TNG Vol. 22 Chapter 3 Part 6

“When I fought it, I realized—it used to be like us. Because of that earthquake, the oceans of the world churned in ways they weren’t meant to. I believe that’s what forced Nuva to awaken. It’s only my theory, but Nuva’s role was likely to consume the filth that natural purification couldn’t handle. The time limit imposed during your battle with it, Shin, was probably the time it took for the tangible miasma to dissipate into the atmosphere and weaken. Even so, if it isn’t defeated, the monsters will ravage the land before they disappear. That’s something I cannot allow.”

By Armaiz’s estimation, Nuva was currently about 50 to 60 percent recovered. That figure referred only to Nuva, so it was impossible to say how many Hevin and Corpus might appear.

Even if Nuva wasn’t fully recovered, if the others spawned at full force, even Shin’s group might not be able to contain them all.

Apparently, Nuva could also sense Armaiz’s presence.

Armaiz said he could feel it; the sense that Nuva had realized something had changed and would surely start to move.

He was certain: Nuva would not remain idle.

However, whether it would come for the bones or for Armaiz’s new, small form, even he didn’t know.

What was certain was that Parda Island would be caught in the crossfire.

There were no nearby land masses where the threat could spread, which was fortunate or unfortunate, depending on whether one hoped for reinforcements.

“If this plays out like the event I remember, there’s no way we can handle it alone.”

Back in the game, such an event was just a grueling challenge for players.

But in this world, it would be an unprecedented disaster.

Depending on where it appeared, Shin was certain it could be even worse than a “Great Flood” of monsters near a sacred place.

Sheer numbers would be their only chance.

In terms of raw combat power, Shin’s party had the advantage.

However, for some reason, many Hevin and Corpus would ignore players and head straight for land.

Even for Shin and his team, completely stopping such widespread forces was nearly impossible.

During the game era, when this was first attempted—via a mechanic that extended players’ sense of time—many top-tier players had participated.

And even then, there had been considerable casualties before Nuva was finally defeated.

In this world, with far fewer individuals capable of matching that strength, a comparable assault would be devastating.

There was no time to hesitate.

“Once we explain the situation, we should move this base away from where the bones were buried.”

“If countermeasures are needed, I can act as bait.”

As Shin considered their next move, Armaiz spoke with calm resolve, neither excited nor despairing.

“It’s after me. Nuva wants to settle our unfinished battle.”

Even when asked how he knew, Armaiz couldn’t explain it.

Maybe because of the strange way he’d revived. Maybe because they had ended in a draw.

But he was certain: Nuva wouldn’t ignore him and head straight for the mainland.

That said, he could only speak for Nuva.

Where the Hevin and Corpus would go was anyone’s guess.

And unlike the game, there was no guarantee the monsters would vanish with time.

Out at sea, there were no obstacles to slow them down.

And without a time limit, they would eventually reach the continent.

If Hevin and Corpus ignored Armaiz and headed for Parda Island, the consequences would be severe.

“If there’s a chance they’ll follow Nuva, the first priority is moving this base away from the burial site. But if they don’t go after the bones, can you fight in that form?”

“My strength hasn’t fully settled yet. But in a few days, I should be back to about 70 or 80 percent. The materials I’m made from are crystallized Divine Beast power. The compatibility is good.”

“Can you overpower it? Nuva’s the one you went toe-to-toe with. And if it brings minions, don’t you think your chances drop even further?”

Even a Divine Beast like Armaiz didn’t have infinite power.

He felt like he was recovering faster than Nuva, but his state was still imperfect.

And this time, there was no leyline boost.

To fight a horde of monsters under those conditions—Shin said plainly—it would be reckless.

“…Yes, that’s true. Letting my pride cause needless deaths would be foolish. I’m sorry, but I ask for your help. Nuva is suffering too. If possible, I want to let it rest in peace.”

He swallowed his pride and bowed his head.

Many intelligent Divine Beasts had high egos, but Armaiz wasn’t concerned with that.

Though Shin had never encountered him in the game, like the Element Tail, he likely wasn’t a hostile monster.

“Knowing how dangerous it is, I can’t ignore this. You’ve got our help. Everyone good with that?”

