Chapter 62
Chapter 62
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: The Fishbowl Holding a Whale (4)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The sea still churned with demonic beasts leaping out, and Pippin was busily dodging them before hurling them our way.
[What's this girl trying to show off? Hmm, I sense fire energy. But fire magic weakens in front of water, as you know.]
"Aren't you stating the obvious?"
I knew Gerbera's skills well. Gerbera Pride was a mage who pulled her weight whenever the heroine went out to subjugate demonic beasts. She was a character with her own dedicated event as the heroine's friend.
Her main skill was [Blossoming Comet]. It grabbed dust floating in the air, turned it into a massive fireball, and dropped it. The fireball bloomed magnificently like a giant flower.
Of course, using it over the ocean right now would make it less spectacular.
"Gerbera. Mind if I help? To make for a more entertaining show."
"Hmm. The Duke Sierra seems in high spirits today. Sure! Wait just a moment, mermaid teacher."
Enbi peered out at the sea and nodded as if to say, go ahead and try.
"Pippin! Come back!"
At my call, Pippin rolled back onto the deck like a basketball. He crashed down with a loud clatter and even bumped into a demonic beast's body.
"You okay? It would've been nice if you'd come down in one piece."
"But Master called me so urgently."
Before getting up, Pippin kneaded the demonic beast's flesh and muttered.
"The texture is tougher than expected... I want to grill it...."
"Cut the nonsense and get up. Help me out."
I went to the edge of the ship and began slicing the space long and deep with Lagia. This time, it was a door of death connecting entrance to exit. But since I'd cut it like a sheath, anything passing through would emerge shredded to pieces.
[Ooh! Feels like sewing. Nice and tight, nice and tight. Ah, should I transform into a needle next time?]
After slashing the space into wide checkered patterns, I called Pippin over.
"Throw chunks of the demonic beasts hard through this gap I made. Really hard."
Pippin grabbed the tail of a fish demonic beast and nodded. Then I beckoned to Gerbera.
"Gerbera. Once they pass through this gap, the beasts will shatter and fly up into the sky."
"Then if I use my skill right then—bam, perfect."
I nodded and signaled Pippin.
"Pippin! Now!"
Pippin hurled the massive demonic beast with inhuman strength.
Sizzle! The beast's flesh burrowed into the spatial gap, shredding into fragments that burst out.
"Gerbera!"
"Got it!"
Gerbera swung her short staff, gathering mana. It was power rivaling the mana surge when Destro rampaged. How much mana was she planning to pour into this simple show?
"Mermaid teacher, watch closely! The flower I'm blooming! Blossoming Comet!"
Crackle! The shattered beast chunks swelled like popcorn and shot into the sky. Then each piece turned into a glowing red fireball and began plummeting toward the sea.
Boom! Boom boom! Each exploding fireball evoked the image of a fully bloomed flower.
"I've never seen anything like this!"
Enbi leaned out over the deck, teetering dangerously on the edge. His water-slicked body sparkled in response to Gerbera's magic.
"Lady Enbi! While we're at it, toss all the beasts up here!"
"That sounds fun!"
Enbi signaled the pod of orcas encircling the ship. Soon, they all dove deep into the sea. The ship rocked violently, then—rumble!—with a deafening roar, swarms of smaller beasts were flung skyward like they'd been tossed from the depths.
"I'll burn them up spectacularly!"
Gerbera's flames erupted even more brilliantly and massively. The fireballs latched onto the beasts, but the explosions weren't huge. The beasts were too soaked.
"Just need more firepower."
I grabbed Gerbera's wrist and infused my mana. Her mana surged instantly stronger. Gerbera's flames soon caught the beasts ablaze. They burst one after another like the smaller chunks earlier, creating a breathtaking spectacle.
It was an incredible sight. The fireworks display over the ocean was a festival unlike any other. Dahlia would've loved to see this too. As that thought crossed my mind and I glanced back absentmindedly, Gerbera was watching me with an odd expression.
"Sierra...."
"Yeah?"
"Didn't your mana just get... a lot stronger?"
"Me? Did it?"
Not knowing what Sierra's mana was like before, I just put on a clueless face. Gerbera soon shook off her puzzled look and smiled.
"Is this another of your feats? A flower made together by you, your guest, your guard knight, and your friend."
"Should I take credit for it?"
"You've gotten shameless beyond recognition."
Glancing toward Enbi, I saw him happily watching the fireworks. Beasts plopped into the sea one by one, splashing water that caught his eye too.
"Humans have more fun tricks than I thought. Shall we do more?"
At Enbi's suggestion, we repeated the process several more times. Explosions, spectatorship. In the meantime, the number of beasts definitely dwindled. Eventually, even when Enbi stirred the sea, no more surfaced.
I asked Enbi, who seemed a bit disappointed.
"Is the sea purified enough now?"
Enbi pondered briefly, then dove straight into the water.
