Chapter 391

Chapter 391

“Awesome.

Ming Hu smiled inwardly at Deren’s answer.

“Was he a Kraken, too?

He hadn’t expected Letos to be a Kraken at all. Ming Hu kept his smile on his face as he opened his inventory and looked at the Legendary-ranked item that Lamphere had dropped this time, Faraden: Lamphere’s Whip.

“Then he’ll be able to…

The first Kraken I caught didn’t drop any gear, so it’s not a guarantee that it will drop. But the possibility of it dropping was enough for me.

“Wait a minute.

Just then, a thought popped into Myung-Hoo’s head.

“Just in case.”

Ming Hu looked at Deren and said.

“Are Lamphere and Letos the only krakens in this lake, or are there others?”

At first, I thought that Deren and Lamphere were the only two boss monsters in Lake Belkan, but as it turns out, they’re not the only ones. Interestingly, the strongest of them, Letos, the boss monster that controls the center of the lake, is a kraken.

“There are likely more.

I had a feeling that there were other Kraken besides Letos.

“I know there are two in the east and two in the north.”

Deren nodded once more at Myung-Hoo’s question.

“Four marinas!?

Ming Hu smiled broadly at Deren’s answer. The realization that there were four more kraken, not counting Letos, pleased Ming Hu immensely.

“…?”

Deren, unable to understand Ming Hu’s feelings, shook his head at Ming Hu’s smile, then opened his mouth to ask.

“But why do you ask?”

As far as Deren knew, Ming Hu had come here to visit the center. But judging by his reaction, he was very interested in the Kraken.

“Oh, no.”

Ming Hu shook his head slightly, as if Deren’s words were nothing.

“I’ll see you later, then.”

He waved goodbye again, turned around, and started walking toward the central area where the castle was located.

“…Hmmm.”

Deren swore under his breath as he watched Ming Hu’s back.

‘I feel like something big is about to happen…’

I had a feeling something big was going to happen to the lake.

* * * * *

Inside one of the caves.

-Horrorock…

A giant-sized kraken, a creature that could be described as part squid, part octopus, was resting in a cave.

That was the moment.

Siaak

Someone appeared in front of the Kraken. It was a woman with a very beautiful and noble-looking face.

No, it wasn’t technically human. From the waist up, it was human, but from the waist down, it had multiple legs, like a kraken.

“Letos.”

The woman called to Letos the Kraken, who slept soundly before her eyes.

Squeak

Letos had been sleeping soundly, and the woman’s call roused him from his slumber. His eyes were wide with surprise.

“Who is it?

Letos was surprised because he hadn’t felt a thing, but someone was in front of him. Letos looked in surprise at the woman who had called him.

“…!”

And when he saw the woman’s face, Letos couldn’t help but be surprised again.

Blah blah blah blah

Letos looked surprised and quickly moved his arms to get to his feet, then opened his mouth to speak to the woman.

“I’m seeing my mother.”

Mother, Letos was addressing the woman before him as Mother, and she was, indeed, Ataxia, mother of the kraken and goddess of water and vitality.

“How have you been?”

Ataksha said.

“Yes, Mother.”

Letos nodded in response to Ataksha’s words.

“Glad to hear you’re doing well.”

Ataksha smiled at Letos’ answer. Letos looked at Ataksha’s smile and thought to himself.

“But what brings you here in person?

Something was wrong. It wasn’t that Ataksha’s visit was strange; she had often come to him through a spirit, but not now. Ataksha had come in person.

‘He didn’t like to be seen…’

It is not an easy task to incarnate in Middle-earth. Even though Ataksha is a god, it takes a great deal of power to incarnate into Middle-earth, which is why she doesn’t like to do it.

“What happened?

Then Ataksha became manifest. It seemed that something had happened. Otherwise, there was no reason to incarnate.

“Do you want to know why I came here in person?”

Did he read Letos’ thoughts? Or did he feel them? Ataksha asked Letos.

“Yes, Mother, did something happen to you?”

Ataksha asked, and Letos said.

“…?”

But Letos couldn’t help but wonder a bit after he spoke, for he saw the sadness on Ataksha’s face the moment she spoke.

“Is Lamphere dead?”

Ataksha opened her mouth, her face filled with sadness.

“…Lampere?”

Letos heard Ataksha’s words and asked in a puzzled voice.

“Lamperga?

Ataksha’s words were hard to believe, and neither was he. Letos knew Lamphere very well; they lived on the same lake, so how could he not?

