Troy raced upward along one of the Kraken's massive tentacles, his boots sinking slightly into the thick, slimy flesh that pulsed like a living artery beneath him. The surface was revolting—cold, wet, and covered in a viscous mucus that squelched with every frantic step. The stench of brine mixed with something rotten and metallic filled his nostrils, but he pushed forward without hesitation, his muscles burning from the effort.
As he climbed at breakneck speed, a deep, resonant chant rose from his throat, the words vibrating through the air like a sacred command:
"Embrace the pain, embrace the sorrow, embrace the misery and gather the tears of your defeats… for today, victory claims its place above despair."
The enormous golden ethereal arm that had been wrapped protectively around his body suddenly shattered into thousands of glittering particles. They swirled like a storm of starlight before reorganizing into multiple luminous angelic figures. Each angel was tall and radiant, clad in flowing robes of pure light, and every one gripped a gleaming sword that hummed with divine energy. They flanked Troy on both sides, floating gracefully beside him like celestial guardians summoned from a higher plane.
With a powerful double jump, Troy launched himself off the tentacle and landed on a small golden platform that one of the angels created instantly beneath his feet. The platform shimmered with holy energy, steadying him in mid-air. From this vantage point, the beings of light moved with surgical precision. Their swords flashed in perfect arcs—clean, fierce, and merciless. Several of the Kraken's enormous tentacles were severed in a single coordinated strike. The massive appendages plummeted into the churning sea below, hitting the water with deafening booms that sent towering waves crashing in every direction. Black water and thick, dark blood sprayed across the deck and the surrounding ocean, painting the night in grotesque shades of crimson and shadow.
Then, something even more awe-inspiring happened. All the angelic figures began to merge, their forms blending together in a brilliant cascade of golden light. They coalesced into a single colossal entity: a towering angel of pure golden radiance that dwarfed everything around it. In its massive hands, it wielded an immense ethereal sword, its blade etched with intricate, glowing runes in an ancient and unknown language that seemed to pulse with forgotten power.
At the exact same moment, a smaller, perfectly balanced version of that very sword materialized in Troy's grip. The weapon felt warm and alive in his hands, humming with righteous energy.
"White Lotus Slash!" Troy roared, his voice booming with divine determination that cut through the howling wind.
A blinding explosion of golden light erupted from the blade, illuminating the entire night sky as if a second sun had been born. The raging storm clouds above were instantly torn apart and dissolved. The light was so intense that it burned away the darkness, revealing the turbulent sea in stark clarity.
With a single, devastating swing, the colossal Kraken was cleaved cleanly in two. The creature's enormous body split down the middle with a sickening, wet tearing sound that echoed across the waves. Both colossal halves drifted apart, floating lifelessly on the now-calming waters, their severed ends still twitching faintly as the last traces of unnatural life faded away.
Exhausted from the immense effort, Troy began to fall toward the ship's battered deck. His body felt heavy, drained of nearly all its strength. Just before he could crash painfully onto the splintered wood, one of the ethereal angels swooped down and caught him gently in its strong, luminous arms. The being looked down at him with a serene, joyful smile that radiated warmth and peace.
From the deck below, Joshua stared at the entire scene with his mouth hanging open, eyes wide in disbelief. His mind struggled to process the impossible display of power he had just witnessed. The raw beauty and sheer magnitude of it left him speechless for several long seconds.
"That was… absolutely incredible," he finally muttered, his voice barely above a whisper, still struggling to catch his breath. "What am I saying—incredible… it was extraordinarily beautiful."
"Yes, it always is," Mikaela replied softly, a faint smile touching her lips. Yet her sharp green eyes still scanned the surroundings with lingering caution, as if she knew danger could return at any moment.
"Blessed be Prismak," whispered Captain Barrow, his voice thick with reverence. The seasoned sailor dropped to his knees on the destroyed deck, bowing his head in deep respect.
Both Barrow and Mikaela raised the fingers of their right hands to their chests in a solemn gesture and spoke in perfect unison:
"And praised be His name."
With a crisp snap of her fingers, Mikaela dismissed the golden protective dome that had shielded them throughout the battle. It dissolved in a gentle, sparkling flash, leaving only the cool night air behind.
