The Hunt in the Disaster Mist

A barrage of impacts resounded one after another. By the time Saranya and Paresha reached the stern exit of the cabin, preparing to ascend to the deck, the Monster’s hull had already begun to list.

“Watch out!”

A tremendous roar erupted from the ship’s broadside. Saranya lost her grip, on the verge of plunging into the ship’s hold. In that critical moment, a petite figure reached down, grasping her shoulders with both hands, and amidst a flash of arcane light, forcefully pulled her body upward, hauling her onto the deck.

“Get to cover.”

Kaelan settled her between two wooden barrels. Her movements were somewhat rough, and her tone was icy.

Yet, Saranya still noticed the young witch let out a subtle sigh of relief.

From below, she had observed Kaelan’s movements; it seemed as though the witch had been poised to leap down. Had she been even a second later, Kaelan surely would have plunged into the hold to find her.

‘Hmph, her master clearly cared about her immensely.’

“What’s happening?”

As the words left her lips, Saranya already had her answer.

The sky remained shrouded in the disaster mist. Now, the mist not only gathered above their heads but also enveloped the Monster from all directions, completely obscuring their navigational visibility.

Without Talia, the boatswain, to coordinate, the crew worked in utter disarray. Captain Borok was personally at the helm, simultaneously shouting himself hoarse as he directed everyone to adjust the sails and pump water from the hold, all in an effort to maintain the Monster’s maneuverability. This ship, after all, was their sole tool for breaking through the disaster mist.

“Faster, faster! You imbeciles, do you all want to end up as fish food?!”

The normally calm sea now resembled a boiling cauldron of oil. Countless bioluminescent demonic fish leaped out of the water repeatedly, throwing themselves against the ship. They were willing to be pulverized if it meant leaving even the smallest scratch on the hull. These accumulating damages posed a significant threat to the vessel.

“Are those…flying fish?”

Paresha clung tightly to Saranya, gripping her arm until it ached.

“They must be affected by the demonic disaster. How strange, I’ve never seen anything like this…”

The demonic disaster was terrifying; there was no doubt about that. However, its spread and affected locations were generally quite predictable.

This was why, even in the early stages of the disaster, the people of the Northern Reaches, despite suffering heavy losses, could still mount an effective resistance under the leadership of Saranya’s father, Duke Kerfen.

In the mid-stages of the demonic disaster, storms and dark creatures continued their encroachment upon imperial territory. At that time, Saranya commanded only an understaffed Twelfth Legion and the Night Lily Knights, a unit focused on stability and witch-hunts, ill-suited for direct combat. Yet, even with these forces, she managed to effectively delay the enemy through a strategic retreat while fighting.

Humanity’s greatest advantage lay in the predictability of the demonic disaster. Predictability meant they had time to prepare in advance.

To Saranya, the demonic disaster was merely a natural calamity, and demonic creatures and corrupted ones possessed no true intelligence. Given sufficient preparation, she believed even formidable foes would not render them completely defenseless.

However, the sudden onset of this disaster mist completely shattered her preconceived notions about the demonic disaster. To put it more severely, it even instilled fear in her heart.

Without any warning, a small Bloodsail Alliance vessel had been attacked, becoming a deserted ghost ship. This ghost ship had then lured the Monster, the vessel she was on, to investigate further.

While she and Talia led the exploration, they were ambushed by corrupted ones. Most bizarrely, Mejga had appeared as an ally of the corrupted ones, at an utterly inopportune moment. Such cooperation between humans and corrupted ones was unprecedented…

Now, having barely escaped, the disaster mist seemed to have developed eyes, relentlessly pursuing them…

‘Could Mejga truly possess such immense power, enough to make the demonic disaster a part of his scheme, aiding him in hunting her?’

‘Unlikely. More probable was that the demonic disaster had, in some unimaginable way, exploited and corrupted her brother. Its objective was to attack them, who had come to scout the disaster mist, intending for them to perish at sea, forever unable to bring crucial intelligence back to Vero.’

‘This implied that the current demonic disaster was no longer a mechanical natural calamity; it possessed its own consciousness and could no longer be simply predicted.’