“I said we’re at war.

I knew we were at war, but I wasn’t worried. It wasn’t like they were close enough to worry about in the first place, but it was a water dragon.

“Die? To a water dragon?

As a race, water dragons can’t win against krakens. I didn’t pay any attention to it, but when Lamphere died, I couldn’t believe it.

“Is this some kind of intervention from some other region?

Letos recalled other local beings who had been defeated by him, but who had been quite a threat. What if they had intervened? Lampere’s death could be understood.

“No, and even if she did, there’s no way she’d be able to manifest herself.

But Letos soon realized that he was wrong; it didn’t make sense for Ataksha to have been killed by another being.

“Why in the world would you…

Letos looked at Ataksha. Ataksha was still sad and lost in thought. She seemed to be thinking of the dead Lamphere.

“The one who killed Lamphere is coming here now.”

Some time later, Ataksha, snapped out of her thoughts, said to Letos.

“To this place?”

Letos furrowed his brow.

“Out of region?

There are many, many beings in the lake. But they all stay within their own territory. It wasn’t always this way, but it has been since you took control of this place. And now they’re coming here?

“Isn’t that the same guy who was here?

I suddenly realized.

“Wait, my mother is also a physical person…

I thought about it a bit more, and it seemed to make sense. If the entity that is here in the first place is the one that killed Lamphere and is coming here, then there is no reason for Ataksha to incarnate. It seemed to me that Ataksha’s incarnation was because the being that was coming here was a special being, different from the beings here.

“I don’t think so.”

Ataksha said.

“I am here to extinguish its existence.”

Ataksha incarnated here in person for a reason: to extinguish the being that killed Lamphere and is coming here.

“…Who is that being?”

When Letos realized the reason for his incarnation, he asked. Who was this being that he couldn’t leave it to his own devices and took it upon himself to manifest?

“That being is…”

Ataksha said in response to Letos’ question.

“Human, but not human.”

“…?”

Ataksha’s words left Letos puzzled.

“Human but not human?

Something wasn’t right.

“We’re human, after all, aren’t we?

It was human, but not human, but human, after all.

‘Wait. A human? A human?’

It struck Letos as odd to realize that the being coming to this place, the being that Ataksha herself was trying to extinguish, was human.

“Lamphere was killed by humans?

Ataksha said that Lamphere was killed by a being that was coming here, and that being was a human. Lamphere was killed by a human?

“Not outside, but here?

If they were outside without water, they could be killed by humans. It was a possibility, albeit close to zero. But Lampere was killed here, in a place filled with water.

‘….’

Letos was so confused by the absurdity of the situation, the unbelievability of it all, that Ataksha said to him, “Letos is confused.

“You won’t believe it, but it’s true. That man is very strong. It was he who killed Rohad not long ago.”

Ataksha’s expression darkened even more as she finished.

“…”

Ataksha’s sad expression left Letos speechless, and it wasn’t until a moment later that she spoke again.

“What happened there?”

“…?”

Letos shook his head at Ataksha’s sudden question, until he realized where she was referring to and opened his mouth.

“If it is there, do you mean the last name of the humans?”

“Yes and no. Has anything changed?”

“Yes, the boundaries, and the being that keeps them, have not changed.”

Letos thought to himself as he answered Ataksha’s question.

“What the heck is his last name and why do you care so much?

What on earth was that last name, and why did Ataksha care so much? Letos wondered aloud.

“Mother, do you think…”

Letos decided to ask Ataksha about the castle and opened his mouth, but as soon as he opened his mouth, Ataksha cut him off and said, “I’m sorry.

“Don’t think anything of that castle. It is dangerous. It would break my heart to see you die.”

As she spoke, Ataksha’s eyes held a mixture of sadness, worry, and coldness. It was as if she felt that if they found out about the castle, they would have no choice but to kill her.

“…Yes, Mother.”

Letos flinched at Ataksha’s look and words.

“…What the hell.

But Ataksha’s reaction to the castle grew larger and larger in Letos’s mind, and he wondered what it was, what secrets it held, and what it was doing to her.

“There is still time until he comes. Let him see the other children.”

Ataksha said, whether she knew what Letos was thinking or not.

“Yes, Mother.”

Ataksha’s words brought Letos’ thoughts of sex to a halt, and he answered her.

Siaak

And the moment he answered, Ataksha was gone. Letos stared at the spot where Ataksha had been, and thought.

‘Gender, human…’

I was so confused.