Chapter 106

Caesar’s expression shifted. He had originally thought he would have at least three days to convince the Wind Fury to leave, but this time he was gravely mistaken. Even though just a few hours ago, that massive sea creature should have finished its hunting and returned to the depths of the ocean, the unexpected intrusion of the Wind Fury had startled it—this damned sea monster, rather than being the guardian beast of the Land of Dawn, seemed more like a supervisor left behind by someone to oversee the guardians of the Land of Dawn!

“Scared now? That thing surfacing would probably make you piss your pants—hey, Rick?!”

Almost without needing the captain’s order, the Wind Fury was already in action. The sound of running footsteps echoed on the deck as the crew used every ounce of their strength to quickly retrieve the anchor. The sails, which had just been furled, were unfurled again. Amid the chaos, Rick stood by the ship’s rail and threw down the rope ladder. Caesar looked up at him with a rare expression of approval, then without a word, grabbed Miguel by the collar and placed him on the ladder. Feeling the black-haired young man stiffen as he clung to the ladder, the man frowned deeply and gave him a firm smack on the backside: “What are you spacing out for now? Get on the ship and run for your life!”

“I was just considering whether to leave or not, stop nagging!”

Miguel turned his head, and surprisingly, the dazed expression that had been on his face moments ago was completely gone. There was no trace of fear or any other negative emotion. The black-haired young man extended his hand to the man, the roars of the beast from the depths and the sound of churning waves ringing in his ears. Miguel had to shout at the top of his lungs: “We leave together—what kind of leaving is it if I go alone?!”

A sharp slap rang out as Caesar smacked Miguel’s open palm. The young man’s stubbornness made the man furious, and he wished he could pull out a musket and shoot him right then and there: “If I could leave, would I be waiting for you to come find me?—Get on the ship, get out of here, and don’t drag the Wind Fury down with you!”

These words clearly had an effect. Miguel glared fiercely at Caesar, then climbed onto the deck of the Wind Fury as agilely as a monkey—Caesar, watching from below, couldn’t help but feel amused despite the urgency. This guy had always been clumsy when climbing the rope ladder before, but now, with a life-threatening situation, he seemed to have unlocked some hidden potential, moving with such dexterity that even Caesar might have been impressed.

Around the statue of Poseidon, the waves grew larger and larger. Caesar narrowed his eyes, watching as his Wind Fury, like a helpless leaf in the storm, swayed wildly in the enormous waves. The churning sea water washed over the deck, and some sailors who were holding onto the ropes were even swept directly into the sea by the waves—

The weather changed abruptly in the sky. The sun had disappeared behind dark clouds, and a storm accompanied by large hailstones began to pour down. The wind howled through the glacier crevices, sounding like the wails of vengeful ghosts—and the Wind Fury’s massive rudder, meticulously crafted by Caesar from solid wood, seemed to have been cursed, spinning wildly out of control. Several helmsmen threw themselves at it, trying to steady it, but their efforts were in vain!

The roar of the beast from the deep grew clearer, almost as if it were right beside them—

Legend had it that the Land of Dawn was a gift from Poseidon to his wife Amphitrite, given as a present for their half-human, half-fish son Tri’s coming of age. Here, the birth and death of all marine life were meticulously recorded. The gates of the Land of Dawn opened at sunset and closed at sunrise.

And to ensure that none of his other sons would encroach upon Tri’s territory, Poseidon left behind this massive sea monster, whose lifespan was likely as old as the Earth itself.

…Of course, these were just legends.

No one knew exactly what that creature, which had long resided beneath this statue, truly was—neither a dragon nor a fish.

The Land of Dawn was easy to enter but hard to leave. If it were night, Caesar would have immediately ordered the Wind Fury to sail into the Land of Dawn—however, the entrance to the Land of Dawn only opened at night. During the day, from the outside, it appeared as nothing more than an impregnable statue of Poseidon!

The churning waves made the most stable ship in the Mediterranean creak as if it were about to fall apart. The groaning of the keel under the immense pressure made the man’s face darken. He stood at the base of the statue, the waves barely affecting him, and as he watched the Wind Fury slowly pull away from the massive whirlpool, a dark green figure finally burst out of the water!

It roared as it unfurled its massive, membranous wings in the sky—wings larger than the ship’s sails. It was a long, snake-like creature with blood-red eyes. Its body was covered in rough, dark green scales the size of bowls, and only a small portion of its belly was milky white. The sea monster’s fangs and dorsal spines were as large as a grown man—

It flew in the sky, looking down at the Wind Fury with disdain as it twisted its head and flicked its tail. With a loud crash of splintering wood, the ship was knocked off balance, and even the right gunwale’s keel was broken. A massive amount of seawater poured into the Wind Fury, driven by the storm…

Caesar felt as if something inside his head had snapped.

Since he had designed the Wind Fury, no one had dared to damage his ship like this.

