Chapter 845
A deafening roar shook through their bodies, and for a single instant, the world blazed as bright as midday.
Even Ian grimaced, raising an arm to shield his face from the light.
—Impressive enough, I suppose. Though, of course, it’s incredibly inefficient.
Even amid the thunderous chaos, Yog’s amused whisper came through clearly.
The corner of Ian’s mouth slowly curled upward.
So she decided to bombard the entire area since she couldn’t pinpoint their exact locations.
It felt very much like Lily’s style.
A moment later, Ian’s gaze naturally shifted toward the Silent Storm racing alongside them. The passengers crowding its deck looked no different from him, shielding their faces or turning away from the blinding flashes.
Crash! Boom!
Every burst of thunder lit their faces in harsh flashes of shadow and white light, revealing a collective expression of pure disbelief.
It was only natural. Most of them had never paid Lily much attention, viewing her merely as some mute handmaiden.
None of them could have imagined she was capable of wielding magic that looked worthy of being called transcendent.
Swoosh!
Ian’s gaze drifted farther beyond, toward the Crimson Coral Reef surging through the spray behind them.
At some point, Lily had climbed onto Miguel’s shoulders. Miguel crouched low while clutching tightly to her legs, and Diana stood behind him with one hand braced against his back to steady him.
And after casting something on that scale, she still has strength left?
The smile tugging at Ian’s lips deepened.
Lily wasn’t gasping for breath or even swaying. One hand rested casually atop Miguel’s head while her magic wand leaned diagonally across the back of her neck.
The dragon relics Thesaya had personally selected for her beneath that hooded cloak were playing a role as well.
—Still, it doesn’t seem completely ineffective.
Yog’s next whisper pulled Ian’s attention back to the sea.
Only then did he realize the lightning barrage had begun to thin slightly, allowing him to lower his shielding arm.
Rumble! Boom!
The sea still churned beneath constant strikes of lightning, though now the flashes came more sporadically.
To Ian’s eyes, the arcs of electricity didn’t simply scatter across the surface. They spread downward beneath the water like branching roots, vivid and clear beneath the dark sea.
This was only possible because the lightning itself had been formed from magic.
Whatever the reason, it revealed the shapes of the sea creatures surging upward beneath the waves.
Ian’s eyes twitched as another massive splash erupted in the distance.
Fwoosh—
Bursting through the water in violent convulsions was a gigantic shark with two tails.
Its maw split wide, revealing rows of jagged teeth layered like overlapping blades.
Crash!
At almost the same moment, lightning slammed into the center of it.
Sparks exploded from the thick hide covering it like an exoskeleton, and glowing cracks carrying scorching heat spread across its flesh like a spiderweb.
Screech—
Its scream, closer to a shriek than a roar, tore through the air.
Immediately afterward, towering columns of water began erupting across the sea wherever the lightning struck.
Fwoosh! Swoosh!
A heavily armored, two-headed turtle; an eel layered in twisted horns; and even monstrous deep-sea anglerfish large enough to swallow ships whole revealed themselves beneath the relentless storm.
And everywhere across their bodies, lightning crashed down without mercy.
Crash! Rumble!
Screech! Roar!
The shrieks of the sea creatures mixed with the endless thunderous crashes
Even so, they didn’t die easily. Many continued thrashing violently through the sea, sending towering sprays of water in every direction as they scattered.
Most of them, however, were still swimming toward the ships.
Swoosh!
But they couldn’t catch vessels racing forward under the power of enhanced magic.
Following the Black Wave carrying Ian, both the Silent Storm and the Crimson Coral Reef tore straight through the storm-wracked waters where lightning rained endlessly upon the struggling sea creatures.
Crash!
As the lightning gradually began to thin out, the battered sea beasts slowly disappeared into the distance behind them.
—It seems not all of those creatures surfaced.
Yog’s snickering whisper came a few seconds later.
Ian gave a slight nod in agreement. He had already been scanning the surrounding sea for some time now. Faint blue trails shimmered here and there beyond the storm clouds, circling the area from a distance.
Some creatures had clearly used the others as shields, while others had simply dived deeper and escaped unharmed.
—And it seems that little one knows it too.
At Yog’s next whisper, Ian finally shifted his gaze once more.
Beyond the Silent Storm still racing slightly behind them, his eyes settled on the Crimson Coral Reef, his expression twitching faintly.
Lily was climbing back onto the portside railing. Behind her, Miguel flailed both arms frantically while shouting something in panic.
Ian clicked his tongue softly.
I probably would’ve made the same call in that situation, but...
No matter how much horrific experimentation the Magic Tower had forced her to endure, Lily’s physical abilities were still only those of a child her age.
On a violently rocking ship charging across the sea, even a small jolt could throw her off balance and send her overboard.
Crack, crackle!
But even while standing atop the railing, Lily looked completely unfazed. Sparks crackled now and then through her bristling hair, yet she showed no fear whatsoever, even in a situation like this.
—This isn’t the time to just stand there watching, Pointy-Ears.
Yog whispered teasingly.
Diana, who had been standing beside Miguel while watching the rear waters, suddenly stiffened.
—Tell the beasts something’s approaching.
Before Yog’s whisper had even fully faded, Diana spun around and sprinted toward the front of the ship.
There was no need to wonder where she was heading. Nehat had already been crouched atop the forward railing for quite some time now.
The other beastfolk warriors, ropes wrapped tightly around their waists, were likewise perched along various railings across the ship, waiting.
"-----!"
