Meeting the Enemy -monster-

While the Kingdom's fleet and Archipelago Union's fleet were staring

each other down across a wall of flames, far away in her office in Valois,

the capital of the Gran Chaos Empire, Empress Maria was standing by the

window, looking outside.

Jeanne, the Little Sister General, called to her, "Sister. Is it around time

for the Kingdom's and the Archipelago Union's fleets to be facing one

another?"

"Hee hee, yes, it is. I'm sure everyone will be quite surprised by the

result."

Hearing her response, Jeanne clutched her temples and let out a sigh. "It

surprised me, too, during that meeting. I never thought I'd ever hear you

support King Souma sending a fleet to the Nine-Headed Dragon

Archipelago. The idea of you endorsing an invasion was unfathomable."

"Oh, I don't recall Sir Souma or I ever mentioning an 'invasion' or

anything of the sort, you know?" Maria gave a mischievous chuckle, irking

Jeanne a little.

"That's certainly true, but... he said that if he didn't strike at the root of

the illegal fishing problem, he'd just be playing whack-a-mole, didn't he?

From the way he was talking, isn't it natural to assume he was referring to

the Archipelago Union's fleet as the 'root of the problem'?"

"We received information that the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago

was troubled by attacks by a massive sea creature... I believe they call it

'Ooyamizuchi' there. Because it prevents the islands' fishermen from

catching fish, or even taking their boats out in the nearby waters—forcing

them to go out to regions where they aren't welcome—I think you may be

right."

"You're saying that King Souma was after Ooyamizuchi from the

beginning, then?"

"Yes, and so was Nine-Headed Dragon King Shana." Maria placed her

silk-gloved hand on the windowsill. "That's why he came to us to help

broker peace, too. In order to bring the fleets of the fiercely independent

island chiefs together, there needed to be an external threat. He believed

that even if they didn't unite in the face of Ooyamizuchi, they would have

to if they sensed an imminent invasion by the Kingdom's fleet. Our calls for

peace must have helped drum up a sense of urgency, which led to them

working together."

"...And you cooperated because you understood all that, Sister."

Jeanne let out a sigh that was half admiration, half exasperation, and

Maria smiled happily.

"Oh, I hadn't seen through all of it. This is what we get for believing in

the sincerity of our ally."

"I think a large part of what makes you so incredible is your ability to

find the people you ought to trust, and to believe in them so earnestly."

"My, you're certainly heaping on the praise today," Maria said teasingly,

and Jeanne blushed.

"N-Not really. I always have a great deal of respect for you. It's just that

you have a tendency to slack off, and then I'm forced to nag..."

"Hee hee, sorry about that." Suddenly, Maria's smile vanished.

"However, the real trouble is yet to come. Ooyamizuchi is such a threat that

Sir Souma and Sir Shana each felt the need to bring the might of two

nations to bear against it, after all."

"Ah...! You have a point. It's a threat to us as well. It would have been

better if we could have helped, too."

"That wasn't an option, I'm afraid. If we'd mobilized our forces, the

island chiefs caught in the middle between us would grow unduly cautious.

If we couldn't coordinate our actions when the time came to actually fight

together, it would defeat the purpose."

"Then we have no choice but to leave it to Sir Souma and his people, I

suppose," Jeanne said, sounding frustrated, and Maria smiled.

"Let us believe in the victory of our allies."

◇ ◇ ◇

Around the time that the Kingdom's and Archipelago Union's fleets had

joined up and moved into action under the direction of Shana, Shabon and

Kishun came to visit us on the bridge.

"Sir Souma..." Shabon said, a pained look on her face.

Seeing her expression, I told Excel, "We're stepping out for a while.

Look after things in the meantime."

"Understood, sire."

Having left Excel in charge, I headed to the captain's quarters with

everyone else. Juna and I sat on a sofa in the reception room while Shabon

and Kishun sat across from us, with Aisha and Naden standing inside and

outside the door to keep anyone from listening in.

The moment we sat down, Shabon was the first to speak, "You were

connected to my father, were you not, Sir Souma?"

Given the confidence in the way she said that, it was safe to assume she

already knew what was up to some degree. When I nodded, she looked

shocked.

"...Since when?"

"Since long before the two of you even arrived in my Kingdom. It was a

little after we caught one of the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago's armed

ships, so that would put it just before my coronation ceremony, I guess."

