Nido Tensei Shita Shounen wa S-rank Boukensha Toshite Heion ni Sugosu ~ Zense ga Kenja de Eiyūdatta Boku wa Raisede wa Jimi ni Ikiru ~

Episode 48: The Great Inner Sea and the Kraken

After safely rescuing the ship and crew, I decided to fly up to the roof and leave the scene.
It seemed like it could become a bit troublesome if I stayed here.

“Hey, you, wait a moment!”

I can hear a voice calling out to me from behind, but I pretend not to hear it.
If I stop here, I’ll lose my reason to escape.
Let’s pretend I didn’t hear anything and quickly leave the harbor.

◆

“I wonder if escaping to here is fine.”

I escaped to a place that is less popular, and just to be safe I take out a different colored jacket from my magic bag and change into it.
All that’s left is to confidently walk through the city and meet up with Liliera.
I don’t think she would expect me, who has escaped, to be walking boldly through the streets.

◆

“I was startled when you suddenly jumped out, and then disappeared so quickly.
You gave me quite a scare.”

“Kyuu!”

When I met Liliera again, she immediately scolded me.

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

I am the one at fault here, so I apologize sincerely.

“Kyu?”

Mofumofu seems to be hitting my head lightly as if to say, “Are you really reflecting?” Sorry, sorry, from now on, I’ll be more considerate to Liliera-san.

“If you were going to do it, I would have appreciated a heads up.”

I’m really sorry.

“Phew… Well, never mind.
But what was that earlier? I’ve never heard of a monster that can swing around a giant battleship like a toy.”

As expected of an adventurer, Liliera seems to be curious about the true identity of that thing.
Encountering unknown beings is one of the joys of being an adventurer.
Well, personally, I’m not particularly excited about encountering it since it’s not my first time.

“I think that is probably a Kraken.”

“Kraken? Is that the giant squid monster?”

Liliera-san exclaims in surprise upon hearing the name Kraken.
The Kraken is an indispensable creature when it comes to discussing sea monsters.

“Yes, it usually lives quietly in the depths of the sea, but occasionally it surfaces on the ocean and uses its massive body to prey on its victims.
It is a super-sized monster.”

Liliera-san, after hearing my explanation, gulps and swallows her saliva.

“I can’t believe I actually encountered the legendary monster Kraken…”

“Huh?”

Liliera-san is saying something strange.
It’s normal that you can encounter a Kraken if you go out to sea.
At least in my past life, Krakens were so common that when fishermen threw their nets, they would complain about Krakens getting tangled up in them.

“No matter how advanced the battleship is, it’s hopeless if the opponent is a Kraken.”

By the way, the battleship that was turned into a toy by the Kraken was advertised as a state-of-the-art ship, right? But why did the Kraken throw the ship? Normally, a Kraken would…

“So, what are we going to do now? Are we going to go defeat that Kraken?”

“Well, let’s see.
First, let’s head to the Adventurer’s Guild.
They might know something about that Kraken.”

First, we need to start with gathering information.

◆

And so, I have arrived at the Adventurer’s Guild in the town of Fizio.

“It’s quite an unusual guild, isn’t it?”

The adventurer guild in the town of Fizio had a different shape than any other guild we had been to before.

Surprisingly, the adventurer’s guild in this town has no walls, so you can see everything inside from the outside.
In the center of the guild, there is a square counter where four staff members assist adventurers from the inside.

“It’s more like a shop than an adventurer’s guild, isn’t it?”

Yeah, you’re right, Liliera-san.
The people at the guild’s front desk do dress more casually compared to the staff in the capital or the town of Hekiji.

“Well, I guess they’re at least doing some work, so why don’t we start by checking the request board?”

“I see.”

Come on, let’s go checkout the request board

“Hmm, there are a lot of requests for recruiting people who can use projectiles or magic as escorts for ships.”

Indeed, a long spear would be suitable, swords or axes would not be suitable for attacking enemies in the sea.

“Afterwards, it’s just the job of loading the luggage and patrolling the port area at night.”

Other than that, it’s pretty much the same type of request that is being recruited in other towns.

“Oh, there it is.
Defeat the Kraken.”

I discovered a request form that was posted in the most prominent place on the request board.

“It seems that the reward for defeating the S-rank monster Kraken is 1500 gold coins.”

Oh, so if the reward for subjugation alone is 1500 pieces, it seems like it would increase even more if you include the reward for material purchase.

“Huh? But isn’t the Kraken S-rank?”

That’s strange, I remember the Kraken being only a B-rank monster in terms of strength.
I wonder if the Kraken has become stronger without me knowing?

“Hey, hey, it’s better to stay away from that one.”

And the person who approached me was a stern-looking man.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Ronzen, a fisherman in this town.
Well, my boat got destroyed by that bastard though.”

