Chapter 469: Naval Warfare (Top)

The Continent Destroyer was the strongest AOE attack skill attached to the Continent Destroyer Sword.

(

Continent Destroyer

)

Artifact Skill

Level

: None

Mana Required

: 4,000

Penalty

: None

Cooldown

: 240 hours.

Effects

:

?A powerful force would spread out in a wave within a 35 meter radius that would incur an additional 500% damage upon the sword being stabbed straight down.

?The ground within the 35 meter radius would break and fluctuate, reaching five meters in height, with red lava erupting and causing 1,600% damage to everyone receiving a direct hit from the lava.

?Those directly hit by the lava would receive additional 100% damage every three seconds.

The effects of most passive and active skills in Athenae were dependent on the users’ attack power. Naturally, the stronger the ranker was, the higher their attack, the higher the % effect that would be added to the skill’s effect.

Minhyuk, as Korea’s top ranker, had incredible stats. On top of that, he had the Continent Destroyer Sword with an attack of 1,900, one that far surpassed the weapons of most high rankers, which were usually set at 1,100~1,300. This meant that the Continent Destroyer that Minhyuk had unleashed with his Continent Destroyer Sword dealt a ridiculous amount of damage to his enemies.

The worst part for his opponents? The Continent Destroyer Sword had a 50% increase in cutting and penetrative power and a 40% increase in critical hit rate. Therefore, almost forty ships that had been sucked and stuck together in the middle of the whirlpool were now facing the full brunt of the God-Rank Artifact Continent Destroyer Sword’s strongest AOE attack skill, Continent Destroyer.

Puhaaaaaaaaaaaaa—

And thanks to the Demon’s Face, this skill, whilst being presented differently to the others, was still able to maintain its full force. The moment Minhyuk’s sword stabbed straight down in the middle of the whirlpool, huge waves erupted and slammed hard into the ships that were stuck together. This was the first wave of attack that hit them but…

Crack, crack, crack, crack, crack—

[Ruby Pirates’ Sixth Defensive Ship has received a tremendous impact!]

[The ship’s durability has decreased by 28%!]

[If you don’t hurry and fix the damage to your ship, then it might break apart!]

[Storm Pirates’ Third Attack Ship has received a tremendous impact!]

[The ship’s durability has decreased by 54%!]

[If you don’t hurry and fix the damage to your ship, then it might break apart!]

[Red Skull Pirates’ Third Attack Ship has received a tremendous impact!]

[The ship’s durability has decreased by 17%!]

[The ship needs repair.]

[Merry-Merry Pirates’ Fifth Defensive Ship…]

[Yamete Pirates’ Sixth Defensive Ship…]

“Aaaaaaaaaaaack!”

“Main, maintain the ship’s balance!!!”

“Keuhaaaaaaaaaaack!”

…all the pirate ships were already shaking and trembling from the impact of the attack. As for the pirate ships with lower durability, their ships were already broken through and water was starting to gush in.

“H… how?! With just one attack…?!”

Ruby Pirates’ Ruby and Red Hawk were already in a state of panic. How could one attack deal so much damage at once? But it was not yet over.

Keuhaaaaaaaaaaaaa—

A five-meter-high tidal wave suddenly rose up from the sea. This was originally the ground fluctuation effect that could reach five meters in height, but the appearance of the skill completely changed in the eyes of the others.

Keuhaaaaaaaaaa—

The tidal wave moved to devour the ships. The blacksmiths were rushing to repair the ships, while the captains and deputy captains were working hard to center their ships once again. Even the other pirates that were preparing for battle were all trying so hard to not fall off of their ships.

But even as they tried their best, the attacks were never ending. This time, a strong force immediately followed the tidal wave. This strong force was none other than the lava that could deal an additional 1,600% damage upon a direct hit. It erupted from the seafloor. Originally, it could be avoided, after all, the damage would only be dealt with if it directly hit the opponent, but with the ships all stuck together…

Shwaaaaaaa—

Craaaaaaaaack—

And finally…

𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

[You have sunk Merry-Merry’s Pirate Ship.]

[You have hunted Merry-Merry’s Pirate Lucard.]

[You have acquired Pirate Lucard’s two platinum!]

[You have acquired the Nimble Pirates’ Twin Swords.]

[You have hunted Merry-Merry’s Deputy Captain Aven.]

