Chapter 34

“Why are there so many monsters?”

“Run! Everyone run!”

“Where are we going to run? We’re in the middle of the sea!”

“Fight!”

The sea worms lunged forward, the ship rocked, and the students were plunged into chaos.

The deck was hell.

“…What the hell is this?”

— Don’t draw your sword.

‘I know that…!’

Officially, carrying weapons was forbidden in the Yacht Club.

Of course, since it was a rule imposed by the students themselves, it wasn’t strictly enforced.

But with the blood of princes and elector families among them, the rules felt weightier than simple school regulations.

Aint wrapped his hands in aura and struck hard at the head of a sea worm that opened its disgusting maw.

With a “boom,” the head exploded, and the creature’s body fell back into the sea.

“They’re just many! Don’t lose focus!”

“Kill them all!”

“Keep them from boarding!”

“Don’t use fire magic, you idiots!”

And it wasn’t just Aint.

Though at first the students didn’t know how to react, one by one they began regaining composure and started slaughtering the sea worms.

The ocean setting, the sudden appearance, and the sheer number of approaching creatures—hundreds, thousands—were enough to trigger panic.

But in reality, a single sea worm wasn’t particularly strong.

And those present were all top-ranking students from the academy.

Thanks to the academy’s philosophy, focused on real combat, these students had faced countless monsters. They were capable of acting as real fighters on a battlefield.

At a glance, the sea worms looked like they could cover the entire ocean, but each time one made it onto the deck, it was sent back into the sea—where it met its end.

“Keep them from wearing down the ship’s hull!”

The problem was that as they climbed, the sea worms were gradually corroding the hull.

Their saliva had corrosive properties, which even dissolved the magic circles embedded in the ship.

Little by little, the vessel was losing resistance against the waves.

“The deck isn’t the problem. Stop them from getting near the ship at all!”

“The Knight Department will take the front. Don’t overdo it, you’re unarmed.”

“The Magic Department will support the knights. Limit the use of fire and lightning magic…”

“Don’t even let them stick to the ship! If it sinks—”

And the one who began to stand out amidst the orders and chaos was Ludger Schwaben.

He quickly took command, and thanks to his status and clear directives, the students had no objections.

“They’re holding out better than I expected.”

But Fernan wasn’t worried. If it were just sea worms, the ship would never sink.

And it didn’t take long for the moment he’d been waiting for to arrive.

Fwooooshhh—!

Beyond the sea worms, a whirlpool rose powerfully.

Like a torrential downpour, it splashed everywhere before vanishing.

Through that space, a massive creature emerged.

“…What the hell is that?”

“A monster!”

The students’ screams mixed with—

“Finally, it’s here.”

…Fernan’s smile.

“It’s a sea serpent!”

A gigantic sea serpent devoured the worms as it charged toward more appetizing prey.

***

— Wake up! Come on, wake up!

The freezing water was causing his body temperature to drop dangerously.

— Did you survive all this time just to die to something like this?

Aint’s foggy mind began to surface from the abyss thanks to the relentless shouting.

— I said wake up!

The vibration of the pendant shaking fiercely dispelled the darkness like a fading dream. Aint opened his eyes.

‘…Where am I?’

Icy sea.

Around him floated the corpses of sea worms and the fish feeding on them.

— You finally woke up?

The voice that had roused him sighed in relief.

— Get up right now. If you stay there, you’ll die.

Breathing was hard.

Using his aura for support, Aint swam with difficulty but urgency toward the surface.

“Puaaah…!”

He held his breath and then released it with a gasp.

The first thing he did was scan the surroundings, but apart from some wreckage that looked like parts of the ship, there was no sign of the vessel anywhere.

“…What the hell happened?”

— Don’t you remember what happened last?

“…The last thing?”

Then, he remembered.

The sudden appearance of the Sea Serpent—a massive creature over ten meters long, known as the king of the ocean.

The students tried to stop its charge with magic, but it was useless. The ship, already weakened by the Sea Worms, couldn’t withstand the impact and split in two.

The only stroke of luck was that the Sea Serpent slipped through the crack between both halves of the ship.

And though the students had been startled, they weren’t so incompetent as to waste the opportunity. The Sea Serpent was swiftly fatally wounded by the combined assault of dozens of high-level students from the academy.

However, it didn’t die quietly. The battle was fierce, and Aint ended up being hit by the monster’s breath right before losing consciousness.

“…How am I still alive?”

— Under normal circumstances, you’d be dead. You partially froze from the Sea Serpent’s icy breath and sank into the sea.

Freezing to death and becoming an ice statue would’ve been the most likely outcome.

If not for the sword you carry—the one holding the first Royal Knight—it was a safeguard left by the first emperor.

— I protected you. I dispersed the Sea Serpent’s breath and maintained your body temperature so you wouldn’t die in the water.

“…That’s even possible?”

— This sword doesn’t just house my soul. It’s a fully equipped tool created to assist the heir in the future.

“…It’s far more incredible than I thought.”

Until now, he had only considered it a solid sword with a spirit inside.

— Your enemies aren’t just humans trying to unify the continent. They’re demons. So this is just the basics.

It was a reminder that facing demons wasn’t something to take lightly.

“…I’ll keep that in mind.”

— There’s an island nearby. Head there. I don’t even want to imagine running into monsters in the open sea.

“Understood.”

Fortunately, it wasn’t too far.

Aint swam for a long time until he finally reached the island.

