Chapter 152
Chapter 152. Kraken Hunt
Breaking something is simple, but dealing with the aftermath is tedious and time-consuming.
Yul had that thought as he stood at the heart of the enemy force he had just destroyed.
From the top of the massive marble court, Rafna Satra, he looked down outside.
The sea elf fleet that had followed behind was calmly and peacefully making a bloodless entry through the vacuum of power.
That sea elf fleet entered the half-destroyed harbor and marched leisurely through the citizens toward Rafna Satra.
Armed with their respective weapons, the sea elf army crossed the streets in perfect discipline as one, even though no one had formally drilled them.
Meanwhile, no one interfered with their march. The nearly 500,000 citizens either could not understand the situation or were simply watching.
Behind the sea elves’ army, a human force led by Sonam Rinpoche also entered. They had arrived late. However, since they hurried, their ascent speed was similar.
Having arrived first, Arurion met the “puppet” who had been waiting at the top.
Yul stood with his arms crossed, leaning against the wall, gazing out at the vast sea.
"Yul, to take them down all alone... truly remarkable. Had I only heard rumors of what you’ve done, I would have dismissed them as lies or legends."
“Hm. This isn’t land, it’s the sea. My power grows stronger here, so that much is only natural. Anyway, I’ve secured the one claiming to be a reincarnator, though his mental state isn’t good.”
Yul gestured with his chin toward the fallen Sea Master.
The old man, bloated from lack of exercise, curled up pitifully, his appearance grotesquely mismatched with the noble silk clothes he wore.
“This isn’t real. This is a dream.”
Drooling, completely out of his mind, he could not comprehend the suddenly ruined surroundings.
Such was the end of one who indulged only in sweetness without understanding the weight of his position.
“Well, it’s the end of an incompetent freeloader who was satisfied with his status and did nothing.”
Though the sight was far from pleasant, to Arurion, King of the sea elves, it was a pitiable disgrace worthy of sympathy.
“Even I would have been defeated. Yul, was this the extent of your true power?”
His opponent had not been human. Not even an ordinary monster. It was a living storm, a natural disaster by mere existence.
Even if Arurion had stood in that place of confrontation, he wouldn't have been able to show any dramatic resistance.
At best, he might have left a scratch or briefly delayed his doom.
Therefore, there was some room for consideration regarding the fallen man.
“But you wouldn’t have ended up like that.”
“……”
He had no intention of denying something true. Even if he were to die, he would not abandon dignity.
Feeling relieved that he had not become Yul's enemy, Arurion inwardly reflected that gifting him an island over ten years ago was the wisest choice he had ever made.
Without that gallant gift, he might never have become Yul's ally.
“Occupy all the remaining islands controlled by the Sea Succession Church.”
“Occupy them?”
It would be a tedious, lonely, and repetitive struggle—taking resisting islands by force and then soothing the populace. Furthermore, those people were humans, not sea elves.
However, Yul offered much in exchange.
“In return, I’ll ensure all those islands can cooperate with your sea elf forces. Every island will become your base, and I promise they will never fall into your enemies’ hands.”
“I can occupy them. But ruling them is another matter.”
“I will handle that part.”
Sonam Rinpoche, who had been quietly listening, stepped forward.
“I have defined the tenets of Lord Yul’s Wave Church and have been drafting its doctrines. Here, this is the codex.”
Sonam Rinpoche had named the religion that served Yul the Wave Church and even created its codex.
Yul had not been involved in it at all. It was entirely Sonam’s creation.
“All humans living under the Sea Succession Church’s domain are deeply devout believers. Religion governs most of their lives, and at least 90 percent are born into it.”
“You plan to exploit that gap?”
“Yes, exactly. If we can convert them, modifying the Sea Succession Church’s doctrine into that of the Wave Church will reduce confusion. And hundreds of thousands who directly witnessed Lord Yul’s feats will not find conversion difficult.”
Yul’s overwhelming power had been witnessed not only by sailors at the front but also on the massive island of Labnap Alik.
“Then what do we do with the Sea Master?”
Dealing with the teacher of the Sea Succession Church here would be no different from creating a martyr.
“Leave him be. Expel him from this court, strip him of his silk clothes, and make him walk among the citizens so all may see his miserable end.”
The Sea Master’s authority was only complete atop Rafna Satra. Now, no one would believe he was a reincarnator.