Everyone nodded.

“Then let’s start planning what we can do before we reach the meeting place. That way, we can act quickly once talks begin.”

They’d need to fight Nuva underwater, and Hevin and Corpus on the surface. Their equipment would need some adjustments.

“I’m going after Nuva. That one needs to be taken down for sure.”

“I’ll accompany you.”

Shin and Schnee, the party’s strongest fighters, made their decision without hesitation.

“I’m coming too. There are some things I want to confirm.”

Yuzuha also chose to go with them.

While she wasn’t suited for underwater combat, her stats were likely higher than Nuva’s in its current state, and her wide range of skills made her a valuable asset.

“I’ll stay here. I don’t know how effective I’ll be at defense, but with my gear and skills, I can draw the enemy’s attention if needed.”

“I’ll stay too. I don’t have much experience fighting underwater, and my skills work best against large groups.”

Shibaid elected to remain at Parda Island, and Tiera followed his lead. Kagerou would stay with her.

“If it’s a boss-level opponent, I’m in.”

“I think I’m better suited for fighting on the water.”

Filma, the group’s main physical attacker, went with Shin’s team. Milt chose to stay at the island.

“What should I do…”

Sety was still undecided. Her magic could contribute both to base defense and as a boss damage dealer.

With the number of enemies expected, defending the base made sense but so did helping defeat Nuva quickly.

“Sety, would you mind staying here?”

“I don’t mind. But are you sure?”

“If it ends like the event and Nuva’s defeat ends the attack, that’s fine. But if not, we’re in trouble. Of all of us, you’re the best at using magic and handling large numbers.”

If the Hevin and Corpus didn’t vanish after Nuva was defeated, they’d overrun Parda Island before Shin’s group could return. That was the greatest concern.

It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Shibaid or Tiera but no matter how strong they were, individuals could only cover so much ground.

If the island was reduced to rubble, even without casualties, rebuilding would take who knew how long.

Sety’s zone control and strategic magic made her more effective in this role than Shin, who relied on brute force, or Schnee, who had spread her abilities across various specialties.

The strike team would consist of the buffed Shin, Schnee, Filma, the increasingly awakened Yuzuha as an Element Tail, and the newly restored Armaiz.

Based on Shin’s knowledge from the game era, their combined strength should be enough to take down Nuva.

“Just to confirm, do we know how much time we have before Nuva starts moving in earnest?”

When Shin asked, Armaiz shook his head.

“No, I can’t say for sure. When it moves is entirely up to it. I think I’ll be able to sense it once it gets close enough, but by then there won’t be enough time to come up with new strategies.”

“Of course it wouldn’t be that convenient. Well, knowing what kind of enemy we’re up against is already better than nothing.”

Since he hadn’t been expecting a concrete answer, Shin wasn’t discouraged. Just having time to prepare for interception was already a blessing.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what were you planning to do if we did know how much time we had?”

Curious, Schnee asked why Shin had brought up the question of timing.

“Ah, I was thinking… if we had a few days to spare, maybe we could call in Celciutos.”

“…I see. That would certainly remove a lot of uncertainty.”

Schnee inhaled sharply at the mention of Celciutos.

A warship with a fantasy twist; Celciutos was peerless when it came to naval combat. During the game era, there wasn’t much content involving fighting bosses aboard combat-capable guild houses, so it was mostly used in guild-vs-guild battles. Those had their own appeal, offering dramatic clashes with weapons you wouldn’t see in player-vs-player fights, but ultimately, the main content was always the players themselves fighting.

Also, only large or popular guilds could build strong guild houses. Since their appearance and capabilities didn’t vary as drastically as players’, the same faces ended up fighting over and over, and that lack of variety meant fewer players really got into it.

But those restrictions didn’t exist in this world. And in the open sea, where you didn’t have to worry about surrounding terrain, Celciutos could operate freely.

The one issue, however, was whether Celciutos could arrive before the monster horde did.

“This Celciutos you speak of… what exactly is it?”

“It’s a mobile base known as a guild house. This island we’re on is technically considered a guild house too. Though unlike here, Celciutos isn’t built for production.”

