Chapter 63

The most standard way to defeat the pirate captain of the Golden Sea, Tospol, was to throw him into the sea and finish him off.

No matter how much of a monster he was in close combat, an ogre had no ability to swim in the sea.

A land creature dies if it can't breathe.

It's the same as dying if its neck is cut.

Did the mermaids really not know that?

They probably did.

No matter how much of a marine race the mermaids were, it was unlikely that they didn't know what I knew.

Besides, they each had innate magical abilities.

The sailors' fear that mermaids called typhoons was not a complete lie.

Nevertheless, the reason the mermaids considered Tospol a nuisance but couldn't finish him off was because the path to that process was by no means easy.

No matter how powerful a mermaid warrior was, their strength was bound to weaken when they went on land.

Besides, Tospol was an ogre, a strong race even among land creatures.

No matter how muscular a mermaid was, the difference in physique was so great that they would be beaten up one-sidedly.

And since Tospol would never go into the sea, the mermaids couldn't solve it and had no choice but to be troubled.

In the meantime, Tospol, who no one could touch, was killed by a human.

Doing what no one can do rashly is called an achievement.

Therefore, the mermaids decided to show respect and favor to the person who had achieved what they could not.

I decided to understand it that way.

“That's a very convenient explanation, but I'm against it. An invitation from a mermaid, and even a Dragon King!”

“Why?”

“Mermaids are an ominous race! They might harm you if you follow them.”

“The reason seems too childish.”

“How many ships have sunk in the Golden Sea because of them!”

Admiral Gian foamed at the mouth and opposed the invitation.

He seemed to have a lot of bad feelings towards mermaids.

Of course, Admiral Gian's opposition could not sway public opinion.

“If not now, when else can we be invited to the mermaids' country? This must be left as a record.”

“Did you see how his attitude changed towards the captain as soon as he defeated Tospol? If we follow him, he'll surely give us a lot of treasure.”

Mermaids were basically an unknown race.

The mercenary company members, who had more curiosity than hostility and did not believe the superstitions of the sea people, actively agreed.

Since there were more mercenary company members than Levonan dwarves, even Admiral Gian had no choice but to follow the majority vote.

“Kugh. This is why I can't stand landlubbers. They're all blinded by treasure. Then do as you please. I'm not going.”

“Are you really not going?”

“I'm not going.”

“I'll bring back a souvenir when I come back.”

“I don't need it.”

I decided to give the thoroughly sulking Admiral Gian some time alone.

If I left him alone, he would probably get over it.

At that age, it's normal to have trouble controlling one's emotions.

But unexpectedly, Ishmael also shook his head.

“Kruk, I think you're the strange one. Krrruk, a seaman would never like mermaids.”

“When did you team up with Admiral Gian?”

Perhaps because Ishmael had also lived at sea for a long time as a pirate, he tended to believe in many superstitions like the Levonan sailors.

I, as an enlightened modern person, tried to correct his foolish thoughts.

“Mermaids are not such a dangerous race. They just care about their territory.”

Because of that, they had many disputes with their surroundings, and they tended to disappear in the later half of the game after getting into a fight and being destroyed for no reason, but they were quiet if you respected their territory—.

—I deliberately did not say the last part.

Because there were many people listening around.

And Ishmael snorted.

“Kruk, when have you ever seen mermaids? Krrruk, this is why landlubbers are no good. They don't know what's dangerous.”

Ishmael, as if he had become one with Admiral Gian at some point, uttered the same words.

I looked at Ishmael making the sign of the cross and suddenly remembered that he was a devout follower of Dualism.

“Come to think of it, as a follower of Dualism, is it okay to believe in superstitions so carelessly? Do your gods say it's okay to believe in such things?”

“Kruk, the gods are generous. They will allow one of their sheep to look in another direction for a moment.”

“Alright, alright. Let's see what happens at the Last Judgment.”

A Kobold who doesn't know how scary tax deductions and year-end settlements are.

Do you think filing a comprehensive income tax return is easy?

You'll definitely regret it when that day comes.

“So, you're not coming along?”

“Kruk, of course, I have to go. It's definitely a money-making business, so why wouldn't I go?”

“I thought so.”

***

In , there was only one way to the Mermaid's Shore.

The Blue Hole hidden somewhere in the Golden Sea.

So I naturally thought I would go out to sea with the mermaids in a boat, but the place the mermaid envoy guided me to was a coastal cave.

It was an element that wasn't in the game, so I was a little flustered.

“Huh? Aren't we going to the sea?”

“It's surprising that a human knows the entrance to the shore. No, is it a matter of course for a honorable warrior who can defeat Tospol?”

“Let's just say that.”

“But that's a place where ordinary humans can't enter rashly. Unless they can withstand the pressure of the sea.”

I understood why the mermaids all had thick muscles.

The deeper you go into the sea, the stronger the pressure becomes.

To withstand that, the body naturally has to become thicker.

What if you can't withstand it?

Probably a terrible thing would be waiting.

Like a scene that would come out of a video with a mature rating.

Therefore, those lumps of muscle were the result of an evolution of survival of the fittest.

I have a sad premonition that my aesthetic sense will be very different from the mermaids'.

“Then this passage?”

“This is a passage we sometimes use when we have to go up to the land. Because we can't always go out to the sea.”

