NOVEL NEXT Chapter 255: Leviathan (3) Part 2
At the moment, the leviathan was venting its fury on the fishpeople. It surged forward in a wrathful charge, aiming for one of the darting hunters. Their fighting style was chaotic yet precise—threads of coral silk lashed around the monster's limbs, tugging it off-balance at the last moment, causing its jaws to snap at empty water. They split off in different directions, forcing the creature to divide its attention. When they found an opening, they charged their glowing spears and hurled them at its tentacles and fins. The fins, thickly plated in iridescent scales, weren't vulnerable targets—but the intent was clear: wear it down.
Thalion took a moment to assess whether he would be targeted himself. One of the female warriors even glanced straight at him and then turned away, uninterested. That was enough. Confident that his presence wouldn't be questioned—for now—he joined the fray.
He was faster than the fishpeople, his serpentine form weaving through the water like a bolt of living lightning. Careful positioning gave him a huge advantage, and as a last resort, he still had his bloodline teleportation skill. Confidence surged through him. The leviathan would fall, eventually—but Thalion wouldn't overexert himself. He had plans. After the beast was slain, the fishpeople would need to die too. They might be allies for the moment, but they wouldn't survive the trial once the pillar fell. Thalion suspected they had the same task as the stonekin before: protect the pillar or perish. That meant their fate was already sealed.
Besides, he wanted the experience points. Why was he even debating this with himself? They were the enemy, and when the leviathan fell, they'd turn on him without hesitation. No need to dwell on such thoughts in a place like this. Better focus on killing the giant leviathan.
Charging another Aqua Lance, Thalion launched it toward the joint connecting the leviathan's left dorsal fin to its main body. The fishpeople had been hammering that same area, and he wanted to strip the scales clean so they could finally do some real damage. His spell struck true—several thick scales tore loose, and blue ichor sprayed into the water as the lance carved shallow wounds into the monster's flesh.
Annoyingly, that was the extent of his offensive capabilities. Most of his skills were ineffective in this fight. Water Barrier wouldn't stop anything other than shockwaves or sonic roars. Tsunami Breaker lacked the piercing force to damage such a heavily armored opponent. It had worked well against other aquatic foes, but this creature—nearly twice the size of a blue whale—shrugged it off. His bite was useless here, and even the Water Slash lacked the cutting depth to be meaningful.
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It was frustrating. Even boring.
Still, there was an advantage: at least he wouldn't have to reveal his entire arsenal in front of the fishpeople. Against them, a well-placed Tsunami Breaker would be devastating. For now, he had to be patient.
Flames flickered to life in the water around him—an oddity from his bloodline that sometimes ignited the sea without warning. He didn't fully understand what they did. They didn't burn or freeze, but they created visual distortion and confusion—perfect for misdirection. Thalion darted through the shifting veils of blue fire, vanishing and reappearing like a phantom. The leviathan had long since given up chasing him directly. The creature simply couldn't match his speed when Thalion was uninjured and swimming at full capacity.
That made things complicated.
Thalion was also the one dealing the most consistent damage, and yet he was too elusive to catch. He fired off another pair of Aqua Lances, pushing his mana reserves slightly beyond comfort, while the blue flames coiled and danced around him. He didn't even know if they affected the leviathan—but they made everything feel better, sharper. Inside them, he could swim faster, react quicker, and aim more precisely. If nothing else, they empowered him.
Despite his growing aggression, the damage he dealt remained superficial. His lances stripped more scales and carved shallow wounds, but nothing deep enough to matter. The leviathan's regenerative abilities were absurd—flesh healed within seconds, and only the toughened scales seemed to regenerate at a slower pace. The fishpeople, for all their courage, still hadn't made a significant dent either.
In Thalion's eyes, they were fools.
Even with his help, the odds of victory weren't great. Without him, they'd already be dead. They began to charge their spears with more fervor, clearly hoping to break through, but it still wasn't enough. The leviathan was no ordinary monster. It was a force of nature.
Perhaps, Thalion mused, he should keep his current form a bit longer—use it to breach the fishpeople's defenses when the time came to turn on them. But there was one issue: the form he planned to shift into might be significantly weaker. He hadn't yet tested whether he could assume an E-rank form while still technically classified as F-rank. There was no reason not to try… though the uncertainty nagged at him.
What irritated him most, however, was his inability to truly harm the leviathan. It made him realize something: his Aqua Lance needed an upgrade—more penetration, more raw output. This was the perfect opponent to push its limits and evolve the skill.
The beast wasn't just an obstacle.
It was an opportunity.