Another World Reincarnation Chronicle

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I frowned and drew my sword. I had thought that the joyful voyage stemming from new encounters would continue, but that was not the case.

“Everyone, defend the ship!”

About a week after setting sail, rough waves and winds raged constantly, with occasional attacks from marine monsters.

Kieeeek—

They looked like a half-breed mixture of fish and goblins. Truly hideous monsters dashed around the deck. By the time I realized their intrusion, we were already overrun.

“Hah!”

With a loud shout, I swung my sword and cut down the nearest one. The deck was slippery from the rain and waves, but my sword flew straight, piercing an unknown fishman.

I squinted and looked around at the other adventurers. They seemed accustomed to such ambushes, silently cutting down the monsters without showing any change in expression.

Just then, the sea began to surge, and a gigantic wave rose. My vision was shook, and the violently crashing seawater engulfed my entire body, causing people to be pushed against the ship’s railing.

The cries of monsters mixed with the shouts of people. I, too, hung on the ship’s railing, waiting for the shock of the waves to subside.

At that moment, something that had surged up from beneath the sea became clearly visible. The murky clouds and the torrential rain obscured my sight, but they couldn’t entirely hide the massive creature.

It was a gigantic serpent. Water cascaded down its black scales.

As I stood there slack-jawed at the sudden appearance of such a colossal monster, a woman leaped out from among the adventurers.

Clad in rain-soaked clothing that clung to her body, she revealed alluring curves, but none dared to gaze at her with lewd eyes.

“Celyon…?”

It was Celyon, gracefully running across the swaying deck. A thick rope was tied around her waist, securely fastened to the ship’s main mast.

Without hesitation, Celyon charged toward the prows. With every step she took, the moisture beneath her feet seemed to evaporate, and mist billowed up from her body.

When Celyon stepped onto the enormous prows, her body rose into the air. Her red hair flickered like flames, and as she swung her sword, the head of the giant serpent was cleanly severed.

Celyon fell into the sea along with the serpent’s head. Even with her exceptional swordsmanship, it seemed she couldn’t swim amidst the rough waves and failed to surface.

As the serpentine body collapsed, another violent wave surged. The ship swayed heavily, and the bizarre fishman monsters that had been jumping around the deck were swept overboard.

Kieeeek—

The screams of the monsters faded into the background. I spat out the seawater that had entered my mouth and rushed toward the ship’s sails.

I was not the only one charging to assist Celyon. About five other adventurers, excluding me, raced toward the sails and pulled on the thick ropes, enabling us to rescue Celyon from beneath the waves.

“Celyon!”

“Cough…!”

It seemed she had been attacked by the monsters under the sea, as her body was covered in wounds. She lay sprawled on the deck, continuously vomiting seawater.

“I’m fine. Check inside the ship… the fishmen might have gotten in.”

“Ah, right!”

I turned my body to follow Celyon’s words and made my way into the ship. Strangely, even amidst the pouring rain and aggressive waves, the door to the captain’s cabin was wide open…

Running down the cabin corridor flooded with rainwater and seawater, I quickly scanned the surroundings. Fortunately, it seemed there were no casualties. I leaped over the slumped fishman corpses and headed toward the stables where the horses were kept.

Passing through the mingled stench of seawater and blood, I arrived at the stables. The distinct odor of hay and horses was strong, but I had no time to care about that now.

With my sword in hand, I dashed into the stables.

Plooosh—

“Nightmare…?”

Welcoming me in the stables was Nightmare. It had left its spot and was wandering the passage, a fishman corpse hanging from its mouth.

Given the fishman corpses sprawled around, it seemed Nightmare had taken care of all the fishmen that snuck in to ambush.

The other horses snorted a bit excitedly, but they remained calm and still.

“Are you hurt?”

Hiiiin—

Nightmare shook itself, showing it was fine in response to my question. In the process, it stepped on a few fishman corpses on the floor but kicked them away like it was nothing.

The sea weather was incredibly fickle. As the monster attacks ceased, the dark clouds that had loomed overhead seemed like a lie as they retreated to reveal a blue sky.

With the monster ambush over, it was time to tidy up the ship. Since I was uninjured, I had to mix in with the other adventurers to move the fishman corpses overboard.

In the process, multiple human corpses were discovered. They were not the bodies of Silver Grade adventurers but scholars who had boarded to study the ecology of monsters and ordinary sailors.

*

Time passed, and just when life onboard the ship started to feel familiar, a massive continent appeared over the blue sea.

We had arrived at Monster Island.

As the colossal sight of the continent revealed itself, the sailors began moving busily. They started organizing the cargo they would disembark and checking their gear.

Before long, the Radon Ship approached the dock at the outpost to attempt landing.

