[Translator - Peptobismal]
[Proofreader - Max]
Chapter 95
Crash!
As the colossal kraken slammed its tentacles down, a tsunami-like wave surged.
The wave seemed to be about to swallow the ship whole.
Zeke, riding on Nahuel's back, pointed his sword at the wave.
Woooong!
The sword vibrated intensely.
Zeke held his sword horizontally and unleashed the secret technique of the True Dragon Sword Art.
True Dragon Sword Art Secret Technique
Tri-Junction Form
Great Roc Rising from the Water
The Tri-Junction Form, which had split Helen's sword strike, was now unleashed towards the tsunami.
Crash!
Zeke's sword split the giant wave horizontally.
The tsunami, which had soared like a mountain, shattered into pieces.
The smugglers on the deck, witnessing this scene, were awestruck by Zeke's feat of fighting the colossal kraken and shattering the tsunami.
"Oh my god! He's the Sea God, the Sea God incarnate!"
Most Southerners were followers of the Sun God religion that spread from the Central Continent, but many sailors still worshiped the ancient indigenous Sea God.
Zeke, riding a sea dragon and defeating a giant monster, looked every bit like the legendary Sea God.
The colossal kraken, bewildered as Zeke split the tsunami it had created with his sword, started flailing its thick tentacles in confusion.
This created a massive whirlpool in the sea.
Nahuel, carrying Zeke, tried to escape the whirlpool by swimming through the current.
Rumbling!
At the same time, Nahuel roared, and the rough sea gradually calmed down.
It seemed to be controlling the flow of the sea with its unique ability as a monster.
Then, giant water bubbles floated around Nahuel's body.
Whoosh!
The water bubbles, seemingly created by Nahuel, flew towards the colossal kraken and clung to it.
After attaching to the kraken, the water bubbles gradually grew in size. This prevented the kraken from moving the tentacles with the bubbles attached.
Zeke shouted to Nahuel, "Well done, Nahuel! Hold it tight!"
Rumbling!
As if answering Zeke, Nahuel raised its head and cried out.
Zeke used the power of wind to lift his body and leaped over the sea.
Splash
At the same time, Zeke concentrated the power of wind into his sword.
Woooong!
The power of the storm raged at the tip of Zeke's sword.
The power of the wind, capable of creating a huge gust, was compressed and compressed, forming a hard sphere.
The colossal kraken was still unable to move due to the water bubbles created by Nahuel.
Zeke aimed the tip of his sword at the kraken and shouted.
Elemental Sword
Wind Chapter
Storm Orb
The orb of the storm at the tip of his sword shot towards the kraken.
Crash!
The Storm Orb, creating a huge splash of water, shot towards the kraken's head.
The moment the orb touched the monster's body, the compressed power within exploded.
Crash!
A huge gust of wind erupted, engulfing the kraken's entire body.
Boom!
The colossal kraken's body was torn to shreds.
Half of the kraken's body was blown away by the explosion of the Storm Orb, leaving it tattered.
Kraaaaaaaaa!
The colossal kraken, seemingly realizing it couldn't defeat Zeke, let out a monstrous cry and tried to escape back into the sea.
However, Zeke took the stance of the Dragon Slayer Art towards the kraken trying to flee into the sea.
Dragon Slayer Art, True Dragon Sword Art
Chapter 4, Verse 2
Full Moon Slash
Zeke's sword drew a giant full moon.
The full moon, made of Aura, floated on the surface of the sea and cut through the kraken's body and tentacles.
Crash!
The kraken, its tentacles all cut off by the full moon, floated on the sea, tattered.
Just then, a message popped up before Zeke's eyes.
[You have slain a menacing ancient sea creature.]
[You have earned 300 Karma points.]
[Experience points are automatically distributed to the summoned beast Nahuel.]
[When a certain number of points are accumulated, the monster
Nahuel will evolve into a divine beast.]
'Nahuel will evolve if it receives points? Could summoned beasts also receive points?'
This was something he hadn't expected.
He had thought Karma points were only for him.
