Chapter 315: Chapter 315
I wonder when I’ll be able to stumble upon a Treasure, like finding money on the street?
But this Difficulty is named Giant Hunter.
Is the thing guarding the Treasure a gigantic creature? Why haven’t we detected it?
This Island is only so big, and this blue dot seems to be on its side, not in the center.
If there was some giant creature guarding the Treasure, we should have noticed it by now.
Alka looked at the map and then raised his head.
"I smell Treasure. Are you interested in joining?"
Seeing that everyone seemed interested, Alka nodded; after all, this was their first Treasure hunt since leaving the Homeland Sea.
"Alright, let’s go, everyone. I’ll lead the way."
The white and blue dots on the map weren’t far apart, so Alka planned to tackle the more challenging blue dot first.
He led the group through various shipwreck remnants. They arrived at the location marked by the blue dot on the map.
As expected, there was still nothing visible on the surface except for the remains of shipwrecks buried in the soil. It was unclear how many years ago they had sunk.
The group was already familiar with Alka stopping and observing his surroundings .
Chadite stepped forward, and silver ripples began to spread from beneath her feet as she started to detect any hidden spaces in the vicinity. Her exploration was more delicate and focused on a smaller range, but it was also more precise.
Chadite continued her detection as she moved forward, walking back and forth on the ground until she reached the edge of the Island near the coast. Only then did she nod in satisfaction.
She turned to the others and said, "There’s a deep cave below. The tunnel connecting to it is right underneath us." Pointing towards the water below the cliff edge, she added, "It’s underwater."
The group turned their heads downward to take a look. Googlᴇ search 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚•𝕟𝕖𝕥
Numerous shipwrecks floated on the sea below. Their remnants, carried by the current, continuously crashed against the cliff face, becoming more fragmented with each impact.
"Let’s go there first."
Alka pointed in that direction and then jumped down.
It was a large stone platform extending out from the cliff below, spacious enough for them to stand on.
The group followed suit and jumped down.
After landing on the stone platform, Alka said to Pororo, "Pororo, go down and check out that tunnel."
"Okay." Pororo nodded in response, then dove straight into the sea.
Barely a dozen seconds later, Pororo’s head emerged from the sea.
"There’s a tunnel entrance, but it’s too small for me. Still, it looked fairly safe."
Hearing this, Alka nodded, then turned to the group.
He figured they would likely face underwater combat, especially since this was the Giant Hunter Difficulty.
Alka then said directly to Julia, "Julia, you and I will go down. The rest of you stay on shore and keep watch on our surroundings."
Hearing Alka, Julia nodded and leaped into the sea. In mid-air, her legs transformed into a fishtail.
Alka followed closely. The Mirror mask appeared on his face, its surface reflecting the image of a long sea fish. His neck and cheeks were covered by the Mirror. With an effect like shattering glass, these areas transformed, granting him a gill-like breathing system.
Jason watched the three of them—Alka, Julia, and Pororo—disappear beneath the waves. Then, a long-handled Vibrating Stone Gun materialized in his hand. It was decorated with emerald green vine patterns and gold trim. Inlaid diamonds on the gun emitted a faint Magic Power glow. It was a Magic Firearm custom-ordered from the Great Cathedral.
He raised the gun, his stance vigilant.
Meanwhile, underwater, Pororo guided Alka and Julia to a pitch-black underwater cave entrance.
A magical lantern emitted a faint glow, automatically floating ahead into the cave under Alka’s control. Alka made a hand gesture. Pororo nodded and took up a guard position outside the entrance.
Alka then turned and nodded to Julia, and the two of them swam inside.
Now able to breathe underwater, Alka wasn’t in a rush. He carefully examined the sides of the submerged tunnel. He examined the marks on both sides. Despite seawater erosion, these marks, along with the condition of the tunnel floor, indicated that its artificial features had originally been designed for walking. This was because there were recesses carved into both sides of the tunnel walls, clearly intended to hold lighting implements. They looked like holders for candles or similar items. Alka reached into one and felt a texture like old, caked grease.
The entire tunnel sloped upward. This meant that long, long ago, the tunnel must not have been submerged by seawater.
The water gradually grew shallower, and soon Alka’s head broke the surface. He used the light from the lantern to inspect the cave ahead. A short section of the tunnel still lay ahead of them.
Julia surfaced behind him, her fishtail transforming back into human legs. The two of them proceeded cautiously.
From the surrounding signs, it was clear that no one had been here for a very long time. Following the tunnel, they finally reached an inner chamber.
Alka raised the lantern to illuminate their surroundings.
The chamber wasn’t small, but the ceiling was quite low. It was only a little over two meters high, so taller individuals would likely have to stoop. After all, humans in this world were typically over 1.7 meters tall, so individuals exceeding two meters were not uncommon.
The chamber was exceptionally damp and filled with a strong, putrid odor—the kind of musty smell that comes from piles of wood decaying in high humidity.