Argo had only previously experimented with [The Miracle] in his room, and didn't know the full extend he could charge it for. He had planned to release it at two minutes, which perfectly lined up with what his limit was. What he found surprising thought was the sheer magnitude of a full charge.
As the particles continued to gravitate toward his sword, he instinctively felt the process halt. Similar to the feeling when exercising; you can't progress any further, too tired or fatigued to cross a specific threshold.
'The maximum charge I can handle at the moment is about two minutes,' Argo mused, slightly impressed. The amount of power contained within his sword was far beyond what he thought he was capable of. While it was a maximum charge, Argo was convinced about the power of [Enhancement]. With this kind of temporary strength, he truly could create a miracle with just sheer force.
Those two minutes were the longest minutes of his life. The black-haired girl was panting heavily, constantly readjusting the grip on her short swords. She had performed very impressively, not falling behind the likes of the pirates or Jackson. And she looked around his age, making Argo feel very inferior.
Her swords were stunningly crafted, the one-edged blades molded in a material resembling a pearlescent bone, with a wide blade width. Honed to a perfect edge, they excelled in swiftness and fluidity.
The shadow squire had many deep dents covering its armor, and was leaking shadows. It had also performed admirably as a summon. Armed with only a short sword and buckler, Argo was amazed the summon could still continue fighting. It had showcased meticulous technique, leaving many questions in his mind. Was it the result of the master's controls, or intrinsic to the skill?
The amount of pirates still on their feet were in the dozens, and Captain Reid's cannons disappeared a couple of seconds ago. Their disappearance had increased the strain on the others, one less force repelling the Abhorrent's strikes. He would let our war cries occasionally, attempting to raise the morale of his crew as his saber sundered multiple appendages.
Grounding his legs, and steeling his muscles Argo looked up at the menacing eye of the kraken above. Its eye was glaring deeply at him, seemingly entranced by the energy and luminescence he radiated. The pirates around him also couldn't help but become entranced at the divine power that surrounded the youth.
His saber was now eclipsed in a swirling maelstrom of prismatic white light, reflecting a symphony of vibrant colors. The energy was so resplendent it cloaked his figure in a white hue, creating an impression of divinity. Argo glared at the insidious leviathan before him, tensing his leg and arm muscles.
'I'll take it down with one strike!' Before he could unleash the full force of the concentrated power, the air shifted. It was nearly indiscernible, but a trace of danger caused Argo to stop. He felt the pit of his stomach churn, as the people around him sensed the same thing.
"It's about to do something! Get ready!" Captain Reid bellowed, his eyes scanning their surroundings. The tentacles had stopped attacking, poised in the air as if waiting for something.
Argo noticed something strange about the appendages, but hadn't seen a particular need to voice his concerns due to the ensuing battle. When he was in Mardon, he was exposed to a variety of sea creatures for sale. One of which that caught his eye was a squid, similar to an extent to the kraken before him.
Each of its tentacles had a blanket of suckers on its underside, which stuck out to him. Which is why he was now faced with a strange feeling of unease, "Why do the undersides not have tentacles?"
As if in response to him, the underside of the numerous tentacles made repulsive squishing sounds. It was like multiple pustules were bursting, creating a disgusting sound that filled the night air. In a hideous fashion, multiple suckers opened up like a blanket of eyes.
From them poured a black liquid, reminiscent of liquid night. The sheer number of tentacles on the ship produced a torrent of the corrosive substance, as it ate right through the wood. Pirates screamed in agony, like their skin was being peeled off.
"Coat yourselves in mana! Now!" Jackson shouted, a thin veil of energy surrounding him. It warded off the liquid in a thin film. The surrounding pirates heeded his words, quickly recovering against the sudden attack.
The white energy surrounding Argo had repelled the dangerous acid, a thin circle separating it from him. Argo was right, it really was hiding something besides sheer strength. Monsters usually had specific traits or skills that enabled them to hunt prey or survive. Good thing the acid wasn't significantly lethal, as the victims weren't killed instantly.
It must've sensed the grave danger his attack posed, deciding to go all out. The corrosive acid continued pouring from its orifices, dousing the ship in a sea of ruin. Wood dissolved, and lines snapped throwing the ship into disarray.
Sweat beaded Argo's brow, he hadn't found an opportune moment yet. It was exhausting keeping the energy in check, and he teetered on falling unconscious. The torrent of rain and acid had created a thick fog that hung in the air. While simply shooting the attack straightforward should've been the most logical decision, Argo decided against it.
He couldn't see it exactly, but the ship had tilted to an extent. The Abhorrent was basically a huge target, he would be stupid if he managed to miss. But if it managed to hide in a smokescreen, and discretely alter the ship's position- that would change things up.
"I can't see anything! We've tilted and changed position since before, I don't know where it's at!"
Argo yelled, hoping for any ideas. For all he could've known, the monster had sunk into the waves, and was biding its time. After it's prey was thoroughly cooked in acid, it would crush the ship and eat the leftovers whole.
