Kaijin Fighter: So I Have to Make Monsters, So What?-Chapter 1522: Circumstantial Anchors

"Wait a minute, Xiao Shi," Matriarch Zhen Xun Tian interjected. "You can’t just go galavanting on an adventure with your grandson’s Kaijin."

"..."

Zhen Liu didn’t even bother thinking that he was in the clear, due to who was saying this obviously helpful warning.

"Not without me tagging along too!"

"Of course..." Zhen Liu muttered through gritted teeth.

Zhen Xun Tian, the Painted War Goddess of the Pearl Scale Empire, had long since been known to be one of the wildest, most laissez-faire warriors in the world.

If she heard something interesting was going to happen, she was going to be there, consequences be damned.

And if Zhen Liu’s karmic void held true, the consequences of this particular trip were going to be...rather large.

"Don’t even think about trying to stop me by using my clan head duties as a reason," Zhen Xun Tian informed Zhen Liu. "I already worked it out with my boy; I got time."

"...alright, fine," Zhen Liu sighed at the fact that this was slowly turning from a personal mission to one that will probably drag his family in as well. "I might as well ask this: First uncle, Zhen Hai. Are you two planning to go along with them?"

"Yes," Zhen Long answered first. "My natural affinity is ice, so it makes sense for me to go."

"I am more attuned with the deep than the ice," Zhen Hai replied, "But I might as well go and expand my horizons, right?"

"Of course..."

Evidently, the universe wanted Zhen Liu to suffer the consequences of trying to address his own karmic void by making his family suffer alongside him. Granted, they seemed to understand that whatever bullshit came their way would at least come with great rewards...usually.

"Okay, new plan, guys," Zhen Liu declared while directing his attention towards the Neo Storm Knights once more. "You will be going with members of my family to go and explore the Echoing Valley. As such, please pick two of your squad to go with them."

[Huh? Why only two of us?] Slug-at-arms asked.

"I get the sticky feeling that if more than two of you leave Undertow, the leader of the Grafted warriors might roll up to rescue or blow their captured men," Zhen Liu postulated. "I would rather you guys be around to deal with them than not...also, I would rather not risk my girlfriend getting kidnapped without my knowledge, again."

"It only happened once," Jin Fang weirdly defended herself.

"And once was already too much," Zhen Liu retorted. "So, determine who goes with them and who stays behind to keep guarding the city."

[Well that’s easy. I’ll stay behind, Terra goes, and these two will determine who will join her via rock-paper-scissors,] Wavebreaker declared with finality.

[Wait, what?]*3

Slug-at-arms and Shellvalier complaining about having to play a game to determine who gets to go on an adventure made sense; the two of them were the main complainers of the lack of action in Undertow. Terra being confused, however, was unexpected.

[Wavebreaker, you’re our group’s leader, and I’ve lived in Undertow all my life. Shouldn’t you be the one to go and I be the one to stay behind?] Terra pointed out.

[It’s precisely because you haven’t seen the wider world that you’re the one going and I’m the one staying,] Wavebreaker answered the inheritor of two different kaijin legacies. [The Storm Knights before us weren’t just defenders of Undertow, but fierce raiders who traveled the seas up and down the continent and even the wider world. That sort of experience made them the warriors of legend that the people of Undertow still admire to this day.]

[She’s not wrong, you know.] Zhen Xun Tian added, practicing her [Chaos] speech. [We got historical records back home about how the Storm Knights had pulled off maneuvers and tactics only seen in foreign waters. Definitely not the sort of stuff you see if you lived and acted in one place all the time.]

[I see...]

Terra went silent as she thought about the implications of Wavebreaker and Zhen Xun Tian’s words.

She had gone to the surface a couple of times, sure, but never to anywhere too far from the caves that connected the [Abyssal Lands]. As such, the concept of going beyond even that, to visit another continent, was...scary.

