I’m Here to End This Fight

Chapter 29. Demigod (2)

‘Come to think of it, this old man… has been unusually active for the past fortnight.’

For the past few days, Johan had been hard to find, no matter what he was up to.

At the time, Yuri hadn’t paid much attention, but now he felt uneasy for some reason.

Ignoring Yuri’s frown, Johan shouted towards the forest.

“Ralph, since you’re already there, bring that thing over!”

Yuri doubted Ralph could understand what Johan meant, but surprisingly, a voice echoed back from the forest.

“Damn it, do you think I came here because I wanted to? First, you send me flying, and now you’re making me run errands too!”

A booming, angry voice was heard, and soon after, there was a thud-thud sound.

With heavy footsteps, the forest shook.

Rustle rustle—

A massive shadow emerged.

“Couldn’t you have brought it yourself, Senior?”

“I was going to, but I heard some bastard badmouthing me.”

“Humph!”

Despite grumbling, Ralph followed orders.

On his shoulder was something enormous, about 5 meters in size.

Yuri pondered as he saw it.

‘What?’

What could it be?

‘A ferry?’

It certainly looked like a ferry.

The problem was, why was there a ferry in the middle of these mountains?

Moreover…

‘Why does the ferry have handles?’

Handles were attached to the front of the ferry.

They looked like the kind you’d see on a cart.

‘No way!’

Just as the realization hit Yuri, causing him to tremble,

Thud—

Ralph set down the ferry with handles.

Johan quickly climbed on top of it, smiling slyly.

“Say hello after a long time. This is our newly reborn Bung Bung!”

“……”

“What are you standing around for? Hurry up and get to your designated spot!”

Johan pointed to the handles with his prosthetic leg.

Yuri’s expression soured even more.

“……”

About six months ago, Bung Bung had done his duty and vanished.

And now, seeing Bung Bung reborn as a ferry with handles, Yuri could only say one thing.

“…What the hell.”

* * *

It was bizarre, but the ferry was descending the mountain.

And at quite a fast pace too.

Watching the ‘reborn Bung Bung’ disappear into the distance, Mucci blinked and spoke.

“By the way, Grandpa.”

“Hmm?”

“When do I have to go into the cradle?”

“The entrance day of the cradle is usually around November 20th. It has always been like that.”

“But today is September 20th, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then… how are we going to reach the cradle in two months? Huh?! Yu, Yuri-hyung won’t make it to the cradle?”

Mucci’s concern was valid.

Even if they traveled in a straight line from where they were, it would take at least eight months to reach the cradle.

That’s assuming they traveled at full speed on horseback.

Therefore, it seemed physically impossible for Johan and Yuri to reach the cradle on time.

As he patted his grandson’s head, who kept tilting it in confusion, Ralph smiled.

“Mucci.”

“Yes?”

“You will experience many things as you live. Hard times, happy times, sad times, and so on. Many incidents and accidents occur in this world.”

“Yes!”

“But there is one thing you should never forget, no matter the situation.”

“What is it?”

“Worrying about Johan Redner and that guy Yuri is a waste of your precious time.”

“……”

“It’s a hundred times, no, a thousand times better for your mental health to just wash your feet and go to sleep than to worry about those types of people. Yes, absolutely! So, you must remember this always!”

Under his grandfather’s intense gaze, Mucci nodded involuntarily.

* * *

Swoosh—

The ferry, which had been cutting through the water quickly, gradually slowed down as it reached the riverbank.

Inside it, Johan Redner, the one-legged old man with a prosthetic leg, lay with his legs crossed.

With a soft blanket under his head and his arms clasped behind his head.

Humming—

He hummed a tune, holding a long blade of grass in his mouth.

The blade of grass swayed to the rhythm of his humming.

Swoosh— thud!

The ferry finally arrived at a soft sandy beach.

Johan’s eyes opened.

“Is it over for today?”

As soon as his question ended, a white hand emerged from the back of the ferry.

Plop—

The hand, swollen from soaking in the water, trembled as its owner revealed himself.

“Ugh…”

Yuri, as soaked as his swollen hand, groaned and staggered ashore.

Swish swish— Walking on the sand, he collapsed.

“Huff— huff—.”

Yuri, lying flat on his back, breathed heavily.

Even though it was November with the cold wind blowing and he had just come out of the freezing water, Yuri, dressed in only his underwear, didn’t mind.

Steam rose from Yuri’s well-built body as it continuously emitted heat.

‘The sky is spinning… The sky is spinning around.’

Was it just an illusion that the clear blue sky appeared yellow?

[We’ve pulled on land enough; now, let’s try pulling in water, shall we?]

The task of pulling Bung Bung in water began at Johan’s request.

