“Even with such thorough preparation, we couldn't keep him here... The Gold rank is truly powerful.”
Leon indifferently withdrew his gaze from the spatial vortex.
Before teleporting away, the Mad Shark King’s flesh had already begun to consume itself for the most part; he was undoubtedly a dead man.
This suppression operation was a preliminary success.
“What is this?” Beside Leon, Miles and Viscount Finn stepped forward, looking at the puddle of flesh left on the ground by the Mad Shark King with grave expressions.
It was just a puddle of flesh struck off the Mad Shark King’s body, nothing more than ordinary tissue.
However, what made Miles and Finn’s hearts race was that even after losing its host, the flesh was still writhing in secret, emitting a terrifying aura.
Within the few seconds Miles and Finn stared at it, the flesh actually began to devour and merge with itself.
Eventually, it completely vanished from the deck, leaving no trace.
“A power called 【Hunger】.”
Leon didn't explain much, only informing them of Hunger's existence.
Information about Alicia's reincarnation could easily be exploited by people with ulterior motives if it were leaked.
Although Leon was certain that Miles and Viscount Finn weren't the type to spread such things, it also concerned Alicia's privacy, so he felt it best not to speak of it.
“Hunger...”
Miles and Viscount Finn were clearly hearing of the power of 【Hunger】 for the first time, their faces filled with confusion.
However, seeing that Leon didn't elaborate, they naturally weren't so tactless as to pry.
“Bishop Miles, Viscount Finn, we can continue according to plan.”
Leon didn't dwell on the Mad Shark King and instead gave them instructions.
“We understand.”
The two nodded and split up, seeking out the stronger Silver-rank merman pirates to quickly eliminate them.
At first, these Silver mermen didn't realize what was happening until they saw their fellow Silver-rank companions being killed instantly. Only then did they sense the Gold-rank aura emanating from Miles and Finn.
“What?! They have Gold-rank combatants too?”
“They... they’re that priest and the lord of that city!”
“How is this possible?! Weren't those two fighting the boss?!”
“It's Bishop Miles and Viscount Finn! Did they win against the Mad Shark King?!”
“Victory is ours! Humanity will prevail! I told you, Young Master Leon's arrangements always have a deeper meaning! He was personally appointed by His Majesty and holds a Royal Decree!”
Recognizing Miles and Viscount Finn, the atmosphere of the battlefield stalled for a moment before a wave of excited clamor erupted from the humans, while the merman pirates were filled with disbelief.
Their boss—Mad Shark King Gareth O'Connell—had lost?!
How was that possible!
Gareth was one of the Five Kings of the Dusk Sea, a top-tier mage at the peak of the Gold rank!
How could he lose to these people!
Among the crowd, Zachary, the Mayor of Jellyfish Town, felt the aura radiating from Viscount Finn and suddenly understood.
“No wonder! No wonder Leon was so confident and seemingly stubborn!”
As it turned out, Viscount Finn’s injuries had healed long ago!
Pretending in the council chamber that his old wounds hadn't healed, then later leaking news that they had—it was all a trap!
All of it was for the sake of ambushing the Mad Shark King at this moment and taking him down!
However, despite understanding the trap Leon had set for the Mad Shark King...
When he realized that from the start of the battle until now, less than ten minutes had passed before the Mad Shark King was defeated by the trio, either dead or fleeing with heavy injuries... Zachary still felt a sense of unreality.
He wasn't like those nobles who only cared about eating, drinking, and playing. He was well-read in history and had once delved into the study of transcendent powers, though his mediocre talent meant he was still only at the Bronze rank at his age.
But in his youth, he had been extremely interested in combat theory!
A Gold-rank peak mage, even if caught in a trap, shouldn't have been speed-run by Leon’s trio in ten minutes.
By all accounts, the fight should have dragged on for quite a while!
Yet the current reality was that the Mad Shark King indeed could no longer participate in the battle.
Meanwhile, Viscount Finn and Bishop Miles were able to use their Gold-rank power to descend upon and slaughter these Silver mermen like gods!
“That Young Master Leon... is extremely extraordinary!”
Zachary thought in shock.
Then, another thought surfaced in his mind:
If it were anyone else, they might be helpless.
But with the methods and strategy Leon had displayed... perhaps he really could solve the thing buried beneath his family's estate?
...
On the deck of the Sardine.
Leon opened his Divine Art panel to check the rewards from this battle.
The moment he opened the panel, the number of flashing lights far exceeded Leon’s expectations.
【Divine Art Casting Grade: Perfect】
【Light Prayer EXP +20】
【Light Prayer Lv3 (78/1000) → Light Prayer Lv3 (98/1000)】
【Hammer of Sacred Light Lv2 (199/300) → Hammer of Sacred Light Lv2 (219/300)】
【Radiance Longbow Lv1 (64/100) → Radiance Longbow Lv1 (84/100)】
【...】
The lights at the bottom of the panel were mostly the EXP changes for each Divine Art.
But the lights at the top...
【Comprehending Divine Art: Bemis’s Protection】
【Comprehension Successful】
【Bemis’s Protection +0】
【None → Bemis’s Protection Lv0 (0/1)】
【Comprehending Divine Art: Moonlight Cloak】
【Comprehension Successful】
【...】
“???”
The moment Leon saw the lights on the panel, three question marks immediately appeared over his head, which quickly turned into exclamation points.
“No way! I can even comprehend the Divine Arts within the 【Red Fairy Tale】?!!”
Leon looked at the several new Divine Arts appearing on the panel. His current state of mind was just like Alicia’s when she was pelted with piles of lollipops!
His grin was impossible to suppress; he was beaming with more joy than he could contain.
His entire being was stuck in a loop of his mouth curling up, trying to force it down, and it curling up again.
Seeing this, Alicia shrunk her head back in confusion and reached out to touch Leon’s forehead.
“No... fever... though?”
Leon didn't care about Alicia's action; he just chuckled.
“Too many, there are just too many... Too many Divine Arts to upgrade...”
At this moment, Leon finally discovered that having too many Divine Arts was also a worry.
How could this be?
With so many Divine Arts, how long would it take him to level them all up?
And once they leveled up, he would face so many 'choose one of three' traits. How many of his brain cells would that consume?
What a pain! Such a worry!
However, hearing Leon shout about his worries while his face was covered in smiles, Alicia’s little face was full of incomprehension and doubt.
She thought for a moment, fished an orange-flavored lollipop out of her pocket, tore off the wrapper, and stuffed it into Leon’s mouth.
Then, imitating the way Leon rubbed her head, she raised her hand and rubbed Leon’s head over and over, her tone gentle.
“Don't... worry. Don't... worry.”
By the time Miles and Viscount Finn returned after clearing out seven or eight Silver-strength mermen, they saw the scene of Alicia vigorously rubbing Leon’s head.
“Ahem, cough!”
Miles lowered his head and coughed twice, while Viscount Finn beside him looked up at the sky, acting as if the blue sky were particularly fascinating.
Leon, prompted by Miles, finally snapped out of his state of unbridled ecstasy.
He caught Alicia's little hand that was rubbing his head and asked seriously:
“Is it settled?”
“Settled,” Miles replied with a solemn expression.
“Good, let’s go then.”
Leon coughed twice and boarded the already prepared small magic crystal power shuttle with Miles and Viscount Finn, quickly heading toward Endless Bay.
Rate on N.U.
