Artemia: Journey To The Thirtieth Floor

16. The Lost Pearl

"Congratulations, you have successfully finished your mission. Here are the rewards," the so-called NPC said, still looking indifferent.

I'm very sure that she was aware of my hostility for her, but she didn't appear to be bothered by it in the slightest way. I arched my brows at her to see whether she would respond or not. Unfortunately, I did not receive an answer from her. Right now, I'm not sure if she's a genuine person or a chimp. But one thing is certain! She is a detriment to our investigation in every way. No, we are not allowed to remove her off the premises, nor can we interrogate her. What should I do...

Anyway, regarding the rewards! A holographic menu opened in front of us, displaying the items we had received. It seems that we received a significant quantity of money above our expectations. No, I can't let them convince with this. This is clearly a bribe to force us to leave as soon as possible. Normally, anybody who receives this kind of money would jump out of their skin. Scylla won't be remembered by those who are like that...but not me.

I sighed and drew my katanas from their sheaths as I locked my gaze on the lady. Her identity has been exposed as a forgery. Well, that's just my hypothesis. But at least I'm certain about this. The person who offers the true quest from this dungeon has vanished, and I have no idea where she has gone. However, I am certain that it is not her. When a quest is above the B-tier, NPCs are more likely to provide detailed instructions. However, this one didn't do such a thing.

"You're not an NPC, are you?" I asked with a smirk plastered on my face.

Her lips formed a smile, but I couldn't help but notice how wicked she seemed. "Yes, I am. I am quite unsure of what you meant by that question."

"No, you tell me who you are. Also, where is the real NPC?" I asked, my voice tinged with animosity as I assumed my position.

Blake, Freya, and Dylan from behind me have already taken this attitude as well, and they are prepared to attack the lady in front of them. When she finished, she lifted her hands as if she were surrendering. That is not what this woman is doing at all! When I realized what she was up to, my eyes widened, and I dragged the other three out of the room as quickly as I could. When they caught on, they bolted as soon as they could!

That lady is the real sea serpent that is keeping watch over this location! The fact that it transformed while we were still on that floor meant that we would have been squashed to death! I took a deep breath as I marched back to the entrance after the snake ended his attack, still feeling irritated. But then there was a piercing scream that rang across the whole floor. It sounded like it was coming from a person...

I glanced around at the other three, who were all looking frightened. I was able to confirm that there was another person on that floor that couldn't escape. That's definitely the real NPC! The four of us cursed over and over again as we made our way to the location where we heard the cry, only to discover the lifeless corpse of a lady there. She resembled the form that the snake had taken earlier, and I'm a hundred percent certain that she's a person from Earth.

My stomach wrenched at the sight of her corpse. But we can't just leave her here. So to protect her body, Dylan used a cloak that he had in his possession. We promised we would bury her in this cemetery among the other fallen humans. We cannot leave her here since she will most certainly develop into a monster. Therefore, we must bring her back up. There are cemeteries on the surface intended for our planet's inhabitants. I'll see to it that she has a dignified burial and is buried up there. I promise to you...

"Let's get this party started. We're going to offer all we have right now," I told myself as I made the decision to push myself to the maximum.

I don't believe I'll be able to back down after seeing such violence. The serpent was well aware that there was a person there, and it couldn't care less whether or not she was killed. Ah, that's right. The fact that I had nearly forgotten how ruthless these people are was making me crack up. They forced us to participate in a survival game that was filled with treachery and agony. Of course, they wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice the life of a single human.

"Ivory, you are now capable of dealing with the snake on your own. We'll back you up with enchantment spells and support," Blake told me as he smiled at me.

"What? I'm afraid I can't..."

Dylan smiled and grinned at me as he patted my shoulder. "Ivory, you must have faith in yourself. You're more capable than you realize. Besides, this is one of the only few times where you could let loose."

When Freya saw me, she gave me a thumbs-up and moved to a position from which she could shoot accurately. Everyone appears to believe that I am capable of completing this task if I put out my best effort, and that is fine with me. I took a few long breaths to calm myself as I approached the snake. Damn, I can feel power overflowing within me, which seems to have been stored up for quite some time...

"Fallen Snow..."

Steam comes out of our mouths when we take a breath since the air has become very chilly. After seeing the previous fight, it seems that the snake has no intention of underestimating me. This is excellent news since I will not be taking it easy this time. Given the fact that this snake is far more powerful than the one we battled previously, I can't just sit and not use my full power.

"Dagger Hail..."

The snake was enormous, and no matter how agile it was, it will not be able to escape my clutches. The daggers fall continually, giving no room for the serpent to avoid them. My safety is assured since they vanish just as they are ready to fall within my vicinity. There is a barrier surrounding me that is destroying my own ice in order to keep me from being injured.

"You will not live to tell the tale of the girl named Scylla, Yuki..."

I rolled my eyes as I swung my katanas, feeling irritated by what this serpent had been saying since earlier. Yuki this, Yuki that! I know that it's my username in this game, but they are certainly referring to someone else when they mention that name! Ah, I am itching to find out who that Yuki person is. However, it is not the time to be thinking about it right now. I must maintain complete concentration to preserve my maximum power. Otherwise, I'd be wasting my time by pushing myself to the maximum for nothing...

"Oh, I will live to know about Scylla," I replied as I jumped and prepared to s***h the serpent.

"Ice blade..."

