Piers skimmed the lore, unimpressed.
"Liel—drop it!"
The jelly-beast loomed overhead, massive form pressing down, ready to crush the deck.
The instant the barrier vanished—
Both his hands thrust forward.
"Unique Skill: Soul Puppet!"
Invisible chains wrapped around the creature, stopping it mid-descent.
piers muscles locked, jaw clenched.
Damn it—it's heavier than I thought.
The beast froze—hovering above the deck like a grotesque pink balloon.
Behind him, Liel collapsed to her knees, gasping, drenched in sweat.
Now.
His will surged outward.
"Finish it."
They moved instantly.
Mutou blurred forward—Blacksaor severing tentacles in clean, lethal arcs.
Lien charged with wild abandon, aura flaring—
"HORARARARARARA!"
And then—disaster.
He leapt high, fists cocked back…
and landed straight inside the jelly-body.
Bloop.
The sound was obscene.
"Ghhmmff?!"
Lien's scream muffled as his limbs flailed inside the gelatinous mass.
arms and legs flailing in slow, wobbly motion.
"Wha—Lien?!" Piers sputtered in disbelief.
But there was no time to panic.
Mutou sliced tentacles rapidly, each severed limb regrowing in seconds—writhing back into shape.
He aimed for the central body—
—and got caught.
The Dullahan's torso sank halfway into the translucent mass.
Armored legs kicking outside while the upper body wiggled helplessly inside.
It was like watching a knight drown in pink quicksand.
Absurd. Horrifying. Slapstick.
All at once.
"No—Mutou!" piers shouted, but it was too late.
Mutou's dangling legs flailed helplessly, clanking like a wind-up toy gone berserk.
The jelly's regenerating tentacles curled inward—not in attack, but disturbingly like it was preparing to spank him for misbehavior.
Shadows coiled around Luci like living serpents, ready to strike—
Piers' voice cracked through her mind like a whip.
"Stop! Don't harm it—we need the body intact!"
Luci froze. crimson eyes flickered, but she obeyed instantly.
The darkness fizzled out at her fingertips, dissolving like smoke.
On the poop deck, Thog staggered upright, fists clenched—
ready to leap in heroically—
Then he turned green again and collapsed, retching over the railing.
Meanwhile, Rook's feathers puffed in panic as he stared at the ridiculous scene of Mutou and Lien half-absorbed into jelly.
"L-Lord Piers! Should I attempt a rescue?"
"NO!"
The word cracked out sharper than steel.
His fists tightened. Sweat prickled at his brow.
Ugh—it's too heavy. I can't keep it suspended much longer.
Only option… drop it.
He exhaled through gritted teeth and snapped.
The Nectar Lord crashed down with a ship-rattling—
THUUUD.
Wood splintered. Milk splashed.
The forecastle deck groaned, the entire ship lurching.
Before the beast's tentacles could whip toward Mutou or coil around Lien—
Piers steadied his tiny frame.
"Unique Skill: Soul Puppet!"
Soul-chains lashed out again, binding the monster mid-motion.
Tentacles froze, twitching uselessly—like the strings of a cosmic marionette suddenly cut."
Piers sighed, deadpan.
"…Better."
Straightening, he lifted his chin.
"Everyone—leave this one to me."
Luci, Liel, and Rook nodded in unison, faces sharp with resolve.
And then—
Of course….
Styx happened.
Another stupidity.
She let out a feral battle-cry.
"ROOARRR—HAYYYYYYEEEEEE!"
Sword raised overhead, charging at the immobilized jelly like a lunatic about to use it for shot put.
The others collectively froze.
"Is she—seriously—" Rook whispered.
Before Styx could fling herself into certain doom, Liel snapped into action.
A round barrier popped up, sealing her inside like a hamster ball.
"HEY! WHAT GIVES?!"
She pounded on the dome, cheeks puffed.
"LET ME OUT! I WANNA BEAT IT INTO PLUMP!"
Piers ignored her entirely, focusing back on the immobilized jelly.
"We can't damage this thing."
The words made everyone stiffen.
Luci narrowed her eyes.
"Piers-sama—if we can't hurt it, how do we kill it?"
"We don't."
His answer was calm.
"The map's condition is clear: seventy percent of its body must be consumed."
And.... Liel's brain short-circuited.
eyes darting between the quivering pink mass and Piers's utterly calm face.
lips parted but no sound came out. body trembled, then stiffened, toppling backward like a marble statue losing balance.
Rook lunged, catching her awkwardly with both arms.
His posture looked less like a graceful rescue and more like someone shoving against a stalled cart to keep it from rolling downhill.
"C-consume it?!" he screeched.
"All of that?!"
Piers just nodded, still holding the gelatinous beast.
"If we burst it open and lose mass, the quest fails. We'll be stuck here forever.
None of it can go to waste."
He added, tone dry as stone.
"And our usual attacks won't work
It has only one weakness—steel."
Luci frowned.
"Then why didn't Mutou's sword pierce it?"
Styx, having somehow slipped out of Liel's collapsed barrier, charging again with her sword raised.
Without looking, Piers flicked his fingers.
A glass cage snapped around her.
BANG BANG BANG!
—"LET ME OUUUUT!! PIIEERSSS!!
"Because Mutou's blade is forged from dragon bone," He explained flatly.
it's useless against this creature's resistances."
The explanation hung heavy in the air—both logical and terrifying.
A moment's pause—snap.
An idea. A wicked one.
Slowly, a malevolent grin stretched across the toddler's face.
Luci inhaled.
He's plotting again.
Rook, seeing it for the first time, shivered. He had no clue what that grin meant.
"L-Lord Piers…?"