It seems that this person is a victim of the Kraken earlier.

“Many adventurers have challenged that guy before, but not a single one of them could defeat him.
You guys have seen it too, right? The sight of the military’s warships being treated like toys.”

Well, in a way, I was watching from a prime seat.

“Has the Kraken been inhabiting this area for a long time?”

Curious about the timing of the Kraken’s appearance, I decided to ask Mr.
Ronzen.

“No, that guy appeared just recently.
He suddenly showed up and started attacking ships in the Great Inner Sea.
Thanks to him, the ships in the Great Inner Sea have to risk running along the coast to avoid the danger of running aground.”

I see, so you’re saying that the Kraken can’t attack in shallow waters along the coast.
But as Mr.
Ronzen said, it’s still dangerous in shallow waters, except for small boats.
So the problem that the townspeople were talking about was caused by that Kraken, huh?

“Didn’t you consider hiring a large number of wizards to defeat the Kraken?”

In response to Liliera’s question, Mr.
Ronzen shakes his head sideways.

“Oh, indeed there were plans for such strategies, but that bastard would dive to the bottom of the sea when things got dangerous.
And then he would resurface once his wounds healed.
Initially, he wouldn’t come out right after getting injured, so everyone would use that time to set sail, but it ended up costing us a lot of money.
We’re getting desperate.”

Ah, indeed, if that’s the case, we would have to hire a large number of wizards every time the Kraken appears.

“I was hoping that the military battleships would somehow come through this time, but it turned out to be a major disappointment.”

Mr.
Ronzen slumps his shoulders and lets out a sigh.

“Thanks to that guy, I can’t go fishing anymore, and my business has really suffered.”

It seems like the people in the town are also having a hard time.

“I mean, I was hoping for that guy earlier to come through, you know?”

“Huh? What guy?”

“What’s up with you guys, didn’t you see it? That amazing guy who caught that battleship.
It was incredible! If he had that kind of strength, I think he could have dragged that Kraken out of the sea! I couldn’t see it in detail because I was far away, but he was definitely a young guy.
But seriously, why did he disappear?”

Ah, yeah.
That’s right.
I think he probably didn’t want to stand out.
Probably a knight.

“Oh, by the way, it’s pointless to accept the request because the fishermen in the town are afraid to ferry out whoever wants to subjugate the Kraken.
Their boats will be destroyed during the process.
After all, even the latest battleship wouldn’t stand a chance against him.”

With just that, Mr.
Ronzen quickly disappeared into the crowd.
I wonder if he was worried about us and was trying to teach us various things?

“So, what’s the plan? Do you have a strategy to defeat the Kraken?”

I can no longer see Mr.
Ronzen, and Liliera asks me a question.

“Um, according to that person’s story, it seems like it would be pointless because we won’t get a boat.”

Yeah, if the ship capsizes or gets destroyed, it’s all over.
Plus, if we try to attack with magic and fail to finish them off, they’ll just escape and that’ll be the end of it.

“But there must be some good strategy, right? That’s why you were looking at the request form, right?”

You’re sharp, huh.

“Well, there is not necessarily no way.”

In reality, there are several ways to defeat the Kraken.
The important thing is to defeat it in one blow and not let it escape.
However, in that case, we must refrain from using large-scale offensive magic in order to secure proof of the defeat.
After all, if we turn it into ashes, people won’t believe that we have defeated it.

In that case, the only options are to aim for the weak point and take its life with a single blow, or create a situation where escape is impossible.
Considering the opponent’s size, which is large enough to turn battleships into toys, it will be quite difficult.
Furthermore, since we cannot ask the fishermen to go out to sea this time, the battle will likely be fought at long range.

That’s why I decided to choose the old-fashioned simple method.

“Well, since we’ve come all this way… Shall we try to defeat the Kraken?”

“That’s how it has to be!”

And so, we decided to go on a Kraken extermination mission.

◆

A few days later, we arrived at the port fully prepared to defeat the Kraken.

“Shall we start the Kraken extermination then?”

Saying that, I take out the tools for defeating the Kraken from the magic bag.

“Hey hey, what’s this?”

The fishermen and sailors who were working nearby became interested in the tools for defeating the Kraken and came over.

“What’s going on? Are you guys really planning to take on the Kraken?”

And among them, there was also the figure of Mr.
Ronzen whom I met the other day.

“Yes, since I came all this way, I thought I would give it a try.”

“Well, I guess that’s your freedom, but what on earth is this? A small boat tied with a rope? Well, it’s not really a boat, is it?”

The fishermen and crew members around Ronzen-san also nod in agreement with his question.

“And the tip of the anchor has a strange shape.
It looks more like a hook than an anchor, doesn’t it?”

Everyone tilts their head in confusion as they see the small boat I prepared.

