Venti: "So you'll stay here."
He handed the horn to Arthur.
The boy took it in both hands, as if the object were much heavier than it looked.
Venti: "If you blow into this horn, it will make an enormous noise."
"A sound that will echo throughout the cavern."
Arthur looked at the horn, then at Venti.
Venti: "I'm going to continue exploring the cave to find the other poachers."
"You, you stay here."
"You're keeping an eye on the large cage."
He pointed to the enormous blue crab, still motionless but perfectly conscious.
Venti: "If you see someone coming... you blow."
"Okay?"
Arthur slowly turned his head toward the cage.
The enormous blue crab was watching him too.
Ggggrrrrr
Its eyes were neither aggressive nor panicked.
They were calm. Deep. Almost... intelligent.
Arthur: "..."
His fingers tightened on the horn.
Venti sensed the hesitation, the fear, but also the weight of responsibility that suddenly fell upon the shoulders of an eight-year-old child.
He placed a gentle hand on Arthur's shoulder.
Venti: "Don't worry. I'll be back soon, I promise."
He leaned slightly toward him.He leaned slightly toward him.
Venti: "And after all this... I'll take you home. You'll be able to see your parents again."
Arthur raised his head.Arthur raised his head.
Arthur: "Promise?"
Venti smiled, a sincere, reassuring smile
Venti: "Promise."
He straightened up, glanced one last time at Arthur, then at the cage, and turned away.
FFFFfffffff
Tap tap tap tap tap tap tap
Venti moved off down a side tunnel, darker and narrower.
With each step, the light filtering through the seaweed diminished, replaced by a bluish, almost cold darkness.
Behind him, Arthur remained motionless, his horn pressed against his chest, his eyes fixed on the cage.
Arthur: "Good Luck, Venti."
FFFFfffffff
In the tunnel, Venti picked up speed.
His heart beat faster, not from fear, but from determination.
Tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap
Venti: There must be other groups.
He scanned the ground as he ran.
The tracks became more numerous:
- Boot prints
- Drag marks
- Sometimes even remnants of ropes or nets.
Venti: "They've turned this cave into a hunting ground…"
He felt a surge of anger rising within him. Images flashed through his mind:
- The crabs trapped inside
- The mother imprisoned
- The poachers' cold calculations as they spoke of moras as if they were mere commodities.
Venti: "Not this time."
FFFFfffffff
He slightly activated his Anemo energy to lighten his body, his footsteps becoming almost silent despite the speed.
The tunnels branched out, some descending, others ascending slightly.
From time to time, he heard distant voices, muffled by the rock.
Venti slowed, pressed himself against a wall, and listened intently.
Laughter.
Footsteps.
Venti: "Bingo."
He smiled dangerously.
Venti: "Time to gain some levels."
Bbbbbbbzzzz
His Adventure Crystal vibrated slightly against his chest, as if responding to his determination.
Venti took a deep breath.
Venti: "Even without confronting them head-on… I can weaken them."
He thought of his skills, of the patience required.
This time, it wasn't about brute strength, but about strategy, endurance, and control.
He plunged back into the cavern, disappearing into the shadows, while, far behind him, Arthur kept watch, his horn ready to be raised to his lips, and the enormous blue crab waited, motionless… but no longer truly alone.
Tap tap tap
Venti instinctively slowed his pace as the entrance to the new cavern came into view. The air current shifted, carrying a metallic, salty scent unlike that of the previous galleries.
Venti: " ..... ".
He placed a hand against the damp wall and slowly peered inside.
Venti : " Oh, no."
What he saw froze him in his tracks.
Not five.
Not ten.
About thirty people.
The cavern was immense, almost identical in size to the one where the Emperor of Fire and Iron once resided.
A vast natural dome rose above them, supported by rocky arches carpeted with phosphorescent algae.
Unlike the other caves, there were no seashells embedded in the walls here.
The floor, entirely covered in fine sand, bore the marks of a long-established encampment.
Rough tents formed an irregular circle around the cavern.
Between them, crates were stacked high, overflowing with supplies:
- Barrels of water
- Sacks of grain
- Dried meat
- Tools
- Weapons.
Some poachers were talking in hushed tones, others were laughing, sitting around bluish lanterns.
A few stood guard, weapons in hand.
Venti felt a shiver run down his spine.
Venti: "They're organized… much more than I thought."
His gaze swept quickly around the scene.
Not a single cage.
His gaze quickly swept the scene.
No cage.
This detail brought him slight relief.
At least there weren't any other crabs locked up here.
But this relief was short-lived.
In the exact center of the cavern was something… or rather, someone.
A purple mass.
Lying on the sand.
Immense.
Venti held his breath.
Dozens of thick ropes held the creature to the ground, wrapped around its body and limbs, deeply anchored in stakes driven into the sand.
