NOVEL NEXT Chapter 392
The fierce and cold wind sliced across my cheeks like a blade.
The towering waves crashed against the side of the ship, spilling onto the deck.
Before us lay the deep blue sea blending into the horizon, while above, the sky was choked with gloomy gray clouds.
“What a perfect day for whale hunting!”
[What’s so great about it! Whoa! The ship’s rocking!]
Right now, we were here to catch whales.
**
Thirty minutes earlier.
Upon receiving a call from Anna, I found familiar faces standing on the deck.
[Miro-senpai?]
[Wow, you really came!]
[Miro’s here?]
My peers Maho, Loa, and second-year student Gan, along with Seo Eun-ha, were all present.
“Looks like all the whale-hunting members gathered early.”
– Gathering of the Celestial Realm
– So how many viewers do we have now?
These were the members ready to embark on the whale hunt.
Water master Gan and Anna, fisherman Seo Eun-ha and me, as well as hunters Maho and Loa.
“I’m looking forward to this.”
I heard that the original plan was to set sail with five, but they were short on fishermen and were looking for one.
And I just happened to walk in at that moment.
– Lucky, huh? lol
– The fishing king’s reputation is slipping a bit, huh?
– Just simple ^luck king^
“Life is all about luck and skill after all.”
I had made it this far on luck alone.
Now, I’d fill the remaining skill points with my momentum to catch some whales.
[Here’s the fishing boat we’re going to ride.]
Next to the meeting place was a ship.
For a whale-hunting expedition, it looked a bit small.
It resembled a boat the locals would ride around on some island.
“… We’re using this to hunt whales?”
[What matters is getting out to sea! This was rented out for a hefty price, too.]
“Aha.”
– That thing’s really expensive lol
– Sea fishing is a total bonus.
– You can catch other rare fish besides whales.
Scrolling through the chat, I noticed that rare fish were abundant in the sea, which made me hopeful.
Well, I guess I’d really know once I started casting my rod.
“By the way, what level are you, Eun-ha?”
[Oh me? I’m level 3.]
“Oh… leveled up pretty fast.”
[They say whales can only be caught starting at level 3, and Gan unnie lent me money to level up.]
“That’s going to spoil you, though.”
– ????
– <<< How spoiled is this person? - Is that something you should be saying? lol “Hey now, I’ve almost paid it all back!” After staying up all night and having lunch, I had almost settled my debts. So now, I could proudly call myself a level 3 fisherman without shame. “By the way, why do we need hunters to catch whales?” We were on the fishing boat together, but I glanced at the two hunters holding shotguns beside me. They looked quite out of place on this vessel. [From what I’ve heard about whales, you need to catch them first, then join a raid afterward. I’m not sure of the details since no one has caught one on the server yet.] “Wait, there’s no one who has caught one on the server?!” [Yeah, just a lot of rumors.] “So if we catch one, would we be the first?” [That’s the idea, right? It’s still the early stage.] Wow… So this streamer server could be the first for whale catching? I suddenly felt the power of Anna and Gan. There may be level 3 fishermen and hunters, but probably no one with Gan’s wealth. Yet, they still have such a small boat; I really realized just how expensive renting a ship could be. “Well, if we catch one, it’d be awesome.” The Celestial Realm party is going for the first whale hunt on The Six streamer server? This is pretty cool, right? - For real - It’d totally be impressive lol - Miro’s confidence is really top-notch! [Let’s catch one and brag about it. Shall we set off now?] [Who’s steering?] [I learned how to!] With excitement bubbling, Anna grabbed the steering wheel and the ship set sail. * And back to the beginning. “What a perfect day for whale hunting!” [What’s so great about it! Whoa! The ship’s rocking!] The start was definitely good. The scenery of the sea was beautiful, the sky was blue, and even the fishing was going well. However, as we got closer to the center of the sea where whales appeared, the sky turned gray, raindrops began falling, and now strong winds started to blow. The implementation was so good that the ship was currently rocking in real-time. [H-hurry, pull out the sails!] “This ship has sails?!” [Of course, it does! Hurry!] “Wait, wouldn’t raising the sails in this wind be silly? Shouldn’t we be dropping the anchor instead?” [U-Uh! Right! The anchor!] - Hahaha - Anna seriously can’t steer... - Does she have a driver’s license? lol - Seems like she should hand it in soon lol The ship shook, the water was rising. On top of that, the fierce wind was beginning to push the characters around, causing utter chaos. [Ahhh, senpai!] [Eun-ha!] [Help me!] In that chaos, Eun-ha was about to fall, so I grabbed her with my fishing rod and pulled her back up. - Whoa - When did this guy become a fishing master? lol - For real, a fishing king indeed. “Basic stuff, basic stuff.” But still, the weather was terrible. Could we really catch a whale in this? They said we’d have to raid after catching it, too. At least, I brought hunters Maho and Loa along, so that should help. Plus, Anna and Gan each had guns, and as for me… well, I could always draw my sword. “Is fishing really going to work here?” - Yeah, it’s often good here. - Let’s wait until the weather calms down a bit. “Will the weather even calm down from here?” Judging by the sky, it looked like it was ready to storm. Still, for now, the ship stubbornly pressed onward. We had retrieved the anchor, but it seemed we still had to go deeper. Just how much longer would we go? The earlier storm began to subside somewhat. Anna felt it was time and gave the okay sign, so we dropped the anchor. Thud!! With a loud jolt, the ship came to a stop in the deep sea. “Now, shall we try for some whales?” If we had come this far, the credit for buying the ship and navigating was Anna’s and Gan’s. Now it was our turn, Seo Eun-ha and me. “I’ll throw out some bait.” [Nods!] Both of us cast our reinforced rods into the sea. [But what if we don’t catch anything?] “…Then we’ll have to cover the damages.” [Ugh.] We came all this way but… there was a slight worry shadowing Eun-ha’s anxious face. Whales don’t just show up easily; they’re