Volume 8 Chapter 1 Part 2 (2/2)

Maybe they were chased by a bigger monster, or wanted to practice hunting. s.h.i.+n couldn't know what the reason was, but in any case, what they had to do didn't change.

The prey retaliating against the hunter was also a fact of nature.

”I'm sorry, but we can't let you sink this s.h.i.+p.”

s.h.i.+n ran towards the Queen.

He was about to strike it withKakura, while avoiding the breath attacks it unleashed, when the sea showed an unnatural movement.

The rumbling sea created a gigantic wave between s.h.i.+n and the Queen, forcing them apart.

Then, as if in response to the giant wave, a series of 60 cemels long harpoon-like jets of seawater shot towards s.h.i.+n.

”Aqua Lance, huh? Sorry, that won't work on me.”

s.h.i.+n made the lances, coming at him from all sides, focus on one point, then leapt away.

As it used real seawater, this Aqua Lancehad a higher number of lances, power, and resistance to magic than an ordinary one, but it wasn't enough to stop s.h.i.+n.

With one swing ofKakura, s.h.i.+n blew past the barrage of water lances created by Aqua Lance. It wasn't necessary to deal with all of them.

”Sorry to do this when you just arrived, but”

s.h.i.+n dodged a newly unleashed water breath, slashed through the giant wave and closed in on the Queen.

He then held Kakura's hilt with both hands, gripping it forcefully.

”The curtains are already closing!!”

With a shout, s.h.i.+n pounded Kakurainto the Queen's cranium. With a thunderous sound that silenced the winds, the Queen's skull visibly caved in.

The power of the attack strengthened by the Mallet skill Fierce Impactwas not something even a Queen could sustain.

It was a superior species, with a sh.e.l.l that acted as a helmet, so its head was not crushed to bits. The shock did not kill it on the spot; the Queen's body swung down to sea level, floating powerlessly on the waves.

”W-What in blazes is going on!?”

Kanade, who had been watching s.h.i.+n's battle, lost her balance because of the sudden shaking. s.h.i.+n looked back and saw the shadow of a Gale Serpent beneath the s.h.i.+p.

”Trying to sink the s.h.i.+p now? You got a good beating, time to retreat.”

Of course, s.h.i.+n would not let the monster succeed.

s.h.i.+n immediately dove underwater to punch away the Gale Serpent before it could tackle the s.h.i.+p

Thanks to the marine environment, however, the serpent was not killed right away and slithered away from s.h.i.+n.

”Guess it doesn't work as well as aboveground.”

This was s.h.i.+n's first underwater battle after coming to this world. The response he felt on his fists was also lighter than usual.

”The currents are a pain too.”

He had to move while kicking the water to prevent his body from being dragged away. The invisible water currents were swirling all around s.h.i.+n.

In an underwater environment, without a solid foothold, even s.h.i.+n who still retained his memories of his experiences during the game era had to focus at all times or he would lose track of the direction he had to face.

s.h.i.+n returned temporarily to the sea surface, and jumped in midair while kicking up jets of seawater.

In the same instant, he saw Kanade as she was about to jump into the sea.

”Hey, what are you doing!?!”

Following Kanade, Karin jumped into the water too.

s.h.i.+n then noticed that the s.h.i.+p was severely tilted. He wanted to chase Kanade and Karin right away, but couldn't leave the s.h.i.+p like that.

As s.h.i.+n tried to get closer to the s.h.i.+p with the Movement-type Martial skillFlying Shadow, the seawater around the bottom of the s.h.i.+p suddenly froze.

The ice spread as to cover the s.h.i.+p, acting as a floating tube with the surrounding seawater.

The waves were still tall, but not enough to knock over the s.h.i.+p now supported by the ice. Unless the frozen surface was crushed, the s.h.i.+p would not sink.

”I see they're almost done too.”

From his position in midair, s.h.i.+n saw Filma unleash crimson sword slashes towards the King and felt positive that the battle would be over soon .

”Then I will!?”

s.h.i.+n turned to quickly chase after Kanade and Karin, when a breath attack was unleashed in his direction. It was from the serpent that he had failed to defeat just before.

”I'm busy enough already!”

s.h.i.+n kicked the air to dodge the breath attack, then pointed a finger towards the Gale Serpent, which was preparing another water breath, to activate a magic skill.

A light blue beam froze the Gale Serpent along with the surrounding water, instantly creating an ice pillar.

It was the Light and Water combination skillFreezing Ray.

This beam of light, characterized by high activation speed and freezing properties, froze the Gale Serpent until deep within its body.

Seconds later, the frozen pillar broke off in large and small blocks of ice.

”It made me waste too much timethey've already gotten far.”

s.h.i.+n checked for Kanade and Karin's signals and fell down to the water while grumbling. The two women had been swept away farther than he had expected.

”(Schnee, I'm going to pick up two women that fell into the sea. Can I leave the rest to you?)”

”(Understood. We will eliminate the remaining monsters very soon. Be careful.)”

s.h.i.+n exchanged a Mind Chat with Schnee and kicked the water. Gaining distance by moving through the air, he rushed on the seawater while jumping to avoid the waves.

