CH 75

[DーD, D, Don’t…..bully…..my mommyーー]

The squid screamed as it spat ink.

Luke: “ACK?!”

Sia: “GRR!!”

Boss: [Unbehー]

Eri: “EーEveryone, are you okay?”

Archers typically stand a little ways away from the group to shoot at opponents.

Following this standard combat theory, Princess Aires was the only one unaffected by the ink.

The black ink oozed over our bodies and……and…..this ink…….it’s really sticky like dough!!

Eri: “Sir Luke?! YーYou monster! Prepare to die!!”

I hear the sounds of the bow string being pulled back.

And the arrow is imbued with [Lightning], and actually the highest tier [Lightning] Spell at that.

[MーMーM…..mommy……..]

The squid froze and shook in place.

Mommyーーso it’s just a kid. A baby Squid.

And the one underneath the water is the mother Squid?!

Luke: “PーPlease wait, Princess Aires! ThーThis creature can speak our words. Soーー”

Eri: “BーBut Sir Luke! They are Monsters who attack ships!”

Luke: “Yes, I know, but there might be a reaーー”

But before I could finish what I was trying to say, the icy ground beneath us shook and a great mass emerged out of the water behind the baby Squid.

It must have been from the fight with the Adventurers. Its legs were heavily wounded and scarred, as it brought it out of the water to surround the baby Squid and protect it.

Luke: “WーWait! If you can understand my words, let’s talk!”

The Kraken attacked merchant vessels, but it kept the sailors alive.

And pirates were the only exception to that rule for some reason.

Luke: “I have a request. Could you not attack the ships? For us humans, they are an important part of how we transport resources, so it causes issues for us when they are attacked and broken.”

[Kyurururuー Mommy, wantedー wanted to protect usch. So she scared away shipsー]

A burnt, charred, and deeply scarred tentacle reached out to hold its child.

The sight broke my heart to see.

Luke: “Us? You mean, you have siblings?”

As I asked, the baby Squid looked deeply saddened.

It was followed by large streaming tears.

[I had a broderー broder was killed by ship with a black flag and mark markingsー kyurururuーー]

Sia: “Uーk, that’s….”

Luke: “Yeah, a pirate ship.”

Boss: [Unbehhhh]

Boss furiously moved his sticky limbs and came over to the baby Squid’s side.

He approached the baby Squid and began licking it as if to comfort it.

[Thank youー kyuru, kyruruー Mommy, Mommy, these people aren’t bad peopleー they’re friends with the Monsters of the Landー]

Boss: [Unbehー Behー BehnーBehーBeh]

Boss was trying to communicate with the baby Squid.

But though the Squid spoke human words, I guess it didn’t speak Sheep? Out of the surface of the ocean, the Giant Squid’s body arose.

But that was it.

I think that’s as far as it could come out because it was surrounded by ice.

Gonzo: [Lou Quain, what will you do?]

Luke: “I want to speak to it. I’m sure that it had its reasons, just like you.”

Gonzo: [..........maybe so. Here, I will break the ice for you. Sink back into the waters.]

As Gonta spoke, the Kraken seemed to understand and took its child and crept back into the ocean.

Gonzo landed on top of the ice, and slammed his fist into it.

The ice shattered.

A little further away from us, I made a new block of ice for him to sit and rest there.

Something slithered across the surface, and the baby Squid jumped onto the ice where we were standing.

From behind, the……….EEK?!

The head and body must have been 50 meters (～54 yards) long?!

Oh, and if you consider its length including its legs, it’s bigger than Gonzo. Are you kidding me…..

[Are you hurt in any way?]

Luke: “Huh….? Oh, uh, no…”

What I heard was a very kind-sounding voice of a woman.

Hurt? Me? The Kraken was in the worst shape imaginable.

I turned around towards the ship, and saw all the Adventurers gawking at the Kraken’s main body.

I raised my voice to tell them that there’s nothing to worry about.

Luke: “SーSo……I wanted to ask you if you would stop attacking the ships.”

[..........I had no intention of attacking. But my children were nearby, and I did not want them to come so close.]

Ohhhh, I see. So it was something like that.

[But if I stretched out my arm to ask them to not come this way, they began attacking…..and to protect my children…..I had to fight back.]

Luke: “Ohhhh, that’s……yeah. The humans were in the wrong there. I’m really, terribly sorry.”

[No, that’s okay………]

This Kraken’s voice was……..how to say……..sounded to me like someone who was very patient and peaceful.

Luke: “Why did you not attack the sailors on the merchant ships?”

[They attacked me because they were surprised, and it was all to survive. Self-defense, as they say. They were the same as me. But pirates are different…….]

Luke: “I understand. You……don’t have to keep explaining. Thank you for telling me.”

It pained me to have her remember such hard times.

Now that I know this much, I can ask the merchant vessels to avoid this sea route. I’m sure if I ask the Tronstad Kingdom, they will also inform other neighboring countries.

Olein: “(gasp, gasp) GーGovn’er! Just what is going on here?!”

Luke: “Oh, Guild Master. Ummー well, you see…”

I explained the story to the Guild Master, and how I was thinking about asking the merchant ships to avoid passing through this part of the sea.

Olein: “Well, the problem is not just the merchant vessels. Krakens eat all the fish in the area, so it’ll endanger all the livelihood of fishermen in the area.”

Luke: “That’s right…….hmmmmm…..Kraken, why did you travel towards the main continent? Weren’t you from a distant, far deeper ocean than here?”

[It was to raise my children. In the deep waters, there are others of the same species, but……for us……anyone except our direct family are enemies……..that’s why.]

I could sense the melancholy of the mother Kraken.

The Guild Master came and stood next to me as he whispered into my ear.

Olein: “I’ve also heard that Kraken fathers tend to eat their own young.”

Luke: “Gross…….so I guess asking her to go back is really not a choice….”

As I thought about what to do next, Boss began conversing with the Kraken.

One was Beh-ing and the other was speaking human language, but they seemed to understand one another.

Boss: [Unbeh. Beh-behー, beh-behn-behー]

Sia: “Uーk. Boss said, why not have Ms. Kraken move?”

Luke: “Move? Whereーーwait, does he mean to the Tristan Island?!”

Boss: [Behーー]

[WーWe can’t dare to impose on you like that. WーWe’ll head back to where we came from andーー]