“Haah… haah…”

Collapsed on the shore, he gasped for air.

After the battle and the long swim, his aching body was at its limit.

“…I’m alive.”

— There’s someone over there.

Not far away, two people were passed out on the beach.

“Golden Turtle Company crew…?”

The worn uniforms bore the symbol of a golden turtle.

— Looks like sailors from the ship. Check if they’re alive.

“Yeah.”

Aint dragged himself over to them, rolled them over, and checked for breathing.

“Luckily, they’re—”

That’s when it happened.

— Aint, watch out!

─!

Both men’s eyes snapped open.

They were already gripping daggers, which flew straight for his chest and throat.

“…!”

Aint fell back immediately, but his weakened body wasn’t quick enough.

One of the daggers barely grazed his shoulder, but the other went for his chest.

Clang!

There was an impact, but no wound.

— Grab me!

Gardner’s sword moved on its own and blocked the dagger. Aint rolled backward and grabbed the sword, which had already returned to its original form.

Another dagger flew at him an instant later.

─!

──!

Their attacks were swift, precise, and deadly. Most importantly, they left no room for retreat.

— It’s a typical assassin style. They’re not just crew. They’re professionally trained killers.

“…Tch.”

Aint was overwhelmed by their unrelenting offensive.

He had no experience and wasn’t prepared. His fighting became purely defensive, and minor wounds started piling up.

That brought a new danger.

“…This…”

His head was spinning.

— Poison! Channel your aura through the sword. I don’t know how strong it is, but it’ll help purify it.

“Got it.”

He did as Gardner instructed, and the poison began to dissipate. Color slowly returned to his face, which alarmed the assassins who had assumed he’d been poisoned.

That brief hesitation gave Aint just enough time to catch his breath.

— A monster attack splits the ship, you swim to an island, and assassins with poisoned weapons are waiting?

— You really think all this is a coincidence?

Gardner finally noticed the detail that had been bothering him.

— It makes no sense for someone to use sea monsters to kill you… unless they’re demons.

Some of them have the power to control monsters.

— Demons. They’re finally moving to eliminate you.

“…High-ranking demons?”

The idea of demons directly taking action stunned him. And that murmur triggered a shift in the assassins’ aura.

The pressure turned more intense, more vile. A repulsive, nauseating black aura exploded around them.

— Demon magic! They’re not even trying to hide it.

Aint had never felt anything like it before, but there was no other way to describe it.

It was pure hatred, rot, and evil.

“…Am I going to survive this?”

He swallowed hard.

Between the injuries, the poison, and his exhaustion, he wasn’t in shape to fight.

— It’s not a matter of surviving. You must survive!

— You bear the name of Armian! Are you going to die to demon scum?!

White aura surrounded his sword.

Just as the assassins unleashed their demonic magic and charged—

──!

A dark shadow intervened. A single clean strike dispersed both attacks.

Then, a wave of sand rose from the ground and swallowed the enemies.

“…Luina, senior?”

“Are you alright, Aint Armian?”

“How did you get here…?”

She wasn’t alone.

A mage approached with his hands behind his back and a bored expression.

“They’re wearing company uniforms, but…”

The sand floated, quivering.

“They don’t look familiar.”

The faces of the restrained assassins were now visible.

“Who are you people?”

The ones who caused their fall. Fernan’s face turned grim.

“……”

“……”

They didn’t answer. They just swelled up.

“They’re going to self-destruct!”

“It’s dangerous!”

It was self-destruction magic. By colliding the mana in their magic core, they triggered an explosion. In this case, demon magic.

Luina rushed toward them, but wasn’t fast enough.

───!

A black explosion engulfed Fernan and Luina.

— Damn lunatics…!

“Noooo!”

Aint and Gardner screamed.

But when the smoke cleared, the scene was surprisingly calm.

“Don’t worry.”

Fernan was still standing, unmoved. Beside him, Luina radiated powerful aura.

Several barriers surrounded them.

“I expected this.”

After all, he’d already read the prophecy.

Fernan scoffed.

“Are you alright?”

“…Yes, I’m fine.”

“How touching. Running in to shield me like that.”

“…We’re teammates, aren’t we?”

“But this isn’t over yet.”

“Huh?”

She didn’t get to ask more.

─────!

A deafening roar shook the coast. The gigantic creature that had destroyed the ship appeared again.

Only this time, there were two of them.

“…I’ll take one.”

“Take on…?”

“The Sea Serpent.”

“Are you insane? Why do something so reckless?”

Fighting a Sea Serpent at sea was suicide. Unless it was absolutely necessary, there was no reason to.

“Let’s run.”

“What?”

Instead of answering, Fernan used the sand to lift Aint and bolted.

‘Where was that setup on the island…?’

If it came to it, Aint could handle it alone. There was no need to take unnecessary risks.

“W-wait for me!”

Luina ran after them.

***

Meanwhile, not far from there.

“…Is this really okay?”

Bella, still confused by what had happened and infected with demonic magic, was recording everything with a high-end artifact.

“I’m number 19 in the Department of Knights…”

Though she wasn’t in the top 10, she was still among the best. And yet, her task was just to record.

“…A-are they going to be okay?!”

She almost ran toward them when the assassins self-destructed. But when two Sea Serpents appeared, roaring…

“…Yeah, better stick to recording.”

She had absolutely no intention of fighting them. Even so, she gripped her sword with one hand, ready to run.

“…Huh?”

…At least until they decided to run first.