Shin explained what a guild house was to Armaiz. Once that was clear, a quick rundown of Celciutos’s capabilities made the dragon understand why Shin wanted to summon it.

From how attentively Armaiz listened, Shin got the impression he didn’t know much about player facilities or abilities, especially not about guild houses. That wasn’t too surprising, given that Armaiz had been implemented not long before the game became a death game. His limited knowledge could stem from that.

Or, like Yuzuha, maybe he simply wasn’t the type of monster to engage actively with people.

“You mentioned if it’ll make it in time, does it take a while to travel?”

“The thing is, we don’t actually know the precise coordinates of this place. So we don’t know how long it’ll take to get here. We’ll be arriving at the meeting facility soon, so I plan to ask then.”

The idea to call in Celciutos had occurred to him mid-conversation, so there hadn’t been time to check beforehand.

“Celciutos is pretty mobile when it’s running full throttle, so depending on the distance, it should make it in time.”

At full output, Celciutos could bring both speed and firepower to bear. While not in perfect condition, Shin estimated it was running at about 80% capacity. That should be more than enough to link up with Parda Island’s defensive systems and hold the line.

“I see. If it can make it in time, it’d be a powerful ally.”

“And since we’d be dealing with Hevin and Corpus, I can go all out without feeling guilty. Honestly, that makes it easier on me.”

Hevin and Corpus had no will of their own. They were driven purely by hatred for living things.

They did possess some combat intelligence—enough to prioritize threats and adapt to attacks—but it was all aimed at destroying enemies, not communication.

Only Nuva possessed a sense of self, but even that was twisted by hostility, allowing for efficient tactical decisions, nothing more. According to Shin’s event data, Nuva was responding to Armaiz because of their prior clash; it now saw Armaiz as a definite enemy that must be eliminated.

In a way, they were natural disasters. There was no need to hesitate in striking them down.

“Looks like we’ve arrived.”

The wagon came to a halt, and Armaiz glanced out the window, noting the end of the journey.

Shin hopped down and jogged to catch up with Yura and Shima, who were just starting to walk ahead. He called out to them.

“Excuse me. I plan to bring this up during the upcoming meeting too, but I’d like to summon our guild house. For that, I need this island’s coordinates. Could you provide them?”

He added that he wanted to act as quickly as possible.

Shima continued walking but gave Armaiz a glance—as he leaned on Shibaid’s shoulder—before responding.

“I’ll admit I’m surprised you’re part of a party that owns a guild house, but I won’t pry. If you want to call it here, I assume it’s for combat or evacuation?”

“Yes. I heard while we were traveling by wagon—there’s a high chance a massive horde of monsters is heading this way. Our guild house is geared for combat, so I believe it could be of great help in defending the island.”

But Shin explained that without knowing Parda Island’s exact coordinates, they couldn’t summon it yet.

“I hate to say this, but… is there any chance that information could be a trap?”

Yura voiced her concern. But Shin explained that Armaiz was an acquaintance of Yuzuha’s and that there had been a related incident they already knew about, so he hadn’t considered the possibility of a setup.

Shima, while her expression tightened slightly, didn’t refute Yura’s point. It showed that even she was at least somewhat concerned. After all, in this world, monsters were generally enemies by default.

“Personally, even if the monster horde story were a trap, I think calling the guild house is worth it. If they are plotting something, it’ll be a move they don’t expect. I’ll be using Mind Chat for communication, so interception is unlikely. And if it comes to a fight, we’ll have the upper hand. We could even keep the guild house hidden nearby and delay its arrival until the right moment.”

Shin told them, on the condition that the guild house arrive in time.

If Celciutos arrived, it should be able to sweep away not only the massive swarm of monsters Armaiz mentioned, but also any separate monster attacks that might occur.

“In that case, wouldn’t it be better to keep it hidden until the last possible moment?”

“Indeed. I haven’t heard the full story yet, but for now, we’re severely lacking in information. If the time comes, I’m hoping it’ll be our trump card. I’ll authorize the release of the coordinates.”

After carefully considering Shin’s proposal, Shima and Yura gave their approval.

