The deep sea.
The inhabitants of this land knew almost nothing about it.
A small number of them could only glean fragments of the mysteries and the unbelievable creatures of the abyss from the Aegir who came ashore.
A nation said to possess advanced science and technology, one whose territory surpassed the combined land area of Ursus, Victoria, and even Iberia. Terrifying monsters… These rumors made most of the rulers of the land scoff, while a handful of wise men were left in awe.
After all, who could say whether these stories were any different from the legends passed down across various regions, nothing more than fabrications?
Even though many terrifying legends did have a basis in truth.
Only a very few countries situated at the edge of the land, such as Iberia, were able to gain some understanding of Aegir's strength and allure through those Aegir who ventured ashore.
And even then, it was nothing more than a glimpse through a narrow tube.
Yet deep within the ocean, there still existed beings that even the Aegir feared and the colossal sea monsters regarded with caution. At this very moment, one such being was carefully cradling an "infant" in its embrace.
At least, compared to the dozens-of-meters-long Ishar'mla, the roughly two-meter-tall Ig truly did look like a youngling.
Even though, among the Seaborn, the concept of "offspring" did not truly exist.
'This body is far too cumbersome.'
Suspended by Ishar'mla's tentacles and directing Ishar'mla to move while holding it, Ig thought helplessly.
He had yet to adapt to this form of biological locomotion.
This body known as Ig was, in essence, a piece of flesh split off from Ishar'mla, the "nutrient" Ishar'mla had bestowed upon a fellow of its kind.
"Ig, where do you wish to go?"
Ishar'mla held the kin in its arms, fragile yet strangely intimate to it.
Though this kin's body was weak, the "wisdom" Ig had uploaded to the Swarm had already proven that he was capable of contributing to it.
Under Ig's direction, several "prey" that the Seaborn had found troublesome were successfully "hunted" in the deep sea.
Unfortunately, this kin had likely been separated from the Swarm for too long and had forgotten how to move through the ocean.
But that was fine.
Ishar'mla would help him.
Moreover, from the knowledge Ig had shared during their initial fusion, Ishar'mla had learned quite a few "useful" things.
Even though this compatriot named Ig had stopped Ishar'mla from uploading that knowledge to the Swarm.
"We need to test it first. After all, 'evolution' can never be copied blindly. It must be adapted to local conditions, taking the essence and discarding the dross. Don't you trust me, Ishar'mla?"
And Ishar'mla, of course, trusted Ig.
Seaborn do not deceive Seaborn.
'This is so uncomfortable… Why is Ishar'mla so rough with no sense of restraint?'
Feeling dozens of slick, slippery tentacles tightly wrapped around him, the Black Snake disguised as a Seaborn felt deeply uncomfortable.
He had not yet grown accustomed to the Seaborn sensory system.
'That said, this species is far too strange. I always thought their adaptability was passive… but it's actually active? That's completely unreasonable.'
For all these years, while the Black Snake had been struggling to adapt to the Seaborn body, he had never stopped observing the traits of this species.
If anything, his interest in them had only deepened.
Thanks to the Seaborn's extreme closeness with one another, not a single Seaborn harbored any suspicion toward Ig.
Ishar'mla, in particular, cared for him meticulously, feeding him excess nutrients since he could barely move.
It even took the initiative to carry Ig around, making movement easier for the "useless Seaborn" Ig.
Seaborn had no concept of hierarchy.
No, that was not quite accurate.
Rather, they lacked the terran notion of hierarchy, even though higher-tier individuals like Ishar'mla did exist.
Yet they never abandoned any of their kin.
Even an existence like Ishar'mla would actively protect the weakest Seaborn in the Swarm, without holding anything back.
This allowed a certain "unemployed Seaborn" who wasted nutrients to idle about and observe his "kind."
Of course, to better influence the Swarm, Ig still made use of Ishar'mla's authority to capture several entities that the Swarm found difficult, as proof of his worth.
At the same time, however, the bond between the Seaborn filled the Black Snake with fear.
After all, the Black Snake had never believed that anything could be more important than himself.
