## Chapter 252 – The Butcher of the Beach
I found lodging again behind the ridge.
We stayed there, going down to the beach every morning to hunt the mermen.
The war was still fierce, and it seemed like it wouldn’t end until one side was defeated. Thanks to that, I was making a decent amount of money. Let’s put in the effort until the bounties run out.
“Come here, please! Where are you going! Don’t go!”
I wailed.
ㅡGwaaaaaaaack!!!
The merman, having thrown his coral sword, desperately tried to escape. But I wasn’t about to lose a running race. With their amphibian physique and inferior breathing, they could never escape me.
“Stay with me, please! Why are you running away!”
ㅡGwaack! Gwaaaaaack!!!
“Kamchatka Drop Kiiiiick!!!”
I put all my running speed into a dropkick, and the merman collapsed with a pained cry. I impulsively stabbed my bastard sword into his back.
“…It’s your fault. This wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t run away.”
ㅡGwaet… Gwaaaaa…
“Aaaaaaaah!!!!”
With that, the merman went limp.
I sheathed my sword and pulled out a knife. Live fish sashimi. I immediately sliced off a chunk of flesh from his thigh, washed the blood off the meat with water from my canteen, and shoved it into my mouth.
ㅡMunch munch.
“I’m so… happy!”
Kim Kamchatka, a pacifist who hated violence and war, didn’t originally enjoy doing such murderous acts. But the mermen were so delicious that I hunted not for money, but to eat my prey.
Is this the joy of hunting?
This must be the feeling anglers get when they go sea fishing.
As I was ravenously devouring the sashimi, Winia approached.
“Kamchatka. I don’t usually think this, but you’re kind of grossing me out lately.”
“Are you going to complain about what I’m eating? You ate it deliciously too.”
“That was cooked.”
“Don’t you know the original taste of the ingredient?”
“I know Kamchatka is crazy.”
“You philistine.”
Not knowing the taste of sashimi, Winia was missing out on half of her life. Not knowing this savory taste is a huge loss.
“Kamchatka, is it good?”
“It’s freaking delicious. But it’s a bit of an acquired taste.”
Since I’ve been eating it every day, Claudia seems to have become interested as well.
She put her hands on her knees, leaned in, and said.
“Can I have a bite too?”
“Of course!”
Is she finally going to get into sashimi after initially showing a bad reaction like Winia? I happily washed a slice of meat with water and held it out to Claudia.
Claudia brushed her hair behind her ear and slowly took it… It was a little erotic. A small wrinkle formed on her brow as she closed her eyes and savored the taste of the sashimi.
“…”
She seemed a little distressed as she swallowed with difficulty and said.
“…Yeah. It’s good. But I don’t think it’s really my taste.”
It was already written all over her face.
Was she saying it was good out of consideration for me?
“I feel a little bad that I’m the only one enjoying it.”
“It’s okay.”
To not be able to share this joy.
“Kamchatka is cute like a puppy, but this is really dog-like. You can’t just eat anything, Kamchatka. Honestly, I don’t think it’s very good for your health.”
“No. It’s good for you. It’s natural, so it’s full of nutrients.”
“Bullshit.”
Anyway, the other adventurers seemed to have gotten used to the mermen, and things had mostly stabilized except for the coastline. It seemed like the mermen were suffering serious losses, but I couldn’t understand why they were still attacking.
Even if the soldiers were pushed back a little, they could be repelled with enough reinforcements. What did they want that they were invading like this?
Perhaps the lord of the deep sea, unable to bear the sight of humans polluting the ocean any longer, had ordered the invasion to wipe out humanity.
It seemed doomed to fail, though.
“We are recruiting comrades to enter the waterway! Are there any brave souls who will join us!”
Many adventurers were gathered in front of the entrance to the underground waterway. Since the mermen were using this place to invade, people naturally gathered. There were groups who wanted to go inside and preemptively hunt the mermen.
“Should we go in too?”
