Chapter 55

# Chapter 55: <Thinking>

Tunka, whose eyes had lost their luster, was holding a club of unknown origin. The club sliced through the air, making a menacing sound.

“Is it you?”

Tunka licked his lips and approached the humpback whale. Even at 2 meters tall, Tunka looked very small in front of the whale.

“Hehe, fighting a whale is a first for me.”

As expected, Tunka seemed unaware that the whale was a merperson. He just wanted to fight because it looked strong. His mind was filled with nothing but battle and power.

Thus, the humpback whale looked at Tunka with a derisive gaze.

And Kale watched this while crouching.

-What are you doing?

The black dragon’s voice, full of questions, echoed in Kale’s mind, but Kale had stepped back a bit and remained crouched.

They say that in a whale fight, the shrimp’s back gets broken. Kale, who was weaker than a shrimp, didn’t want his back to break.

“Can I just beat this whale to death?”

Tunka’s eyes sparkled. Then he lightly kicked the ground, and his body shot up into the sky.

“Wow.”

Kale, impressed, stepped back even further.

Suddenly, Tunka’s club in mid-air swung toward the humpback whale’s head. At that moment, Kale saw the whale smirk for the first time. One corner of the whale’s mouth lifted slightly, and then the whale moved.

The massive body, over 15 meters long, spun quickly, and its huge tail struck Tunka. But Tunka changed direction in mid-air and landed on the ground.

Kwaang!

The spot where Tunka had jumped from was shattered by the whale’s tail.

Swoosh—

The aftermath created waves that washed over the shore, drenching Kale.

‘Damn it.’

He wasn’t just wet like a drowned rat. However, Kale tightly closed his mouth. The shattered rocks were too impactful. And Tunka was insane.

“Hahaha! This is great, great! Come on, attack more!”

He went wild, urging the whale to attack. Tunka ran at the whale’s tail at an incredible speed and swung his club. The whale didn’t dodge; instead, it lifted its tail and swung it at Tunka.

Kwaang!

The sound wasn’t what you’d expect from a tail hitting a human. Thud. With a loud noise, Tunka fell back to the ground. The club shattered like dust.

“Of course, a club like this isn’t the way to go! You need to fight with your fists! Hahaha!”

Kale, watching Tunka’s crazy appearance, thought to himself.

‘If this keeps up, people will come.’

He suspected that people had already noticed. Kale thought about what to do. How could he quietly slip away? It wasn’t his concern whether they fought or not.

Kale wiped the dust off himself and slowly retreated from the battle area.

That’s when it happened.

“Sister! If you keep this up, you’ll hurt that person!”

The small whale finally arrived.

Tunka hesitated.

“...Is this tiny whale talking?”

At those words, the humpback whale’s face contorted, and it glared at Tunka. A beautiful voice flowed out.

“Are you saying my brother is as small as a mouse?”

Tunka, more surprised, shouted.

“Can this thing talk too?”

It was a complete mess. Kale could see Tunka’s shoulders trembling.

“Oh, a merperson, a merperson! This is going to be fun, isn’t it?”

Tunka didn’t laugh out loud now, but his raised corners of his mouth showed his excitement had reached its peak.

At that moment, Kale noticed the humpback whale giving him a sidelong glance. He could also see its eyes slightly shaking.

Crouching, covered in seawater and dust, Kale looked up at the humpback whale, the merperson Witra.

She, as a protector of the sea who defends weaker beings, was moved.

Between her and Kale, the transformed Paseton intervened.

“I’m alive, Sister.”

“Paseton.”

The humpback whale’s face contorted. Moisture began to gather in its eyes.

At that moment, Paseton, who had quickly transformed into a human, approached Kale. Witra could see the torn pants and the scars on her brother’s calf. Anger swirled in her eyes.

Then, Tunka slowly walked over.

“Is it okay to hesitate like this over some useless guy? Let’s fight already. It’s more fun that way.”

Kale and Tunka’s eyes met. A sneer appeared at the corner of Tunka’s mouth.

“This kid just goes around saving anyone, doesn’t he.”

Tsk. Kale clicked his tongue at the word ‘kid.’ It seemed he had completely thrown away the ridiculous mask of ‘Bap.’ This was the real Tunka. He was the type who would just insult anyone, whether they were a noble or strong.