Of course, this wasn’t just to torment Yuri.

It was an extension of his training.

[A hastily built castle is bound to collapse easily. It might be frustrating, but building a solid foundation will allow you to soar higher in the future. As outdated as it may sound, the fact that it has been passed down for so long means it’s likely true.]

Yuri had just begun to learn magic flow.

Despite his remarkable talent in already grasping the flow of mana, Johan emphasized the basics and gave him an assignment.

[A place where constant flow occurs, where that flow is intricately intertwined. Also, a place where the changes in flow are most easily detected. Where would that be? Of course, it’s underwater.]

Johan’s assignment was simple.

Read the rapidly changing water flow and try to use it.

Though vague, Yuri accepted without complaint.

The problem was…

[Come to think of it… I don’t know how to swim.]

Yuri had never swum in his life.

Thus began Yuri’s ordeal.

He initially tied a rope around his waist and dog-paddled.

That was the best he could do at the time.

Even then, Johan had to save him from drowning dozens of times.

Given the circumstances, the distance Yuri managed to pull Bung Bung in a day was barely a few hundred meters.

But Yuri didn’t give up.

He vomited out the water he drank until his belly was bloated.

If he vomited, he went back into the water to fill up again.

Yuri kept diving back into the water, seemingly unafraid of drowning, and his swimming skills improved dramatically.

After a week, the dog-paddling Yuri was gone, replaced by a Yuri who could swim better than a fisherman who had spent decades at sea.

After another week passed, Yuri vaguely realized.

What he had perceived as resistance was actually himself obstructing the natural flow.

Having this realization, another two weeks passed.

Yuri could naturally blend into the flow of water.

‘Ah, so this is it…!’

Yuri could finally feel it.

The true water path created by the water’s flow and the changes in mana mixed within it.

From that moment, Yuri’s swimming skills transcended human limits.

No longer was the water flow an obstacle for Yuri.

Instead, it became an ally that helped him move forward faster and safer.

Yuri swam freely like a legendary mermaid.

However, this required constant mana usage, which was quite tiring.

So he had to take breaks on land, as he was doing now.

‘Damn, this is… no job for a human.’

Despite the hardship, Yuri was happy.

‘But I can definitely feel… the foundation is being built.’

What he was doing wasn’t just swimming.

It was the repeated process of constantly using magic flow and capturing the rapidly changing currents.

So, it was natural that his sensitivity to detecting the flow improved drastically.

With such noticeable progress, Yuri could endure this level of hardship.

As a small smile formed on Yuri’s lips, a voice that instantly erased his smile was heard.

“Yaaaawn!”

Yuri grumbled as he saw Johan yawning and stretching while lying on Bung Bung.

“You look very comfortable, don’t you?”

Johan, who spent most of his day lying on Bung Bung as if they were one, was a familiar sight by now, but…

‘I can never get used to his smugness.’

Yuri’s grumbling made Johan snort.

“You have no idea. Do you think lying around is easy? While you’re fighting the water, I’ve been fighting boredom.”

“……”

“So, push harder. Make the wind whistle! Isn’t it boring otherwise? A man’s heart has a dormant racing instinct! Awaken the racing instinct in my heart!”

“…Do you think I’m doing this for your amusement?”

“Ugh, boring guy. If you move like a slug, when will we ever get to the cradle?”

Johan’s muttering finally reminded Yuri to ask the question.

“By the way, when do we need to be at the cradle?”

“You ask so late. Tsk tsk.”

“So when is it?”

“When else would it be? It’s the 20th of this month.”

“Aha! The 20th of this month… this month…”

Yuri, who had been nodding nonchalantly, suddenly froze.

He blinked and looked at Johan.

“…When did you say?”

“Hmm? When did I say?”

“You said the 20th of this month!”

“You heard it right, so why ask again?”

“Damn it, how hard is it to say it again…! No, that’s not the point! If it’s the 20th of this month…”

Yuri’s eyes shook violently.

After quickly doing the math, he shouted in shock.

“We only have half a month left?!”

At Yuri’s outcry, Johan picked his ear.

“Why are you shouting and making a fuss?”

“Do you think I wouldn’t shout? Why are you telling me now?!”

“You didn’t ask?”

Watching Johan pick his nose, Yuri clenched his fist.

Barely suppressing his anger, Yuri gritted his teeth and asked.

“So can we… get to the cradle by next month?”

“If we go fast, we can.”

“……”

“If we keep going slow like a slug, we won’t make it.”

“What happens if we don’t arrive by the entrance day?”

“What happens? Of course, we won’t be able to enter the cradle.”

Johan answered nonchalantly, as if it wasn’t his concern.

Yuri asked, confused.

