The ways Hyunsoo thought they could win.

First, use Kkoko to capture every messenger pigeon and hawk, blinding and deafening them.

Second, send Pretty, a cat specialized in reconnaissance, onto Akao’s ship and maintain continuous surveillance.

Third, seize the enemy fleet’s rear and attack before they can turn their prows and strike.

In truth, all of that was within the Story King’s range of prediction.

But there was one thing beyond what he had expected.

It was the Twin Dragon Sword Hyunsoo held out to him.

The moment he grasped it, the Story King felt a boiling, overflowing power.

And at the same time, he realized something.

...Remarkable.

This Twin Dragon Sword was far superior to the one he had once wielded.

And astonishingly, this too was within Hyunsoo’s expectations.

He had thought that sword would be better than the Twin Dragon Sword I wielded.

At one time, at least.

But somewhere along the way, the now even stronger Hyunsoo had come to realize that even if that old Twin Dragon Sword had been whole, it still would have been inferior to the one he had forged.

Of course, there were things even Hyunsoo had not expected.

The Hero’s Twin Dragon Sword?

A modifier.

It was because of Takashi that Hyunsoo had discovered the modifier called Longing.

And the power Longing had revealed was this:

(Longing)

Passive Skill

Effect:

·When the 10% chance activates, it deals a devastating blow to the enemy with 700% damage.

·When the 5% chance activates, it deals a devastating blow to the enemy with 1,100% damage.

·When the 2% chance activates, it deals consecutive devastating blows to the enemy with 1,100% damage.

Modifiers were not yet fully revealed.

But Hyunsoo had expected that when one settled into something, it would act as a certain kind of special power.

For example, as with Longing, it could manifest as a skill.

And when he placed the Twin Dragon Sword in the Story King’s hand, the modifier Hero was engraved into the Twin Dragon Sword.

What kind of power does the Hero modifier have?

But it was unfortunate.

Just as Longing had not revealed its power immediately, the modifier Hero was the same.

[The passive skill Hero is not confirmed.]

I saw it...

There was a reason Hyunsoo had handed the Twin Dragon Sword to the Story King.

Though he did not show it, the Story King’s body had been trembling ever so slightly.

More than his blood boiling from battle after so long, he had been afraid because he had become weaker.

But—

“...Power surges through me as if I’ve regained my strength from the past. Thank you. And it is an honor to fight alongside you.”

BWOOOOOOOOOO—!

The Story King looked at the 950 ships appearing across the horizon and rested the Twin Dragon Sword on his shoulder.

Only then, seeing that confident figure, did Hyunsoo look back at the things he had made.

The first Legendary structure, and also an attack ship—the Turtle Ship.

And our hero, Yi Sun-sin, and even the Twin Dragon Sword he had placed in his hand.

Just how far can this go?

Hyunsoo became curious.

How many enemy ships could these powers destroy?

WHOOOOOOOSH—!

The Turtle Ship unfurled its anchor and charged toward the enemy ships that had crossed the Goyad Strait.

And then—

KWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKABOOOM—!

[957 ships fire Dragonfire Cannons.]

[Warning.]

[Warning.]

[Danger.]

“...?”

Hyunsoo panicked.

No matter what, there’s no way all 950 ships fire their cannons at the same time, is there!?

A cold sweat ran down Hyunsoo’s back.

*****

Akao.

He had been born to pirate parents.

So he was a man who had lived with the sea from childhood, to the point that before subduing him, the emperor of the Parion Empire had personally come to seek him out.

Because he had wanted him.

But Akao had refused, and the empire had carried out retaliation.

It had been the event that scattered the hundreds of thousands of pirates who had once followed him in a single blow.

And besides—

A fleet crewed by a rabble...

The Parion Empire was inexperienced at sea.

That was the clear reason it had tried to recruit Akao.

It had ships, but no efficiency.

It had sailors, but they knew little of the sea.

The men riding them now were exactly like that.

They were not sailors, merely soldiers and knights who had boarded ships.

But Akao had led countless naval battles to victory, and he also knew that the nation called Goyad was nothing more than a land of swords, so he had not worried.

No—he had not.

“......”

Akao, who had stretched out his arm and was waiting for the Black Hawks, froze in confusion.

