Chapter 138: Rough Weather, Rough Waves, SAN Check

The Crying Innsman... it was too battered to even be called a ship anymore.

The mast was snapped, and there were countless holes in the bottom of the hull. The damage to the bow made it look like a giant shipwreck-monster was opening its mouth to laugh... Naturally, it was not the kind of damage that would allow for navigation, not by a long shot. Despite being physically incapable of sailing due to the level of damage, the Crying Innsman was bouncing through the raging waves, steadily closing in on us.

"Wahyaa!?"

"Bugyuo!? D-don't use me as a sleeeeed..."

Akitsu Akane took a tumble and went sliding toward the stern with her cloak acting as a cushion, but no one—player or NPC—was in a position to laugh at her. It wasn't just a matter of "bad footing." Dancing on the back of a horse would be easier than this!?

Modern people rarely encounter "danger." I'll skip the philosophical talk about probability and the impermanence of human life as to why it's not strictly zero, but obviously, in this day and age, no one sails a ship into a storm. But this is a game, and it is a fantasy. The unnatural swaying made it impossible to keep your footing parallel for even a second, and even I felt like I'd lose my balance if I let my guard down.

"Are you okay!? We have to fight in this state, you know!!"

"I can manage, somehow...!"

"I can handle this much, yeah."

"Save me, Ruuuuuuust..."

Two of them are fine, and two people and one bunny are not fine, huh? As for the NPCs... well, since they're carrying the "Pirate" Role[*1], they're managing to hold their ground by grabbing onto whatever they can. Let's just pretend I didn't see Stude clinging to the mast with all four limbs like a koala bear... Consider it a man's mercy.

"Don't just attack blindly! Draw them into firing range, then blast 'em!!"

"I-I'm the one who gives the orders!!"

"Shut up! Save lines like that for when you're actually standing!"

"Ughhh..."

A man's mercy? He wouldn't even make good fish food, ptui!

The crew somehow managed to man the ballistae set up on the ship as makeshift cannons. Among them was Rust, who shoved the crew aside to operate a ballista herself, but honestly, as long as it hits, I don't care who shoots.

The distance between us was already under twenty meters, and with that, the figures on the other ship started to come into view. And the moment a blinding flash of lightning illuminated the area, we saw them clearly.

"I wonder what kind of 1D roll I need to make for this."

"T-they look disgusting...!"

They were far too hideous, far too horrifying to be called human. They possessed humanoid shapes, but their entire bodies were thickly covered in scales over festering flesh that looked like rotting meat forcibly packed together.

Their faces were even less human than their bodies. Eyeballs that looked ready to pop out of their sockets darted around frantically, completely unfocused, and their mouths, which looked like they had been ripped open, were lined with irregular, needle-like fish fangs—nothing like a shark or an orca.

These grotesque creatures, bodies akin to fish-men clad in ragged clothes, strongly forced the pioneers to confront a primal terror that gripped and gnawed at human instinct—as if drowned corpses sunken to the bottom of the ocean had crawled back up as fish monsters.

The pioneers, having gazed directly upon the forms of the Deep Ones, must make a SAN check[*2]. Success/Failure: 1D3/1D10... Wait, what the hell am I thinking about?

"H-hiii...!"

"Oh crap, did they succeed on their Idea roll[*3] or something!?"

Unlike players who possess a meta-perspective and can just write them off as "game enemies," I could spot a few NPCs starting to lose their minds. Son of a bitch, it'd be one thing if they just turned into statues, but getting hit by friendly fire right now would be a nightmare.

"Psychoanalysis (Physical)!"

"Gubeh!?"

Sorry, I don't know any healing magic, so shock therapy is the only option.

"M-my cheek hurts..."

"If you're the captain, then act like a captain and snap your panicked crew back to their senses!"

I literally slapped Stude—who was so terrified he was completely disoriented and almost fell off the ship—back to his senses. I gave the cheek-holding brat a short order and readied my weapons again.

"Even if they're made from leftovers, they've been reborn as top-tier items: the Marsh Daggers... No, time for your maiden battle, Aspiring Blades of the Hero (Duxram)!"

There are swords called "Famous Swords," swords called "Holy Swords," and swords called "Demonic Swords." Those masterpieces are one-of-a-kind, and no matter how much you try to copy them, you can never reach the original, singular blade.

