Chapter 96

[Title: Why Merfolk Are Just So Annoying EU…jpg]

(A gif of merfolk flapping around near a lake)

(A gif of an angry fisherman rushing to catch them)

(A gif of hidden merfolk trying to drag the fisherman underwater)

These little bastards are incredibly irritating!

Each one of them is nothing special, yet they keep acting all high and mighty.

When I get angry and approach them, they suddenly swarm out like they’re waiting for me, trying to kidnap me with water;

I seriously want to tear them apart, I mean it.

[Upvotes: 101] [Downvotes: 2]

– Woah, it’s giving me a headache just watching.

– I feel like I’m watching my cousin, lol.

– Those brats will never fight one-on-one.

– They sneakily hide and when you get close, they swarm out, damn it.

– But isn’t that strategy?

– Yo, you’re a merfolk, aren’t you?

But why are they using the Neung Ticket EU together with jpg? Isn’t that illegal?

There are many types of merfolk.

Almost all familiar fish can appear in the form of a merfolk.

But even then, they’re equally weak.

Their hunting method is simply to stick together.

[Title: Ah; They’re Gathering Again Over There]

(A gif of them gathering in a cluster under the lake)

(A gif of them staring at people even when caught)

They weren’t this many initially, but one by one they gathered and grew ugly in numbers.

The most irritating part is that they know we can’t go into the water.

So they blatantly bulk up for a surprise attack, and it’s infuriating that we can’t do anything.

– Woah, are they doing this on purpose?

– They’re really just mocking us outright.

– I wanna catch them all and fillet them for real.

– But what language is “gege” even?

These were not your ordinary monsters.

The unique cunning of merfolk stirred up wrath in the Gallery.

But they can’t catch us, right?

I want to catch them but can’t go in.

Merfolk thoroughly exploited that point, and they plan to continue doing so.

– Gururuk?

– Guruk?

“Glad to meet you.”

Until the human knights appeared with those strange tanks at the bottom of the lake.

*

I bought a full scuba diving set.

Among it were tanks, respirators, masks, boots, and so many other preparations.

“Can I even fight after using all this?”

There’s hardly a situation where people fight underwater.

Maybe that’s why, it felt more like exploration equipment than combat gear.

If the tank gets broken or the hose snaps, it’ll be a total disaster.

It didn’t seem suitable for combat.

– Do I really have to wear this skinsuit?

– Head of the Gallery*) Yeah, you gotta, it’s cold, right?

– Then what’s the point of this mask?

– Don’t you have to open your eyes underwater?

– ?

– Head of the Gallery*) ???

There was a time I thought like that.

“Oh right, these guys used to put milk on their wounds.”

In an age when even weak people, or rather, ordinary folks couldn’t survive, in the era of medieval annihilation.

– Can’t I just open my eyes?

– Why is the water so cold?

– What’s buoyancy? Can’t I just walk around?

– I think just being able to breathe is enough? Yup?

Only the Inn Jung Gang was left.

Thanks to that, the only equipment I had left among all those items was the air tank and respirator.

I wrapped my body in steel armor as usual.

No, it didn’t stop there.

– But this air tank seems way too weak, right?

– Yup, it’ll probably crumple easily in a fight.

– How about wrapping it in steel? To make it sturdy?

– Oh, sounds good.

– Head of the Gallery*) ?

I ended up making steel helmets and bags to protect the air tanks and hoses, which could become the only weak points.

Thus, “scuba diving” became “scuba walking.”

– Clank, clank.

This phenomenon of knights in steel armor walking on the bottom of the lake occurred.

[Title: Lmao, Merfolk are Done For]

(A gif of bewildered merfolk)

(A gif of them being dragged to the surface)

Ah, lol, it’s about time to go up for air, let’s continue later ^^.

– (Ah; too scary; Kon)

– But isn’t water coming in through the armor?

– For real? Steel lowers the temperature, right?

– Author) Yeah, it would lower.

– ?

– Author) What’s the relation between the temperature of steel and my body temperature?

– ??? Oh.

– Oh, this is happening now, damn.

“My thoughts are quite different, huh?”

Of course, the merfolk quickly swam away, escaping into the cracks between rocks.

No doubt, knights sunk at the bottom of the lake could not follow those clever merfolk.

– Crack!

– Gurururuk!

But the spear could follow them.

*

Guns are hard to show their power underwater.

But throwing grenades would be just perfect for the steel-armored Gallums.

“Then water guns should work.”

A spear made from water (for underwater use) would solve that problem.

[Spear] – Page 109

Merfolk can be sneaky.

So let’s make it so they can’t be sneaky anymore.

The spear was reasonably priced, so I provided spears for knights walking underwater.

[Concept Post: What on earth do you think about this?]

(A gif of a spear being shot)

(As it embeds into a fleeing merfolk, the four prongs expand, making it impossible to remove)

I shouldn’t be the one saying it, but this idea is a bit scary.

The thought of piercing wounds and being comfortable about it is just… lol.

Others say head of the Gallery like to be nice and share, but I honestly find Head of the Gallery a bit scary.

I would never ever get on the bad side of Head of the Gallery.

[Upvotes: 5932] [Downvotes: 12]

– Ugh, ew, that’s disgusting.

– Woah, that’s gonna hurt like hell, damn!

– But isn’t the power a bit weak? I wouldn’t think it could catch anything with that.

