He then stood at the edge.
“I’m off fur a swim!”
Casually, he threw himself into the water...and disappeared directly into the mouth of the whale that had surfaced at that exact moment.
“Huh?!” Just like that, the bear became its first victim.
“Wh-What...? The hell is he doin’?” A Master like him wouldn’t actually die, but this act still left Riella all confused.
“Commander! Your orders!”
“R-Right... For now, continue dodgin’ as long as you can...”
“Aye— What...?” Through the comms, the helmsman exclaimed in confusion.
“What is it?”
“The sea...” The helmsman began, trailing off ominously.
Before the helmsman could explain what the situation was, the spotter made a surprising report.
“This is the bridge! Commander! The target’s stopped moving!”
“What?!” It didn’t take long for Riella to understand what the helmsman had hesitated to describe.
“Huh...?”
A patch of the sea had changed color. It wasn’t a large area, but it was growing, as though something was floating up from beneath the surface.
The small patch eventually spread to become larger than the ship’s deck.
The color was a deep red, almost black—the sea was being dyed in blood.
It was an eerie sight that stunned Riella into silence.
For a moment, she thought the blood had to belong to the bear, but the volume was far too great for that. There was only one creature present that could bleed that much.
“G H B O O O A B H A A A A A A H H H H H!” Finally, with a cry of agony, the whale that had been hunting them surfaced.
Now whining—shrieking—the UBM was frothing at the mouth and vomiting an immense volume of blood.
The creature that had proven impervious to depth charges and rapid pressure changes impossible for most creatures was now spitting blood and floating on the water’s surface.
A closer look showed that its stomach seemed to be slowly expanding. The whale’s flesh and skin were swelling up from the inside.
“It’s almost as if...” To Riella, it looked as though something was punching it from the inside.
The next moment...
“Strength Cannon.”
...those words—a skill name—resounded from somewhere unseen, and a hole opened in the whale’s body.
With its guts destroyed, the creature could not survive for long.
Riella and the rest of the crew could do nothing but watch as its massive body became bits of light and vanished.
[The UBM, “Gargantuan Shipgulper, Whalunder,” was defeated.]
[Selecting MVP...]
[“Shu Starling” was selected as MVP.]
[“Shu Starling” has been presented with an MVP special reward: “Ultimate Costume Series, Whalunder.”]
Those who had been fighting this terrible battle heard that message...
“Anofur damn costume!”
...and saw the bear costume surface from the now-safe ocean, spitting out a trivial complaint.
✦ ✦ ✦
Riella then ordered the crew to pull the bear back to the deck using a crane.
They had the option of just leaving him and continuing on their way, but Riella chose not to.
“Hey...”
“What?” As the bear used a towel to dry himself—well, his costume—Riella gathered her thoughts and spoke to him.
“Just... What are you?”
“I’m Shu Starling.”
In response, the bear gave his name again...
“Just a paw-ssing...King of Destruction.”
...but this time, he added his true identity.
“King of...Destruction...” That was one of Altar’s four Superiors, and a man who had been nicknamed “Unknown.”
Granvaloa had once been attacked by a fearsome SUBM called “Biframe White Whale, Twin Moby Dick,” while Altar had been ravaged by one known as “Tri-Zenith Dragon, Gloria.” The latter was said to be greater than the former, and King of Destruction was alleged to have been the one who’d consigned the dragon to oblivion.
It was an extraordinary claim, but Riella could believe him now. His effortless destruction of the whale was all the proof she needed.
“But ya said ya were just a bear.”
“Whoops, sorry fur that slip of the tongue!”
Was that the truth or a joke?
Regardless, there was no doubt that he truly was the King of Destruction.
“Anyway, lemme make my offer again,” the bear...or rather, Shu said as he extended his hand toward Riella. “I’ll pay for the ride by breakin’ the Abyss Shellder.”
He simply repeated what he’d said earlier.
Riella spent a moment looking at his hand in silence...
“Lettin’ some bear take care of all our problems would ruin the adventure fleet’s good name. I’ll avenge my old man myself.”
With that response...
“Though... If you wanna help, then I’m okay with that.”
...she took his hand.
“It’s a deal.” Beneath the costume, Shu was smiling, and Riella responded with a slight grin of her own.
“So, KoD... What’s with the costume?”
“That’s another long, heavy, and tear-jerking story...”
“Okay then. Forget I asked.”
“Furget?!” Shu jokingly put his hands on his head as if hurt, while Riella burst into laughter.
That was the first time she’d laughed since her father died.
And this was the first turning point in what would come to be known as the “South Sea Incident.”