NOVEL NEXT Chapter 413
The whale hunt officially began with my opening strike.
I unleashed my Ultimate Technique, and landed right on the deck of the ship.
[Bang!]
[Bang!]
Bang! Bang! Bang!!
After I launched my attack, it seemed like the tension rose as harpoons and bullets flew from everywhere, striking the whale.
– “Will that even catch it? LOL”
– “It doesn’t look like we’re dealing any damage, haha.”
– “Gonna give it a thumbs down if we mess this up.”
Even though attacks were raining down, the whale was just too massive.
It looked like we’d be attacking all day.
Still, with so many people here, I figured some meaningful damage must be getting through.
Watching my teammates skillfully attack, I mounted the Red Hare and unleashed my skills like crazy.
The Military God was an extreme attacker.
Each skill was solely aimed at slicing through the target.
Although the danger was high…
Vroom—
I just narrowly dodged the whale’s tail that swung around as it turned.
No doubt about it, even with the same patterns as the previous whales, the destruction it could cause was immense.
The tail brushed past me, swinging straight towards the deck.
If it weren’t for that, quite a few members would have surely met their demise.
[Ice, arise!]
With the shout coming from below, ice erupted from the sea.
Boom–!!!
And the ice pillar shattered as it took the hit instead.
That was Seolha’s hidden job, “Ice Maiden” technique.
– “Whoa, haha!”
– “What the heck is that??”
– “Is that even a macro?”
“Nice!”
I admired Seolha for using her skill right on time, and soared into the sky on the Red Hare.
– “Whoa”
– “Is that it?”
– “Haru’s really good, haha!”
Soaring up to the edge of the sky, until I could barely see the ground, I prepared to dive.
Letting the wind guide my body, I focused my gaze on the whale’s back.
And then.
Boom-
Craaaash!!
On that massive back, I left a deep gash.
– “Whoa, haha!”
– “This is cool even the second time.”
– “The impact is insane.”
[Whoa!!]
[You’re so cool, senpai!]
[Fire now!]
After Seolha’s defense and my attack, it seemed like the juniors got even more aggressive with their bullets and harpoons.
The downside was that harpoons were consumables.
We could deal a lot of damage now, but when supplies ran out, our damage would drop significantly from then on.
Hoping to catch that huge whale, I pressed on and unleashed my skills.
Booming–! Crash—!
As the attacks continued, the whale was struggling, entangled in the nets we’d thrown at it.
“Add more nets!”
It seemed to want to break free from the nets and ride the waves, but before the ropes snapped, I issued another order, wrapping it with more large nets instantly.
– “Whoa.”
– “Great order, dude.”
– “Being up in the sky makes the situation so much clearer.”
Thank goodness Red Hare could soar as per the chat.
From the sky, directing the battlefield was definitely easier.
Of course, it wasn’t all smooth sailing.
The white-tailed whale lived up to its name, shaking the boat violently every time it moved, and when it attacked, one by one, people on deck were falling.
Boom—! Smash-!!
[(Haeun) has died.]
[… has died.]
[… has died….]
Just now, three people were taken out by the whale’s attack.
Other members weren’t yet familiar with the patterns, and Seolha’s defenses had limits, so it was inevitable.
The situation was tougher than I had anticipated.
However, as our team’s casualties stacked up, the whale was also getting more wounded.
The most significant wound was the one I inflicted with my first strike.
As the whale thrashed, the wound expanded more and more.
Along with that, smaller wounds were appearing all over the whale.
If we kept this up, it would be tough but we could successfully take it down….
[It’s coming!!]
[Everyone, be careful!]
Yup, as expected, this wasn’t going to be easy.
I saw a blue impact wrapping around the whale.
That was the attack that had wiped out our party during the last long-finned whale raid.
With the white-tailed whale being twice as large, the orb it had gathered was also massive.
If that dropped on the ship, our expedition would surely be wiped out.
But the silver lining was that we had a holder of a defensive hidden job among us.
[Be frozen!!!]
Just in time, a colossal shout rang out from below, and a gigantic ice wall rose up between the ship and the whale.
And in retaliation, the whale dropped the gathered blue mass towards our ship.
In the end—
Boom!!!
