Chapter 104: Squid or Octopus
ㅤThe hull of the ship shook violently.
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ㅤ”Kyaa!”
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ㅤWhile catching Almirash-san, who was lifted from her chair by the impact, I said,
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ㅤ”Wh-What!?”
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ㅤAs expected of sailors, the captain-san and the marines were clinging to desks and walls and were safe.
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ㅤThen, another marine rushed into the conference room.
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ㅤ”━━Reporting! I-It’s a Kraken!”
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ㅤ”What were the lookouts doing!?”
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ㅤThe captain-san shouted.
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ㅤ”It seems they didn’t notice it because it approached from underwater!”
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ㅤ”Hmm… So the sinking of the ship that went to investigate was also the Kraken’s doing.”
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ㅤ”We are currently preparing the ballista on the deck!”
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ㅤCome to think of it, there were several large crossbows on the deck that required multiple people to operate.
ㅤAs far as I’ve seen and heard, there were no cannons in this world.
ㅤIn naval battles, the standard tactic seems to be to exchange fire with bows, then at the right moment, ram the bow into the enemy ship, board it, and subdue the crew.
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ㅤThis time, since the opponent might be a sea monster, they’ve prepared a large ballista.
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ㅤHowever,
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ㅤ”The odds are against us if the opponent is a Kraken… Minato-dono.”
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ㅤ”Yeah, that’s why I’m on board.”
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ㅤI nodded and let Almirash-san sit on a chair, then rushed out of the conference room.
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ㅤI ran through the corridor below deck.
ㅤThere was a marine who had fallen and was unable to move due to injuries from the earlier impact, so
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ㅤ”Use this!”
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ㅤAs I passed by, I took out a potion from the Abyss Worm’s stomach and threw it to him.
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ㅤI didn’t have time to hear the marine’s reply, so I dashed further.
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ㅤWhen I came out on deck, the deck was flooded with seawater, apparently having been splashed.
ㅤThe seawater reflecting the sunlight hurt my eyes.
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ㅤI narrowed my eyes and looked in the direction of the impact from earlier.
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ㅤThere was a giant blue-purple squid.
ㅤThe galley ship also has a mast for when there’s wind, but the squid that emerged from the surface of the sea was about half its height. Probably about four or five meters from the surface.
ㅤOf course, that’s just the part above the surface.
ㅤIts slimy blue-purple body has the same shape as a regular squid, like a cooking apron.
ㅤThe difference from an ordinary squid is that it has black, goggle-like eyes all over its body, like barnacles.
ㅤThose “hundred eyes” are all pointed towards us.
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ㅤIn addition to the squid’s “head,” countless tentacles are extending from the surface of the sea.
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ㅤ”Ahaha! It’s a big one!”
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ㅤI thought it was either a squid or an octopus, but apparently, the squid was the right answer.
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ㅤ（Strange. I thought if I raised a lot of flags, it wouldn’t come out.）
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ㅤJokes aside, this is our chance since it’s showing its face above the surface.
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ㅤ”━━Gatling Turret”
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ㅤI created several Ether Shot barrels in the air,
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ㅤ”Go!”
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ㅤI showered the Kraken with a rain of Ether Shots.
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ㅤ━━Gigoooooooh!
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ㅤThe Ether Shots seem to have crushed several of the eyes on the Kraken’s surface.
ㅤThe Kraken screamed and covered its face with its tentacles.
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ㅤ”━━Now! Press the attack!”
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ㅤThe captain-san’s voice came from behind me.
ㅤOf course, I’m not the only one on deck.
ㅤThe marines manning the ballista hurriedly aimed at the Kraken and fired harpoon-like arrows.
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ㅤ━━Gugaaaaah!
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ㅤSeveral of the arrows pierced deep into the Kraken’s body.
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ㅤUnable to bear it, the Kraken tries to sink its face below the surface.
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ㅤ”Oh, no!”
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ㅤI keep the turrets active and shower it with Ether Shots, but the Kraken was faster in diving into the sea.
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ㅤ（It’s troublesome when it dives underwater.）
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ㅤFrom what I felt just now, it seemed like I could defeat the Kraken with my magic.
ㅤHowever, that’s only if it shows its face above the surface.
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ㅤ（I do have magic to dive into the sea, though.）
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ㅤI can create a large wind barrier and dive underwater with it.
ㅤBut, because of buoyancy, I need to constantly exert force, and my movement underwater is not exactly fast.
ㅤIt’s not enough to deal with a Kraken that should be able to swim freely in the sea.
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ㅤWhile I was hesitating, an impact that seemed to thrust the ship upwards hit us.
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ㅤ”U-Whoa!”
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ㅤI was thrown up and let out a scream involuntarily.
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ㅤStill, I managed to land, but
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ㅤ”D*mn it! The ballista is broken!”
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ㅤ”Two Moss fell over there!”
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ㅤ”There are injuries from the impact!”
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ㅤThe deck was in chaos.
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ㅤMoreover,
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ㅤ”━━R-Reporting! Part of the lowest level is cracked, and we’re taking on water!”
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ㅤA marine who had rolled out from below deck reported to the captain-san.
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ㅤ”Captain-san, can we hold out!?”
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ㅤ”We’ll be fine for a while! This ship’s hull is made of wood from the Mist Forest, and the iron plates are attached with special plaster from drop items! The cracks can be temporarily repaired!
ㅤBut, we can’t hold out forever!”
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ㅤThe captain-san said with a face that seemed to be suppressing his anxiety.
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ㅤ”We have no choice but to somehow lure it to the surface…”
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ㅤSince I shot it with a lot of Ether Shots earlier, I wonder if I’ve managed to draw its aggro?
ㅤNo, judging from the Kraken’s behavior, it didn’t seem to be recognizing the tiny humans on the ship individually.
ㅤIt seemed to think of the entire ship as one living creature.
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ㅤ”I’ll go into the sea once, draw its attention, and then counterattack from a small boat floating on the surface… No, that’ll get destroyed in one hit.”
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ㅤIf this were a game, the Kraken would kindly show its face from the water and fight the protagonists without attacking the ship itself.
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ㅤ”But, it can’t be helped. I’ll dive in once, pull it to the surface, and return to the ship. It’ll probably dive again when attacked, but I’ll have to act as a decoy each time.
ㅤ…This seems to be a sturdy ship, so it should hold up. I’ll think it will hold up.”
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ㅤJust as I made up my mind,
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ㅤ”Uwaaaaah!”
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ㅤA scream rose from the opposite side of the ship.
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ㅤ”━━I-It’s an Oceanus!”
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ㅤ
ㅤ”…Huh?”
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ㅤWhen I turned to look in that direction━━
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ㅤ
ㅤThere was a giant octopus monster.