What a cheat.
It was a brief impression of the [Blood Art] that I had properly unfolded for the first time.
It was just what I imagined, but seeing it in reality was different.
The synergy of [Blood Art] and [Instant Kill].
When used in this way, most enemies, especially when dealing with a group of enemies, I was virtually invincible.
– ...What?
She stared blankly at the group of charging fish that had sunk to the bottom after I had killed them, then turned to me.
She obviously did not know what just happened.
– Yes, did you just...? What and how… Is there any poison in your blood?
As she said that, she fluttered in horror at the blood mixed with the water and floating around.
– Whoa, whoa!
Soon after realizing that there was nothing wrong with her, she asked again, bewildered.
– I’m fine, right? Huh? I will not die, am I?
I nodded. It’s not poison.
Then she became relieved.
– But what kind of magic did you use? You didn’t say you had that kind of ability.
Why did I have to tell you that?
I pointed my finger at the bottom to tell her to keep moving.
She nodded and swam forward again.
I could hear a small mumble in my ear.
-...Then, it’s not really dangerous back then. Was it just my meddling? Aww, it’s embarrassing…
I could see a few more monstrous fishes appearing suddenly, gulping down the pouring charging fish carcasses. They ate well today.
I passed them and followed her down into the depths.
How far down?
Gradually, we entered the depths from which hardly any light could enter.
I had never been so far out of the ground and never dived so deep when exploring on my own.
Still, there was no problem with vision because of the [Super Sensory], but the pressure on the body was the problem.
But even if there was a problem in one or two places, I believe that [Super Regeneration] would fix it on its own…
She still showed no sign of stopping.
Slowly, when it felt like the limit, I could see a visible land.
It was not the bottom of the lake, but a naturally made terrain.
...!
And the sharp rocks that stretch out like stalagmites around them.
Some of them curved sideways, making them look like bamboo shoots or huge teeth. It was a strange sight.
I stopped and leaned against the wall.
She got down to the floor first and pointed to the rocks as if she had arrived.
– Is this what you said? Speaking of sharp rocks, this is the only place that comes to mind.
Probably right.
I remembered that the place I saw in the play video definitely felt like this.
I didn’t think there would ever be another such unusual natural topography.
Then there must be a cave nearby…
That was where the Mystery of [Space Leap] was hidden.
I signaled her.
I mouthed the word ‘cave’. She shrugged her shoulders as if she understood right away.
– Cave? I don’t know. But if you look for it, it looks like it’s there.
As she said, the area where the pointed rocks were spread out was very wide and uneven, so it was enough to find a hidden entrance if you looked for it.
I scattered and tried to send a hand signal to find out.
If she found the cave first, she could go inside and discover the Mystery.
So, he opened his palm to signify that she should wait patiently in this place.
– What? Am I waiting here?
I nodded.
– Why? Aren’t you trying to find the entrance to the cave? I can help too…
I shook my head violently. I’m begging you, just be still.
She nodded her head reluctantly. She even muttered a little.
– I have no interest in treasure, but you still think I will covet it. After all, human greed is…
It seemed like she misunderstood something, but it didn’t really matter, so I left her.
I moved around and started looking around the rocky area.
I remembered it was a small entrance that barely even one person could fit in.
I was looking at everything from the flat side, then turning to the side and looking at the part that was sloping down quickly.
Wow!
...Found.
I looked into the entrance, which was exquisitely hidden among the rocks with joy.
Without a single thought, I put the glowstone tied around my waist in my mouth and slowly pushed my body inside.
It was quite difficult to get in because the passage was narrow, but not impossible. Still, it was much easier with water.
How far did I move by picking up and pulling on the wall with my outstretched arms alternately?
As I went further in, the passage became wider and wider, to where I could move my limbs completely freely.
At about that time, a small passage appeared, not in the front, but in the side. It was about the size of the entrance where I came in earlier.
...?
I stopped because I thought it was a fork in the road, and immediately opened the [Floating Veil].
A gigantic snake protruding from the hole like hit the veil with its wide-open jaws.
[Lv. 35]
It wasn’t a fork in the road; it was this water snake’s nest. No, was it its hunting ground?
The snake that collided with the veil lost its mind in shock and squirmed backwards.
I shot a drop of blood at it, and it immediately stopped breathing. Was that snake just planning to make a surprise attack?
I continued on the way I was going.
If I kept going inside, wouldn’t a monster worse than that one just pop out? For a moment, I had that thought.
But it was irrelevant. It was easy to kill, no matter how big a bastard popped out.
There was nothing I could do on my own before. But even though my physical abilities were still poor, I became a lot stronger now.
The passage bend along the way and continued upwards for a while.
