FLIA 182

“I will purify it!”

A cluster of bright light fluttered out from the shield. It was completely unaffected by the currents and moved according to its owner’s will. Yohan purified the seaweed first. Then, as he cleansed the corrupted seabed soil, the rootless seaweed clusters lost their strength and began to sway weakly downwards. He picked a piece to check it and found that it was in a state where it could no longer reproduce or move. Unaware that Yoon Seungryong was snatching up and eating the seaweed he was discarding, Yohan spoke with a worried expression.

“The corruption is still here. We will have to take the time to come out here frequently to clean it up. If marine life eats this, the corruption will spread.”

“Tsk… then wait. Let’s at least clean things up roughly before we go.”

Seo Yakrin’s golden telekinetic power flowed into the sea. Then, she slowly pulled the seaweed hanging limply from its roots and began winding it up like a ball of yarn.

Seaweed hanging all around came dragged along one after another, soon forming a massive clump. It was easily bigger than two or three average buildings. Even Seo Yakrin found the task of gathering such a huge amount of seaweed exhausting, as veins bulged on her forehead.

Yohan purified what had been roughly bundled up once again. Now he felt somewhat relieved. Ju Hoyoung whistled at the sight of the massive skein of seaweed.

“Having rift zones underwater is really a nuisance. I don’t think our country is the only one like this.”

“I guess we just have to take it slow and work through it from now on. You all did a great job. Let’s head up now.”

At Lee Hyunmook’s command, Seo Yakrin began pushing the shield upward. Since she was the one suffering the most today, Yohan stayed close by her side, diligently emitting light. Fish that appeared from somewhere were entranced by Yohan’s light, their scales glistening as they trotted after him. Seo Yakrin licked her lips.

“They look delicious. Shall we catch a little? How about grilled fish for dinner today?”

Yoon Seungryong, who was in particularly good sync with her today, immediately agreed, but it was thwarted by the opposition of Lee Chanha and Ju Hoyoung, who said it would smell fishy if placed here.

They hadn’t ascended for long.

Yohan felt a chilling presence and turned his head. Everyone, having already sensed the presence before Yohan, was looking in a certain direction. Yoon Seungryong slowly opened his mouth.

“Yohan-ah, do you know that?”

“What…?”

“Why do squid fishing boats light up brightly at night?”

Yohan glanced once at his spear, which was shining brilliantly. He also looked at the fish scurrying away as if they had never followed the light. Then he muttered weakly.

“I really don’t want to know….”

Nevertheless, he soon found out.

A giant eyeball floated up from the darkness. It moved along with the blue sphere rising while emitting a bright light. Yogan let out a silent scream. Tentacles thicker than logs were swaying all around. The barbed suckers grew bigger. No, they weren’t growing; they were drawing closer and closer. Soon, they slammed into the shield, it was truly the appearance of a real Kraken.

Tap tap tap. Face-sized suckers swarmed onto the shield. Then, it tightened its grip by binding with its tentacles. Yohan hurriedly purified the squid. However, only its bumpy, grotesque appearance was purified; its massive size remained the same. A giant squid with an inherently foul temper is still a giant squid with an foul temper, even after purification… Lee Chanha, who had been enduring the water pressure for a long time, groaned.

“Team Leader, I don’t think the shield will last long.”

“How much?”

Lee Hyunmook asked calmly, looking at the squid’s disgusting beak that was getting closer. He had his arms crossed, showing not the slightest sign of nervousness.

“It’ll be at most a dozen seconds from now…”

“No, wait a minute. This really isn’t right. I’m completely exhausted now, too.”

Hearing the sound of a hard beak gnawing at the barrier, Seo Yakrin tore at her hair. Ju Hoyoung also attempted to freeze it, but freezing wasn’t his primary ability to begin with, and he had just used up his power clearing the water plants. After failing repeatedly, he just kept biting his fingernails. Yoon Seungryong stepped forward triumphantly.

“Is it finally my turn to step forward! Team Leader! Shall I spread some poison!”

Lee Hyunmook, still staring at the shining Yohan who attracted the squid, pulled him into his arms. He looked at the giant squid, who was trying to swallow the defense barrier that was stubbornly holding on and Yoon Seungryong, and then gave his permission.

“Give it a try.”

And a moment later, they soared into the sky, almost springing out of the sea with waves scattering white foam.

