NOVEL NEXT Chapter 8
Brrrr—
As Parang jumped into the ocean, the broadcast screen that was capturing the dock naturally switched to her perspective.
And everyone who had been watching the broadcast with dwindling expectations couldn’t help but be surprised.
“Let’s finish the explanation. The main purpose of today’s broadcast is to inform you all about the dangers of the monster fish, or rather, the giant species that have grotesquely transformed due to the influence of the underwater gate.”
Stable breathing, appropriate pace, clear pronunciation, a smooth voice, and a comfortable volume.
A person who couldn’t even give a proper greeting was now displaying a perfect example of ‘excellent speaking’ as soon as they entered the water.
– What the hell, why suddenly so good at talking?
“To raise awareness about the dangers of monster fish, I think it’s better to confront them directly and show what they are. Today, I’m going to catch Galecus, a monster fish you all might recognize from a prior major incident.”
– Galecus? That freakishly huge one?
– Are you really going to catch that?
– Wait, how are you even talking underwater?
– I remember them saying it was a skill.
Right now, a translucent display device to check the chat is wrapped around her left eye. She attempted to measure Shin Yuna’s combat power right after putting it on, but failed.
With that device, she could skim through the chat even underwater, and due to her superhuman eyesight that only manifests in water, she was reading the rapid-fire chat at an incredible speed.
“Yes, that’s the freakishly huge one. I’m going to catch it today.”
– So, do you know where it is?
“Of course I know where it is. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have come down. Oh, and just so you know, I’ve turned off the donation messages, so don’t send any.”
With that, she positioned her body vertically and started diving at a crazy speed.
The depth where she was located was detected by the broadcasting equipment, showing in real-time during the broadcast.
200, 260, 300, 350…
Viewers were stunned at the sharply changing depths.
In the screen, all sorts of fish, corals, rocks, and unidentified objects appeared and vanished at an astonishing speed.
– Is that really a person swimming?
– I think I might throw up.
– Did anyone else just see that thing that passed by?
– There were thousands of things that just passed; what are you on about?
She was diving at 30 meters per second. That’s 108 kilometers per hour.
And in just 20 seconds, she reached the seabed at 800 meters, arriving at the monster fish layer.
The view filled with rocks and fish had transformed into the characteristic emptiness of the monster fish layer—a deep, dark blue void.
This was the depth where Yuna had faced Galecus.
“I guess we should look for it here.”
– After diving at that speed, you just say “I hope we can find it here”?
– What kind of broadcasting equipment are they using? How is the image quality preserved while transmitting at 800 meters underwater?
– Obviously, Shin Yuna had to have made it.
– “S-Class Crafting Hunter” lol.
– So how exactly are you going to look for it?
“I’m currently positioned right at the coordinates where Yuna saw Galecus. It’s a skill called ‘Route Setting.'”
– What kind of ridiculous overpowered skill is that?
“I’ve lived under the sea for several years now. Even if I didn’t want to learn, I’ve picked up several skills.”
– Isn’t this literally underwater mapping? What the heck?
– It really is, huh? Crazy.
Mapping. It’s a skill that prevents you from getting lost in a dungeon. Having this skill alone qualifies you as a high-class individual.
Parang intended to reveal her strength as much as possible.
With her goal in mind, Parang could not settle for being just ‘a slightly strong hunter.’
She had to appear as the strongest being underwater, far surpassing human limits, so that people could recognize how strong the sea monsters she catches truly are.
‘Ah, so that’s how strong she needs to be to even stand a chance against those things.’
The more she displayed her power, the more the ocean would be ingrained in people’s minds as a dangerous place.
However, the reactions in the chat were still lukewarm.
Galecus was nowhere in sight on the screen.
– But it looks like it isn’t here.
– For real. There isn’t even a shadow.
– Why would fish just sit still underwater? Of course, they’d be moving.
By the way, there are actually fish that stay still. Some of them are quite dangerous.
“Giant monster fish like Galecus have very long action cycles. It probably hasn’t moved far, so we will definitely find it.”
Parang continued explaining without pause.
“Galecus amplifies a small amount of light emitted from its body using its glassy scales. And those scales fall off quite easily…”
As Parang flipped a switch on her abdomen, pieces of scales brightened up like shards of glass scattered throughout the ocean.
“See? It leaves a trail of scales.”
The shards extended along the path Galecus had moved, resembling a shining road. This dude…
“Galecus’s scales lose their reflective properties the longer they’re separated. So, the scales over there must be the freshly fallen ones.”
Finishing that, Parang started swimming at an incredible speed.
Halfway, she encountered Bellua.
– What the hell was that long thing that just passed by?
– I wasn’t alone in seeing that, huh? Crazy.
“Bellua Marina. Commonly referred to as Bellua. It’s the most common and well-known monster fish. Not today, but I’ll catch one later.”
– Everyone’s rumbling in the chat, and this person’s just like, “I’ll catch one later.”
– Lol, that’s so cocky.
Time passed, and voilà, Galecus’s figure was truly visible in the distance.
