William acted immediately.
"Joseph. Anastasia. Help the crew stabilize the ship!"
His voice cut through the chaos with absolute authority.
The two didn't hesitate.
Joseph immediately moved toward the panicking sailors while Anastasia climbed onto the highest point of the vessel, her sharp eyes scanning the rapidly rotating waters around them.
"Lucinda. Isolde. With me."
The moment the words left his mouth, all three moved.
Lucinda stepped onto the ocean first.
Frost exploded beneath her feet.
A pathway of ice rapidly spread across the raging waters, allowing her to move across the sea itself.
Meanwhile, William and Isolde rose into the air.
Wind mana gathered around them, carrying their bodies above the whirlpool as they observed the phenomenon from above.
The scene was horrifying.
The whirlpool stretched for hundreds of meters.
Perhaps even more.
William's eyes narrowed as he observed the ocean from above.
The answer revealed itself almost immediately.
The whirlpool wasn't natural.
It wasn't even being maintained through mana.
Something massive was physically creating it.
Far beneath the water, a colossal shadow moved through the depths.
Circling.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Every rotation dragged millions of tons of water alongside it, forcing the ocean itself into motion.
The Leviathan wasn't sitting at the center.
It was becoming the whirlpool.
"Found it."
Lucinda glanced upward.
"What is it?"
William pointed toward the outer currents.
"The Leviathan is rotating around the entire area."
The others froze.
"What?" Isolde asked.
"It's moving in circles beneath us."
William's eyes remained fixed on the water.
"Every rotation increases the speed of the current."
"Destroying the center won't accomplish anything."
"The whirlpool exists because the Leviathan is physically creating it."
Lucinda's expression hardened.
"Then what do we do?"
William immediately began calculating.
The ocean stretched endlessly around them.
A direct confrontation underwater would be suicidal.
Especially against a creature large enough to move an entire section of sea.
Then—
he noticed something.
Every time the current completed a full cycle, a single section of water lagged behind the rest.
Tiny.
Barely noticeable.
But it existed.
A flaw.
Not in the whirlpool.
In the Leviathan's movement itself.
William's eyes sharpened.
"There."
Isolde followed his gaze.
After a few seconds—
her eyes widened.
"The current isn't synchronizing."
"Exactly."
William pointed toward the location.
"The Leviathan can't maintain maximum speed during that turn."
Lucinda immediately understood.
"If we strike that point..."
"We disrupt its rotation."
William nodded.
"And if the rotation stops—"
"The whirlpool collapses."
The prince immediately took command.
"Lucinda."
Ice exploded beneath her feet.
"Already moving."
She shot across the raging ocean.
The sea fought back immediately.
Massive waves crashed toward her.
Yet every step she took froze the water beneath her.
A trail of ice spread across the ocean like a spear aimed directly toward the weak point.
Above her, Isolde raised her staff.
Dozens of magic circles appeared.
One spell after another descended onto the target area.
The ocean immediately reacted.
The whirlpool faltered.
Only slightly.
But it was enough.
William moved.
Wind exploded around his body.
The prince became a blur.
The distance vanished instantly.
His blade gathered compressed wind mana as he arrived above the targeted section.
The ocean below erupted.
The shadow beneath the water was approaching.
Fast.
Very fast.
William's eyes remained calm.
Then—
he swung.
BOOOOM!
The compressed wind exploded into the sea.
The strike didn't target the Leviathan.
It targeted the current itself.
A shockwave ripped through the rotating waters.
Lucinda's ice instantly expanded.
Isolde's spells activated simultaneously.
The weak point shattered.
For the first time—
the Leviathan's rotation broke.
The effect was immediate.
The whirlpool stumbled.
Like a massive machine suddenly losing a crucial gear.
The currents became unstable.
The perfect circular flow collapsed.
One section stopped.
Then another.
Then another.
The entire whirlpool began unraveling.
Thousands of tons of water crashed into one another as the rotation died.
Joseph gripped the railing aboard the ship.
"It worked!"
Anastasia released a relieved breath.
The pull dragging the vessel inward rapidly weakened.
Meanwhile, far below—
the shadow stopped moving.
The ocean became strangely calm.
William slowly lowered his sword.
His expression, however, remained serious.
Because the battle hadn't been won.
The whirlpool had merely been broken.
And somewhere beneath them—
the Leviathan had finally stopped hiding.
...
Soon—
the entire ocean turned purple.
An unnatural color.
A color that did not belong to any sea.
The waters glowed from beneath as if something deep below had awakened. Violet light spread through the currents, illuminating the whirlpool from within.
William's eyes widened.
So did everyone else's.
"What the hell...?"
The answer came a second later.
The ocean beneath them bulged.
Not upward.
Outward.
As though something was forcing its way through reality itself.
Then—
Lucinda's pupils contracted.
A colossal beam of violet energy erupted from beneath the ship.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The sea exploded.
Water was vaporized instantly as the beam shot upward directly toward the vessel.
Too fast.
Far too fast.
William's face paled.
They weren't going to evade it.
Not in time.
Then—
Lucinda moved.
Frost erupted from her body.
Not a spell.
Not an attack.
Everything.
Every ounce of mana she possessed.
The ocean around her froze instantly.
Kilometers of seawater crystallized into ice as countless magic circles appeared around her.
