Does Spring Come Even for a Dying Esper

Boom! Crash! Splash!

As the battle between Iberis and the Kraken intensified, the sea churned violently. The impact of their collisions created house-sized waves that didn’t cease, disorienting not only the monsters but also the people.

“Ugh, the ship…”

“Urk!”

The N-0 unit members, unfamiliar with naval combat, grew increasingly pale. The constant rocking of the ship made it difficult to maintain balance, causing seasickness even in those who had never experienced it before.

The S-zone soldiers, more accustomed to the sea, fared slightly better, but they weren’t at ease either. As the battle escalated, even the warship, several times larger than the Kraken, began to tilt due to the fierce waves. Tension was evident on everyone’s faces.

“Kyaak!”

“Sheeek, sheek!”

The attacks from the one-eyed Kraken didn’t discriminate between friend and foe. Monsters rushed towards the mana barrier to avoid the ink sprayed by the Kraken and the ice created by Iberis. Initially, they had tried to break through to attack humans, but now their goal had shifted to mere survival.

“Damn, sea turtles and tiger fish have appeared!”

“And pilot whales too!”

At that moment, scouts monitoring the sea reported the emergence of new monsters. The commotion caused by Iberis and the Kraken’s clash had brought up creatures from the deep sea. As thousands of monsters simultaneously pounded and crashed into the mana barrier, it finally gave way, creating holes in various places.

“Gaps have formed in the barrier! Block the holes before more monsters get in!”

“Don’t let them approach the ship!”

At the cries of Renee and Muriel Louise, two different colored flags waved. Espers rushed out to prevent monster intrusion and repair the mana barrier. Soldiers moved in unison, providing covering fire. Mana cannons of various colors fired consecutively from each warship.

“What is Major Roman doing?”

An angry Muriel searched for Alec. As if hearing her shout, Alec’s lightning struck belatedly, but there were too many monsters. Moreover, his firepower seemed diminished, likely due to his earlier attack on the Kraken.

Meanwhile, pilot whales that had breached the gaps in the mana barrier rammed into the warship. Several soldiers lost their balance and fell towards the sea.

“Don’t break formation!”

Seeing this, Brenda quickly used her ability to firmly grasp the soldiers with their shadows, preventing them from falling off the ship.

“What a mess.”

Lucas clicked his tongue as he shot down Little Krakens climbing up the warship. Hand signals had long since become useless. Only those experienced in naval combat or without earplugs could barely communicate. He swallowed a sigh as he watched the unit members floundering, unable to get their bearings. Though reluctant, he had no choice but to step in.

“Lieutenant Cali.”

“Yes, Captain.”

“I’m going to repair the barrier now. Everyone cover me.”

“What? But… that’s dangerous!”

Brenda blinked at the unexpected words. Then, seeing Lucas stride forward, she hurriedly followed.

Bang, bang!

After roughly clearing the area with his mana gun, Lucas stretched his hand into the air. Suddenly, golden mana spread from his hand, creating a new barrier between the warship and the monsters.

“Kak?”

“Kyeek?”

The monsters were bewildered by the sudden appearance of the new barrier. Lucas seized this opportunity and moved his hand, pushing the monsters away along with the mana barrier.

“What the…?”

“My goodness…”

“Is that even possible?”

It wasn’t just the monsters who were surprised by the sudden turn of events. The soldiers were first captivated by the brilliantly shining golden wall, then shocked to see it pushing back dozens of monsters.

“Phew.”

Regardless of people’s surprise, Lucas exhaled deeply after patching up one of the holes in the existing barrier with his own mana.

“Captain, just now…”

“What are you doing? I’m going to block the rest of the holes, so cover me properly.”

“Yes, sir! Protect the Captain! Don’t let the monsters attack!”

At Lucas’s words, Brenda shouted at the top of her lungs, signaling for a volley of fire. The unit members, coming to their senses, each drew their mana guns and began firing.

Lucas wiped the sweat from his forehead after quickly patching up several holes. Even for someone overflowing with mana like him, creating a barrier large enough to block dozens of monsters in succession was a burdensome task.

“Captain Illum!”

“Yes, Colonel?”

“You, how on earth…”

As the battle situation temporarily calmed due to the mana barrier Lucas had repaired, Muriel approached with a surprised expression. Her eyes, fixed on him, were a mix of admiration and shock.

