Chapter 268
“Is there a need for a reason to help someone in danger!”
“…….”
Lloyd Frontiera, who shouted unexpectedly, made the Mermaid Queen close her mouth.
She was taken aback.
‘What’s with this land human?’
Suddenly, she remembered the advice left by the previous queens.
They told not to trust the humans from land.
They said those humans are complete opportunists.
For money.
For profitable endeavors.
They wouldn’t hesitate to betray friends and others.
And yet, if there’s another benefit to gain, they wouldn’t hesitate to shake hands again, truly despicable beings.
She was sure that’s what was said.
‘But this one…….’
Seemed a bit different.
Lloyd Frontiera, who appeared out of nowhere.
In such a perilous situation unfolding right now.
He rushed in without hesitation, standing shoulder to shoulder.
Holding up the massive egg sac together.
The situation that unfolded before her eyes.
The undeniable fact.
It threw the Queen into a turmoil of emotions.
“Alright. Land human Frontiera. I will gladly accept your help.”
“Thank you!”
Perhaps it was due to the extreme effort being exerted.
Or maybe because of the overwhelming emotions.
The Queen’s voice seemed to tremble slightly.
A satisfied smile briefly adorned Lloyd’s lips.
‘Good. This should keep me out of the big trouble for now.’
He quickly glanced at the Mermaid Queen.
Her face flushed with effort.
Muscles bulging with anger.
Struggling to hold back the 200-meter giant egg sac.
And himself?
Standing beside, stretching out his hand as if pushing the egg sac.
Precisely, just pretending to push with his hand placed on it.
Making grunt noises with his mouth.
Of course, it wasn’t without reason.
‘Naturally. That Kraken. I’m not sure of the exact reason, but it started rampaging after finding the Jewel of truth. Along with that strange resonance.’
Suddenly, Lloyd’s mind flashed back to that moment.
They had finally excavated the Jewel of truth.
To activate the mechanism hidden there.
Rotourua tinkered with the device of the Jewel of truth.
It was a success.
With a thud, the Jewel of truth began to vibrate fiercely.
All the surrounding seawater resonated intensely.
It was a magnificent sight.
He felt assured.
They had found the real Jewel of truth.
He was elated.
But that happiness was short-lived.
‘The Kraken started rampaging.’
Even though he was several kilometers away from the merfolk kingdom, he could clearly see the rampaging Kraken.
Thanks to the faint light emitted by the giant egg sac forming the merfolk kingdom.
‘The Kraken roared and started twisting wildly.’
He saw the egg sac being squashed and shattered into pieces.
Like a roe being clumsily broken by inept chopsticks.
‘I rushed over as soon as I saw that.’
The rampaging Kraken.
He could sense it as soon as he saw it.
The action of activating the Jewel of truth.
The ensuing resonance.
It seemed undoubtedly connected to it.
‘It would be too coincidental to say otherwise.’
That means, this crisis unfolding as the Kraken rampages through the merfolk kingdom might very well be his responsibility.
‘Of course, it was Mr. Rotourua who activated the Jewel of truth, but since I was in charge of the excavation, I share the blame. So, I can’t just stand by.’
Because of a sense of moral duty?
To correct a mistake?
Certainly not.
‘Moral duty, mistake, what nonsense! If I just stand by, before I even get to feel any of that, I’d be knocked out with a one-punch gut shot by the Mermaid Queen and returned to nature!’
It was a highly probable scenario.
The rampaging Kraken.
The tremendous damage to the merfolk kingdom.
And if it later turns out that the cause was the excavation of the Jewel of truth?
It seemed likely the merfolk would hold him accountable.
And it seemed there would be no skirting around it.
‘Of course. I ran a sauna, so I mobilized the merfolk to the excavation site. Moreover, there were hundreds of merfolk who witnessed the Jewel of truth being excavated in real time. They will be the witnesses. This incident can’t be hidden even if I wanted to.’
But what happens after this incident is resolved?
When it comes time to assign blame?
He was convinced that the arrows of blame would surely point towards him.
That was why.
‘I need to let out some strategic farts now! Pretend to actively help in resolving the situation and earn some merit! That way, I’ll face fewer accusations later!’
That way, the chance of getting punched in the gut by the Queen would decrease.
At the very least, he wouldn’t be expelled from the merfolk kingdom.
‘After all the trouble to find the Jewel of truth.’
It was the Jewel of truth they had found with great difficulty.
But now, to be expelled from the merfolk kingdom?
He couldn’t let go of the time and effort he had invested here so easily.
Lloyd, with these calculations sharply etched into his prefrontal cortex, shouted.
“Your Majesty! Please muster a bit more strength! I will lead the chant!”
“Ugh! A chant?”
“Yes! Let’s muster our strength together following the chant! One!”