"That long ago..."

We had been able to find out about Ooyamizuchi and the predicament

the archipelago was in from the crew of the ship that Castor captured. Back

then, I still had no idea what the Nine-Headed Dragon King's intentions

were, but a little after that, I received an unofficial emissary from Shana.

"I thought he would be demanding the return of his armed ship, but

instead, his messenger delivered an apology for the illegal fishing of his

countrymen, and payment for our losses. That's when he brought this plan

to us as well."

"...My father paid compensation for your losses? Truly?"

"Yeah. That's likely what the tax hike you mentioned went to. And the

Kingdom used that money to compensate our own fishermen who had been

harmed. To make this quick, Sir Shana was paying the Kingdom to let your

people continue fishing illegally."

Well, when you consider that he was paying for it, I'm not sure it was

fair to call it "illegal" anymore. Once we started receiving the money, the

Kingdom's patrol ships shifted to a policy of allowing them to fish for

whatever seemed like a reasonable amount of time before driving the

foreign boats off—though, only the brass were in on it.

Shabon stared at me in wide-eyed disbelief.

"Why would father do things in such a roundabout manner?"

"I'm sure it was Sir Shana's last resort. The fishermen of the archipelago

attach special significance to going out to sea to fish, so it would be

humiliating for them to ask another country to let them do it, right? That

would have made their lowered spirits, from the ongoing Ooyamizuchi

problem, sink into an even worse place. Also, if he was going to request our

assistance in slaying the kaiju, he needed to make sure it wasn't opposed by

fishermen inside the Kingdom. This was the way he chose to thread that

needle."

Having explained all this, I sighed and shrugged my shoulders.

"I think you already understand the rest, right, Madam Shabon? In order

to bring together the fleets of the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago—

which wouldn't unite without a foreign threat—we set the Kingdom up as a

fictitious enemy and agitated the island chiefs. Once all the ships were

gathered in that region of the sea, we sent up a smoke signal and used the

Law of the Sea, which no seaman can ignore, to bring everyone together."

"It was all calculated... Then why do you suppose Father would not tell

me about it?"

"He probably didn't want to get you involved. Right now, the soldiers of

the Archipelago Union's fleet are excited by the fact that their enemies have

just become allies, but once they calm down, some of them are going to feel

that Sir Shana played them. In order to mollify those people, I suspect that

Sir Shana likely plans to abdicate the throne once this battle is over."

"Father..." Shabon lowered her eyes in sadness.

Kishun leaned closer and said, "Then why did you not tell Lady Shabon

that?!"

"As if I could. The plan was in motion since before the two of you came

to me. I had to take Sir Shana's intentions into account, even if that meant

Madam Shabon would be saddened as a result."

"But still... this is... It is simply too cruel, is it not?" Kishun protested.

"...I did warn you, you know? I said you were guaranteed to regret it." I

looked him straight in the eyes. "I knew because it was a regret that we had

experienced ourselves."

"You had, Sir Souma?"

"Yeah. I can't go into details, but I know how Madam Shabon feels now.

When I think of a certain man's incredible sacrifice... even if it was all for

our benefit, I can't help but lament it. I still question if there really wasn't

another way. Though, I'm sure the man himself would tell me to let these

conflicted feelings spur me onward... I don't know whether that's in

kindness or in scorn," I said, thinking back to Liscia's tears that day.

Kishun fell silent. He must have sensed that I was speaking nothing but

the truth.

Hearing this, Shabon spoke up, "You were aware of Ooyamizuchi before

I told you, and already working on countermeasures. Does that mean

everything I did was in vain?" There was a pathetic look on her face.

"That's not true," I replied, shaking my head. "Your independent actions

let me and my retainers get into the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago

ahead of time. That allowed us to gather information on Ooyamizuchi,

refine our understanding considerably, and improve our plans. That's not

something Sir Shana could have done with the restrictions he faced. I think

your direct appeal to me will be important in helping to justify everything

after the battle is over, too. You definitely were able to support Sir Shana."

"I was... helping my father?" Shabon blinked, and I gave her a firm nod.

"This all happened because of everyone trying to bring about the best

result they could. And now..."

"We just have to put down Ooyamizuchi, and make that best result a

reality, yes?" Shabon concluded, some strength having returned to her eyes.