“What is that?!”

“A ship! There’s a ship behind us!”

Following the sailors’ excited chatter, Saranya spotted a colossal ship on the horizon.

A pure black leviathan, it was two sizes larger than the Monster. It had no oars, no sails, not even a single mast on its deck. Yet, it glided eerily across the water, surging towards her with an unnaturally immense power.

“Full sails, full sails!!!”

Borok cast a glance backward, a shiver running through him in fright. He turned back, cursing and stomping his feet, as if he were driving a vehicle with a gas pedal rather than steering a ship.

“Hey! It’s dangerous…”

Saranya ignored Paresha’s attempts to stop her, insisting on leaning over the ship’s rail, her gaze fixed intently on the large black vessel in the distance.

As the ship drew closer, more of its intricate details became visible to all.

The black ship’s lines were twisted and grotesque; even someone ignorant of hydrodynamics could discern the utter impracticality of its design. Its hull was covered in a pitch-black substance, veined with dark red patterns resembling capillaries, and its texture was akin to the carapace of a living insect.

The approaching vessel bore no flags. If there was any identifier, it was surely the ‘ram’ at its prow—the massive skull of a four-eyed beast, its expression savage, fangs bared, and its four hollow eye sockets ablaze with eerie green demonic fire.

Upon seeing such a fearsome design, no one entertained thoughts of communication or negotiation. Only two options remained before them: fight or flee.

“Bring up the heavy crossbows! Anyone with arms and legs on this deck, get ready to fire!”

Having risen to the position of captain, Borok’s emergency command capabilities were, naturally, far from lacking.

As the Bloodsail Alliance’s secret vessel for combating the demonic disaster, the Monster’s carrying capacity and armament far surpassed those of ordinary sailing warships; it was both heavily armored and potent in combat. Should the sailors unleash a volley of rocket bolts from the ballistas, whatever monstrous entity pursued them would undoubtedly face the powerful laws of Newtonian physics.

Under the captain’s command, the sailors worked with astonishing efficiency, swiftly pushing several ballistas to the ship’s rail. Bolts thicker than their arms were loaded into the grooves, their tips wrapped in oil-soaked rags.

The shouts of the sailors still echoed, and a pungent scent of tar wafted through the air. The crossbowmen were already in position, kneeling and bracing their weapons.

Though the enemy was formidable, their own forces were not to be underestimated.

“Saranya, go back below.”

“Master… I don’t want to—”

“Don’t want to? Then what do you intend to do, stay up here with your injuries and hinder me?”

Kaelan’s stance was unyielding. Ignoring Saranya, she turned to Paresha instead.

“Paresha, you haven’t forgotten the task I gave you, have you?”

“Yes! Yes, Paresha hasn’t forgotten! Paresha will definitely protect Lady Saranya well!”

Hearing Kaelan mention her, Paresha quickly grasped Saranya to prevent her from moving freely, appearing utterly subservient to Kaelan.

“Go, take good care of your master, and prove to me that you are an excellent domestic animal. Afterward, I will grant you some… suitable rewards.”

At Kaelan’s words, Paresha’s eyes gleamed. The young priestess’s expression grew fervent, her gaze fixed on Kaelan, brimming with the highest devotion.

The young witch curved her lips into a smile, evidently pleased with Paresha’s reaction. She continued to tempt the young priestess with a subtly suggestive tone:

“Paresha, you should understand that even among domestic animals, there must be a hierarchy of status…”

“Yes, yes, my Lady, I understand…”

“Good that you understand. You were one of the first to submit to me, the most senior. As long as you obey my words, make no mistakes, and encounter no accidents, I will consider making you a leader. You, then, must set a good example for your sisters who follow, hmm?”

“Mhm! Mhm mhm!! Thank you, Lady Kaelan!!! Hee hee…”

Paresha’s voice trembled, a joyous whimper escaping her throat as she offered a sweet, dazed smile to her two masters.

“Lady Saranya, let us go…”

Beside Paresha, Saranya, who had overheard the entire exchange, looked hollow, her eyes dim. She allowed the priestess to embrace her tightly, pulling her towards the ship’s hold below…