Black Hawks.

A special species.

The Black Hawks, numbering around fifty, were like beasts raised by the Parion Empire.

They flew 50% faster than ordinary hawks, and on top of that, they hunted down and devoured enemy messenger pigeons and hawks.

Every single one of them was Unique-grade, and together they formed the group called the Eyes of the Black Hawk.

And yet, now—

WHOOOSH, WHOOOOSH, WHOOOOOSH—!

SKREEEEEEEE—!

“...!”

Akao looked up at the sky in alarm.

A single unidentified bird wreathed in flames was snatching up the Black Hawks, vanishing and reappearing again and again.

And it was so fast it could not be tracked with the eye.

“Shoot it!”

No matter how many arrows the Parion Empire’s famed archers loosed, they could not hit it.

And also—

“......”

Akao’s eyes shook at what had happened in a mere thirty seconds.

“...All sixty or so Eyes of the Black Hawk were captured?”

He felt that something was going very wrong.

He recalled the contents of the last messenger pigeon report he had received.

—None of Atlas’s ships have departed.

It had been information exposed by a spy.

He remained on guard, and at last crossed the Goyad Strait.

“Be careful. Every ship has effectively lost its means of hearing and moving in response to my orders. The moment one falls behind, it’s over. Increase speed and sound the horns!”

BWOOOOOOOOOOOO—!

BWOOOOOO—!!!!

The many blasts of war horns guided the ships like beacons.

As Akao charged at the front, a strange light entered his eyes.

Once they crossed the Goyad Strait, the fog-covered Asgan Continent began to come into view.

And then—

FWOOOHAHAHAHAHAHAK—!

“...!!!”

A single ship burst through the fog, accelerated at a mad speed, and charged straight at them.

At its absurd speed, and the bizarre shape of the vessel, Akao’s expression turned strange.

It had a turtle shell, and at the front was a dragon’s head.

And on top of that, its endless rowing looked twice as fast as the ship Akao was riding.

At that moment—

“Concentrated bombardment.”

THUNK—! THUNK—! THUNK—!

As the flagship beat its drum, every ship reacted.

It was the signal.

This was the perfect chance to show why 950 ships were terrifying.

At the same time—

KWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAK—!

All at once, 950 cannonballs devoured the sky.

There was a reason Akao had ordered the reckless firing of 950 shells.

The Black Hawks had suddenly been subdued by a burning bird.

There was the ship with its unheard-of, bizarre appearance.

And there was also its speed as a fast strike vessel.

Because he was a man who knew how to be cautious.

And also because he intended to smash that thing—presumed to be Goyad’s secret weapon—in one blow and dramatically raise his own forces’ morale.

At last, the cannonballs arced through the air and slammed into the ship like madness.

KABOOOOOOOOOM—!

Towers of water erupted loudly, and the endless sound of ship and shell striking together rang out.

Looking there through a telescope—an artifact made by mages—Akao thought it truly idiotic.

They’re really charging in straight with a single ship?

If it were him, he would have used the sea and attacked from behind, from the side.

But then Akao nearly stopped breathing.

“...?”

Beyond the rising columns of water—

FWOOOHAHAHAHAK—!

He saw it cutting through them, a ship with not even the slightest sign of damage.

“...!?”

Akao could not believe it.

His eyes carefully scanned every part of the ship.

Truly, not so much as a tiny scratch had formed on it.

And the truth of it—

It was something that had happened because of one blacksmith’s effect when the Turtle Ship had been made.

[Blacksmith’s Conviction activates.]

[That conviction settles into the ship and, on a single occasion only, protects the ship from all attacks.]

It was the notification that had rung out back then.

Whether it was a ship or a structure, one must not think personal power alone was what mattered.

The powers of the many who created it all took effect.

And because of that effect, this happened:

[Blacksmith’s Conviction does not break.]

[No damage is taken.]

Akao had just used the cannon mounted at the front of the ship.

And the thing about cannons was that once fired, they required time to reload.

And aboard the ship, Hyunsoo had finally found yet another reason the Story King had taken him along.

This ship had been made by Hyunsoo’s own hands.

And the one who understood it best and could use it best was Hyunsoo.

