Chapter 72
“Move aside! Move!”
“Over here, get me out!”
“Fire!”
“Help over there first! Everyone, move!”
It was an ordinary evening.
The day’s exhausting work had come to an end.
People returned home to dine with their families.
A long day was finally wrapping up, and they were enjoying a moment of rest at home.
For most of the people in the trade city of Cremo, it was just another typical evening.
At least, it should have been.
But today was different.
Disaster struck from the sky like a bolt of lightning.
No, it wasn’t just any disaster—it was the sudden crash of a mermaid statue.
Ever since that destructive accident, the entire city had been thrown into chaos.
It was a night of catastrophe.
“Over here! Someone’s trapped under the rubble! Help!”
“Hold on, I’ll go get help!”
The area near the plaza was an absolute mess.
People trapped under collapsed buildings were crying out for help.
But rescuing them wasn’t easy.
Because of the fire.
At first, it had been just a small spark—probably from a hearth inside one of the fallen buildings.
However, the area was littered with broken wooden debris and furniture.
The fire spread quickly.
In an instant, it grew.
It consumed buildings and began to spread further.
Before long, it had become a full-blown inferno.
“Fire!”
“Get water! Hurry!”
The citizens and the city guards scrambled in a frenzy.
They cleared away debris, rescued people, and carried buckets of water.
But the sea breeze was a problem.
So was the dry winter weather.
Once ignited, the flames refused to die down.
Carried by the dry winds, the fire spread too fast.
No matter how much water they poured, it was futile.
The fire was spreading faster than they could put it out.
At this rate, the fire could spread across the entire city, leading to a devastating catastrophe.
“The 1st Battalion will focus on rescue operations near the plaza. What about the 2nd and 3rd Battalions?”
“They’re gathering now!”
“They’re too slow. We need to set up a firebreak immediately!”
The commander of Cremo’s city guard clenched his teeth.
The situation was far from good.
No, it was getting worse by the second.
‘This is bad. We can’t control this.’
His throat went dry.
That was how dire the situation was.
‘Of all times, why does the wind have to be so strong today? The flames are out of control. And most of our officers are out at sea with the Count.’
The fire was unstoppable.
And the city guards, who should have been putting it out, weren’t functioning properly either.
Most of the mid-level officers were away on a ship, escorting Count Cremo.
On top of that, the situation outside the city wasn’t any better.
No, in some ways, it was even more hopeless.
‘That thing actually came ashore…?’
Beyond the city, along the coastal cliffs.
Just looking in that direction felt like watching a nightmare unfold.
Beneath the dark night sky, illuminated by the moonlight, a 90-meter-tall monster rampaged.
Gigatitan.
Grrruuuuuhhhkk!
A low, menacing roar scraped across the land, ringing clearly through the air.
No—it wasn’t just audible. It felt like it was slamming directly into his eardrums.
‘If that thing gets here… it’ll be the end.’
The commander had no doubt.
The city was already in ruins from the fire.
If that monstrous Gigatitan stormed in on top of that?
The devastation would be unimaginable.
Even if the entire city guard and Count’s army sacrificed their lives, they might not be able to stop it.
‘And there’s still no word from the Count. He might have already fallen to that creature. If so… our city might not survive past tonight.’
A heavy darkness settled over the commander’s heart.
With sunken eyes, he surveyed the city.
He watched as the fire spread from the plaza, consuming the streets.
And then, he witnessed it.
The fire blazing through the city.
The sky painted red by the flames.
And above it—descending from the sky—a 60-meter-wide pink water balloon.
“Hamang!”
Thud!
Hamang roared.
At the same time, she opened her mouth wide.
From the enormous maw of the phantasm beast, an overwhelming 100,000 liters of seawater gushed forth.
Swoooosh!
As the cascading seawater clashed with the air resistance, it split into countless fragments.
Millions of droplets scattered.
The entire plaza and city streets were drenched.
Splaash!
A torrential downpour struck like a sudden monsoon.
In a single moment, the fire engulfing the city was extinguished.
Flames creeping up nearby buildings were snuffed out, and the heat scorching pillars and rooftops vanished instantly.
And then, the now fist-sized Hamang plummeted.
She landed squarely in Lloyd’s palm.
“Hamang!”
Plop!
“Well done.”
Lloyd patted Hamang.
Honestly, he had doubted whether this would work.
Could Hamang, filled to the brim with seawater, leap from outside the city all the way above the burning streets?