The sphere created by the white-tailed whale crashed against the ice wall.
– “Is this really about to become a battle between a white-tailed whale and Aokiji?”
– “Look at that impact, haha!”
– “Lissandra really grew up well, haha.”
“Whoa.”
I couldn’t help but admire the sight.
Was that the Ice Maiden’s ultimate technique?
It was truly monumental.
A few people were lost in the aftermath, but the casualties were much lower than I expected.
I couldn’t let them upstage me, so I checked the cooldowns on my skills and launched myself back into the sky.
And then I dove again.
Falling onto the whale, I used my skill for the third time today.
“Kamusari!”
Vvvvvv—!!
Once more, I tore into the whale’s back, ripping it apart.
– “Mikusu, haha!”
– “Midorije, haha!”
– “This guy’s the Pirate King, no doubt.”
The whale thrashed even more wildly under my assault.
The wounds on its back were pretty much starting to look severe.
And so, the raid continued.
Attacks kept pouring in, and due to the whale’s patterns, members started dying left and right.
Through it all, Seolha continued to defend, and I unleashed my skills.
[Block!]
[Harpoons are out!]
[We’ll shoot!]
Soon enough, we were almost out of harpoons, and all that filled the air were the sounds of hunters’ gunfire and screams, when my aggro finally shifted to the whale.
Smack!
I just got slammed by the tail again, pushed back wildly.
“Phew….”
– “Ugh, this is relentless.”
– “The whale is like, seriously tough, haha!”
– “But we’re almost done I think.”
“Yeah, it’s almost over.”
I stared at the whale in front of me.
Now that massive body was covered in wounds.
If there were a health bar in this server, it wouldn’t have much left.
“Let’s push through again.”
So, healing up a bit, I prepared to reenter the battle when suddenly…
[Huh?]
[Wait, wait! It’s coming!]
Something blue was rising up from the whale’s body.
“…Again?”
– “Whoa.”
– “Is it doing it again?”
– “Damn, two times in a row!”
The skill that had dealt us our biggest shock earlier.
It seemed to be its last-ditch effort, as more seawater was rising around the whale, forming another blue orb.
“Seolha!”
[Huh?! I don’t have cooldown on that!]
I called out for Seolha urgently, but it seemed she was out of skills to block this one.
…This is bad.
“Attack!”
I shouted, summoning the Red Hare.
[Uh, uh?]
[Aren’t we supposed to dodge?]
“You can’t dodge! Attack before it lands!”
Am I supposed to get wiped out just as we’re this close?
Look at the whale; it’s on the verge of death!
[I-I don’t know, shoot!]
[Here it comes!!]
Following my order, we all launched our attacks together.
The hunters swapped out their ammo for their strongest rounds, while the farmers readied their melee weapons and charged forward.
[Ahh!]
Among them were those like Anna, who flew away or got taken out, but the damage we were inflicting was surely more significant than ever.
I dashed across the ship, riding the Red Hare.
Thanks to the extended fight, my cooldowns were finally up.
Ahead of us, I saw the gigantic sphere gathering above the battered white-tailed whale.
This was it; it all comes down to this one attack.
As I saw that orb moving toward us.
I dismissed the Red Hare and planted my feet in the air.
Ichisen (一閃).
“Moonlight Heavenly Charge!”
A single beam of light tore through the whale.
And then.
Boom!!!
A colossal impact struck the boat.
[(Miro) has died.]
[(Gan) has died.]
[(Seolha) has died….]
[….]
[…]
– Ugh…
– Whoa…
– What the hell happened?
I was among the first to go down.
As I revived, I focused intently on the server messages.
Starting with mine, messages began flooding in, announcing the deaths of fellow Celestial Realm members.
“Please.”
I desperately scanned those messages.
But….
“…What?”
There was no sign of success for the whale hunt logo anywhere to be found.
“Did we fail?”
– Ugh…
– What a waste, seriously…
– Damn, the whale…
…Should I go call The Six?
I was hit with a strong urge to gather everyone together for a rampage when suddenly.
[But where did Anna go?]
Seolha, who had died and revived like me, suddenly asked.
“Huh?”
Now that I look, there was no death message for Anna either.
…I remembered seeing her fly off earlier.