Ian couldn’t make out Diana’s words over the deafening noise around them, but she was clearly shouting orders while gesturing sharply toward the beastfolk.
Several warriors immediately broke off and dashed in different directions. Only then did Ian turn his attention away again.
Crackle, crackle, crackle!
Lily had raised her wand once more, magic rapidly gathering around it. The spell circuits etched into her exposed forearm pulsed brightly again as power surged through them.
Is it Chain Lightning this time?
Unlike before, bluish arcs of electricity were now converging directly into the magic stone embedded at the tip of the wand.
Ian narrowed his eyes as the wand began glowing brighter and brighter, cocooned in blinding light.
—Don’t focus too much on just one side, my friend.
Yog’s lazy warning brushed across his mind again.
Ian’s gaze twitched slightly as the creature continued speaking with infuriating calm.
—After causing a spectacle like that, even the ones who weren’t interested before will start gathering. Some of them might already be on the move.
That alone was enough to make Ian turn toward the opposite side of the ship.
The darkness and thick fog still limited visibility, but far ahead to starboard, a faint blue glow had begun spreading through the misty horizon.
Whether it was sea creatures or an approaching fleet, only time would tell.
Maybe....
Ian’s gaze darkened as the world around them suddenly grew quieter and dimmer.
Lily’s earlier spell had finally come to an end.
Only the sounds of the ships carving through the sea remained now, mingled with the furious, pain-filled shrieks of the sea creatures left behind in their wake.
Rumble!
Another thunderous blast exploded across the sky, flooding the surroundings with light once more.
As Ian turned his head back, a massive bolt of lightning came into view, cutting diagonally through the surface of the sea.
Crackle, crackle, crackle!
Beneath the water, countless branching arcs spread outward like a vast glowing net, the bluish current sweeping directly through the sea creatures approaching the Crimson Coral Reef.
Fwoosh!
The bluish current swept directly through the approaching sea creatures, causing them to erupt violently from the water and thrash in agony.
Spray burst upward through the fog while shrieks that sounded more like screams echoed chaotically across the sea.
Screech!
Sea creatures surfaced everywhere—horned sea serpents, grotesque fish with fin-like wings, even twisted, ammonite-like things warped into monstrous forms. Some rolled helplessly along the surface, as if they’d already given up the chase altogether.
Unlike the earlier storm, the spell’s range had narrowed, but its destructive power had become far greater.
However, it wasn’t the sea creatures that made Ian’s eyes twitch sharply.
Lily, still extending her wand outward, had finally lost her balance.
Miguel lunged forward at that exact moment, wrapping both arms tightly around her lower body. Kicking hard against the railing with one foot, he threw himself backward toward the deck.
Lily tumbled down with him.
Still, crashing onto the deck was far better than falling into the sea.
Ian quietly swallowed a relieved sigh.
—Now this is starting to get entertaining.
Yog’s amused whisper followed immediately after, and Ian understood what it meant a second later.
Just to Lily’s left, Palmer suddenly launched himself from the railing where he’d been crouching. Behind him stood Diana, who seemed to have already circled halfway around the deck, along with a striped beastfolk warrior crouched low in preparation.
Swoosh—
Ian’s gaze remained fixed on Palmer as he raised both of his fang-shaped swords high overhead.
Crack! Crackle!
Bluish lightning flickered across the surface of his gold-adorned plate gauntlets. The bluish magic rapidly spread down both hilts and infused the blades themselves.
So he was waiting for a chance to try that out.
Ian’s lips twisted faintly in amusement. Palmer, twin blades raised, arced through the air straight toward a massive sea serpent.
The moment the creature, with three pairs of eyes lining its head, opened its maw wide, both fang blades slammed down in a crossing strike directly into the bridge of its nose.
Palmer curled his body in midair as though momentarily freezing in place, and blue lightning exploded from the blades.
Crack!
The current, resembling Chain Lightning or a max-level Shock Blade spell, instantly engulfed the serpent.
Even from that distance, Ian could see all six of its eyes burn away simultaneously.
Fwoosh!
The creature writhed violently before collapsing back beneath the surface without a proper scream. Palmer kicked off its head and launched himself right after, though the leap wouldn’t carry him all the way back to the deck.
—You look awfully desperate, Pointy-Ear.
Behind the broken railing, Diana and the beastfolk warrior were already hauling in a rope with quick, practiced movements.
The moment Palmer vanished below the side of the ship, both of them tightened their grips and braced themselves hard against the pull.
Watching Diana immediately begin pulling the rope once more, Ian swallowed a chuckle.
She’s definitely cursing me out in her head again.
At some point, several fairies wielding horn bows had also begun moving toward the railing.
Screech!
Another shriek echoed across the sea almost simultaneously.
This time, it came from a fish-like sea creature with a massive greatsword buried directly through its enormous eye.
Nehat had already leaped from the railing as well, crashing into the creature while swinging her fang greatsword.
Crunch—
Just like Palmer, she kicked off the monster’s head immediately afterward and launched herself back upward.
The sea creature staggered violently, spraying thick fluids from its ruptured eye while the waiting beastfolk warriors began hauling on the rope attached to her.
Ian, who had been watching Lily climb back onto the railing yet again, suddenly turned sharply toward the opposite side.
The essence bead of chaos had twitched as though sensing something.
Yog let out a low chuckle.
—Ah, yes. Looks like these are the ones we’ll have to deal with.
Instead of answering, Ian merely nodded and turned fully around. His eyes remained fixed on the bluish fog far off to the right front, now thicker, clearer, and steadily spreading closer.