Chapter 56: Deep-sea Dungeon Raid Part 6

When the sea goblin shaman was killed, the curse he had cast seemed to lift, and the remaining sea goblins regained their senses and began to flee. However, not many managed to escape completely, as El and Lloyd were not about to let them get away that easily.

"A few managed to slip through."

El grumbled. She was disappointed at having let some of the sea goblins escape.

"It's only a few, so it's fine."

I casually comforted El and turned my attention to the staff that the goblin shaman had been carrying. The staff was crafted from dead coral and various bones of deep-sea creatures.

It seemed to wield considerable power, but could it all really come from this simple staff?

I couldn't shake off my doubts and examined the staff more closely. When I examined each bone fragment and tooth,

"Of course…"

I found an old tooth, about the size of one of my fingers, and pulled it from the staff. Although it was worn and aged, the tooth began to emit a faint glow that was almost imperceptible as soon as it came into contact with my hand. It seemed to respond to my magical power. I held the sharp tooth in my hand and began to inspect it from all angles. How did it work? Could I understand it by infusing it with a bit of magical power? With that thought, I gently, very gently, channeled a weak stream of magical power into the tooth.

– Boooooooooom!!!!!!!!!!!!

Then, a tremendous explosion erupted. An air bubble the size of a boat rose toward the surface, and I held my heaving chest and caught my breath. C-Crazy…

Had this not occurred underwater, the consequences could have been dire. My head might have been blown off. It was only due to being submerged and having previously received the blessing of the Donar temple that my head remained intact. But to think, a mere pinch of magical power could cause such an explosion? What in the world is this?

But that wasn't the only issue at hand.

The feeling I just had…

From the mysterious tooth emanated a completely new type of magical power. It was a sensation I had never felt before, yet strangely familiar as if I had known it from long ago.

"..."

Strange.

If processed correctly, this could be turned into something incredibly valuable…

But something about it made me uneasy.

Still, I can't just discard it.

Storing it in the space ring seemed risky due to the unpredictable nature of its magic. First, let's wrap it with Loage leaves, though I'm not sure if it will help … With that, I wrapped the tooth in a Loage leaf and tucked it into my pocket.

"What's all this commotion?"

Lloyd who had been patrolling the surrounding area asked.

"It's nothing. Just mishandled the staff."

He didn't ask further, and I didn't offer more. There was still a long way to go. We quickly filled our bellies and moved on. The interior of the cave was vast, like a new world unfolding before us, so we mounted the armored shark, Sharp, and ventured deeper.

"It's getting colder."

Roshanak noted, and just like she said, the water temperature was steadily dropping. I split a morning star fruit and handed it to her. Its slight warmth should help.

As we dispatched the occasional deep-sea monsters that emerged, I wondered how far we had advanced.

"Look over there."

Lloyd pointed towards a dim light in the distance.

***

We couldn't help but be astonished by the sight before us. There stood a massive "door" that shouldn't exist in the sea, let alone exist at all.

The door that was covered with ancient scripts and grand carvings appeared incredibly worn as if it had been abandoned for thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of years. Here and there, patches of what might once have been gold made the huge door seem all the more shabby.

"This is…"

I placed my hand on the door. It pulsed with a magical power I recognized.

The same magical power that flows through the tooth.

The connection between them was unclear, but the presence of the same magical power was there.

"It won't open."

Lloyd pushed against the door from the side, but it didn't even budge an inch. Well, this was a dungeon, after all. It wouldn't just open easily.

"We'll have to find another way to open it."

With those words, I pulled out the tooth I had kept in my pocket. It was likely the key. How to use it, however, was still a mystery…

I showed the tooth to Lloyd, El, and Roshanak.

"This door is imbued with the same magical power as this tooth. So, it's probably the key. The question is where it fits."

The huge door was covered in countless carvings. To the point where it might take a few days just to examine them all.

Gods, demons, heroes, monsters, and even humans…

"There must be a right spot for it."

"So, you're saying we need to find it now?"

"Exactly."

Lloyd examined the tooth closely. El nodded her head in agreement, and Roshanak pursed her lips.

"I'll take the upper left, Lloyd, you take the upper right. Roshanak, the lower left, and El, the lower right. Let's divide it up like this and start searching."

We each began to examine the carvings in the corner of our assigned section.

"...."

How much time had passed? When I checked the clock flower again, one of its petals had already fallen. It meant we had spent four hours just examining the carvings. Since we had only checked half so far, it could take up to another four hours or we might not be able to open the door at all. It was one or the other.

