Disaster of the Flood (7)

I was staring at the unidentified skill called Incarnation of Disaster, lost in thought, when I heard footsteps behind me. Turning my head, I saw my companions approaching.

"What are you doing?"

Kim Dokja, the first to reach my side, asked.

"Trying to extract a skill from this guy."

I answered her question honestly and began sinking into thought, trying to decide the priority among the ten skills floating before my eyes.

…What should I pull as the first skill?

The only SS-grade skill, Incarnation of Disaster, which unlocked special abilities once certain conditions were met?

Or Mysterious Heavenly Rain, which would let Lee Jihye summon her Ghost Fleet anytime, anywhere?

If not those, the water-attribute skills Black Tide Surge and Sea Wheel Barrage would be fine too.

Hmm. If I'm preparing for future naval battles, Blessing of the Sea isn't bad either.

Of course, I had no idea whether a naval battle would actually happen.

I had only read the Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint webtoon, and that webtoon had only reached the "True Revolutionary" arc by the time I dropped into this world.

Tap. Tap.

"Hm?"

Someone tapped my shoulder. I stopped mid-thought and turned my head.

There stood Kim Dokja, looking down at me with calm eyes.

"What is it, Dokja? Something wrong?"

"Not really. Can I ask you just one thing?"

"What?"

Her sudden question caught me a little off guard, but I hid it behind a smile and tilted my head, waiting for her to speak.

"The way you extract skills—is it guaranteed?"

"Nope. It's probability. Like a gacha ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠game. Different rates by grade, so sometimes you pull it, sometimes you don't."

"Ah~ So that's why you suddenly stared into empty air and looked so happy last time?"

Kim Dokja nodded at my answer. Then she studied my face and tilted her head again.

"But why do you look so serious?"

"Huh? Oh, I was just deciding which skill to pull first this time."

Every disaster I had taken down so far had carried excellent skills.

Ignir, Myeong Ilsang, the Ice-Named Ghost Dragon, and now the Disaster of Water, Orcanox—all of them.

"Then want me to help?"

"Hm?"

I stared at her in surprise. Meeting my gaze, Kim Dokja simply watched me with a quiet smile.

Why is she suddenly offering this…?

Until now I had deliberately refused her help during skill extractions, trusting myself to handle it alone.

Some people would wonder why I would ever turn down help from Kim Dokja—the living encyclopedia of Ways of Survival.

But my own reasoning was simple: until now I had never really needed her. Every skill always came with a description when I extracted it.

…Should I take her help just this once?

This time, though, I was tempted.

Two reasons.

First, I was curious about the unknown conditions and special abilities of Incarnation of Disaster.

Second, I wanted to ask whether any future scenarios took place on the open sea.

If there was a late-game scenario set on the ocean, pulling the S-grade skill Blessing of the Sea would be smart.

After a brief internal debate, I decided to accept her help this once and slowly opened my mouth.

"I'd love the help. Then I'll tell you the skills I can extract."

"Okay. Leave it to me."

"First off, there are ten skills I can extract from the Disaster of Water."

"…What? Ten?"

"Yeah. I'll list them in order."

I began reading off the names listed in the skill extraction window one by one.

"Mysterious Heavenly Rain, Black Tide Surge, Sea Wheel Barrage, Orca Pressure, Excellent Swimming Ability, Robust Vitality, Cry of the Sea Whale, Humidity Preservation, Blessing of the Sea, and finally Incarnation of Disaster."

"……………."

Kim Dokja listened to the list, then rested her chin in her hand with a deeply serious expression, lost in thought.

Seeing her suddenly look so grave made my own face harden in turn.

"Dokja?"

"Y-Yeah?"

"Why the serious face? Are all of these trash skills?"

They were all A-grade or higher. Was she making that face because they were all flashy garbage?

"N-No, nothing like that…. They're all good skills, so don't worry."

"…For someone saying that, your face is completely frozen right now."

I frowned at the forced smile on her stiff face and continued.

"If they're bad, just say they're bad. I can stop the extraction anytime."

"…Then I'll be honest. Out of the ten skills you listed, everything except Excellent Swimming Ability is good. Eight of them are solid."

"Eight are good? Then what about the last one?"

Kim Dokja hesitated, lips parting and closing, then spoke with a look of wounded pride.

"Incarnation of Disaster. That's a skill even I am hearing for the first time."

"……What?"

I could only stare at her blankly.

The living spokesperson of Ways of Survival. The walking encyclopedia of the novel. And she didn't know this skill?

What the hell is she saying…?

Kim Dokja, the sole reader who had finished all three thousand-plus chapters of Ways of Survival, didn't know this skill. Then what on earth was it?

I silently glared at Incarnation of Disaster in the extraction window while Kim Dokja lowered her head slightly, still looking grave.

While the two of us sat in silence, the rest of the party gathered around us.

