It was a short creature. Almost like a goblin, but blue in color, with a pair of big, fish-like eyes, and long floppy ears. The ears almost became the hair at this point. On its hand was a shining blue trident, and the creature grinned at them.
———
[Agile Fiz]
Level: 85
Power: ?
History: A slippery creature who loves to make a lot of trouble. He was once a fish caught by a sailor, but he accidentally consumed a mysterious orb and mutated to become something different. In his adventure, he successfully became a commander of deep sea creatures.
———
“I am guessing that you are not a friendly creature?” Aldred asked.
The creature laughed like a child. It then moved forward and attacked Aldred.
With his godly eyes, Aldred could read the creature’s movement like reading a book. He slashed at it, but the creature smiled like a child and slipped away.
It then passed Aldred and attacked the other treasure hunters. It slipped side to side and up and down. No matter what they did, they couldn’t land a strike on it.
Agile Fiz then lunged forward, and struck three men with its trident, killing them instantly before swimming away, and striking around a dozen men in quick succession.
Aldred couldn’t hear their scream, but he could imagine their voice. Blood mixed with the water, making everything look red.
The silver-haired girl fired an ice crystal at the creature, but it quickly tilted its head, dodging the attack. The crystal hit another man and turned him into ice.
The creature chuckled and slipped away from all the attacks.
Mary attacked it with her sword, but it easily moved away. It was a slippery creature that moved around very nimbly.
After killing a bunch of treasure hunters, and wounding a large part of them, the creature laughed and swam away.
It then entered a crack in the wall and vanished.
Everyone approached their friends and tended to their wounds, meanwhile the others were discussing what to do next.
They all knew that the creature was still around, and had a high chance of coming back and attacking them.
“That thing is slippery,” Mary said. “I cannot land a hit on that thing.”
“The water is its territory,” Aldred said. “We are at a disadvantage here.”
“I am surprised that you could not hit it,” Stella said. “Are you getting slower?” she jokingly asked.
Aldred chuckled. “That thing is too fast. I bet you can’t even catch it, Stella.”
“I wonder,” she said with a smile.
“It will return later,” Aldred said.
“How can you be so sure?” Stella asked.
“Gut feeling. Anyway, let’s rest here for now,” Aldred said.
“How can we rest underwater?” Mareona asked.
“Well, I am sure Stella has something that can help us.”
Stella smiled and summoned her staff. She waved it at them, and star particles enveloped them all before it materialized into softly-glowing seaweed that wrapped around their body like a sleeping bag.
“Wait, how can we rest without having a barbecue first?” Joseph asked.
“I agree. We need to eat before we sleep,” Jeffery said. He was surrounded by a bunch of female soldiers. They usually drained him every night, so he made sure to eat a lot in preparation for that. If not, he might die of exhaustion.
“Okay, we will have a feast first. Bartrem, prepare the grill!”
“I already pulled it out the moment you tell us to camp here,” Bartrem said, heating up the grill. How the hell did he heat up the grill while they were underwater? The answer to that was magic.
Magic solved everything.
Aldred summoned more grills and also a lot of food.
The soldiers cheered and they helped Bartrem in grilling the meat. Some of them were tasked to make the sauce. Stella waved her hand, and a carpet made out of seaweed appeared, floating in the water.
With another wave of her hand, a magic bubble enveloped the seaweed, and it fell to the floor, removing all the water within. The carpet was huge as well. It was enough for 300 people to sit on it at the same time and still had enough space for them to move around.
Aldred’s soldiers were no more than 100 people, so this was a huge space for them.
Aldred and his wives entered the bubble and noticed that there was no water at all. Instead of floating, now they could walk on the seaweed carpet.
“Magic… what a wonderful thing,” Aldred said.
Stella chuckled, happy because she felt complimented. The soldiers pushed the grill onto the seaweed carpet, and they continued their grilling as normal.
Aldred could already smell the tasty food. “Bartrem, did you make a new recipe?”
“Yeah, it’s called Bosalo Garlic Steak. It’s made out of Bosalo meat, garlic powder, mermaid’s tears, and a bunch of other spices.”
“I want to ask what Bosalo is, but where the hell did you get mermaid’s tears?” Aldred asked.
“On the Sea Fruit Market. They sell a lot of stuff other than sea fruits.”
“Ohh… I didn’t notice they sell mermaid stuff there. But what effect would a mermaid’s tear have on food?”
“It makes the food more fragrant and enhances the taste even more.”
“I see… too bad that they have to kill mermaids for that.”
“Who says they have to kill mermaids? The seller herself is a mermaid. All I had to do was pay, and she would shed a tear in this bottle.” Bartrem showed him a flask full of mermaid’s tears.
“So a mermaid sells their own tears?”
“Well, yes. I don’t see anything wrong with that.”
“Right, there’s nothing wrong with that. Enough about mermaid tears, let us enjoy the food.”
“The food is not done yet, wait for a few more minutes,” Bartrem replied.
An hour later, the food was ready, and the bubble was filled with its delicious fragrance. What Bartrem said was true. The smell was truly powerful, and Aldred couldn’t think of anything else except imagining how the food would taste.
When the food was ready, Aldred and his wives widened their eyes as the meat was beautifully decorated with golden bread, potatoes, and vegetables on the side. Bartrem came and personally poured the sauce onto the meat. It drizzled like twinkling stars, and Aldred couldn’t help but salivate.
“Enjoy the meal,” Bartrem said before the soldiers cheerfully grabbed their knife and fork and dug into the food.
The other treasure hunters were jealous of him as they couldn’t help but also salivate when they looked at his food.
Their stomachs shook, and when they looked at their own food, they didn’t feel excited. But when they looked at Aldred’s feast again, their stomach shook, and their mouth got watery.
They sighed and accepted their fate. At least they had some food to eat. Most of the people here already ran out of food. This was the life of a treasure hunter. Always nearby danger, and always full of suffering.
Only Aldred could have a journey full of fun adventures. Occupations such as adventurers, treasure seekers, and soldiers were nothing but grit and pain.
Suddenly, Aldred called out to them: “Hey, we have a lot of food here, you guys want to have some?”
The treasure hunters’ eyes lit up when they heard that.