The sea wind turned wild.
Only seconds ago, the Pacific had been rolling gently beneath the night sky. Now, the entire surface of the ocean had gone mad.
Waves rose like towering walls, crashing into one another beneath a sky that was slowly turning red.
In the middle of the enormous whirlpool—
Leviathan Thalassa towered above the depths.
The ancient sea dragon was so massive that the research vessel looked like a piece of driftwood beside it. Its blue scales reflected the moonlight, while water streamed down its body like rain falling back into the ocean.
When it raised its head—
the entire sea suddenly went still.
Not because it was peaceful.
Because it was afraid.
Bimo stared with his mouth hanging open.
"Okay…"
He swallowed hard.
"If that thing gets angry, we won't even have time to apologize."
No one answered.
Everyone was frozen in place.
Leviathan's blue eyes slowly moved.
Not toward the ship.
Not toward the ocean.
But toward one person.
Arga.
In Arga's hands, the MBG Lunchbox glowed brighter.
Twenty-six glowing grains of rice slowly revolved inside it like a tiny constellation of stars.
Golden light reflected across his face.
But Arga's body was far from calm.
His breathing was heavy.
A sharp pain pierced the left side of his chest.
The wounds from the Sahara had never truly healed.
His legs briefly weakened.
Kai noticed immediately.
"Arga."
Arga slowly shook his head.
"I can still stand."
Even though he wasn't entirely sure himself.
Leviathan slowly lowered its massive head until it was level with the ship's deck.
The water around it began to glow blue.
Waves spiraled around its body, forming a gigantic ring of light.
Lila stared at the energy readings, her hands trembling.
"The resonance is rising rapidly…"
Farhan typed without stopping.
"The Ocean Core is awakening faster than we predicted!"
Sinta stepped forward.
"If it's the Guardian of the Core… then it might be able to help us."
But she never finished the sentence.
The radar alarm suddenly screamed.
BIP! BIP! BIP!
Farhan froze.
His face went pale.
"No…"
Lila turned sharply.
"What now?!"
Farhan pointed at the screen.
One red point in orbit had suddenly changed direction.
Then its speed increased dramatically.
Straight toward them.
Kai looked up at the sky.
A faint golden light flickered in his eyes.
"It's coming."
The night sky split open with crimson light.
Clouds twisted like a vortex from hell.
The air trembled.
The ocean began raging again.
Something tore through the atmosphere.
WHOOMMMMMMMMM!
A shockwave slammed into the ocean.
The research vessel was lifted into the air before crashing back down.
Bimo was thrown onto the deck.
"Okay! I hate the sky now!"
The red meteor descended faster.
Its reflection danced across the violently churning waves.
Then—
BOOOOOOOOOOOM!
It slammed into the ocean several kilometers from the ship.
The Pacific exploded.
A wall of water as tall as a skyscraper surged into the sky.
Rain from the ocean battered the vessel like thousands of stones.
Sinta shouted,
"Hold on to anything you can!"
Dika grabbed Rani before she was swept away.
Farhan hugged his laptop like it was his second life.
Kai remained standing, staring straight ahead.
In the middle of the enormous crater of water—
something moved.
Slowly.
A black claw emerged from the ocean.
As large as a tower.
Crimson cracks glowed across its surface like lava flowing through the void.
Then the creature rose.
It resembled a four-legged cosmic dragon.
Its obsidian scales absorbed the moonlight.
Its wings unfolded like two living mountains.
Its eyes burned crimson.
Cold.
Empty.
Hungry.
Kai whispered,
"Cosmic Leviadon."
The moment the name left his lips—
the creature roared.
RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
The sky trembled.
Waves exploded in every direction.
Several instruments aboard the ship immediately shut down.
Farhan stared at the screen as the readings flickered wildly.
"Its energy… it's denser than the Void Tyrant!"
Lila took a step back.
"How are we supposed to fight that?"
No one answered.
Cosmic Leviadon lowered its head.
It could sense the Ocean Core.
It had come to consume it.
Leviathan Thalassa moved first.
The ancient sea dragon let out a thunderous roar.
ROOOOOOOOOOOOOAR!
Its roar shook the ocean floor.
Massive waves of blue energy surged around its body.
Then it launched forward—
like the entire ocean had been hurled into the sky.
BOOOOOOOOM!
Leviathan slammed into Cosmic Leviadon in midair.
An explosion of water and light illuminated the night.
The two giants crashed into the ocean.
The sea split apart.
The research vessel was lifted high by the resulting waves.
Bimo clung to the railing and screamed,
"I AM NOT GETTING PAID ENOUGH FOR THIS!"
Dika didn't even have time to laugh.
Far away—
Leviathan's claws tore into its opponent's neck.
Cosmic Leviadon retaliated with a bite that sent shards of blue scales flying.
The ocean transformed into a raging storm.
Red lightning tore through the clouds.
Leviathan unleashed a stream of blue energy from its mouth.
Cosmic Leviadon countered with a blast of black void energy.
The two beams collided.
The sky exploded.
Arga forced himself to stand.
The MBG Lunchbox in his hands shook violently.
Twenty-six glowing grains of rice spun faster and faster.
He could feel Leviathan's pain.
He could also feel the hunger of the cosmic creature.
Two opposing energies collided inside his chest.
Suddenly—
Arga's knees gave out.
THUD!
Sinta rushed toward him.
"Arga!"
Arga clutched his chest.
His breathing came in broken gasps.
A thin line of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
Kai dropped to one knee beside him.
"Your body hasn't recovered!"
Arga gritted his teeth.
"If I stop now…"
He looked toward the battle raging in the middle of the storm.
"…this ocean will die."
He forced himself back onto his feet.
His hand rose.
The MBG Lunchbox opened.
A burst of golden light erupted into the sky.
Leviathan immediately responded.
Its blue scales began glowing far brighter.
Farhan stared at the readings, his eyes widening.
"Leviathan's energy is increasing!"
Lila shouted,
"Arga is feeding resonance to the Ocean Guardian!"
Cosmic Leviadon suddenly stopped attacking.
Slowly—
its head turned.
Its enormous red eyes locked onto Arga.
Not the Ocean Core.
Not Leviathan.
Arga.
Kai immediately stood.
"That's not good."
Bimo swallowed hard.
"Why do all these monsters always pick Arga?!"
Cosmic Leviadon opened its mouth.
Not a single sphere of energy.
Not a beam.
Instead, a gigantic vortex of void energy began forming in front of its jaws—
large enough to swallow an island.
The surrounding ocean was dragged upward.
The entire sky turned pitch-black.
Leviathan roared and lunged forward—
but Cosmic Leviadon's black wing slammed into its body, sending the Ocean Guardian flying.
Arga stared up at the sky.
His body trembled.
But he did not retreat.
He simply tightened his grip on the MBG Lunchbox.
And for the first time—
a new grain of rice began to take shape within the light.
Farhan stared at the screen, trembling.
"That's impossible…"
Lila whispered,
"The twenty-seventh grain…?"
Cosmic Leviadon unleashed its full attack.
The sky collapsed.
The ocean screamed.
And a wave of black light descended straight toward Arga.