Chapter 184: Seafloor Ruins (2)

The entrance to the ruins was located halfway up the cliff.

An unnaturally protruding ledge jutted out above a smoothly carved slope.

Staff from the Madeira Trading House who had already arrived were waiting for the cadets.

“Everyone, be extra careful. We must not reveal our identities to the cadets.”

At Queen’s words, all the members nodded.

They were elites employed by Madeira.

Unless in an emergency, there was no need to show more or less than necessary.

After all, capturing Kylos was Master Carl’s responsibility.

Swish.

Laysis was the first to descend using the rope hanging from the top of the cliff.

Amy, Lien, and finally Maximilian followed.

Thanks to slowing their speed with flight magic, everyone landed safely.

“This way.”

Queen reached out and brushed the cliff.

Her hand smoothly passed through the solid wall.

“A barrier…!”

At the rare sight, the cadets’ eyes widened.

“It really must be a ruin. There’s even a barrier at the entrance.”

“Indeed. Even the undiscovered ruins we visited before in the club didn’t have barriers.”

At Laysis’ words, Carl nodded.

Discovering this place could be called a stroke of luck.

If Maximilian’s territory hadn’t been Althausen, it would have been impossible to find.

“Then we’ll go ahead. Cadets, please follow us carefully.”

“We’re counting on you.”

With a light smile at Laysis’ greeting, she walked inside.

The staff of the Madeira Trading House followed, and the cadets slowly moved forward.

Ssshh.

Passing through the barrier felt similar to going through a Teleport Gate.

A cool and mysterious sensation brushed against the skin.

The others couldn’t sense it, but Carl recognized that it resembled the divine power of Kylos.

‘We’re in the right place.’

A smile naturally formed on his lips.

At Carl’s signal, Queen turned to her subordinates and spoke.

“Let’s begin the search.”

Tap.

As soon as she finished speaking, five of the eight members who had entered moved out swiftly in all directions.

All were capable of defending themselves.

With sharp instincts, they were well-suited to locating areas related to Kylos.

“Alright, let’s move too.”

The inside of the ruins was a cave with a long, straight path.

NOX’s members had scattered into smaller tunnels branching off from the main path.

The cadets continued straight toward the largest passage.

“Even though it’s a cliff near the sea, it’s not humid.”

“Because we haven’t entered the ruins yet.”

“We haven’t?”

At Queen’s words, Maximilian turned around in surprise.

They had passed through the barrier and were inside the cliff, yet this wasn’t the ruin?

Then what exactly was this place?

“This cave is a passage. You heard the ruin we found here is a seafloor ruin, right?”

“The seafloor, ah.”

A ruin beneath the sea.

That meant it lay under the ocean.

Since this cliff was above the water, it didn’t quite fit the term “seafloor ruins.”

“If we follow this path, another route will appear. There’s a path there that connects to the actual ruins.”

Listening to Queen’s explanation, the cadets kept walking.

Carl expanded his senses and scanned the cave, but as she said, there was nothing special—it was just a passage.

Thud.

Eventually, the path ended.

What appeared next was a vast corridor.

Below their feet was a wide cave, and part of the calm sea flowed in.

“There’s light…!”

“There are sea creatures that emit light on their own in the ocean. They say they die when exposed to sunlight or outside air, so seeing them alive and glowing so vividly must mean this place hasn’t been exposed for a long time.”

Even though the closed space was dim, the emerald glow emanating from the seawater lit up the area.

The gently rippling scene could even be called beautiful.

Laysis, admiring the sight, naturally leaned on Carl’s arm.

“……”

Queen’s gaze briefly shifted toward them.

The spark of yellow flame that flickered wasn’t an illusion.

If she weren’t here to help with the Master’s ruin exploration under disguise, she would have scolded Laysis without hesitation.

‘Hold it in. Hold it in.’

Laysis was the Master’s top recruitment target.

So until she joined NOX, it was necessary to build rapport.

Training and discipline would come afterward.

Queen was rather looking forward to that time.

“If we head farther into the sea, a seafloor tunnel will appear. If we swim straight through it for about two minutes, we’ll reach the ruins.”

At Queen’s signal, NOX members were the first to dive into the sea.

They all swam inward without hesitation and descended underwater without incident.

“Well then.”

Queen nodded and lightly dove in as well.

Once only the cadets remained, Carl turned to them and asked,

“Just in case—does anyone here not know how to swim?”

“No way. Swimming’s basic.”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

There was a pool at the Bayern Academy too.

After intense training, swimming helped relax the muscles, so it was something they all enjoyed.

After confirming everyone’s agreement, Carl pointed to the sea.

“Let’s go.”

Splash.

One by one, the cadets dove into the sea.

Eventually, when her turn came, Yuria bit her lip and cloaked her body in magic.

‘I’m not good at swimming.’

Yuria couldn’t say it out loud because of her pride, but she wasn’t good at swimming.