The fact is, it wasn’t meant for humans to ride on.
It was just something made to look like a boat by shaving a log.
It was only made to float on water.
And there was a thick rope threaded through the small boat, piercing it.
Furthermore, the rope extending from the small boat was connected to a single thick, long log.

“Well, please watch.”

When I set sail in a small boat, I activate the magic of the wind.

“Control Wind!”

This is a magic that sailors on sailing ships prefer to use, which literally allows them to manipulate the wind freely.
It’s not a wind that can be used for attacking, but with this magic, they can freely move the sailing ship even during calm seas.
It is a useful magic when they need to hurry or when they are caught in strange currents.

And then, using this magic, I guided a small boat to the location where the military battleship was attacked by the Kraken the other day.
And so, when the small boat reached the desired area and some time had passed…

“Huh!? It came out!”

Just as the fisherman said, the small boat suddenly started rocking, and before I knew it, it was lifted into the air by tentacles emerging from the sea.

“Alright!”

When the tentacles wrapped around the small boat, they made a creaking sound and caused the boat to twist.
And then, the boat was dragged into the sea.

After confirming it, I grabbed the end of the log that I had placed next to me.
And soon, the rope that was connected to the log began to be dragged into the sea.

“Alright, good job! It’s looking good.”

I confidently hold onto the log, believing that the plan is going well.
And as the rope sinks completely into the sea, the connected log is pulled into the ocean.

“What the heck!”

I will use body strengthening magic to resist the power of dragging the log into the sea.

“What on earth is that guy doing!?”

The situation is unclear, and the surrounding crew members are confused.

What I am trying to do is Kraken fishing.
The log serves as the fishing rod, the rope as the fishing line, the small boat as the float and decoy, and the anchor as the giant log rod’s fishing hook for catching huge fish.

“Nunuunu!”

I resisted the force trying to pull me down to the bottom of the sea and instead pulled on the log pole.
In normal fishing, one would worry about the fishing line, but this rope was a fishing line that I had strengthened with magic.
There’s no way any ordinary monster could tear it apart.
And perhaps tired from moving around, the Kraken’s strength momentarily weakened.

“Hereeeeeee!”

Sensing a momentary opportunity, I pulled the log pole up with all my might.

“So, there it is!!”

The Kraken that was reeled in soared through the air, causing the crew members to shout in astonishment.
Its appearance was truly that of a gigantic squid.

“What?! This is bad!”

Mr.
Ronzen let out a voice mixed with surprise and panic.
It was because the massive body of the Kraken was soaring through the air towards them.
Well, if you reel it in, it’s only natural that it would come towards us.

“Everyone, step back!”

I throw away my fishing rod and prepare for interception.
If we leave it like this, a lively Kraken will land in the harbor, you know.

“Eat this! Hydro Zamber!”

By the activation of magic, water rises from the surface of the sea.
To us, it may appear as just a line, but if someone were to view it from the side, they would witness the spectacle of a giant sword made of water cleaving through a Kraken.

Hydro Zanbar is a magic that releases an extremely thin and high-pressure water blade using hydraulic pressure.

The Kraken, which was cut in half from the middle, splits into two and slides into the harbor from both sides.
Although we managed to defeat it, if it were to land in the harbor like this, it would still be a major disaster, so we need to take further action.

Just before the Kraken lands, it cuts its internal organs with a sword wave and separates them from its body.
Then, after collecting the internal organs with a magic bag, it takes out two long spears and stabs them into its body, stopping its movement and separating its tentacles from its torso.

Finally, cut the body and tentacles to a suitable size and store them in a magic bag, and that’s it.
Then, collect the log pole and use water magic to wash away the ground at the harbor, and it will be all settled.

“Yes, the Kraken has been defeated.
Shall we return to the guild and have it appraised?”

I turn towards Liliera-san, who was observing from behind, and urge her.
She looked at me with a blank expression, but for some reason, she let out a sigh while forcing a smile.

“I thought I could somehow manage it, but once again, I resolved it with an incredible feat of strength, huh?”

No, no, anyone can do it if they enhance their body with this level of physical enhancement magic.
And when it comes to defeating a Kraken, using a decoy and luring it with a single fishing line is the basic strategy.

“Kyu!”

Mofumofu sprang from Liliera’s arm and wrapped around my leg.

“Mofumofu? … Ah, I see what you mean.”

Understanding Mofumofu’s desire, I take out the divided portions of Kraken meat from the magic bag and give it to him.

“Kyu!”

As if saying “I don’t care about anything as long as I get food!”, Mofumofu snatches the Kraken from me and starts eating it with enthusiasm.
Truly, what a greedy creature.

“Shall we go back then?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you everyone for your understanding and sorry for the inconvenience.”

We walked past the silent and frozen crew members and started walking towards the guild.

“……wait, you caught a Kraken!?”

Huh? It seems noisy behind me.