This appearance was more familiar to Kale. It felt like a character from a book had come to life. Of course, that didn’t mean Kale would just let it go.

‘He’ll regret it bitterly after I sell the magic tower. Maybe then he’ll come to his senses.’

Knowing the future that would unfold, or rather, the future he would create, Kale remained calm.

The fake name ‘Bap.’ What a fitting name. It was enough to make Kale’s slap on the back of his head feel justified.

However, the angry voice of the black dragon echoed in Kale’s mind.

-Saving and protecting lives is a great deed! It’s a fulfilling and honorable thing. And cursing is bad. How can there be such a guy like Beinion!

...How did this black dragon, who only knew about dragons, end up like this? Kale pondered the reason why the black dragon had changed from the usual dragon nature. Then he subtly moved his body behind Witra.

He was a bit scared that Tunka might kill him out of annoyance or for being weak.

“...Don’t belittle righteous actions and good intentions.”

But it seemed Witra was also angry. Kale took a slight step back from her. Witra calmly said to him.

“Thank you. I’ll properly thank you later.”

But her eyes were burning with anger. The woman who had stood at the forefront in battles with the merfolk was never one to avoid a fight.

“Oh, you have a good look in your eyes? It seems you’re ready for a fight now.”

Tunka taunted, licking his lips. He straightened his arms and slightly leaned forward, ready for battle. This was Tunka’s fighting stance.

A smile appeared on Witra’s lips.

“Am I going to fight someone like you?”

The smile was a sneer, and a radiant light seemed to brighten the surroundings. Kale found the light menacing.

Witra extended her right hand. Swoosh. A stream of water shot up from her palm. A massive water whip was now in her grasp. She swung the whip toward the sea.

The enormous whip, several meters long, cut through the sea. The water surface rippled again, and Witra looked at Tunka with a cold gaze.

“Foolish. It’s not a fight.”

Click, click. She wagged her left finger at Tunka and said,

“It’s a lesson.”

“Teach this body? Hahaha!”

Tunka burst into a loud laugh, then looked at Witra with a cold, expressionless face.

“I’ll have to tear that mouth of yours.”

And he charged at Witra. At that moment, Witra swung her left hand toward Kale. A water barrier enveloped Kale and Paseton, protecting them.

Swoosh! Simultaneously, the water whip in her right hand struck the charging Tunka fiercely.

Bang! The fist and the whip collided. Witra smiled.

“It’s going to be a good lesson.”

“Grr, what a joke!”

Witra’s whip, like a snake, coiled around Tunka’s body and lifted him into the air. Tunka grinned and grabbed the whip. The water whip was now in his grip.

“Hahaha, strength is my specialty!”

Tunka used his strength to break free from the whip that had coiled around him like a snake. Witra’s eyebrows twitched. But Tunka was no match for the next humpback whale prince.

Witra lightly moved her right hand, and the whip struck Tunka’s body hard and fast. Tunka was sent flying back toward the forest.

That’s when it happened.

“...What’s going on here?”

Amir Ubar and the investigation team, along with the knights, appeared from the forest. Tunka was flying in their direction. Witra’s eyes widened. She urgently extended a water stream with her left hand, but Tunka’s speed was faster.

“Everyone, raise your shields!”

Amir, realizing it would be hard to avoid Tunka, immediately ordered the knights, who quickly raised their shields. Tunka shouted,

“Block it well! My body is tough! You might get hurt. Hahaha!”

The knights, in leather armor, clearly had a high chance of getting hurt. Paseton, the half-merperson, heard a sigh.

“Sigh, this is insane.”

A strange voice filled with both annoyance and ease. As Paseton turned his head toward the voice, his eyes widened.

Bang!

The shield and Tunka collided. But Tunka didn’t hit anyone. No one was hurt. Tunka turned around. A sacred-looking silver shield had touched his back. And a pair of wings had gently enveloped his body.

“...What is this?”

The shield gradually faded and disappeared. Tunka’s gaze quickly turned to one side. The water stream Witra had extended to create a barrier disappeared halfway. She turned around with a surprised look.

The fading silver shield and the man connected to it. Kale, with his head bowed, sighed.

“Sigh.”

Kale, pushing his wet red hair aside, looked lethargic. But his face was crumpled with annoyance.

It wasn’t that the shrimp’s back would break in a whale fight; it was that the shrimp would use its strength in a whale fight.