Chapter 38: Hellscape Island (3)
The comrades who had been laughing and chatting at the banquet hall were now surrounded by swarming skeletons on the deck.
The neatly arranged tableware, once placed alongside delicacies, had transformed into weapons strewn carelessly across the floor.
To the students, it felt like only a moment had passed, as if they’d blinked once.
Some still believed this was a dream.
Of course, I, Jack, and a few others grabbed the scattered weapons, readying ourselves for battle.
“Let’s pair up in twos, like the instructors! Or maybe threes?”
But I lacked experience in commanding a fight, so I wasn’t sure how to handle this situation.
Jaina stepped in to take charge.
“We’re not skilled enough, so let’s stick together in groups of five… Urp!”
Even she was incapacitated by seasickness, unable to function properly.
“Five? There are nine of us… Oh! Let’s form teams like we did in our recent sparring!”
At my suggestion, everyone grouped up with their closest allies.
We entrusted our backs to each other, preparing to face the approaching skeletons.
“Careful! Everyone!”
I channeled my Qi, gripping the sword with both hands and swinging it upward with all my might.
It was less swordsmanship and more like wielding a club, but its sheer power was unmatched.
—Tung!
I knocked away the skeleton’s sword, and its arm flew off with it.
I swung again, clubbing the skeleton’s head into pieces.
—Crack!
The skeletons that came next were handled by the students flanking me.
“No big deal!”
“Right!”
Seeing the skeletons were weaker than expected, the students gained confidence, growing overly excited.
Jaina, still struggling, snapped at us to calm down.
“If you’re going to take them down, do it properly. Those things keep reassembling their bones. Urgh!”
As she said, the fallen skeletons were slowly piecing themselves back together.
Seeing this, I kicked a skeleton and urgently asked.
“Lady Jaina! Then what do we do?”
“What do you mean? We need to destroy the source of these cursed skeletons. There’s probably a mana core supplying their power somewhere.”
The skeletons appeared alongside the ghost ship.
This was a form of summoning magic.
And every summoning had a medium as its source, so destroying it was the solution.
“Where is it?”
“Usually, it’s in the safest place. Like that ghost ship over there, for example.”
“Oh…”
No matter how much courage I’d mustered, standing on this deck was already a struggle.
Crossing to a ghost ship teeming with skeletons?
My feet—and my mouth—refused to move.
“What? You’re not thinking of going there, are you? Forget it. The instructors will handle it.”
Indeed, several instructors had already crossed over.
Evan, too, was swinging on ropes, darting back and forth.
“But why is the young master over there…”
“He’s a lunatic. He’ll hold up better than the instructors. Focus on ourselves.”
Even the prideful Jaina acknowledged Evan’s skill.
So, no matter how recklessly he swung through enemy territory, she brushed it off.
“He’ll be fine, right?”
Meanwhile, Evan, now on the ghost ship, made Jack’s worries seem pointless, treating the battlefield like his playground.
“Whoa! Out of the way!”
Hanging from a rope with one arm, I swung around freely.
One of the instructors who’d crossed over, Nell, shouted angrily.
“Evan! This isn’t a game!”
“Yes, I know! Hup!”
I let go of the rope and landed on the deck.
“So, what’s the plan to resolve this ghost ship situation?”
“These ghost ships, common near Hellscape’s coast, have a mana core inside the cabin that glows green.”
“Destroy it, and we’re done?”
“Yes. But we’ll handle it, so go back and guard the deck.”
Nell hoped that, despite my instructor status, I’d stay out of this dangerous situation.
But my thoughts differed from Nell’s.
“I’m an instructor too. I have a duty to protect the students. And to fulfill that duty, the best move now is to follow you into the cabin.”
“But—”
“Look over there. The head instructor’s already cleaning up.”
The deck of our ship was calming down.
Every time Head Instructor Everhart swung his sword, a dozen skeletons collapsed.
“Come on, lead the way! We need to finish this before they reassemble.”
“Sigh… Be careful and stick close if it gets dangerous.”
“Yes, sir!”
A special unit formed, consisting of Nell, two other instructors, and me.
Our primary goal was to infiltrate the cabin, with Nell assigning roles.
“The cabin’s at the stern. We charge straight through. Hughes, Ankien, you two guard my sides. Evan, take the rear.”
At Nell’s command, we formed a kite-shield defensive formation.
We deftly struck down approaching skeletons.
The instructors—and I—were no exception.
—Crack!
My finesse quietly impressed the other three instructors.
They wanted to observe me longer, but the situation was urgent.
“Advance!”
At Nell’s signal, we pushed through the skeleton horde toward the stern.
The skeletons tightened their encirclement.
Nell gave another signal.
“Coat your swords with aura! We break through to the cabin in one go!”
“Right!”
“Let’s do it!”
Starting with Nell, the other two instructors cloaked their swords in aura.
I followed suit naturally.
‘Aura too? No, no time to marvel!’
Shaking off distractions, Nell shouted.