But if you stack those lacking blades together into a single sword, surely it will become a strong blade that won't lose to the swords of heroes.

The two "One-Handed Swords" embodying that concept repelled the raindrops and shone in the lightning.

These one-handed swords—derived from the Marsh Dagger series that had endured through many long battles—didn't have any special effects. The only power hidden within these swords was simply that they were sturdy. If a critical hit is successful, durability doesn't decrease—a simple ability, but one perfectly suited for me.

There was a route to enhance them as daggers into the "Short Radiance Swords of the Lake Light," but their competitors were the giant-killing Togetsu and the status-ailment-inflicting Twin Swords of the Emperor Bee. A simple upgrade wouldn't cut it, so I had them undergo "True Awakening" into two one-handed swords instead.

"It's not an interception, it's a collision...!!"

"Firing...!"

The Crying Innsman was charging straight for the Scarlet Whale. It was a straight-line advance fully intending for a head-on collision, not a pass-by, and the crew scrambled to get away from the bow.

In contrast, leaving aside those who slid to the back, Rei-shi and I—the vanguard—stepped forward without hesitation, while Rust, our sniper, took aim with the ballista.

"Take aim... now!!"

A massive collision between two huge masses, overriding the swaying of the rough waves. In the next moment, several of the fish-men trying to board our ship from theirs were skewered and blown away by the massive iron arrows fired at them.

"I'll show you rotten fish balls who's actually the one raiding who!!"

With that shout, I kicked off a fish-man and leaped over to the ghost ship.

Actually, ever since I saw the scenario name, I had a vague prediction. The scenario is "Pierce the Apostle of the Abyss"... Whether it eventually leads to a Unique Monster or not, it's clear that the target monster for at least this part of the scenario is an entity known as an "Apostle of the Abyss."

Even if it's a scenario boss, it shouldn't be stronger than a Unique Monster; I predicted it would be on par with an Area Boss or weaker. And the only enemy mobs on the ghost ship that appeared were those rotten fish-men.

I hesitated quite a bit over the decision to bring Emul, but with this kind of swarm-type enemy, fighting while protecting her is actually pretty easy.

"Emul! Target the ones furthest away!"

"Yes, sir!"

The combat style between dual-wielding daggers and dual-wielding one-handed swords is different on a fundamental level. I grasped the shift in balance between my number of hits and firepower, and adjusted my movements accordingly.

The movements of the fish-men swarming me—since I jumped in alone—aren't that fast, but the violence of numbers shouldn't be underestimated.

I slashed at the fish-man directly in front of me, kicked it down as it staggered, and broke through the encirclement. Turning just my head, I secured a line of fire for Emul, who was clinging to me.

"We are clearly in a pinch!"

"Hahaha, relax, Emul. We've got other members, so it's actually saf—"

Thwip! An iron arrow flew right past my face. Hearing the hit sound immediately behind me, I understood the intent, but...

"Actually, it might be dangerous."

"I want to go hoooooome!!"

"I'll listen to you cry later! Work your ass off!"

"Waaaaaaah! Magic Edge!!"

Three blades danced wildly across the ghost ship. The clash between the pirate ship and the ghost ship, initiated with that strike, intensified as if responding to the raging weather above.

Author's Afterword

The fish-men who suddenly attacked with strange shrieks gazed directly at a half-naked weirdo with a rabbit on his head. SAN check, please.

By the way, if you fall into the sea, an NPC can drop a rope for you to climb back up, but naturally, if you're wearing heavy equipment, you won't float in the first place, so you sink and die.

Translator's Notes

• *[1] Role: The Kanji is "Role" (Yakuwari), but the reading is "Role" (Roru). Sunraku is pointing out that because they are programmed with the "Pirate" class/AI, they have better sea legs than the players.

• *[2] SAN Check / Deep Ones: Sunraku is heavily referencing the Call of Cthulhu Tabletop RPG here. "SAN Check" is a Sanity Check rolled when encountering eldritch horrors, "Deep Ones" are classic Lovecraftian fish-monsters, and 1D3/1D10 represents the sanity points lost on a success/failure.

• *[3] Idea Roll: Another Call of Cthulhu reference. In the game, passing an Idea Roll means your character fully comprehends the horrifying reality of what they are seeing, forcing them to suffer Sanity loss. Sunraku is joking that the NPCs "passed" this roll, which is why they are panicking.