First—

KABOOOOOOOOOM—!

[Turtle Ship Acceleration]

[The Turtle Ship’s movement speed increases by 360%, and its Physical Defense increases by 100% while its Magic Defense increases by 150% temporarily.]

The Turtle Ship, having passed through the barrage of cannon fire, cleaved through the sea at an absurd speed.

Ships that had spare cannons ready bombarded it like mad, but it broke through them and kept going.

And at last, one cannonball finally struck the advancing Turtle Ship.

“Uraaaaaah!”

Captain Geran, the captain of the ship that had landed the hit, cheered. He had realized that on the first volley, that ship’s special power had guaranteed its protection.

And second—

The Dragonfire Cannon, currently the deadliest weapon in all of Ares for capturing the ship Hyun was building, had fired and landed a direct hit.

Dragonfire Cannon was the name given because it meant a dragon breathing fire.

And true to that name, it was the pride of the Parion Empire, and if even a single shell landed well, most enemy ships would sink in a single blow.

The mages had evaluated it this way:

A cannon with twice the power of Explosion cast by high-ranking mages.

KABOOOOOOOM—!

Captain Geran, who had cheered at the sight of the Turtle Ship taking a direct hit, froze in confusion.

[The Turtle Ship’s durability decreases by 0.4%.]

“...?”

Because it was as if someone had merely scratched the ship, leaving behind only a tiny speck-like mark.

And also, it was true that the countless captains, soldiers, and knights aboard the enemy ships had been snickering at the Turtle Ship’s ridiculous appearance.

“That’s supposed to be a ship? Puhaha, even I could make something better than that.”

“A turtle? Why would anyone shape a ship after a slow, stupid turtle?”

“The way it rows is laughable. It looks just like a turtle swimming.”

“They made that thing and called it a ship? Looks like the Asgan Continent is full of idiots.”

The ones who had said that all went silent.

Before they knew it, the ship changed direction in an instant.

Ships do not turn easily.

And yet it turned so smoothly it was absurd.

Then it swung around.

And it came in from the left.

Captain Geran gave chase.

He was one of the more capable captains.

In fact, even Akao had acknowledged him as one of the few and had once considered offering him the position of vice-captain.

And every ship also carried a Super Dragonfire Cannon.

The Super Dragonfire Cannon was a cannon that delivered five times the power of a normal Dragonfire Cannon, and each ship carried exactly one shot.

Because every ship carried a Super Dragonfire Cannon, they had judged that if they surrounded it and fired together, they could easily bring it down.

And this turtle-shaped ship was stupid.

“It’s coming right into the middle?”

The ship that had turned to the left now charged straight in, trying to plunge between hundreds of enemy vessels.

Sneering, Geran thought that once it collided with the other ships, that vessel would be the first to lose in raw force.

But soon, that ship literally stabbed into their sides with its dragon’s head, smashing them apart as it raced onward.

FWOOOAAAAAAK—!

RUMBLE—!

KWAKWAKWAKWAKWAQ—!

[You have sunk Parion Empire Ship No. 341.]

[You have sunk Parion Empire Ship No. 513.]

[You have sunk Parion Empire Ship No. 215.]

Captain Geran.

“Leave it. Let it go inside!”

He decided to acknowledge this ship called the Turtle Ship.

So he deliberately allowed it to enter the center.

Because the moment it entered, every ship would fire its Super Dragonfire Cannon at once.

And at last, the Turtle Ship entered the very middle and was surrounded.

“Fire!”

The 89 ships encircling the Turtle Ship simultaneously unleashed the flames of their Super Dragonfire Cannons.

At that moment—

BOOOOOM—!

Eighty-nine shells flew in at point-blank range toward the Turtle Ship.

And the White Flame Cannon, which had appeared to be a cannon meant to attack the enemy, revealed its true form.

The White Flame Cannon was not a cannon that attacked the enemy.

The mounted White Flame Cannon detonated a burst of white light.

[White Flame Cannon]

[It is a one-time perk imbued in the Turtle Ship.]

[It reflects all incoming attacks.]

KWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKABOOOM—!

The 89 Super Dragonfire shells rebounding from the Turtle Ship sank exactly 89 enemy ships.