“Charge!”
Trusting our aura-sharpened swords, we ran.
—Crack-crack-crack!!!
Skeletons fell like leaves.
We cut through the cabin entrance in one swing.
—Boom!
We entered a dark corridor.
“Ankien! Guard the entrance!”
“Leave it to me!”
While one blocked the entrance, the three of us ran through the dark corridor.
—Tap tap!
“Instructor, I sense powerful mana below.”
“I feel it too. Down the stairs!”
“Yes!”
With eyes adjusted to the dark, we descended the stairs.
We reached a storage area at the ship’s bottom, passing through the cabin.
Amid rotting crates, we found a brightly glowing mana core, exuding an ominous aura.
And beside it…
—Kakak!
A monstrous amalgamation of dozens of skeletons guarded it.
Far more dangerous than the skeletons on the deck.
Nell prepared to coordinate with Instructor Hughes.
“Evan, listen. We’ll handle that thing, so you flank and— Huh?”
Before he could finish, I darted forward.
“Hey, you!”
Nell flinched in shock.
I climbed the monstrosity before it could react.
Whenever sentient bone hands reached for me, I moved a beat faster.
—Tap tap tap!
Leaping over it, I spun and drove my sword into the mana core.
—Crack!
A fissure formed, green smoke billowing out.
The core shattered completely, its light fading.
—Kakak!
The bone monstrosity lost power, collapsing into pieces.
“Done, right? It’s over?”
The two instructors nodded silently at my question.
“What were you saying earlier?”
“Nothing… Let’s go up.”
Climbing the dark stairs, we saw scattered bones on the deck.
They, too, had lost power without the core.
The warship across from the ghost ship was the same.
Ankien, guarding the entrance alone, praised Nell and Hughes.
“That was fast. You two are razor-sharp, huh?”
The two shook their heads.
“Not us. Evan.”
“Huh?”
“Evan did it all.”
“Really…?”
“Yeah.”
Ankien clapped silently.
As the chaos subsided, the ghost ship began to tremble.
Thinking something else was happening, I asked excitedly.
“Is it a kraken this time?”
“No. It’s just sinking without power. Hurry, let’s cross!”
I crossed back to the warship with the instructors.
The first thing I saw was the exhausted students slumped on the deck.
“Hahaha.”
The situation made me laugh, but Elliott snapped in disgust.
“Having fun?”
“Why wouldn’t I? A welcome like this before even entering Hellscape.”
“Wait, what? Hellscape?”
A ghost ship appeared the moment we entered the thick fog.
It was a rare event, even for those heading to Hellscape.
An unexpected emergency, it made even the instructors tense—except for me.
“Yeah, this is what hell should be.”
“No way… Is Hellscape a real place? I thought it was just a rumor…”
Unlike me, satisfied with the monster fight, the students already looked drained.
They hadn’t even considered they’d actually go to a place called Hellscape.
Regardless, the ship had sailed, and our vessel steadily approached Hellscape.
Perhaps waking up before reaching the island was less shocking.
At least they had some time to prepare mentally.
“We’ll arrive at the island soon. Everyone, get ready.”
At Everhart’s command, the students gathered at the bow.
As the fog lifted, an island appeared in the middle of the sea.
Blanketed in dark clouds, it felt like the ghost ship in island form.
The entire island radiated an ominous aura.
“We’re here. Hellscape.”
Led by Jaina, everyone chimed in.
“Sigh… To come here without any mental preparation.”
“No way this ship can turn back, right?”
“As if.”
As they talked to ease their nerves, the instructors approached from behind.
Simultaneously, Everhart shouted loud enough for all to hear.
“Now jump off!”
With the order to leap into the sea, the instructors drew their swords in unison.
—Srrrng!
They aimed at the students, who froze and edged toward the bow.
“Why, what’s wrong?”
“You’re not really going to stab us, right?”
Everhart drew his sword, slowly pushing them forward.
“Swimming to that island is the start of your training. Jump. If you don’t, I’ll cut you.”
The head instructor’s words carried not a drop of jest.
Even I, standing with the instructors, put on a menacing expression.
“Uh…”
“Ugh… The water still feels cold.”
As the students hesitated, Everhart roared.
“Now!!”
At his command, the students instinctively leaped.
“Argh!”
“Ack!”
—Splash!
The students jumped into the sea.
Looking down, the head instructor turned to the instructors and issued orders.
“We now begin the Executor training.”
It was the declaration of hell’s beginning.
“We jump too. Everyone, strip.”
At Everhart’s command, we shed our outer garments.
Watching this, I asked eagerly.
“Is there a kraken down there? Are we hunting it this time?”
Everhart, mid-shirt removal, shook his head.
Nell elbowed me and answered.
“What’s with you and grudges? There’s no such thing. We’re just swimming to the island. We’re following for safety.”
“Oh, just a normal training, then.”
Seeing my disappointed expression, Nell thought.
‘What kind of training did this guy think we were doing here?’