I CHOSE to be a VILLAIN, not a THIRD-RATE EXTRA!!-Chapter 52: The Hunt: Reinforcements

Though the Pirate King skillfully repelled the initial strike from the Mercenary Queen, his face appeared little pale, a stark contrast to his usual fierce demeanor. His exhaustion was evident from the very moment he had surfaced from the depths of the sea.

That’s why the Pirate King chose to redirect the attack rather than taking it head-on with a direct counter.

However, the Mercenary Queen was not here for any Battle of Honor, especially when her opponent was a Pirate, and the fight was taking place on his home ground—the sea.

With ruthless efficiency, she brought her giant axe down, slicing through the air. The massive blade headed straight for the Pirate King’s temple, its deadly arc aiming to split his head in two.

CLANG!

The Pirate King reacted just in time, raising his trident to intercept the massive axe. With a mighty clash, the prongs of his weapon caught the giant blade in mid-air, locking it in a deadly embrace.

The sheer force of the impact sent a shockwave through the sea, rippling the water in violent waves.

The Pirate King’s grip tightened on the trident as the Mercenary Queen’s axe pressed down with unrelenting force.

Both the Ascended, locked in their intense battle, paid no heed to their surroundings.

A single clash of their formidable powers began to birth a natural disaster, the very air and sea responding to the ferocity of their struggle. The sea churned violently, and winds howled, waves rising like mountains, crashing against each other.

However, before the natural disaster could take full root, multiple magic circles began to materialize, their intricate designs glowing with arcane energy.

They appeared in rapid succession, surrounding the very air and sea around the Mercenary Queen and the Pirate King.

In a heartbeat, the magic circles vanished, and the energy that had gathered condensed into a singular, powerful force.

A cube of shimmering light materialized.

The cube enclosed the two Ascended, trapping them within its transparent walls. Inside, it created an artificial battlefield, one where their clash could continue unhindered, yet it did not affect the outside world.

The one who created the cube was the Head Butler, who had been quietly observing the battle unfold from the deck of the ship. His gaze had been steady and calm, but his mind was sharp, calculating the risks as the two Ascended clashed with ever-growing intensity.

He had no intention of aiding the Mercenary Queen, not after the absurd amount she had charged from the Duke. But the uncontrolled power generated from the clash of these two was an another matter entirely.

If left unchecked, the destruction they could wreak would be catastrophic. The beautiful Harbor would be reduced to rubble before the fight even reached its conclusion which would result in the Duke suffering an even greater loss.

Inside the cube, the Pirate King cursed as he locked eyes with the Mercenary Queen’s wild, mad gaze. "You battle freak bitch! This is not a dungeon. Get lost!"

The Mercenary Queen’s grin widened, a flash of savage delight lighting up her eyes as she swung her left arm with deadly precision.

The medium-sized axe in her grip gleamed as it arced toward the Pirate King’s waist.

"Bitch"

Sea God Style: Reverse Wave

In a blur of motion, the Pirate King rotated his wrist with incredible speed, his grip tightening around the trident’s shaft.

With a flick of his arm, the trident’s gleaming prongs flipped upside down, bringing the Giant Axe stuck in the prongs with it, trying to break the momentum behind the Mercenary Queen’s attack.

As if anticipating the move, the Mercenary Queen released her grip from the giant axe, allowing it to be pulled away while she increased the swing force with her left hand. A red-colored aura formed in the shape of a claw erupted from her smaller axe, aiming to strike the Pirate King.

Dual Armed Style: Hidden Claw

The Pirate King’s instincts kicked in just in time as he swung his trident sideways, attempting to deflect the Mercenary Queen’s sudden blow. But his judgment faltered for a moment.

The trident was slower than he had anticipated because he had underestimated the weight of the giant axe.

Instead of cleaving into his waist, the axe found its mark on his right forearm and then parried away by the trident.

Blood spurted from the Pirate King’s arm, the wound resembling an attack from a beast. He infused aura into his left leg and kicked, aiming for the Mercenary Queen’s stomach.

