Chapter 124: The Drowned Stalker
The sudden heavy rain continued to pour down as more Drowned Stalkers swayed beneath the flashing sky, their hollow smiles fixed on the ship.
Below, Jake kept his sword raised, red aura burning steadily against the storm, while Grace remained firmly at his side with her gun ready.
Then Grace raised her voice again, cutting through the rain and the distant cannon fire.
"Those necks aren’t their main bodies!!"
Everyone’s attention snapped toward her.
Grace’s golden eyes were sharp and dark as she stared at the rising forms.
"If we want to kill them... we have to destroy the main bodies!!"
Jake, completely soaked from the downpour, stood right beside her.
Water dripped from his hair and clothes as he muttered under his breath, his expression tightening.
"...Don’t tell me..."
Grace gave a slow, grim nod, her gaze locked on the churning black sea below.
"Yes..."
"Their main bodies are under the water."
At those words, tense silence followed her words, broken only by the roar of thunder and the restless canon explosion.
From above, Garrick’s grip on his long sword tightened.
Vivian’s face grew even colder as the full weight of the situation settled over them.
Jake heard the confirmation and immediately turned his gaze toward the sea below.
Even during the day, the waters of the Dead Sea Line had always been strangely dark and oppressive.
"Damn..."
Now, in the middle of the night, under heavy rain and only the occasional flash of lightning, the black surface was completely impenetrable.
There was no way to see anything beneath it.
And somewhere in that pitch-black water... the true bodies of the Drowned Stalkers were waiting.
Jake’s expression grew colder as rain continued to pour down his face.
His grip on the sword tightened, red aura still faintly burning along the blade despite the downpour.
’Fighting them on the surface is already bad enough... but if their main bodies are down there...’
He didn’t finish the thought.
Infront of the ship, more elongated necks continued to sway under the storm and the barrage of cannons, their cracked smiling masks fixed on them as if mocking their helplessness.
From the upper deck, both Garrick and Vivian remained silent for a moment, the weight of the situation pressing down on everyone present.
Then Garrick spoke from above.
"I’ll go down."
His voice was calm, but firm.
And everyone turned toward him.
Garrick stood with his long sword resting against his shoulder, blue aura faintly flickering around the blade even under the pouring rain.
His expression was serious, without a trace of hesitation.
"If their main bodies are beneath the water, someone has to deal with them directly... I’ll dive in and cut them down."
At those words, Vivian’s eyes immediately sharpened.
"Garrick!"
Garrick met her gaze steadily.
"I’m the most suited for it right now. My aura can still function underwater better than most, and I have the strength to handle whatever is waiting down there."
Grace opened her mouth slightly, as if she was about to say something.
But then she hesitated.
Her golden eyes flickered with conflict for a brief moment before she pressed her lips together and kept silent, lowering her gaze slightly under the pouring rain.
Jake noticed it immediately.
His brows furrowed as he glanced sideways at her, sensing that there was something she wanted to say... but chose not to.
Before he could ask, Vivian’s sharp voice cut through the storm from above.
"I disagree!!"
She stepped closer to the edge of the upper deck, completely soaked, her expression fierce as she stared at Garrick.
"Didn’t you hear what Grace said?! Their weakness is light or fire!!"
Her voice was firm and urgent, cutting through the rain and distant cannon fire.
"Your aura and blade will be useless against them!! Even if you go down there, you’ll just be fighting with a disadvantage!!"
Even so, Garrick’s expression remained steady under the downpour.
"I will make it work somehow."
Vivian’s face immediately twisted with frustration.
"You blockhead!!"
She stepped even closer to the edge, rain streaming down her face as she glared at him.
"This isn’t something you can just force through with strength!! If light and fire are their only weaknesses, then going down there with just your aura is suicide!!"
Garrick did not look away.
"Someone still has to go," he replied calmly. "If we only keep fighting the necks on the surface, we’ll eventually get overwhelmed."
Below, Jake listened in silence, rain dripping from his hair as his gaze shifted briefly between the arguing pair above and Grace beside him.
The golden-haired girl still looked conflicted, her lips pressed tightly together as if holding back words.
Jake turned his head slightly toward Grace, his voice calm despite the tension and the pouring rain.