Zhen Liu could sense this feeling radiating off of Terra, and not just because he could see her skin glow in patterns that signify worry. Even though she was only a partial kaijin, she was still a kaijin. Ergo, Zhen Liu could still pick up her thoughts and feelings, albeit to a lesser extent.

Zhen Liu directed a gaze towards Jin Fang, asking with his eyes whether or not he should go and help convince the young strangeblood to go on this assignment of his or leave it to her since she was technically more her subordinate than his.

In response, Jin Fang simply gestured for him to do so since this was technically kaijin business and he was the Kaijin Lord.

Understanding his duties, Zhen Liu went over to Terra to try and address her concerns. He had a fairly good idea of what was preventing her from outright agreeing and already had a solution in mind.

"Is it safe for me to assume that you don’t think just having two of my kaijin to defend Undertow will be enough to defend the place from any possible incursion from Buzza and his merry band of Grafted assholes?" Zhen Liu asked point-blank. He had initially wanted to work the "spread your wings to grow" angle, but Wavebreaker had already brought that point up, and his great-grandaunt had helped to hammer it home. That, and he could tell from the [Chaos] radiating off of her body that her feelings of anxiety stemmed from her worry for the people whom her adoptive father had spent his entire life protecting.

Being called out in such a blunt manner like this, though, threw Terra for a loop.

"How did you...right," Terra suddenly nodded, as if she remembered a critical truth of the universe. "You are the Kaijin Lord. Like the Storm Queen, you are more attuned to the [Desires] of others than the bearers of the desires themselves."

"That’s...accurate," Zhen Liu nodded while taking a mental note to ask Logos and Pathos about the comment later. "Regardless, if you’re that worried about the lack of additional warriors, I could send for some of my other kaijin to come and assist."

While this would technically lessen his active combat power, Zhen Liu knew that just three of his kaijin would be enough to absolutely wreck most challengers like they were nothing more than tissue paper...probably.

However, Terra shook her head at this suggestion.

"No offense, my liege, but while the people of Undertow may recognize you as Kaijin Lord, they’re not exactly fans of your other kaijin."

"Oh?"

"We’re all denizens of the deep sea here, and the rest of your kaijin aren’t exactly that."

"Ah."

Zhen Liu couldn’t help but think that this rejection was mildly offensive towards his non-oceanic kaijin, but he kind of understood where the people of Undertow were coming from. Their greatest protectors were the embodiments of the deep, and were able to traverse the [Shadow Waters] of the [Abyssal Lands] with great ease. None of this other kaijin, except maybe Depth Strider, really fit that bill. However, he did know one group of warriors that could probably make it down here.

"What if I just send for the Strange Blood tribe up top to come down here and assist?" Zhen Liu suggested.

Like Terra, the Strangebloods were aether warriors that carried the blood of the previous [Storm Knights]. Despite being a bit...mentally off...and living in a blasted-out apartment building, they were good people and fierce warriors. In other words, they were the perfect group to defend Undertow from its enemies. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Once this suggestion was made, Terra’s expression lit up considerably.

"That’s an excellent idea, my liege! Since they’re just like me, the rest of the people of Undertow would be more than happy to have them act as temporary guardians."

"Hell, if all goes well, they might move down here permanently," Zhen Liu lightly joked. "Granted, they may try to bring their home with them so that may be a non-starter..."

Ignoring the side comment, Wavebreaker took this moment as an opportunity to make sure Terra was okay with what was to come.

[Well? What do you say?]

[I say...sure!] Terra finally nodded with gusto. [I will go out there and see just how big of an ocean the rest of the world in comparison to the Abyssal Lands.]

[Excellent!] Wavebreaker clapped her hands in delight. [Now then... Shellvalier. Slug-at-arms. Have you two determined who will be going up to the surface as well yet?]

While this entire conversation with Terra was happening, Slug-at-arms and Shellvalier were still playing rock-paper-scissors.

[No.]

[We’re like...ten ties in.]

[How?!]

[We don’t know!]

Evidently, the final roster was going to take awhile...