And such a perfectly unified collective posed an even greater threat to those "nonconforming" special individuals.
Much like how a nation formed by countless short-lived beings could exert tremendous pressure on a god.
Not to mention that the Seaborn possessed cooperative and learning abilities far superior to those of terrans.
'No.'
'I absolutely cannot allow such a united collective to exist.'
'At the very least, they must be tainted with "selfishness"…'
'Just like every group on this land. Scheming against one another, meaningless internal strife, mutual restraint…'
An existence like the Black Snake feared nothing more than a perfectly unified collective. That was why it had learned how to divide and incite discord within a system.
This was also why the Black Snake integrated itself into the Ursus Empire and chose to coexist with "terrans."
It was not invincible.
"Ig."
Within the palace beneath the sea, which also served as Ig's nest, the two-meter-tall terranoid Seaborn was desperately clinging to his stone throne, refusing to be dragged away by Ishar'mla.
"Ishar'mla… I can move on my own. You don't need to carry me!"
The Black Snake did not want Ishar'mla's slick tentacles touching him.
They made him deeply uncomfortable.
"Alright, Ig."
Ishar'mla released the tentacles wrapped around Ig's waist, several of them drooping in what could almost be called disappointment.
She soon regained her composure.
Even though she did not understand why she had felt flustered just moments ago.
'An influence from Ig's knowledge?'
Ishar'mla pondered.
Since meeting Ig, she felt she had been using her "brain" more frequently than ever before.
But that was a good thing.
At the very least, she could clearly feel that her hunting efficiency had improved significantly.
So the knowledge Ig passed on had to be beneficial.
It was just a pity that Ig was too cautious, unwilling to let her upload it to the Swarm.
But there was nothing to be done.
After all, Ig was also thinking of the Swarm's best interests.
Seaborn do not deceive Seaborn.
"Ishar'mla, why did you bring me here?"
Following Ishar'mla, Ig entered a deep cavern.
But he soon realized something was wrong.
Because inside this cave grew something that should have been absolutely impossible to exist here.
A pink rose.
It was protected within a small air barrier, and the well-traveled Black Snake immediately recognized the Aegir script engraved upon it.
That air container was Aegir-made.
"Are you happy?"
The frequency of Ishar'mla's tentacle movements clearly increased.
This was land-based knowledge she had learned from the fragmented information the Black Snake had once been forced to leave behind.
[Giving flowers is a way to express affection.]
Unfortunately, there were no flowers in the sea that matched those in Ig's memories.
So Ishar'mla, relying on the Seaborn's ability to actively adapt, had used fragments of her own shed flesh to forcibly evolve a flower from nothing.
A rose in full bloom.
Although the deep-sea environment was inherently unsuitable for flowers to grow, and the air container Ishar'mla had "picked up" did not provide ideal living conditions either,
the Seaborn were capable of subjective adaptation.
Ishar'mla's own flesh and blood could supply everything the rose needed, a rose that had evolved from her flesh in the first place.
Even Ishar'mla herself did not understand why she was wasting so much nourishment on something the Swarm would deem utterly meaningless.
But…
Perhaps, to Ishar'mla, it was not meaningless at all.
"…Of course I'm happy, Ishar'mla."
Ig's arms differentiated into dozens of tentacles, extending outward as they carefully drew the brilliantly blooming rose from the air container into his embrace.
"I'll treasure it."
'Damn it. How did she manage this? That ability… It seems my understanding of the Seaborn is still far from complete.'
Ig offered a portion of the flesh that had sloughed off his own body to Ishar'mla.
This was the only action the Black Snake knew of that could increase a Seaborn's favor…
If such terrifying creatures truly possessed something like favor at all.
What the Black Snake did not know was that even for Ishar'mla, the nutrients consumed to create this rose far exceeded the flesh he offered in return.
In any case, the Black Snake remained skeptical.
He even believed that Ishar'mla was merely learning, merely imitating…
Learning the way "terrans" thought.
Ishar'mla accepted the offering.
After all, she was Seaborn, not "terran."
At least, not yet.
"Do you like it, Ig?"
"I do. Of course I do. Thank you, Ishar'mla. I'm very happy."