– Huh?
– Is Anna about to do it?
– Well, she’s about to die, haha.
“Is she still alive?”
I remembered seeing her fly off, but she’s still alive?
…I hoped for her to pull off a miracle as I searched for Anna’s broadcast.
**
“Did…did everyone die?”
After Miro’s call for the last attack, a woman peeked out from the wrecked ship, completely soaked.
– Gasp…
– What the…
– Is she the only survivor…?
“Uh, uh…?”
It was Anna, who had flown to the end of the ship.
Thanks to that, she hadn’t been caught up in the whale’s attack and was still alive…
“Am I… all alone?”
Whether it was a blessing or a curse.
She had been left all alone on the ship, which had once been filled with people.
Moreover…
Up ahead.
The white-tailed whale, still tangled in the nets, was flailing about, covered in wounds.
Thrusting— Gushing—!
“Ah…”
Anna sighed at the sight.
Anna.
She was originally someone who knew nothing about games.
To be honest, after finishing school and graduating from the theater and film department, a musical actress like her hardly ever played games.
Even if she did, they were limited to simple mobile games or adorable titles.
Still, that time as a VTuber for the past three years had given her a knack for gaming.
And she learned she could get deeply invested in the games.
Like when she performed acting and singing on stage, she had also immersed herself in gaming.
That’s why…
After spending every penny she earned from day and night farming, renting that ship felt so empty and exhausting.
She didn’t blame her cute juniors.
It was her choice, after all.
However, she couldn’t help but feel utterly frustrated.
So, she poured in every bit of savings she could muster into this expedition.
If she couldn’t capture that loathsome whale up ahead, she saw no future for herself.
That feeling of desperation made her approach the enormous beast rather than cower in fear, picking up a gun that had fallen to the floor.
It was a gun that had likely belonged to one of the hunters who had just fallen.
Looking at the white-tailed whale in front of her.
This monster had nearly wiped out nearly everyone in Celestial Realm, including Miro and Seolha.
The beast was now thrashing about, suffering with two huge wounds on its head.
“What, what can you do.”
For anyone else, this would be a terrifying sight.
But Anna’s eyes remained unyielding and determined.
Unfazed, with divine carelessness, she aimed the gun straight at the whale.
And then….
Bang!! Bang bang!!
She started firing relentlessly.
Thrusting—!! Thrusting-!!!
With only a sliver of health left, the whale thrashed wildly from the onslaught.
In time…
Recognizing Anna as its enemy, it began to move its massive body.
Vroom—!
The whale’s enormous tail rose high above Anna’s head.
– Whoa.
– Watch out!
– This is gonna kill her…
Even with her surroundings shrouded in shadows cast by the tail, Anna kept firing.
“Die! Die!!”
Bang! Bang bang—!! Tick—! Tick tick!
As she lost herself in the chaos of firing, when her bullets finally ran dry.
Thrist—- Thrist—-!!
The tail that had soared high above suddenly began to crumble, not striking Anna.
“Uh, uh?!”
With a colossal tremor, the whale crashed, creating a massive splash in the sea.
[(Anna) has become the first in the server to hunt down the (white-tailed whale)!]
A massive message echoed across the entire server.
“…Huh?”
Only then did Anna come to her senses, checking the message.
Did I… really do it?
– Ooh??
– Did that really happen???
– Whoa.
“Woo!!”
Anna leapt for joy, filled with exhilaration.
Is it true? Did I really capture it?
Of course, Miro had done most of the work and she had just gotten the last blow, but still, it was a capture, wasn’t it?
She felt as if she could fly with joy.
Yet…
[(Anna) has achieved the hidden achievement (The Old Man and the Sea)!]
[Hidden job (Old Fisherman) granted!]
After seeing the additional server message, she felt a little dazed.
“Th-the Old Fisherman?”
A hidden job? But the name is….
– Hahaha.
– Old Fisherman, haha!
– ^Old^.
– Anna and the sea, haha.
“…I’m gonna kick out all of Miro’s viewers.”
Even though she got a hidden job.
There was a strange feeling of joylessness.
Thus…
The whale hunt involving nearly all the members of Celestial Realm came to a successful close, leaving behind numerous clips and memories in its wake.