Just as Yuna had discovered it, it stood there tall among the emptiness of the ocean, like a high-rise building underwater.
– No way, they really found a fish underwater.
– Wow, but it really is beautiful.
– Is that really a monster fish?
“Yes. That’s the monster fish Galecus. It looks to be about 70 meters long… You can say it’s identical to the creature Yuna saw back then.”
– How the hell are you going to catch that?
– I feel like even stabbing it with a spear wouldn’t make it bleed.
Well, we’ll soon find out. Parang didn’t bother responding to that.
“As I mentioned earlier, Galecus is a creature that will lure its prey to its ‘nest’ and kill them. As you’ve seen before, it can perform mental attacks, so we need to be careful.”
– But why was Yuna charmed? An S-Class shouldn’t lack a mental resistance skill.
– For real. No matter how crafting-oriented one is, an S-Class shouldn’t fall for that kind of attack, right?
“That’s because Yuna directly looked at Galecus in the water for an extended period. In fact, those who saw it through the screen that day had no problems at all. If any one condition isn’t met, it’s merely a pretty fish.”
– Then why is the homeowner okay?
Parang glanced at the chat in front of her.
[Skill ‘Waterproof Sanity’ is currently activated.]
“I’m a deep-sea hunter. Since mental skills activate only under water, they’re extremely potent. You could say I’m immune to most mental attacks.”
An astonishing fact. The more obscure and conditional Hunter skills are, the exponentially stronger their effects become when conditions are met.
The condition of ‘being entirely submerged’ is quite a stringent one.
‘This is a gain then?’
Of course, Parang’s case is a bit different.
Being submerged means her skills become stronger.
That’s a whole different story, but she accepted it as she pleased.
– If you’re dragged to its nest, is there no way to come back alive?
At some point, the chat stopped seeing comments about A-Class artifacts. As always, the essence of an internet broadcast is ‘entertainment.’ The viewers found the current situation too captivating and fun.
A place they could never visit in their lifetime, with monsters living there. Just the fact that this was being filmed live and that she intended to catch that monster was enough to keep their eyes glued to the screen.
Then, a lightning bolt struck Parang’s mind.
‘Isn’t this an opportunity to show how strong I am?’
Decisions are best made quickly.
And so, the words that burst from Parang’s mouth were enough to leave everyone astonished.
“Regarding being dragged to its nest… for a normal hunter, I’d say they would die the moment they encounter it and get charmed. If dragged to the nest, they’d already be in a corpse state.”
“But, if you all want, today I’ll take a tour of the nest before hunting.”
– ?
– ??
– ?
– ?
– Why does the conclusion lead to that?
– ?
– “Let’s give it a try,” lol.
– What kind of conclusion is that, lol.
In an instant, the chat exploded.
– Wait, isn’t this a reckless idea? What if something goes wrong?
Naturally, there were worried reactions. It’s like she was claiming she’d voluntarily walk into that monster’s den.
But maybe thanks to the image of a ‘professional deep-sea hunter’ she had cultivated well, there weren’t many voices of dissent.
That meant they believed in Parang’s bold claims.
And Parang was indeed a true professional harpoonist who wouldn’t let that faith go unanswered.
“I’ve actually been to Galecus’s nest several times. It’s quite beautifully decorated, so it’s a delight to observe.”
Partially true. Galecus’s nest is repulsively disgusting. With her tension eased, Parang’s playful side came out.
– Am I the only one not understanding what she’s saying right now?
– I get it, but I can’t comprehend.
– Can’t comprehend, but also get it.
– Is this person even human?
She was, indeed.
Before long, Parang had reached right in front of Galecus.
From this distance, she could potentially hit with a harpoon.
“To do that, I first need to provoke it a bit. If I just follow Galecus to its nest, it’ll take too long—”
Parang held the harpoon, or rather, the S-Class artifact, and took a stance as if to throw a spear.
On the screen, the tip of her harpoon was just appearing from the corner, aimed at Galecus.
– No way, is she actually going to throw it?
She indeed was.
“Anchoring.”
Upon chanting the skill name in that position, a miraculous phenomenon occurred.
The water along the long and thin cylindrical space from Parang to Galecus vanished.
“This is a skill called Anchoring. It allows projectile attacks to be effective even underwater.”
– What kind of skill is that?
– This is what it takes to be a fisherman.
– That skill is bizarre as hell.
“This isn’t my skill. It’s built into the harpoon.”
– Wait, a skill is built into a weapon? What kind of artifact is this?
“Yes. Yuna made it for me.”
– It must be an S-Class.
– It’s definitely an S-Class.
– Indeed, it’s an S-Class.
That was the consensus.
Yuna had devoted herself to crafting this masterpiece. It couldn’t possibly be anything but incredible.
And Parang had been entrusted with promoting this harpoon from Yuna.
“You can think of this as the underwater version of the ‘Sniper’ skill for ranged hunters.”
– That makes sense when you think about it.
– So, they attached the Sniper skill to an artifact?