"Time for a new experiment!" He declared, thrusting his free arm high.
A low chuckle rumbled almost giddy.
"Heeheehee… I've always wanted to try something like this."
Eyes glinting with nerdy hunger.
Memories surged—textbooks, metallurgy guides—all flashing in sequence.
Iron, carbon, limestone, alloy ratios, tensile strength… each thought clicking into place like puzzle pieces.
Mana flared over his palm.
Unique skill: MATTER FORGING,
Metal coalesced.
A colossal steel rod materialized—solid, brutal in weight, the kind of mass that made the air hum as it hovered.
Gasps rang out.
Liel, still pale, gawked openly.
Rook whispered, awe-struck,
"Raw mana… forming shape…"
Luci smirked, pride glinting in her eyes.
The massive rod twisted, reshaping—
orbit after orbit—
Until it curled into a vast steel ring.
locked, cold, unyielding.
"Good. Now spin."
The ring began to rotate—slow at first… then faster, and faster.
Then a blazing blurred, spinning with impossible velocity.
The steel glowed red-hot, smoke hissing from its edges.
"Mutou, Lien—his voice rang out Through their mental link
—Stay still. Don't move unless you want to melt.
Trapped inside the jelly, both knights raised stiff thumbs.
"Well then …"
Piers grinned—tiny teeth flashing.
He thrust his palm forward.
Here we go.
The burning disc shot forward,
screaming through the air—
"FWWWWWWSSSHHHH—SKRRRRRLLLLCH—SPLORRRRT!"
It passed cleanly through the creature's crown, slicing a perfect, clean circle.
The ring arced skyward, spinning higher and higher until it disappeared into the endless horizon.
For a beat—
only silence.
Then—drip. Drip. Drip.
Crimson nectar oozed from the cut.
With a slow, horrible shluuup,
The entire top of the jelly slid off and slammed into the deck—
THWOOMF.
The ship rattled.
The beast quivered once—then stilled.
No regeneration. No movement.
Dead.
For one stunned heartbeat—
Then the deck exploded with cheers.
"WOOOOHOOO!"
Styx screamed from inside the cage.
"YAYYY!" Piers sama You did it!" Liel cried.
Their voices overlapped.
Rook stood frozen, fluffed like a terrified pigeon.
Luci smiled faintly—unsurprised.
Piers releasing his Puppet hold.
The Beast's bulk slumped fully onto the deck with a wet squelch.
"Phew… not easy," he muttered, wiping imaginary sweat from his brow.
"Mmmgghhh!" Lien's muffled voice buzzed from inside the gelatinous corpse.
Piers turned, raising a tiny thumbs-up.
"Now—someone pulled those idiots out"
—finger pointed at Mutou and Lien,—arms flailing weakly, liens mouth somehow already chewing.
Liel and Rook scrambled to help, tugging them free in a messy, squishy rescue attempt.
BANG BANG!
"PIIIERS! LET ME OOOOUT! I WANNA HUUUUG YOOOU!!"
Styx bellowed.
Piers turned.
A shiver snaked down his spine.
Liel braced her feet, both hands clamped around Lien's arm as he wriggled like a possessed worm inside the jelly corpse.
"Stop moving, Lien! You're making me all sticky!"
She grumbled in annoyance.
CRACK!
The glass cage shattered.
Styx burst free in a dramatic tumble, her tongue lolling out, arms flailing like some deranged larva sketch.
Her eyes locked on,
"PIEERRRSSS!!"
Before she could hugged him to death,
FWOOOSH!
A gust of wind magic blasted from his palm, sending her flying off-course.
She sailed through the air and crashed straight into the pink mass beside Lien,
Sticking there in a hilariously awkward pose—half-spread like a squashed sticker.
"Ghhkk—!"
Goo oozed into her mouth.
Her eyes bulged—then sparkled.
"Mffhh—sh' yummy!!"
She squealed, cheeks puffed, glued to the sticky blob like it was candy.
Lien—still lodged halfway into the jelly—spotted her happily munching.
His grin widened.
He wriggled harder, on purpose, deliberately making everything worse.
"Stop messing around, you dork!" Liel snapped,
both hands clenched around his arm as she fought to pull him free.
Luci sighed—the calm, exasperated kind—and stepped in anyway.
Together, the two strained against the absurd suction with growing irritation.
Piers approached as well, exhaling under his breath.
At least Rook had succeeded in dragging Mutou out.
The dullahan immediately dropped to one knee, armor dripping with jelly, head bowed low.
"Young Master, I do not deserve this sword! I have failed you!"
Piers's eyes half-lidded.
A deadpan mask.
Here we go… Gloomy Mutou mode.
"…It's not your fault," he said evenly, voice steady as stone.
Internally, gears clicked.
Keep the mask. Stay composed. Push the right words—he'll bounce back.
His lips curved into the faintest, perfectly measured smile—
—a flawless performance, ready to manipulate the situation fast."
Then—
with one last sticky PLOP!
Luci and Liel yanked both nutcases free of the gelatinous corpse.
Piers stepped forward through the goo-splattered mess, unfazed.
"Your sword is made from dragon-bone.
Steel was the only thing that could pierce that monster.
You didn't fail—you protected everyone.
Now take it, and stop hesitating.
We've got more problems waiting."
Mutou's shoulders straightened. Shame melted into resolve. He accepted words like gospel.
Piers breathed out softly, muttering under his breath—
"…That was easier than expected."
A ripple of relieved chuckles rolled through the crew—
tension finally unwinding.
Meanwhile—
completely oblivious to everything—
Thog and Gyuunyuu were still curled up miserably on the poop deck—
groaning, pale, and utterly destroyed by motion sickness.
* * *