Chapter 281 : The East (3)

Alon, despite his confident tone, didn’t actually know much about the monstrous creatures.

His confidence stemmed from the fact that he had someone who could help him in various ways when crossing the sea.

‘Of course, it’s a bit far, so I’m not sure if I can ask for help right away.’

Either way, he had to try reaching out to know for sure.

Alon pulled out the communication orb he had received from Alexion to contact Radan and pushed his mana into it.

Soon, the orb started to hum and vibrate.

Alon looked down at it, stroking his chin.

‘What if Radan can’t help me?’

Then he’d probably have no choice but to rest and wait, even if it takes time.

Just as he was pondering this—

[Brother!]

Radan’s face appeared not long after.

“It’s been a while. How have you been?”

[Of course I’ve been well, brother! What about you?]

“I’ve been doing fine too.”

After exchanging simple greetings, Radan, excited and bubbly as always, and Alon quickly moved on to the main topic.

“I’m sorry to ask this, but can you help me out?”

[Of course, brother! What is it?]

Seeing Radan readily agree without question, Alon felt a sudden sense of pride.

After explaining the whole situation, Radan responded—

[Understood, brother! I’ll come right away!]

He twitched as if he were about to dash off immediately.

Alon asked calmly.

“Thank you for offering to help. But just out of curiosity—how long do you think it’ll take you to get here?”

[To where you are, brother?]

It was an important matter.

‘Hazad said this has been going on for two months now...’

Which meant the sea would likely stabilize in about four months.

So if it would take Radan over two months to get there, it wouldn’t be worth the trouble.

“So, given the situation, if it’s going to take too long, you don’t have to come.”

Alon added more details about the current circumstances.

Radan paused for a moment, then nodded.

[Don’t worry, brother. I’m coming right away! It won’t take that long! Jus—]

He raised two fingers energetically.

[Two days is enough, brother.]

His voice was full of confidence.

Alon, on the other hand, was taken aback.

“Two days??”

[Yes.]

“Wait, did you understand what I said correctly?”

It just didn’t seem possible.

The distance from Raksas to here was incredibly far.

But—

[It’s possible, brother. Just wait for me!]

Radan curled his lips into a grin.

[Then I’ll see you soon.]

He quickly shut off the orb and disappeared.

Alon stared blankly at the mana orb.

“Marquis, what did Radan say?”

“He said he’s coming.”

“Oh, that’s great news... But why do you look so uncertain?”

Even without expression, Evan was now able to gauge Alon’s inner thoughts based on the mood alone.

“...He said he’ll be here in two days.”

“What? Two days? Not two months?”

Evan looked baffled.

“Maybe he just doesn’t know where this place is?”

“To be honest, I think that’s quite likely.”

“Two days… is that even possible?”

Evan tilted his head in genuine confusion—until something came to mind.

“Oh! Maybe it is possible after all!”

“Possible how?”

“You know, that floating ship in the sky… Ah, but come to think of it, it didn’t seem all that fast last time.”

Evan murmured to himself briefly.

“Well, either way, if he says he’ll be here in two days, we should wait and see.”

Alon decided to place his trust in Radan.

“Please, let him come quickly. Please.”

“...Did you really want to go East that badly?”

Penia was nervously pacing beside them, clearly eager for the Eastern journey to proceed quickly.

She stopped and smiled brightly.

“Of course I want to go. It’s the place you’ve always wanted to visit, right, Marquis?”

“Is that the only reason?”

“Of course.”

With complete sincerity, Penia stated her case, and Basiliora, who had been reading the mood, snorted.

[Hmph, that’s not it. She found out from a book that the East has an ancient library with precious magical knowledge—kuack!]

Penia quickly surrounded the book she had been reading with mana and pressed down on Basiliora.

[S-Stop! Why am I being treated like this just for telling the truth~!!]

But Basiliora didn’t give up and continued shouting.

Penia ended up sitting on the book.