They tilted their heads at the serious silence between me and Kim Dokja, but I had no mental bandwidth left to care about them right now.

…A skill even Kim Dokja doesn't know.

Should I pull it? No—it's a skill even she doesn't know. Do I really need to pull it…?

I squeezed my eyes shut and continued wrestling with the decision. Then I opened them and spoke the name of the first skill I would extract.

"For the first skill, I choose Incarnation of Disaster."

Kim Dokja's eyes went wide the moment I chose it.

"Jinwoo. Are you really going to pick that?"

"It's the only SS-grade skill among the ten the Disaster of Water has. Pulling it should still be good."

The success rate was a mere 14 percent, but it was still a fight worth taking.

I looked at the system messages floating in front of me and simply nodded without a word.

"Hell yeah!! A measly 14%? Of course it had to succeed!"

"W-What? You actually got it?"

"Oh! You pulled it, you pulled it!"

Having beaten the 14% odds, I shot to my feet with a grin and shouted.

Kim Dokja stared up at me in shock as I suddenly leapt up and yelled.

"Dokja! One more question!"

"What?"

"Is there a scenario later that turns into a full naval battle on the ocean?"

"Uh, there is one. What are you trying to pull this time?"

"I'm going for the skill called Blessing of the Sea."

"Aren't you painting too big a picture? That scenario is pretty far off."

"Preparation is always better done early, right?"

"Well… you're not wrong."

When I asked, Kim Dokja nodded and admitted it wasn't a bad choice. Confirming that, I selected Blessing of the Sea for the second extraction.

"For the second skill, I choose Blessing of the Sea."

"Kuuuuh—!!"

As expected of someone loved by the Goddess of Luck!

"But what about the last skill?"

Sea Wheel Barrage was basically the water-attribute version of Flame of Destruction and Noble Ice Flame, so there was no real need to take it. That left Black Tide Surge and Mysterious Heavenly Rain…

Black Tide Surge for surfing, or Mysterious Heavenly Rain to support our Jihye…

Which one should I pull…?

When I was stuck like this, the answer was simple: ask one person.

I turned to Kim Dokja, who was staring blankly at me, and asked.

"Dokjaemon. Between Black Tide Surge and Mysterious Heavenly Rain, which one should I pick?"

"…Who are you calling Dokjaemon. Why do you even want those two?"

"Black Tide Surge so I can surf later. Mysterious Heavenly Rain so our Jihye can pull out the Ghost Fleet anywhere."

"…Just pull Black Tide Surge."

"Huh? Why? What about Mysterious Heavenly Rain for supporting Jihye?"

"Are you an idiot? Black Tide Surge is a skill that creates water out of empty air. The water it makes is seawater, so the Blessing of the Sea you just pulled will apply to it, and as long as you have enough mana you can create enough water for Jihye to summon the Ghost Fleet. There's no need to pull Mysterious Heavenly Rain."

"Aha! As expected of Dokjaemon! Thank you so much, Dokjaemon!"

"…Don't call me Dokjaemon. And you're probably the only person in the world who wants to use an attack skill for surfing."

I ignored both Kim Dokja and the Constellations' indirect messages and selected Black Tide Surge for the final fourth extraction.

"…Today really is overflowing with luck, huh?"

One SS-grade skill and two S-grade skills in a single go?

Even I was starting to get scared of my own luck. How hard was the system planning to screw me over later for giving me only good skills like this?

"You finished pulling skills?"

"Yeah. Incarnation of Disaster, Blessing of the Sea, and finally Black Tide Surge."

"Congrats. You said it wasn't guaranteed, just probability. You got lucky."

"Yeah, I did."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Satisfied with another successful haul of excellent skills, I raised my hand to extract the byproducts from the Disaster of Water.

At that moment a message rose in my mind.

"………………."

The first condition was already satisfied, and the second would be finished in a few days. But what the hell was the third condition?

I frowned at the final condition completely covered in black boxes.

Still frowning, I called out to Kim Dokja.

"Dokja."

"Yeah?"

"Are there usually skills that only show their true power after you meet certain conditions?"

"They're rare, but a few types ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of skills like that do exist."

"Really?"

…The unknown third condition was giving me a headache, but there was nothing I could do about it.

The words "in progress" bother me a little, but it might be structured so the condition unlocks naturally later even if I don't force it right now. I'll just ignore it for the time being.

"I will proceed with byproduct extraction."

"Huh?"

I froze when I confirmed one of the byproduct names.

Water-Calming Pearl…?

Wasn't that another name for a dragon's wish-granting jewel? And a mere killer whale had been carrying one?

No, wait…

In the East there were legends of imugi obtaining a wish-granting jewel and becoming dragons, and even carp, centipedes, earthworms, and clams becoming dragons. I had heard those stories.

This killer whale had lived for so long that a Water-Calming Pearl had naturally formed inside it, and it had been preparing to become a dragon.

"……………."

