Chapter 384: The Aquarium (3)

BDISSEM. She revealed her true self in the dense saltwater.

“Ahaha – surprised, aren’t you?”

From her lips a mischievous smirk emerged, shedding off any hint of innocence.

What filled that space instead was a radiant warmth.

Vikir was genuinely astonished.

‘…An Ent from the seaweed family? Didn’t think such a thing existed.’

He heard a lot of stories during the days when he lived near the Red and Black Mountains.

So naturally, he had a bias that Ents were creatures of the forest only.

However, Ents also inhabit the kelp forests deep underwater.

Just as beastmen are divided into various animal lineages, Ents also have different lineages within various plant families. In the case of someone like BDISSEM, she belonged to the kelp family, like kelp or seaweed.

“Hmm. It’s not as straightforward as I thought.”

Dragging BDISSEM into the seawater turned out to be a fatal handshake, grabbing Vikir’s ankles.

Ordinary plants wither and die when exposed to saltwater, but kelp thrives, as it finds vitality in such conditions.

*Splash!*

Vikir kicked away the flying kelp chains with his feet.

The round and hard bumps attached to the kelp felt like kicking bowling balls with full force.

“…Tedious.”

Vikir brushed off the clinging leaves from his arms, trying to rise to the surface.

But BDISSEM wouldn’t let Vikir escape the water.

“Ahaha~ where do you think you’re going? You’ve come all this way, so let’s play a bit more~”

Tough and resilient stems flew towards Vikir like sea snakes.

*Swish-swish*

Black kelp growing beneath the Gulper Eel farm seized Vikir’s ankles.

*Clatter-clatter…crunch…*

Above them, the long and towering kelp leaves spread diagonally and horizontally, forming a grid-like net.

Meshes such as gill nets, trammel nets, seine nets, pound nets, drift nets, and stake nets… Various types of nets were spread out, aiming for Vikir, creating a terrifying entanglement that not only trapped but also suffocated.

The sharp-pointed kelp spears rushed towards Vikir’s body, making it impossible for him to move.

Binding with nets, piercing with spears, and once touched, neither aura nor strength could be used.

It was the winning pattern that turned BDISSEM into an invincible monster.

*Thud!*

Flesh and blood, organs burst like fireworks. The water turned dark instantly.

“…Ugh.”

However, BDISSEM didn’t seem pleased with the situation, narrowing her eyes.

Countless kelp spears ultimately failed to touch Vikir.

At a crucial moment, Vikir grabbed the tail of a passing Gulper Eel and used it as a shield.

*Thud! Thud! Thud!*

Even the kelp spears that came late were blocked by the Gulper Eel pulled by Vikir, causing only accidental collateral damage.

“Argh! It takes years to raise one of these Gulper eels! If D’Ordume and Souaré find out, it’ll be chaos.”

Bubbles started boiling from BDISSEM’s enraged form.

*Bubble-bubble-bubble…*

Indeed, true to her plant-like nature, BDISSEM was emitting an enormous amount of oxygen from her body.

Seeing this, Vikir nodded his head.

‘Now I understand why everyone has been so protective of BDISSEM.’

BDISSEM plays a crucial role beyond crafting BDISSEM restraints, which bind the aura and strength of prisoners.

She also supplies oxygen within the prison.

Besides her ability to block aura and physical force, she possessed a strange ability to consume sulfur or vapor and convert it into oxygen. So, without BDISSEM, there would be no Nouvellebag. Inside the mucous dome surrounded by flubber, there was no separate oxygen supply.

‘She’s quite useful in many ways,’ Vikir remarked. He abandoned the Gulper Eel he used as a shield and grabbed another one.

*Plop-*

At that moment, the rising kelp spear pierced both the upper and lower jaws of the Gulper Eel…

*Thud!*

Vikir, too, abandoned the Gulper Eel and landed on the floor of the aquarium.

“Ahahaha – going deeper? Isn’t that suicidal?” BDISSEM quickly made a net, completely blocking the path to the surface.

Now, Vikir was trapped on the aquarium floor without a single move.

However…

*Swish-swish-swish…*

Even BDISSEM, in her overwhelmingly favorable environment, couldn’t help but startle at the bizarre phenomenon unfolding in Vikir’s right hand.

