Episode 233
[Elite: Amplitude Sky Whale (Lv. 532)]
-Whoa.
-A whale?
-It's damn big;
-Isn't that a level bug? -It
's taller than the Snow Drake?
-That one was a boss.
A gigantic whale so large it couldn't even be properly taken in at a glance.
Its appearance was shocking even to Hanbit.
'Why is it here…'
Sky Whales weren't unfamiliar.
However, it was extremely strange that a creature claiming the skies near the Black and White Sea as its territory had appeared here.
"That is… a Sky Whale!"
"Why in this area…!"
The investigation team members, held captive by the Sylph's wind, also looked down in astonishment.
Even they, as members of the team, couldn't help but be overwhelmed by its intimidating presence.
CRASH!
The Sky Whale attacked the airship once again.
Thud-Thud—
The balance tilted along with the sound of something falling off.
It was the result of a portion of the floating stone layer being destroyed.
Depending on the extent of the damage, it wouldn't have been surprising if it had led to a crash.
"Everyone, regroup!"
Thud!
Charlotte, having given the order, kicked off.
Ta-da!
Throwing herself into the air without the slightest hesitation, she headed toward the whale's head.
"I'm aiming for the blowhole, so everyone at long range, close the distance!"
Rowald, who had been holding onto a pillar, stood straight at the railing and gripped his bow.
"Wait, not the blowhole!"
Hanbit quickly turned his head to try and stop the attack.
However, his opponent was the captain of Exploration Unit 3, a man who had spent his entire life in battle.
"For whale-type monsters, it is best to target their weak points quickly! If you're late, there's no hope!"
Swoosh!
A red arrow rested on the drawn bowstring. It
was instantaneous for the arrow, transformed into a sharp, elongated shape, to be shot.
Ping!
The arrow, having left the string, sliced through the air with tremendous force.
Concentrated flames within and a veil of mana enveloping the outside.
It reached the whale's blowhole before Charlotte could.
Pfft!
Whoosh!
The arrow, having struck precisely, immediately unleashed the concentrated flames.
And the moment the aftershocks spread into the airship.
BANG!
A sound wave burst from the front of the whale.
Whoosh!
“Cough!”
“Aaaargh!”
The wave of sound heading toward the seaplane engulfed the investigation team members.
Those who were stuck inside the seaplane’s structure were actually lucky.
This was because more than half of them had been blown over the railing and into the air.
—Ouch;
—The Black Dragon told you not to do this…
—You don’t listen at all just because you’re an investigation team candidate;
—Should I just kill you?
Whoosh!
The Sylph quickly wrapped wind around them and held them captive.
Hanbit let out a sigh and approached Rowald, who was stuck against the pillar.
“I told you not to do this, right?”
“Ugh…”
Rowald, having hit his head, grimaced in pain.
But there was no time to sit there.
“Get up. We need to attack that guy’s wings and tail first.”
“…What?”
Whoosh!
The wind swirling around Hanbit’s sword looked completely different from before.
I could feel a power strong enough to swallow even Rowald nearby if things went wrong.
“I’m going to coordinate with Charlotte, so figure it out. The investigation team should be able to do it.”
“Coordinate with the Captain? There’s no way a candidate like you could do that… Hey!”
Ta-ta!
Ignoring the words, Hanbit kicked off immediately.
“Lord Black Dragon, I’ll join in.”
Haneul, who had followed without me noticing, already seemed accustomed to the flow of the wind.
Looking behind, Noeul and Pingpong appeared to be watching this place, waiting for their next move.
“I’ve changed my equipment, but move carefully.”
“Yes!”
Before arriving at the airship,
Hanbit distributed the equipment that had arrived by mail to everyone.
The main contents consisted of crafted and refined weapons and armor, as well as magical tools to aid in combat.
This was possible thanks to Kim Jaeha having prepared the basic framework in advance.
Of course, Hanbit had upgraded his equipment just as well.
[Sword of the Nebula]
Rank: 7
Grade: Legendary
Equip Restriction: Owner-bound
Options
-Strength 511
-Skill Efficiency 524
-Mana Conductivity 512
-Spirit Sensitivity 527
-All Elemental Enhancement 500
-All Elemental Resistance 500
-All Stats +20 percent
-Refinement Growth Possible
-Rank and Grade Evolution Possible
Description: This is a sword crafted by the blacksmith Kim Jae-ha. The Star Ingot forming its core and the various materials swallowed by its power create outstanding effects.