”There isn't much time left.”

Kanade and Karin were apparently trapped in a sea current and were moving towards the edge of s.h.i.+n's perception field.

They were probably getting swept away by the current. Their signals were moving in a fixed reaction, but the trajectory was highly unstable.

”If I chase after them like this, we won't be able to return to the s.h.i.+p.”

s.h.i.+n considered their movement speed and the distance to the s.h.i.+p, then reached a conclusion.

Kanade and Karin were in the perfectly opposite direction to the s.h.i.+p. The s.h.i.+p would disappear from his perception field before he reached the two women's signals.

”I'm sorry for Hermie and the others, but I have to go.”

The option of prioritizing the return to the s.h.i.+p and abandoning the two women did not exist for s.h.i.+n.

During the sea trip, they had exchanged words several times. He couldn't think of them as strangers and leave them alone anymore. For this reason, s.h.i.+n decided to prioritize rescuing them.

”Let's go to Karin first.”

Since she had jumped into the sea later, s.h.i.+n managed to reach Karin first.

s.h.i.+n deactivatedWater Pa.s.sageas he hit the water and dove into the sea. He proceeded while cutting through the currents swirling around him and caught Karin as she was being tossed about by the waves.

”There's not much time left.”

s.h.i.+n castDive Xon Karin and sped up.

s.h.i.+n was holding her torso with an arm and keeping her still, but there was no response from Karin. Considering how much time had pa.s.sed since she had jumped into the sea, it was not possible for her to be still breathing.

”Don't tell me I came to rescue them and they're both dead!!!”

With a shout, s.h.i.+n charged through the water. As soon as Kanade entered his sight, he drew the white-sheathed katana Hakuramarufrom the item box and swung it vertically very quickly, easily overcoming the water's resistance.

Katana and Water combination skill Deepwater Cleave.

As if tracing the slash itself, the sea was cleft in a V-shape.

s.h.i.+n, carrying Karin over his shoulders, jumped in midair and kicked the horizontal sea surface.

In the air, s.h.i.+n kicked again. He rushed towards the center of the sliced V, towards Kanade.

”Here too?”

s.h.i.+n, with Hakuramaruin his mouth, carried Karin with his right arm and Kanade with his left. Before the cleft seawater returned to its original state, he kicked against the horizontally sliced sea surface. After jumping back in midair, s.h.i.+n activated Clairvoyanceand looked around.

As he was focused on chasing the two women, He didn't know where he currently was. He looked around to see if there was any land in the surroundings, and found a promising shadow on the right.

”Hang on, please!!”

s.h.i.+n ran as fast as he could.

A mad rush straight towards land, leaving water spouts in his wake.

Maybe because the rain clouds had not reached this stretch of land, the waves near the coast s.h.i.+n reached were very calm.

s.h.i.+n reached the sandy beach, quickly laid the two women down and checked their breathing and pulse.

”No, don't tell me.”

They were both in a state of cardiac arrest.

Trying to suppress his growing impatience, s.h.i.+n thought of a way to solve the situation.

Witha.n.a.lyze, he saw that both women's HP were slowly reaching zero. The decrease speed was more or less the same, but Karin seemed to have incurred damage somewhere, as she had 10% less HP.

The only solution s.h.i.+n came up with at the moment was to castHealand then perform CPR on both.

He first performed CPR on Kanade. Even if slightly, she had jumped into the sea earlier than Karin. As she was younger, s.h.i.+n decided that she was the more urgent case.

”Cough! Cough!!”

”Great, one's done!!”

With relief at a resurrection quicker than expected, s.h.i.+n put Kanade in a more comfortable posture and made her spit out the water.

He then left her and performed CPR on Karin. It didn't go as well this time, so s.h.i.+n, relying on a hazy memory, tried to perform a heart ma.s.sage.

”.hn? Whatare you?”

s.h.i.+n was too focused to hear what Kanade was saying.

Was her breathing adequate? Was the heart ma.s.sage's strength and rhythm correct? Was there still time for her to come back to life?

That was all s.h.i.+n could think about.

”Kah!! Cough!!”

”Yes!!!”

s.h.i.+n's emergency procedure seemed to have worked, as Karin sprang back to life as well.

Looking at Karin spitting out the seawater, s.h.i.+n let out a shout and, at the same time, felt all his strength leave his body.

”So this is what it means to be scared to death”

s.h.i.+n mumbled after a deep sigh. Life support procedures are not to be made while relying on hazy memories.

Karin's breath had stabilized and she had woken up, so s.h.i.+n told the two women to rest while he went to gather dry wood.

It apparently had not rained in their location, so he was able to quickly gather a good quant.i.ty of dry wood.

At the same time, s.h.i.+n looked for any huts or caves where they could rest.

”Oh, this place looks just right.”

It was at a fair distance from the place they came ash.o.r.e, but he found a naturally formed cave. It was also deep enough that, even if it rained, they would be protected.

s.h.i.+n placed the dry wood in the item box and returned to the beach.

”There's a cave over there. I think it's better to move before the sun sets, but can you walk?”