A strange current flowed from Vikir’s right hand.

“What’s this? Is there a hole over there?”

If water wasn’t leaking, there shouldn’t be a current in that direction.

The moment BDISSEM sensed that something was wrong…

*Gurgle-gurgle-gurgle-swish!*

Suddenly, the current intensified. It felt like water rushing in at an incredible speed, as if from a leak. The surrounding kelp, along with BDISSEM, were almost swept away by the current.

“What, what’s happening!?”

A sinister premonition typical of plants flashed through her mind.

She felt instinctively that she shouldn’t let Vikir’s outstretched right hand grab her. It was a desperate warning from her instincts.

‘Drought.’ The ability of the Bloodsoaked Jade flower.

It withers everything with moisture. Vikir was going to dry up all the moisture in the pond. And the creation of a strong current was a result of the constant drying and refilling of the water, creating a powerful current.

Vikir emitted this aura through Beelzebub.

Like a flame reversing the flow of poured oil, Vikir’s aura was ejected in reverse against the swirling current. Naturally, the target was BDISSEM.

“Whoa!?”

She was taken aback by the sight of eight flying teeth tearing apart the space filled with water. Beneath the sea, a dense and heavy black sun was rising.

*Kururururur!* The black sun expanded rapidly, sucking everything around it with astonishing speed.

While Vikir’s ultimate move, the black sun, packed destructive power, it lacked the ability to draw in surrounding objects. However, being underwater and Vikir’s mastery of the power of the Bloodsoaked jade flower which had a thirst for surrounding moisture. They complemented each other effectively.

“That, that brat!? Targeting this from the start and… underwater…!” It finally dawned on her the extent of her predicament.

That black sphere, and massive fangs, were sure to crush anything drawn into its core. Flesh would dissolve without leaving a single scrap behind.

“Aaagh!?” BDISSEM thrashed about desperately to escape the currents. Despite launching all available seaweed at it, they were all merely consumed by the black sun, turning into kindling. Even the shredded seaweed became impossible to salvage.

Oddly, the monster’s aura, emanating from the sword, remained unaffected by her ability to nullify both mana and physical force.

If Nouvellebag people saw her ability being torn apart so ineffectively, they would likely be terrified, akin to cheap paper being ripped.

But it wasn’t entirely fruitless.

*Kurururur… Kurk!*

Striking the mass of seaweed against the black sun resulted in a slight weakening of the currents.

Thus, Vikir barely managed to break free from the currents and reach the surface.

“Huff!” Emerging from the water, BDISSEM turned pale, looking back.

“I-I need to get out of here fast. I have to inform D’Ordume and Souaré…”

But before she could even take seven steps, she felt her body sway.

“Huh?”

Her vision spun. She was sure she had stepped firmly, yet suddenly her foot was tangled.

*Thud!* She collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.

‘?’

‘Why?’

‘Why am I like this?’

‘Why won’t my body obey?’

‘What’s happening to me?’

‘What’s going on?’

‘I need to run away, right now…’

Unanswered questions flooded her mind.

And around that time…

*Crack-* Vikir too shattered the surface and emerged.

“It seems being underwater and using your ability made you thirsty.”

Vikir spoke dryly towards BDISSEM, and black droplets of blood were falling from his fingertips. Madam Eight Leg’s venom.

Previously, when BDISSEM slaughtered the Gulper Eel and caused a commotion, Vikir had subtly released his blood into the water.

And due to the current, BDISSEM had unknowingly inhaled a large amount of poison throughout her body. Since the toxin had been diluted by the water, its effects were slow to manifest, but once symptoms appeared, the outcome was inevitable.

“*Gasp!* *Cough!* *Gag!*” BDISSEM collapsed to the ground, clutching her throat with one hand and her chest with the other.

*Shoooooo-* The venom caused her body temperature to rise rapidly, leading to dehydration. Spots of death, black fungus, began to appear all over her body.

The transformation from a girl to an adult woman was now turning BDISSEM into a shriveled old figure.

“No, no… If I die… the prisoners’ restraints and bars… they’ll lose their strength… that, at least… that, at least…”

And before her in agony…

*Thump-* *Thump-* *Thump-*

Night… no… Nouvellebag’s hound begun to walk towards her.

Even in the lightless depths, the shadow of death loomed over her.