“It smells.”
“Ugh… I don’t think it’s a good idea either.”
“Is that so.”
Currently, there weren’t many prey other than on the coastline. Naturally, the income was decreasing compared to the first day. It was almost a boring time.
***
That’s how we spent a few leisurely days.
From the morning, news came that the coastal defense line had been breached.
It was an urgent report that the surviving soldiers were retreating, and the mermen were surging forward like a tide. A messenger, sweating profusely, ran up to the guild to deliver the news.
“Is this bad?”
I never thought the soldiers would be defeated.
If the mermen pushed up to this point, we wouldn’t be able to receive any rewards. If that happened, the adventurers would have no reason to fight and would run away.
It seemed like it would be better to pack up and leave.
Let’s come back to the sea next time.
I should run away for now.
“Sigh, I couldn’t get back into the sea after all.”
Winia said regretfully.
It really broke my heart.
“It can’t be helped. Let’s come back when it gets warmer next year.”
“I guess so.”
“Or do you want to go to a lake?”
“There are a lot of bugs at the lake. I don’t like it.”
“That’s true.”
I had fun with Claudia back then. We had a good time outdoors back then. It’s a really beautiful memory. A wide lake with no one around… It’s not bad.
“Kamchatka. Shall we go take a look for a moment?”
“Take a look?”
“Yeah. I want to see what the situation is.”
I nodded and went outside as Claudia said. The mermen would be coming up the slope now.
It would be fun to watch.
Let’s make one last memory before we go back.
“Set up camp here! No more retreat is allowed!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Yes, sir!”
When I went outside, I saw soldiers setting up camp not far away. All the soldiers who had been spread out along the coast had retreated to the high ground.
We went up to the roof of a nearby building to check the situation.
Claudia, who scanned the coast with her superior eyesight, said.
“The mermen keep landing. There are so many… Oh my? There are big ones too?”
“Big ones?”
“Yeah. I think those guys annihilated the soldiers.”
Beyond the Sahagins, is a Sea Giant attacking? When I looked in the direction Claudia pointed, I could see some huge guys in the distance.
Claudia’s eyes sparkled, saying she wanted to try fighting them.
As expected of a Headhunter.
She wanted to kill any monster she saw for the first time.
“Sis. You can’t just go when they’re swarming like that.”
“I guess not. What a shame.”
Looking at it, the adventurers seemed to have sensed the danger and were running away. As a result, only the soldiers were left as the defense force. If they were pushed back from the coastline and the adventurers left, they would be defeated here too.
There seemed to be no end to the mermen’s procession.
There was no sign of reinforcements coming… Should we run away too?
I immediately went down to the ground floor, returned to the inn, and prepared to run away. The innkeeper was also fussing about, saying he was going to evacuate. I packed my bags and went outside.
“Well, I made a lot of money anyway. I spent a lot, but I’ve almost made it all back.”
I was almost grateful to the mermen.
They filled my belly and filled my purse.
The mermen are so generous.
“Kamchatka, did you pack all your luggage?”
“Yeah. I put it all in my backpack.”
I had neatly folded all the clothes and souvenirs I had bought. The corners of my mouth went up for no reason. They were provocative swimsuits with little fabric that could be ‘used’ as much as I wanted when I got back.
I think I’m getting addicted to buying clothes for the bedroom.
I’m happy, and they’re happy too, so there are only advantages.
Especially when Winia wore clothes the size of Claudia’s, it was very good.
Her overflowing breasts couldn’t even properly cover her areolas, and Winia’s expression of annoyance and embarrassment, as if she thought her appearance was a little vulgar, was a masterpiece.
Ah, good.
“Kamchatka. Let’s go then. There are so many of those fish, it’s going to be a pain to break through if they come all the way here.”
“Okay. Let’s go quickly.”
We moved to the opposite side of the beach.
Refugees and adventurers were mixed together, running away. We could take a carriage after going a reasonable distance. Maybe it would be safe if we just went to the back.