"Damn, is he running away?"
We hadn't secured Halo yet!
Rushing to where Enbi had jumped in, I stared after him—diving in after would be idiotic. Not long after, Enbi's head popped up from underwater.
"Sierra!"
"Lady Enbi!"
Good. He wasn't fleeing. Enbi rode an orca's back, leaped high, and landed on the deck. Fresh from the water, he looked fully merman now: sleek skin, sharp fins, broad webbed feet.
Enbi stretched languidly, shifting to a more human form, then grinned at me.
"The sea's demonic energy is mostly cleansed. Even Elsenohte should breathe easy now."
"That's great news."
I let out a sigh of relief. For me, Elsenohte's state didn't matter right now—what eased my mind was that Enbi hadn't bolted.
To get Halo, we needed Elsenohte's help, which meant going through Enbi. No way around it.
"How far is Lady Elsenohte's shrine from here?"
I broached the subject casually.
Elsenohte dwelled in a mysterious shrine deep in the ocean—a holy beast. It was Enbi's birthplace and like a mine for farming rare items. Not every merman could enter like Enbi.
Only Enbi, with the qualities of a merman king, could access it using the item 'Elsenohte's Flute.'
"Shrines aren't found by location."
Enbi threw an arm around my shoulders and stretched his hand out over the sea like he was parting it.
"Ugh, you're soaking wet...."
"Shrines are reached with the heart."
"Ah, I see."
Heart my foot. It's that magic item, obviously.
"You said we need Lady Elsenohte's pearl to defeat Halo. When can you hand it over?"
I asked while trying not to shove off the dripping Enbi. He tapped his chin thoughtfully, then shrugged.
"Dunno."
"...."
I barely resisted calling Pippin to slice off his fins. I'm a rational duke, after all.
"You haven't forgotten our deal to hand over the rights to Halo, right?"
Of course, I worried his merman dimness might make him ditch our promise. It could’ve just been a lie to escape the situation.
Anxiously, I grabbed Enbi's wrist. Threaten to cut off his fins, and maybe he'd take us to Elsenohte?
I wouldn't relax until Halo was dealt with. Even if we chopped off Enbi's limbs, he'd regenerate at the shrine anyway. Lagia could be snatched if I slipped up.
Ultimately, I had to destroy the king's token from Halo myself to seal the deal.
"I agreed to leave Halo to you. But approaching Elsenohte is another matter. She doesn't take kindly to outsiders."
You're the one who's uncomfortable with it. What does a clam clutching a pearl know?
"I understand."
Enbi's attitude was within expectations. In the game, he was cautious about Elsenohte's shrine even with the heroine. You needed five red hearts of affinity to meet Elsenohte. She was a late-game holy beast.
'To get past the gatekeeper Enbi, I need to melt his heart to reach Elsenohte....'
Ways to raise Enbi's affinity were obvious. First: comfort his lonely whale days. Second: gift his favorite food. Third: lavish him with sincere praise, over and over.
Easiest was praise, obviously.
"Instead of this, why not admire our accomplishment? See the proof that you've pleased Lady Elsenohte."
I disentangled from Enbi's arm-around-shoulder and led him by the arm to view the slain beasts. He followed willingly.
"Truly impressive work. Summoning the orca pod to make the beasts leap—that strategy."
"Strategy? Seemed like you planned it, Sierra...."
"But you pulled it off, Lady Enbi. And that beautiful pod dance. First time seeing orcas up close—I nearly fainted from the awe. Ah, here's one you finished off yourself. Catching such a huge, fearsome beast—merfolk are amazing."
With the nonstop praise, Enbi's face brightened more and more. Behind me, Pippin peeked out hoping for some too. I handed him Lagia.
"Lagia. Praise Pippin to your heart's content."
[Oh, if it isn't Sierra's mighty guard knight! So much to praise! Where to start~ hahaha!]
Pippin paled like he'd been punished, but retreated when I waved him off.
I kept praising Enbi as we circled the deck. By the time my mouth went dry from repetition, Enbi's face beamed.
"You're a good one, Sierra. Been ages since someone thought of me like this!"
His mood had clearly lifted from the praise.
[♥♥]
Only two hearts so far. Long way to go.
"Shall I list your amazing qualities? First, your bravery. Second, well, haa, second is a strong point too...."
While I spouted empty praise, we reached the strait’s end. The Hermit's Land came into distant view.
The dungeon of dungeons, swarming with beasts. Approaching the Hermit's Land thickened the demonic energy. One thing was sure: Elsenohte, overwhelmed by those beasts earlier, wouldn't have her shrine nearby.
"The Hermit's Land is close! Advance?"
Captain Dashima shouted toward the crown prince's direction. All eyes turned. The crown prince, who'd been directing beast cleanup, walked over.
But the look he gave me was strange. Like a sulky kid? Why the face when he sees me?