But his worries had been unfounded.
Hamang’s abilities exceeded his expectations.
With just a few bounces against the ground, she had launched herself like a rubber ball.
“You did really well. You saved so many people today.”
“Hamang!”
Lloyd patted Hamang once more before tucking her into the inner pocket of his coat.
Then, he shouted.
“Faster, Ppodong! Let’s go!”
“Ppodong!”
With Lloyd on her back, Ppodong sprinted even harder.
She dashed across the city’s main street, vaulted over the roof of a dried fish store, and raced through the plaza.
And then, he finally saw it.
‘There it is.’
A tower, standing tall at the edge of the plaza.
And lodged into its side—a mermaid statue.
Lloyd urged Ppodong straight to the base of the tower. He shouted.
“Ppodong! Pull it out!”
“Ppodong!”
Without breaking her momentum, Ppodong leapt.
She clung onto the mermaid statue, embedded deep into the tower’s side.
With her plump hindquarters wiggling, she planted her forepaws and heaved.
Crack!
The mermaid statue, which had been firmly stuck inside the tower, came loose in an instant.
‘Perfect.’
Lloyd’s eyes gleamed.
The mermaid statue was completely battered and deformed.
It had been launched here by Gigatitan’s body slam, so that was no surprise.
Even so, its overall shape and silhouette remained intact.
He could even spot its broken head and arms scattered nearby.
“Can you carry this?”
“Ppodong!”
Fortunately, Ppodong had no trouble carrying the massive mermaid statue, which was much larger than her own body.
The same went for the two detached arms that Lloyd had painstakingly retrieved.
“Alright, let’s go!”
“Ppodong!”
Leaving the plaza behind, they took off.
Lloyd was a little worried about the people left behind in the plaza, but there was nothing he could do.
He had already extinguished the most immediate threat—the fire—so the remaining rescue efforts would have to be handled by the guards and the remaining citizens.
Trusting that, he spurred Ppodong forward.
“That way! To the shipyard!”
“Ppodong!”
At Lloyd’s signal, Ppodong changed direction.
He knew the way well—having frequently visited the shipyard to oversee the construction of caissons for offshore artificial ground projects.
Thanks to that, reaching the shipyard was easy.
And the item he had in mind was quickly found.
‘I remember they always kept a large cart over there… Ah, there it is.’
Lloyd’s eyes gleamed.
A special heavy-duty cart used in the shipyard stood before him.
A monster of a cart, designed for transporting large amounts of lumber or even small ships on land.
It had thick axles to withstand immense weight.
It had six pairs of wheels, each as tall as a person.
In the entire city, only two carts of this size existed.
“Ppodong! Over there!”
“Ppodong!”
Understanding his command instantly, Ppodong moved.
She placed the mermaid statue onto the cart.
The massive cart wobbled for a moment, but it held firm.
As expected of a behemoth cart, it could easily withstand the statue’s immense weight.
Lloyd immediately set to work on emergency repairs for the statue.
‘It needs to look as lifelike as possible—just like a living mermaid in Gigatitan’s eyes.’
He grabbed plenty of ship-grade ropes.
Carefully, he wrapped them around the statue’s body.
Then, using the ropes, he reattached the broken arms.
Luckily, the statue’s joints were broken at precise spots—shoulders, elbows, and wrists were all cleanly separated.
So he bound them tightly with the ropes, connecting them like nunchaku.
Next, he reattached the broken neck, though less loosely than the arms.
Just enough so that it bobbed slightly.
And with that, his bronze mermaid puppet was complete.
‘This looks real enough.’
Now, as the cart moved, the ropes would cause the limbs to sway naturally.
It would actually look more lifelike than the original, rigid statue.
‘Next, I just need to… stand it up! Urgh!’
Fortunately, the cart’s platform could be tilted—just like a modern dump truck emptying its load.
This feature was originally meant to dump transported lumber in one go.
Creak! Creak! Creak!
Lloyd worked the lever, moving it up and down repeatedly.
The mechanism groaned loudly with each pull.
The platform gradually tilted, and the mermaid statue rose upright along with it.
Finally, a satisfied smile spread across Lloyd’s face.
‘Perfect.’
The slight tilt made it look just right.
For the final step, Lloyd secured the statue tightly to the cart using several layers of rope.
Even if the cart shook violently while speeding, the statue wouldn’t fall off.
With everything set, he felt confident.
