Book 2: Chapter 246

A young man was standing on the deck of a transport vessel headed towards Combat Island.

Standing with the sea as his backdrop, the young man seemed to become the focal point of a painting that had been created by the hand of God himself. The women on the vessel kept looking at him from the corners of their eyes and giggling amongst themselves.

His eyes were bluer than the clear sky above them, and his blonde hair gleamed in the sun like a halo around his head. His face was thin, its lines gentle, but his body was well-balanced. Anyone who looked at him would know that this man’s body was precisely trained.

“Hey, hey. Go say something.”

“Huh? Me?”

“You’re the most social and outgoing one in our group.”

“U-, um. If that face is right in front of me, I don’t think my mouth would even open.”

The women in the corner whispered to each other in quiet voices.

They were all aspiring artists from Peace Island. These were people who went out of their way to find and make beautiful things, and now they were on their way to see the lives of the artisans living on Combat Island.

The blacksmiths living on Combat Island were so talented that the rumors had spread to the other islands.

It was said that not only were their armors practical, but they also had artistic appearances that anyone who saw them would admire.

However, before they could even appreciate the works of those masters, they encountered a young man whose appearance was even more of a work of art.

As they hesitated on whether to approach him or not, the young man retired to the cabin. The women, who realised that they had missed such a good opportunity, could only exclaim in regret.

Tak-

“…huuu.”

The young man, who had returned to the cabin, let out a long sigh.

He felt that he couldn’t get used to this peaceful atmosphere. It was awkward and uncomfortable, like wearing clothes that didn’t fit.

He recalled the island he had stayed on before.

Desire Island.

A trash den full of people who were more disgusting than Demons, a land infested with betrayal, conspiracies, and hatred.

He’d spent as many as five years ‘living’ in such a place.

Had he changed a lot?

Leo Freeman wondered as he looked at himself in the mirror. It was clear from his appearance. First of all, he’d grown a lot. His androgynous face, which he’d never liked before, now looked a bit more masculine.

But what about on the inside?

…He didn’t know. A lot of time had passed.

Leo couldn’t remember what he was like five years ago, even if he wanted to.

Naturally, this meant that he really had changed, whether it was big or small.

His eyes turned to the mask that sat on the table beside him.

This mask, which covered half of his face when he wore it, was the mask he used when cleaning up the trash on Desire Island. The rulers of the island had great influence and wealth, so it wouldn’t be difficult for them to put a bounty on his head for the crimes he had committed.

That’s why Leo needed methods to hide his identity, and this mask was one of them.

However, he hadn’t worn the mask since boarding the transport vessel.

This was because he was only wanted on Desire Island, and there weren’t any portraits of him in circulation.

All that was known about him was that he was a young outsider who didn’t use any weapons.

Moreover, wearing a mask on the ship would cause him to appear even more suspicious. And as he expected, throughout his journey, no one had suspected him. If he left for a while, he was certain that the dust would settle by the time he returned.

Leo looked away from the mask to the newspaper article beside it.

Championship.

A major event that was held every ten years on Combat Island.

This article contained a list with the personal information of all the Champions participating in the event.

When he saw it, the first thing Leo noticed was a contestant named Kran, who had appeared like a comet and was now considered a strong contender for the title of Grand Champion.

This name might be unfamiliar to the Dragonmen, but it wasn’t to Leo.

Kran, one of the Top Three, The Strongest Hunter. This was someone that he could never forget.

After finding someone he knew, Leo immediately examined the rest of the list and was able to find the ones he had been looking for all along.

Rin Summers of Herui, and Li Hao of Babylon.

He was certain that they were Min Ha-rin and Lee Jong-hak. He could recognise them by their aliases with a single glance.(1)

“…Senior Sister.”

Leo’s heart shook when he thought of Min Ha-rin’s face. He wondered how much she had changed, what she was doing, and what she would say when she saw him.

Then Lukas’ face appeared in his mind.

Did she know where their Master was?

“…”

All of his questions would soon be answered.

After all, the transport vessel would soon arrive at Combat Island.

—It was about two weeks after the Championship had commenced.

* * *

Adventure Island.

The place where heavy rain had fallen unceasingly for several decades. It wasn’t uncommon to find sunken cities in this place.

In fact, such a sight was familiar and sought after by the countless wanderers and explorers on this island.

A sunken city was like a giant treasure trove.

This was the reason that the exploration team [Crystal Skull] was currently exploring such a city. A huge ship had been anchored above the sunken city, and they were in the midst of looking for treasures through diving.

Most exploration teams owned ships. Some even said that a group could only be considered an exploration team if they had a ship. As such, in order to explore Adventure Island, a ship was a necessity.

In addition to travel, ships also served as accommodations and places where they could cook and eat. Not to mention the fact that they could be used to transport any treasure that they obtained.

Standing on the deck of the ship, the leader of the Crystal Skull Exploration Team looked down at the sunken city beneath them.

Suddenly, one of his subordinates poked his head out of the water.

“Puha! Ah, dammit. It’s freaking deep.”

“Did you find anything?”

“No. I don’t think there’s anything here either, Boss.”

The subordinate shook his head as he replied.

They had already been searching for four days without any harvest, but the leader of the exploration team just nodded calmly. In the first place, treasure hunting was a task that required patience and perseverance.

If he got impatient after searching for just three or four days then he wouldn’t have set up an exploration team in the first place.

“But there is something weird.”

“What is it?”

“There aren’t any sea dragons in the area.”

“…”

This strange phenomenon was something that the team leader had also noticed a few days ago.

Sea dragons were one of the biggest threats during an expedition.

For the exploration teams, who retrieved treasures by diving into the depths, ferocious sea dragons, who moved freely in the water, and ate everything in sight, could be considered their worst enemies.

The place they were in was also a Class A Danger Area, which was especially known to have many sea dragons. This was the reason he had paid special attention to the number of people and equipment that he had brought for this expedition. But now, they hadn’t encountered a single sea dragon.

Of course, if one looked at it simply, this could be considered a good thing, but the team leader only felt a strange sense of unease.

Suddenly. The expression of the team leader, who had been looking around while thinking, hardened.

“…hey.”

“Yes?”

“Do you see that?”

The place the captain pointed to was above the surface of the water. His subordinates all turned to look, and the expressions on all of their faces changed as well.

After a moment of silence, someone muttered in disbelief.

“…a person?”

The figure of a person was standing on the surface of the water not too far from them. It was an unbelievable and bizarre sight.

“How is he standing on the water?”

“Maybe he’s standing on a building and we just can’t see it from here?”

“Where did he come from? There aren’t any ships nearby.”

“Is it a sea illusion?”

“There isn’t any fog so it can’t be an illusion.”

The explorers repeated their reasonings and counterarguments quietly.

“…Captain, what should we do?”

But in the end, the most important thing was their leader’s decision.

Just as the exploration team leader hesitated to make a judgement, something terrifying happened.

The man began to slowly walk towards them.

“…!”

“Wh-, what the hell?!”

It was like he was walking on flat ground. There was no way that a building would be sitting so perfectly beneath the surface of the water, so that could only mean that the man was truly walking on the water’s surface. Such a bizarre act was something that not even a Sorcerer could do.

Moreover, the man seemed to be taking small steps, but the distance he covered with each step was hard to comprehend.

The explorers were horrified.

(Note:

1.So Min Ha-rin and Lee Jong-hak weren’t able to figure out each other’s identities despite being on the same island for years… but Leo figured it out after reading one article?)