Episode 329 The Shadowless King of the Black Sea (4)
-<Oil-blotting paper pouch that does not dissolve easily in water> / Pouch / D
A pouch that is quite tough and does not dissolve well in water.
The phrase “does not dissolve well in water” can also mean dissolves in water.
Vikir sucked air into this pouch and waited for it to dissolve.
Slowly, like a lump of starch thrown into water, the sachet dissolves, slightly sticky.
Time after time, it was unraveling, crushed by the heavy water pressure of the black water.
And when the air had been sucked out of it, Vikir crumpled it up and tossed it into the ghost ship, which was actually loaded with one more item besides air.
Seeds from the remains of the Daylily of Blood.
The pouch was filled with daylily seeds that had been plucked out with a hoe made from a shrew’s teeth.
The pouch was a Grade D miscellaneous item, so it didn’t last long in the harsh environment of the Black Sea.
And when the pouch was released into the grass, the seeds inside met the waters of the Black Sea.
‘…… For an item from a rarity box, it was useful.’
Vikir thought to himself as he watched the Daylily seeds grow in the hold of the floating ship, sucking up water at an alarming rate.
Swoosh!
In the blink of an eye, the Daylily seeds stretched out their stems and roots, creating a series of plump balloons.
The Daylily of Blood Tree that Vikir had dealt with hadn’t been able to grow their air sacs properly due to the extreme dryness, but the Daylily that bloomed in the Black Sea was different.
Once it had absorbed the water, the Daylily inflated its air sacs at a tremendous rate, and they were filled with light gases that gave it enough buoyancy to float even in the black sea water.
‘It’s salt water, so it won’t grow much, but it’ll grow enough to make an air sac.’
[……Yes, indeed! This is the Black Sea, heavy, cold, briny water. The Daylily will not grow to a dangerous size. They’ll grow just enough to be useful. Good choice of location].
While Decarabia admired in a rather chatty tone, Vikir was already soaring into the heart of the sea.
And then.
… thunk!
The ship suddenly tilted sideways.
Vikir, who was hanging on the anchor line hanging below the dock, also almost fell to the bottom.
kkigigigigigig-
An uncomfortable sound is heard throughout the ship’s body.
It tipped sideways, its contents raining down on them.
The heavy cargo of crates and oak barrels, swords and halberds, sank over Vikir’s head.
Vikir charged his sword with aura and swung, clearing away the debris that fell like snow.
[There’s something up there!]
Decarabia shouted.
Vikir nodded in agreement.
‘It’s the Shadowless King of the Black Sea. It must have come up and blocked the ship.’
The rising ship was halted by a giant jellyfish blocking its path.
But it didn’t matter. It was just what Vikir had hoped for.
Grabbing the anchor line, Vikir scrambled up the ship’s mast and jumped onto the watchtower.
pupupupug!
He landed dozens of blows on the jellyfish’s body, which appeared to be a dark mass.
[……! ……! ……! ……!]
The Black Sea Shadowless King jerked back in surprise at the stinging sensation.
But it was too late.
‘I’m glad I kept some spare.’
Vikir’s awl-like strike burrows deep into the jellyfish’s slimy body, planting the daylily’s seeds deep within.
Soon, the moisture-sucked seed began to germinate.
syuleuleuleug-
The roots that grew inside the body pierced through the flimsy flesh of the jellyfish and took root firmly.
And the stem that grew out of the jellyfish’s body formed a cluster of air sacs with extremely strong buoyancy.
Tsutsutsutsutsutsuts……
Shadowless King of the Black Sea was the first to show signs of panic.
The air sacs that had grown outside its body were buoyant and soaring upward.
Firmly embedded in its body, the roots were connected to the air sacs by tough stems.
The Black Sea King struggled to control its body as it was forced upward, flailing its tentacles.
However, it was unable to stop the upward flow, as the jellyfish’s body does not allow it to swim fast and strong.
It was also useless to use its translucent body to hide in the darkness.
The Daylily’s air sacs and roots revealed the location of its body.
kugung- gugugugugugu-
After a brief pause, the ship began to rise again.
This time, Shadowless King of the Black Sea was also there.
Vikir, which pulls the entire ship and the King of the Black Sea to the surface!
However, the King of the Black Sea would not be deterred.
Shurirok-
It extended its tentacles in a much more vicious and aggressive manner than before.
It seemed like it was going to wrap around Vikir’s body and crush it at any moment.
However.
… Poof!
The tentacle in front of Vikir’s eyes was instantly torn apart by an unidentified force.
The other tentacles did the same.
Poof! Poof! Bang!