I meticulously examined the carvings in my assigned area. After examining the intricate details for four hours, I realized that the scenes carved into the door depicted myths and historical events from the continent.

There are scenes I don't recognize… Could they be from lost myths?

Beyond the twelve gods and heroes of the continent I was familiar with, there was an unidentifiable "something" on the door.

And this strange "something" appeared at times divine, and at other times demonic,

Could it be?

I started to closely inspect this "something" that seemed to intertwine throughout the door as if it had rooted itself across the entire surface. Previously, I had only searched around the carvings of Donar, the god of rivers and seas, hoping to find a clue. But now, new details have started to emerge after shifting my perspective.

This "something" was present across all carvings, from Arzan, the sun god positioned at the very top, down to the demons lurking at the bottom. It was only because this "something" lay behind the gods and heroes that it was difficult to notice, but it was indeed what unified the entire set of carvings.

-Thump, thump.

My heart began to race.

Is this related to the primordial god?

If so, everything would make sense, including the myths I didn't know that were carved into the door.

I must absolutely get in.

At this point, Katharina's request was no longer the issue. The quest related to the "primordial god" was the ultimate goal I needed to accomplish.

Let's start from scratch.

Forgetting all the myths I knew before, I decided to follow the "something" engraved on the door.

I took my time examining the sculpture of Donar, the god of rivers and seas who was wielding a huge spear to fend off sea monsters. The tale of Donar driving the sea monsters back into the abyss and claiming a great victory was well known.

…But what if there's a hidden story?

I examined the tooth in my hand, turning it over and over. At first, I wondered if it might be a tooth from Donar's beloved steed, or rather, his beloved fish. However, all the sharks in the carving proudly displayed their magnificent teeth.

So then…

There was just one spot on the Donar sculpture, a shallow groove on the shoulder. I had assumed it was a blemish from wear, as the body of a god should be flawless.

But what if this "blemish" on the Donar sculpture was actually a "wound" that existed on the god's body?

Coincidentally, the tooth fit perfectly into the groove on Donar's shoulder.

What if the real '"story" was that Donar had been wounded by the sea monsters while driving them back into the abyss?

Well, there's nothing to lose.

I aligned the tooth with the groove on Donar's shoulder.

-Click.

And then, I infused a trace of magical power.

Just like the first time magical power was channeled into the tooth, a massive sound erupted. No, it wasn't an explosion. It was…

-Koo-goo-goo-goo…

The sound of the "door" opening.

"Everyone, step back from the door!"

I too kept my distance, watching as the door swung open.

It seemed the tooth acted as a sort of magic amplifier. It was a "key" that momentarily unleashed the magical power necessary to open this huge door.

The goblin shaman had exploited this effect and amplified the power of his spells to such extents.

Of course, I had kept it on hand intending to use it in a similar manner… but having used it to open the door, it felt somewhat wasteful.

No, not a waste. Not when I think of my true objective.

"You're amazing, Master!"

El exclaimed in admiration, while Lloyd watched me with an expressionless face from behind.

"How did you figure it out?"

"…I was just lucky."

With a smile, I approached the now-open door.

Beyond the door lay an endless darkness.

I had thought the deep-sea was unbearably dark for lack of light, but this was truly "darkness" itself. Even holding the morning star fruit didn't allow light to spread. This rendered sight practically meaningless.

I took a sip of the liquor brewed from shadow carrots and morning star tree leaves. This was because drinking alcohol made from dark carrots and morning star tree leaves makes your eyes accustomed to the dark. I offered some to Lloyd, but he declined. As if already knowing what lurked in the shadows, Lloyd entered the door without hesitation.

Since Roshanak was a half-mermaid; she would soon adjust to the darkness. I used the [Owl's Eye] skill only on El, then took my position at the very back as we entered the door.

The inside of the door was eerily quiet. There was no squeak of sea goblins or the cave's echoes.

"Cough, cough…"

I coughed deliberately to ease the tension and looked around. The place, resembling a vast corridor, had various carvings on the walls just like on the door. Some were in ancient languages that I recognized, but they couldn't be deciphered because some parts were erased here and there.

I positioned the armored shark Sharp who had senses far keener than any human's at the forefront and proceeded with caution.

.

How much time had passed?

-Boooooooooough!!!!

Just as I was about to check the time flower, I heard an ominous sound.