CH 103

Shortly after the giant sea monster made its appearance, the rest of the pirates fled back toward the islands with their tails behind their backs. Galfredik returned to the Elion before bursting into a rage.

“What the hell is going on?! What’s with that monster? What happened to Master?!” Galfredik ran across the deck of the Elion while shouting loudly. It was quite a frightening sight since his entire figure was colored crimson with blood. The atmosphere of the Elion instantly turned quite gloomy.

“Motherfucker! I’m coming! Where did the monster go?!” Galfredik shouted.

“Y-you can’t, Sir Galfredik. Although we are near the islands, your powers won’t be complete. If you jump into the sea, you will surely die,” Romari whispered while glancing around at the surroundings.

“Dammit…” Galfredik gritted his teeth. It was just as Romari said. Although he smashed a pirate ship to smithereens and massacred all the pirates on board, he felt a stark difference compared to when he was on land. Even though he drank some of the pirates’ blood from time to time, it was of no use.

“Then what do you want me to do? Master is in that monster’s belly,” Galfredik said with frustration.

“Sir Eugene is an Origin. He will probably be fine, so just wait for a little while. Ah, Sir Lanslo,” Romari called out. Lanslo had belatedly returned to the Elion. He threw a pirate on deck before speaking.

“It seems the pirates know something about the sea monster.”

“Really? Hey, you motherfucker. What was that monster we saw earlier? Speak before I shove an axe up your asshole,” Galfredik said threateningly.

“$#*$#*@##*! *###!” The pirate responded.

“What the hell is he saying?” Galfredik asked. Lanslo translated the unfamiliar words.

“He is speaking the language of Brantia. He says that the monster is the demon god of the islands.”

“Demon god? What a superfluous title for a fucking monster. Anyway, where is the monster? Ask him,” Galfredik responded.

Lanslo asked, and the pirate responded while trembling with fear.

“The Island of Pering is its territory. It seems the monster smelled blood. Usually, the pirates offer regular sacrifices to the monster,” Lanslo said.

“What a load of bullshit. You little fucking morons. You make sacrifices to monsters? Cut off your balls right now, you little shits. No, I’ll rip them off for you and throw them to the sharks, you fuckers!” Galfredik began to speak aggressively. He was agitated about the possibility of losing Eugene. Without Eugene, there was no one who could control Galfredik. Romari felt a great sense of responsibility and inched closer to Galfredik.

“Sir, sir. Let’s calm down for now. Do you feel dizzy at all? Or as if all the strength is slowly seeping away from your body?” Romari asked.

“I don’t feel like my usual self, probably because we’re at sea. But it’s not to that degree. Why do you ask?” Galfredik answered.

“Ah, then Sir Eugene should be fine as well. You are Sir Eugene’s thrall, right? If something happens to either one of you, the other should be able to sense it immediately,” Romari commented.

“I see. But I’m not his thrall. I’m a vassal,” Galfredik responded.

“A-a vassal?” Romari asked.

“Yeah. That’s what Master said,” Galfredik replied.

“Then… Ah! Anyway, that’s even better. If Sir Galfredik feels fine, that means Sir Eugene is also in good condition,” Romari explained.

“Fuck… That’s a relief. Hey, you piece of shit,” Galfredik called out.

“Hueeek!” Although there was a language barrier with the pirate, the screams were the same. The pirate crawled backward with a frightened scream.

“Take me to the Island of Pering right now. I’m going to strangle that monster to death,” Galfredik muttered.

There was no need for Lanslo to translate Galfredik’s words. The word ‘Pering,’ and his terrifying appearance were enough to convey Galfredik’s intention. The pirate immediately understood and started to diligently wave his hands while speaking.

“It’s right behind the main island,” Lanslo explained.

“Tell him that I’ll cut off his limbs and throw him into the sea if he doesn’t guide me properly,” Galfredik said. The pirate’s face paled after hearing Lanslo’s interpretation, and he nodded crazily.

***

“Kieeeeek! Sir! Sir! Are you all right? Hwaaaah!” Mirian shouted urgently with tears in her eyes.

“I’m fine for now,” Eugene responded. He tightened his grip on Wolfslaughter while taking in his surroundings.

‘Am I inside the monster’s stomach? Or is this the throat?’

The sight was quite horrendous. Various limbs and remains of the pirates were entangled with all kinds of sea creatures and the pirate ship’s debris. The filthy, bizarre sight was enough to make Eugene feel sick.