”I'm all right, but I suppose that Karin would still have trouble walking.”

The two women had fallen into the sea at roughly the same time, but Karin was more exhausted.

s.h.i.+n had cast healing magic at the time he performed emergency procedures, so their HP was recovered, but both of them were not in good condition. Recovering HP did not mean that one's condition returned to normal as well.

The sun was already setting over the beach, so after asking permission, s.h.i.+n carried the still exhausted Karin on his shoulders.

Kanade had recovered enough to be able to walk without problems, so they walked towards the cave at a pace relaxed enough not to tire her.

As they arrived at the cave, s.h.i.+n let Karin down and prepared to light a fire.

”Let's use a small Fire spell andOK, it lit up. Lady Kanade, please use this to warmwhat-are-you-two-doing?”

What s.h.i.+n saw when he turned around was Karin, stripped of her armor and wearing only her kimono.

Her wet hair, sticking to her cheeks, and half exposed chest emitted, in total contrast with their current situation, an aura of sensuality. Karin was apparently the type that looks leaner when clothed.

Judging from the situation, Kanade had probably removed her armor.

”I certainly can't leave her in those drenched clothes. It is quite unbecoming to show skin in front of a gentleman, but warming Karin up takes priority.”

”Definitely. Then allow me to offer new clothes, a towel, and a cloth for her to lie on.”

In a situation like this, s.h.i.+n wouldn't just keep staring at Karin. Prepared for the fact that he might be interrogated about it later, he materialized several items from cards.

The mantle s.h.i.+n took out for Karin to lie on possessed an HP recovery effect. He didn't know if it could help relieve her exhaustion, but it was still better than nothing.

”From the number of cards you possess, I am more positive that you certainly are not an ordinary traveller.”

”Rather than that, I suggest that you rest for now. You must be fatigued too. I will stand guard, so please try to rest.”

s.h.i.+n's clothes were generally equipped with an underwater mode too, so they weren't wet at all. He hadn't lost much energy.

”Atchoo!”

Kanade's sneeze, echoed within the cave, as she warmed up beside the fire. No matter how close she was to the fire, as drenched as she was, her body couldn't not feel cold.

s.h.i.+n told Kanade to also change into another kimono and went outside.

While they were changing, he used a monster repellent item to prevent monsters and wild animals from coming closer to the cave.

Some monsters could come closer despite the item, so for added security s.h.i.+n set some traps that would damage them the instant they stepped into the cave.

”You may return!”

s.h.i.+n returned inside the cave to find a changed Kanade and Karin sleeping, wrapped in a blanket.

First, s.h.i.+n tied the ends of a rope to two short daggers and stabbed them in the cave's walls, to hang the wet kimonos from this improvised clothesline.

”We are in your debt.”

”As they say, when in trouble people should help each other. Lady Kanade, you should also sleep a little. Are you not tired?”

”However”

”I will stand guard. First priority is recovery now.”

Kanade's eyelids were already closing. She was probably at her limit.

”I will repay you for everything one day”

s.h.i.+n made sure that Kanade started sleeping too and sat down near the fire.

(Even if they almost drowned, their fatigue is too much for someone who simply fell into the sea. Is this normal when someone nearly drowns? Or not?)

This was the first time s.h.i.+n had seen someone nearly drown before his eyes, so he didn't know if their condition was normal or not. But more than 10 minutes had pa.s.sed between when they fell into the sea and s.h.i.+n began emergency treatment on them.

He didn't know how long they had been in cardiac arrest, but s.h.i.+n thought that the possibility of not saving them must have been higher.

(Both of them are probably Chosen Ones. Maybe when stats and level are high, at times like this the survival rate increases too?)

While dwelling on such thoughts, s.h.i.+n waited for them to wake up. Until then, he decided to try contacting Schnee.

”(s.h.i.+n here. Can we talk now?)”

”(Are you alright? Here the storm pa.s.sed and the s.h.i.+p departed again. Are the people who fell into the sea safe?)”

The Gale Serpents must have been exterminated. Other than s.h.i.+n and the two women, no one else fell into the sea, fortunately.

s.h.i.+n explained their current situation and told Schnee to give priority to protecting Hermie.

”(Understood. Please let us know your location once you know where you are. Let's choose where to meet then. Also, Yuzuha is quite restless, could you summon her by your side?)”

”(Yuzuha?)”

”(She seems to feel down because although you had left those two ladies in her care, they fell into the sea.)”

”(Ah.I don't think that was Yuzuha's fault in any way. Anyway, I understand.)”

s.h.i.+n confirmed his understanding of what Schnee related.

Rather than falling, Kanade had thrown herself into the sea, so Yuzuha didn't have to feel responsible. Yet Yuzuha herself certainly didn't think so.

s.h.i.+n contacted Yuzuha via Mind Chat and called her with a Tamer skill.

”Kuuu”

”Don't feel so down, that wasn't your fault Yuzuha.”

Yuzuha cried weakly, and s.h.i.+n patted her head while talking.

For s.h.i.+n too, it was a complete mystery as to why Kanade had leapt into the water like that.