[You have acquired Deputy Captain Aven’s one platinum.]

[You have hunted Verad, a player with a high Chaos level.]

[You have acquired Verad’s Pirate’s Cool Hat.]

[You have hunted Aveto, a player with a high Chaos level.]

[You have acquired Aveto’s Aqua Stone.]

…the notifications rang non-stop! When a fight broke out at sea, the items that would drop would not automatically fall into the sea. These items would just automatically enter the inventory of the player with the highest contribution. After all, if the items worked the same way as on land, then the items and gold that dropped would be submerged deep in the sea and be useless.

And with all the pirates, whether they were NPCs or players, aboard these pirate ships being people with a high Chaotic level, they all dropped a huge amount of gold, silver, and artifacts.

Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!

The ships began to sink one after the other, as the lava that erupted from deep within the sea devoured them. Only Red Hawk’s Third Attack Ship, the ship with the highest defense and durability, was hanging by a thread and maintaining its balance, albeit precariously.

“What the hell is this?! What kind of dealer is he!!?” Red Hawk shouted, his face turning pale.

‘How can he sink 39 ships in one go?!’

“Sa, save meeeeee!!!”

“Aaaaaaaaaack! Captain Red Hawk!!! Please save us!!!”

“Grrrrrrrrrk!”

The moment the pirate players and NPCs fell into the sea, they were all sucked by the whirlpool and sent to their deaths. It did not matter if they were good swimmers, as long as they were facing the sea’s miracle, there was nothing they could do.

“Blacksmiths! Quickly fix the ship! Hurry!”

Slowly, the miracle whirlpool started to subside. However, the Black Pirates’ Third Attack Ship only had 30% of its durability left. Of course, their ship always had skilled blacksmiths on board. These skilled blacksmiths were now rushing back and forth to repair the ship.

Usually, they would only need around three minutes to repair around 5~20% of the ship and its durability. ‘Do you want to repair the ship?’ This question would pop out in front of these blacksmiths, which would then trigger and activate their skills, that would allow the ship to repair itself the moment they agree to it.

But before they could even do so, Minhyuk, who was riding on top of a dolphin, shot towards the Third Attack Ship.

“What, what the hell?! Do you think you can destroy a pirate ship with your basic attacks?!”

In fact, Minhyuk needed someone to experiment on.

‘I only caused a bit of damage to Gorfido’s Pirate Ship despite ‘Explosion’ triggering. What about when using it on other pirate ships?’

Minhyuk’s sword immediately stabbed the Black Pirates’ pirate ship.

Crack!

Shockingly enough, a dent suddenly appeared in the otherwise tough and sturdy-looking part of the ship, while pieces of the already broken parts crumbled and flew away.

[The Black Pirates’ Third Attack Ship has received a tremendous impact!]

[The ship’s durability has decreased by 5%!]

“…?!”

For a moment, Red Hawk thought that his ears were not working properly. A basic attack was enough to reduce 5% of his ship’s durability?

‘I’m sure that’s his one-shot kill skill against high rankers, right?’?

Red Hawk thought in a fluster. But then, Minhyuk’s sword moved swiftly as he hacked at the ship continuously.

Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!

[The ship’s durability has decreased by 5%!]

[The ship’s durability has decreased by 4%!]

In the end…

Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam!

…‘Extinction’ was triggered, and a shocking notification rang in Red Hawk’s ears.

[The ship’s durability has decreased by 14%!]

[The ship’s durability has decreased by 16%!]

[The ship’s durability…!]

[The ship is sinking!]

“…”

Red Hawk was left speechless as the ship that they were on started to sink. All he could do was relay the information as fast as he could to Great Pirate Lundnu. Not long after, they sank below the surface. The pirates either sank or floundered about in the sea. That was when Minhyuk saw people, who were wearing sleeveless shirts and were completely unlike the regular pirates, shouting for help.

‘Captives?’

They were definitely captives. After all, pirates were known to attack warships, fishing boats, and sailing boats, capturing the people aboard them and selling the parts that were useful. Then, the notifications immediately rang.

[Saving these people might bring you, someone with the power of a king, huge profits.]

“Dolphins!”

“Kieeeeeeeee!” The dolphins cried out as they rescued the captives, while leaving the pirates scrambling for their own lives.