– What the heck is a hybrid skill that works underwater?
In reality, Parang wasn’t very knowledgeable about what Sniper actually was. She was just reciting the lines she had prepared. It reflected Yuna’s foresight.
Anyway, the promotion went well, so whatever.
Using Anchoring to create a cylindrical space, Parang threw the harpoon.
Even with a casual throw, the power of the strong S-Class artifact Parang launched underwater was beyond imagination.
What had been a hole big enough for an arm became a massive tunnel once the harpoon passed through.
Boom—!!!
The harpoon was thrown at breakneck speed.
And in the blink of an eye,
Thud!
It buried deep into Galecus’s body.
And then, the creature that had been perfectly still began to twitch.
Thinking it might move,
It soon started to twist its body, emitting a light several times brighter than before.
Parang’s eyes widened.
“Oh, right.”
It was literally going berserk. Because of that, despite being in the deep sea, it became as bright as if lights were switched on.
“Yuna! Mute the broadcast! Right now!!”
And then, ‘that’ began to scream.
———!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The sound of hundreds of people wailing in unison, the sound of a ship’s horn, wind, and waves.
All those noises combined sounded like a forced cacophony. Even Parang frowned at the bizarre sound.
The chat, which had been on fire, temporarily died down.
“Gasp… gasp… What the hell… was that…”
Yuna in the control tower gasped for breath.
Fortunately, thanks to her quick actions, Galecus’s roar was only broadcasted for about 0.5 seconds.
Even so, the aftershock was significant.
– What the hell was that noise?
– What just happened?
– What the heck?
– My ears, for crying out loud.
‘I forgot to warn in advance.’
If she had known it would turn out like this – or rather, she should have known. She should’ve informed Yuna beforehand.
Galecus would remain in that state for at least another 2 minutes.
– Why is it suddenly going crazy just because it got hit once?
Well, that could be considered a misunderstanding.
Parang narrowed her eyes a bit.
But that didn’t mean she could lift the mute, so she put it on hold for now.
And soon after,
– Uh, uh
– Where did that guy go?
– Where’s that dude going?
In contrast to how Galecus had been standing upright, it started swimming quickly downward.
Its swimming technique shifted from a stiff hover to that of an ordinary fish.
In other words, it began to wriggle downwards.
At that, Parang formed an “OK” symbol with her hand and waved it around in front of her.
Then, she retrieved the harpoon and dived straight after Galecus. Like an S-Class artifact, it swiftly zoomed to her outstretched hand.
While doing that, Yuna lifted the mute.
“Ah, ah, can you hear me right now? I think I need to explain what just happened.”
– Yes.
– We really need that.
– What the heck just happened?
“Just as you can see, Galecus has started to flee, so I’ll explain while chasing it.”
With that, Parang accelerated even more. She intended to swim alongside Galecus at the same speed.
“First off, I’m heading towards Galecus’s nest right now. It recognizes me as a threat and is fleeing to its lair.”
– So you need to be this strong to be seen as a threat by a monster fish…
– It’s absurd how calm you are while swimming at this speed.
Just as she said, Parang’s depth was steeply increasing.
“I estimate I’ll dive to about 2 kilometers. That’s the depth where most would build their nests.”
– No way, 2 kilometers?!
– 2 km is crazy, lol.
– But why is it acting all crazily just because it got hit by a spear?
– Right? With that big frame.
– From a distance, you couldn’t even tell it got hit.
“Well, I’ll explain what that is once we can see it directly.”
Just as Parang caught up with Galecus, she slightly slowed down, swimming alongside it.
Then, like a curator, she slowly pointed to the spot where she had thrown her harpoon earlier.
“This is the hole where I threw the harpoon earlier. If you look closely here, ah, this might be a little gruesome.”
With that, she inserted her hand into the hole and stretched it out.
Then, a thick, white, and viscous liquid began to ooze out.
– What the heck is that?
– Now even the homeowner is starting to look scarier than the monster fish.
– I see; she caught on fast.
“This flowing stuff is Galecus’s egg. Since I pierced its ovary, it’s realizing an extreme threat and fleeing to its nest. As for how I differentiate between male and female or pregnancy status…”
– I can’t help but think this person is starting to get really scary. Is she even human?
– I apologize for making fun of you earlier for stuttering on land…
“And since the goal is to go to its nest, I adjusted my power just enough to make a hole in the ovary. If it were to burst entirely, it would go berserk and charge at me.”
– So it wasn’t just a random throw after all.
– She’s really pulling some scary tactics against this fish, lol.
– Wait, that only made this size of a hole???
Regardless, Parang was at ease now. She even read the chat directly.
“So, regarding that noise just now? You were probably wondering. That was Galecus’s unique ‘threat response.’ When attacked, it scatters around the attacker and quickly flees to its nest.”
With a thorough explanation, Parang even showed her eyes, fins, and plucked several scales to keep.
Then she opened her mouth again.
“Oh, we’ve arrived.”
Before long, she could see the vague outline of something gigantic.
“This is the nest.”