In addition, she didn’t particularly like dark, enclosed spaces or narrow gaps.

Wasn’t it suffocating just to stare into such a place?

“……”

Still, after coming all this way, she couldn’t admit she was bad at it.

Thinking she could manage by supporting herself with magic, she leapt in.

Splash.

The seawater that wrapped around her body was colder than expected.

Thanks to the temperature control function on her outfit, it was bearable, but it still made her flinch for a moment.

Whoosh.

Instead of swimming, Yuria created air currents around her body with magic to propel herself forward.

As she descended beneath the sea, just as Mirel had said, the seafloor tunnel came into view.

Even at a glance, it was clear that the structure wasn’t naturally formed.

So when she moved forward into it, the unexpectedly narrow passage made it feel hard to breathe.

Blub blub.

Because of that, she made the mistake of exhaling the oxygen stored in her mouth.

As seawater rushed in through her nose and mouth, Yuria flailed her hands in panic.

‘Oxygen, I need oxygen…’

She tried to generate air again with magic to continue breathing, but her trembling fingers and narrowing vision kept her from forming the spell properly.

Considering Yuria’s magical skill, it was a ridiculous mistake, but the pressure from the narrow and dark tunnel made it impossible to stay calm.

‘Help…’

Yuria flailed her limbs, sinking inside the tunnel.

But the other cadets had already gone far ahead.

In her increasingly desperate breaths, she could only see their distant backs.

It was dangerous.

But more than that, it was humiliating.

Once they realized she hadn’t followed, they would surely return and rescue her.

The fact that she was in danger just because she couldn’t even swim properly bruised her pride—

Tap.

Before her thoughts could even end—

Someone grabbed her hand.

When she opened her eyes wide, she saw Carl, who she thought had gone ahead, right there.

Rustle.

Carl wrapped his arm around Yuria’s shoulders and tried to move forward.

But when he saw her lips trembling, he seemed to notice something and opened his eyes a little wider.

Thud.

A breath passed between their touching lips.

Her breath, which had reached its limit, stabilized, and her narrowing vision returned to normal.

But Yuria’s mind was more unstable than ever.

‘……!!!’

She hadn’t expected this.

Who would’ve thought he’d transfer oxygen through a kiss?

Because it caught her off guard, she didn’t even react—she just quietly accepted Carl’s gesture.

If it weren’t for the cold seawater, she would have turned bright red from head to toe.

Rustle.

Right after, Carl wrapped his arm around Yuria’s shoulders and swam forward with her.

Her breathing had recovered, so she could have continued on her own, but she no longer had the strength to resist.

Just before they reached land, Carl released her and gently pushed her upward.

It was so the others wouldn’t notice she had been helped.

While she was thankful for Carl’s consideration, Yuria still hadn’t recovered from the shock of the sudden kiss.

“…Puhah.”

She barely lifted her head above the surface and made her way out.

The other cadets had already arrived and were squeezing out or drying their wet clothes.

Steam rose from Yuria’s entire body, and in an instant, she returned to her dry, fluffy state.

“Yuria, me too…”

“Me too, please.”

Cadets who couldn’t use magic also asked her for help.

Yuria, who had been standing absentmindedly while touching her lips, belatedly nodded and lifted her wand.

“Oh? Uh, come stand in front.”

A beat later, Carl walked out of the water.

But unlike the others, he looked exactly the same as before—completely untouched by the water.

“……”

While drying Amy’s body, Yuria sneaked a glance at Carl.

Surely he realized what he had just done.

But seeing him not even look her way made her eye twitch.

‘He’s acting like it was nothing?’

But for her, that was her first kiss.

Or maybe, he was pretending to be calm so she wouldn’t feel embarrassed.

Whoooosh.

Carl’s steps stopped in front of Laysis, who was using magic to create warm air to dry herself.

“If you dry yourself with that kind of breeze, it’ll take forever.”

“As long as my hair’s dry, it’s fine. It’s uncomfortable when it’s wet.”

That part couldn’t be helped.

Or she could ask Yuria to dry the rest for her.

With a small smile, Carl gestured for her to come closer.

“Want me to help?”

“This is something I’ll be able to do later too, right?”

Carl lightly touched Laysis’ body.

A gentle surge of heating energy rose, and in an instant, all the seawater on her body evaporated, returning her to a fluffy, dry state.

“Wow.”

Laysis widened her eyes as she looked down at herself.

She was even fluffier than before she had jumped into the sea.

“I’ll be able to do this later too?”

“It’s a part of the Mana Manipulation Method. It’s a branch like martial arts. It shouldn’t be too hard.”

“Hmm.”

Laysis nodded, her eyes shining at the skill that looked useful in many ways.

Queen, who had been watching the scene for a moment, gave a light cough to draw attention.

“Alright, this is it. The Seafloor Ruins of the Ancient God that lies within Althausen. If you’re ready, let’s head inside.”

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