Wizard of the Abyss – Ch. 206

Wizard of the Abyss

[Extra Novels]

Chapter 206 - Journey (12)

Even though the bombs had far more destructive power than expected, what I had to do remained unchanged.

[...Ah–aH–ah–AH—...]

Ignoring the continuous screams, I checked the flow of the currents. Even just roughly estimating, the currents spanning well over several thousand meters were now within my grasp.

'Is this all I can handle right now…?’

Despite the scale, I couldn’t help but feel slightly disappointed.

In theory, I could manipulate all currents within the range of my Tide Sense.

And in the Abyssal Sea, that range wasn’t limited to just a few thousand meters. But I had never gathered and twisted such a vast area all at once before, so there was clearly a limit to how much I could control simultaneously.

Still, even that limited amount was enough. As I clenched my fist, I felt it.

[J-Jern, what are you doi—...?]

I focused.

I compressed the massive currents. Sculpted them. Divided them. Stitched certain sections together with pressure.

'I can’t issue everything as a single command.'

If I moved this enormous mass haphazardly without any structure, I’d be crushed to death before Elisia could pull me out.

I had to create a precise point of impact to strike that barnacle and endure only as much of the burdens as I could handle until it struck.

And I wouldn’t get a second chance.

If I made the structure too complex, the impact might be dispersed and I could fail.

So I chose the most familiar form.

"...Done."

I opened my hand.

At the same time, the result, a gigantic hand, opened as well.

A huge hand made entirely of seawater, with fingers, a properly constructed back, and even veins.

To the naked eye, nothing seemed different, but the currents were clearly shaping themselves into a hand under my command. 

And I wasn’t the only one who noticed.

[??]

[...????]

The nearby deep-sea creatures recoiled in terror at the sight of a hand as large as a mountain suddenly appearing in the Abyssal Sea.

A few bold ones even tried to bite it, but it was nothing more than a mass of water formed by pressure and currents. They couldn’t really damage it. 

I carefully lifted one of the massive fingers and lightly swept it between myself and the barnacle.

-Booom!

[Ugh, it’s already regaining its senses!]

Even that slight movement sent enormous currents surging in all directions.

Malo fluttered wildly in the massive waves, and Elisia shut her eyes tight, clinging to me with all her might so she wouldn’t be blown away.

At the same time, I felt pressure crushing my head and a strange soreness in my fingers.

"...?"

Confused, I moved the finger of the seawater hand again. Each time I did, the same finger on my real hand tingled.

I had modeled it after my own hand, sure, but I hadn’t expected the sensation to synchronize as well.

I had chosen to control it by physically moving my own fingers, mimicking the structure, to make handling that massive construct more intuitive…maybe that was why.

It truly felt like I had plunged my hand into the Abyssal Sea and was moving it directly.

"If you had to be precise, rather than seawater, this is more of a sea hand." 

(T/N: Pun: 해수海水 sea water 해수海手 sea hand)

[...What are you even talking about?]

"It’s nothing."

I slowly pulled the hand back, gathering it, and pressed my thumb against the nail of my index finger.

It appeared as if I were preparing to flick someone. I kept waiting for Elisia in that pose.

"24, 23..."

[...]

As the moment of escape approached, the creature finally regained its senses. Countless eyes burst out from its body. Far more than before, to the point where you could no longer see any other part of its body other than eyes.

Those countless eyes rolled around—then all at once, every single one fixed precisely on me.

As expected, with that many barnacles, even if Elisia blurred my connection to the Abyssal Sea, it still had the ability to locate me.

Still, it didn’t matter. No matter what it did, I could endure for the remaining seconds. Preparing to withstand anything—

I froze when I saw its tentacles swimming in the opposite direction.

"What?"

[Hmm, is it just running away?]

...No.

If your opponent had prepared something, one could simply evade.

After taking the first hit, one is always at a disadvantage.

And it knew that it would grow stronger over time.

It understood those facts perfectly.

"5, 4, 3..."

It chose to retreat because it had intelligence.

Intelligence.

That was something deep-sea creatures should never possess.

"That’s actually a relief."

[?]

More than anything, it was fortunate.

That I could deal with it right now.

The ancient monsters with intelligence lurking at the bottom of the Abyssal Sea were already more than enough.

"...1!"

The moment Elisia’s signal dropped, I snapped the compressed finger forward.

-...Babaaaam!!!!

[...!?...!??!]

A murky, milky fluid burst out.

The barnacle, once like a massive mountain, was instantly crushed and compressed, as if struck by a gigantic iron ball.

The squirming eyes scanning its surroundings wildly gave a glimpse of the barnacle’s panic, but—

[Re…cover…]

Broken fragments began sticking together with slime, trying to reconstruct its original form. It started regenerating almost immediately after being destroyed.

A recovery ability that no other deep-sea creature possessed, unique to that barnacle alone.

But there was also a reason why deep-sea creatures had never evolved such recovery methods.

Because in this sea, there existed a certain predator that did not allow recovery.