"Ah screw it! Come at me you stupid fucker!" In a weird turn of events, Captain Reid leaped into the dark waters below. Tossing his jacket to the side, he had a wide grin plastered on his face. The moment he hit the water, a tangible aura washed over the ship and surrounding waters.
It was a slight change in the air, but Argo felt his frustration boil. He felt heavily inclined to leap into the ocean, and wring captain's neck. His eyes twitched, anger suffusing every pore in his body. That man was always lazing around doing nothing! He was basically relying on children to save his own skin! Argo bet he was just swimming off to ensure his own survival while the rest of the crew rotted!
"It's a skill, idiot! Control yourself, he's making an opening." A sharp voice rebuked Argo from the side, prompting him to look over. With a twisted expression, the girl was on one knee. Her knuckles were whitening on the grip of her sword, "It's very annoying, unfortunately."
It was interesting to see her show a look other then indifference, but he quickly grasped her words. He controlled the itching urge to chase after the captain, firming his grip over the sword. It must've been a taunt-related skill, or something that provoked others to attack him.
A piercing cry shattered the night sky, the tentacles producing acid quickly shutting off. With ferocious intensity, they retreated into the waters. The waters boiled, the area where Captain Reid jumped into churning with bubbles.
The mist thinned, allowing Argo to gaze upon the monstrous facade of the Abhorrent once again. The thick veins within its eyes were bulging, its yellow gaze angrily seeking out the provoking aura. It had lost all interest in Argo, hell-bent on destroying the thing that was irritating it to no end.
'I'll take it down in one strike!' Argo planted his feet, taking advantage of the opening given to him. He silently thanked the captain in his heart, vowing to apologize to him later.
Pouring all of his energy and mana into the sword, Argo swung a horizontal slash that released all of the accumulated power. The moment the divine power left his sword he could feel his mana pulled straight out of his being, and a heavy feeling of weariness slammed into him.
For a moment the world was bathed in white light, as if the sun had once again returned to the land where night reigned endlessly. Many closed their awes instinctually, but the sight was burned into their eyelids.
A crescent slash dwarfed the size of the ship, slamming into the abomination with divine force. Its skin popped and burned from the intense heat, the tentacles recoiling as it made its way through the beast entirely.
Any tentacles in the path of the slash were severed instantly, leaving a trail of burning flesh and blood. The yellow eye burning with corruption and evil was split clean through the center, before the crescent explored in a torrent of white light.
Once again, white light flooded the sea surrounding the vessel as if a deity had decided to make their divine descent to herald the rising of a new hero.
***
"Atta boy lad, I didn't know you had it in you!"
Captain Reid bellowed rambunctiously, spittle flying from his mouth as he chugged a mug of beer. His previous shaken disposition was long gone, replaced by an eternal desire to lose himself in booze. His crew hollered with laughter, drunken on both alcohol and the lively atmosphere that rocked the ship.
What remained of the kraken was a grotesque corpse bisected from left to right, and a stench of burned flesh that lingered in the salty air. The mountain of a corpse floated atop of the waves, the mutilated eye and tentacles devoid of any semblance of life.
Currently, Argo was sprawled onto a crouch in the mess hall, utterly drained. The pirates had managed to rescue most of their companions who were sent overboard, and tended to the wounded in a diligent manner under the orders of Jackson. They also didn't forget to harvest the mana core of the malevolent beast before its body drifted away from the vessel.
Despite the thrashing the ship and its crew underwent, the pirates were still filled with vigor as they held a huge banquet to celebrate their victory. The wounded were tended to by the few healers aboard the ship, while others started making repairs. Argo couldn't even tell if it was dinner time yet due to the endless night, but all he wanted was to catch some sleep. Unfortunately, Captain Reid wouldn't allow him to indulge in such luxury.
He was met with a storm of questions as he tried to eat from his plate.
"Are you a hero or something kid?"
"That was amazing are you a prodigy?!"
"Was that your Inherent or some kinda skill lad?!"
Captain Reid's voice abruptly boomed, cutting through the room. "Oi! Leave the kid alone, you should know better then to ask questions like those!"
Reluctantly the crowd dispersed, returning to the lively clamor of the banquet. Argo tried to toss the captain a glance to thank him, but his head was already buried into a steak.
Argo activated the Records, looking at a notification that had appeared.
[You have received a drop!]
The Records were also capable of storing equipment, food, and other drops that you would gain from killing monsters. Although rare, Argo was surprised his first drop was from the kraken that had threatened the ship and would've ended his journey already.
[Embrace of Gleneus]: An armor reminiscent of a fearsome leviathan that roamed the waters of the isles forever shrouded in darkness. Its endless tentacles, size, and penchant for violence made it a terrible foe for any maritime vessel. That was Gleneus, a Deep Kraken.
