Chapter 76
Moving slowly, he proceeded confidently until he heard a loud crash and felt the ship tilt sharply.
"What the...?"
Effortlessly maintaining his balance, Bill tossed two loaves into his mouth and hurried upstairs. These ships were enormous, each practically a fortress on water. For something to shake them, it had to be serious.
Reaching the main deck in less than ten seconds, Bill heard the order "All hands on deck!" and saw the chaos.
On the starboard side, Bill noticed two massive Sea Kings engaged in battle.
From the ship's distance, these creatures seemed both too large and too small. It was as if their size blurred the horizon and turned the open sea into a puppet theater.
One Sea King resembled a gigantic python, while the other was reminiscent of a crocodile.
Estimating the distance roughly, Bill thought that the Sea Kings must be ten or more kilometers away. However, given their size, likely around two or three kilometers in length, that gap was negligible.
Watching the animals' movements, the Marines bustled about, raising sails and steering the ship toward the port.
The serpent lunged back and forth, trying to coil around the crocodile, while the latter began to tumble, creating waves as high as tsunamis.
"Wait... are they not...?"
By this time, due to the waves and the commotion on deck, half of Bill's attention was focused on the happenings around him, while the other half was studying the two Sea Kings.
"Scientific Division! Get to the lower deck!"
Despite all the noise around, Bill heard Captain Hina shout towards him.
Looking at her, the ship hit an especially large wave, and six men, who were tying down barrels, were lifted into the air.
Watching the men, Bill realized in a split second that they were about to fall overboard.
Deciding to act, Bill knew he could grab the men before they fell. Reaching them in an instant, Bill instinctively crouched.
"Feather Cage!"
Looking up, Bill saw the captain stretch out her arm like a bird spreading its wings, and a black fence shot along the ship's rails, catching the six Marines in midair.
As she did this, the men around her began to praise her. Bill was impressed but didn't shout.
"She didn't become Captain for nothing."
Seeing that, despite the circumstances, the crew was managing, Bill headed toward the stairs.
Though he followed the order, he didn't rush, continuing to keep an eye on the two enormous beasts.
A few minutes after the encounter began, the ship managed to change course, but due to the currents and waves, it couldn't get far.
As Bill walked slowly, he noticed that the crocodile had stopped moving and submerged underwater.
The suction effect caused by the two multi-kilometer animals diving down was enormous, and despite its size, the ship jerked sharply back to the scene of their clash.
People were shouting as the massive Headquarters frigate was pulled back several kilometers in seconds. Bill himself was knocked off his feet but, unlike most of the other Marines on deck, managed to hold on.
At that moment, he heard Captain Hina shout again, and the whole ship was encircled by her fence.
What she said was unclear, the world seemed to slow to a crawl. Without hesitation, Bill rushed to the captain as fast as he could.
No sooner had he reached her than the sea exploded behind the frigate, which was still flying backward.
Tons of water surged over the ship's rails, and Hina collapsed powerlessly onto the floor, her fence vanished.
Scooping the captain up with his left arm, the world returned to normal. Turning to see the source of the explosion, Bill noticed the enormous crocodile surfacing with the python wrapped around its back.
As soon as the two monsters reappeared on the surface, the crocodile began a new roll, the force of which was so great that it hurled the massive Headquarters frigate right out of the water.
This flight was both a blessing and a curse: most of the people didn't fall overboard, but the lift slammed them onto the deck.
For those who fell when Hina's cage disappeared, they probably would never be seen again.
The ship flew far, but not gracefully.
Throwing Hina onto the deck, Bill instinctively dashed forward to catch as many people as possible.
In moments of crisis, people tend to surpass themselves, and Bill proved this by shouting loudly:
"HEAVENLY ASCENT!"
Hitting the air as described in the Moon Walk manual, Bill crossed the sky instantly. He was tossing the Marines onto the main deck—painful, but at least alive.
Returning to the ground and feeling exhausted, Bill couldn't do anything about the ship tilting in the air, but upon hearing the cries of several conscious people, he turned his head and saw a huge beach.
"Oh no..."
With this last thought, the frigate crashed into the shore as the two monsters collided.
Jumping into the surf, Bill rushed to Captain Hina to protect the person most qualified to assess their current situation.
Since she was still weak after the wave strike, Bill gently laid her on the sand and sprang into action.
He knew that many people must be injured, but he didn't have time to look below deck
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