– Author) Have you ever considered that it was intentionally made weak?

– ?

– !

– Woah, damn.

“It’s not something I made!”

To be precise, it was a weapon that the descendants of human Gallums would eventually develop.

In my eyes, it belonged to the ordinary weapon category, but it seemed otherwise from the Gallums’ perspective.

[Title: Thank you for finding comfort in my post]

(A gif of an executioner certifying)

(A gif of a prisoner giving a thumbs up next to a guillotine)

As you can see, I am an executioner.

I’m the one who cuts the line at the guillotine that you all view as an event every day, o.o

But I never hesitated or felt any guilt about killing.

Creepy? Nightmare? I don’t have such things.

So, while doing this job, I wondered if I might be a psycho…

(A gif of a spear expanding inside a merfolk’s body)

(A gif of a merfolk screaming before fainting)

Seeing that, I thought, “Oh, I’m normal!” heh.

[Upvotes: 12] [Downvotes: 0]

– For real, it looks like a toy, lol.

– Are you awake?

– It’s funny to see someone regain their sanity after seeing true madness, lol.

– (Trembling Elf Con)

– Why are the Elves just lurking around, only commenting and not doing anything?

– For real? It feels more strange with the quiet Elves;

– Is there going to be a wave or something? lol.

Most importantly, the capacity of the air tank was not large.

Naturally, the knights caught merfolk faster by bringing them out rather than catching them underwater.

Once they walked out with them skewered, the merfolk would writhe in pain until fainting.

Dragon Dragon X: Head of the Gallery…

Dragon Dragon X: You actually had a surprisingly cruel side, huh?

Dragon Dragon X: But I understand. Usually, beings like us tend to cultivate various hobbies over long years.

Head of the Gallery*: Oh?

Dragon Dragon X: For instance, I’ve often seen it develop into sadism.

Dragon Dragon X: (Hentai! Dragon Con)

Head of the Gallery*: Aahhh no!

But whatever my intentions, I successfully instilled fear in the merfolk.

The ones who used to act all high and mighty were now terrified watching their dragged comrades.

Thanks to that, the invasions of merfolk villages naturally decreased.

And hunting merfolk became easier too.

[Title: Ah lol, I’m quitting being a knight]

(A gif of dozens of merfolk corpses)

(A gif of someone carrying a sack filled with mana pills)

Merfolk hunting is extremely efficient.

You get fish meat, and mana pills fall weakly at a good ratio.

In fact, not just anyone can wear steel armor; there are also few competitors.

This merfolk-hunting thing is for real a blue ocean.

You guys should also build up your stamina and give it a try; it’s a real treat, lol.

Oh, okay, I’ll take questions.

[Upvotes: 41] [Downvotes: 1]

– So, about that question. Being a knight was originally my dream job, but since you came and the Gallery-related positions seem tier 1…

– Author) Oh?

– Do they earn more than knights?

– Author) Oh, obviously.

– Author) A formal knight earns about 2000, but if you’re good at merfolk hunting, you can earn over 5000.

– Wow, that’s insane!

– 5000? That’s rich as hell for real.

– Is it dangerous?

– Author) Even if you hide in the city, you’ll still get drafted to block waves.

– Author) Better to patrol the outskirts; merfolk hunting is way more profitable, yep.

More than anything, the appearance of merfolk naturally led to the new merfolk hunting profession.

It was different from just catching fish for meat.

With the honor of being in a Gallery-related field.

You could get monster meat, known as “monstrous fish,” and mana pills directly.

Considering that the average Gallum barely earns 1000, it was a colossal income.

And this change resulted in…

[Marketplace registration items sold out.]

[You earned 3,453 more mana pills compared to the last income.]

“Wow, even my income is increasing.”

Soon, my income changed.

The rate at which merfolk expelled mana pills was significantly higher than the difficulty level,

And to target that, merfolk hunters borrowed ponds from the village to gather pills and paid a small rental fee.

Moreover, with the sudden increase in hunts, fish populations didn’t drastically decline.

“At this rate, I might be leveling up again soon?”

As the marketplace level increased by 1, the point production also noticeably increased.

I might soon be able to purchase items that once made my hands shake, with ease.

– Ding!

At that moment, a notification from the admin chat rang.

The sender was Full-Peel Elf.

“Surprising.”

I was a bit taken aback by the unexpected name.

Ever since Felici became the Deputy of the Gallery, we had been pretty quiet with just two admins.

“Moreover, they sent a gif.”

A sudden notification in gif form?

Just as I entered the admin chat out of curiosity.

Full-Peel Elf: (Beyond the violently shaking screen, a giant merfolk is captured)

An image of a merfolk appeared in the admin chat, and was it really fair to even call that a merfolk?

The colossal figure that shown had me questioning.

“It’s a whale.”

Full-Peel Elf: (A gif of a whale with legs running towards us)

That was a whale one could only see in the far-off sea.

Full-Peel Elf: (In the corner of the gif, the Full-Peel Elf makes a frantic escape)

Full-Peel Elf: Hyieek! Heeek!@!!!

Head of the Gallery*: Wow, Neung Ticket!

If I just take a picture and upload it to the Gallery, this should easily surpass Neung cut.

Full-Peel Elf: No, stop with the nonsense! Save me! Sa-save me!

Full-Peel Elf: Pleaaase save m-e!111!

A whale appeared in Elard.