The energy emanating from it was so dense that he felt it deep in his chest, like a muffled vibration.
Venti: Impossible…
It took his mind a few seconds to accept what he was seeing.
A Millennial Pearl Seahorse.
Archive: One of the two rulers stands at the back of the cavern.
Poets and writers often describe him as proud and noble because of his solitary nature, but the true reason for this praise lies in his elegant and slender physique.
Thus, he is called the "Pearl Seahorse," while the lord of the Armored Crabs is an "Emperor."
According to local legends and rumors, a brutal war once raged, leaving only the "Millennium Pearl Seahorse" and the "Emperor of Fire and Iron" alive, and dividing the great lake into two arms, one dominating the north, the other the south.
In "The Song of Dobharcu," the author describes the outcome of the war: the great Hunter's Ray, known as the Lord of Storms, raised immense waves in his death throes, causing what the people now call the "First Flood"...
Of course, all of this is pure fantasy, the product of the romantic imagination of those who refuse to accept the harsh reality of the world.
For humans are, in reality, merely aquatic creatures; They have neither opulent courts nor fallen kingdoms, and are devoid of words to praise or curse.
A near-legendary creature.
An ancient being, charged with pure electro-elemental energy, whose pearls were said to contain centuries of condensed power.
Some adventurers went their entire lives without ever catching a glimpse of its existence.
And yet… there it was.
Tie up.
Captured.
Displayed like a trophy.
Venti felt a lump in his throat.
The creature lay on its side, half-buried in the sand.
Its purple skin was dull, lacking its usual luster.
Faint electrical arcs sometimes flickered across its body, but they died almost immediately, as if it no longer had the strength to sustain them.
It breathed slowly.
Too slowly.
Venti clenched his fists.
At that precise moment, a memory flashed back to him.
Arthur.
Arthur, sitting near the large cage, speaking to him with that serious yet naive air.
"Maybe we'll encounter a four-legged seahorse that shoots lightning bolts!"
At the time, Venti had smiled. He had even laughed inwardly, taking it for childish nonsense, an overactive imagination fueled by stories.
But now…
Venti: "He was right…"
He observed the creature more closely, trying to make out its shape despite the distance and the seaweed floating in the humid air.
He couldn't yet clearly see its limbs, but the silhouette matched.
An elongated, powerful body, anchored to the ground as if, even exhausted, it remained too dangerous to be left free.
Venti: "They've captured a Millennial Pearl Seahorse…"
His breathing became heavier.
Around the creature, several poachers seemed to be keeping constant watch.
Some were checking the ropes, others were consulting scrolls, probably contracts or instructions.
Venti slowly backed away, pressing himself against the tunnel wall again, his heart pounding.
Venti: "Thirty people…"
Even with all the buffs and debuffs he possessed, a direct confrontation would be suicidal.
He closed his eyes briefly, forcing his mind to calm.
Venti: "Think."
"Analyze."
"Observe."
He leaned forward again, this time more cautiously.
He noticed that most of the poachers were clustered near the tents and crates.
Only six of them were actually guarding the creature, spaced evenly around it.
Venti: "They're afraid of it."
This simple fact gave him crucial information.
They didn't feel safe, even with all those ropes.
And for good reason:
Even weakened, a creature of this level could wreak havoc if it regained even a fraction of its power.
Venti examined the ropes.
Some looked scorched by electricity, others recently replaced.
He guessed they must have lost several during the capture.
Venti: They're deliberately exhausting it.
Probably by preventing it from resting, by limiting its ability to accumulate Electro energy.
A cold rage rose within him.
Venti: "Like with the crab…"
His adventurer's crystal vibrated slightly, as if sensing his emotion.
Venti placed a hand on it and quickly consulted his skills.
Venti: "If I can weaken the guards… make them slow… clumsy…"
He carefully observed the rhythm of the camp.
The comings and goings, the guard rotations, the moments when attention lapsed.
Suddenly, one of the poachers approached the creature and kicked it in the side.
Poacher: "Hey, you filthy monster… stay still."
A faint flash of lightning erupted in response, grazing the ground.
The poacher stumbled back, cursing, but the others burst into laughter.
Venti felt something break inside him.
Venti: "They'll pay."
He took a deep breath.
Venti: "But not now."
"Not just any old way."
He stepped back slowly, sinking back into the tunnel's shadows.
His mind was racing.
Arthur was alone, deeper in the cave.
The giant blue crab depended on him.
And now, there was this.
Venti: If I trigger the alarm here, Arthur will blow the horn…
But that would attract all the poachers, including those from this cavern.
Thirty armed men, all converging on a single point.
Venti: "No."
"We have to divide them."
He gave a grim smile.
Venti: "It's risky… but possible."
He thought back to his previous idea:
- Debuff them.
