By Zephyria 
Wesley Kiadris never returned, but the Duke Family’s sailing ships still traveled between Yulan and Sierren via the Indus Bay.
Had Hestia succeeded in breaking off her engagement with him?
All I could do from here was occasionally seize their sailing ships and make them stop, broken, at the mouth of the Saras River. It was a little difficult to persuade the Nereids, who didn’t want to bother humans, but I endured it, picturing Hestia Yeldidus’s face.
One day, while stopping the sailing ships, I let the humans’ grumbling wash over me.
[Now we’ll do it.]
[…Huh?]
[We, will do it.]
A horde of ancient spirits descended and snatched the sailing ships away.
However, they took them in the opposite direction, not towards the Saras River basin. Were they planning to take them to the desert? If so, the humans on that ship would suffer greatly. Or perhaps they would take them to the Yulan port.
That wouldn’t do. I wanted to hinder Kiadris. But no matter what ‘thought’ I had, the ancient spirits ignored it all.
And then they submerged the sailing ships in the water.
Many spirits were greatly surprised. I stared with wide eyes, watching what the ancient spirits were doing. They pulled the humans who had fallen into the water out one by one, carefully selecting them. I don’t know how different humans are from one another. But the ancient spirits took only some of them and headed somewhere.
Suddenly, Wesley Kiadris’s words came to mind.
“Like a thousand years ago. A beautiful ship’s interior turned into trash.”
Yes, it was just as he said. The Nereids carefully selected humans and pushed them into the mouth of the Golden Turtle. A dozen or so humans instantly became prey.
Of course… everything that lives has the right to eat other living things to survive.
But what about the dead? What was the meaning of this act?
Blink.
We Nereids no longer wanted the ancient spirits to steal our sailing ships.
The ancient spirit horde all had fiend-like appearances. They let down their hair and glared at Ikyun with gaunt, weakened faces. We, standing in opposition, were only troubled, not wanting to fight spirits amongst ourselves. Some became overwhelmed by the ancient spirits’ emotions and burst into tears.
[Give them back.]
[But… this is strange. This isn’t a Spirit’s job.]
[What is a Spirit’s job?]
[That’s…]
[You’re also preventing those ships from crossing the Indus Bay according to your contractor’s command.]
[….]
[My contractor’s fate is a long sleep. So we must protect that.]
[….]
[Hurry…]
Just then, a sharp scream echoed.
From the depths of the ocean, countless Nereids rose to the surface, weeping. Something enormous was surging towards us. It was the Golden Turtle. The turtle’s body floated gently.
Above the water, only a little of its round shell was visible, but its appearance beneath was horrifying.
To me, the Golden Turtle had always given the impression of shining like polished glass. But not now. Its head and limbs hung limply, its belly distended as if full of stones, its mouth gaping wide, and its movements swayed with the currents. It was, without a doubt, the appearance of a dead turtle.
While everyone was surprised, the sailing ships capsized again. The ancient spirits frantically selected humans and pushed them into the Golden Turtle’s gaping maw. Then, the Golden Turtle slowly sank into the water, like a goat that had swallowed stones.
An obvious question arose. Could the weight of mere humans like this sink such a large turtle?
What was inside the human bodies?
Whoosh. The view before my eyes darkened again.
Now, Rubel was beside me. In front of me was a spirit named Neti, and the spirits surrounding us were familiar. It felt like I had had a very long dream. I opened my mouth, wanting to ask anything, but closed it, not knowing what to say.
Rubel let out a shallow gasp. His voice was muffled.
“…Are all ancient spirits of one kind, Nereids?”
[Originally… they were Undines. Sylphs and Undines. But Sylphs are wanderers, capricious, and light. However, the Undines always stayed by the Golden Turtle’s side… and they say they became Nereids. A very, very, very long time ago.]
“…I see.”
[So, in our haste.]
“You brought the Divine object and us here.”
Rubel let out a very deep sigh. The spirit seemed to shrink back. It hesitantly continued speaking.
[Yes. Still… Nereids can only use great power when they are near very deep water, or when their contractor is by their side. If they learn the Divine object is on land, they might do anything to steal it. In any case, the Divine object is mine…]
“No. It won’t be like that.”
[What?]
Rubel spoke condescendingly, but the spirit didn’t seem to mind. Rubel also didn’t seem to have the leisure to quibble over such things.
There are no wizards in Yulan. A swordsman like myself might be found one or two in Yulan. However, they would be in the royal court, not on the coast facing the waves.
How high was the level of Yulan’s Spirit Masters? Could they defeat the enraged ancient spirits? We didn’t know how many Spirit Masters there were in Yulan. Naturally, we couldn’t be sure if they could summon strong winds and waves.
The buildings clinging to the Yulan coastline like barnacles were not just one or two. I had already experienced the waves summoned by the Nereids. If such colossal waves swept through, only a handful of houses could withstand them.