*Star's Blessing Stage 1 is activated. The sword is imbued with the power of the nebula, adding fixed damage to attacks.
A weapon whose performance was reinforced by pouring in materials obtained from dungeons.
It was more than sufficient for use until materials to upgrade Star's Blessing were acquired.
[Guardian Laurel (Rank 7-Epic)]
[Carapace Armor (Rank 7-Epic)]
[Footsteps of Life (Rank 7-Epic)]
… …
The items prepared to move within the World Tree's realm each possessed excellent performance.
They were capable of withstanding even harsh combat environments quite well.
Hanbit opened the party voice chat and spoke to the other two.
“Noeul, unleash a flash when the whale’s eye color changes. Pingpong, focus on defending against the aftermath.”
(Yes!)
(Understood!)
With the returned replies, the two approached Charlotte.
Unaffected by the shock of the air, she was moving freely in the air without the aid of a spirit.
“Charlotte.”
“…Huh?”
Charlotte, who had been focused on the whale, snapped her head.
With her eyes wide open, she looked back and forth between the airship and the two of them and said,
“It’s dangerous! Why did you come down!”
“It’s become harder to kill now, hasn’t it?”
“…….”
Charlotte, who was about to unleash a barrage of reprimands, clamped her mouth shut.
It was entirely possible for her to sever the Sky Whale’s neck with her own power.
However, the reason that monster was tricky lay in the massive explosion of air that occurred with its death.
Unless the mana and condensed air contained within it were properly extracted, the airship’s destruction in mid-air was a foregone conclusion.
But touching its breathing hole only provoked its anger and offered no help whatsoever.
“…It’s not Rowald’s fault. It’s common sense to kill whale species before they go berserk.”
“That’s usually the case.”
-Are you defending this?
-Shamoni T_T
-Rowald sobbing.
"Yeah, it's a troll."
Contrary to what the viewers might have thought, Charlotte's words weren't exactly meant to shield her subordinate.
In reality, because whale-type monsters were so immense in size and strength, the standard strategy was to target their weak points and kill them as quickly as possible.
Of course, the sky whale right before them was a little different.
"The airship… won't last long."
Her gaze turned toward the lower part of the airship.
The layers of floating stones shattered by the first attack.
The damage was greater than expected, making it impossible to escape in this state.
"I'll cut off its head and erase the explosion."
Griping her sword, Charlotte spoke while glaring at the massive whale's head.
Cutting through space and using that space to erase the explosion of the air.
However, considering the scale, it was an impossible task.
Whoosh!
The whale, roaring through the air, was preparing its next strike.
There was no longer any time for discussion.
"I have a plan. Let's target the left wing first."
"The left wing?"
"We'll cut the parts with weak reactions first to make it expend its mana. And please remove that barrier that excludes the surroundings."
“…How did you know?”
Charlotte’s eyes widened in surprise.
The reason Ariel’s wind hadn’t reached her.
It was due to the defensive barrier that unconsciously formed around her as she manipulated space.
It didn’t kill anyone, but it had the effect of making interference with power significantly difficult.
Whoosh—!
Just then, the whale twisted its body and flapped its wings.
It was the motion just before firing a wave of air.
“Here I go.”
Whoosh—!
Hanbit surged forward, swirling the wind, followed by Haneul.
Looking up at the airship, Charlotte gripped her sword hilt tightly and moved.
“Lady Ariel, will you help me?”
“Yes. Since I removed that unpleasant barrier.”
Ariel’s voice, which had been feeling uncomfortable with the Captain’s barrier, echoed in her mind.
Even without the main body accompanying her, she was a top-tier spirit.
It would be ideal if she could amplify the power residing in the Sylph to the fullest.
“It’s exploding!”
Bang—!
Along with Charlotte’s voice, an explosion of air burst forth directly in front of the whale.
Twisting her body, Hanbit swung her sword immediately.
Whoosh—!
The blade of wind that formed along the trajectory was thicker and faster than usual.
And it collided head-on with the air bomb flying toward it.
Pffft—!
A violent explosion unbelievable for a collision of air.
Having endured the raging aftermath, the gazes of the three converged on one spot.
“Let’s go.”
Whoosh!
Moving in unison, they headed toward the Sky Whale’s left wing.
The creature, sensing the enemies, flipped over to obstruct them, but they were not to be outmatched in speed.
Snap!
Charlotte, mounted on the whale’s body, was the first to launch an attack.
Slash!
Splash!
Black lines emerged from the wingtips, and blood splattered everywhere.