Just like humans need supplies, the mermen would need seawater. My guess was that they would shrivel up if they didn’t constantly get seawater.
ㅡKyaaaaaaack!!!
ㅡAaaaaaaack!!
Then, screams came from the front.
“Are we a little late?”
“I guess so. Tsk.”
Winia clicked her tongue, and Claudia drew her sword.
It seemed that mermen using other routes had reached this point. Honestly, I didn’t think the top would last much longer either… If we delayed any longer, we might be surrounded.
“Kamchatka.”
“Yeah. Let’s break through if there’s anything.”
ㅡSwoosh.
We moved quickly through the crowd.
ㅡGwaaaaaack!
ㅡGwaaaaaaaack!
ㅡGwaet! Gwaet!
Sure enough, the mermen were attacking from the front. Armed with tridents and coral swords, they were fighting with the fleeing people.
“Ughack!”
“Save me!”
“Go quickly!”
It was literally a chaotic situation. An adventurer who drew his weapon split the merman’s head, and the refugees screamed and pushed the person in front of them to escape.
The number of mermen was increasing more and more.
People who collided with the fiercely rushing mermen and fell were also appearing one after another. The mermen stabbed their spears and swords without mercy.
“Oh, shit! This is more dangerous than I thought!”
I immediately changed direction slightly. We couldn’t properly escape or fight in such a chaotic state. As soon as I changed direction, three mermen rushed at me.
“Alright! Come on!”
“Kamchatka, stay behind me.”
As I was about to take off my backpack, Claudia jumped forward.
ㅡSwoosh!
She instantly slaughtered the three mermen. Since we didn’t need their heads anymore, we just ignored the corpses. The merman’s thigh flickered in front of my eyes, but I suppressed my appetite.
Now is not the time for that.
The procession became more chaotic due to the continuous joining of refugees, and the mermen were advancing endlessly, spitting saliva.
“Retreat! Retreat!”
Then, a loud voice came from behind.
It was the commander of the soldiers.
“Did those bastards already get through!”
When I looked back, soldiers who had taken off all their weapons and helmets were running down in a hurry. Following behind them was… as expected, a huge number of mermen!
The mermen were rushing in from the sides and back!
“Oh my fucking god! This is really bad! Run!”
It seemed that the mermen had poured all their forces in for a short-term battle! The city was completely fucked. There was no way to break through if we collided with that kind of quantity! Also, if they had seawater, they could land anywhere, so their mobility was also excellent!
I concentrated my strength on my legs and ran. Fortunately, I was running downhill, so I could maintain my speed. Winia ran next to me, hugging her staff and supporting her chest, and Claudia was running in front.
ㅡKkyaaaaaaack!!!
Screams continued to be heard from behind.
They were the screams of those who had already been caught or had fallen after being attacked by thrown spears. No matter how weak the mermen were, there was no answer if they came in such a large army! Also, if they had seawater, they could land anywhere, so their mobility was also excellent!
“We’re going to get surrounded!”
Eventually, we were able to reach a city on the plain.
“Uh… Kamchatka. What are we going to do? Aren’t we screwed?”
“I think we’re screwed.”
“Which way should we go…”
However, the mermen were also rampaging in the city.
ㅡSplat!
“Kaaaaaack!”
Flames rose here and there, and escapees were being killed by mermen everywhere. I focused on dealing with the guys who were attacking us and set a direction.
ㅡGwaack! Gwaaaaaaaack!
ㅡGwaaaaaack!!
Mermen were closing in from all directions!
“Run for now!”
From the front, almost a platoon of mermen were charging with their tridents raised. Winia, who was chanting while running, stuck a fire arrow in, and Claudia passed through the gap that was briefly created by the explosion, slashing with her sword.
A path that was created for a moment!
I protected Winia with my body and sword and passed through there.
Even so, the mermen kept rushing in endlessly.