The faces of those left on land immediately flashed before my eyes. It wasn’t just Ivan and his wife I worried about. I worried about the royal children with their young faces, and the children from common households who happily greeted guests because their mothers had cooked delicious food.
“First, we will go to where the Golden Turtle is. Send all Nereids except you back to the coast as much as possible. Form a breakwater with your bodies, stretching as far as the eye can see, over the widest possible area from Yulan to the mouth of the Saras River. Block the waves.”
[But.]
“Listen first. They must have heard the flute music you heard. Either they have no way to get onto land, or they are bound because the Golden Turtle’s condition has changed due to that short lullaby. If they swarm onto land and hunt humans indiscriminately, there will be no way to stop them.”
[…Then why me?]
“You must mediate. We will personally see what we can do, so you must watch closely and convey the ‘thoughts’ to the other spirits. We will act as justly as possible. So you must witness it with your own eyes and prove the legitimacy of my actions.”
The spirit hesitated, but finally nodded.
When I rushed out of the castle, a thick shark was already waiting. I couldn’t tell if it was the one we rode earlier or another one. Rubel wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me close without a word of explanation.
I couldn’t quite hide my awkward and embarrassed feelings. I obediently rested my chin on the child’s shoulder, just as before. The Mermaid and the spirit watching us from the side immediately shot forward. I glanced at the group forging ahead through the strong currents.
Now, Rubel and I could talk. I whispered,
“…What are you going to do when we get there?”
“Mika can distinguish contaminated Mana.”
“That’s…”
I had learned it by watching Marianne a lot, and by training for years to distinguish Divine Power from internal energy. If I saw the dark Mana I witnessed in the Indus Canyon this time… I wouldn’t be able to mistake it. I nodded.
“Yes. And…?”
“We need to check if it’s Black Magic first. Though I doubt it.”
“…What?”
“From what I see… the interior of the Golden Turtle seems to be filled with decay gas.”
“…What?”
“It’s the gas that emanates from rotting human corpses. You said the turtle sank when the lullaby was sung. It’s possible to create a ballast stone with Divine Power to press it down. It might have been preserved to maintain its external form. But to breathe? That’s… resurrection. If that were possible, the Ninth God wouldn’t have been doing such crazy things for over a thousand years.”
“…No, uh…?”
“The lullaby is just a flimsy excuse. You said they fed it human corpses a thousand years ago. Of course, human sacrifices were common in ancient times. It might have seemed grand, creating humans by dividing a god’s soul.”
“….”
“But a corpse is a corpse, whether it’s human or animal. When a person dies, the Mana residing in their body scatters immediately. The souls the ancient spirits tried to capture became Mana, and as only the remaining corpses rotted and oozed, gas filled the turtle’s body. When they regularly removed the decay gas inside, it stopped rising to the surface. Like a ball filled with air.”
“…That.”
…It was a completely unexpected perspective. I blinked blankly. Rubel, who was gripping the shark’s fin, swimming faster and more agilely than before, had a faint vein throbbing in his neck. The child continued in a calm voice.
“Since it’s dead anyway, it would be better to make a few holes so the decay gas doesn’t build up again. We could also fill it with stones or heavy objects so it can never surface again.”
“But to sink that large body…”
“I saw them carefully selecting handsome, large humans to push in. Thirteen were put in, adorned with many jewels. Even at 80kg per person, that’s at least a ton. That’s enough to sink even a very large body, at least temporarily. We can do the same. If removing the gas isn’t enough, let’s have the Mermaids carry some nearby rocks.”
“…If it truly, truly is Black Magic, then.”
“If they were genuinely trying to transfer souls from human corpses, it wouldn’t be possible by simply capturing and eating them without any spells. That’s what I think, anyway. If it’s something that absolutely, absolutely requires the Divine object.”
“…Requires?”
“Then we must play the flute.”
Unbelievable. I opened my eyes wide. I instinctively pushed Rubel’s shoulder to bring his face closer. I wanted to confirm if Rubel was joking. He wasn’t. Rubel’s expression was serious throughout.
“…How? No, you said you can’t handle Yulan’s Divine object.”
“It won’t make a sound just by touching it like the Yulan Royalty. But… the melody is very simple. There are only five holes for fingering. I’ll have to try and play it, even if it’s just a rough imitation.”
“…You can play the flute.”
“It’s a simple instrument. It might not work, but I want to keep the possibility open.”
Rubel finally smiled.
“But it’s still much better to remove the gas from the Golden Turtle’s body. It’s not a living turtle, but a corpse that died a thousand years ago. To prevent the 5th Prince of Yulan’s sudden death and investigate its cause, for the sake of human lives, I think we’ll have to go inside the Golden Turtle’s belly once.”
“….”
“Trust me.”
“…Yes.”
Lost for words, I behaved myself quietly, and Rubel gently nudged his nose against mine.
The child grinned mischievively.
“Why are you looking at me like that. …Are you smitten?”
“….”
He’s playing all sorts of pranks. I hugged him tightly again, resting my chin on his shoulder. The loud thumping of my heart made me forget I was deafened.