There might be minor nuisances like attempts to rebuild the Sea Succession Church, but Yul decided to leave all of that to Sonam.
“That should be enough.”
After some thought, Yul gave his approval.
If the sea elves occupied the islands and converted the humans to the Wave Church, Yul judged that he could obtain overwhelming faith and raise his divinity rank.
‘This time, I should be able to raise my divinity rank and complete a quest.’
As he was thinking that, he saw a typhoon approaching from the southeast.
It was a familiar storm.
It seemed to have lost considerable power after passing through many islands of the Archipelago Ocean, but it still functioned as a typhoon.
Moving with the storm as its nest was the massive sea creature, the Kraken.
The last time they parted, Yul had stolen its objective and mocked it before leaving.
There was no denying that it would now be blinded by rage.
“Kraken…!”
“The Kraken?”
“A persistent nuisance that has been targeting Lord Arurion.”
Yul spoke between Ellarion and Arurion’s exchange.
“I’ll deal with it and return. Wait here.”
Leaping toward the scenery outside, Yul reverted to his original form using Polymorph.
From afar, the Divine Light Spire flew automatically toward him.
Since forming a contract with his soul, it had gained the property of locating and flying to Yul whenever needed.
That was why Yul had also bound the UV Thermal Gun to it for combined use.
With his weapon in hand, Yul left the island to meet the typhoon before it reached land.
He entered the raging waves and torrential rain.
Below, he could feel the will of a massive writhing creature.
-Why have you come again?
-I understand now. To achieve any goal, I must defeat you. I will eradicate the source to remove your interference.
Unlike usual, the Kraken spoke at length. It was its declaration of war.
-Really? So in the end, you want to kill me.
-That’s right.
But the objective difference in power was clear. Yul had fought the Kraken many times, and each time he had won or held the advantage.
Even when he had lost all his limbs, it was the same.
The gap was obvious. Then how did it plan to win? Yul waited.
Then he realized—there were no pirates in the storm.
This Kraken had clearly been operating a crew of siren pirates.
-I heard a rumor recently. Something interesting sank deep into the sea.
-……!?
-Yes. Was it called a dragon-slaying cannon?
A massive ballista-type weapon said to pierce the heart of the Sea Dragon Tribe in a single strike.
When loaded, it was enchanted with the magic called Sure-Hit, guaranteeing it would strike the heart.
And now, those pirates who rode the storm had retrieved it from the depths.
-That’s impressive. You already found it?
It had not been long since Yul destroyed the fleet. Yet they had already recovered the cannon and learned how to use it against him.
-I will repay the humiliation I’ve suffered.
As Yul’s gaze turned toward the dragon-slaying cannon loaded on the pirates’ deck, the Kraken moved first.
It raised its towering tentacles high and launched a wide-area attack to block Yul’s escape.
Due to its size, the attack was not swift or efficient. But what if it wasn’t just one tentacle?
More than six massive tentacles shot toward Yul, tearing through the sky.
-Your tentacles still regenerate? Persistent, aren’t you?
Yul already knew what he had to do. Today, he would settle things with the Kraken.
If possible, he wanted to learn its purpose—but even if not, he would eliminate the threat targeting the sea elves.
-Die.
Instead of dodging, Yul activated a force field around his body and allowed himself to sink beneath the surface.
The impact dispersed along the tentacle. Compared to its entire mass, Yul occupied only a small area, so the shock was minimal.
Before the heavy tentacle could capture him, Yul split the sea using the Sea-Sync Demon Eye.
His target was what he assumed to be the Kraken’s head.
If he destroyed that, there would be no need to sever tentacles—it would end in one blow.
-Do you think you can fight me in the sea, underwater?
With those arrogant words, the Kraken spread its tentacles wide.
From between them, numerous thin tendrils lashed at Yul.
He had experienced attacks like this before in his battle with the Hive.
He spiraled to evade while advancing. Just a bit further, and he would reach the Kraken’s body.
Then he would blow apart its head or torso in a single strike. The Divine Light Spire circled near him for that purpose.
Glowing with golden rotation, it began spinning as if ignoring the resistance of water.
-Can fight you underwater? Of course. I’m stronger than you.
The Divine Light Spire, spinning along its chain, struck the Kraken’s massive head.