The Blue Lord of the Salacia Sea
"An elf, huh...."
Just one elf dispatched from the Great Forest... How strong could they be? What rank among the elves? Could a single person really take on all of us? And with the Empire and the Holy Eagle Kingdom thrown in too....
The Salacia Sea looked peaceful on the surface, but that was all it was—a facade. A brutal tension, like a silent battlefield, flowed along with the currents. Hoping we wouldn't unluckily run into Hornigold's pirate ships, I paced the deck. With nothing much to do, I had no choice. Swing my sword around or pull up the status window.
"Is Mortis famous?"
"Oh yeah, super famous. Skull Crusher, Spine Collector. Legend has it she ripped out a pirate captain's spine—bones and all—and smashed their ship single-handedly."
"No wonder Dullahan get called elf-killers. Even if we all rushed her, we wouldn't leave a scratch."
Mortis turned out to have an even more incredible past than I'd imagined. She seemed so gentle and refined on the outside, but in reality, she was the type—like the Saintess—who sent anyone who opposed her straight to the gods with terrifying brute strength. Not a healer who patched wounds after the fact, but a priest who prevented them by pulverizing enemies first. Come to think of it, she preferred a mace over a staff. Full plate armor and a shield... Honestly, given the chance, she'd probably love to smash everything herself.
"She sailed with our old lady back in the day, huh? Never thought I'd meet the legendary sea Dullahan in person.... Looked like a priestess, but you can't judge a book by its cover."
Bartholomew Kidd shook his head in shock, saying it was too much to take in. I felt the same, and Hyacinth was trembling, wondering if she didn't like him or something. But what kind of life had Nox lived, to bow her head even to someone like Mortis?
I pondered the long, eventful lives of long-lived races... But as a fresh 20-year-old, barely a year into this world, that wasn't something I could relate to.
"What does it feel like when your friends grow old and die first?"
Hyacinth suddenly asked us.
Who knows... She could live another 300 years at least. By the time she dies, I couldn't even imagine what the Chronicle Continent would look like. It had been nearly 300 years since the Hero drove out the Maou. With that much time passing, she might not handle the rapid changes and end up stressed out. Though I, with my 10,000-year lifespan, wasn't exactly in a position to worry about her.
"Must be tough. Something we can't even understand."
At my words, Hyacinth drooped his tail and murmured, "Yeah...."
The captain looked spry for her age, but she coughed now and then, showing signs of fatigue. Old navigator Nesil Geitor told her to quit smoking and drinking, but she ignored him, saying she'd rather die without them, and chugged her rum.
What if she got sick mid-voyage...? I'd asked Riko and Kirke to make her some medicine. Riko grumbled about the hassle but said extending her life by ten years was no big deal and flopped onto the bed. Even Riko, who missed veggies and solid ground during the long voyage, was stressed—her ears all wrinkled, her temper short, snapping at the slightest word.
Kirke, on the other hand, got bored and dove into the sea for the whole day, coming back with fish or treasure. Was that the difference between land-dwellers and sea creatures?
"...."
"Bro, what's on your mind?"
"Huh? Nothing...."
They say idle time leads to more thinking. The Maou Candidate title in my status window was nagging at me. I only had it because I possessed a Maou skill, but what set me apart from the other two Maou Candidates was the absence of Yin Demonic Power.
The Goddess of Fate had said only the Maou possessed Yin Demonic Power. So were Maou Candidates basically Maou...? Or did candidates somehow connect to the Maou and receive it? The Saintess wielded hers naturally, like it was innate. Kesera Sera Sera, though, could barely control it—firing it off via skills was all she could do. She couldn't even wrap it around weapons or use it for "body enhancement."
Thinking back, she relied excessively on "mechanical devices." Natural for a technician, but... could she only use mana as Yin Demonic Power?
The power of the Constellations was near-omnipotent, restrictions aside. Skills from Constellations required Yin Demonic Power? Skills from the Maou granted it...? Was that the difference?
But why? Couldn't he just resurrect? Was he really dead? Why split his power pointlessly? With the Maou's strength, couldn't he swallow the continent alone right now?
The Goddess had limits on what she could say, urging me to build basics at the academy, forge connections, grow slowly. So there must be a long-term reason for it....
I have no idea.
Information was too scarce for now. Testing a talisman Kirke made to see if it triggered a Maou skill might give some insight.
