURSED SERPENT!"
Not until he dismembered the Drowned King... Not until he strangled the man himself.
HE REFUSED TO LET HIS TALE END HERE!
He brought the pill into his mouth and gulped it down, feeling the mana bursting out from the pill coursing through his veins. His Mana Core, which was once fully depleted, became replenished and began to grow in size!
Nearlo’s eyes glowed a dark blue light as he clenched his jaws.
The Twin-headed Seawater Leviathan, who watched as Nearlo devoured the pill, watched as the petite man began to glow an iridescent light that was bright enough to cause it to retract away.
What was going on? Why had its prey begun to glow so bright?
Once the light had begun to die down, it watched as Nearlo’s body—which was still covered in light—began to bloat and expand rapidly to a ridiculous size.
Spiked tentacles several miles long appeared, a beak blacker and harder than obsidian grew under a multi-armed body that rivalled the Leviathan’s size size.
What had become of Nearlo... Was what could only be described as a humongous kraken with one singular large eye.
SPLASH!
[12:05 AM]