The way she could accept things and move on spoke well of her as the

princess of a nation. Shana's determination, Shabon's sadness, and all the

victims of that creature... We had to slay Ooyamizuchi to make sure it

wasn't all in vain.

We steeled ourselves for what was to come.

◇ ◇ ◇

A little earlier, around the time when the Kingdom's and Archipelago

Union's fleets came into visual range of one another, a group of men on

nearby Ikatsuru Island wearing happi coats and loincloths were busy at

work. They were dressed like fishermen, but were actually soldiers from

Nine-Headed Dragon Island. From the air, Ikatsuru looked like a crescent

moon, and there was an inlet on the inside of the crescent. The men

unloaded cargo from a ship in that inlet, and loaded it onto a cart, then

carried it inland.

"Aww, damn it, this place reeks," the human man pushing the cart

grumbled.

Like he said, the usually uninhabited Ikatsuru Island currently had a

bizarre smell to it.

The wolf-faced beastman beside him grimaced. "You've got it easy. It's

really tough on those of us with sensitive noses."

"Come on, this is pretty bad for us, too. I'm never gonna get it out of my

clothes."

"The wife's gonna give me hell when I get back..."

"Hey, less chatter, more work," their merman mononofu overseer

cautioned them. But they both complained.

"The stench of fish and blood is driving us crazy here!"

"It's a depressing sight, you know?"

The two of them were looking at the little mountain that was the source

of the unpleasant smell: a mountain of fish. This was more than what could

be caught in the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago's waters at this time,

which meant it had to have been brought in from another country. The fish

was surrounded by a pool of blood from freshly slaughtered livestock, all of

which permeated into the ungodly stench surrounding them.

"It's such a waste... These fish could have fed so many people."

"You must know what this operation is for," the mononofu chided the

man. "If we ate them, nothing would change. However, by using them here,

we can solve the problem and change our fortunes. After this, we'll catch

far more fish in the long run."

"...That's true. If we can solve the problem, that is."

As the two conversed, the watchtower up on high ground began to

pound on the wooden alarm bell.

"The fog's come out!"

"The fog's come out!"

"The fog's come out!"

Three men shouted one after another, as if playing a game of telephone.

"...It's finally here, huh?"

The mononofu looked in the direction of the sea.

"Raise the smoke signal at once! Send a message from island to island

for Lord Shana! Everyone else, retreat at once! We'll abandon the ship in

the inlet and escape in the boats on the opposite side of the island!" he

ordered immediately. As the men ran around hurriedly, the mononofu glared

into the fog and said, "Keep on coming. This is where you meet your end."

◇ ◇ ◇

This was the hardest problem when it came to slaying Ooyamizuchi: It

was an amphibious creature. Dealing with it on land was one thing, but if it

dove underwater, the forces of mankind could do nothing to it. Magic was

less effective at sea, and with the gunpowder available in this world, even if

we built depth charges, they probably wouldn't be able to hurt it. There

were no submarines or heat-seeking torpedoes in this world, either.

Because of this, King Shana had sought to lure Ooyamizuchi ashore,

then rapidly eliminate it with the combined might of the Kingdom's and

Archipelago Union's navies.

To be specific: he piled a ton of bait on Ikatsuru Island, which was along

Ooyamizuchi's route, and then used both fleets to surround the island.

Then, with the creature trapped in a shallow inlet, they would attack until it

was dead.

"The time has finally come," Excel said with a pensive look on her face.

She, Juna, and I were watching the Kingdom's and Archipelago Union's

fleets cruise together from the deck of the Albert II.

"Indeed. The timing only just barely worked out. I was sweating for a

moment there..."

"Hee hee, I'm sure you were, but the boy you discovered is really

something. Sir Ichiha, was it? He predicted Ooyamizuchi's actions

perfectly. I'll look forward to seeing what he does in the future."

"You said it. Now if only he had a little more confidence in himself...

Then he'd make a reliable big brother figure for Cian and Kazuha."

If I was going to name an MVP for this operation, it would have to be

Ichiha. He managed to come up with an effective plan of attack after

reviewing the intel and seeing the creature, then also worked out its route,

which allowed us to settle on Ikatsuru Island as the location for the

operation. This was all possible because we were able to come to the

islands in advance, so you could say that Shabon and Kishun's efforts had

some importance, too.

