Damn, I recarneted As A Judge in Fantasy World

One defining characteristic of the imperial nobles was their strained relations with neighboring territories.

In fact, these territories were practically potential enemies, so why would a lord help them without compensation? Still, it seemed excessive to covet territory and major industries.

"I see. I understand what's going on. Then, shall we go and see those bastards' faces?"

"It might be dangerous. Are you okay?"

"I just want to check the appearance. Is that okay?"

"No, you can see it from a distance. It's just over this hill."

Abel crossed the short hill with Count Caldwell. Then, a massive pit, much larger than anything he'd expected, came into view. The diameter appeared to be easily over one kilometer.

"Is this their lair?"

"Yes. They go in and out through the hole in the middle, but you can't see much right now."

"Hmm."

The situation seemed much more serious than expected. It wasn't merely a matter of destroying wheat fields; it threatened to encroach upon the entire land.

'What kind of monster is this?'

The pit was so enormous that even large monsters would be dwarfed by it.

Abel stood there, staring at the pit with a look of incredulity, laughing faintly to himself.

Kurrururur!

Suddenly, the ground began to vibrate. Count Caldwell's face turned pale.

"Those... those Carp."

"A carp?"

"Yes! It seems to be moving now, so let's return back for the time being. It would be better to return later with the small army."

"Okay. But can I just see what it looks like?"

"There's not much time. It's moving faster than expected!"

"Then, Count Caldwell, you go on. I'll stay here a little while."

"No, how could I leave you here alone...?"

"It's okay, go."

Abel shoved the count's back firmly, and Count Caldwell stumbled back, retreating hesitantly. He kept looking back, clearly worried.

"Come out. What kind of monster are you?" Abel muttered, gazing into the pit with a solemn expression.

Then, as if responding to his words, something rose from the hole in the center.

"Boooooooooo!"

Despite the strange sound it made, Abel could see that its appearance indeed resembled a carp.

There were truly bizarre creatures in this world. Less than half of the flora and fauna were fully understood. It was a dangerous realm, far beyond anything Earth had to offer.

But this carp-like creature, flailing its head and crying, "Carp!" was something Abel hadn't expected.

"What kind of bizarre cases are these?"

"Is this what they call an extreme concept junkie?" he muttered.

Of course, it wasn't a real carp. It merely had the head, body, and tail of a fish.

Surprisingly, it had four legs.

Its forelimbs had claws like a mole's, and its hind legs were shaped like a rabbit's. It seemed capable of crawling through the ground and occasionally leaping up like that.

"Boooooooo!" it cried, making an odd noise.

Abel frowned and took out his warhammer.

Regardless of its appearance, the creature was incredibly menacing.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

It was nearly ten meters long with sharp teeth like a piranha. Just because it looked like a carp, it was not to be underestimated.

'I think I understand why Count Caldwell ran away in such a hurry.'

If one happened to be nearby when this creature body-slammed the ground, they would be in serious trouble.

Abel could only imagine what it would be like to see a creature the size of a killer whale leaping up and slamming down on them. It was a terrifying thought.

"Let's catch at least one of them," he said.

The count had mentioned that they traveled in groups.

Besides this one, there were probably countless others lurking underground.

Abel knew he needed to come up with a name for this creature. It wasn't a real carp, after all.

"Let's call it Crucian."

Even though it was simply a translation, the distinction felt clear.

Abel began to move toward the creature, swinging his warhammer.

At that moment, the Crucian seemed to sense something strange. Abel immediately hurled his weapon.

Suhuaaang―!

This was the only ranged attack he could use, but that didn't mean it was weak.

The heart of the beast lingered in the warhammer even after it left his hand.

Teardrop!

The warhammer struck the creature's head, and its entire body twisted wildly in response.

The impact must have been significant.

"But why does it sound like that?" Abel murmured.

The noise was like hitting a hollow can or thick armor—otherwise, such a loud noise wouldn't echo.

Crucian, writhing in pain, suddenly froze. It stared at Abel with a puzzled look, as though wondering how it could endure the blow.

The sight was almost amusing.

"Phew!"

"Boooooooooo!"

Just as Abel chuckled briefly, the creature shot high into the air. It extended its legs, launching itself at least fifty meters with surprising ease.

"Huh?"

Abel found himself standing in the creature's growing shadow as it plummeted towards him. Only seconds remained before the Crucian landed.

Ta-da! Choaaaak―!

Abel threw himself out of the creature's path, narrowly escaping. His evasive move was instinctive, but the outcome was immensely satisfying—he managed to avoid it with ease.

"Oh my! That was close."

"What are you talking about? There's still plenty of distance," he retorted.

"Twenty centimeters is twice my body size!"

In reality, he only had a two-second gap, but that didn't matter. What counted was that he had dodged effectively.

"Carp? Carp! Carp!"

Boom! Kookung! Kookugugung!

The Crucian leaped into the air, emitting strange sounds as it moved.

It flattened the hill Abel had stood on moments before. It seemed to thrash about, destroying everything in its path before disappearing into the ground again, leaving behind a gaping hole.

"He got hit by Hector the Punisher and he's still going strong. What kind of creature is this?" Abel murmured.

The blow, empowered by the heart of the beast, was strong enough to shatter a thick iron door.

For most creatures, it would have been fatal. Yet, it seemed to have had little effect on the Crucian. As Abel started to feel slightly worn out, Peltron suddenly snapped his fingers.

"Aha!"

"Why are you suddenly acting like that? Don't disturb me—just stay still."

"I just realized something really important, so why don't you stop and listen?" Peltron replied.

"What is it?"

"Ahem! Can I give it away for free? There should be some kind of appropriate reward..."

"Speak up before I shove you into its mouth."

Although Peltron was small, he still held the title of half-demon. Even if the Crucian swallowed him, he wouldn't die; he'd simply be chewed like gum and spit out in pain.

"Fine, fine! Listen, it's in serious pain right now."

"Huh?"

"The attack is working!"

Aha?

Abel thought. Could it be that the Crucian was reacting so violently because it was in severe pain? If that was the case, the situation took on a new light.

Stretching out his right arm to the side, Abel solemnly intoned, "Hector Punisher, assemble."

The warhammer, thrown far off, hurtled back towards him at high speed.

Shhhhhhhhh! Shhhhh! Shhhh!

Is this copyright infringement? Abel thought briefly.

But so what? This was dark fantasy.

Now it's time end this, I need to hurry up..