Chapter 81

Chapter 81
“!”

A deep, resonant hum, “Woong!”, pulses through the hidden abyss, and a primitive dread begins to stir within Alon’s mind.

His entire frame shudders, as if in the presence of an apex predator, his thoughts grow clouded, and a single, overpowering urge takes hold: he must flee this place immediately.

And then—

‘No—No—If I run—’

‘If I run, I must not—’

‘Flee… away’

‘I have to… run!’

Radan was experiencing the same.

His consciousness contorts, as if bewitched. His thoughts are subconsciously herded toward one inevitable end, cycling relentlessly in his head:

‘Run away run away run away run away run away run away run away run away run away run away run away run away run away run away run away run away run away.’

By pure instinct, Radan thrashes his arms about, desperately clutching at anything within reach.

His hand finds a splintered piece of wreckage from a pirate vessel sunk by the mermen.

Seeing the jagged point of the wood, Radan is washed with a bizarre sense of comfort.

‘I can get away.’

With that notion, he lifts the shard with his right hand and, without a second thought, directs it toward his own throat.

“Guk—!”

But as a sliver of reason returns, Radan clamps down on his tongue and wrenches the wood aside, plunging it into his own forearm instead.

A sharp, biting pain flares, followed by a slow seep of blood.

‘I nearly committed a fatal error.’

Witnessing his own action, Radan grits his teeth, understanding he had almost succumbed to the being hiding in the deep below.

Yet, shortly after, a feeling of bewilderment surfaces.

The reason was that the colossal eye, which had just been trying to pull him into the depths and saturating him with horror, now appeared to convey a strange, unreadable sentiment.

As he shifts his bewildered eyes, Radan realizes he is not the only one in the ocean, lured here by the green scales.

The Great Moon stands beside him, a blue-hued potion held between his lips, preparing a skill.

Despite enduring the same terrifying pressure, the Great Moon’s countenance shows no alteration.

He is completely unreadable, as if that all-consuming fear had never touched him at all.

So, Radan, staring at Alon with a look mixed with reverence, suddenly becomes aware that everything has ceased.

The green scales pulling him downward stop moving, and the chaotic currents grow still.

At the same time—

[-!]

The merman’s eyes, which had been empty of feeling, now overflow with clear disorientation and dread as they lock onto Radan.

And then—

[Buvyivuiviuyviuvieiejfiejkejkjvjjeiijiejeeeesshsijkd}

A spine-chilling, unnatural voice reverberates, and the gigantic eye that had been dragging Radan into the deep starts to gradually shut.

As the eyelid closes, transient emotions flicker past.

Astonishment.

Terror.

…Veneration.

[If only there had been more time…]

And finally, as the eye in the profound darkness seals completely, the force that had been pulling him downward—Kalak-Kul—disappears entirely.

“…”

Gazing vacantly at the scene, Radan then turns his eyes toward Alon—

No, toward the Great Moon—staring blankly.

However, Alon, who was on the receiving end of Radan’s awed look, was also thinking,

‘…What was that?’

Truthfully, he hadn’t completely understood the events that had just unfolded.

He, too, had been in the grip of a mind-eroding fear, frantically trying to muster a spell to stop Radan from being taken, when Kalak-Kul abruptly vanished.

‘I believe I heard something about the “Star-Eater” amid a lot of static,’ Alon remembered, looking perplexed as the uncanny voice replayed in his head.

For a moment, he remained puzzled, but then—

‘I survived…’

Content for the moment with the basic fact of being alive, Alon swam toward the surface to catch his breath.

####

Approximately one week later—

In the end, Radan brought the Seven Archipelagos under his rule, while Alon was forced to spend a week recuperating from the aftermath of his exhausted mana.

Although the penalty for mana depletion was comparatively light, requiring only a week to recover versus the half-year mana poisoning could take, Alon found it tolerable.

Particularly since handling the external press had nearly drained him completely.

Naturally, the primary reason Alon could handle Kalak-Kul with relative ease was that Kalak-Kul had only recently materialized and had not fully assumed its powers.

Furthermore, the human sacrifice needed for its summoning had not been correctly performed.

What was most important to Alon now was that he had managed to confront a demigod-level being without suffering any major wounds.

After four days of rest, Alon observed two major shifts.

The first was the demeanor of the pirates.

From the start, Alon knew the pirates’ looks were not exactly warm toward him.

But since that day—

“Ah, hello! Big Brother!”

“Have you eaten well, Big Brother?”

“…Yes.”

—The pirates had begun addressing Alon as “Big Brother.”

And it wasn’t only the common pirates.

“Ah, if it isn’t Big Brother? Are you feeling better now?”

“Tariq.”

Even the pirate lords, who reported directly to Radan, had started using this term.

“If you need anything, just say the word. I’ll have the crew take care of it right away.”

“Thank you.”

“Haha—it’s no trouble at all! Of course we’d do that for Big Brother!”

Watching the pirate lord of the Fourth Archipelago depart with a booming laugh, Alon wore a strange look.

Only a few days prior, the pirates had viewed him with clear dissatisfaction, but now, they were showing him unmistakable trust and esteem.

He didn’t know when or how it began, but every pirate was calling Alon “Big Brother.”

‘…It’s not unpleasant, but I feel like I’ve become a gang leader.’

The other change was Felin Crysinne’s behavior.

Though he hadn’t been openly antagonistic after their first encounter, he hadn’t been friendly either.

