The Abyssal Kraken.

A named monster that appears through a specific event in the massive Lake of Knowledge, which surrounds the Island of Knowledge.

The moment I saw its enormous body, specifically the blue, massive tentacles studded with suction cups like a squid, I immediately knew the Kraken had emerged.

Of course, I couldn’t figure out why this boss monster had appeared so suddenly.

‘Why the hell is that thing here now?!’

There were mainly two scenarios in which the Abyssal Kraken could be encountered according to the story.

The first was to participate in the episode where the former headmaster of Luminor Academy, Del Rondo Prime, is attacked by the Abyssal Kraken at the lakeside and then defeat it.

The second scenario was visiting the lake with party characters who met 'certain conditions' before that event occurred and summoning the Kraken forcibly, defeating it in the same manner.

As far as I knew, only a few characters at the academy, including Agnes, met those 'certain conditions' at this moment.

The minimum requirement to summon the Kraken was entering the lake with a character whose maximum mana exceeded 2000.

‘Agnes, Orion, and Lara aren’t here, so why has it suddenly appeared…?’

No matter how fast Ethan had grown, there was no way his maximum mana had exceeded 2000.

Moreover, there didn’t seem to be any other boats passing nearby. Aside from Ethan, I was the only one here...

‘…Ah.’

Only then did I realize the mistake I had made.

As soon as I entered the lake by boat, I felt a subtle sense of crisis running down my spine.

‘Damn it, my maximum mana exceeds 2000 now.’

Specifically, it was 2460. In terms of maximum mana, I was almost comparable to Agnes, practically a walking mana tank.

I wanted to smack my forehead at the realization of my carelessness.

Of course, I didn’t have the luxury to do that as I was struggling just to hold onto the deck of the boat, swaying with the waves.

“Li-Lilith!”

“Calm down, Ethan! First, grab your sword!”

“Ah, got it!”

Despite the chaos, Ethan's sword, a high-quality piece with the Blackwood emblem engraved on it, stayed sheathed.

Thank goodness. At least we wouldn’t become water ghosts without being able to do anything.

The true life-threatening crisis calmed my previously confused mind, troubled by Ethan’s confession.

Answering the confession wasn’t the priority now; we had to deal with the monster in front of us first.

Running away would be the best option, but it was impossible to escape while dodging the attacks of those huge arms on the water.

Even if it was risky, it seemed inevitable that we had to fight.

‘This is bad…’

The best combination to attack its weak points was the protagonist and Agnes.

The most standard strategy I knew for attacking the Kraken was deflecting the numerous tentacles with the protagonist’s swordsmanship and dealing damage with Agnes's fire magic.

Of course, I had never tried to defeat the Kraken with the combination of Ethan and Lilith. The conditions to summon it weren’t met, and Ethan wasn’t even a playable character.

Even as a protagonist character, it would take at least until the second year at the academy to barely withstand its attacks.

Though Ethan was as strong as the protagonist now, I wasn’t sure if he could deflect those enormous tentacles...

The one advantage Ethan had over the protagonist was slightly better mobility and the ability to use dual swords for more versatile attacks.

With the addition of Lilith’s support magic, it might be possible to deal with it somehow.

Even in their worst moments, Ethan and Lilith had a great synergy. With the current Ethan, the compatibility with Lilith would likely be even better.

Fortunately, Lilith also had a skill that could be utilized in this water battle.

‘Water Walking: Allows the target character to walk on water for a certain period.’

It was a secondary support skill consuming four points despite being a common skill, but there was no hesitation.

Only the protagonist and Agnes could fight effectively on such a small boat, and Ethan and I had our fighting style suited for us.

‘Remaining Skill Points: 9 → 5’

I used the saved skill points without hesitation, casting it on both Ethan and myself.

As soon as I confirmed the thin veil of mana surrounding us, I shouted at Ethan.

“Abandon the boat, Ethan!”

“What?! Are we swimming away?!”