The deck descended into panic. After witnessing their comrades fall into the sea and get sucked into the whirlpool without resurfacing, every crew member tried to find something to hold onto. Their terrified screams echoed endlessly through the glacier crevices. But then, without warning—something seemed to truly enrage the massive beast in the sky. When it raised its sharp, reptilian claws and slammed them down on the base of the Poseidon statue, everyone’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“Captain!”

In the chaos, someone shouted at the top of their lungs.

The next moment, as if in response, the sound of a heavy object landing on the deck echoed in everyone’s ears.

“Stop screaming, you’ll scare the living daylights out of everyone, you trash.”

Standing up from the deck, the man grabbed the mast beside him to steady himself. Still shirtless, his sharp, hawk-like gaze swept over the stunned crew. Behind him, the increasingly loud roars of the sea monster seemed to serve as the ultimate backdrop for his return to the Wind Fury. Without looking back, he rushed to the control deck in a few strides, kicked aside the half-dead helmsman clinging to the rudder, and took control himself. “What are you all standing around for?—Extend the oars, ready the cannons, get into position and prepare to fire!”

The man’s voice was low and magnetic, not loud but strangely calming, as if it had the power to steady the crew’s hearts. The familiar command seemed to bring the sailors’ souls back from the brink of panic. After a brief silence, they roared in unison, letting go of whatever they had been holding onto to steady themselves. The wind was still howling, the rain was still pouring, and the deck was slippery enough to make anyone fall—

But the Wind Fury had finally returned to its invincible self.

So there was nothing to fear.

Look, the captain is back. He’s right there, fighting alongside us!

Within less than ten minutes, when the sea monster once again swept its sharp tail spike across the ship’s side, splinters of wood flew everywhere. The screams of sailors who had been hiding in the bilge and were now impaled by the spike echoed through the ship. But by then, rows of well-maintained, pitch-black cannons had been extended from the intact gun ports, their barrels aimed squarely at the sea monster hovering not too high above!

Caesar gripped the rudder, the veins on his muscular arms bulging from the strain, but he seemed utterly unfazed. His amber eyes were locked on the sea monster in the sky. With a forceful twist of his hands, the heavy rudder spun sharply to the right, and with a deafening creak, the Wind Fury slowly turned broadside. Caesar spat, his brow furrowed as he bellowed, “Aim for its wings! Blast it out of the sky!”

“F-fire at its wings!”

“Aim for the wings!”

“Prepare to fire, load the cannons, countdown in three seconds—”

“Three—two—”

The flash of cannon fire almost lit up the gloomy sky. Burning cannonballs traced perfect arcs as they were fired in rapid succession at the sea monster—not every shot hit the wings as Caesar had ordered, but the sheer volume of fire made up for it. Out of ten cannonballs, seven or eight might have missed and struck the creature’s thick, scaly hide, but the sea monster’s wings were far more fragile than anyone had imagined!

The agonized roar of the sea monster was deafening, but to the sailors, it sounded like the most beautiful melody in the world!

With a thunderous splash, the creature crashed into the water, sending waves over ten meters high that pushed the Wind Fury back by several meters!

In the lingering smoke, the glacier crevices seemed to return to calm.

Everyone stopped what they were doing, stopped shouting. They looked at each other, seeing fear, hesitation, and a cautious glimmer of hope in each other’s eyes—

When the smoke cleared, they saw the thick, green blood still spreading across the water. The massive sea monster, now gravely injured, lay slumped against the base of the Poseidon statue. Half of its body hung there, while the other half sank deep into the sea. Its tattered wings were riddled with holes, and all the blood seemed to be pouring from these torn membranes. The pain seemed unbearable for the creature as it lay on the statue’s base, slowly closing its snake-like eyes. Heavy breaths escaped its nostrils, and its belly trembled violently—

The sailors aboard the Wind Fury stared in stunned silence.

Until, above them, from the helm, their captain let out a disdainful chuckle.

The Wind Fury erupted into cheers. Everyone embraced each other, marveling that they were still alive. The sailors danced wildly across the deck, shouting Caesar’s name in triumph—

Below the stairs, Miguel poked his head out, wiping gunpowder residue from his face, and turned to ask the girl who had been hiding even more securely than him, “Is it over?”

“If it were that easy, the Land of Dawn wouldn’t be the Land of Dawn, would it?” Zhizhi rolled her eyes and poked the black-haired young man in the side. “According to the intel, that sea monster can’t die. As long as there’s no guardian for the Land of Dawn, it will relentlessly pursue the former guardian, dragging them back to the base of that statue, even if it means chasing them to the ends of the earth—”

“Cut the chatter.” A pirate ran past Miguel, screaming, and the young man winced, rubbing his ear. “Get to the point.”

“Alright, to force an early change of guardians is simple.” Zhizhi reached out and pointed to the Ghost Slayer dagger hanging at Miguel’s waist. “Take this, aim for the sea monster’s skull, and drive it in hard.”

“And then?”

“…Then? What do you think would happen if I stabbed a dagger into your skull?”

“…If I didn’t die, I’d probably chase you to the ends of the earth.”

Exactly.

Zhizhi shrugged, giving Miguel a look of exasperation.

“…”

Miguel instantly understood.