Rank: 0
Grade: D
Type: Armor
Traits: [Waterborne], [Eye of Gleneus], [Physical Resistance], [Magic Resistance]
Argo was both surprised and excited with his newfound armor quickly reading through the abilities. Getting his hands on a Grade D armor so early was an unexpected boon and would increase his chances of survival exponentially!
[Waterborne]: The user is able to move, and breathe freely when in water.
[Eye of Gleneus]: The user's vision is able to pierce through the murky darkness of the surface and ocean.
This armor was perfect for the environment, in a land ruled by water being able to have night vision and swimming abilities were vital. The latter two Traits were self explanatory, and according to the Records the scale of each of the traits is parallel to the equipment's grade. This was simply far too lucky!
Argo suddenly frowned, fighting a Grade D monster right when he entered the First Trial felt like something completely far from the norm. A leviathan at that scale would require the cohesive cooperation of a whole battle-hardened crew in ideal conditions.
Argo tried to remember Helkon's briefing about how monsters and creatures were ranked. Creatures possessed ranks like humans, but unlike humans possessed mana cores naturally. Based on their physical stats and overall lethality, monsters were scaled from G-S in which anyone who received a drop after slaying the monster would be able to confirm it. The equipment's grade would be directly equivalent to the monster's grade.
As he was thinking, he manifested the armor around himself in a swirl of energy. The armor wrapped around him perfectly, with durable leather fittings and scale mail pieces for his vitals allowing suitable protection and mobility. The metal and leather were colored in a dark black, reminiscent of the hide of the leviathan.
After observing his new armor, he quickly dismissed it. Calling and maintaining items stored in the Records required mana. While stunned with his new powerful armor, he couldn't help but feel unnerved. He was suspicious about this encounter being a result of the [Hero of Finality], and its penchant for attracting calamity. And the power showcased by [The Miracle] was also unsettling, was he capable of killing a Grade D creature when his stats hovered around G? It sounded like a cheat.
Of course maybe he was lucky, the combined might of the cannons and crew inflicted heavy damage on the leviathan. Coupled with them guarding Argo and allowing him to charge to maximum he doubt he could recreate a similar scenario.
Before his thoughts could dig deeper a voice called out.
"There is a lot more to you then I originally give you credit for."
Argo glanced up and felt his heart skip a beat. The enigmatic girl unnerved him, despite her beauty she seemed to have an illusionary barrier erected around her. Her tendency use as many words as possible, while avoiding social interaction made her a little bit strange in his eyes.
"Yeah? Your soldier was something surprising as well," Argo commented, a little bit curious about the squire crafted from shadows.
"By the way I never got your name," he added.
"Faye." She replied bluntly.
In her presence, Argo could've sworn he could feel the shadows deepen. He couldn't tell if he was imagining eyes watching him from the deep recesses of the darkness. It was a tad unnerving.
"Ah, I'm Argo, nice to meet you Faye." He found it a little unnerving she was unwilling to introduce herself, or interact with him before finding out he possessed such power.
He smirked inwardly, deciding to give her a taste of her own medicine. "What do you want?"
She blinked, unaware about his attempt at mocking her. What followed her made Argo question her shamelessness.
"Would you like to work together during this trial?"
It took Argo a moment to process his shock.
'Does she have no shame?'
Argo winced, trying to maintain a casual expression. Contrary to his surprise, he did try to mull over the potential benefits of working together with Faye. He could tell from the battle she was experienced with swords, and mana manipulation. No regular human could have such endurance and finesse in battle without the aid of mana. Her summon was also something else entirely- possessing enough endurance to aid in a fight against a Grade D leviathan.
An idea popped into his head, prompting him to propose it.
"How about this. I'll work with you, and in exchange train me."
It was the best form of compensation Argo could think of. Without undergoing the education provided by the Central Guild in mana and weapons, having a teacher as capable as Faye would be vital. If he could absorb a fraction of her technique and skills, his abilities would skyrocket.
A shadow of dread crept into her expression, before it quickly smoothed into her usual stoicism. He could sense Faye weighing her options in her mind before relenting, albeit with a tense expression. He found it difficult to believe they were around the same age; the differences between the two were like night and day.
"We can start tomorrow, on the deck after breakfast. But how much do you know?"
Argo felt a little bit shameful as he said, "Not much."
She nodded, looking him up and down which almost made him jump back.
"All your mana is concentrated in your core. You're not actively circulating it within your body to achieve reinforcement. A long way to go."
Within seconds of examining him, Argo found out she had already noticed a glaring flaw with his technique. Though any experienced fight could tell he was a novice from a glance, he couldn't even hold a sword properly.
'Circulating? Reinforcement? Maybe I should've went to those classes. Damn Helkon!'
With that parting statement, she quickly left into the adjacent corridor.
Argo's heart slowly tightened with excitement, proud with the exchange he had made with Faye. His power for her techniques. He couldn't discern if there was a deeper agenda behind their agreement. Was his power something to covet so much? For someone who seemed indifferent to the world, she was willing to bend a little to obtain his help?
With those thoughts Argo tried to savor his plate of food that had already turned cold.