This bullet was incredibly powerful.
Back when Lucas first wanted to create this kind of bullet, it was purely because he remembered Hawkeye from his past life having many different types of arrows. So, he wondered if his sniper rifle bullets could also be made into various types of functional ammo, like the freeze, flame, or EMP rounds often seen in games.
So, Lucas and Nian spent a long time researching in his workshop.
The principle behind these special bullets wasn't difficult; they could all be achieved through versatile Originium Arts. But the problem was that their power was mediocre. Compared to normal Originium Rounds, they were more like toys, and their functionality was weak. They couldn't freeze an enemy in three shots like in the games.
After all, against a normal enemy, they'd be dead from the bullets before they even froze. And it's not like enemies could just tank several bullets and be fine, like in a game.
In the end, after giving up on those bullets, Nian had an idea.
She wanted to use her own power to create an extremely strong bullet. So, after many failures, Lucas and Nian finally succeeded in developing a few of these 'Divine Bullets'. Don't be fooled by their small size; in reality, there was nothing that could block a single shot.
Even super-thickened steel plates that could block the ordinary bullets from Lucas's sniper rifle still couldn't stop a 'Divine Bullet'. Under the 'Divine Bullet's' terrifying tearing and destructive force, those steel plates, right down to their internal molecular structure, were annihilated by the terrifying power.
However, the conditions were strict.
Just like ordinary Originium Rounds require a Caster to use, 'Divine Bullets' can only be activated by a god themselves using divine power. A normal person can't use this bullet even if they have it. Honestly, this bullet was a bit of a white elephant. A god with that level of power doesn't really need this 'bullet'.
After all, if Nian used her divine power, the effect would probably be stronger than this bullet...
The Seaborn's upper body lay limply on the ground.
Under normal circumstances.
It could easily recover from this level of injury. However, right now, it was very, very difficult.
The small missiles from before contained the power of Laevatain's flames. These flames were constantly burning the Seaborn's body, like countless ants crawling inside it. When new tissue tried to grow, these flames would act like termites, continuously gnawing away at the newly grown parts. The previous bullet also had a certain inhibitory effect. The divine power invaded its strength, rampaging and destroying, turning its once-terrifying recovery ability into something mundane.
*Hoo!*
Lucas breathed out ghostly blue flames. Then, fists bigger than wine barrels relentlessly hammered the Seaborn's body. One punch, two punches, three punches....
The very ground of the wilderness seemed to tremble under Lucas's fists.
Even the four members of Penguin Logistics, watching silently from a distance, couldn't help but gulp, their hearts pounding in rhythm with Lucas's fists hitting the ground.
"So brutal."
Exusiai couldn't help but comment.
"Why use fists when you have such an awesome gun?"
"Hey, hey, hey, did you see that? Did you see that sniper rifle that flew down from the aircraft in the sky!! Holy shit! That's insane! I always thought only Laterano had sniper rifles, I never thought the outside world would have them too??!! And, that one shot just now seemed even stronger than Laterano's, no! Not just stronger than Laterano's, but stronger by a lot! What kind of bullet is that insane!"
Exusiai got more and more excited as she spoke. Her attention was now completely on that long sniper rifle, her eyes sparkling, as if she desperately wanted to claim it as her own.
Croissant joked beside her.
"The opportunity's right here. See if the little bear will give you that sniper rifle."
However, Sora was worried.
"Exu, I remember Laterano strictly forbids guns from leaving the country, right? They don't even allow outsiders to make copies? Then, will...."
"Er..."
Exusiai froze for a few seconds.
"It's true, there is a rule like that. I remember there was once a record of an important Laterano firearm being traded on the black market. Then the Pontifica Milites found the buyers and sellers, and... 'absolved' them with several hundred rounds per second from their revolving firearms."
"Then will they!!"
Sora was worried. What if the Laterano Pontifica Milites came looking for Bailey?
"But..."
Exusiai said: "That requires one precondition. The person holding the gun is weaker than the Pontifica Milites. Do you think...."
Everyone turned to look at Lucas, who was punching the ground in the distance.
"Can the Pontifica Milites beat *that*?"
No one spoke, falling into deep thought.
"My guess is, even if they found out, they'd send two people, those two would get crushed, and then they'd just pretend nothing happened. Besides, it's custom-made. As long as no one reports it, Laterano will probably never know. And even if they did, there's not much they could do. A faction that can produce this kind of weapon probably isn't afraid of Laterano. If it's an individual, they would have already been scooped up and protected like a treasure by countless factions."
"Laterano's rule is mainly to prevent their own guns from being leaked. As for other countries making copies, Laterano can't control that."
"Oh~"
Sora breathed a sigh of relief. Because she often hung out with Exusiai, she knew some of Laterano's rules. She was terrified that people from Laterano would come looking for trouble.
Finally, the Seaborn was smashed to pulp under Lucas's iron fists.
Its internal, once-bright energy pathways were now dim, and its body gradually stiffened, turning into oil before dissipating into the air.
Finally gone.
