<"Alright! I’ll take their legs and slap on some slippery fins!">

<"Outside the water, I’ll make sure they can’t even breathe! They won’t be able to speak properly, struggling for air!">

<"Let’s see if that female can say anything about the smell or call them a lowly creature!">

“......”

The sneer faded from Reed’s face. He slowly turned to look at me.

“Mermaid?”

“......”

“Ayleth Rodeline?”

“......”

A heavy silence lingered for a moment before he seemed to fall deep into thought.

“That would be beautiful.”

[The ‘Language of World-Building’ proudly exclaims, ‘Isn’t that a given?’]

[The ‘Bitter Critic of Balance’ snickers at the thought of you becoming the fish in the trap.]

[The ‘Architect of Trials’ subtly plans to design an ultra-luxurious aquarium for you.]

[The ‘Scales of Soul Judgment’ imagines a romantic moment through the glass walls, savoring the thought.]

It seems like the gods are a bit bored these days.

I decided not to taunt Reed. After all, one day, I’d get back at him with some cheeky thoughts of my own.

But for now, I needed to quickly sort out the situation.

“Divine Punishment.”

<"Kyaaa!">

The sky was pouring down heavy rain, and the clouds were thick. The abundant positive and negative charges amplified the power of the lightning.

The mischievous mermaids, jolted by the electrifying sensation that penetrated to their brains, flapped around before swiftly fleeing. Twelve tails soon disappeared from sight.

“Good job. Come here, Ayleth.”

Reed smiled and guided me to his side. Without a word, I approached.

The great mage, who controlled the laws of nature, not only controlled the wind but ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) also stopped the rain. He was essentially a walking umbrella.

<"But shouldn’t we let them escape? Didn’t we want to capture the mermaid’s tears?">

“We’ll do that later.”

In this dungeon, making money wasn’t limited to resource gathering. There was even a way to strike it rich, and that was the top priority.

I looked back at Reed.

“Let’s deal with the Kraken that blocked the drain first.”

“Leave that to me.”

Reed’s back as he headed toward the gondola’s bow was very reassuring.

The Chaos Demon, who commands the obedience of all evil, did not disappoint me.

“Move aside, Kraken.”

The voice didn’t just sound in my ears; it felt like it was shaking my very soul. The sea responded to the command infused with divine power.

Shhhhhh!

In the chaos, the waters began to spiral in an orderly fashion. The sea started to circle in a massive whirlpool.

[System Warning: Whirlpool current is forming.]

The gondola Reed and I were on also got swept up in the whirlpool and spun in circles. As the radius of the orbit shrank, jagged rocks broke the surface of the water and came into view.

As time passed, the rocks rose higher and higher, forming islands and mountain peaks.

But we couldn’t just take what we saw at face value.

<Ayleth, you don’t mean...>

Agnes seemed to have realized something.

“The sea level is dropping, exposing the land.”

<"Why all of a sudden?">

“Let’s say it’s like pulling the plug on a bathtub full of water.”

<"I get it. The dungeon is the bathtub, the sea is the water, and the Kraken is the plug? Then what’s the drain?">

Just then, the circle the gondola was tracing rapidly shrank. I shouted, holding on against the centrifugal force.

“It’s the entrance to the deep sea! At this rate, we’ll be sucked into the abyss!”

<"Really? Then we’ll have to jump off and run!">

“Yeah!”

<Ayleth, now! While jumping, shout the name of the person you want to see most!>

“Bianca!!!”

[The ‘Eyes Watching the Chaos of the Universe’ stands up suddenly!]

Reed and I safely landed on a nearby rock. Reed casually asked.

“Bianca? A friend?”

“Yeah. Agnes told me to shout the name of the person I wanted to see most while jumping.”

“I see.”

[The ‘Eyes Watching the Chaos of the Universe’ glares with malice at Bianca.]

[The ‘Eyes Watching the Chaos of the Universe’ is still unwilling to give up and glares even harder.]

[‘The Scales of Soul Judgment’ clicks its tongue, saying your eyes are more malicious.]

[The ‘Bitter Critic of Balance’ shuts its eyes to the maddening glare of the ‘Eyes Watching the Chaos of the Universe’.]

Finally, the gondola, which had barely held together, split in two and sank into the whirlpool.

Kiiiii—

A massive hole roared as it sucked up the remaining water.