“No, trust me and jump onto the water! Quickly!!”

Ethan, still showing a bit of doubt, hesitated but eventually followed my instructions and jumped onto the lake.

-Splash!

“W-whoa?!”

“It’s Water Walking! You can stand on the water as long as my mana holds….”

-Crash!!

“Aaah?!”

“Lilith!!”

As I jumped out of the boat a moment later, one of the Kraken’s tentacles smashed into the boat Ethan and I were in.

If I had stayed there, my body would probably have been stuck to one of those suction cups.

The battle for survival left no room for a single moment of relaxation.

-Splash!

“Hah, hah…”

Fortunately, Water Walking was also active on me, so I didn’t fall into the lake.

Thank goodness. I can’t swim.

I couldn't swim even in my previous life, and I certainly couldn't with these large breasts. Without Water Walking, I would surely sink.

With that thought, I brushed off my slightly wet clothes and stood up.

To survive, we needed to either defeat the Kraken or deal enough damage to escape.

“Lilith, are you okay?!”

“…Focus on the battle, Ethan! Is this the time to worry about me?!”

“Ah, got it!”

Hearing my words, Ethan quickly drew his dual swords from his waist.

His eyes burned with intense determination as he faced the Abyssal Kraken.

-Swoosh!

“It’s coming, Lilith!”

“I see it… whoa?!”

A tentacle swung diagonally from the right towards our position.

Ethan fearlessly faced the tentacle with his dual swords.

I panicked and deactivated Water Walking, making Ethan fall into the water.

-Splash!

“Argh?!”

-Swoosh!!

As Water Walking's effect disappeared, Ethan fell into the water, narrowly missing the tentacle.

If my judgment had been a second slower, Ethan would have been flattened by that tentacle.

Why does he keep giving me such a fright?

I quickly reactivated Water Walking on Ethan, making him float back to the surface.

“Phew, Lilith?!”

“Kraken’s tentacles are tough. I doubt your swordsmanship can cut through them.”

“But my father cut through the walls of the Imperial City with his sword…”

“Do you really think you’re at the same level as that monster of a man? At least know the difference between what you can and can’t do!”

“Okay…! I won’t be greedy!”

It wasn’t that Ethan’s swordsmanship was lacking; his father was just a monster.

Even someone as strong as Gyeongmwajogyegigwat couldn’t cut through those thick tentacles alone; deflecting them was the best he could do.

The problem was that our current fighting style couldn’t defeat the Kraken.

Unlike Agnes, who could accumulate damage with multiple small spells, I had only one attack spell that could properly hurt the giant monster.

‘We need to buy time to use Mana Blast.’

Mana Blast required 10 seconds to cast.

Standing idle for 10 seconds in front of the Abyssal Kraken was practically asking to die quickly.

Ethan’s sword wouldn’t even scratch the giant monster’s body.

Moreover, his range was too short. He hadn’t reached the level of Sword Expert, so he couldn’t release a fully powered sword wave.

Like it or not, my Mana Blast was our best option.

Ethan’s role was to buy time until my spell was ready.

It wasn’t easy to ask Ethan to defend for 10 seconds, but I had a method.

I used the last of my skill points to level up a second support skill.

‘Sharp Blade: Increases the power of attacks using a sword.’

‘Remaining Skill Points: 5 → 1’

I had no points left for other skills.

If this didn’t work, well, I’d just accept it as fate.

With that thought, I cast the new support magic, ‘Sharp Blade,’ on Ethan.

A tentacle came flying at us again, and I shouted to Ethan.

“Ethan! I’ve boosted your attack! Cut it down with all your strength!”

“Yaaahhhh!!!”

Ethan held his dual swords in a cross and swung with all his might at the approaching tentacle.

His swords, now enhanced, cut deep into the massive tentacle.

• Slash!

‘Moooaaaarrr!!’

The Kraken roared as its tentacle was severed.

It was effective.