For now...
What was Kesera Sera Sera's organization after? Why raid Witches' Island and take Kirke's arms? Why release the Evil God from its seal? Why start moving only after I appeared—what were they waiting for...? Ultimately, without knowing their goal, I'd be stuck holding a shield in the dark, waiting for one-sided attacks. Fighting blind against unknown numbers and abilities.
We have the adventurer guild...
The guild would handle things. The other party members seemed fine, which was a relief.
About 20 days into the voyage, we finally reached the second island. We'd passed others, but this was the second treasure island marked on the map.
At the shout that land was sighted, the captain bundled up in her coat and stepped out with Mortis. Riko, yelling "Land at last!", dove straight into the sea and swam for it.
"...Bro, what's up with Riko?"
"Veggie shortage."
I could make trees, sap, eggplants, even nightshade... but apparently it wasn't enough. I could provide bananas or fruits galore, but she craved root veggies—last night, she even teared up begging me. Kirke finally fetched edible seaweed from the shallows, but a bit longer and she might've gone mad and flown off on her broom. I was getting worried.
The farther from land, the harder letters and supplies got. Pirates didn't stock veggies anyway—just meat and fruit. For a Levitfoot like her, it was serious suffering.
"Man, she's feisty."
Kidd checked the island with his spyglass—no dangers—and we anchored. For scouting, Hyacinth, Kidd, me, and bored Kirke went ashore to look around. Islands are islands... but this one felt oddly off.
The forest was eerily silent—no birdsong, no insects.
"Carnivorous plants? Or a ghost island?"
"Crazy rabbit's here."
Somehow she'd found wild potatoes, roasted them, and was blowing on the hot ones. Hyacinth, Kidd, and I warily surveyed the unnaturally quiet island. As we ventured in, puzzled by the wind-swept stillness, Kirke tugged my sleeve to stop me.
Whoooosh—the wind blew.
It gathered, forming rune-like script in the air like a collar glowing with light. A massive griffon materialized at its center.
The air-formed griffon, glowing green, roared. Fierce winds shook the forest, scattering leaves. Kidd swung his harpoon to bat away the spreading verdant wind blades; Hyacinth fired mana-charged shots at it. But his bullets passed right through.
"What!? A real ghost?!"
Hyacinth panicked. Kidd slashed with a mana-infused harpoon, ripping the air itself, but the green griffon flapped back.
As I moved to join, Kirke yanked my sleeve and whispered in my ear.
──Elf's wind spirit.
"...Elves here?"
She shook her head at my shock—it was just for scouting. The griffon, pained by the collar runes, charged Kidd. I drew my spirit sword, wrapped it in mana, and swung wide. A subtle impact hit empty air, pushing me back.
──!!!
The wind howled.
The shockwave spread with a crunch. Kidd inhaled to counter with his own blast, but it shredded his, and Hyacinth yanked him down, rolling on the ground.
In the chaos, eyeing Riko munching potatoes, I racked my brain on how to fight it—then Kirke raised her hand.
A casual flick of her index finger.
But the result was anything but ordinary. The wind spirit split in half and dispersed.
"ᛖᚨᛋᚤ"
Watching her swat it like a bug, I was reminded anew that she was a Master. Kidd's eyes screamed disbelief at what he'd seen, but...
"You're stuck under the wife's thumb for life."
He muttered nonsense, apparently convincing himself. Hyacinth whined at Riko that she should've warned them instead of eating potatoes, but Riko opted to zap him silent with lightning, sprinkle salt on her potato, stuff it in her mouth, and shove the bowl at him wordlessly. Guessing she wanted a drink, I fetched water.
Kidd shook his head at the crisped, revived Hyacinth.
"So, what the hell was that?"
"Elf's wind spirit."
"......For real? Elves on the island?"
"Doesn't seem like it... Just scouting, probably."
What were they searching for? Why comb a tiny island like this? Not after the Pirate King, but elves scouting islands stirred a creeping unease in me.
Sensing it, Kirke took my hand, smiled, and said not to worry.
──I've killed 2,000 elves. Trust me. She nodded.
Safety first, but... experience aside, weren't we just tourists gawking around? Kirke shoved a shovel at me, urging me on.
Whatever else, by voyage's end, I'd be a pro at digging.