Chapter 188 : Woodrock (7)
Woodrock (7)
Suddenly, countless sharp tentacles started flying in and piercing into the ship's hull.
Like arrows, the tentacles bored holes into the hull, killing several passengers.
Kaid should have ended up like those dead passengers as well—
If Louis hadn't grabbed the tentacles for him.
'Just now... what happened...?!'
Kaid was dumbfounded by the sudden turn of events.
'Did I just... almost die?'
It was unbelievable.
Kaid, the most talented of the Thousand Sword Society, had never lost to anyone except his father since he was born.
Beating up challengers had long grown tiresome.
Hunting monsters berserk with rage was more familiar to him than eating.
Even parrying the ambushes of jealous and vengeful rivals was easier than having a meal.
Whether the guy bared his teeth, unleashed swordsmanship brandished thousands of times, or launched crossbows and bullets in surprise attacks, it was all vividly clear in Kaid's eyes.
'Everything I see should move in slow motion.'
The world Kaid saw was always different from others.
Everything, except for himself, appeared so slow—like turtles—that it bordered on him mistaking only himself for a real person.
That's why no ambush, no fast-attacking opponent, ever appeared fast to him.
Possessing this much talent inevitably led him to regard others as less than people.
'But then why...'
But now,
For the first time, his confidence was shaken.
'Why couldn't I see it?'
He was sure he had absolute senses.
He ought to react even faster if something launched a surprise attack.
Such was the truth and rule of this world.
And yet, he not only failed to react, but someone else had to save him.
"What are you standing there dumbly for?"
Louis, who had saved Kaid, spoke to him as he stood staring vacantly.
"Huh... Huh?"
"If you don't wanna die, you better get to safety quick."
Hearing that nagging, Kaid finally came to his senses.
At the same time, he felt as if his intestines were twisting.
"You want me to get to safety? Me?"
He should run if he didn't want to die?
Was that actually directed at him?
"Who else would it be if not you?"
At Kaid's confusion, a tentacle shot up from the sea. Once again, the tentacle pierced the boat like an arrow, attacking people.
This time, Kaid drew his blade by instinct.
'This time...!!'
There's no way he couldn't notice such tentacles.
That would be impossible.
Kaid, burning with resolve, stared at the tentacle flying toward him.
But the instant he focused, his leg suddenly felt hot.
"Huh?"
The tentacle he'd focused on vanished from before his eyes.
At the same time, a hole was bored into the deck he was standing on.
Even his own thigh, which was anchoring his body, was punctured and bleeding.
'Why...?'
Kaid, wracked with pain, collapsed to the ground.
This time for certain, he'd watched the flying tentacle with both eyes wide open.
Yet he hadn't dodged, but allowed himself to be attacked—a shock far greater than the pain itself.
"Young master!!"
His bodyguard, Yugwang, seeing his injury, rushed over.
"The situation's bad! You have to get to safety!"
"Get to safety...?"
Yugwang's words shocked Kaid even more.
"Are you telling me to get to safety now?"
I, who have never known crisis?
"You know my skills well."
"Of course I do, but... this time it's impossible."
"Impossible? Why?"
"Actually... even I don't think I can stop those things."
Yugwang, whose skills were comparable to Kaid's, continued.
"Something is flying at us like arrows... but even I can't see them. I believe what the family head said is true."
What did Father say again?
Overconfident in his overflowing talent, Kaid had always ignored advice from those around him.
"He said the demon realm exists on this continent... and that its monsters are on a completely different level from our monsters in the East Continent!"
At those words, Kaid finally recalled his father's warning.
The reason their East Continent never dared approach this place—
It was because this region was filled with unknown, dangerous creatures.
"Then—don't tell me this attack is..."
"It's dangerous!!"
Just then, another tentacle flew toward Kaid.
This time, unlike before, Kaid could see it with his eyes.
But the tentacle stopped just 2 centimeters before piercing his eye.
"Ah..."
"Yeah, it's dangerous."
Fortunately, his eye remained unpierced.
"I told you to get to safety, didn't I?"
Once again, it was because Louis had caught the tentacle.
"In any case, I've saved you again, so let's call it even for your clothes. If you don't wanna end up a shish kebab, go hide already."
As if this rescue would be the last, Louis finally began to defend the ship with the rest of the team members.
He deflected all the tentacles flying at impossible speeds with his sword, rescuing passengers.
Other special task force members like Victor, Simon, and Rozen grabbed tentacles by hand or sliced them with their swords, and shot them down with bows.
"This could go on forever."
"That won't do. Pram!"
"I'm on it!"
At Louis's command, Pram began chanting magic, generating a magic array on the deck.
It was the moment she tried to deploy defensive magic to protect the whole ship.
Kyaaaaah!—
At that instant, something shrieked and leapt from the sea.
Before the defensive magic could be deployed, the monsters—those firing the tentacles—landed on the deck.
"M-Monsters!!"
"Why here, of all places...?!"
All the passengers panicked and scrambled to escape.
"Stay calm!"
"Everyone, get inside for shelter!"
The ship's crew were so well-trained for such emergencies that they guided the passengers to safety calmly.
"Captain! Isn't this supposed to be an area where monsters never appear? Why...?!"
"I don't know, either."
When a crew member asked, even the captain couldn't understand.
There had never, not once, been a record of monsters appearing here.