At most, their relationship could be called formal.

But ever since the last event, Felin had been regarding Alon with a look full of deep respect.

Frankly, from Alon’s viewpoint, it was somewhat uncomfortable.

‘Well, there’s no harm in fostering a good connection with a skilled mage.’

Still, the sheer intensity of the change in Felin’s conduct left Alon feeling a little disoriented.

In any case, after noticing these changes over four days, Alon resolved to go to the eastern shore that had been discussed.

As soon as he felt somewhat restored, he went to locate Radan.

“Big Brother, are you feeling better now?”

“Do you know anything about the eastern shore?”

“The eastern shore?”

“Yes.”

“Well… I believe it’s the eastern shore of the Syphra Archipelago.”

“Syphra?”

“Yes, it’s about six hours from here. Are you familiar with it?”

“I know of it.”

Alon nodded, as the Syphra Archipelago was a place he had often traveled to while playing Psychedelia.

‘The Syphra Archipelago, also called the Island of Criminals.’

Similar to the underworlds of Asteria and Ashtalon in the United Kingdom, the Island of Criminals was a haven for fugitives and pirates.

Whenever Alon played Psychedelia, he frequently visited Syphra to access its black market, which traded in many unidentifiable relics.

Remembering this, Alon asked, “Can we go there now?”

“If Big Brother wishes to move, we can set off immediately.”

“Please do. Ah.”

As he received an instant agreement and nodded, Alon let out a soft sound and spoke again.

“Now that I think of it, I haven’t given you this yet.”

Saying this, he set a small box on the table.

“It’s a present.”

“…A present?”

“Yes, I intended to give it to you sooner, but it was delayed.”

Radan, slightly taken aback by Alon’s words, looked at the box and then responded,

“If it’s a gift from Big Brother, I will happily take it.”

With a smile, he accepted the box.

Soon, Alon, Radan, and the others departed for the Syphra Archipelago.

####

The voyage to Syphra was rather peaceful, and this time, both Penia and Felin chose to accompany Alon of their own volition, not by his summons.

It appeared they had their own matters to look into on Syphra.

After roughly six hours of sailing, they reached Syphra around midday.

For now, Alon decided to proceed alone on the island, as his business on the eastern shore was something he needed to do by himself.

‘Of course, the island’s criminal nature makes it somewhat difficult.’

Although the island had a rough character, it was essentially a town, so Alon believed it would be reasonably secure.

With that thought, he was the first to disembark.

It wasn’t long before Alon regretted going out alone.

‘What a filthy labyrinth this is.’

The pathways of the Syphra Archipelago were far more tangled than he had expected.

Despite having a good sense of direction, he found himself returning to the same spot repeatedly.

‘How is it that going left brings me back here, going straight returns me here, and even going right leads me back here?’

It was ridiculous.

He halted in front of a sign he had seen several times already—”Rum’s Bounty”—and, on impulse, approached a group of four individuals drinking at a street-side pub nearby.

“Pardon me, would any of you know the way to the eastern shore?”

His tone was reasonably courteous.

“Hah? How should I know, you fool!”

“Pwahahaha! You really do look like a fool—what a pushover, huh? A total pushover! Hahaha!”

As anticipated, Alon understood he wouldn’t get any useful information from them, so he continued on.

About 20 minutes later—

“…Ah.”

A low groan escaped Alon.

Despite having moved to a different area, he was standing before “Rum’s Bounty” for the fifth time.

Just as he was pondering whether to turn back—

“Hey—”

“?”

He turned toward the voice and saw a man.

He recognized the man as one of those who had been ridiculing him from a pub corner earlier. Alon looked confused, as the man now wore a nervous smile instead.

The man spoke rapidly,

“U-uh, you’re searching for the eastern shore, right? You can get there by following this road straight, then taking the left fork on the right.”

This man, who had offered no assistance before, was now giving directions.

His excessively polite smile, paired with a rugged appearance that hinted at shady dealings, raised a small doubt in Alon.

“Really, I swear. Once you take the fork on the right, you’ll see a path over the hill that leads to the shore. You can see for yourself.”

Noticing Alon’s hesitation, the man quickly added, trying to sound believable.

‘…He was mocking me before, so why is he helping now?’
“Ah, well, thinking back, I felt a little bad about it, so I thought I should tell you,” the man explained, his manner awkward.

Alon emitted a thoughtful hum, his face still doubtful.

‘Well, the path he mentioned isn’t an alley but a main road, so there likely isn’t a trap… I suppose I can try it.’

Feeling weary from wandering without purpose for almost an hour, Alon decided to test the man’s directions.

“For now, thank you.”

With that, Alon started walking down the main street as directed.

Meanwhile, the man watched Alon leave and, once he was out of sight, his strained smile disappeared, replaced by an expression of pure terror and unease.

He glanced toward the alley beside the pub, where he saw his companions, who had been laughing with him earlier, now sprawled on the ground.

They were drenched in blood, their bodies in such a horrific state it was impossible to tell if they were living or dead.

Standing nearby, observing him with a cold, terrifying gaze that could make him lose control just from meeting it, was the Pirate King.

And then—

The Pirate King gave a slight nod—

And disappeared.

Thud—!

The man collapsed to the ground on the spot.

Though he fell in an undignified heap, he didn’t care.

Instead—

‘I’m alive I’m alive I’m alive I’m alive I’m alive!’

All he could do was offer endless gratitude to the gods for the fact that he was still breathing.