Bone Lord 4, стр. 37

but after our food and water ran out a few days later, many started to wish they had been killed by the kraken. One by one, they perished from thirst. Some drank seawater and went insane; others chose to kill themselves by sliding overboard and drowning rather than enduring the terrible death that comes from thirst. I was determined to cling to life. I prayed fervently to Xayon through my ordeal, believing, even when death seemed inevitable, that somehow my prayers would be answered, and by some miracle, I would be rescued. And now, surely enough, my prayers were answered. Praise Xayon, and praise you, Lord Chauzec, God of Death!”

“Sometimes, prayers are answered,” I said, “if you pray to the right gods.”

Zhenwan chuckled and clasped his hands together, then bowed his forehead into the knuckles of his clasped hands in a gesture of deep respect in Yeng, akin to kneeling before a king or a lord.

“Thank you, Lord Chauzec,” he said.

“Which direction did you come from?” I asked. “I mean, do you have a rough idea of how far you’ve traveled in the dinghy, and roughly where the kraken attacked you? You said earlier that you went out on deck that night to look at the stars. Do you know how to navigate by them?”

“Ah, very wise. You wish to avoid the area. Unfortunately, you will have to rely on luck to avoid the beast. I do not know how to navigate via the stars and have no idea how far we drifted on that terrible boat, or in which direction we came from.”

“The thing is, though, Zhenwan,” I said, “I’m not actually trying to avoid the kraken. I’m hoping to find it.”

Zhenwan’s jaw dropped open. “L-Lord Chauzec, did you not understand my tale? Did I not make the beast’s tremendous power and destructive might clear enough to you? The ship we were on was a little smaller than this warship, but I have no doubt that the kraken could destroy this ship just as easily. You must try to avoid the creature at all costs!”

“As you might have noticed,” I said to him, “my fleet is a little smaller than that of the Transcendent Sails’, and while I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve, and some powerful friends, I don’t know if we could take on 50 warships as we are. I need a secret weapon, a weapon that can split a ship in half. I need a kraken. Two would be even better, and three would make me happier than a pig in shit.”

“You don’t understand,” Zhenwan said, “the kraken is— ”

“You had faith that you’d be rescued from that dinghy,” I interrupted him. “Despite how hopeless your situation seemed. Do you remember?”

“Y-yes, Lord Chauzec.”

“Then have faith that when I find the kraken—and I will find it—I’ll kill it, resurrect it, and make it the most powerful weapon on the High Seas.”

Zhenwan finally managed to force the incredulous look off his face, and he nodded slowly. “Very well. You’re right, Lord Chauzec. Against all odds, you rescued me from certain death. You are truly a mighty god, the likes of which I did not know the universe to hold. Should luck, good or ill, bring the kraken your way, I trust you could kill it if you wished.”

At this point, Elyse tentatively interrupted, begging us to let Zhenwan rest and have something to eat. The conversation had run its course, and the Yengishman seemed to desire some rest, so I agreed.

“He can have one of the empty cabins below deck,” I said. “He could probably use a comfy bunk. And Anna-Lucielle, can you use your Charm powers to induce a long, restorative sleep?”

She nodded, and after Rollar had gently picked up the emaciated Yengishman, she and Elyse followed the two of them below deck. I paced the deck, allowing myself to get lost in thought.

With the news that there was a fleet of around 50 Transcendent Sails ships patrolling the sea looking for me, I was now more determined than ever to find a kraken or two. I remembered how, when my mind was in the body of one of my zombie sharks, I’d been able to sense the presence of other sea creatures miles away. I wondered if the whale could do the same, and if it could, I assumed it would have even more finely attuned senses, given the depths it could roam in. And down in the depths is exactly where it would have to go to hunt down my future zombie kraken.

I’d killed enough enemy troops in this first naval battle that I figured another skill would be ripe for the plucking on the Gray Tree. I closed my eyes, and in an instant, I was there, on the glassy black plain. Sure enough, a new skill was glowing in the upper branches of the Gray Sentinel. I’d long since learned that the laws of physics in the real world didn’t apply to this realm, and a thought struck me: why had I always wasted time climbing up the branches of the tree when I could get there much quicker just by jumping? After all, when I’d gone to see Isu’s withered tree, I’d covered a mile or two in a single leap. Surely the same principle would apply when jumping vertically?

There was no way to find out but to try. I tensed the muscles of my legs like tightly coiled springs and then jumped upward with all my might. I’d always been pretty good at running and jumping, but the highest I’d ever managed back in the real world was a couple of feet. Now, however, I soared up a hundred feet with ease and landed smoothly on the branch next to the new skill fruit.

The glowing three-dimensional image was one of a blacksmith at a fiery forge, but the flames were not orange. They were an inky black, and the anvil was made of bone. The blacksmith was a grinning skeleton,