The captain of the ship reached out.

Chapter 5 Lord of the Swamp

At sea, a ship is an independent little society.

Just as there are the highest-ranking captains, first mates, and ship's doctors, there are also the exploited lower-ranking crew members.

Clearly, Mike belonged to this category of low-ranking sailors.

Every day, I am responsible for the dirtiest and most tiring work, and sometimes I become a punching bag for some people.

The two new bruises on his face were proof of that.

"But Mr. Ronan wasn't like this when he was captain..."

Mike sighed and began dumping the trash from the bucket into the mushroom pile.

To celebrate officially becoming the captain of the Golden Sun, Bazel opened the cargo hold and let the crew feast for two days.

The remaining kitchen waste was sent to this cabin.

This is another major advantage of meat-eating mushrooms—

We welcome all comers!

It can break down and absorb any nutrients.

Therefore, this cabin is actually the garbage recycling center of the Golden Sun.

Throwing all kinds of garbage into the sea is certainly convenient and easy, but what if one day food reserves run out?

Let's just consider it as making use of waste.

As for whether anyone will dislike the carnivorous nature of the carnivorous mushroom?

Just kidding, this is at sea, who would be that picky?

Little Mike had even heard of it.

Once upon a time, when the current captain, Bazel, was at sea, he was out of water and food. He survived the most difficult period only by relying on the corpses of his companions.

Of course, this is just a rumor, and Little Mike doesn't know if it's true or not.

After taking out the trash.

Little Mike glanced into the depths of the mushroom pile, and a chill ran down his spine as he recalled the scene of the tentacles dragging the girl into the depths yesterday.

"Brother Mushroom, I'm just here to feed you. Please don't eat me again!"

As he spoke, he bowed to the mushrooms.

No, what stupid thing am I doing?

After doing this, Mike belatedly realized what was happening.

This is just a group of carnivorous mushrooms!

What's there to be afraid of in a low-level monster that doesn't even have intelligence?

but……

Just standing in this room, Mike felt like he was being stared at by countless eyes, making him extremely uncomfortable.

"Well, these are monsters I'll be dealing with frequently in the future anyway, so it's always good to be respectful, right?"

Mike muttered to himself.

People tend to make noise in quiet environments to relieve their anxiety.

Wow, this kid's pretty savvy.

Horn kept a close eye on Mike's actions and asked Alice in his mind's eye.

Do you know him?

"Um."

Alice recalled, "His name was Mike, and he was an orphan who had originally been a beggar in the city of Aran."

"His father took pity on him and brought him onto the ship, but after that he didn't really care about him anymore."

"oh……"

Horn immediately understood.

Mike is clearly at the very bottom of the ship's hierarchy, and neither the former captain nor the current captain, Bazel, cares about his thoughts.

To put it bluntly, they don't even have the right to take sides.

That's how they managed to survive the cleanup.

But deep down, he probably felt some sympathy for Alice, coupled with her current state of being oppressed...

Isn't he the perfect target for defection?

Alice quickly realized what was happening: "Mr. Horn, you mean to..."

"No rush, let's play around with him first."

Horn decided to observe further.

Anyway, he has plenty of time and patience, so there's no need to rush in headfirst.

"Brother Mushroom, I'm off now. See you next time!"

After saying that, Little Mike ran out of the cabin as if fleeing, making sure to slam the door shut behind him.

"Alice, keep digging!"

"Yes, Mr. Horn."

……

……

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

In the swamp of the mysterious island, yet another innocent mud frog was whipped belly-up by tentacles.

The family members were preparing to move it back to the fungal carpet.

Glug... Glug...

Suddenly, the surrounding swamp seemed to boil, bubbling and churning.

Followed by.

A gaping maw opened from below, swallowing the mud, the mud frog, and several of its companions whole.

The massive black shadow sank back into the depths of the swamp, and the surface mud gradually subsided, as if nothing had happened.

How could it not have happened!

Where's my brother?!

Horn noticed something was wrong a few seconds before his mental perception was severed.

This allowed him to "see" the true face of the "murderer" through the perception of his family.

That was a...

A toad?

To be precise, it should be a mud frog magnified several times, and it seems to have some catfish-like features.

Tsk, isn't this the Lord of the Rivers?

Due to the nature of the experimental field, this mysterious island contains a considerable number of stitched-together monsters that possess characteristics of different races.

"I'll call you... Lord of the Swamp!"

Horn gave the big guy a name in his mind.

His nickname is Tam!

"Wait, could it be because I've hunted too many [Mud Frogs] that it's starting to avenge its kind?"

Horn thought it was very likely.

Actually, he wasn't too upset about losing those five or six meat mushrooms. After all, mushrooms are like chives; they can grow back in a couple of days.

But Tam's presence was a major obstacle to his domination of the swamp.

From that brief contact alone, Horn was able to determine—

The opponent is at least a Tier 3 or higher mini-boss, and is even close to level 40.

The current [Tentacle Fungus Group] is far from being its match.

There's no other way but to endure it for now.

Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river, never underestimate the poor!

Fortunately, the three days of hunting have upgraded [Thick Skin] to Lv3, and [Tentacle Whip] has also reached Lv6 through frequent use.

Horn looked at the 30 Carnivorous Mushrooms beside him and made up his mind.

"It's time to launch the first expedition against the [Vulture Bee]!"

Of course, he had no intention of wiping out this swamp tyrant in one fell swoop.

This was just a probing attack to see how the Vulture Bees would react.

If you can also exchange it for a few dead poisonous bees, it's a sure-fire way to make a profit.

……

……

The edge of the swamp.

A wild boar that had wandered into this place lay peacefully in the swamp, its body already beginning to decompose.

Maggots, mud crabs, opossums, and other scavengers gathered around the wild boar, ready to share their feast.

hum-

The opossums raised their heads alertly, looking in the direction from which the buzzing sound came.

Yellow and black markings, powerful wing flapping, and poisonous stingers that exude a magical aura.

It's a vulture-like poisonous wasp!

The fact that these poisonous bees are named after "vultures" itself indicates their scavenging nature.

That's right, the Vulture Venomous Bee is carnivorous!

Their hives are also different from those of ordinary bees, producing "meat honey," making them veritable nests of flesh and blood, with bizarre and terrifying shapes.

At this moment, a small swarm of [Vulture Poison Bees] arrived.

The opossums and other small rodents immediately fled in panic.

If they run too slowly, they too will become the wasps' meal!

This is the deterrent power of the swamp overlord.

Ordinary monsters can only avoid its attacks.

Soon, the poisonous wasps landed on the wild boar carcass, their mouthparts opening and closing repeatedly as they feasted on the rotting flesh.

at the same time.

Beneath the mud, several dark figures wriggled and reached their designated location.