‘These ropes are strong enough to anchor hundreds of tons of ships. This should be more than enough.’
After confirming everything, Lloyd took one last rope and tied it to Ppodong’s waist.
He let the rope trail back to the cart, connecting it securely.
“Alright, Ppodong.”
“Ppodong?”
“Are you ready to run?”
“Ppodong!”
Ppodong’s black eyes shone with determination.
“Then let’s go! Hyaa!”
Smack!
Lloyd lightly slapped Ppodong’s back.
With explosive force, her chubby body burst forward.
The massive cart, dragged by her monstrous strength, lurched into motion.
Rumble…
At first, it moved slowly.
But then, it steadily gained speed.
And then—BOOM!—it exploded forward.
“Let’s gooooo!”
“Ppodong!”
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Every time Ppodong’s feet struck the ground, the earth cracked beneath her.
As dirt exploded into the air, the massive cart surged forward.
Leaving the shipyard behind, they raced onward.
In an instant, they left the city.
Their destination—the western coastal cliffs.
Where Gigatitan was rampaging.
“Straight ahead!”
“Ppodong!”
They charged directly toward Gigatitan.
The giant cart behind them rattled and clattered, bouncing over the rugged coastal terrain.
Clang! Clang! Clatter!
The uneven rocks made the cart jump and shudder like a wild bumper car.
It shook violently, rattled madly, but kept moving forward.
Naturally, the mermaid statue on the cart also shook fiercely.
Clatter! Clatter!
Its neck bobbed wildly.
Its arms flailed like a crazy puppet.
And because of that—Gigatitan’s gaze turned toward them.
At that moment, Gigatitan’s eyes locked onto it.
Its sworn enemy.
Its greatest foe.
A mermaid.
And not just any mermaid—a massive, terrifying mermaid.
One that was charging straight at it.
One that was… dancing wildly in 16-bit pixel motion.
Grruuuuuuhhhkk!
Gigatitan immediately turned its body.
It completely forgot about Javier, whom it had been relentlessly chasing until just now.
Instead, it now saw the dancing mermaid statue as its new, biggest threat.
And it reacted.
Like kids rushing toward a wacky inflatable tube man at a store opening.
Like a desperate job seeker spotting a “Buy One, Get One Free” fried chicken deal.
It charged directly toward the cart.
With a fierce roar, it swung its massive club-like forelimbs.
Slaaash!
“Turn!”
Lloyd shouted.
He pulled on Ppodong’s right ear.
Understanding instantly, Ppodong veered hard to the right.
The cart, still connected by multiple ropes, followed suit.
BOOOOOM!
A sound like a bomb exploding echoed.
The ground shook violently as Gigatitan’s attack slammed into the spot where they had been just moments before.
But even as the earth trembled, Ppodong kept running.
And so did Lloyd.
‘I’m so glad I learned horseback riding from Javier!’
Lloyd had been steadily learning horseback riding on the way to this city.
Thanks to that, he could stay on Ppodong’s back even as she sprinted at insane speeds.
But he couldn’t relax just yet.
“Faster!”
“Ppodong!”
Boom! Boom!
The powerful mermaid statue continued its fantastic popping dance.
Gigatitan was completely enthralled by the sight, charging forward with reckless abandon.
And with every earth-shaking stomp, Lloyd felt like he was balancing on a tightrope while carrying a barrel of explosives.
“Even faster! Run! And, Javier, damn it! Hurry up already!”
Lloyd’s urgent shout rang through the air.
They had successfully drawn Gigatitan’s aggro.
Now it was Javier’s turn to finish the job.
‘This is exactly why I never wanted this role!’
All he ever wanted was to pay off his family’s debts.
That was all.
That’s why he worked so damn hard.
Even today, he had planned to just stay low and out of trouble.
Yet somehow, here he was—shouldering this ridiculous risk.
Lloyd let out a deep sigh, cursing his fate.
‘This is all because of that damn novel protagonist with his hero complex!’
Even as he furiously guided Ppodong, he shot a resentful glare upward.
And then, he saw it—
Javier, soaring through the sky like a thunderbolt.
Fwoosh!
Gigatitan was completely exposed, too focused on chasing Lloyd to defend itself.
Javier launched himself straight toward the monster’s weak spot.
His sword drew back—
Ready to strike with precision.
And then, like a lightning bolt—
Thwaaaack—!
Javier unleashed his strongest technique.
A devastating explosion erupted.