“Grgh!”
“Two!”
“Gah!”
Lloyd chanted.
Pretending to exert effort, he merely acted.
Each time, the Mermaid Queen put in more effort and pushed herself harder.
Like when a trainer at the gym slightly holds the bar, and it somehow gives you more strength.
The unmovable barbell seems a bit lighter.
As if the ancestors themselves were lifting that 20kg weight.
Finally, the momentum of the 200-meter egg sac started to wane.
“Great! Just a bit more! One!”
“Guh!”
“Two!”
“Gah!”
With a loud crash!
The Mermaid Queen’s pectoral and triceps swelled as if about to burst, finally succeeding in stopping the 200-meter egg sac.
The physical prowess of the merfolk species.
It was a tremendous strength and majesty befitting their queen.
“……Phew, huff! Your Majesty, are you alright?”
“Of course.”
The Mermaid Queen, still flushed, turned to look at Lloyd.
Her massive, brutish hand landed on Lloyd’s shoulder.
“If my strength had been just a little weaker, I would have been swept away and buried under the sea. Thank you. It would have been dangerous without your help.”
“Phew, huff! Not at all. I merely lent my modest strength.”
Lloyd jested, pretending to catch his breath.
He was relieved.
They had safely stopped one flying egg sac.
Moreover, it seemed the Mermaid Queen hadn’t caught on to his true intentions.
‘Good. I’ve scored some points, albeit a few.’
But it still felt like he hadn’t earned enough points.
He needed to score more and make a solid impression.
That way, he could use the Jewel of truth and avoid the merfolks’ condemnation even after this crisis was resolved.
‘That means I need to play a significant role in resolving this situation.’
Lloyd’s gaze, now calm, turned towards the Kraken.
Its size was incomprehensibly vast.
With tentacles so long and thick, they defied estimation.
“Groar!”
With one roar, the entire ocean shook.
Its massive body thrashed, sending egg sacs that formed the city flying like bouncing balls in all directions.
Watching this, Lloyd felt a deep sense of skepticism.
‘Can this even be resolved?’
The scale of the Kraken’s rampage was fundamentally different.
However, the courage of the merfolk surpassed Lloyd’s expectations.
“Sisters! Stand up!”
“Sister! Take my hand!”
“Brother! Just trust me and hold on tight!”
In the face of the Kraken’s unprecedented and sudden rampage, which threatened the very foundation of their city, the merfolk remained undaunted.
They didn’t succumb to fear.
Instead, they responded proactively.
Rallying their impressive muscular strength, they united.
“Everyone! You must have felt the majesty demonstrated by our Queen leading by example! Let’s do this!”
“Yeah!”
Dozens, hundreds of merfolk came together to catch the egg sacs.
They rescued merfolk who were floundering inside the egg sacs.
Those who were rescued soon regained their strength.
And they joined in to help stop the egg sacs.
Within half an hour.
The merfolk successfully caught and safely placed most of the thousands of egg sacs that constituted their living areas on the ocean floor.
And then, they united.
They encircled the wildly rampaging Kraken.
But they didn’t resort to violence.
‘Of course! The Kraken is our friend!’
Even though it had suddenly started rampaging today.
Even though some homes had been destroyed.
Even though tens of thousands of egg sacs outside the residential area had been completely scattered.
Even though rebuilding the city would require tremendous effort and expense.
Still, the merfolk considered the Kraken a friend.
It must be a mistake for it to act this way, they thought.
There must be a reason for its rampage, they reasoned.
So, they decided to try calming it down first.
They all agreed on this course of action.
They held a concert.
Poured their hearts into it.
Sang songs.
It was a chorus filled with the merfolks’ feelings.
This chorus gently caressed the sea.
Soothed the thrashing body of the Kraken.
Thanks to this, Lloyd truly realized.
“……Even though you’re tone-deaf yourselves!”
He couldn’t help but shout out in frustration.
He really had no choice but to do so.
‘What’s with that? They’re off-key! They’re not even hitting the right notes or keeping the beat! They had no right to criticize me!’
Indeed, the merfolks’ singing was horrendous.
If they were taken to a karaoke room in South Korea?
Their singing would have enough power(?) to instantly dampen the spirits of the tambourines and lights.
It would certainly have enough merit(?) to fix everyone’s eyes and hands on the songbook, reservation remote, or even the monthly top songs list posted on the wall.
But Lloyd couldn’t continue to express his frustration.
Because the Mermaid Queen approached him to talk.
“Tone-deaf, you say. Does our singing sound that terrible to humans?”
“Ah, well… That is…”
“You just shouted it out, didn’t you?”
“Ahaha. Well, actually, it was because I felt a sense of camaraderie.”
Lloyd quickly made up an excuse.
The Mermaid Queen tilted her head in confusion.