“How did you learn such a technique…”

“I apologize. It’s difficult to satisfy your curiosity right now, Colonel. What I did was just a temporary measure, so please hurry and reinforce the mana barrier to prevent more holes. We also need to clean up the remaining monsters on this side.”

Lucas dealt with a sea turtle climbing onto the ship, as if to show he had no time to answer Muriel. Although he had blocked the gaps due to the urgent situation, he couldn’t keep supplying his own mana if he needed to guide Iberis later.

Moreover, many monsters had already entered the barrier. Even though he had driven out about a hundred while blocking the holes, it was no time to feel relieved.

“Ah, yes… You’re right.”

Realizing her oversight, Muriel nodded. Following her instructions, Renee signaled to the signalman and commanded the soldiers.

Bang! Bang!

Lucas observed the battle beyond the wall while dealing with nearby monsters with his mana gun. If nothing else happened, this side would be wrapped up, leaving only Iberis to subdue the Kraken.

“Gruk! Guk!”

The Kraken, partially frozen all over its body, let out a pain-filled groan. Despite Iberis’s likely victory, the Kraken, true to its boss status, chose to resist to the end rather than flee.

Splash!

Toxic ink sprayed towards Iberis. However, with a single gesture from him, the Kraken’s ink solidified into black lumps in mid-air and fell into the sea. Simultaneously, seawater that had shot high into the sky instantly transformed into sharp ice spikes, piercing through the Kraken’s whip-like legs.

“Kreek!”

As the tentacle impaled by the ice spike began to turn white, the Kraken severed its own limb. It had already lost four legs this way.

“Grrruk.”

“Persistent…”

Iberis glared at the Kraken while catching his rough breath. He wondered how long it had been since he had used his ability this much and for this long. But he couldn’t delay any further – if it turned into an endurance battle, he might tire first.

Taking a deep breath and exhaling, Iberis raised his right hand. Silver mana swirled in his palm, transforming into a massive spear. This time, he was aiming for the Kraken’s other eye.

Iberis flicked his left hand, freezing the seawater around the Kraken to bind its legs. After momentarily immobilizing it, Iberis threw the spear at the Kraken.

Thwack!

A silver-white wave pulsed from the spear that had penetrated the Kraken’s remaining eyeball. Soon, mana whirled like a snowstorm, rapidly freezing the Kraken’s body.

“Grururuk!”

The pain-stricken Kraken twisted its body wildly, causing fierce water sprays all around. Iberis concentrated, tightening his grip on the Kraken’s lifeline. He couldn’t let his guard down until the creature’s breath was completely cut off.

But the Kraken wasn’t one to give in easily. In a final struggle, it frantically swung its remaining legs towards Iberis. Then it began to spew ink in gulps.

“What’s this?”

Iberis, having dodged the Kraken’s attack, furrowed his brow at the ominous sign. He soon realized the Kraken’s intention. For whatever reason, most boss monsters chose self-destruction when faced with death. The Kraken was no exception.

Iberis stirred the mana he had infiltrated into the Kraken to prevent the self-destruction, but his opponent was a bit faster. The moment the ink completely covered the Kraken’s body, it exploded with a tremendous boom. Along with it, a massive tidal wave rose.

“What in the…”

“It’s a tsunami!”

“R-run away!”

As a tidal wave large enough to engulf not only the mana barrier but also the warships arose, panicked soldiers fell into disarray, not knowing what to do. At sea, a tsunami was a greater disaster than any monster.

“Surround yourselves with mana for protection!”

“Signal retreat to each warship…!”

“No, we need to block the tidal wave with the warships as much as possible! Otherwise, the mainland will be damaged…”

The signalman frantically waved the flag signaling retreat, but the soldiers, gripped by fear and confusion, were in no state to notice.

That’s when Iberis moved. He lightly landed on top of the tidal wave that had just breached the mana barrier and closed his eyes. Immediately after, starting from where Iberis’s feet touched, the seawater turned pure white and froze solid in the blink of an eye.

“Huh?”

“Ah…”

People who thought they would inevitably be swept away by the tidal wave gaped at the marvelous sight before them. Some rubbed their eyes in disbelief at what they were seeing.

The scene of the wave, frozen in place just as it was about to swallow them and the warships like a beast opening its maw to devour its prey, was enough to leave everyone dumbfounded.