Chapter 3
The Sea Dragon was a creature that inherently despised chaos.
Its principle was that the sea should always remain calm.
Even when the other dragons of earth, sky, mountains, and volcanoes wreaked havoc on the planet, the Sea Dragon never surfaced.
It had only shown itself a few times throughout history, and those instances could be counted on one hand.
By nature, it preferred to swim peacefully through the sea, alone.
It thought it would be able to live that peaceful life forever.
Until it met that tentacled monster.
Afraid. Afraid. Unendingly afraid and terrified—
Scaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscaredscared.
A bizarre, unseen creature.
The moment it recognized the existence of that being, the Sea Dragon’s sanity began to crumble.
It breathed its first Dragon Breath in ages purely out of survival instinct.
But the bizarre creature didn’t even flinch.
As its mind rapidly deteriorated, the only thing the Sea Dragon could think of was to run away.
Even after that creature disappeared from sight,
the Sea Dragon, having witnessed its existence, was consumed by fear and continued its aimless flight.
Until it Died.
***
“Ha… Is everyone okay?”
“Huff… Huff… Uweeegh—”
“Why did a Sea Dragon…? They’re known to be the gentlest among the dragon species.”
“But does this mean the incident is resolved? To think that a crazed Sea Dragon was the cause…”
After a gruelling two-day battle, the hero party finally succeeded in killing the Sea Dragon.
Although Sea Dragons are known as the gentlest among dragons,
that didn’t mean they were weak.
Normally, Lancelot’s hero party wasn’t strong enough to hunt a dragon.
The only reason they managed to kill it this time was because of its unusual condition.
It flailed about aimlessly as if it had lost its mind, never directly targeting the hero party.
It was like fighting a blind person.
But that blind person was rampaging and firing bullets in all directions.
Lancelot’s party, having worked together for many years, barely managed to kill the Sea Dragon amidst that chaotic onslaught.
“This is strange… What could’ve driven the Sea Dragon to madness like that?”
“Does it matter? What’s important is that it’s over. Right, Lancelot? I think we can finally end this miserable time at sea.”
Gale, the party’s spearman, shouted with a relieved expression.
The other party members nodded in agreement.
“…Let’s at least head to the Eastern Continent first. We need to report this situation, and we’ve come too far to turn back now. We’ll resupply at the Eastern Continent and then return to the Western Continent.”
“Yeah! Think of it as a chance to sightsee the Eastern Continent for the first time. I can handle a few more days at sea!”
Hahaha—
After their mission ended, the atmosphere turned cheerful.
Everyone, exhausted and slumped on the floor, laughed together.
Except for one person, who couldn’t laugh.
That person was Lancelot, the hero.
Lancelot still had an inexplicable sense of unease.
The ominous feeling he’d had since they first set sail hadn’t gone away.
No, it had grown even stronger.
Even though the sky was clear and high.
Even though the air was crisp, and the sea breeze was fragrant.
Even though the emerald sea was transparent, and the underwater scenery was beautiful.
“…Wait a second. The underwater scenery?”
The seawater was completely unpolluted and clear.
So clear that every detail of the mysterious underwater landscape was visible.
It was something Lancelot had been thinking about since they first set sail.
So this is how transparent the sea is, he thought.
But the moment he realized that this very transparency was the source of his unease,
the mysterious beauty of the underwater scenery vanished.
Instead, a nameless terror and an eerie sensation filled its place.
“This… Why is this happening…”
Lancelot’s pupils didn’t contract as he realized the source of his unease.
The underwater scenery, which had been beautiful just moments ago, had now transformed into a landscape of terror.
Lancelot couldn’t tear his gaze away from the bizarre and frightening sight before him.
“The fish… they’re not moving.”
The feeling that had been bothering him this whole time.
The cause of the discomfort he felt whenever he looked into the sea.
The creatures in the water were just floating there like corpses, not moving at all.
He couldn’t sense any life from them.
All the fish were frozen, as if they had lost their lives.
It was no different from a sea of corpses.
Lancelot’s body began to tremble.
A lifeless sea devoid of any vitality.
Fish frozen like corpses, drifting aimlessly in the water.
An eerily quiet sea.
And the Sea Dragon thrashing around as if terrified.
When everything clicked into place,
Lancelot finally began to feel fear toward this ocean.
A fear so immense it couldn’t be put into words.
A fear beyond human comprehension.
A vast terror so immense it could cover the entire universe, a terror so great that it couldn’t be gazed upon.
Lancelot felt as though just trying to predict what it was would erode his sanity.
“Captain, head for the Eastern Continent. Increase speed.”
“What? Even if you say that… with the wind like this, we can’t go any faster. Besides, ships aren’t exactly built to—”
“I said shut up and go faster, damn it!!!”
Lancelot’s sudden outburst left the captain speechless.
Seeing his bloodshot, frenzied eyes filled the captain with fear.
The loud commotion brought his companions rushing into the captain’s quarters.
“What’s going on, Lancelot?!”
“Lancelot’s condition… Aria!”
“What happened all of a sudden… There was no mental attack…”
Gale, who noticed Lancelot’s abnormal state, quickly called for Aria.
As soon as she arrived, she began pouring her holy power into him.
Lancelot was clearly not in a normal state.
But it didn’t seem like he was cursed either.
Still, it was clear that Lancelot was under some kind of mental attack.