basically legendary with their probabilities. But we wouldn’t know unless we tried, so we sat side by side on the deck and started fishing. Not just fishermen, the hunters and water masters sat beside us. “Are you fishing too?” [Well, we have to! They say it’s good here, right?] [We need to recoup our costs.] Well, fishing is something anyone can do. Thus began our fishing session with good vibes despite the weather. [Whoa, a big one!] “How long is it?” [61 centimeters!] “Wow....” Must be because it was sea fishing? Not just Eun-ha and me, but everyone caught sizable fish occasionally. The box slowly filled with the caught fish. - This place is seriously a gold mine lol - We’re getting our money's worth from renting the boat. - But if we can’t catch a whale, won’t that be a loss? “Exactly. We need to catch the whale.” No matter how many fish we caught, today’s main target was still the whale. Glancing at the viewer count, it was really high. It was always high, but today it seemed to be on another level, suggesting that word had spread. Probably, the other members were in similar situations. We really had to capture one. For Miro as an individual and for the broadcast too. It was a great opportunity to catch the first whale on this server and prove who the real fishing king is. So this time, let’s hope we can snag one and raised my fishing rod. I had already repeated this action hundreds of times today, but I wished for a whale to catch each time. And did my wishes come true? Boom---!!! A massive tremor shook the boat. [(Miro) has caught a (Humpback Whale) as the first on the server! A raid is starting!] A large sentence appeared on the server message. [Ahhh!] [Whale?! Did it, come out?!] - Whoa— - What was that tremor? - Where’s the whale? The members scrambled to reel in their fishing rods and pulled out their gear. Of course, I also... “Nice...” ... I reminisced about the feeling of catching a whale just a moment ago and put my fishing rod away. While a smile of achievement naturally appeared, there was still a long way to go before we could feast. After all... Boom--- Ka-Pow!!! [Ahhh!] [W-What is that!] The feast’s main course was still rampaging around, not knowing its role. [Hunters! Hurry up and catch it!] [It’s below us!] The whale considered the ocean to be its home and the world. In contrast, we were now on a small ship, having ventured beyond the solid ground we treaded all our lives. We were left at its mercy. However. [Have you brought out the net?!] [I have! I’ll throw it now!] Anna pulled out a large net from her hands. A net capable of hauling the king of the sea, the whale, onto land. It was quite an expensive item but one bought for the occasion, so it was thrown without hesitation. [Got it!] Anna hit the whale beneath the surface with it due to its massive size. And just then. Drdrdrdrdr-!! The sound of a thick rope being pulled to its limit rang out as the whale emerged. - Wah - Incredible - What is this? lol - Is this Minecraft? lol With a color darker than the deep sea itself, a massive body resembling a living embodiment of the ocean appeared before the ship. [Shoot!] [The net is going to snap! Shoot before that!] Bang! Bang!! Bang!! The other members quickly gathered with guns, surrounding the whale. I watched them for a moment, then climbed to the highest point of the ship. Just swinging my sword at the whale directly wouldn’t work, so I intended to throw the net as soon as it broke free. - Wow lol look at that scene - This looks incredible - Can we even take this with our numbers? From the highest point of the ship, I kept my eyes downwards. Never loosening my tension, I was prepared to see when the net would snap. At that moment. Whoosh—!! The whale, pulled up from the surface, spun around once. And then. Whoooosh--- With the centrifugal force from its massive body, it swung its tail towards the ship. Ka-Pow--!! At that moment, the front of the ship was wrecked as if a bomb had just exploded. [(Anna) has died.] [(Maho) has died.] [(Seo Eun-ha) has died.] [(Loa) has died.] [(Gan) has died.] “... Huh?” The crew members in front of the whale were instantly silenced without even a final gasp. - ?????????? - What the hell - ?? - Whoa, it’s really insane lol - Is this really a whale? The viewers were busy marveling at the overwhelming sight. The whale swinging its body and smashing the ship was a destructively beautiful scene that could hardly be described in a game like Minecraft. Yet. Drdrdrdrdr--!! For me, standing before such a terrifying existence, it felt far from an unreachable situation. The whale seemed infuriated now, thrashing wildly in attempt to break free from the net. - Whoa… this is bad. - So what now?? - Should we use the return scroll? - Real whale is insane ;; - Did we come too soon? “… I can’t run away with a return scroll, not in front of a foe like that.” The hunters were all gone. Water masters holding the same fishing rods, like Eun-ha, had also perished. But luck was still on my side; I was alive. 運七技三 (Luck Seven, Skill Three). The luck from seven levels kept my breath hanging by a thread. With the power of skill remaining for three levels, I would bravely ignite what was left of my breath. I unsheathed my sword from its scabbard. I might not have a gun that could deal significant damage from afar against the whale. But I did have one sword. The one that would pierce the soft underbelly! “Ugh!” Yelling out, I charged at the whale, sword in hand. Even if I was going down, I at least wanted to stab that underbelly— Boom-!!!! “Wh- What?!” Before I could even touch the whale. Something struck me hard, and with a powerful shockwave, my body lifted into the air. And then. Splash! I fell into the deep blue sea, waves crashing all around me. Gulp, gulp. Due to the turbulence of the rough sea, my body gradually sank below the surface. Through the dark waters, a massive shadow vaguely appeared ahead. The ship was half-destroyed, and my friends were all dead. Clearly, a failure. If I were to die as well, it would mean total annihilation. And then. Ker-flop. My character could no longer hold its breath and perished. As I faded away beyond the desaturated screen, I gazed at the immense shadow. I thought to myself. That someday, I would definitely catch that thing.