CHAPTER 144: TIDESHEAR COVE RAID [I]

The week had gone by quickly, and now Lucius stood in front of the vast stretch of water.

The sea breeze brushed against his face, carrying a faint scent of salt and mana residue from the countless dungeon gates scattered across the horizon.

’Dungeon gates on the water sure aren’t rare,’ he thought, narrowing his eyes at the shimmering distortions above the surface.

Even from this distance, he could see a few gates pulsating faintly like strange stars though they were being handled by other teams.

That was the terrifying part about ocean travel... a gate could open at any moment, right under your ship, and you’d be swallowed whole.

It was one of the many reasons people avoided sea routes.

Even flying was safer than venturing too deep into the water.

Lucius turned his gaze to the person standing beside him.

Luna was adjusting the sleek bands of her new gear... the protective wear she had upgraded herself.

As a Mundane human without natural resistance to dungeon radiation, she could’ve easily died from exposure if she didn’t prepare.

But in true Luna fashion, she’d turned survival gear into something stylish.

The suit hugged her body perfectly, its smooth silver fabric lined with faint violet circuits that were glowing.

A transparent visor shimmered over her face, automatically forming when exposed to high mana levels.

Lucius raised an eyebrow. "So you actually made it work?"

Luna smiled under the glow of her visor.

"I told you I could. It converts the dungeon radiation into filtered mana and projects a barrier around my body. It’s not that complicated once you understand the flux pattern."

Once again, how did she do it?!

"Right..." Lucius muttered, not even trying to understand the explanation. He planned to use his space magic to protect her anyway.

He stretched his arms lazily, looking out at the horizon. "Alright, where are these fuckers? We’re already late."

He clicked his tongue in irritation.

Didn’t they know how busy he was? The sooner he finished this, the sooner he could take his well-deserved nap.

Just as he was about to complain again, the sound of a car pulling into the nearby parking lot reached them.

The sleek black vehicle came to a stop beside the beach, its door opening one after another as the rest of his team stepped out.

Erika was the first to emerge, followed by Matthias, the brown-haired girl who specialized in mana guns... her name still didn’t stick in his mind, the three Hudson brothers, and lastly... Raven.

Lucius immediately noticed the crimson-haired protagonist among them.

It was strange seeing him like this... when Azel had first picked him up, he’d looked like a lost puppy from the slums.

Now, after weeks of raids and training, the kid actually looked like someone who belonged on the battlefield.

Luna waved cheerfully as they approached, and within moments, the entire squad gathered around Lucius.

"It’s been quite a while," Matthias said, adjusting his glasses and trying to look misunderstood. "I was starting to think you’d forgotten about us, Boss."

"True," Erika added with a small blush, brushing a strand of her red hair behind her ear.

Each time she saw Lucius, he somehow looked even more handsome than before. "I hope we have a splendid raid today, Boss."

"Boss, reporting for duty!" the Hudson brothers said in unison, saluting sharply.

Lucius gave them a side-eye.

He didn’t need magic to know exactly what was running through their greedy little minds... they wanted more pay!

These bastards never showed up without thinking about bonuses.

Raven stepped forward last, bowing deeply. "Master, reporting for duty."

Lucius grinned at that. "Good man."

Raven’s voice was completely unashamed.

He didn’t care about the stares from passersby. Lucius loved that about him... he was in fact more shameless than him.

"Welcome, all of you," Lucius said, taking a step forward as the group straightened up. "Today, we’ll be going on an ocean raid."

The group exchanged curious looks. An ocean dungeon wasn’t a common mission, especially not for a D-rank squad.

He continued, his voice steady. "Right now, we have to get to Tideshear Cove."

Some of them began scanning the shore for boats, assuming they’d be taking a long ride across the water.

But before anyone could open their mouths, Lucius snapped his fingers.

In an instant, space folded around them.

The air rippled and in the blink of an eye, they vanished from the beach.

The next thing they knew, the squad stood on a rocky cliff overlooking Tideshear Cove.

The ocean here was darker and just beyond the shallow waves floated the massive Dungeon Gate.

It shimmered like a vertical whirlpool... a circular wound in the world that bled blue light into the sea. It was still far away from the shore though.

The waves crashed violently beneath it, glowing where they touched the mana current.

"It looks bigger than a regular D-rank," Erika whispered.

Lucius nodded slightly. "That’s because it’s near breaking."

They prepared to move, weapons materializing one by one... Matthias with his twin knives, Grimm with his spear, and the brown haired awakener loading her bullets.

But before anyone stepped closer, Lucius raised a hand. "Wait."

The group froze.

"There were reports of mutated sea creatures near the cove," Lucius said calmly, his eyes scanning the waves. "We deal with them first before entering the gate. I don’t want any surprises while we’re halfway inside."

