Chapter 228: The Depths Where Light Does Not Reach (1)

Chapter 228: The Depths Where Light Does Not Reach (1)

On a hill overlooking the sea, a pair of officers were climbing whitewashed stairs.

A middle-aged man used magic to illuminate the darkness with one hand, while a young man cautiously observed their surroundings, ready to respond at any moment. Their destination was a house with a good view, the home of a chef who had not been heard from for some time.

The officer expertly handling the search warrant confirmed they had arrived at their destination.

“How many days has it been since the missing report came in... six days now.”

“Isn’t this just a nuisance complaint? It’s too much fuss.”

The young man laughed lightly at the calm remark, but the middle-aged officer only stared at the house, which wasn’t completely devoid of presence. The young man, focusing on the presence coming from inside, widened his eyes.

“...Is someone there?”

“Yes, it seems so. But why does it feel so scary to go in?”

“Should we call for backup?”

“Well...”

The middle-aged officer, usually indifferent to anything, stiffened when he stood at the door.



A faint groan leaked from inside.

Along with it, an inexplicable chill made the hair on the hand holding the doorknob stand up.

“You stay here; I’ll go in first.”

“...Is that okay?”

“What’s not okay? It’s better than both of us dying.”

“Yes.”

“If I don’t come out in 10 minutes, run to headquarters.”

“Yes.”

Calling for backup wasn’t an option. In cases involving unconfirmed dangers, the authorized personnel numbered only 13. The middle-aged officer preferred to sacrifice himself and have more people come here.

Thud- Thud-

“Is anyone there?”

No answer. Only incomprehensible sounds like ‘ugh’ and ‘ugh.’ The middle-aged officer grabbed the doorknob again, and the young man stepped back two steps.

“We received a missing report and came to check! I’ll just look at your face, so don’t mind me breaking the doorknob!”

Creak- Crack-

The wooden door opened without resistance under his trained grip, and the middle-aged officer entered the dark interior of the house.

The deeper he stepped in, the more the biting cold seeped into his skin. Despite his long career in public service and numerous hunts for monsters, this was his first experience like this, making his steps cautious.

He didn’t draw his sword or gun.

It was just a feeling.

If he drew them, he would die. That was the feeling he had.

And after taking two more steps and turning a corner,

He encountered someone.

“...”

“Officer, what brings you here?”

“...Answer me, didn’t I scare you?”

The middle-aged officer, who had met the chef, sighed in relief. His tense legs, numb from the strain, finally relaxed. Barely supporting himself against the wall, the middle-aged officer stared at the chef in the dark.

“Didn’t you hear? We received a missing report a while ago and came to check.”

“Huh? Who reported it?”

“Your workplace by the beach, what else?”

“...Oh.”

The chef let out a dazed sound as if he had forgotten. The officer’s head tilted in curiosity, and as his tension eased a bit, the middle-aged officer spoke with a touch of relaxation.

“Didn’t you know?”

“...No, I knew... But,”

“But?”

“I hurt my back. I was so disoriented I couldn’t even find a replacement.”

“That’s unfortunate...”

The middle-aged officer looked at the chef with a sympathetic face. His pale complexion... it didn’t seem like he was lying about being sick. The officer nodded once and turned to leave.

“Well, now that we’ve confirmed you’re safe, I’ll be going.”



Shiron reached into the pouch without hesitation and threw the contents into his mouth. Johanna giggled as she watched all the fruit disappear.

[Her laughter is dark.]

As he brought the fruit to his mouth, a voice echoed in his head.

‘Indeed. She smiled so suspiciously that I almost slapped her again.’

[Ugh... Right. No matter how many times I see it, it’s a face that makes me uncomfortable. But seeing how she takes care of things so diligently, she might be a good person...]

‘Didn’t you really hate demons?’

[They say someone who gives you food is a good person. Maybe the same applies to demons?]

Over the past few days, Latera had somewhat softened her hostility toward Johanna.

Although Shiron’s command prevented her from manifesting physically, seeing Johanna’s actions through Shiron’s eyes, she seemed like a devoted and blindly affectionate girl in love.

Love.

A difficult emotion to put lightly into words, but Latera had no choice but to admit that Johanna’s soul emitted the same light toward Shiron as Siriel’s did.



How many more days had passed since then? Shiron also noticed Johanna’s feelings without Latera’s insight.

Johanna loved Shiron.

‘Damn it.’

Whenever Shiron vaguely harbored such thoughts, he took out the mirror from his bosom and engraved his suspicion of Johanna clearly.

‘Get a grip. Even with the title of hero, I’m not that handsome.’

Falling in love at first sight. Having never lived such a life, Shiron couldn’t let go of his suspicion toward Johanna.

[Even if you’re not handsome, you have a charming face.]

‘Sorry, but that’s a roundabout way of saying I’m not handsome.’

[Is it?]

‘Yes, it’s like saying “you look like you study well” when you don’t know what to say.’

“What’s with the mirror?”

“Checking if there’s something on my face. Just keep guiding us. We’re almost there.”

Putting away the mirror, Shiron gazed at the end of the coastline.

Stormy weather.

And in the raging waves, a majestic whirlpool stood firm.

The sight of the whirlpool, three times the size of any he had seen before, confirmed it as the [Whirlpool of Orr].

“I’ll start.”

Standing before the enormous whirlpool, Johanna raised her arms and clapped loudly.

Whoooo-

Then, an incredible thing happened. The whirlpool, which seemed ready to devour everything, suddenly vanished, and the storm ceased.

Shiron, looking at the now calm sea, turned to Johanna.

‘What’s going on? She didn’t use blood as an offering?’

Lucia and Seira were also puzzled. The method Johanna used to stop the whirlpool was different from the one remembered from 500 years ago.

Meeting their wide-eyed gazes, Johanna responded with a smile.

“I told you I could do better than my father, right?”

“...So that’s what you meant.”

“Let’s go in. I can’t keep it stopped for long.”

“Sure. That’s what I’d expect from you.”

Shiron gestured to Lucia and Seira.

An open hand.

It was a signal not to enter the sea, rather than a gesture to enter. Both assumed a combat stance, while Johanna tilted her head in confusion.

“Why aren’t you going in? I stopped it for you.”

Instead of answering, Shiron drew the holy sword from his bosom.

There was only one woman in this sea capable of stopping the whirlpool.

Kiara, Queen of the Deep Sea.

“Should’ve hit her a bit more?”

Shiron faced her, smiling with eyes full of hostility.