"Grace... how do those on the mainland deal with these monsters?"
Grace’s body tensed for a moment.
She hesitated, golden eyes flickering under the falling rain as if weighing her words carefully.
After a short silence, she finally spoke, her voice steady and enough that those nearby could clearly hear her over the storm.
"...From what I’ve learned, we use a special kind of stone provided by the Holy Church."
"It can temporarily infuse a fire attribute into weapons or aura. Most of the soldiers who don’t have light or fire-related abilities carry them when they have to fight Deep Aberration beasts."
Jake’s eyes narrowed slightly at the information.
Above them, both Garrick and Vivian had fallen silent, listening carefully despite the distance.
The weight of her words settled over the rain-soaked deck.
Without a proper countermeasure, diving into the black water to face the main bodies of the Drowned Stalkers was far more dangerous than it already appeared.
Vivian’s expression tightened.
She heard about those stones.
Special materials used by mainland forces to temporarily grant fire attributes to weapons and aura when fighting Deep Aberration beasts.
But the problem was simple...
...They didn’t have any.
Out on the Seven Seas, no one had ever needed them before.
She turned toward the group of adventurers and crew members gathered further back on the rain-drenched deck, her voice rising sharply over the storm.
"Is there anyone here with a fire or light skill?!"
The question cut through the heavy rain and distant thunder.
For a moment, no one answered.
The adventurers and crew members exchanged uneasy glances under the downpour.
Some shifted uncomfortably.
Others kept their eyes lowered or looked away entirely.
The silence stretched longer than it should have.
Vivian’s gaze swept across them, sharp and unreadable.
She already understood the truth behind that silence.
Even if someone among them possessed such a skill... they might not confess it.
Not when it meant being the one who had to dive into that pitch-black water filled with Drowned Stalkers.
Vivian clicked her tongue in frustration, rain streaming down her face as she glared at the silent group of adventurers and crew.
"Fine... Barbara, check them one by one."
Barbara, standing soaked beside her, gave a small nod without a word and went toward the group.
Below on the damaged deck, Jake remained silent beside Grace.
Rain continued to drip from his hair and soak into his clothes as he quietly watched her face.
The conflicted expression she had been holding, the way she had hesitated earlier, the grim look in her golden eyes when she spoke about the main bodies being underwater...
...He finally understood.
Then a faint, calm smile appeared on his lips.
"Thank you for your concern, Grace."
Grace froze.
Her head snapped up toward him, golden eyes widening with sudden fear as the meaning behind his words hit her.
"Jake... no—!! It’s dangerous!!"
Jake only kept that quiet smile as he reached out and gently touched her rain-soaked cheek.
His fingers brushed against her cold skin, wiping away a few droplets as he looked into her panicked golden eyes.
"I know," he said calmly, his voice steady despite the storm raging around them.
"But someone has to do something about it... otherwise we will all die."
At his words, Grace’s breath caught.
Her hands trembled slightly as she stared up at him, the fear in her eyes deepening.
"Jake..." she whispered, her voice almost breaking.
Then, Jake’s calm expression suddenly brightened into a wide, carefree smile.
He lightly patted Grace’s rain-soaked cheek before pulling his hand back and speaking in a lighter tone, as he let out a short laugh.
"Haha. Hey, we’re going to have to sail the sea in the future, right? If I end up as a captain who’s afraid of the sea... wouldn’t that be such a huge joke?"
The casual way he said it under the pouring rain stood in sharp contrast to the deadly situation surrounding them.
Grace stared at him, her golden eyes still filled with worry, though a complicated mix of emotions flickered across her face at his attempt to ease the tension.
Jake’s smile remained, but the quiet resolve in his eyes had not faded in the slightest.
At that, Grace gritted her teeth hard under the pouring rain.
Her golden eyes, which had been filled with fear only moments ago, gradually hardened with determination.
She clenched her fists tightly, forcing down the urge to cry or cling to him.
Rather than remaining a crybaby... she would support her captain with everything she had.
Seeing that determined look on her face, Jake’s smile softened slightly.
Then he turned his head upward, raised one hand high, and shouted through the storm.
"Madam Vivian!!"
His voice cut clearly through the rain and distant thunder.
"I actually have a light-related skill!!"