“How’s it going?”

“Ah, Celyon.”

When had she approached? I turned around to see Celyon leaning against the ship’s railing, staring at the giant outpost.

I followed her gaze and surveyed the interior of the outpost.

I could see the blacksmith hammering iron amidst roaring flames and a leather workshop processing monster materials, along with people hurriedly transporting meat, fruits, and vegetables as if preparing for meals.

“Isn’t it a great place?”

Just as Celyon’s words ended, the sound of a monster’s cry echoed from within the woods outside the outpost.

“Yeah… It is a great place.”

Once the ship was docked, the unloading of cargo began. The people living in the outpost seemed to welcome the items brought by the new adventurers even more than the adventurers themselves.

I also took my luggage to disembark from the ship and brought Nightmare with me. It had gained weight from the long voyage.

When I poked its belly slightly, it flinched and spun its tail.

“You need to get some exercise.”

Hiiin—

After all, just roaming around that vast continent would shed the pounds. I mounted Nightmare and disembarked from the ship.

The new adventurers, including myself, merely stood awkwardly after getting off the ship. There had been no particular instructions, and no one was paying us any mind.

While we were idly waiting, Celyon hopped lightly over to speak with me.

“Seris?”

“Yes?”

“Shall we go together?”

“Umm, just the two of us? What about the others?”

“They’re going with another team leader.”

“Oh, okay.”

Following Celyon, I glanced back at the remaining newcomers. They merely stared at me blankly.

Celyon and I arrived in front of a large building. A wooden sign out front depicted a flickering flame.

“Okay, this will be our lodging from today.”

“This is it? Which team am I part of?”

“Of course, you’re on my team!”

“You were the team leader, Celyon…?”

She nodded and headed inside the building. Though no one was there, traces suggested the building had been recently used.

“No one’s around?”

“It looks like everyone went outside. Feel free to choose any empty room.”

“Um…”

Celyon acted like she was familiar with the place. She went to the largest room, tossed her luggage inside, and immediately began taking out her gear.

She turned to me, who was standing there dazed.

“What are you doing? Hurry and get your gear.”

“Are we going out right away?”

“Yep.”

I followed her instructions, unpacking my belongings in an empty room and getting my gear ready. The ogre leather set I had worn for months had become much softer than the initial stiff fit.

After putting on my armor, I took out personal items like casual clothes and underwear that had been stuffed in my bag, lightening it up.

I emerged from the room with the now lighter bag on my back.

“Ready?”

“Ah, yes.”

I looked up at Celyon, who I thought would have very little gear, strictly opting for lighter clothing. To my surprise, she was wearing agile-looking full plate armor.

“Wow…”

“Cool, right?”

“Yes…”

Depending on the angle, the armor reflected a hint of red, indicating it was made from special metal. Celyon smiled lightly and walked forward.

I followed closely behind her, asking, “Um, Celyon, what about Nightmare?”

“Hmm. You can bring him, it’s fine.”

I exhaled in relief. Because of my short legs, I had to hop around to match my stride with Celyon’s.

As we opened the lodging door and stepped out, Nightmare was waiting right in front. I climbed aboard, stepping on the lodging’s wall.

Celyon, who had been watching me curiously, asked, “You said you were a pure-blood Hairan, right?”

“Yes.”

“That’s a nice thing to be…”

Celyon looked at Nightmare with envy. In response to her gaze, Nightmare proudly snorted.

“I’ll explain as we go. For about a week, you’ll be following me to learn what you need to do.”

“Sure.”

Celyon headed outside the outpost, beginning to explain what lay ahead. The adventurers had to understand and record the habitats and behaviors of the monsters, and occasionally venture into hunts to gather monster materials.

Most importantly, she added, was to explore undiscovered areas that had yet to be developed.

“Oh, there’s one thing you should be extra cautious about.”

Standing in front of the large main gate of the outpost, Celyon turned back to me. I trotted beside her and asked, “What is it?”

“Sometimes, storms of mana occur. When that happens, you mustn’t move at all.”

“Why not?”

“If you’re swept up in that storm, you’ll be transported to a strange place.”

That was the end of Celyon’s words as she waved her hand. Whether that was a signal to open the door or not, the large, tightly shut main gate began to creak open slowly.

Looking at the opening door, I asked Celyon, “Has anyone who was swept up in a storm ever returned?”

“Just one person.”

“Who might that be?”

“Balder. You met him once, right?”

“Ah…”

I recalled the man I had briefly encountered at the restaurant. Since we had only exchanged polite nods as we passed by, I remembered little about him.

“Shall we go now?”

“Ah, yes!”

I stepped into the unfamiliar land alongside Celyon.