[Kraaaagh~! Too heavy!! I’m getting squashed!!!]

“Don’t say I’m heavy!!”

As she began wrestling with Basiliora over her weight again, Penia suddenly noticed Alon’s gaze and subtly shifted her eyes away.

Then—

“Well, unlike others, I really hope the Marquis uncovers the secret.”

Evan chimed in as if waiting for his turn.

However—

“Hmph, you’re just excited about all the beautiful beast-women in the Eastern lands.”

Penia’s sharp comment made Evan flinch.

“Th-That’s not true.”

“Not true? The moment I told you the Easterners are beautiful and like humans, your eyes changed.”

“No, I was just curious— I’ve never had thoughts like that!”

Evan brazenly denied it.

But—

“That was a lie.”

“What?”

“I made that up. You looked so bored, I just wanted to give you something fun to imagine.”

“Huh, that was a li— Gah.”

Evan, openly disappointed, quickly swallowed his words.

Like Penia earlier, he glanced over at Alon.

With Penia smirking, Basiliora screaming, and Evan still watching cautiously—

Alon thought, ‘There really is no one in this world I can trust.’

[Meow?]

Only the black creature tilted its head innocently amidst the chaos.

It was late afternoon.

***

Two days later.

“Brother!”

“Radan...??”

Radan really did arrive in just two days.

Even Alon, whose default was a blank expression, widened his eyes slightly.

“It’s been a while, brother!”

Radan was breathing heavily, clearly exhausted.

Seeing his pale face, Alon pushed down the urge to immediately ask, “How did you get here?” and spoke instead.

“Did you overexert yourself getting here?”

“No, brother! When you call, I have to come running.”

He smiled brightly, flashing perfect teeth, but he still looked tired.

Alon ushered him inside.

After giving Radan a moment to catch his breath—

Alon learned how he had managed to arrive so quickly.

“You used this to get here so fast?”

“Yes, brother.”

Alon looked down at the item Radan handed him.

A familiar wing-shaped ornament worn around the ankle.

‘The Rune of Relentlessness.’

Inside the game, it was a relic that could be obtained from a mini-game held in Raksas.

It consumed a set amount of mana but doubled the number of tiles a player could move in one turn, making it a must-have item for players who enjoyed thief builds.

Thieves, who always landed critical hits when attacking from behind, greatly benefited from being able to move over longer distances each turn.

‘I didn’t think it’d be this helpful for simple travel, though.’

Alon glanced at the Rune of Relentlessness with renewed appreciation.

“What’s all this?”

“Oh, I used all of that to get here, Uncle Evan. That artifact eats up a lot of mana.”

Alon, noticing Evan’s curiosity about the artifacts laid out and Penia drooling over them, spoke up.

“You must be tired. Rest for about a day.”

“I can go right away, brother.”

“There’s no need to push yourself. I’m grateful you came rushing here as it is.”

“Brother...”

Radan looked deeply moved by Alon’s words.

‘Is it really that touching?’

Alon thought, but he wasn’t tactless enough to ruin the moment.

He simply patted Radan’s shoulder.

The next day, after letting Radan rest well—

“Are we heading out?”

“Yes.”

“Then I’ll prepare the ship, supplies, and map. Some skilled folks put it together, so it’ll hold up against one or two attacks, no problem.”

Before heading East, Alon paid Hazad a visit.

He was there to collect the supplies Hazad had promised to prepare.

“Just give me the supplies and the map.”

“Huh? You don’t need the ship?”

“No, I already have one.”

“...You do?”

Hazad looked puzzled.

But he shrugged it off shortly after.

This time, Alon asked.

“By the way, you looked a bit uneasy earlier—did something happen?”

“Oh, it’s not from our side.

I just heard something odd from the elves.”

“Something odd?”

“Apparently, some elves have been dying recently.”

“All of a sudden?”

Hazad nodded.

“They weren’t attacked.

