Enemies Became His Pets' Minions (Please Keep Reading)

Sunlight spilled over the sea, where emerald waters surged beneath rising waves and flying spray.

The salty sea breeze carried cool moisture and wisps of water mana. Although the sea's mana was somewhat unruly, Kroya still found it very comfortable.

Not far away, two pink dorsal fins cut through the water toward him.

Behind them came a school of fish in a mixture of gold, silver, and dazzling colors.

"Chirp, chirp!"

The two dolphins surfaced one after the other and leaped over the little boat. Their spindle-shaped bodies slipped back into the water without a splash, as though merging with the sea.

They swam merrily around Kroya's wooden boat, accompanied by slender fish covered in tiny silver scales.

It looked as though Magic Fish had surrounded the boat.

The Fish-Tailed Sea Ducks following behind immediately grew restless. Had Kroya not ordered them to stay calm, they probably would have started blasting cold air already.

The knight Norman looked tense as well. "My lord, if they attack, I'll hold them off as best I can. Please get away quickly!"

He gripped his level-one enchanted saber tightly, veins bulging on his arms, his expression utterly serious.

"..."

Right, I never actually told them I was keeping dolphins.

Kroya blinked, bent down, and touched the water with his fingers. A pink dolphin immediately nudged him with its beak, bringing its head within reach of his hand.

"Chirp, chirp~~~"

The dolphin cried out happily as he stroked its head. The other one grew a little jealous and swam over too, shoving the first aside as though competing for his affection.

"Chirp!"

Furious, the first immediately spat a water arrow.

"Chirp!"

The second refused to back down and spat a water arrow in return.

They nearly started fighting.

Watching from the side, Norman was stunned. So... these are Magical Beasts the mage keeps? No wonder he looks so calm.

Yet he had acted as though facing a formidable enemy, unable even to distinguish friend from foe. His face fell at once. "My lord, I failed to recognize them. Please punish me!"

Had they not been on a boat, he would have dropped to his knees.

"..."

This knight Norman really did have an overly strong sense of honor. Someone like him would be extremely loyal, but in a certain sense, a little rigid too.

Rather than reassure him outright, Kroya said, "Remember, distinguishing friend from foe is important too. There will be many more Magical Beasts and Magic Plants on the island in the future.

"If you can't tell them apart, it'll cause trouble!"

After this mild reprimand of the pale-faced knight, he turned his attention to the fish surrounding the Sea Spirit Dolphins.

Those fish followed close behind, like the Sea Spirit Dolphins' minions.

Looking more closely, he saw not only Silverback Dragonfish, but also some small, multicolored fish and golden fish with gleaming gold scales.

Judging by their mana fluctuations, both the colorful little fish resembling clownfish and the little fish with glittering gold scales were level-two Magic Fish.

The former were especially striking. As they swam through the sea, their tails seemed to resonate strangely with the water, mingling the ripples with their dazzling colors.

Even he felt a little dizzy looking at them.

"What kind of fish are these?" Kroya did not know, but that hardly stopped him from asking his knight.

Sure enough, Norman had done his homework beforehand.

He answered, "The fishermen asked around. They said these are Glare Magic Fish and Golden-Scaled Fish. The former have mana that confuses their enemies, while the latter have exceptionally hard scales and can ram straight through boats."

"Oh." Kroya nodded, then smiled at the Sea Spirit Dolphins. "You two are quite capable, aren't you? You've already gathered minions this quickly."

Both dolphins immediately gave a proud "Chirp, chirp!"

The fish surrounding the boat instantly changed formation, lining up neatly beside it like soldiers awaiting inspection.

They were even more orderly than a formation of people.

"Hah? Are you showing off?"

Kroya could not help laughing. The enemies he had meant to clear out had suddenly become his own Magical Beasts' minions. Were the Fish-Tailed Sea Ducks going to return from their first battle without achieving anything?

That clearly would not do.