“Sir, are you really fine? I heard from my seniors that members of the Dark Clan die when they go into the sea!” Mirian said.

“I’m fine. It must be due to Black Scales.” Eugene responded. Although Black Scales didn’t turn Eugene completely waterproof, it was sufficient to prevent the seawater from completely soaking Eugene’s figure. As such, he was able to move without much difficulty.

‘But it’s much worse compared to being on land. Guys like Delmondo would have died immediately.’

He finally understood why Romari had prepared the coffins full of soil. He never imagined that even Origin Vampires would possess such a weakness.

“Sir, what are we going to do? I can’t die like this! Even if I can’t build myself a mountain out of gold and silver, I would have expected a golden castle at the least! I should be bathed in silk and served three meals a day on a silver platter! I have to live for at least another 100 years while spoiling myself with all sorts of delicacies!” Mirian whined.

“At least you are honest even in this mess. Anyway, stop whining. There’s no way we’re going to die,” Eugene responded.

“Kieeng?! Really?! Reaaaally?!” Mirian asked.

“Really. Have you already forgotten which monsters I killed in the evil land at the Winslon County?” Eugene asked.

“Umm, manticore and drake, right? But what about it? Ahh! I almost forgot! You consumed the red mana stone after killing the drake, right?!” Mirian shouted.

Mirian was right. The manticore had left behind a common mana stone, but the drake had dropped a red mana stone. Eugene had gained a new ability after consuming the red mana stone, and he was finally able to utilize his ability to ‘transform.’

“But, but… how do we get out of here?” Mirian asked.

“Simple.” Eugene focused his attention while rousing his fear. A dark, crimson glow began to emit from his eyes, and a red haze began to form over his body. Soon, it deepened in color while swirling around his body.

“Keugh!” Eugene felt a shredding pain envelop his body. However, he kept his focus and directed his fear according to the instinct imprinted on his soul.

Kwooooooh…!

Eugene’s body glowed red, and his clothes and boots were torn into pieces. It wasn’t due to his fear, but due to the fact that his body was growing rapidly.

Crack! Craaack!

Eugene continued to grow in size. He slowly took on a ‘specific shape’ and began pressing against the monster’s throat. Just like any other creature, the sea monster’s mouth was large, but it had a narrow esophagus.

A little while later.

Kuwwwwwuuuuuugh!!!

A deafening roar resonated throughout the cave-like throat of the monster, and the gastric juice and seawater began to regurgitate out of the monster’s stomach.

“Kieeeeeeeeeek!” Mirian screamed while holding on for her dear life. Eugene had completely transformed into a drake, and she was grabbing onto his tail.

‘Is it because of the sea? It will be hard to keep it up for more than five minutes.’

Eugene contemplated his options while keeping himself in place by piercing his big, sharp claws into the monster’s throat.

‘The monster was large enough to swallow an entire ship in one gulp. The odds won’t be in my favor if I choose to fight it outside. If so…’

Eugene quickly came to a decision. If he couldn’t fight it outside, then he would simply fight it from the inside.

Kuwuuuuuuugh!

Even though drakes weren’t comparable to dragons, they were known as the dragons of the land. Eugene roared before digging his claws and fangs deeper into the monster’s esophageal walls. He began to frantically rip apart the wall of flesh. The intestinal fluid and the seawater began to infringe on his mind, but an Origin stood at the apex of vampires, and their strong soul and determination were not easily dampened.

Craccck! Crack!

Kuwuuuugh! Kuwuuuugh!

The pained cry of the monster threatened to rupture Eugene’s eardrums, but he did not stop. Eugene continued in a single direction while ripping apart the monster’s flesh and crushing its bones. He did not forget to guzzle on the turbulent wave of its blood as well.

A few dozen seconds later.

Craaaack!

Eugene realized that he couldn’t feel any resistance from his claws as a grotesque, tearing sound resonated.

“Kieeeeek! We escaped! Sir! I see land! It’s land!” Mirian let go of Eugene’s tail and flew up while exclaiming. Eugene was able to finally escape after widening the tear in the monster’s throat. Just as Mirian said, Eugene saw land. It seemed that the sea monster had surfaced due to the immense pain it felt having its throat destroyed from the inside out.

Kwaaaaaaah!

A crimson current swirled around Eugene’s 8-meter-tall body.

“Keugh!” Soon, his transformation was undone, and Eugene rolled on the floor and groaned after returning to his original form.