The massive whale’s wing was torn to shreds in an instant.
“Haneul, you attack the small gaps near the blowholes. There should be about 20 of them.”
“Yes!”
Haneul answered and ran in a different direction.
At the same time, something flew down from the sky.
Whoosh!
Crash!
The firepower of the various techniques and magic engulfing the wing was considerable.
Looking up at the airship, the figures of Rowald and the other investigation team members came into view.
“Let’s go to the tail.”
Snap!
Hanbit kicked off with his foot and used the Sword Dance of Gale Wind to tear through the tail.
Matching those movements, Charlotte continued her intense offensive.
The investigators, focused on long-range attacks, also concentrated their full attention to reinforce their power.
Whoosh!
Boom!
With every increase in damage, air bombs exploded from the Sky Whale's body.
Watching this, Hanbit responded by unleashing a Blade of Wind at the precise moment.
Whoosh!
Boom!
The attacks were thwarted, and the Sky Whale's tail continued to be destroyed.
Even as it twisted its body and fired sound waves and air, it did not stop.
Whoosh!
Just then, the creature, writhing in pain, let out a grotesque sound.
At the same time, its blue eyes turned red.
Snap!
A golden flash flew in just as instructed.
It was the intense power created by a High-Level Light Spirit with whom Noeul had successfully communed.
Crack!
Whoosh!
The Sky Whale twisted its body violently from the painfully violent impact of the light.
"Let's go for the neck. Don't slash it all at once."
"Okay."
Snap!
Pushing off with their feet, the two leaped toward the creature's head. *
Swoosh*
—a weak point naturally exposed by the effect of the wind rift.
Hanbit, along with Charlotte who followed behind, thrust their swords into the thick nape.
*Swoosh*—!
*Crack*—!
The Sword of Wind intensely slicing through the surface, and the Sword of Space continuing the cutting from the inside.
The eyes of the Sky Whale, now bleeding red, gradually turned a grotesque color.
*Whoosh*—!
Watching this transformation, Hanbit unleashed the Dance of Heavenly Swords.
Thanks to the technique he had formally mastered, the domain of the massive sphere appeared in an even darker and larger form.
It was large enough to cover half of the giant Sky Whale's body.
"This is…"
Charlotte, who had been swinging her sword, turned her gaze to the surroundings.
*Swoosh*
—Grabbing the hilt, Hanbit lowered his body to assume the drawing stance.
The connection point of the nape, now tattered and barely remaining.
Just one attack was enough.
*Whoosh*—!
*Whoosh*—!
The blades of wind extending from the swung sword tore through the pathetically connected muscles and skin.
And just as dozens of blades of wind were about to pour down from the sky…
Whoosh!
A bizarre resonance erupted from the whale's head.
"Ugh!"
"My ears…!"
Charlotte and Haneul staggered at the noise, which was intense enough to numb their hearing.
Thump!
Hanbit quickly grabbed the two and kicked his foot out of the domain.
And the moment he jumped out of the sphere…
Boom!
A massive explosion engulfed the sky .
Rumble!
The spherical domain created by the flurry of the Heavenly Sword shook violently, forming a crack.
The impact was too great to be fully withstood, even with the addition of some of Aerial's power.
Right now, that alone was enough.
Boom!
Along with the destruction of the domain, the aftermath of the explosion escaped and flew toward the airship.
However, it scattered in the air before reaching the surface.
Ding-
[Achievement: Survivor of the Sky has been unlocked.]
[Rewards will be distributed for the first achievement.]
[You have obtained Sky Whale's Roar (Rank 8 – Epic).]
-Shudder;
-That bomb whale is insane.
-If we encounter that, let's just run away.
-Just die and respawn.
-Probably won't even encounter one;
“It’s… done, right?”
Charlotte asked cautiously as she gazed at the airship.
Hanbit nodded and used the Sylph’s wind to head upward.
“Captain!”
“Are you alright!”
“You are truly amazing!”
The investigation team members, unaware of the full situation, cheered and welcomed the Captain.
Only one person, Rowald, was staring intently at Hanbit.
“It wasn’t me, it was thanks to the Black Dragon. Let’s check on the airship first.”
Charlotte approached the central magic stone and concentrated her mana.
However, as expected, the situation was not good.
“…It looks like it’s going to crash.”
She had prevented it from disintegrating in mid-air, but she could not avoid the crash.
Closing her eyes for a moment and opening them again, she quietly murmured,
“We’re going to land in the Forest of Illusions. From there, let’s move to where the World Tree is.”
