READ NOVEL ONLINE 39. The Sage of the Deep Sea (1)
“Akis, Akis!”
Han Cha-hyun had already replied, though I’d sent the message just moments ago. It’s good to have someone so prompt in handling matters. Let’s see what he says.
“Teal hair, about the same height as Han Cha-hyun…”
Akis, who had been swimming in the lake, poked his head above water. The sea spirit, now in human form, followed him out. Sitting at the lakeshore, the spirit stared at me intently, as if eager to hear what I was about to say.
“A colleague who saw the sea person presumed to be Berben has described his appearance. Please confirm if it matches.”
‘Berben? They found Berbena?’
“We’re not sure yet. Ah, Astro-nim, you know him too, right? Can you help?”
This was perfect timing. I wasn’t entirely confident in Akis alone, but if the sea spirit could confirm, it would be certain.
The sea spirit, always cooperative when it came to matters concerning sea people, accepted my proposal. I read the description from the message verbatim.
“Teal hair, eyes were closed so they couldn’t confirm. Height is about this much taller than me. Has faint double eyelids, and a mole under the eye. And…”
“And?”
“The left pinky finger is missing.”
Upon hearing the final detail, the sea spirit couldn’t hide his dismay. Perhaps I shouldn’t have mentioned that. Judging by the reaction, it seems this wasn’t always the case.
“It must be Berben!”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. It seems so.”
Even the sea spirit nodded, confirming it was Berben.
Success! With this, we’ve found all three members of the delegation. Now we just need to hear Berben’s answer to complete the subquest. That should be a piece of cake.
If we hadn’t split up between Shella, Ninea, and Eidolon from the first day, we would have been in trouble. To think the delegation was scattered so widely.
Han Cha-hyun said he’d visit that place again tonight, so I should send him a message. As I was operating my hunter watch, the sea spirit carefully moved closer to me.
“Akina said you’ve already met Galatein.”
“Ah, yes. We met last night.”
“Did you convey my message to Galatein?”
“Of course.”
“And the response?”
“He said he’ll be back soon, so wait eagerly.”
Hearing my words, the sea spirit laughed broadly, showing his teeth for the first time. His laughter sounded like that of a young child.
“Still the same temperament, I see.”
The sea spirit muttered, splashing water with his feet.
At first, I had nearly died because of the sea spirit, but seeing his smiling face now, any remaining resentment dissipated. So this was how the spirit could laugh originally. I wondered how much more joy he’d express when we bring news of Berben.
The more I learned about their circumstances, the more invested I became.
“Come to think of it, did that guy complete his quest safely? Yun Su-ho!”
“What?”
Now that our quest was nearly finished, I suddenly became concerned about Yun Su-ho’s side. His subquest would likely lead to the same hidden quest as ours.
“Is your quest finished?”
“No, not yet.”
Yun Su-ho squinted one eye, as if unsure of the reason after checking his quest window.
‘Ah, is it because of that?’
Yun Su-ho’s quest was to escort Akis to the Cradle of the Sea People. Strictly speaking, this wasn’t the cradle, but…
“It looks like we’ll have to go near Badadkkot after all.”
“Where else do we need to go from here?”
“Well, remember what Akis said earlier? This is the nest connected to Badadkkot. It’s different from the cradle. We need to activate the movement formula to get to the Cradle of the Sea People.”
‘Come to think of it, we only have one use of the formula left.’
As Choi Kwon-young said, we needed to save the remaining uses just in case.
Do we have to go through the sea again? The thought of having to take a roundabout route with Badadkkot right in front of us made me reluctant to move. It’s not like I could draw a new mana circuit of that caliber myself.
Suddenly, the pattern on the back of my hand caught my eye. Perhaps…
“Astro-nim, who created the formula under the lake?”
The sea spirit answered with an expression that suggested this was obvious.
“Kalia. Who else could it be?”
“Is that person’s other name the Sage of the Deep Sea?”
He nodded without even looking at me, as if it wasn’t worth answering. Of course! There couldn’t be two craftsmen of that caliber.
“Then there might be a way.”
“…?”
The reason the circuit I repaired has a limited number of uses is because the circuit’s level is too high. Unable to withstand the passage of time, the movement formula circuit was worn out in various places.
When I first repaired the circuit, I boldly omitted parts I wasn’t confident in fully repairing, temporarily fixing only the parts necessary for immediate operation. That’s why there’s a limit on the number of uses.
“If we go to the workshop library, we should be able to find the original form of the mana circuit. With that, restoration shouldn’t be too difficult.”
The workshop has a library filled with the Sage’s accumulated knowledge. There should be materials related to this circuit there.
How do I know this? I scanned everything when we visited the workshop last time!