He gazed out over the distant sea, considered for a moment, then asked, "Are there any Magic Fish around here stronger than you?"

The dolphins paused, then immediately chirped twice. One swam off into the distance, its dorsal fin slicing through the water at tremendous speed.

The other kept chirping, apparently trying to say something. Thanks to their contract, Kroya could just barely understand a little.

The gist was that a fish resembling them, but far fiercer, was running wild in the sea. Apparently, there was something good in its cave too.

Hmm, something that looks like them...

Could it be another dolphin-type Magical Beast? Or perhaps...

Kroya narrowed his eyes at the distance. With the Eagle Eye Spell enhancing his vision, he could already see a pink dorsal fin swimming toward them, followed by a gray-black fin.

That fin looked exceedingly sharp and menacing, in stark contrast to the Sea Spirit Dolphin's rather adorably goofy pink dorsal fin.

One glance was enough to tell it was no creature to trifle with.

"So it really is a shark?"

The distance was too great for even Kroya's mental power to discern the shark's precise condition, but one thing was certain: it was at least a level-three Magical Beast.

He immediately waved to the flock of ducks. "Form ranks!"

"Quack, quack, quack!"

The ducks answered with perfectly synchronized quacks, immediately swimming up beside his little boat and crowding together in front of it.

Kroya sat down at once, mana surging within his body. Its resonance formed a somewhat hurried melody.

It echoed all around them.

The music affected the ducks, reminding them of their miserable experience under Kroya's control. One after another, they began gathering icy blue light in their throats.

The distant dolphin and shark drew closer and closer.

In just a few moments, they charged within twenty meters.

The first thing to greet the shark was not the ducks' attack, but a headlong charge from the other, female Sea Spirit Dolphin and the Golden-Scaled Fish. Concealed by the Glare Magic Fish's mana, they had successfully evaded the shark's senses.

As it approached, they shot forward like arrows loosed from a bow. Even the dolphin's normally cute cries seemed to take on a murderous edge.

The male Sea Spirit Dolphin leading the way made a nimble leap, dodging his wife and the Golden-Scaled Fish's charge in midair.

The shark, however, could not dodge in time.

With a dull crash, the golden school of Golden-Scaled Fish slammed hard into the shark.

Bang!

Many of the Golden-Scaled Fish lost golden scales under the impact, and the smell of blood immediately filled the seawater.

Yet they remained fearless, ramming it one after another.

It was as though they would not stop until every last one had battered itself to death.

Even the level-three shark was left dazed by the assault. Before it could recover, the Sea Spirit Dolphin spat a compressed jet of water, stabbing at its eye like a knife.

One of its eyes was instantly pierced and blinded.

Yet this assault was nowhere near enough to kill it. In fact, it had suffered only minor injuries.

Smelling blood in the water, it flew into a savage frenzy. Its remaining eye filled with bloodshot veins, and just as it was about to teach those impudent fish a lesson, something changed.

The air around it suddenly turned bitterly cold.

Whoosh-

Whoosh-

Countless freezing beams struck its body directly. Though it could withstand the cold, it could not withstand attacks from so many level-two Magical Beasts.

A thick layer of ice immediately formed over its body.

Had that been the extent of the attack, it could still have endured, but Kroya would not give it that chance.

Several great crimson fireballs descended from above. Fire mana clashed violently with seawater, instantly bringing the water around it to a boil.

It struggled desperately within, but the dolphins continued firing high-pressure water jets, slicing at its body like knives. Normally, it should have been able to withstand them.

But the violent reaction between the fireballs and the icy seawater had already left its skin terribly fragile, and wound after wound opened across its body.

Naturally, it could no longer resist. It rolled belly-up and floated to the surface.

Whether it had fainted or died was unclear.

"Hmm."

Despite easily dispatching a level-three shark, Kroya did not let down his guard. He stared into the distance, the light of mana flickering wildly in his eyes like a crimson sun.