The Black Sea Shadowless King floundered like a marionette with a broken string as explosions ripped through its body.
Decarabia was stunned and asked.
[Human! Did you do this?]
‘No.’
Vikir shook his head.
What was now breaking down the giant jellyfish’s body was ‘hydrostatic pressure’, the difference in pressure as it floated from the depths to the surface.
When you go from deep to shallow so quickly, the difference in pressure causes all sorts of bizarre things to happen.
This is why deep-sea fish caught by fishermen and dragged to the surface are often oddly bloated.
In addition, the ‘diving disease’ that kills divers is also a phenomenon that occurs due to this pressure difference.
Vikir barely suppressed the dizziness in his head.
The protection of the Styx River, his management of his mana, and the regenerative powers of the Basilisk protected him from the pressure.
But the mollusk’s sensitivity to water and air pressure hadn’t adjusted well to the sudden change.
The Shadowless King of the Black Sea tried to return to the trench in the deepest part of the ocean, but the Daylily that had already bloomed all over his body made it impossible.
In the end.
…Boom!
The ship and Shadowless King of the Black Sea broke the surface of the water almost simultaneously.
Up in the breezy air, they could see the island in the distance, where the three Baskerville brothers and the Insectking were waiting.
“Hooray! The Lord has saved the ship!”
“He has!”
“He has!”
We see the triplets waving their hands.
[Oooh! The ship is finally back!]
[Finally! We can finally get out of here!]
[Our mission, ‘escape the island by boat’, is no longer a dream!]
The Insectking are overjoyed, too.
However.
Pfft!
The appearance of a jellyfish so gigantic that it filled the entire surface of the water turned everyone’s cheers into shock and silence.
The Shadowless King of the Black Sea.
It dragged itself to the surface, spreading its enormous body across the surface.
Just as jellyfish usually spread out like pancakes when they come out of the water, the same was true for this one.
……If anything is different.
Shurorororock!
Unlike normal jellyfish, which become lethargic as soon as they are dragged out of the water, the Black Sea Shadowless King began to extend its tentacles in a much more aggressive manner.
Parts of its body exploded and became tattered, embedded with Daylily seeds and roots, but it didn’t seem to mind as it attacked Vikir.
hultteog-
The Black Sea Shadowless King chased after Vikir with the covers pulled back over its body.
Hundreds of gigantic, slitted eyeballs, like the eyes of a corpse, stared at Vikir in unison.
Decarabia asked.
[What are we going to do now, human? I think it’s best to run away now, right?]
If we fight this way, we will surely lose.
The size difference is too great, and this is not a good place.
If he was outside the tower, he could have fought across the sea using his master solid aura, but that’s not possible now.
Besides, he already has the ship, so there’s no need to gamble with his life.
But.
“I don’t do things without certainty.”
Vikir didn’t seem the least bit willing to back down.
“Drive the ship!”
The Insectking were there when Vikir barked the order.
They flew through the air and approached the ship, clinging to the masts and sails one by one.
[We will push the ship as it is!]
[To the island! To the island!]
[The storm is passing! Ride the wind!]
The Insectking followed Vikir’s orders and pushed the ship toward the island.
They were quite desperate, as their mission on the 4th floor was to “escape the island by boat”.
Shurororock-
The Shadowless King of the Black Sea, who interfered with the mission, stretched out its tentacles and tried to catch the Insectking race this time as it did in the past.
ssagdug- ssagdug- ssagdug-
Vikir struck a blow, slicing off all of its tentacles.
His Graduator-class aura was a bit too weak to cut off the Shadowless King’s tentacles, but it was strengthened by the Starvation Drought ability he had stolen from the Daylily of the Blood Tree.
Swoosh.
The blurry eyeballs beneath the jellyfish’s lampshade erupted in blood.
Shadowless King of the Black Sea, was peering in their direction with roots and air sacs scattered all over its body. The far-off killing intent it exuded was enough to make even the Insectking race flying away with their ship faint for a moment.
And.
Vikir’s response to that fierce gaze was just as fierce.
…Hiss!
A single flame rises from Vikir’s fingers.
-<Fire of Inferiority ‘Fire’> / Flint / A+
A stone that allows you to get hot embers anytime, anywhere.
It burns with the inferiority complex deep within you as firewood.
-Hotness +1,000
※Temperature may be higher or lower depending on the extent of your inferiority complex.
The last spark of Dogma’s life before he became a majin.
Vikir was holding it in his hand and digging towards the Black Sea Shadowless King.
“Let’s see how well it burns.”
Toward the air sacs of the daylily that had taken root in its body.