Watching Ig clutch the air container while continuously transmitting signals of joy toward her, Ishar'mla felt no happiness at all.
Having once nearly fused with the Black Snake, she had learned quite a few things from that encounter.
She keenly sensed that hidden within the pheromones Ig was emitting were fear and rejection.
Emotions that most Seaborn could not comprehend.
But Ishar'mla was not among them.
What she had learned from the fragments the Black Snake left behind was far more than the Black Snake himself had anticipated.
'Is this what lies are?'
'You're deceiving me.'
'You're clearly afraid.'
'Why, Ig?'
'We are kin.'
'I won't hurt you.'
'So why are you still afraid?'
'What is it that you fear?'
'Are you afraid of me?'
Yet Ishar'mla did not voice the confusion in her heart.
Among the Seaborn, there was no need for concealment.
In the past, Ishar'mla would have directly asked Ig about his true thoughts.
After all, Seaborn do not deceive Seaborn.
But as time passed, as Ishar'mla's sense of self continued to strengthen, she began to "evolve."
She started to act with intention, rather than simply eating when full and sleeping when sated.
She began to learn how to conceal certain thoughts of her own, how to feint and misdirect in order to capture prey, even when that prey was pathetically weak.
She began to notice the inconsistencies in Ig's words, even as she remained silent while he "educated" the Seaborn.
Then, when alone with Ig, she would question him, only for the Black Snake to brush her off with layers of sophistry.
Yet she seemed to have realized that she could not rely on this physically frail "Brain of the Swarm" in all matters.
She had to learn how to think for herself.
After all, what if one day, Ig were to disappear?
No…
Ig would not disappear.
This was the deep sea, the home of all Seaborn.
How could a Seaborn ever leave the Swarm?
___
"Damn it. Why did you only bring back this little of the shipment?"
"Uh… Governor, you don't understand. Our transport unit was doing just fine when a monster dozens of meters tall suddenly appeared out of nowhere and attacked us!"
"You take me for a fool? A monster dozens of meters tall attacks you, yet not a single one of you is injured, and only the cargo is gone?"
"Uh… actually, the cargo wasn't stolen. Our transport vehicles were destroyed, so most of the goods were left behind."
"Heh…"
"Honorable Governor, please believe me. I've brought the footage from the scene."
"..."
"Well?"
"Your fabricated footage is insultingly sloppy. Guards, detain him for now."
"!"
"What kind of monster would attack our transport unit just to steal an air container? Confess now and you may be shown leniency. Resist, and you'll be dealt with severely!"
"I've been wronged! You can have professionals examine the footage for signs of tampering!"
"Still arguing? Do you think I'm an idiot? Guards, have this footage examined immediately. How could something so absurd possibly happen? A monster dozens of meters tall effortlessly breaks through all our defenses just to take a tiny air container?"
"It's true!"
"I see you won't repent until you see the coffin!"
___
"Damn it. Why have those creatures been so active lately? First they were crazily mining and smashing rocks, and now there's a high-tier individual hunting all over the place."
"I know about the mining. Apparently the Seaborn were building something for one of their higher individuals called Ig. Strange… when did those creatures develop a sense of aesthetics? As for the one roaming around, I think it's called Ishar'mla. Did it do something that consumed a lot of energy? The surrounding fish and algae have almost been eaten clean."
"Tch… how would I know? Weren't those two supposed to be inseparable?"
"Who knows… sigh. What a troublesome bunch of creatures."
___
"..."
After returning to his "nest," Ig placed the air container on the table.
He stared at the rose blooming inside.
'But how am I supposed to keep it alive?'
The Black Snake did not possess Ishar'mla's powerful adaptive ability. The body he now inhabited, known as Ig, was already the result of immense effort on his part.
A Seaborn body with limitless potential was not something that could be adapted to so easily.
'Just leave it somewhere and ignore it. Better yet, hide it somewhere Ishar'mla can't find.'
'As long as I give some half-hearted response, that'll be enough.'
'I, the Black Snake, won't be fooled by your act. No matter how convincingly you imitate terrans, your essence will never change.'