The blades of ice that were hurled towards the serpent's head were way too sharp. They were also enough to freeze some parts of the serpent with ease. Because of this, it became preoccupied, and I took advantage of the opportunity to attempt to chop it up from its stomach. Everything my sword touched became frozen, resulting in a series of explosions. Because Blake and Dylan constructed a protective barrier around this level, the dungeon will not be destroyed.

I have to discover the core of the serpent to chop it apart because otherwise, this will never come to an end. Although I may freeze and damage it, the water it has lost will be replaced since this area is abundant with it. And if I take my time by freezing everything, I'll run out of stamina before I know it. If I continue to lose, things won't be too good. Blake can defeat the serpent, but it will be inconvenient for all of us since he was the one maintaining the barrier. This isn't going to work...

"Freya, please locate the core for me."

"Aye, leader," she replied.

I attempted to buy some time by creating hail daggers and freezing the serpent while Freya was trying to find its weakness. I was also trying to stay away from the acidic water that was constantly splashing all over the area. That crap would have burned my flesh if it had come into contact with me. My agility is a blessing in disguise since I would most likely be dead by now if I weren't.

"The top of the head. That is the core. All you have to do is to take it."

"Wait a minute, that's...a pearl."

My brows furrowed when I understood what the real quest was. This mission's goal is to fight the sea serpent so that we may recover the lost pearl, which is vital to the snake's survival. I think this creature right here is a creation of King Orca, and it should act as a deterrent to anyone who enters. That's most likely why it's attempting to prevent us from entering Scylla's room. I also think that it tried to absorb the pearl and got consumed by it instead.

That pearl...

There's something about it that makes me want to toss it out the window. It's quite harmful, I'm certain of it. And if we get our hands on it, something horrible is certain to happen. That's why I'm perplexed as to why Freya asked me to take it rather than destroy it as she had previously directed. I'm quite confident she's figured it out at this point! If that were the case, Blake or Dylan would have been informed by her.

"Freya..." I spoke out a little nervously.

"Go ahead and do it."

"Have faith in us, Ivory."

I let out a sigh and eventually gave in. Well, if everyone agrees that I shouldn't demolish it, that's perfectly fine with me. I'm confident in saying that the three have a plan. Even if they don't, I would still follow their orders. That's the rule, after all. Of course, I'm pretty sure that they won't do anything that would lead us to certain doom, so I just went with it.

"Buy me some time," I told them while looking directly into the serpent's eyes.

"What a brave youngster you have there. You and Yuki are quite similar. And it is exactly for this reason that you are doomed to share the same destiny as her..."

Oh, it really irritated me. "f**k off, you cretin. Unfortunately, it will be you who dies in a tragic accident."

I closed my eyes firmly as I prepared to leap, concentrating on gaining the much speed as possible. In the meantime, I need to gather as much power as I can. Blake created a barrier around me and waited for me to signal him to take it down. Dylan served as an effective decoy to buy me some time until I finished performing the spell.

"Crystal blooms..." I murmured to myself as I ran at the speed of sound, leaping with all of the power I had in my legs.

"Leviathan's roar..."

After chopping off the serpent's head with my katanas, I cautiously landed on the Earth with my feet crossed. The elemental force that had been coursing through my body had been halted by a sigh from me. I returned my gaze to the snake, one eye open, attempting to determine whether or not it was already dead. When I saw that it was tilting its head toward me and trying to unleash its roar, I became alarmed. But before the roar of the snake could reach me, a crystal in the shape of a flower appeared in its head. It detonated with a resounding bang, nearly causing an earthquake with the sound it made. Oh, it was a little late. That made me feel half-dead since I knew I wouldn't be able to protect myself if it attacked me right then and there!

I was fully prepared to catch the pearl just as it was about to fall, but it erupted out of nowhere. My jaw dropped open as I locked my gaze on the three who were closing in on me. What the hell happened just now? I was under the impression that it was the missing pearl. The one that, in return for a person's life power, gives their greatest desire to anybody who comes into contact with it?

"That's not the lost pearl," Freya explained. "It was a pearl that was given to the snake by Orca in order to provide it with strength. I've been telepathically speaking with Scylla for quite some time. It seems that she was only able to establish a consistent connection with me for a short period of time. She claims to be in possession of the pearl."

"Now that we've slain the guardian, there should be nothing standing in the way of our conversing with her," Dylan stated as he extended his arm to me. "You're not feeling well, aren't you?"

I grinned and clasped my hands around his as I needed support to continue walking. Damn, I guess I've used just a little too much energy getting up to that leap. My legs were aching so bad, and I was too exhausted to even attempt to walk. Dylan seemed to have noticed and offered to give him a piggyback ride. Because I was very weary, I just gave him the go-ahead. I can see Blake watching us from the side, but I don't have the energy to entertain him right now.

Dylan promptly stooped down to allow me to ride on his back as we headed for the peak of the dungeon again. Wow, it was so cozy that I had the impression that I could fall asleep. If only we weren't trapped in this eerie prison, I could have had a good sleep! Maybe we'll be able to complete this when we're back on the surface. Ah, I really hope I will get the opportunity to do so. Maybe it was his warmth that had me entranced, but for some reason...I just want to cuddle with him. I know that now isn't the perfect time for having such fantasies, but I couldn't help it.

"I'll take you back to the surface," Blake said as if he were making a reservation.

As I was too exhausted to say anything else, I replied, "Sure."

He ruffled my hair with a grin on his face. "Anyway, you did a good job. That's my girl."