Her silver-blue eyes glowed.
The temperature plummeted.
"GLACIER!"
The entire sea beneath the vessel froze.
A mountain of ice rose from the ocean itself.
Layer after layer.
Wall after wall.
Barrier upon barrier.
Lucinda poured everything she had into a single defensive spell.
The beam struck.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The first wall shattered instantly.
The second lasted less than a second.
The third exploded into countless fragments.
The fourth—
The fifth—
The sixth—
One after another they collapsed.
The impact alone sent shockwaves across the ocean.
Blood trickled from Lucinda's lips.
Her body trembled violently.
Yet she refused to stop.
More ice formed.
More barriers appeared.
Her mana was being consumed at a horrifying rate.
William's eyes widened.
"Lucinda!"
She ignored him.
The beam continued advancing.
Destroying everything in its path.
Yet—
it was slowing.
Only slightly.
But it was slowing.
The ship shook violently.
Wood cracked.
Metal screamed.
Yet the vessel remained intact.
For now.
Lucinda's breathing became ragged.
Blood dripped from her nose.
Her vision blurred.
Still—
she continued.
The beam finally pierced through the last barrier.
But by then—
its power had fallen dramatically.
William moved instantly.
Wind mana exploded around him.
"ISOLDE!"
"I know!"
Magic circles appeared around Isolde.
Dozens.
Then hundreds.
Layers of defensive magic formed around the vessel.
Joseph reinforced them.
Anastasia fired mana-infused arrows directly into the weakened beam.
The combined force of all five prodigies collided with the remaining energy.
BOOOOOOM!
The ocean erupted.
The ship was thrown backwards.
The mast shattered.
The deck cracked.
Several sections of the vessel were ripped apart.
But—
it survived.
Silence followed.
Lucinda dropped to one knee atop the frozen ocean.
Her chest rose and fell heavily.
Blood stained the corner of her lips.
The ice around her slowly cracked apart.
For the first time since the mission began—
the Imperial Prodigies looked genuinely shaken.
Because all five of them understood the same thing.
That attack...
Wasn't even close to A rank it was easily at S rank..
...
Soon enough, the five regrouped on the damaged vessel.
The deck was cracked.
Several sections of the ship had been completely destroyed.
The sailors looked pale, many still trembling from the attack they had barely survived.
Isolde immediately rushed toward Lucinda.
Several healing circles appeared beneath her feet.
Soft green light enveloped Lucinda's body as the wounds caused by mana exhaustion slowly began to recover.
Meanwhile, William stared toward the ocean.
His expression had darkened considerably.
"That thing is clearly not an A-Rank Voidborn."
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
"It should be at least S-Rank."
Lucinda nodded silently.
Nobody argued.
After witnessing that attack, there wasn't much left to debate.
The five prodigies gathered together, discussing their options.
"We still have a chance if—"
Lucinda began speaking.
"You're not doing anything."
The words cut through the conversation.
Everyone turned.
Rio stood near the railing, his expression completely indifferent.
William frowned.
"What?"
"You heard me."
I met his gaze.
"Stand down."
The prince's eyes sharpened immediately.
"You want us to stand down?"
He took a step forward.
The pressure around him noticeably increased.
I remained unfazed.
"As in retreat."
"The information provided to us was incorrect."
"Our mission was the eradication of an A-Rank Voidborn."
I pointed toward the ocean.
"That thing is clearly beyond that."
"I'm calling it in."
"The mission is over."
"Your objective now is to protect the crew and return alive."
The atmosphere instantly became heavy.
William clenched his fists.
"What if it leaves?"
His voice grew colder.
"What happens if it attacks another vessel while we're retreating?"
"What happens if it reaches the coast?"
His gaze remained fixed on mine.
"We would have a loose S-Rank Leviathan roaming the Ocean of Noctara."
The others seemed to share the same thoughts.
Even Lucinda didn't immediately disagree.
Joseph folded his arms.
"He's right."
"We can still fight."
Anastasia nodded.
"At least try."
I stared at them for several seconds.
Then sighed.
"Absolutely pathetic."
The deck became silent.
William's eyes narrowed.
"What did you just say?"
I looked directly at him.
"You're the prince of this nation, aren't you?"
"Then start acting like one."
The temperature around him seemed to drop.
Yet I continued.
"Glance around you."
William frowned.
I pointed toward the sailors.
Toward the crew desperately trying to repair the damaged ship.
Toward the men and women who were trying to hide the fear in their eyes.
"Look at them."
Nobody spoke.
"The five of you might survive."
"You might even kill that creature."
"Maybe."
My voice remained calm.
"But let me ask you this, Prince."
I took a step forward.
"Can you guarantee every single one of them survives?"
William froze.
The crew members lowered their heads.
Silence filled the deck.
"You can't."
I didn't wait for an answer.
"Because nobody can."
"The moment that thing fired its first attack, this stopped being a student mission."
My gaze swept across the five prodigies.
"You are all strong."
"Talented."
"Geniuses."
"But you're thinking like idiots."
"Not leaders."
The ocean roared in the distance.
Yet nobody interrupted.
"A leader's responsibility isn't proving how brave he is."
"It's bringing his people home."
William's fists slowly tightened.
His jaw clenched.
Because he knew exactly what I was saying.
And because somewhere deep down—
he knew I was right.