-Cruuuunch…!!

[U-ugh...]

The larger the being, the more pressure it had to endure. Its already shattered shell didn’t return to its original state and was crushed even further.

As I watched the mountain shrink little by little, I could feel the burdens rushing in.

The price of crushing that mountain was now being returned directly to my hand.

But…

When I opened my eyes again, I no longer found myself in the Abyssal Sea.

I was standing on some kind of terrace. Instead of the monstrous barnacle, there was only a setting sun before me.

"Phew..."

It really worked.

Elisia’s ability allowed me to use the Abyssal Sea’s power to its fullest and then escape my burdens afterward, like some kind of debt cancellation.

There was the drawback that using it would inevitably force me out of the Abyssal Sea, however…

I turned my gaze to Elisia, who was still in my arms.

"Elisia, thank you…”

"Snore..."

It wasn’t the right time to thank her now.

She had completely fallen asleep. Seeing the exhaustion on her face, something I hadn’t seen on her while she was awake, it seemed she had pretended not to be tired so I wouldn’t notice.

What a good kid.

I carefully carried her inside, laid her on a nearby bed, and stepped back outside.

Before she even woke up, I gritted my teeth as I felt the Abyssal Sea’s damp, clinging presence wrap around me again.

Time for phase 2.

[Hmm, seems like there’s nothing.]

"Yeah."

Fortunately, even after returning to the Abyssal Sea, the remaining burdens didn’t crush me.

So it really had been something I only needed to avoid at the right moment.

Fragments of the barnacle’s shell were scattered everywhere in the Abyssal Sea. Usually when a deep-sea creature dies, it leaves behind remains, but this one left nothing.

Maybe because it was just that unusual of a creature. Tilting my head, I turned to leave when—

[Th-there it is!]

Malo suddenly grabbed me and pointed somewhere.

"What is?”

[True Blood! It left the True Blood behind when it died!]

"What...?"

Looking more closely, there really was something it left behind. A few clumps of blood…or something resembling it.

It blended in with the Abyssal Sea so well that I hadn’t noticed.

[Not a single drop has been lost. Good.]

"What is this? It doesn’t get consumed like normal blood?”

[We call it ‘True Blood,’ but it’s not actually blood. It’s closer to the will of our creator. Put it somewhere safe, like a container.]

"You won’t consume it?"

[Not yet. I haven't even fully digested Shinto’s True Blood. Once I do, I’ll be capable of things on a completely different level than now…]

While Malo kept talking, I poured the blood into a bottle I had been carrying, then returned to reality.

Looking at it in the real world, it just looked like ordinary blood.

A dark red liquid. And it only filled about half the bottle.

Was this much really enough to create a monster of that magnitude?

...My interest was piqued.

[At least now I can honor my comrade’s spirit…]

"Hmm, so you don’t need this True Blood right now, Malo?”

[Right. But…what are you doing?]

As I opened the bottle and brought it closer to smell it, Malo asked uneasily.

"I’m thinking of trying a sip. Why?”

[...Are you out of your mind?]

"What? You said it grants wishes.”

The deep-sea creatures’ wish had been to find me.

And so, the barnacle that touched the True Blood gained eyes that could perceive me.

The relics wished to protect the world. And so, they became tools to fight the coming Scarlet Abyss.

It just looked like some kind of wish-granting miracle substance to me—More importantly, the abilities of True-Blood Factors like Elisia and Sharmia, even from my perspective, were incredible.

"I feel like I might gain a way to escape the Abyssal Sea as well. What do you think?”

[...Jern.]

Malo spoke more seriously than before.

[If that is what you truly wish, then drink it.]

"Hm?”

[If you genuinely want to escape the Abyssal Sea, then drink the True Blood. If you do, you might be able to escape with just that alone. Perhaps even achieve something beyond that.]

"Um, really?”

[Yes. But before you do that, look at me.]

Malo fluttered its collar, emphasizing its presence.

[Do I look like a normal human to you?]

"..."

[True Blood is not some panacea that grants all wishes. No, if anything, it’s closer to a double-edged sword that turns every wish into despair. I do not regret drinking it. But not all relics share my view.]

I closed the bottle with a sigh.

"Figures. Unless I find myself in a worst-case scenario, it’s not something I should drink lightly."

I could turn into a monster if I drank it.

There was no way I’d willingly pour something like that into my body. I just wanted to escape the Abyssal Sea normally.

[You made the right choice.]

Malo, sounding almost like an elder, added in a reassuring tone,

[Still, it can be used in other ways. For example, give it to someone who shares your goal, like our creator did…]

"...Ah."

[Of course, such people are extremely rare…Jern?]

"I think I know someone like that.”

[...Wait, even if you do, you shouldn’t actually make them drink it. Unless they really want to—]

"They’ll want to.”

[Even if it turns them into a monster?]

"They already are one."

[Who are you talking about?]

I shrugged at Malo’s confusion and answered casually.

"My master."

[?]

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