Cyron's Lair (2)
The sea breeze blew without pause, pressing against the unfurled sails on the mast and driving the ship forward with powerful momentum. It sliced through the waves with vigor, a warship of De Marinda that conquered the open ocean.
As befitted its massive size, the deck swarmed with sailors moving about their duties. They weren't quite as immaculate as Selena, but the soldiers in their crisp uniforms carried out their tasks with evident discipline and pride.
In truth, there wasn't much to do on the deck of a wind-powered vessel. The most they could busy themselves with was organizing supplies, inspecting the mast for damage, or maintaining the mounted cannons. The ones truly working hard were the sailors adjusting the sails according to the wind's direction and the helmsman gripping the wheel. Despite not having sailed long, dark circles already shadowed their eyes. Yet the smiles never left their faces. It was their first voyage in a while, after all. They seemed to draw fresh strength simply from setting out alongside Selena.
"This is the place."
Bagan had claimed an entire cabin inside the warship. It couldn't compare to a proper estate or inn, given the maritime setting, but it offered enough space for the three of them to sleep and included a desk where book-loving Sally and Arien could sit and read.
"Arien, don't just eat the books. You need to read them too. Absorbing information through ingestion is useful, but adding your own thoughts while reading the analyzed content is an important part of the process."
"Understood, sister."
The pair sat peacefully, reading the books Bagan had retrieved from his subspace. Meanwhile, with his own matters to attend to, Bagan sat cross-legged on the bed and sank into thought.
This is already the second time I've absorbed a trait.
He was reflecting on the phenomenon where traits remained behind when a trait holder was condemned by Sally's power. Beings from Pangea traveled to Pandemonium upon death. Their physical bodies remained behind while only their souls moved on. Typically, they reincarnated as powerless demons, living without memories of their past lives.
The same applied to Pandemonium's inhabitants. Already dead, they simply revived there upon "dying" again.
When condemned by Sally's power, they face complete annihilation.
Yet Sally's ability rejected that process entirely. The soul destined for Pandemonium was extinguished instead. In that moment, the traits engraved upon the soul lingered behind.
To think I can absorb the traits themselves.
It was the moment he truly grasped just how broken his own ability was.
I'll be able to collect even more traits going forward.
Having organized his thoughts, Bagan released his cross-legged posture. Instead, he opened his palm and manifested something at its center.
Whoosh!
The room's temperature spiked instantly. The moisture-laden air of the ocean cabin grew bone-dry.
This kind of application works nicely too.
He had released the Rage obtained from Leviathan directly from his palm. The advantages and disadvantages were distinct. The primary benefit was that it required no mana refinement. Using the trait didn't devour excessive energy. While some traits came with special conditions, Rage activated simply by stoking anger, and Release worked as long as he held the mental image of expulsion. The lack of mana cost meant he could deploy it even in environments where mana manipulation proved difficult. It was like acquiring an additional weapon.
The drawbacks, however, were equally clear.
If I become too reliant on traits, maintaining versatility will grow difficult.
Anything both powerful and convenient tended to seduce its user. Bagan knew this well from the countless community posts he'd seen from players who had invested solely in trait enhancement, only to watch their characters collapse. He'd offered guidance to many who couldn't understand why their builds felt so weak.
Still, once I accumulate enough traits, fighting with nothing but them might not be so bad.
In the game, players could only possess two traits at once, which imposed natural limits. The situation now was entirely different. He could already feel five distinct traits: Absorption, Release, Justification, Acceleration, and Rage. Considering what the future might bring, discovering optimal combinations to pierce an enemy's weaknesses promised to be genuinely entertaining.
A smile crept across Bagan's lips. It was the mindset of a true trait enthusiast.
That was when it happened.
Bang!
"Bagan, could you stop whatever you're doing? Smoke is pouring from your room. My subordinates grabbed water buckets thinking we'd caught fire."
It was Selena. As captain of the vessel, letting herself into the cabin was hardly surprising. Startled, Bagan immediately absorbed the heat radiating from his palm. Since he couldn't very well release it inside the ship, he pulled it back in using his trait. Having once created and absorbed an excessively powerful wind, the action felt routine.
"Ah, sorry. Forgot we were at sea."
"Good that you understand. More importantly, we're in a troublesome situation. This has never happened before, but we've entered a windless zone. The journey might take longer than expected."
"I'm fine with it, but I feel bad for Razetta."
Bagan didn't consider it a major issue. The existence of a windless zone intrigued him more than the inconvenience itself. During long voyages, windless zones proved even more problematic than headwinds. The latter could be managed by tacking in zigzags, but without wind, sailors had nothing to rely on except ocean currents. This warship wasn't designed for manual rowing, which only worsened matters. Had it been a galley, the calm would have been manageable. But a vessel dependent entirely on sail power found itself in dire straits.