"And those aren't ordinary monsters."
The mercenaries hired to defend the ship were fighting the monsters now.
But none could withstand the monsters—they were all falling.
"Those should be some real experts, and yet they're going down one after another..."
There were plenty of warriors at the level of Expert, but none stood a chance.
He'd never seen monsters that strong.
"They're beasts from the demon realm."
"And who are you?"
Then Silia appeared, prompting the captain's curiosity.
"I can smell the unique pungence of the demon realm on them. Even the mercenaries you hired should evacuate immediately."
"Who exactly are you, then..."
"Is that really important right now?"
If, as this woman said, those beasts had come from the demon realm, the ship might as well already be doomed.
The captain realized further questions were meaningless.
"Are you sure you're right?"
"Looks like the 7th Legion failed to stop the stampede. With all those deserters lately, this isn't surprising."
Even the captain had heard of stampedes.
The worst disaster of the 7th Legion—if they failed to stop it, the entire empire would be in danger.
So was this what happened?
"Why, of all places, did they come here...?"
"Sure, monsters spread out after leaking into the empire. But there are suspiciously lots of them in this area."
Silia also found this odd.
But she had a guess.
"I'm guessing... they're swarming near a country called Woodrock."
"Those creatures?"
"Deserters from the 7th Legion. The monsters could be drawn here by the demon realm's poison soaked into their bodies."
He didn't understand a word this woman was saying, but the gist seemed clear:
"So... we're all going to die here?"
The mercenaries were useless, and there was no one left to fight.
"Who said anyone's gonna die?"
But Silia smiled at the captain
Even with a monster charging in to attack from behind.
Slash!—
"We of the special task force will protect this ship."
The sight of Silia casually slicing two monsters made the captain gasp.
"Please, Captain and crew, focus on getting everyone to safety."
With that, Silia began cutting down monsters one after another.
Unlike the mercenaries who were mowed down like bugs, Silia dispatched the monsters with ease.
At the same time, she even rescued mercenaries who were close to being killed—it was as if a swan had appeared among chickens.
"Squad leader! Sorry for deploying the barrier late!"
"Don't worry. This isn't even really a warm-up."
And she wasn't the only one taking the monsters so lightly.
"We've hunted these kinds of creatures more times than we can count."
"Suddenly feels nostalgic—always hunting by the fortress walls."
"Still, these guys are surprisingly tough. Bit more dangerous than the ones loitering around the walls."
"But they're only middle-class, at best."
The special task force members she led were dispatching monsters as if it were routine.
No matter how many tentacles the monsters fired, the team members simply parried them with blades or blocked them by hand.
Even when a monster stretched out claws, the team sliced them clean in a single strike.
"What on earth..."
Kaid, who'd watched from start to finish, spaced out again.
"How could they be so strong?"
Not only the special task force's fighting, but even the monsters' movements were beyond anything he imagined.
He couldn't keep up with any of it, and couldn't take his eyes off.
KIEEEEEE!—
Then a monster came for Kaid.
Kaid barely managed to block its claw.
"Young master!"
KIEEEEEE!—
"Ghh!"
Yugwang tried to help, but another monster blocked his way.
Now it was two-on-two, but Kaid actually welcomed the chance.
'Yeah... There's nothing I can't handle!'
He would defeat these monsters here and prove his strength.
With that conviction, Kaid channeled ki into his blade.
"Haaaaah!!"
How long had it been since he'd cried out with full power while fighting?
On Kaid's all-out sword strike, the monster's arm was severed.
"Got it!"
He'd finally overwhelmed it.
If he just cut off its head, he'd win!
Just as he thought so—
Kheheheheh!!—
As if mocking him, the monster's severed arm regenerated.
And it attacked Kaid again.
With many other monsters at its side.
"Kraaaagh!"
As the monsters swung their claws in succession, Kaid suffered deep wounds.
He simply couldn't believe it...
Each of these monsters was on par with him.
'A mere monster... this strong?'
They looked just like the common monsters on the continent, yet why were they so-nimble?
And their attacks were so heavy, his arms trembled just blocking them once.
Crack!—
At length, cracks started appearing in his blade.
Even with ki imbued, his blade couldn't withstand their attacks.
'This can't be...!'
Born a genius, Kaid had never so much as felt threatened.
And only today, for the first time, did he feel an even more overwhelming sense:
The terror of death.
"Young master!!"
Yugwang, who was also holding off many monsters, shouted but it didn't reach Kaid.
At the same time, monster claws slashed toward Kaid's neck.
In that instant, he foresaw the future of his head being cut off.
At last, no sound reached him.
All earthly sound was blocked, and only the silence of the next world seemed to approach.
Just as death was about to engulf his entire body—
SHRAAAAASH!!—
Sound returned to him.
All the monsters that had been aiming for his neck were cut in half.
"Huh?"
The monsters attacking Yugwang were killed as well.
"I told you to run, didn't I?"
Before Kaid, barely escaping death, stood the two people who had saved him.
"Young master. Their blood smells like gold. They must be nobles."
"It's true, the nobles 'here' do have a different scent..."
Louis and Rio, having cleaned up the monsters in an instant, carried Kaid and Yugwang on their backs.
"—Sh*t, this is your last chance so just behave yourself."
"......."
For the first time in his life, Kaid was unable to talk back to someone else.