Seeker 258

Test

Chapter 258. Invaders From The Depths

It was an event unfolding in a distant land beneath the sea. 

In the emerald-colored waters, 2 forces were locked in a struggle. 

On one side were the merfolk—beings known as Mermen and Mermaids. 

They were a race with the upper bodies of humans and the lower bodies of fish, peaceful denizens of the sea. 

On the other side were the ichthyoids—a race known as Sahuagin. 

They had faces resembling fish, arms, and legs.

Yet their entire bodies were covered in scales and fins, hungering for blood and violence.

Both factions darted through the underwater realm, clashing spears. 

The merfolk outnumbered their adversaries; about 15 merfolk warriors desperately sought to repel fewer than ten ichthyoid warriors.

However, they were outmatched.

One of the ichthyoid warriors was exceptionally powerful.

"Hwahaha! Weak, too weak! Why not just hand over the princess? We might spare your lives then!"

This particular ichthyoid, unlike the others, possessed four arms. 

Skillfully wielding four spears, he engaged with five or more merfolk warriors simultaneously, maintaining the upper hand in the battle.

That wasn't all. 

A large, carnivorous shark, controlled by the ichthyoid through a [Tame] skill, attacked the merfolk warriors. 

A merman warrior, bitten by the shark's sharp teeth, screamed in agony. Another warrior managed to rescue a comrade by thrusting a spear into the shark's body, but not without sustaining injuries.

Injured merman warriors received healing magic from mermaid warriors while, in the midst of this, another merman warrior suffered a deep wound from the four-armed ichthyoid's spear.

In other skirmishes, merfolk and ichthyoid warriors engaged in nearly equal battles.

 Only the four-armed Sahagin overwhelmed the rest. Despite their disadvantage, merfolk warriors shouted back defiantly.

"Silence, wicked Sahagin!"

"Who would hand the princess over to the likes of you?"

"What do you plan to do with the princess, anyway?"

The four-armed Sahagin skillfully parried the thrusts of 3 Merman warriors with his four spears. 

After pushing them back with brute force, he swiftly knocked down another Merman warrior approaching from behind.

With a sense of ease, the four-armed Sahagin laughed loudly.

"What will you do~? It's obvious. Ravish the princess, renowned as the most beautiful among the merfolk, and have her bear my eggs. Ten or twenty won't be enough. I need a hundred~! Hwahaha!"

"No...!? You... scum!"

"We'll never let you pass here!"

"You must be defeated here at all costs!"

"Hahaha, very well then. After annihilating all of you, I'll leisurely claim the princess. Die, you weaklings!"

The four-armed Sahagin unleashed his fury with 4 spears. 

As time passed, merfolk warriors fell one by one to the relentless assault and sank to the depths of the sea.

Beneath the sea where the warriors descended, there was a beautiful underwater city adorned with giant shells and colorful coral. 

Usually, hundreds of merfolk swam through the city.

But now they were all taking refuge in their homes. Those without the prowess of warriors could only pray for the victory and safety of their kin.

Meanwhile, in the central palace of the underwater city, individuals were anxiously watching the battle. 

They were the merfolk king and queen, the guardian warriors, and the princess.

The royal palace, designed like a giant spiral shell, had a royal window at its top. 

From there, they gazed at the distant battlefield.

The merfolk princess, hailed as more beautiful than pearls, desperately appealed to her father.

"Father, it seems that person is targeting me! If I go out to him, the fighting should stop. If this continues, all the warriors will...!"

But the king responded firmly to his daughter.

"No! Can we trust the words of such a person? Fermina, you will escape. If you get captured by him, who knows what terrible fate you might endure."

"But... Everyone is fighting, and I can't just run away!"

"Listen to me, Fermina. Geralk, you understand. I entrust my daughter to you."

"Yes, Your Majesty. I, Geralk of the Royal Guard, will protect the princess at any cost. Princess, please forgive me!"

"Eh... Ah... Th-Thank you, Ger...alk..."

With a swift movement, the royal mermaid warrior picked up the unconscious princess. 