“Hoo… Hah… Hah…”
“Are you feeling a little better, Lancelot? Just try to calm down and not think about anything.”
“Hah… Hah… I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Something suddenly…”
“It’s okay. Just don’t think about it. Lancelot, you’ve been on edge ever since we set sail, so it could be from stress.”
“I-I’ll try to get there as quickly as possible.”
Thanks to Aria’s holy power, Lancelot finally calmed down.
His companions led him out of the captain’s quarters.
Lancelot seemed somewhat better than before.
But the sensation of his mind being eroded never went away.
“Hoo… I’m sorry. I’m sorry… I’ll just rest until we get back.”
“Y-Yeah. Don’t worry about us. We’re already used to the seasickness by now. Sorry for making it hard on you.”
Barely holding onto his sanity, Lancelot returned to his quarters.
No, in reality, he wasn’t maintaining his sanity at all.
Something was bringing an indescribable fear toward him.
Whenever he tried to comprehend it, an endless abyss appeared, wearing away at his mind.
Lancelot had simply chosen to ignore it.
That ominous feeling he’d had since the beginning of their voyage.
The fish floating like corpses in the sea.
The Sea Dragon thrashing around as if terrified.
Lancelot simply pushed them all out of his mind.
The fear of acknowledging them was greater.
“I need to get some sleep… I think I’ve been tense for too long.”
Convincing himself that it was all due to stress,
Lancelot shut his eyes, choosing to ignore everything.
He had no idea just how much closer that fear was approaching him as he slept.
***
“Will he be okay… Lancelot.”
“I’ve never seen him like this before. What on earth is wrong?”
“I don’t know… He’s not the type to act this way from stress alone…”
The companions left on the deck were worried about Lancelot.
As the hero, he had been the pillar of the party, which made his strange behaviour all the more unsettling.
“For now, let’s all stay quiet until we reach the Eastern Continent. It might just be the change in environment.”
Everyone nodded at Aria, the saint’s, words.
After finishing their conversation, the party members began to go about their own business.
“Lancelot…”
Aria, who remained on the deck, was lost in thought.
She had been with him ever since he was chosen as the hero.
From gathering each member of the party to getting where they were now, she had witnessed all his hardships.
Having spent so much time together, she knew better than anyone what a good person he was.
The sense of duty he had at the start of their journey had now transformed into a different kind of feeling.
She enjoyed every moment spent with him, and helping him brought her the greatest joy.
Unlike the boring routine in the Holy Kingdom, where she was revered as a saint, every day with him was a delight.
Unlike others who worshipped her as the saint, he treated her simply as Aria.
Aria’s feelings and gaze toward Lancelot had changed.
And because of that, she knew how exhausted he was becoming as their journey continued.
Lancelot had taken on the heavy burden of being the hero.
Since then, he had always fought for the world, never taking care of himself.
He probably needed rest.
Once they reached the Eastern Continent, she decided she would prepare a small gift and a break for him, even if only briefly.
Not wanting to see him wear himself out any further, Aria made up her mind to ensure that he would rest.
And one day, when this tiresome battle was finally over,
she would give up her title as a saint and confess her feelings to him.
“…Hm?”
As Aria looked out at the sea, she suddenly felt a sense of discomfort.
The calm sea was beginning to ripple.
It was as if something was approaching.
There’s no way it’s the Sea Dragon again.
Something different from the Sea Dragon. An immensely ominous feeling spread through the waves.
Feeling frightened, Aria approached Rowin, who was nearby.
“Ugh… Doesn’t something feel off to you, Aria? Or is it just me…”
Rowin rubbed her arms as if she had goosebumps.
Aria felt a strange sense of relief that she wasn’t the only one feeling it.
“I don’t feel good about this either. It’s a very unpleasant and foreboding feeling.”
“Right? Why is that all of a sudden? It’s the same sea as always, but… Huh…”
Mid-conversation, Rowin’s gaze stopped over Aria’s shoulder.
And then Rowin’s body began trembling as if an earthquake had hit.
She covered her ears, making strange noises, and her eyes lost their focus.
“Rowin? What’s wrong, Rowin!”
“Ihihi, ihik! Get away. Get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away, get away—”
“Rowin…?”
Rowin cast a vision-blocking spell on herself.
Erasing her own vision and blocking her ears, she curled up on the ground, muttering something frantically.
It was a bizarre sight.
However, it didn’t take long for Aria to realize that Rowin’s choice was a wise one.
A massive shadow loomed from behind, blocking out the sun.
Aria turned to face it and ended up seeing something she should never have seen.
It was a colossal—
“Hi-Hiiiek—!”
It was something that Aria should never have been able to comprehend.
The fact that she immediately used her holy power to protect her mind was her saving grace.
If she had been even slightly slower, she would have gone mad and thrown herself into the sea.
Even so, Aria’s mind was already tainted by something.
An immense presence that could not be described by the word fear.
Aria was already half-mad.
“No, no, ah, ah, aah, ugh, ha, aah—”
Her mental strength as a saint was several times stronger than that of an ordinary human.
Even as she felt herself going insane, with her body contorting, she ran towards her companions.
She tried to protect her mind with holy power and ran to somehow warn them that they must not see it.
But it was already too late.
That being was too immense to simply ignore.
“Kkikikikikikikihihihihihihikikikikikihihihihihihihihihihihik!”
“Kyaahuhuhik. Kkigigik… Kkuhgh…”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry—”
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