He turned slightly toward Luna. "Start the stream."

Luna nodded and slipped on her specialized glasses, the silver rims glowing faintly as they synchronized with the P40 drone hovering behind her.

The small orb blinked twice before floating higher into the air, its lens adjusting automatically.

[Starting Stream...]

[Stream Started]

The interface flickered to life in front of Luna’s eyes, showing the live viewer count rapidly climbing.

Thousands were already tuning in... the words OCEAN RAID WITH LUCIUS trending at the top of the feed.

The chat scrolled at blinding speed.

[@ManaJunkie99: OCEAN RAID??? LET’S GOOOO!! 🌊]

[@ErikaSimp_88: OMG ERIKA IS THERE TOO?? 😭💖]

[@CrimsonCoreFan: IS THAT RAVEN?! DUDE GOT JACKED.]

Lucius tilted his head slightly as the water ahead rippled... something was moving below. The glow of the gate illuminated a series of dark shapes darting through the depths.

"Alright," he muttered, cracking his neck. "Showtime."

But before Lucius could even issue a command, a splash erupted beside them.

"Cowabunga!"

...

Water splashed all over the shore, spraying upward in heavy arcs as waves crashed violently.

They weren’t even standing that close to the water, yet the impact reached them in seconds.

Lucius stood still, the droplets freezing mid-air just before touching him... Infinity held the water back like an invisible shield.

The others weren’t so lucky.

Raven was completely drenched, his white shirt soaked through and clinging to his skin.

Every hard line of his muscular torso was visible now, his abs practically sculpted by divine hands.

The sunlight hit just right too, making the water on him glisten like diamonds.

Lucius was still questioning how this man had gotten such a body in a short amount of time... but then who could argue with plot armor?

[@ThirstyMageX: OH MY GOD RAVEN PUT THAT BODY AWAY 😭🔥]

[@SwordMommy_92: I DIDN’T SIGN UP FOR A WET T-SHIRT CONTEST BUT I’M NOT COMPLAINING]

[@LuciusSupremacy: LUCIUS BETAAA 🙏💦]

[@LuciusStan88: bro’s trying to steal the camera time 😤]

[@TheWatcher: HOW IS HIS SHIRT THAT SEE-THROUGH 💀💀💀]

’Fucking show-off,’ Lucius thought, glaring at Raven’s flexing frame.

The masculine urge to take his own shirt off hit him for half a second but he pushed it down and glanced at Luna.

Not even a glance from her toward Raven. Her eyes were locked on the water where Grimm had disappeared.

Lucius frowned.

Grimm had jumped in headfirst a few moments ago, and now there was nothing...

’If that idiot drowned, I swear I’m not paying for resurrection fees,’ Lucius thought, scanning the waves.

It’d be a shame to lose such a marketable fool though; the viewers loved him.

Then the sea split open.

A gigantic fish... no, a leviatha —burst from the water, scales gleaming like molten silver.

Riding its back like some medieval knight on a steed was Grimm himself, one hand gripping his spear, the other raised high.

"Whooo!" Grimm roared, hair and clothes soaked, pure chaos sparkling in his grin.

[@FishSlayer2000: BRO IS SURFING A SEA MONSTER 😭😭😭]

[@OceanGodGrimm: THAT’S MY MANNNNN 🐟💪]

[@AquaGirl: THIS IS THE BEST STREAM EVER OMG]

[@LuciusIsSoDone: Someone tell Grimm this isn’t a circus 💀]

[@ManaCamLIVE: 10/10 CINEMA. GIVE THIS MAN A MOVIE DEAL.]

The creature suddenly twisted violently midair.

Its head popped like a mana bubble, its body evaporating seconds later in a flash of blue light... sending Grimm hurtling back toward the beach.

He crashed into the wet sand with a loud thud. "What the hell?"

Lucius sighed. "Is that the only one down there or are there lots more?"

Grimm spat out a mouthful of seawater and stood, looking more annoyed than hurt. "There’s about five more, and some oversized scorpions..."

"Of course there are," Lucius muttered. "Get ready to attack."

Everyone raised their weapons.

The ocean was still for a few seconds then the surface started bubbling like boiling water.

From it emerged a small, dark scorpion crawling awkwardly on the sand.

Its legs clicked as it walked forward, looking tiny and harmless.

"Cute..." Erika whispered, crouching slightly.

And then something yanked the small scorpion upward. A larger one exploded from the water right after... towering over them, claws gleaming wetly and its tail glistening with venom.

It screeched as the waves surged around it, tail already curling for a strike.

Lucius smirked.

’Absolute cinema.’

He was certainly going to be #1 stream... again.