However, she managed to block in time with the base of her axe, though the force of the kick pushed her backward. The impact sent ripples of energy through the air, the sea churning violently in response.

The Mercenary Queen skidded back over the water but quickly stopped, her eyes blazing with a mixture of excitement and fury.

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The Giant Axe, which had been falling from the trident, suddenly disappeared in mid-air before it could touch the sea. In an instant, it reappeared in the hand of the Mercenary Queen.

The Pirate King’s focus narrowed to his wounded arm as he attempted to channel his aura to staunch the bleeding. He concentrated hard, willing the aura to flow into the torn flesh, but something was wrong.

No matter how hard he tried, the aura wouldn’t flow properly there was foreign lingering mana that was affecting the wound. The mana also increased the flow of blood in the wound.

His gaze instinctively shifted to the Mercenary Queen’s weapon, the medium axe, still gripped firmly in her hands.

It was then that he saw it—an unnatural swirl of black mana spiraling around the blade. The eerie, dark energy was like nothing he had encountered before. It was subtle, expertly concealed beneath the red aura of the Mercenary Queen, so much so that he hadn’t noticed it earlier.

’Now a Cursed Enchantment!,’ the Pirate King thought, his expression growing grim.

Since the last day, his luck had seemed to have turned on him—every decision, every encounter leading him further into the grasp of misfortune.

’That supernatural bitch managed to last over half a day even when she expended all of her artifacts within six hours.

Not to mention the amount of destruction she caused during those six hours. When I was about to get my hands on her, suddenly the Merfolk army started attacking in masses, including their King.

I had to use my domain to save the remaining fleets, and now I am unable to use my strongest against this mad bitch.

If she deploys her domain now, I am as good as dead. But I won’t surrender now. If I can’t kill this bitch, I will kill that Duke.’

The Pirate King touched the end of his trident over the sea and whistled in a low rhythm that echoed through the area even outside the cube.

The whistle traveled down the length of the trident, the vibrations pulsing through the water beneath him, echoing deep.

For a moment, the sea held its breath—silent, still.

Then came the faint rustling sound, like the whisper of something massive stirring just beneath the surface.

RUSTLE!

RUSTLE!

The sound of the waves grew louder

The sea’s surface darkened, and black shadows began to emerge from the depths, moving with a slow, deliberate grace but as the seconds passed, their numbers multiplied.

The shadows grew, materializing into massive, hulking figures that seemed to rise from the ocean floor itself. And then, in a display of eerie power, one after another, ships began to surface from the sea.

At first, there was only one ship—a solitary figure rising from the depths. Then another emerged, followed by five, then ten.

The eerie procession didn’t stop there; the blackened ships continued to surface in a relentless, overwhelming tide—twenty... forty... each one adding to the growing fleet with an almost unnatural speed.

And then, after the fiftieth ship rose from the depths, the sea trembled with the force of something far larger.

A massive ship, one far grander and more imposing than the others, tore through the water. The size of the ship equaled that of the Duke.

"HAIL THE PIRATE KING!" The cry rang out across the fleet, a chorus of voices rising in unison.

"DESTROY THAT SHIP" their voices laced with fervor and bloodlust.

"LOAD THE CANNONS" the air thick with the scent of gunpowder and the sharp, metallic clang of artillery being readied for the impending assault.

The massive ship that had surfaced earlier—the Pirate King’s flagship—remained ominously still as if it were waiting for the perfect moment to strike, biding its time like a coiled serpent ready to strike.

The remaining ships swiftly closed in, forming a tight, impenetrable circle around the Duke’s ship. The waves crashed violently against their hulls as they surrounded their target, trapping the duke’s vessel in an unyielding blockade.

Leading the charge through the smaller vessels was Birdie, the Pirate King’s most trusted lieutenant. With a commanding roar, he bellowed, his voice echoing across the water, "FOR THE CAP’N!"