“I was planning to sneak some items out later…”
I never thought I’d use it like this. Well, all’s well that ends well. Kill two birds with one stone – get items and repair the circuit!
‘If I repair the circuit properly, my dexterity stat should increase too, right?’
Hiding my ulterior motives, I handed Yun Su-ho a sea person’s scale.
“With this, you can breathe underwater.”
“What about you?”
“I have my own.”
After putting a scale in my mouth, I jumped into the lake. I followed Akis, who was already underwater, to the lake bottom.
Yun Su-ho, eyeing the scale suspiciously, entered the water.
Despite his reluctant attitude, his swimming form was quite skillful. He had always been good at physical activities since childhood. We attended swimming classes together, but why did he look like a professional swimmer?
Life truly is unfair.
– Do you have business in Badadkkot too?
– I plan to visit the Sage’s workshop.
The sea spirit flapped his tail at the mention of visiting the workshop. Even from the side, it was clearly a sign of disapproval. Yun Su-ho, noticing that I would be moving separately from him, didn’t hide his discomfort either.
– I intend to properly fix this circuit.
– You’re going to fix Kalin’s circuit?
– Yes, I dare to try. I’ll need the help of the legacy Kalia left behind, but I’m confident.
– Yun Gaho, where are you going?
Perhaps because I had managed to repair the circuit temporarily, the sea spirit seemed reluctantly convinced.
I nonchalantly ignored Yun Su-ho’s words. You just focus on escorting Akis safely. While you’re at it, enjoy a tour of Badadkkot. The longer, the better.
The circuit glowed, and the scenery around me flipped. Unlike me, who had grown somewhat accustomed to this after experiencing it a few times, Yun Su-ho had his eyes closed, unable to overcome the dizziness.
– I’ll be back.
Before he could regain his senses, I swam towards the coral forest. Having been here once before, I was able to find the location of the golden branch much faster than before.
– Thank you, Master.
This too was found using the candlestick in Kallos’s house as a hint. The master’s kindness is truly as vast as the sky. When this quest is over, I should buy something delicious to bring.
I activated the formula while lost in these idle thoughts.
[Entering Special Field, ‘The Sage’s Workshop (A)’.]
– Aaah!
Kyuu-
As soon as the system message appeared, something wrapped around my waist. I was helplessly dragged by a powerful force.
– Ah, right. This guy was here.
The pure white kraken, the Eight-Legged Guardian, wrapped its massive tentacle around my body and pulled me towards its head. Apparently overjoyed to see me, it blinked its large eyes repeatedly and rubbed its head against my body.
I pounded on the kraken’s tentacle with my fists, but it paid no attention. Once caught like this, there was nothing I could do. I had no choice but to wait until it was satisfied.
Only after greeting me to its heart’s content did the kraken release me. Even then, it seemed reluctant, wiggling the tips of its tentacles, so I hurriedly fled into the castle.
As I entered the castle, the familiar crystal ball greeted me.
[Please select the desired function. Currently, search and destroy are available.]
– Search
[What item would you like to search for?]
– I need a map of this workshop. One that shows the locations of the library and the workroom.
[Searching… Downloading the map.]
A map showing the structure of the workshop appeared above the crystal ball.
I reached out to the area marked with a red circle on the map.
Click, the sound of clockwork gears turning was heard, and a dark cherry-colored door appeared. A sign reading “Treasury of Knowledge” hung in front of the door.
– Oh, so that’s how you use it.
Without hesitation, I turned the handle.
As soon as I opened the door, a scene straight out of a movie unfolded before me.
Books of various colors flew around the high-ceilinged library, their pages fluttering. Letters flowed from the books, embroidering the bookshelves. Mythical figures painted on the domed ceiling burst into laughter at my dumbfounded expression.
– This is no time to be standing around.
Time flows faster inside the workshop than outside. I couldn’t afford to be lost in amazement.
I snatched a book flying by me. The cover looked no different from an ordinary hardback, but there were no pages inside.
I had wondered how to read books underwater, but when I opened it, text was projected into the air. When I made a gesture of turning pages with my finger, the pages turned.
The problem lay elsewhere.
– Am I illiterate here too?
I stroked the spine of the book I was holding and let it fly freely again. I pulled out a few more books from a nearby bookshelf and looked at them, but it was the same. They were all written in the sea people’s script, making it impossible for me to read a single line.
– This is troublesome.
Knowing the shape of the circuit, I could eventually find the necessary book by searching the library, but I didn’t have time.
I had to leave this place within an hour at most.
– Do I have to leave it to chance?
As I was pondering, a book landed on my face. It was the book whose spine I had stroked earlier.
The book gently rose from my face and began circling around me.
– Huh? What’s this?