'If it works for Nahuel, can I use it for other summoned beasts as well? Perhaps even for Bahamut, which is a growth-type item...?'
Bahamut, a growth-type weapon, currently had most of its power sealed.
He didn't know how to make it grow, so he just left it as it was, but if he could use Karma points to grow items, it seemed like it wouldn't take as long as he thought to unlock Bahamut's sealed power.
'I've learned something good.'
Zeke sent Nahuel back to its original lake and climbed back onto the ship.
But then, the smugglers suddenly started bowing to Zeke.
"What are you doing all of a sudden?"
Boris, who came out of the cabin, answered instead.
"They seem to think you're the Sea God incarnate after seeing you defeat the kraken."
Zeke chuckled at those words.
"If I were the real Sea God, that kind of monster wouldn't have appeared in the first place."
Regardless of what Zeke thought, the smugglers treated him like a god and worshiped him.
Since it wasn't particularly uncomfortable, Zeke decided to just let it be.
As they were about to set sail on the calm sea again, Zeke noticed the smugglers tying one of the kraken's tentacles, which was floating on the sea, to the ship with a rope.
"Why are you taking that?"
The smugglers replied with excited expressions at Zeke's question.
"The meat of the big one sells for a very high price, and it's also a source of pride. It tastes good too."
It seemed that the colossal kraken wasn't a monster corrupted by magic, so there was no problem eating it.
When he tried the kraken roast that the smugglers brought, it was indeed much more chewy and flavorful than ordinary squid.
Just in case, he tried eating another kraken tentacle with Gluttony, but unlike monsters or other ancient species, he didn't acquire any separate bloodline abilities.
'I'll just have to be satisfied with the delicious taste.'
With the kraken tentacle hanging from the ship, they crossed the center of the Sea of Death.
The captain of the smuggling ship said to Zeke,
"We'll have to stay on the island tonight, replenish our water and food, and depart tomorrow."
As Zeke nodded, the captain turned the ship towards the island.
The ship reached the island in the evening, and Zeke and his party were able to set foot on land for the first time in days.
The smugglers skillfully docked the ship and unloaded the water tanks and boxes for loading food.
Zeke asked the captain,
"It looks like an uninhabited island, is there a place to replenish supplies?"
"Yes, this is an island that all ships traveling through the Sea of Death stop at. Even pirates don't plunder here and just quietly exchange water and food."
It seemed there was a code of conduct among seafarers.
After the explanation, the captain took a few smugglers and went to procure supplies.
Zeke was taking out camping equipment from his inventory and preparing a camp to spend the night.
That was when it happened.
The smugglers who remained on the ship shouted,
"P-pirates! Pirates!"
A dozen pirate ships appeared in the distance.
Zeke, who was contemplating how to apply Karma points to Bahamut, got up at the smugglers' shouts.
Boris approached Zeke and said, "Boss, we have a problem."
"The pirates? The captain said this island was a neutral zone without conflict."
"It usually is... but those pirates are notorious for their ruthlessness. The ship in the middle is the captain's ship."
"You mean the leader of the pirate forces?"
"Yes, the captain leading them is a pirate named Hook, and he's currently called the man closest to the Pirate King."
Zeke's expression hardened at the mention of the Pirate King.
'Pirate King...'
Hook's pirate ship soon reached the shore.
Then, dozens of pirates boarded a small boat and approached the coast.
The pirates who appeared all had ferocious looks and rough scars and tattoos all over their bodies.
Even among these intimidating pirates, there was one man who particularly stood out.
"It feels damn good to step on land after a long time."
He was a man with a large build that seemed to be over 2 meters tall and a distinctive hook-shaped beard.
He was the infamous pirate of the Sea of Death, Captain Hook.
Hook and his pirates spotted the smuggling ship and Zeke's group on the coast.
Hook stroked his beard and grinned.
"Who the hell are these guys? Smugglers, kids, and even a landlubber mixed in?"
As Captain Hook spoke in a threatening voice, Boris stepped forward.