Most say it’s natural causes—some elves are nearing the end of their lifespans.

But the weird part is how simultaneously it’s been happening.”

Hazad downplayed it and said goodbye, and Alon left shortly after.

“We’ve got everything now.”

“Then let’s head East.”

Once everything was ready, Alon’s group began their journey toward the eastern sea.

It wasn’t long before they arrived at the shore.

“All right, please step back.”

Once the group stepped back, Radan pulled a small key from his pocket.

Then—

As he whispered something under his breath, he thrust the key into thin air.

Wuuung~!

A heavy ripple appeared in the air where nothing had been.

Thud! Kagagagagak~!!!

Soon, a massive ship began to materialize.

BOOM~!!!

With a thunderous noise, a colossal dark vessel fully emerged.

As the group stared in awe, Radan shouted—

“Brother, you may board now!”

Once everyone was on board, the ship began to move forward.

“Huh? There’s no one operating it, though?”

“Whoa...!”

While Alon was puzzled that the ship moved without a navigator or helmsman, Penia quickly realized how it worked and gasped in amazement.

“It’s powered by mana?”

When Alon muttered the question, Radan smiled and nodded.

“Yes, brother. This ship, ‘Zaebo,’ runs on my mana.”

“Zaebo?”

“Yes, that’s its name.”

“Another relic from Raksas?”

“That’s right. It’s one of my most treasured items.”

Alon nodded.

It certainly looked like something worth cherishing.

The ship alone was impressive.

But there was something else that surprised him.

“What about that flying ship we saw before? Aren’t you using that one?”

“Oh, that one can’t be used for long.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, it burns through mana stones like crazy.”

Alon agreed with Radan’s explanation.

If it had poor fuel efficiency, it’d be unsuitable for a voyage lasting over a week.

“Well, if you prefer, we could use that one?”

Radan asked hopefully.

But Alon shook his head.

“No, that’s not necessary. I’m just worried. There are a lot of strange creatures roaming around this season—”

He didn’t even get to finish.

SKREEEEEEEE!!!

Not long after they left the shore, a spine-chilling cry echoed around them.

Alon quickly turned his gaze toward the sound.

“What the hell!?”

He heard Evan cursing just as he widened his eyes in shock.

Countless monsters were swarming toward their ship as if they had been lying in wait.

So many that they were impossible to count.

Just a moment ago, the sea was calm and blue—now it teemed with beasts.

Each one was different in shape, but all were massive, big enough to not only cover the sea but blot out the sky as well.

“Heh...”

The overwhelming scale almost made Alon laugh.

But there was no time to reroute.

Should he freeze them with Reverse Heaven?

Could he freeze that many at once?

Maybe it’d be better to just blast them with Meteor—

As Alon racked his brain to find a way to eliminate the monsters,

Penia, now serious, began chanting a spell.

“Don’t worry, brother. I’ll take care of this.”

“...Huh?”

Radan nodded with confidence, then thrust his spear into the deck of Zaebo and turned it like a key.

“Unlock.”

As soon as he spoke—

WUUUUUUUUNG~!!!

Blue light began streaming through the air from the dark ship.

Like mechanical circuits, streams of intricate mana lines were drawn across the sky.

A massive surge of mana exploded outward.

Then—

CRACK!

The lines tore the sky apart, revealing—

“Weapons?”

Yes.

Weapons.

Spears, swords, blades, hammers, axes—and even more whose use couldn’t be identified—began pouring out from blue rifts.

But these weren’t ordinary weapons.

Some were familiar to Alon, others not.

Yet all were relics.

Relics that could be obtained from Raksas’s coasts, each one with unique powers.

Dozens?

No—

Hundreds?

No.

Thousands.

Just like Alon’s meteor storm, the weapons filled the sky, an endless rain devouring the heavens.

And then—

“Fire.”

At Radan’s whisper—

A barrage of light shot downward.

And then—

A sea of blood arrived.