Chapter 114 :

Episode 114 - Realization

I felt myself being overwhelmed by the extremely unnatural sight created by nature, but my head was turning just as quickly as my rapidly beating heart.

What animals could swim in water?

If I transformed my body the moment I fell in, I should be able to minimize the impact, and then...... No, there was no time to weigh every little thing like that, because the boat was already shaking, unable to withstand the water pressure.

First, I would need legs that could firmly anchor my body to the deck.

As I strengthened my muscles the way I had practiced in Lucha, standing on the shaking boat became much more comfortable.

Kwaaaaa—

At the same time, the flow of the water changed.

The width of the river water, which had been moving to swallow Ratel in the center of the boat, narrowed and changed direction.

Its target was the deck where I stood.

That thing reacts quickly.

Just as I judged that there really was no time left and was about to turn around to give orders to the others on the boat—

“Ugh!”

At the sudden pain that felt as if my ankle would be crushed, I swallowed a groan and looked down.

When I lowered my head, I saw the hand gripping me and an even more fierce gaze.

"What insane thing are you doing right now?"

It was the ungrateful protagonist bastard.

As I looked at those fierce golden eyes, my attention was now drawn more to the fact that the fellow was holding my ankle than to the pain.

Did he notice that I used my power?

"Aren’t you overreacting a bit too much just because I barely climbed onto the deck? I’m just checking the situation."

Pretending to be calm, I pulled my body back into the boat, and I was able to escape the grip strength that had been squeezing my ankle as if it would break it.

"The movement of the water suddenly changed. Unless you pulled some trick, it cannot be explained."

Fortunately, it seemed he had not discovered the fact that I was hiding my power.

I passed by the fellow asking fiercely and approached Jing.

Seeing him trying to maintain his composure in this unusual situation made me feel at least a little relieved.

Because Jing would not insist on something useless like someone else.

"Jing, everything I say from now on is an order. To get out of this situation, you must follow my orders."

At the word that rarely came from my mouth, the gray eyes looking at me trembled with confusion.

"When I give the signal, gather as much strength as possible and move the boat to land. And......."

Perhaps it was not a difficult order despite how solemnly I had spoken, because Jing waited for my next words with a puzzled face.

The problem was what came next.

I wondered how well Jing would be able to carry this out.

After taking one deep breath, I finished my first and last order.

"And stop Ratel from interfering with me."

"What does that......."

"What are you talking about right now?"

Ratel stepped toward me, cutting off Jing’s question.

"I said it was an order."

When I said it again to the hesitant Jing, Jing tightly shut his eyes.

Then he grabbed Ratel, who was about to rush at me.

He probably would not last long.

But I was certain that Ratel, as he was now, probably would not attack Jing without hesitation.

It would not have a very good effect on either of them, though.

So ending this situation quickly was the consideration I could offer.

I put distance between myself and Ratel, who was caught by Jing and glaring at me as if he would kill me, then quickly climbed back onto the deck.

"So you really were about to do something insane."

Ignoring his reproachful voice, I lowered my gaze to the fellow to leave my final words.

"Listen carefully. If I fall in, the current will twist greatly once. It should be enough to buy time until you reach the other side."

Even after my explanation of the situation, Ratel still glared at me as if looking at a madman.

"Have you finally gone insane? Do you think you can survive in there?"

Of course I can survive.

I never planned to risk my life in the first place.

After confirming my calm expression, Ratel’s brow deeply furrowed.

"If you want to die, I can kill you with my own hands. That would be faster and more comfortable."

"Who keeps saying I’m going to die? I’m going to enjoy my full lifespan and die of old age. I have a way, and I’ll figure out how to survive, so you just keep rowing without stopping so you can reach the other side. Or are you planning to have us all fall in and die here?"

Kwaaaaa—

The vortex created by the river water gradually grew larger.

There was not much time left, so I hurriedly spat out the remaining words.

"I already said it, so you know, right? Once you obtain the holy relic, bring it back to the island as it is. Then cut off the head of the leader orc."

"Don’t do anything stupid. If you die, who’s going to guide us to the next holy relic?"

The fellow, who had been watching that strange movement with me, cut off my words as if angry and spoke through gritted teeth.

Ah, that problem was still there.

That must be why he, unlike himself, was desperately trying to hold on to me, so I should teach him properly.

"Your next destination is Vitas Castle."

Without guidance, he might go in circles a little, but the fellow would eventually find the way.

Just like Ratel in the original work.

"Then you’ll naturally find the remaining holy relics."

I quickly finished speaking.

But even after I had gone out of my way to give guidance in preparation for the worst-case scenario, Ratel’s face showed no sign of relaxing.

Of course, that did not mean the fellow’s expression was soft normally, but still, this was the first time since we began traveling together that it had twisted this much.

Why was he making that kind of face, when in Lucha Village he had been so eager to mess with me?

"Hey, I keep telling you, but I’m not going there to die right now. There’s no way I would make that kind of sacrifice for you......."

Unfortunately, my question was answered the moment I voiced it.

Because I realized why the fellow was trying so hard to stop me now.

And along with that, the reason behind the strange behavior he had shown until now.

If asked why finding the answer was unfortunate, it was because I felt that answer was not very favorable to me.

I opened my mouth to say something that was not favorable to me at all.