"Captain Hook, I've heard a lot about your reputation. We're on a mission for the Syndicate. I'd appreciate it if we could each take care of our business quietly and leave."
Hook and the other pirates burst into laughter at Boris's words.
"Bwahahaha! Take care of our business quietly and leeeeave? What a load of Central Continent crap. You think we'd just back down because you're with the Syndicate?"
Boris's expression hardened at Captain Hook's words.
It seemed the rough pirates had no intention of letting them go quietly.
Just then, Zeke, who was watching, stepped forward.
He said in a low voice,
"We don't want to see any bloodshed."
Hook's smiling expression changed instantly at Zeke's sharp voice.
He felt an unusual aura emanating from Zeke, whom he had thought was just a young kid.
One of the pirates next to Hook raised his weapon and stepped forward.
"You arrogant brat. Who do you think you're talking to? Did you get some knight training somewhere?"
Then, he swung his giant axe at Zeke.
Zeke didn't dodge the axe falling towards his head and caught it with his bare hands.
Crush!
Not only did he catch it, but he also crushed the iron blade of the axe.
"Huh?"
The pirate who swung the axe was startled and stepped back.
Seeing this, all the pirates drew their weapons and assumed a fighting stance.
Captain Hook raised his hand to stop his subordinates.
He spoke to Zeke.
"You're no ordinary knight. Are you really with the Syndicate?"
"I can show you my membership card if you want."
"What the hell would we know by looking at a damn Syndicate card? So, little brother, what will you do if you don't want to see any bloodshed?"
Zeke looked at Hook and said,
"I'll have the opportunity to treat the renowned Captain Hook to some fine liquor."
Hook looked blankly at those words.
Then, he burst into hearty laughter.
"Damn it, hell yeah! Put your weapons down, boys. I'm going to have a good drink with this cheeky little brother today!"
At Captain Hook's words, the pirates lowered their weapons.
The atmosphere changed instantly.
Hook approached Zeke.
"Little brother, let's make a proper introduction. My name is James Hook. As you know, I'm better known as Hook."
"Nice to meet you, James. I'm Zeke Murray."
"Murray, huh? It's a name I'm hearing for the first time, but it seems like you'll be shaking things up soon."
"Thank you for the generous assessment. If you'd like, would you like a drink here? I have some kraken roast and hidden whiskey, though it's nothing fancy."
At those words, Hook laughed heartily and moved to Zeke's camp without hesitation.
Boris made a fire and roasted the kraken tentacles, and Zeke took out the whiskey the smugglers had and offered it to Hook.
"Whew! This is some good whiskey. Central Continent guys sure know how to make whiskey."
Zeke poured more whiskey into Hook's glass and asked,
"Why has the great pirate who shakes the Sea of Death come all the way here? I heard this place is mainly used by smugglers."
Hook drank the whiskey in one gulp and said,
"It's all because of those damn merfolk."
"Merfolk?"
"Yeah, a while ago, those merfolk started acting like pirates in groups. And their forces have grown quite large. I wondered why those clam-eating bastards were suddenly acting like that, and it turned out some guy was instigating them, damn it."
"You mean there's someone who's rallying the merfolk into pirates?"
Hook nodded as he took another sip of whiskey.
"Yeah. Hey, little brother, have you ever heard of Treasure Island?"
"This is the first time I'm hearing about Treasure Island."
"It's a famous story among us pirates. Captain Kidd, the legendary pirate, hid all the treasure he collected throughout his life on an island somewhere in the Sea of Death."
"I didn't know there was such a legend."
"Little brother, that's not all. There's a legend that whoever finds Captain Kidd's Treasure Island becomes the Pirate King."
Zeke's eyebrows twitched again at the mention of the Pirate King.
'Pirate King... If I remember correctly, the name of the Pirate King who drove Sister Cali to her death wasn't Hook. That guy was...'
Hook chewed on the roasted kraken tentacles and shouted,
"That damn Peter Pan is after that Treasure Island! How dare he, while I, the great Captain Hook, am still alive!"
[Translator - Peptobismal]
[Proofreader - Max]