He bowed to the king and queen with a pained expression and left the scene.

"I'm counting on you, Geralk. Spear in hand, I shall join the fray!"

The king, too, armed himself with a spear brought by an attendant and leaped out of the palace window, swimming towards the merciless invader, the four-armed Sahagin.

But the king knew. Even if he went alone, it wouldn't change the dire situation of the battle. 

The self-proclaimed Sahagin king with four arms was toying with them.

The seasoned merfolk warriors were being treated as if they were trainees, facing unreasonable strength and brutality.

"O' Sea God. Please, grant us your protection...!"

The King prayed.

Hoping for the strength to repel the calamity that had mercilessly appeared before them.

＊＊＊

The morning after completing the Killer Ant extermination raid quest, Kazane-san, Yuzuki, and I arrived at the Adventurer's Guild with a slight delay. 

When we approached the quest bulletin board, there was a bit of commotion.

"What's going on?"

I decided to ask Gadol-san. He's the one who led us in the raid yesterday.

Seeing us, Gadol-san raised an eyebrow and greeted us with a grin.

"Hey there. There's a designated quest available. And it's not just any quest. It's an S-rank, an outrageous one."

"A designated quest...? And it's S-rank?"

"Yeah. You guys should check it out. Hehe."

Gadol-san chuckled meaningfully. 

What on earth was it?

Designated quests were requests where the client specifically designated certain adventurers or adventurer parties to take on the quest. 

We had experienced this before when the merchant Eslyn-san assigned us an A-rank quest. 

However, such personalized requests were not commonplace.

If that were all, it wouldn't be so surprising.

But considering it was an S-rank designated quest, it was bound to cause a stir. 

S-rank quests are usually recommended for 8 or more level 25 adventurers. 

Quests of this difficulty were rare, and encountering an S-rank quest meant the content was exceptionally challenging.

For instance, a quest like 'Collect herbs from the depths of the Dragon Valley' might be categorized as S-rank due to the anticipated encounter with a dragon, making it too dangerous for a standard A-rank party of 4 level 25 adventurers.

Honestly, I was intrigued by S-rank quests. 

There was an uncompleted mission to clear an S-rank quest once (earning 30,000 experience points).

I thought it would be a great opportunity.

However, it couldn't be helped if it was a designated quest. 

Despite knowing it probably had nothing to do with us, I peered at the quest bulletin board.

───────────────────────

★Designated Quest

Named Adventurers: Daichi, Kazane, Hotaru

Quest Summary: Escort to the Underwater City

Quest Rank: S

Client: Adventurer Rebecca

Quest Details: As an adventurer, I want to visit the Underwater City! So, I'm requesting an escort along the way. I'd like to take the "shortest route", hence the S-rank. If the guys who easily defeated the Hydra are with me, it should be fine, right?

Reward: 300 gold coins

───────────────────────

"... It's us."

"Yeah, it's us."

In response to my incredulous tone, Yuzuki added a supplementary comment. 

As soon as I looked around, I realized the attention of the surrounding adventurers had focused on us.

This is awkward. 

I didn't want to stand out so much.

Although it was too late to do anything about it, we quickly removed the quest notice and slipped into a corner of the Adventurers' Guild.

The curious gazes of the adventurers temporarily diverted to us.

"Rebecca-san is the same Rebecca-san, right?"

"Most likely. It says 'Adventurer' here."

In response to Yuzuki's inquiry, I nodded. 

The client, Adventurer Rebecca, was likely the same Rebecca-san we encountered on our journey from the World Tree and who was chased by the Hydra in the Beastkin Forest.

There was another notable point about this quest: Escort to the Underwater City.

"... An escort to the Underwater City. By the way, where is the Underwater City? I don't think it's marked on the map."

"Good question. Let's confirm that. Meeting the person and hearing the details would be a good idea."

Speaking of Underwater Cities, there was also a mission to reach one of the uncompleted missions (earning 50,000 experience points). 

At the very least, it seemed worthwhile to hear more about it.

I go to the reception counter with the quest notice in hand.