The fact that it was labeled an Incomplete Water-Calming Pearl rather than a complete one bothered me a little, but a dragon's wish-granting jewel would still hold tremendous power.

I took out the Incomplete Water-Calming Pearl that had automatically been stored in My Little Hideout.

"Whoa…"

I let out a soft exclamation at the sight of the orb, roughly the size of a human head and radiating a brilliant golden light.

Part of my awe came from how magnificent it looked, but the rest came from the surging energy thrashing inside the Water-Calming Pearl.

"…Insane."

An incomplete dragon's wish-granting jewel already had this much power? Then how strong would a complete Water-Calming Pearl be?

And why had this thing suddenly decided to recognize me as its master?

Because I have a dragon's heart? Or because I was the one who contributed the most to defeating its original master, the Disaster of Water?

I didn't know the reason, but I was more than satisfied with obtaining such an excellent item.

The moment I set the Water-Calming Pearl down on my palm, it began rapidly shrinking.

Soon it was no larger than a piece of candy, and then it shot straight toward my mouth.

"W-Wha—?"

Startled, I stared blankly as the pearl slipped past my teeth, touched my tongue, and then suddenly vanished.

"Wh-What the—?"

What just happened? Did I just eat the Water-Calming Pearl?

Fuck…?

My brain short-circuited from the sudden event and I stared into empty air with a vacant expression.

"………………."

What the fuck? Is this actually okay? This isn't going to blow up later, right?

…Wait, maybe once it absorbs a certain amount of mana from my heart it will awaken into a complete Water-Calming Pearl?

If that was the case, its current behavior made sense. Still…

"Did it really have to dive into my mouth…?"

I nearly had a heart attack when it suddenly charged at my face.

Anyway, I had safely extracted the skills and hit the jackpot on byproducts, so it had been an extremely satisfying day.

I turned my head toward where the others were standing.

Yoo Joonghyuk and Kim Dokja were both staring at me with wide eyes, completely dumbfounded.

"Uh, why are you looking at me like that?"

"…Kim Dokja. Did you see that?"

"…Yeah, of course I saw it. This is actually driving me crazy. Jinwoo."

"Huh?"

Kim Dokja fixed me with a stiff expression and opened her mouth.

"That orb just now—was it a Water-Calming Pearl?"

"…………."

I slowly nodded in affirmation. Kim Dokja and Yoo Joonghyuk simply stared at me in silence.

Watching the three of us from the side, Jung Heewon raised a small hand and asked,

"Excuse me, you three? Stop having a private conversation and include the rest of us, okay? What was that orb Jinwoo was holding that made you all look so shocked?"

"…That orb is a Water-Calming Pearl. Also known as a Wish-Granting Jewel, or simply a Wish Pearl."

"…What? A Wish Pearl—you mean the one dragons hold in their mouths?"

Jung Heewon asked back in surprise, and Kim Dokja gave a small nod.

"Park Jinwoo has just obtained a dragon's treasure."

"W-Wait a second, Dokja unnie. Jinwoo oppa just extracted that Water-Calming Pearl or whatever from that killer whale, right? But you said it's a dragon's jewel? Why would it come out of a killer whale?"

Lee Jihye asked Kim Dokja with an incredulous look.

"There are many legends about dragons in the East. Stories of imugi becoming dragons, carp leaping the Dragon Gate and becoming dragons, and in Korea even centipedes, earthworms, and clams becoming dragons. So a killer whale becoming a dragon is entirely possible."

"N-No, even so…"

Even after Kim Dokja's explanation, Lee Jihye still looked flabbergasted and shot me a sidelong glance. More precisely, she was staring at the mouth the pearl had just vanished into.

"Sheesh… Oppa was already strong, and now he's going to get even stronger."

"We don't know that yet, Jihye."

"Huh? What do you mean, oppa?"

"The Water-Calming Pearl I just got is incomplete. It temporarily chose me as its master, but if I ever lose the qualifications of master, it might leave me."

"What a self-centered little jewel."

That was exactly what I thought. It really was a self-centered ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠jewel. In most novels and webtoons, wish-granting jewels obediently followed their master's words…

I scratched the back of my head in frustration and looked at my companions, then at the people from Nouvelle Vague standing behind them.

"Ah, whatever. Anyway, that makes four Disasters down. Let's eat something. I'm starving."

As I spoke to the group and looked up at the sky, the cumulonimbus clouds Orcanox had created began slowly clearing, and sunlight finally broke through.

Judging by the position of the sun, it was already afternoon—which meant it was time to eat.

"Let's have lunch. I'm hungry. Joonghyuk, make us some steaks out of this killer whale meat."

"Why do I have to do that?"

"Because out of everyone here, your cooking skill is number one."

"……………."

Yoo Joonghyuk fell silent for a moment, then turned her head away. Regression had worn her mind thin until her personality felt like it had been boiled three times over, but she was still a decent person at heart. She would cook for us. Probably.