“Is it okay to tell me something like this so carelessly? Isn't it a secret?”

“It's fine. We can just close it if necessary.”

The mermaids were full of confidence.

Eleonor whispered to me from the side.

“There's a magic spell on the passage. It's better to be careful.”

Perhaps because half of her bloodline was elven, Eleonor saw through the existence of the magic.

If that was the case, the mermaids' confidence was understandable.

“Now, let's go. The Dragon King will be waiting.”

We walked down a spiral underwater cave.

It was a strange feeling to be walking around the same place in circles.

By the time I was losing my sense of time and location and my breathing was becoming rough from walking for a long time.

Suddenly, a ray of light poured down from above in the darkness, and my vision brightened.

It was the end of the underwater cave and the Mermaid's Shore.

“Wow.”

“So this is what it's like here.”

Exclamations of admiration burst out from the group at the unfamiliar scenery.

A rocky shore made of solidified lava stretched out endlessly.

Beyond the waves of black waves endlessly rolling onto the beach, the Kresven Archipelago could be seen.

Simply put, it's easy to think of the world as being inverted.

We are seeing the image of the other world through the surface of the water like a mirror.

On that beach, the Dragon King was waiting with his attendants.

The mermaid envoys had sent a person in advance to deliver the news.

“Welcome. Welcome to the kingdom.”

The Dragon King was not a dragon, as his name suggested.

If I had to say, he was closer to a water dragon or a sea serpent, and to put it into words, he could be called a snake that walked on two feet.

That's right.

The Dragon King was a sacred snake, a Naga.

Nagas were a rare race to see on land.

And they actually had an appearance that wouldn't be strange if land people misunderstood them as evil demons.

Moreover, a sea serpent adorned with all sorts of accessories could only be considered even more bizarre.

Fortunately, thanks to me having informed the group of the Dragon King's race in advance, no commotion broke out.

—When you have an audience with the Dragon King, you must never be surprised. Don't shout rudely. Or scream.

—Eh. No way, no matter what, would we do that?

—Are you confident you won't be surprised when you see a walking snake?

—Pardon? Really? Is there such a race?

—By the way, Captain, how do you know such a thing?

—…….

The last question was, of course, Eleonor.

Since I had no intention of satisfying her curiosity, I pretended not to hear and ignored her.

I ignored Eleonor, who was looking at me with strangely shining eyes, and greeted the Dragon King politely.

“I am honored to meet Your Majesty, Dragon King Mucalinda.”

“You don't have to be so formal. A hero who has defeated Tospol is rather deserving of my respect. Come this way. I have prepared a banquet.”

“Thank you for your grace.”

Mucalinda personally took my hand and led me to the kingdom's palace.

As the guests sat in the huge banquet hall, servants and maids endlessly carried food from the kitchen.

The smell of the food relaxed the group, who were still wary of their surroundings.

It was then.

「Quest: You have discovered an artwork created in ancient times. Why not investigate the story hidden within it?

—1 / ?」

A quest all of a sudden?

And what's with the question mark?

Are you telling me to find them without even knowing how many there are?

Anyway, I followed the system's advice and carefully looked around.

If the system, which was usually quiet, was telling me to look for something, it must be really important.

The artworks the system pointed out were the sculptures that adorned the dragon palace's banquet hall.

The decorations were installed throughout the banquet hall.

As I sat next to Mucalinda, who guided me to the seat of honor, I spoke.

“Your Majesty, may I ask you a question?”

“By all means. What are you curious about?”

“The sculptures installed in the palace are very magnificent and full of dignity, but could I possibly know the story behind them? They must have been installed to explain some legend or folklore, but I can't figure it out with my lacking insight.”

“It's not difficult. Come, look over there.”

Where Mucalinda pointed, a precisely carved figure looked down on the banquet hall with arrogance.

Mucalinda explained in a calm tone.

“That sculpture was installed as a warning to us.”

“A warning?”

“A long time ago, when the boundary between the land and the sea was gone and the world was in chaos, a man fought with our race. As a result of that grand war that lasted for several days, it was my ancestors who were defeated.”

It was unexpected.

“That's a story I'm hearing for the first time.”

“Is that so? Anyway, after that, the man chased us into the sea and is said to have set the boundaries of the world right. I don't know what happened after that.”

“Do you happen to know who he was and what he did?”

“I don't know that much. After that, our race had almost no exchange with the land. All we know is that he was a human.”

Mucalinda pointed to the stone statue.

“These sculptures are a warning sent by our ancestors, who feared and were wary of that man, to their descendants. That he might return someday.”

I was proud to say that I knew most of the lore of .

I had even uncovered some hidden lore myself.

But the story Mucalinda told me was something I was hearing for the first time.

No matter how much I searched my memory, nowhere in the game did it explain the process of how the Mermaid's Shore was created.

It seemed that there was a secret story hidden that I didn't know.

And it must be very important, which was why the system suddenly activated.

It seemed I needed to investigate this.

I tried to hear about it, but Mucalinda politely refused.

“I don't think it's appropriate to talk about that now. Let's now have a time to celebrate defeating Tospol. Aren't everyone waiting?”

Mucalinda smiled and announced the start of the banquet.

I reluctantly nodded my head.

But even during that time, my gaze was fixed on the stone statue of the man hanging in front of me.

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