Once the land was exposed, the entrance to the deep sea transformed as if it had never swallowed the sea, now becoming a calm lake.

“Now, it’s time to deal with the plug.”

As the water drained away, various things were revealed. The horizon that had been hidden beneath the waves, the barren ground without a blade of grass, and...

[System: Dungeon Master, ‘Kraken Emerged from the Sewer,’ rank 610th in the Demon Realm, appears.]

A colossal monster, a chimera resembling a squid, octopus, and cuttlefish all combined. The Kraken, covered in suckers, wriggled its legs toward us.

Despite its enormous size and peculiar appearance, it exuded a strange sense of harmlessness.

It moved on only two of its tentacle legs, stepping lightly on the ground, and the rest of the tentacles waved behind its body, almost as if its tail was fluttering.

It looked like a well-trained pet, eager for its owner’s affection. Of course, its owner was Reed.

“Reed, it looks like it’s flirting with you?”

Unfortunately, Reed had no intention of spoiling the Kraken with affection. He spoke indifferently.

“It’s your turn, Ayleth Rodeline.”

“Uh, right, okay.”

Feeling sorry for it, I decided to take it down with a powerful skill.

“Temple of the Gods. Open!”

[System: The transcendent skill ‘Temple of the Gods’ opens!]

The thick clouds scattered, and the vision brightened. With the abundance of light pouring down, a holy structure began to form on the ground.

A white arch with angels engraved on it. The door, the pinnacle of sacred art, opened, connecting the mortal world and the divine realm.

Swaaaah...

Divine light poured from behind the Kraken, burning its body from the spot touched by the light.

It stretched out a tentacle toward Reed one last time, but it never reached him.

Messages for subjugation and territory annexation popped up. Once the dungeon’s master was defeated, the dark clouds disappeared from the sky.

The clear sky proudly revealed the vast land.

The water that couldn’t be expelled to the deep sea naturally gathered in the low places. The water pooled in a deep pit, and the terrain formed a long waterway.

As time passed and the saltiness left, these would turn into lakes, rivers, and streams.

A few fish flopped helplessly outside the water. I grabbed their tails and tossed them back into the water.

Splash, the fish leaped out of the water as if greeting me.

“The mermaids must have gone into the deep sea safely.”

<"They have arms, so they’ll crawl there even if they have to. Don’t worry. I’ll curse you if you pity them.">

“Well, that’s true.”

I went to the spot where the Kraken had vanished and picked up the loot.

The skill book was for a divine power skill, so I immediately learned it and used it. I carefully examined the items.

A bottle of wine that felt old. Inside, there was a rolled-up map and a crude key.

[Item: ‘Treasure Map’]

There are always various treasures hidden in the mysterious sea.

Now that the sea has receded and the land is exposed, the opportunity to obtain treasures has come for you, a being of the land.

This map will guide you to one of the ‘Sunken Treasure Ships,’ ‘Sacred Artifact Ruins,’ or ‘Fountain of Immortality.’]

[Item: ‘Treasure Room Key’]

A key to the treasure you find using the treasure map. Since it’s a one-time use item, choose carefully which treasure to unlock.]

This was the item that would give me a chance at a fortune!

“Did this exist?”

It wasn’t strange that Reed didn’t know. After all, I had obtained this information through the omniscient point of view mentioned in the original story.

“Sunken treasure ship, ruins, fountain of immortality... the treasure ship seems like the best option.”

“Just as I thought, Reed! You have a good eye.”

Our partnership was becoming more and more satisfying.

“Then, let’s head to the treasure ship!”

“Right, let’s go.”

The treasure map was integrated into the system’s map, and all we had to do was follow the navigation.

Normally, the path would have been muddy, but Reed used magic to smooth the way and evaporate the moisture, turning it into a paved road, making it easy to walk.

The easy path for travelers was truly precious. I decided to exaggerate a bit to express my gratitude.

“Wow! This is amazing, Reed!”

I clasped my hands together and sparkled my eyes at him.

It was just a basic imitation of a demon, but he flinched, probably feeling uncomfortable. It would have been better to just compliment him casually like usual.

“Thanks to you, we can go comfortably. Magic is truly omnipotent. It’s the best.”

“...Do you think it compares to the divine descent of a god?”

Reed’s response came a bit late, and I could feel a hint of embarrassment in his tone.

I took in his expression carefully. Despite his neutral face, the rare glimpses of his human emotions were truly precious.