- Chain them together.
- Weaken them one by one, without ever revealing himself.
He took one last look at the Millennial Pearl Seahorse.
Even exhausted, she was majestic.
Venti murmured almost inaudibly:
Venti: "Hang on…"
Venti appeared in an almost imperceptible gust of air from behind one of the tents, the teleportation closing around him like a night breeze.
The coarse canvas flapped gently, its rhythm dictated by the cavern's air currents.
Just a few meters away, voices were laughing, oblivious to the danger that had just taken root right behind them.
He immediately crouched, controlling his breathing.
Venti: "Calm down... observe."
He glanced cautiously at the side of the tent.
Six poachers were gathered around an open crate, examining tools and talking in hushed tones.
None of them were looking in his direction.
Venti murmured to himself:
Venti: "Okay... there are two ways to free him."
"First, use the buffs granted by 'Stat Boosting' to restore the Millennial Pearl Seahorse's strength."
"Second... get rid of all the poachers myself."
He gritted his teeth.
Venti: "...but at my current level, I can't take them on head-on."
His gaze hardened.
Slowly, he took out his adventurer's crystal.
The translucent stone emitted a faint glow as he infused it with a little mana.
The information flashed into his mind, clear and precise.
The six individuals near him were analyzed one by one.
Poacher: Level 14
Poacher: Level 20
Poacher: Level 22
Poacher: Level 16
Poacher: Level 24
Poacher: Level 17
Venti blinked.
Venti: "...Actually... I might have a chance."
He quickly grasped the camp's structure.
Each group consisted of six people.
Thirty individuals in total.
Five groups, strategically positioned throughout the cavern.
One of them, likely the most experienced, was directly monitoring the Millennial Pearl Seahorse.
Venti: "A rudimentary military organization... but effective."
He leaned closer, observing the center of the cavern through the gaps between the tents.
The ropes restraining the creature were thick, stretched taut.
But that wasn't what caught his attention.
The stakes.
Venti: "Steel..."
Each rope was securely fastened to the ground by metal stakes driven deep into the sand and rock.
Even freeing the creature by cutting the ropes wouldn't be enough as long as those anchors remained in place.
Venti: "They've thought of everything…"
A shiver ran down his spine, not from fear, but from suppressed excitement.
His mind began to retrace the threads of his memories.
A Ruin Guard.
An ancient machine of destruction, probably level 30, faced when he was only a level 3 adventurer.
He still remembered the crushing weight of each metallic step, the fear… and the victory snatched through intelligence and timing.
Then the Abyss Lector.
Level 50.
An entity that should have annihilated him effortlessly when he was only level 11.
And yet, he had survived.
Even better, it had forced him to retreat.
And just the day before…
Two bosses.
With Bram, Kael, Eron, and Lyra.
Battles where every mistake meant death.
Venti took a deep breath.
Venti: "Each time… I wasn't good enough."
"But I had the skills."
His gaze settled on his hands.
Venti: "And above all…"
He murmured, almost smiling:
Venti: "…I never fight fairly."
His mind lingered on one skill in particular.
Intangibility.
The ability that had allowed him to ignore attacks capable of wiping out an entire squad.
The one that had worked on an Abyssal entity.
Venti: "If it works on an Abyssal Lector…"
"There's no reason why it shouldn't work on humans."
He straightened slightly, his muscles tensing.
Venti: But I have to be methodical.
He observed the group in front of him.
None seemed particularly attentive.
Some were eating, others were laughing.
The accumulated fatigue from his previous debuffs, though subtle, must still be affecting them.
Venti: "Start with the peripheral groups..."
Eliminate silently.
Reduce their numbers.
Sow confusion.
Only then approach the center.
He closed his eyes for a second, discreetly activating Resistance Reduction on the nearest group.
FFFFFFFFFFFFffffffffffffffffffffffffffff
Nothing visible.
Just an invisible pressure that descended upon them.
One of the women frowned slightly. eyebrows.
Poacher: "...Don't you feel something's off?"
Poacher: "You're just tired."
"Have a drink."
Venti gave a faint, almost imperceptible smile.
Venti: "Perfect."
He then activated Stat Reduction, just once. Then he waited.
He mentally counted the seconds, his heart beating calmly.
Venti: "Patience... it's a weapon too."
A few minutes passed.
One of the poachers sat heavily on a crate.
Poacher: "I don't know why... my legs feel like jelly."
Another dropped a tool.
Poacher: "Seriously, it's stifling in here..."
Venti: "Just a little longer..."
He activated Intangibility.
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFffffffffffffffffff
His body became blurry, almost unreal, like a silhouette drawn by the wind. Without a sound, he slipped out of his hiding place, crossing the gap between the tents.
He found himself right behind the level 14 poacher.
Chapter 55: An electric seahorse
The End