“Ha…” Eugene pulled himself up with all his might. After finding Wolfslaughter among the debris mixed in with the monster’s vomit, Eugene raised his head and observed the monster’s corpse.

Was it as big as a house?

No, it was closer to an entire castle.

The monster shuddered from time to time, and Eugene could see a large gash on its neck. The giant monster’s body was covered with corals and barnacles, and it almost resembled an armor made to protect its skin. If Eugene had faced the monster on the outside, he would certainly have struggled.

“A dragon? No, a whale?” Eugene muttered. The monster’s head was abnormally large, and it possessed a very bizarre appearance resembling both a whale and a dragon. It was likely a colossal monster that operated in the sea, and Eugene suspected that Romari might know of its identity.

“Phew.” Eugene collapsed to the ground with a sigh.

“My, my! Sir Eugene! I believed in you!” Mirian flew over to Eugene and made a fuss while washing his body with water. He would have hated it in normal circumstances, but the excreted water felt more refreshing and cooler than anything else at the moment. Thanks to Mirian’s services, Eugene regained some strength when the seawater was washed off his body. 

He stood up before speaking. “Where are we now?” He could see streams of light through a few cracks in the ceiling, which was easily 70 to 80 meters tall, and strangely shaped stones were placed on both sides of the wide, white, sandy beach. There were also several piles of unidentifiable bones and shipwrecks.

“Is it the monster’s den? This is a very large space,” Eugene commented.

“That’s right. It’s super big. It makes sense since that monster was as big as a dragon,” Mirian responded.

“You’ve never even actually seen a dragon, right?” Eugene retorted.

“Kiek! I’ve heard about dragons from my seniors. It’s probably just around the size of that monster. But I heard they spew fire and use magic as well. Ah! Sir, look! Over there!” Mirian exclaimed.

Eugene turned his head. He could see the entrance to what looked like a naturally formed cave.

‘I can feel the wind.’

Eugene became convinced from the flow of air that the cave was connected to the outside. He turned before speaking to Mirian, “I will look over there, so you stay back and find something for me.”

“Hmmm? Find what?” Mirian responded.

“Mana stone,” Eugene said.

“Umm… where could a mana stone be in such a place? Mirian doesn’t really know, hmm?” Mirian felt her heart drop, but she tilted her head and pretended to be innocent and ignorant.

“Kiek!” Mirian screamed as Eugene snatched her out of the air and held her in a certain direction.

“In there,” he said.

“Kiehhh?!” The spirit’s face became colored with fear and despair.

Eugene continued while pointing directly at the sea monster's body, or to be exact, the area that could be considered its anus.

“It will be easier to enter through there than the mouth. Hurry up and go find it.”

Eugene slowly approached the sea monster’s anus while maintaining his grip on Mirian. The back entrance into the sea monster was littered and full of horrible wrinkles.

“Sir! Sirr! Wait! Just wait a minute! KiekkK?! Kieeeeek! Kieeeeeeee…”

Squirt! Spatter!

The spirit’s terrible scream slowly faded away along with a squishy, unpleasant sensation. A few minutes passed…

Kerplunk! FLPHHHBLUBLUH!

Dark red stool erupted from the monster’s anus like a waterfall.

Ploosh! Fwooo…

Mirian slowly crawled out from the barrier of poop after breaking through the confines of the monster’s anus. However, she could no longer be called the spirit of water.

“...”

Her entire figure was painted with fecal mass as she slowly flew forward while carrying a mana stone that was almost as large as her body. She placed the object on Eugene’s palm without speaking a word, then sat down on the white sand with her back toward Eugene and crawled into a ball.

Then, she began murmuring while scribbling something on the sand. “I’ve been defiled… Kieh. I’m no longer… the spirit of water. That’s right… I’m the spirit of poo. From today, I am the spirit of poop… Kiehehehe.”

“The golden castle you talked about. I’ll build it for you,” Eugene muttered.

“...!” Mirian flinched, but she still had her back to Eugene.

“I’ll embed jewels in the walls for you. Well, I guess I can’t help it if you don’t want it.” Eugene said with a shrug.

“Sir! Please accept my eternal loyalty and allegiance!” Although she was covered in feces, Mirian was still a spirit filled with greed and desire.

“Wait a minute, be quiet,” Eugene raised his finger and stared toward the cave.

“Someone is coming,” he whispered before quickly hiding behind a rock. Soon, a group of people appeared at the entrance of the cave.

‘Hmm?!’

Eugene’s eyes narrowed.