Even if Shin’s information were to leak, Parda Island—being their home base—was mobile. The coordinates would only be useful for a short period.

Having received the coordinates, Shin stepped away from Shima and Yura to rejoin Schnee and the others.

“(I’ve got the coordinates. I’ll send word for it to head this way. I’ll be using Mind Chat to communicate, so I might get a bit distracted during the meeting. If that happens, could I count on you to cover for me?)”

“(In that case, let me handle the communication. You’re our representative, Shin. It’s better if you stay focused on the discussion.)”

“(…Good point. There’s no reason it has to be me making the call.)”

Shin had assumed he had to do it himself, but if it was just passing along instructions, there was no problem leaving it to Schnee.

Celciutos, after the relocation of the Fishmen and Merfolk, had been undergoing a full overhaul under the supervision of Raster, who managed the castle-type mobile guild house Rashugum. Since Raster was handling the work alone, the overhaul had taken quite a while, but after they dispatched puppet assistants to help, the time needed was drastically shortened. In fact, they’d only just received notice that the work was complete a few days ago.

“Looks like everyone’s here. Then, shall we hear what you have to say?”

When Shin and the others entered the spacious meeting room, the other representatives had already arrived. In addition to the department heads, their deputies, and representatives from transportation and other logistics divisions, there were far more people than Shin had expected. Given that the mining site experienced abnormal activity and a giant monster’s bones had been discovered, it was more than enough reason to gather this many key figures.

At the front of the room was a map that likely depicted the island and its surroundings. The representatives were seated facing the map, while Shin and his group took seats diagonally to the side.

“First, regarding the anomaly in the mining site. Since I witnessed it firsthand, I’ll provide the explanation.”

Shima stepped forward and began pointing to a part of the map while she explained. She spoke about the mine collapse, the discovery of a Divine Beast’s bones, and that Shin had recovered them.

Since explaining Armaiz would require revealing how the bones were transported, they also had to explain the item box system. Shin had already given his consent to that.

“The bones of a Divine Beast? I’m not doubting you, but are they the real thing?”

“They are, without a doubt. We detected Divine Mana. I’ve never seen the meter max out so fast.”

“We’ve only recovered the skull so far, but we believe the rest of the body is still buried.”

Vank, the head of the unexplored technology department, voiced skepticism, but Yura firmly stated that the instruments were functioning properly, and Shima emphasized that what they found was just a portion of the whole.

Hearing that, Vank’s expression grew grim.

“That much? Then worrying about whether this will affect future mining is the least of our concerns.”

Even this alone was enough to justify bringing all department heads together—but the main issue came after.

“We initially called everyone here to discuss the mine anomaly, but in truth, a much bigger problem is looming. Or rather, one that’s about to occur. I haven’t been fully briefed myself, so we’ll be learning about it together.”

“Does it have something to do with that dragon over there? There’s something strange about its presence.”

Bordo, head of the agriculture department, glanced toward Armaiz and asked the question.

So far, only Yuzuha and Kagerou had been introduced as Shin’s companions.

Summoners in this world could bring out summoned beasts, but normally they wouldn’t leave them out during such a meeting. Bordo had clearly realized Armaiz’s presence was not that of a summoned beast, and his slight tension may have come from sensing Armaiz’s power.

Prompted by Yura, Shin stepped forward to speak to the room.

“I’ll explain from here. As Ms. Shima mentioned earlier, the Divine Beast bones glowed during recovery. The glow faded quickly and didn’t cause any abnormalities, but once we returned to the surface and checked my item box, something strange had happened to an item I’d received from another Divine Beast.”

“Received from a Divine Beast…?”

Bordo and the others looked confused. It wasn’t something easily grasped, but Shin didn’t dwell on it and continued.

“After regrouping with Ms. Shima’s team, we moved to the isolation warehouse to analyze the skull. That’s where we confirmed the Divine Mana. Next, I manifested the item I’d been carrying, and the gemstone had transformed into an egg. And from that egg… hatched the dragon now before you.”

When Shin looked at Armaiz, everyone else’s gaze followed.

Nobody said a word. Likely because they hadn’t fully processed the information yet.

And then—