“We, we’re saved…!”

“Thank you!!!”

“Th, thank you! Thank you very much!!!”

[You have gained 5 CHA.]

[You have saved a total of 321 captives.]

‘Wow. Isn’t this really epic…?’

Except for his greed for food, Minhyuk did not really desire anything else. But now, he had to think as the king of ‘Beyond the Heavens Kingdom’.

Just a few hours earlier, Minhyuk had received a report and briefing in the guild chat. They had told him that the Beyond the Heavens Kingdom’s finances were already reaching the bottom of the pan. Thankfully, he was able to earn 82 platinum when he wiped out the pirates. That was not all. A rough estimate of the prices of the various artifacts, treasures, and miscellaneous items that he had acquired would give him 300 platinum if sold. This was all because…

‘All of these pirate NPCs and players are people with a high Chaos level and a bounty on their heads.’

In fact, even his EXP had risen significantly to the point that his level even increased by one. It was ten times more efficient than the rewards that he received during a hunt.

‘If I receive these captives as my own people then…?’

Then, the value that he would get from this quest would increase and reach astronomical levels.

“Who are you?”

“No way, are you a pirate too?”

“I don’t want to wander around the seas anymore! I’d rather you kill us!”

“Even our own kingdom has abandoned us! They all knew that we had been taken captive by the pirates but none of them came to rescue us!

Sob, sob, sob!?

Kill us! I’d rather you kill us!”

All of them trembled in fear and anxiety which showed how much they had been tortured so far. Minhyuk moistened his throat as he spoke to them with a voice filled with dignity, “I came from a distant continent after hearing about your sufferings. Your kingdoms and empires have abandoned you, forcing you to cry out in helplessness, despite your families waiting for you.”

Minhyuk looked at them one after another atop his dolphin as he continued to speak, “After hearing your stories, I could not help but run to your rescue. Although I am by myself, I fought a bloody battle and persevered just so I could save you! Aaaaaaah!”

He grabbed his left chest as if he was feeling extreme pain. And when the captives saw his face and voice filled with sincere emotions, they thought…

‘Someone from a distant continent came here to save us, the abandoned ones…?’

‘Isn’t he all by himself? Besides, he has no reason to fight against these pirates, right?’

‘Did he really come for us?’

‘He came for us? Those that have been abandoned by our own kingdoms and empires?!’

‘Aaaaaaaaaah! What a kind man! Is the distant continent filled with people like him?!’

‘No, perhaps there’s something that he wants from us?’

‘No one will express any good will if there’s no reward for them.’

Then, the notifications rang.

[The passive skill ‘King’s Voice’ attached to your title: Brightest Sun has been triggered.]

The King’s Voice was a passive skill that would make Minhyuk, a king, sound more dignified and even more sincere to others.

“I don’t want anything from you. It’s just… I want you to forget all of the pain and suffering that you have experienced as a captive… You can now go back to your families. Just… let me just help you do that!”

“…Waaaaaaaaaaah!”

“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

The captives all shed tears while some of them swung their arms strongly as they cheered for him. Then, Minhyuk said, “But, there are still a lot of people that I need to save. After all, there are still many people that have suffered the same painful fate as you!!!”

“

Sob

! Our pain… is something that’s worse than death!”

“That’s right. The sea is filled and overflowing with those suffering like us.”

Minhyuk nodded as he said, “I will drop you off on a nearby island. For those who are willing to fight with me, please join me! Let’s fight for those who want to return to their families, just like you!!!”

Minhyuk raised his arm high up in the sky as…

Drip, drip, drip—

…streaks of hot tears dripped down his cheeks! His tears made everyone feel immense admiration and gratitude to him as their hearts burned hot.

“We will fiiiiiiiiiiight! We will fight for the other captives and return them to the arms of their own families!!!”

“Let’s drive out all of the pirates from these seas!!!”

“Waaaaaaaaaaaah!”

This was only natural. After all, around 70% of these captives were part of the navy. Then, another set of notifications rang in Minhyuk’s ears.

[The

Title

: The One Who Even Exploited the Emperor has been changed into a new title.]

[You have acquired the

Title

: The One Who Still Exploits Even After Becoming a King.]

Gorfido shook his head when he saw Minhyuk crying while raising his arms high up in the skies, and thought,

‘He’s probably sick in the head…’