"Tsk. That's not what worries me. What concerns me is how much further away my vacation is getting."
Selena clicked her tongue, clearly displeased by the prospect of even longer days before her rest. Watching her, Bagan felt a pang of sympathy.
"If it's that bad, want me to help?"
"You have a solution?"
"A skilled magician is sometimes called a natural disaster."
Creating wind was something Bagan could do at any time.
"I'm more worried it might be too fast."
At those words, Selena's lips stretched into a wide grin.
"That's not something you call a worry. I'm counting on you!"
And so the warship under Selena's command, now equipped with Bagan as its new engine, reduced the estimated arrival time to the location radiating Protavist's presence by a factor of three. It could have gone even faster, but after being warned that the sails might tear, this was the result of his self-restraint.
"The more I see it, the more incredible it seems."
Selena couldn't contain her admiration. She didn't possess deep knowledge of magic, but she understood that no one else wielded it quite like Bagan. Who else could generate winds strong enough to make a person's body stagger for an entire day without showing the slightest fatigue? Selena was left speechless.
Of course, this reaction stemmed from her ignorance of how Bagan actually manipulated mana. In a sense, it wasn't that he used magic skillfully so much as...
It's basically core power.
"Well, thanks."
Bagan descended from the upper deck. Once they reached the vast open sea, he searched for the presence once more. Protavist's energy remained fixed in the same location.
"It's not moving from several tens of thousands of meters below us. We'll proceed alone as planned? The others will stay behind to guard the ship."
"Mm. We should prepare for any unforeseen circumstances."
Selena announced their arrival, reiterated the plan she had explained beforehand, and expressed her intention to depart. As expected of a commander-in-chief who held her soldiers' complete trust, they responded with enthusiastic approval. The only one showing concern was Gale.
"Please take care of yourself, Commander. You mustn't overuse that power."
"I know that much without you telling me, Gale. Since I trust Bagan, I'll rely on him."
Bagan heard the exchange but pretended not to notice. It wasn't the kind of situation where he could insert himself, even as a joke.
"I'll cast Fly again. We'll swim straight through the ocean in one go."
"Of course. This is the third time, so I should manage it well."
With those reassuring words, Bagan applied both Fly and a protective barrier to her. Sally returned to her spirit form and took her place at Bagan's side.
"Sister has entered Sir Bagan's embrace once again."
Noticing this, Arien transformed as well, replicating the gills and tail of a neo shark. The situation mirrored their descent into the South Sea Dungeon several days earlier. This time, however, they were venturing into a dragon's lair, which might prove even more dangerous than the dungeon.
"Let's go."
Splash!
Confident this time, Selena dove in first. The others followed, vanishing beneath the waves.
Protavist had left Razetta in Cyron's care and focused on securing the nest. While it was unlikely anyone would venture this far, he bore the title of Dragon's Guardian. He ought to at least make a proper show of it.
As a guardian who breathed underwater by nature, Protavist swam freely outside the temple, patrolling the area. At several tens of thousands of meters below the surface, he never ascended to the water's surface. Occasionally, however, he would eliminate or subjugate fierce sea monsters that intruded upon the territory.
Protavist was so adept at commanding subordinates that Cyron had entrusted him with directing both Leviathan and the Kraken. While leisurely circling the temple, he suddenly sensed something amiss.
The Leviathans and Krakens, creatures that fiercely guarded their domains, were all converging on a single point. When nothing demanded their attention, he allowed them to roam freely. After all, they were living beings. Rather than keeping them suppressed, it was better to let them establish nests or territories nearby and serve as natural guardians.
Why are they acting like this?
Curious about their unusual behavior, Protavist swam toward the direction the monsters were heading. There shouldn't be any intruders, but if something was attempting to penetrate the nest, stopping it was his responsibility.
The creatures were moving toward a point twenty thousand meters directly above the temple. The journey would take considerable time, but he accelerated through the water to investigate. In less than five minutes, he had ascended the full distance.
Those are from De Marinda.
Protavist recognized Bagan and Selena at once.
Kwaaaaang!
The Leviathans and Krakens were sliced apart like tofu.
Shwoong! Chwaak!
An invisible current of water grazed Protavist's cheek. The octopus-headed guardian reflexively spewed ink from his mouth in shock.
What in the world is happening?
Protavist had sensed no power whatsoever from the man he'd observed in the study. Yet here he was, descending rapidly toward the seabed while dispatching every approaching monster with invisible attacks. Only one conclusion formed in Protavist's mind.
Ah... Even I cannot stop that.
It was the instant his reputation as a guardian shattered completely.