“Camaraderie?”
“In the world of humans, I’m considered tone-deaf too.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes.”
“But you seemed quite upset for someone who’s been scorned in the human world.”
“Yes. The frustrations of being scorned in the human world just came flooding back, and I couldn’t help myself.”
Lloyd glanced cautiously at the Queen.
And right before the Queen could say something.
“Ah, look over there!”
He quickly pointed at the Kraken.
“Doesn’t it seem like singing to calm it down isn’t working?”
Indeed, it was true.
Initially, it seemed like the Kraken might settle down upon hearing the merfolks’ songs.
But that calm was short-lived.
“……Groar! Grr!”
Was something extremely bothering it?
It twisted its body like a whirlwind potato and roared even more fiercely than before.
The expression on the Mermaid Queen, who was nearby, hardened.
“……The Kraken has rejected our offer of reconciliation.”
It felt like being rejected by a friend whom you’ve extended your hand to in friendship.
The Queen’s gaze, which had become stern, seemed somewhat sad on one hand.
“Land human Lloyd Frontiera. You should stand back now.”
“Excuse me? What do you plan to do?”
“What plan? Since the Kraken has rejected our offer of reconciliation, we must fight now.”
“Fight, with that thing?”
“Yes.”
The Queen asked with a bitter expression.
“A friend is rampaging. We tried to persuade it. But it didn’t work. What’s the next step?”
“Hmm, roll up our sleeves and step in to calm and restrain it?”
“Right. We’re going to try that now.”
With that, the Queen moved her fins.
She executed a powerful dolphin kick with overwhelming muscular strength.
Suddenly, the area was engulfed in a whirlpool.
Lloyd was no exception.
‘……Whoa!’
Was this what it felt like to be tossed into a washing machine?
Caught in an unexpected whirlpool, Lloyd barely managed to regain his posture with the help of Harbiel’s hand.
In the meantime, the Queen, having left a whirlpool behind as she charged, had already moved far away.
“Groar-! Grr!”
The deep sea echoed with the Kraken’s roar that shook everything.
Facing it, numerous ranks of the merfolk army assembled.
The Kraken and the merfolk army, who had believed and relied on each other for a long time, were about to clash.
It was all because this side had discovered and activated the Jewel of truth.
Of course, Lloyd felt no guilt.
More precisely, he had no leisure to feel guilt.
‘If a fight breaks out now, and the Jewel of truth gets destroyed… it would be the end of everything!’
He grew anxious.
The mere thought was dizzying.
It wasn’t an unfounded worry.
‘The Jewel of truth we discovered earlier is only a few kilometers away from here.’
It wasn’t a close distance.
At least, not by their standards.
But what about from the Kraken’s perspective?
‘Stretching one leg would be enough to reach it. If comparing to a human, it would be like the distance to a remote control placed in front of a sprawling couch.’
Barely enduring the laziness and stretching one leg far enough to touch it with the tip of the toe.
Similarly, if the Kraken’s massive tentacle tip just touches it lightly?
A structure like the Jewel of truth would likely just crumble.
Like stepping on a chip with a shoe.
Crushed in one go.
Thus, the chance of preventing the restoration phenomenon would also be gone.
‘……That cannot happen!’
As he let his imagination run wild, Lloyd shook his head vehemently.
‘We must prevent the merfolk army and the Kraken from escalating to a violent conflict. But how? What should be done?’
Sweat dripped from his clenched fist.
His brain spun faster than ever.
Lloyd desperately thought.
The Kraken, which started rampaging as soon as the resonance of the Jewel of truth occurred.
Ignoring the merfolks’ gentle persuasion and causing a disturbance.
And the merfolk army, poised to use force just before subduing the Kraken.
Observing their actions.
He thought intensely.
He pondered fiercely.
Seeking clues, he observed.
Striving not to miss even the smallest detail.
Then, at a certain moment.
“Groar! Grr…… ruck, Grr!”
With a jolt!
In the midst of the merfolk army’s encirclement, the Kraken, which had been thrashing and roaring wildly, suddenly wobbled oddly once.
Then, at the end of its roar, it made a strange and somehow familiar(?) sound.
“Burp!”
“…….”
Instantly, Lloyd thought without meaning to.
Is that a belch?
“Could it be?”
A spark.
A feeling of enlightenment flashed through his mind.
Belching.
Thrashing.
Rampage.
All of the Kraken’s behaviors observed until now.
They started to fit together like pieces of a puzzle.
From that moment, things became clear.
The movement of the Kraken’s legs pounding its body.
The body’s twisting gestures conveying something without words.
And then, the deliberate belching.
Seeing this, a not-so-strange experience came to mind.
Suddenly, at last, the answer dawned on him.
‘Wait. Was the Kraken acting like this because it’s suffering from indigestion?’