“Hey… am I okay not entering the cradle?”

“Hahaha, are you crazy? Are you going to waste such a golden opportunity? If you do that, you’ll die by my hand.”

Finally, Yuri lost his patience.

“Then why are you talking like it’s someone else’s problem, you crazy old man!”

Yelling, Yuri quickly jumped back into the water.

Yuri’s golden eyes glowed fiercely as he positioned himself behind Bung Bung.

‘Damn old man!’

In the past, he might not have known, but now he had a vague understanding.

The cradle was a place that anyone who wanted to become stronger had to go through.

Hence, Yuri now wanted to enter the cradle even more than Johan did.

‘I can’t give up like this!’

With little time left, they would have to move faster, even if it meant losing sleep.

He couldn’t give up without even trying.

Clenching his teeth, Yuri shouted.

“Hold on tight! I’ll awaken the racing instinct in your heart!”

With those words, Yuri’s legs kicked the water hard.

Splash—

A massive spray of water rose behind Yuri.

With the sudden acceleration, the bow of the ferry lifted.

Splash—

Soon, Bung Bung shot forward at a tremendous speed.

Whoosh—

Johan’s eyes widened with delight as the strong wind whistled past his ears.

“Woohoo! Yes, this is it, this is it! Run, Bung Bung!”

Johan’s excited shout echoed loudly.

* * *

Lake Argo, located in the northern part of the Niger Administrative District, was known as the second-largest lake on the continent.

Additionally, the river flowing out of Lake Argo headed south, leading to the Dale River, known as the continent’s lifeline.

The Dale River, the center of global logistics.

As such, the waterways flowing from Lake Argo were naturally bustling with merchant ships heading to the Dale River.

And one more thing.

The movement of merchant ships meant the movement of money, inevitably attracting bandits.

Bandits who roamed the waterways were a headache for the security officers of each administrative district.

These bandits acted as if nothing could frighten them on the water.

But even they had something to fear.

“Ugh?!”

“C-captain, it’s a white whale!”

The captain of a bandit crew of a hundred gritted his teeth as he saw his men panicking.

‘Damn it, a white whale from the Spero family!’

His heart nearly stopped when the flag bearing the ‘white whale emblem’ was raised from what he thought was a merchant ship, and two submersibles surfaced on either side.

Hayden Spero, a legendary pirate who turned his back on the sea and came to the river.

Having emerged from the shadows to establish the Spero family, he took it upon himself to protect the Dale River, driving away the bandits.

The elite forces of the Spero family, trained in water-based combat techniques.

Even bandits who feared nothing on the water were terrified of the Spero family.

Especially the submersibles, White Whales, moving underwater, were a terror to the bandits.

This was no different for the captain.

“Move quickly! Unless you want to become fish food!”

“B-but captain… it’s a White Whale! A White Whale!”

“Shut up and move! Once we get past that whirlpool ahead, not even the White Whale can follow us!”

“……?!”

“If you understand, move now! We can lose them!”

“Y-yes, sir!”

At the captain’s order, the men began to move, and the bandit ship quickly turned around and fled.

Watching them, Rachel Spero, the captain of the 1st White Whale, smirked.

“Huh? Look at them go.”

She could guess their thoughts.

They probably thought they could lose the submersibles in the fast whirlpool ahead.

Of course, they were wrong.

That would have been true for ordinary submersibles.

The White Whales, independently developed by the Spero family, were not ordinary submersibles.

“Pursue them. Don’t let a single one escape.”

Boom—

With a short drumbeat, the two White Whales began to advance.

Not even submerging, they plowed through the water with great speed.

Swoosh—

As they picked up speed, Rachel’s red hair fluttered wildly.

She gazed at the bandit ship with a cold smile.

“Trying to escape with a White Whale on your tail.”

Rachel’s eyes were filled with confidence.

And for a good reason.

The White Whale, a name synonymous with fear among bandits.

Another term to describe it was ‘the fastest ship in the world.’

Swoosh—

As the two White Whales reached their maximum speed, white sprays of water shot up behind them.

Simultaneously, the distance to the fleeing bandit ship decreased by the second.

1,000 meters.

900 meters.

800 meters.

As the distance closed, Rachel’s sneer deepened.

“There can be no ship faster than the White Whale.”

That’s why the bandits’ belief that they could escape from the White Whale seemed laughable.

The distance between the two White Whales and the bandit ship narrowed to 500 meters.

“Prepare for boarding.”

At the captain’s command, the elite crew members of the White Whale exuded a murderous aura.

When the distance shrank to 400 meters,

Puhuuuu—

A strange sound came from somewhere.

‘…What is that noise?’

Frowning slightly, Rachel turned her head in the direction of the sound.