Even after being beaten, its body broken by the 'Divine Bullet', this Seaborn's life force was still incredibly tenacious. It only finally ran out of energy and died after Lucas had hit it so many times.
Job done.
Lucas turned around. His burning, ghostly-blue eyes stared intently at the four of them. Paired with his already fierce appearance, he looked like a ferocious beast from ancient times. A terrifying aura enveloped the four.
Lucas walked over slowly. Each step left a footprint on the ground. And with each of Lucas's movements, it seemed Exusiai's and Croissant's hearts were beating in time with his steps.
*Thump, thump, thump....*
The giant flame bear stood before the four. Its body, over three, almost four meters tall, was like a small mountain. Its fur burned with a blazing, ghostly-blue fire. Especially those eyes, burning with blue flames—they were frighteningly cold. With the sun at its back, the bear facing them looked even more terrifying.
Exusiai and Croissant looked up at the giant bear, unable to stop themselves from gulping.
Even though he was on their side, that vicious look... why did it seem so fierce at first glance?
Exusiai and Croissant immediately hid behind Sora. Usually, they'd have Sora hide behind them, but the situation was special. This little bear belonged to Sora.
Exusiai whispered: "He looks so fierce... he's not gonna hit us, is he?"
Croissant hesitated, then nodded. "Probably. Anyway, I... probably can't take one punch."
"Aren't you a Defender?"
"Who said Defenders have to take a punch?"
"Bai... Bailey..."
Sora was also a tiny bit scared. Mainly because Lucas's current giant bear form was just really terrifying. If the normal teddy bear's image was cute and cuddly, then this giant bear's image was the definition of "big bad guy."
Sora held out her small hand.
Lucas glanced at it, extending his giant paw to hold her small hand.
Immediately, the power in his body receded. Before their very eyes, the nearly four-meter-tall giant bear seemed to deflate instantly. *Pfft!* He shrank back to his tiny size.
"All set."
Lucas gestured to Sora.
To be honest.
That scene just now was truly dangerous.
If he hadn't been here, these four girls from Penguin Logistics really might have died on this mission.
However, what Lucas cared about most wasn't the danger, but what the hell that Seaborn was.
He had never seen a Seaborn like this. It was completely different from the ones in Siesta or Saltwind City. Its individual strength was also the strongest of any single Seaborn Lucas had seen, though not as strong as someone like Skadi. But don't forget, Seaborn have evolutionary potential and swarm characteristics. This means that if one can evolve like this, then other Seaborn can evolve like this too.
The implications of that were obvious.
Mass production...
And not just ordinary mass production, but large-scale mass production. If every Seaborn that came ashore in the future had this level of strength, then what's the point of fighting? What chance would they have? Let alone a single country, even Sui would just be crushed by these Seaborn. All of Terra would probably be defenseless. Even... even the Northern Demons that plague the nations might be crushed by them.
Too terrifying...
Thinking about it.
Compared to the Demons.
It seemed the Seaborn crisis was the most severe. For the Demons, at least Ursus, Yan, and Sargon on land have held them off for many years. Although many countries had made tragic sacrifices along the way, they *could* be held back.
But the Seaborn... they had never really encountered them.
Although Yan and Sargon also defended their coastlines, the Seaborn rarely attacked actively, so it was just defense, not a fight to the death.
Thinking of this.
Lucas once again remembered the dream he'd had for many days in a row after awakening his 'Rule'.
The Seaborn came ashore.
They devoured the entire world, and he could only watch helplessly, powerless to stop it.
This prophecy...
It seemed to be getting closer and closer.
And neither Siesta nor this Seaborn was a good sign.
Lucas decided to have a serious talk with Jessica's father when he got back.
As the chairman of Raythean Industries, Jessica's father had a huge amount of influence in Columbia. He could be considered part of Columbia's absolute upper echelon. He would also remind the Grand Tutor. Although Lucas didn't know the Grand Tutor personally yet, he trusted him. He felt this 'young man' was quite reliable. A simple warning, and the Grand Tutor should be able to figure something out.
As for the other countries.
Lucas had no way to warn them.
But with two great nations like Columbia and Yan, the other countries should also learn of the Seaborn's danger. They had to prepare in advance for the Seaborn to attack at any time.
"Holy shit! He got so small!"
Exusiai couldn't help but curse, then grabbed the teddy bear's hand and lifted him up, pinching and rubbing him.
"Hey! The feel is exactly the same! It really is him!!"
Sora smiled and scratched her head.
However, Exusiai then remembered how she'd grabbed him and squeezed him between her thighs. Maybe that was a bit rude...
Sora 'took' Lucas from Exusiai's hands and held him, as if afraid Exusiai would snatch him away.
"Oh, right, Bailey! Can I see that sniper rifle?"
"Sure."
Lucas nodded.
Exusiai then happily ran out, retrieved the sniper rifle from the ground, and carefully dusted it off, treating it like a precious treasure. Guns were treasures to Exusiai, and to all of Laterano, and a powerful sniper rifle like this was even more precious.
Honestly.
Exusiai really wanted to just grab it and run.
Only Texas was looking at Lucas with a scrutinizing gaze.
As if she suspected something.