"Steal the holy relic and come back, Ratel. I’m not dying because of you. No, even if it isn’t because of you, I’m not going to die. Got it?"

If he still would not let go, I had my own method.

If I could not get out with my own power, then I could borrow another power.

As if finishing its final preparations to swallow us, the current swelled in size once more.

Thanks to that, the boat shook more violently than ever before.

I did not miss the opportunity and drew up my power.

Along with a feeling of heat in my arm, a slight transformation occurred in one arm.

Ratel must have sensed some kind of change as well, but neither I nor he had the leeway to nitpick over that.

Because the movement of the current, which had only been stupidly swelling its body, had changed.

The wave that had been tenaciously chasing the boat twisted deformly and quickly approached me.

Contrary to me, who raised the corner of my mouth at the movement just as expected, confusion and shock crossed the faces of the three who would remain on the boat.

Because of the protagonist bastard insisting on useless stubbornness, I had consumed quite a lot of power, but with this, I would escape Ratel’s interference.

As if answering in place of my words, the river water opened its mouth wide.

It had probably reacted to the power I had released a little earlier to shake off that Ratel fellow.

I turned my head and looked at Jing.

"Stand there!"

Ratel, who had pushed Jing away one step too late, belatedly reached out his hand, but he only barely managed to tear at my bag.

If I had been caught by a grip strong enough to rip a leather bag, wouldn’t I have survived in a rougher state than if I fell into the water?

A silly thought crossed my mind, but it soon evaporated thanks to the cold water swallowing my body.

The sensation of the cold early-winter river water wrapping around my body and cutting off my five senses was unfamiliar, but it did not feel that bad.

Just a little longer. Once the boat was completely far away, I planned to transform into a turtle.

It would look a little funny, but it was still an animal that could swim without standing out.

So until then, until the boat moved away, I would entrust myself to this comfortable feeling.

Feeling my body rapidly sinking, I closed my eyes, and it felt as if someone whispered in my muffled ears.

— Keep the promise.

At the voice that felt as if it were directly biting into my head, I snapped open my closed eyes.

It was not a sound created inside my head.

It was clearly someone’s voice.

I turned my head here and there to find the owner of the voice that had spoken to me as if it had been waiting for me, but there was no result.

Because, as always, another hardship had announced its beginning.

I confirmed the strong force pulling at my leg and cursed through gritted teeth.

The wave, which had swollen with all its strength and chased the boat in order to swallow it, strangely stopped moving just before striking the rear of the boat.

It swallowed the sacrifice that had jumped from the boat and closed its mouth.

The powerful force created as the river closed its mouth sank downward as if drilling a hole in the center of the river, and the recoil spread outward.

Thanks to that, the small boat, which had avoided the crisis of having its body shattered by the wave, rode the wind created by that movement and Jing’s power, advancing at high speed.

Jing gathered every bit of his strength and pushed the sail.

To carry out the command of the last imperial family he served.

The boat safely escaped from the vortex created by the wave and reached the land that had been its original destination.

The boat, which attempted to dock at the riverside as if crashing into it, moved forward for quite a while as if sailing over the ground before finally slowing to a stop.

Only after the boat, unable to withstand the friction, came to a complete halt did Lia, who had been gripping the railing of the boat as if she would break it, raise her head.

Lia’s face clouded as she confirmed the missing people.

She looked at Jing as if about to cry.

Because now, besides Jing, there was no one left for Lia to appeal to.

"Jing, what do we do now......"

Lia pointed at the empty boat in disbelief.

"Ran and Ratel are dead......."

Jing also swept his gaze over the inside of the boat with a devastated face.

Only two had reached the shore.

The vast river that had swallowed the two had quietly regained its movement as if nothing had happened.

Like a beast that had filled its belly with the boat.

You never know how things in the world will turn out.

There are not many things that go the way I want, and unexpected situations can always intrude on life and disrupt plans.

One day, a talking squirrel might suddenly appear and interfere with things, and even after I went through the trouble of jumping into the river to save a boat right before it capsized, some crazy bastard might follow me in and cling to me.

In a life where you cannot see even an inch ahead, I am the type to keep deeply engraved in my heart that one should never carelessly make oaths or promises.

— Keep the promise.

So no matter how much the owner of this voice biting into my head spoke to me in a warning tone, I had no memory of ever sharing any promise I had to keep.

Especially not in this unfamiliar world.

— Keep the promise.

Whether it had read my thoughts that there was no promise to keep or not, the unfamiliar voice rang through my head once again.

Thinking that if I did not express my unfairness here, I might be caught in a pretext over a promise I never even made, I opened my mouth.

It seems you are seriously mistaken right now, but I have never promised anything to you, and even if I had, that would not have been me but the original owner of this body.

......But had something like this happened before?

I felt a sense of déjà vu, as if I had felt a similar unfairness before.

Even then, I had tried to make my voice come out, but it felt like it had not moved as I wished.

But why is my voice not coming out freely now?

When my thoughts reached that point, I belatedly felt a suffocating tightness, as if something solid were squeezing my chest.

At the pressure that made even breathing feel difficult, my mind, which had been turning slowly to resolve it, began regaining its speed.

Why is it so hard to breathe?

Is this what happens when you fall into water?

Right, I fell into water.

……Then how am I breathing?