Joshua pushed himself to his feet with visible difficulty, his legs still shaking from the adrenaline and fear. In contrast, Mikaela rose with her usual graceful elegance, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face. For a brief instant, Joshua lifted his gaze toward the ethereal angel that still hovered nearby… and their eyes met.
The celestial being's expression was not one of kindness. It was pure, unfiltered hatred.
"What? Why is it looking at me like that?"
Joshua thought, a wave of unease washing over him. His heart pounded harder. "Does it know I'm not the original Jeremy? Can it somehow see my soul from another world?"
Suddenly, every single angel turned its glowing eyes toward him.
Four of them spread their magnificent luminous wings and dove straight down toward Joshua with terrifying speed.
"Oh no!" he screamed inside his mind, panic surging through him.
He slammed his eyes shut, bracing his body for the inevitable impact, every muscle tense.
When he finally dared to open them again, he realized the angels weren't attacking him. Instead, one of them was holding a hooded figure suspended in the air. The intruder wore dark, ornate garments adorned with unfamiliar symbols. A thick, black aura seeped from his body like living smoke, twisting and writhing in the air around him.
The angel raised its ethereal sword high, ready to deliver a fatal strike and execute the intruder on the spot.
"Wait," Troy commanded sharply as he forced himself up from the deck. His breathing was still ragged, but his voice carried firm authority. "Don't kill him yet. We need to get information out of this scoundrel first."
Troy walked forward with determined steps, his boots crunching over broken wood and debris. He cracked his neck with a loud pop, then pointed directly at the captive and asked in a cold, menacing tone:
"Who sent you? And why did you attack us?"
The hooded man only responded with a dark, twisted smile. He began murmuring rapidly in a guttural, unknown language. His entire body started convulsing violently, as if something inside him was fighting to break free.
The only words the group managed to catch before the end were his final, desperate cry:
"Shumak kaisek!"
A deafening BOOM! followed. The man's head exploded violently into a thousand gruesome pieces. Shards of bone and thick black blood sprayed across the deck, splattering everyone nearby.
"Darn it!" Troy growled in frustration, wiping blood from his cheek.
He let out a long, tired sigh and accepted the decapitated body as the angel lowered it into his arms. With a simple gesture of his hand, Troy activated his ability:
"Divine Gaze."
His eyes instantly shifted from their usual intense blue to a brilliant, glowing gold. He began a thorough inspection of the corpse.
When he peeled off one of the dark gloves, he revealed a sinister black tattoo on the man's left hand: the clear silhouette of a head crowned with seven horns and piercing red eyes.
"Blast… it's a member of the Red Devils Sect," Troy muttered darkly.
"What in the world is a Red Devils shadowless!?" Captain Barrow exclaimed in alarm, stumbling backward a step. His face had gone pale. "Get rid of that corpse immediately before its darkness curses us and brings even more harm than it already has!"
Troy sighed wearily, rubbing the back of his neck.
"I know, I know. I'll dispose of it as soon as I finish checking the body."
He continued his careful examination until he noticed something disturbing: thin, shiny black threads extending from the tips of the dead man's fingers. These eerie threads stretched outward like puppet strings, still connected to the scattered remains of every monster they had fought—the fish-men, the viscous eggs, and even the massive severed chunks of the Kraken floating nearby.
"So you were a puppeteer…" Troy murmured, his voice heavy with grim understanding.
He kept searching through the man's belongings and eventually pulled out a crumpled photograph. As he studied it for several seconds, his expression grew noticeably harder, jaw tightening with anger.
"Now it all makes sense," he said in a low, grave tone.
"What? What do you mean?" Mikaela asked, stepping closer with concern etched on her face.
Without a word, Troy handed her the photograph.
"By Prismak!" she gasped, her green eyes widening in shock.
The image showed Jeremy smiling brightly and happily on his graduation day from Brighton Academy. Someone had viciously circled his face with a thick, aggressive black mark.
"What…?" Joshua whispered, utterly confused. A cold shiver ran down his spine as dread settled in his chest.
Mikaela lifted her gaze to meet his, her expression deadly serious.
"Those bastards are after your head, Mr. Jeremy."