As I was thinking about that, Excel stopped smiling and said, "But, sire,

the real battle starts here. We can't afford to fail."

"...I know. If we do, then everything will have been in vain. There's no

hope of negotiating with this enemy. It's a kaiju. We have to fight until

either it's dead, or we are."

"Um... you keep calling Ooyamizuchi a 'kaiju,' right, sire?" Juna, who

was standing next to me, asked with an uneasy look on her face. "Can we

beat a kaiju?"

"Well... I feel like back in the world I came from, or at least my country

specifically, most of the kaiju that appeared in our stories were immune to

human weapons," I said, thinking back to all the kaiju movies I had

watched. "That had to be because in my country the kaiju usually

symbolized God, nature, or a natural disaster. Like, humanity is tiny next to

the immensity of nature. Oh, and some were symbolic of the sins of the

civilization that created them."

Pollution, weapons of mass destruction, genetic manipulation... just to

name a few. I think the kaiju that came out of that country were a projection

of people's sense of guilt for those negative products of civilization. While

monster movies from other countries tended to end with the creature

yielding to the power of human civilization, that country's kaiju were so

strong they couldn't be defeated without the power of the giant of light...

and they were sad, too. I feel like, to them, kaiju were something that

"should not be defeated."

Because they believed the sins of civilization could not be erased, but... I

shook my head.

"The people of this world didn't create Ooyamizuchi. It's not their sin.

That's why I believe we can overcome it."

When I said that, Juna replied, "Yes," with a smile.

◇ ◇ ◇

Up out of the sea, a mountainous form crawled onto Ikatsuru Island. Its

head had a mixture of the features of both a dragon and sea dragon, while

its back was a massive bivalve shell resembling a giant clam. Underneath it,

eight thick tentacles covered in a crustacean carapace wriggled like an

octopus's as it slid forward.

Ooyamizuchi.

The kaiju (or at least that's what Souma called it) that had been

tormenting the people of the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago. Wrapped in

the mist that came from the bivalve shell on its back, Ooyamizuchi crawled

across the island on long, writhing tentacles. Due to its incredible weight,

there were earthquake-like tremors each time one of those tentacles struck

the ground. Ooyamizuchi had been drawn to this island by the intense

stench of the bait left here.

The creature pressed forward, mowing down any tree that got in the way

as it went. Once it reached roughly the center of the island, Ooyamizuchi

spotted the bait—a mountain of fish and livestock that had been bled out.

There had been no large creatures in this area of late, so this was hardly

going to be enough to sate Ooyamizuchi's appetite, but it was still a feast. It

stretched its head out to tear into the mountain of fish. Then, using the

crustacean pincers on the end of its tentacles, it lobbed one of the livestock

into its mouth.

It had taken some time for it to get ashore due to the nature of its body,

but it was less than five minutes before it had consumed all of the bait. With

its feeding frenzy finished, Ooyamizuchi noticed a presence approaching

the island. Many "blood-like scents" were coming towards it.

Ooyamizuchi couldn't have known it was the smell of iron, but it could

tell instinctively that the things were a threat to it. With a rumbling turn,

Ooyamizuchi headed back the way it had come, but by the time the kaiju

had reached the shallows, the Kingdom and Archipelago Union's fleets had

encircled Ikatsuru Island. In the middle of that fleet, the captain of the

Hiryuu, Castor, couldn't help but let out a sigh of admiration when he saw

how gigantic Ooyamizuchi was.

"What is that thing? It's beyond massive."

"It really is. Rhinosauruses look small and cute in comparison," his XO

agreed in an exasperated tone. "I shudder to think there's a beast like that

out at sea. It's going to take no small amount of naval might to deal with it."

"I can see why my lord and the Nine-Headed Dragon King wanted to

work together. I doubt any country's navy has records of battling a creature

like that before."

"Slaying a monster of that size is the stuff of legends," the XO said with

complete seriousness and Castor smiled wryly.

"Legends, huh? Well, good. They'll be telling tales of our battle for a

long time to come."

"...They certainly will. I'd rather it not be with us as the losers."

"Naturally. Being the commander of a defeated army once was enough

for me. So... we're gonna win this."

Castor adjusted his captain's hat, and gave the order.

"This is a message for all ships! The operation to slay Ooyamizuchi

starts now!"