And when I got to the end, it wasn’t the monster that appeared; it was the one I had been looking for for a week in this lake.
A small space the size of a room.
On the floor in the middle, a mysterious pattern was shining brightly in purple.
I smiled and swam towards the pattern.
Whoa!
When I touched it, the pattern shone brightly, as always, and was absorbed into my body.
As I was groping for information about the Mystery that flooded my mind, I immediately tried it.
As soon as I used [Space Leap], my position was teleported some distance forward.
There was no side effect, and there was no casting delay like the [Floating Veil].
It was too narrow to test the [Space Leap] properly, so I went out first.
When I went back through the passage I had passed and came out, I saw a woman swimming here and there from afar.
I teleported towards her.
– ...Whew!
She was startled by the sudden appearance in front of me and stopped.
– What, what? Where did you come from?
I stretched my finger upwards.
She glanced around at me and gave me a puzzled expression.
– Do you want to go up? Did you get what you’re looking for?
I nodded.
With this, the Mystery of [Space Leap] was also obtained safely.
***
After rising to the ground, I tested my abilities, unfolding the Mystery of [Space Leap].
First, the maximum distance traveled was a little over 100 steps when measured in steps. I couldn’t gauge it, but it seemed to be about 75 meters.
And above all, this ability was a rechargeable type that could store several times.
'Up to three times, the cooldown is 10 seconds.'
If the storage value was maximum, it could be used continuously without a cooldown up to 5 times, and it was recharged once every 10 seconds.
It was not surprising because I knew that the Mystery of [Space Leap] in the game was this kind of skill.
However, in the game, I remember the total number of times it could be used in a day was 10, but there seemed to be no restriction like that here.
I raised my head and looked up at the sky, then used my power again.
This time, when I teleported upwards, my body floated high in the air for an instant.
When I used the [Floating Veil] in that state, my body remained fixed in the air and did not fall, giving it the appearance of being completely levitated.
This was possible with [Floating Veil] because it could maintain the body at a fixed point.
'So I can also use it this way.'
I was wondering if there would be any use for this, but there was nothing wrong with learning a new way to use it.
I teleported back to the floor before I fell and landed.
The Mystery of [Space Leap] was also like [Floating Veil]. When I used my ability, the force acting on my body disappeared altogether. This meant that even if it was used while falling, the falling power would completely disappear.
With these two abilities, dying from a fall was the least likely to happen.
I stood with my arms crossed and thought about the synergy of my other abilities or more efficient use of my abilities.
Splash!
Then a woman came out of the lake.
In her hands were several large fish.
She walked over to me, wiping away her water.
“Hey, let’s go.”
She was told me to wait here for a moment and then she jumped into the lake again. So I waited, but I didn’t know where we’re supposed to go.
I looked at her silently, and she continued, scratching her head.
“No, what… Just let’s go back and have dinner together. You didn’t intend to leave right away anyway, did you?”
“I was just about to.”
I already found the Mystery. Was there any reason to stay longer in this lake?
I was thinking of going back to the carriage and leaving as soon as morning came.
At my words, she pouted.
“Isn’t that rude? You treated my grandfather, and you also saved me earlier… how could we not thank you?”
“You don’t have to. Let’s just separate here.”
“Hey, You--!”
She sighed in anger and suddenly said with a serious look.
“Can’t you just come over for a while? My grandfather said he has a very important story to tell you.”
...An important story?
What was that all of a sudden?
'Is this a story about the chief mage of Santea’s Imperial Family?'
It was the only thing I could think of.
Anyway, it’s not like a person like the chieftain would say something useless.
I nodded my head helplessly.
“Okay. Let’s go together.”
Her expression brightened up.
“I know you will agree. I’m going to die of hunger, so let’s go quickly. It’s amazing how soft this fish is.”
She hummed and walked forward.
“Hey, but what’s your name?”
“Ron.”
“My name is Anne, Ron. Remember me.”
I already knew because I heard the other Seawater tribe people and the chieftain calling her.
She continued to hum, and we walked towards the cave.
***
“Uh, Anne. Are you here?”
When we arrived at the cave, the chieftain, who was standing with his back at the entrance of the cave, greeted us.
“I hope you can come again. I wanted to treat you to something, at least a little, before you leave…”
I nodded and asked.
“I heard you have an important story to tell.”
The chieftain tilted his head at him.
“A story to tell? There’s no such thing.”
...?
I turned to Anne.
She smiled awkwardly and avoided my gaze.
“Sorry, that was a lie.”
“...”
“Now that you’ve come all the way here, you can just enjoy dinner and go, right? I’ll cook you delicious meat right away!”
I looked at her back as she ran into the cave with puzzled eyes.