* * *

Yoon Seungryong had an ambitious plan of sorts to eat a giant grilled squid. Or perhaps the squid was so big that the poison didn’t penetrate it immediately. The squid struck by Yoon Seungryong’s poison literally went berserk. As a result, it struck the blue sphere it was trying to swallow with its mouth, shattering the shield that had been barely holding on into pieces.

In an instant, suffocating currents surged in from all directions. As he shot high above the water and plummeted straight back down, the oxygen mask he was wearing was damaged and torn off. While Yohan struggled to avoid the tentacles whipping ferociously nearby, someone’s hand tightly covered his nose and mouth. Foam bubbled up all around. Even amidst the chaos, Yohan remained still, relaxing his body so as not to be a hindrance.

After what felt like only a few minutes, Yohan was finally able to get out of the water. Only then did the grip that had been tightly covering his face to prevent him from swallowing water disappear.

“Guh…!”

As he gasped for air, Lee Hyunmook swam with Yohan in his arms. Yohan looked around while struggling to shake off the salt seeping into his eyes. To his surprise, a shore with crashing waves was approaching right before their eyes. Lee Hyunmook cut through the water at a rapid pace and soon arrived at the shore. He was still holding Yohan in his arms.

“Where… is this?”

Yohan, who had been able to avoid drinking water thanks to Lee Hyunmook, took a deep breath and asked in surprise. Lee Hyunmook paused for a moment and looked around.

“It looks like an island nearby.”

“That was a close call… Ah! What about the others?”

Yohan was flustered because he couldn’t see any of the team members around other than them. Then Lee Hyunmook pointed his finger somewhere far away.

“They’re drifting over there.”

“What…!”

Yohan’s mouth dropped open. They must have emerged from the same spot, but perhaps due to the ocean currents, Ju Hoyoung was waving his hand from a distant ice floe. He could see Yoon Seungryong attempting to swim to this island but giving up and crawling onto the nearby ice floe.

“Shouldn’t we go rescue them?”

“They’ll be fine.”

Worried because Seo Yakrin was nowhere to be seen, Yohan watched quietly, and a moment later, she burst out of the water like a tiger shark. She stepped onto the ice floe, holding a golden net full of flopping fish. Yoon Seungryong hadn’t given up on coming to the island. He had simply realized that Seo Yakrin had caught an enormous amount of fish…

Meanwhile, the ice floe drifted with the ocean currents to a dizzying distance. Yohan breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that everything would be alright just as Lee Hyunmook had said. Since they were people who had survived even the Abyss, they wouldn’t die, whether in the vast open sea or the Arctic.

“We’re completely soaked. Good thing we put the suits on beforehand.”

The Rift Management Bureau provided more than just oxygen masks. There were also tight-fitting suits. Thanks to that, they weren’t that cold even though they had fallen into the water. Since it would take some time for the Bureau to come and rescue them, the two decided to leave a trace on the shore and explore the island.

The island was large enough for dense bushes and trees to grow, yet it was small enough that it took less than 10 minutes to look around. There was a long-abandoned container house, suggesting it was not entirely uninhabited. It had been neglected for so long that half of the door had fallen off, and one of the two windows was broken.

“Ah, thank goodness! I can rest here for a while.”

The interior was filthy, filled with mold and dust, but a competent purifier was present. As he scattered light, the interior instantly became spotless. In fact, it was better than cleaning by hand. Yohan looked around the interior of the house with a sense of pride.

Water kept dripping from his suit, and feeling stifled, Yohan took off his top. As he shook the water from his hair, Yohan glanced at Lee Hyunmook.

‘…Handsome.’

Perhaps because he was soaked, Lee Hyunmook’s appearance shone brighter than ever today. His wet hair clung to his forehead, with water droplets trickling down his forehead and cheeks. A luster hung in his sunken eyes beneath his eyebrows. As if feeling stifled, he, too, took off his shirt, just like Yohan.

Sunbeams glistened on his muscular physique. Bathed in the light streaming through the container windows, he looked as if a few clear pearls had been attached to him. Yohan, who had been stealing glances at his sturdy shoulders and pectoral muscles, turned his head away in surprise when their eyes met. Lee Hyunmook spoke in a charming voice tinged with a smile.

“What’s wrong, Yohan-ah? I took it off on purpose so you could see.”

“……!”

As Yohan just stared with wide eyes, Lee Hyunmook brushed back his wet hair, feeling embarrassed.

“Hmm, was that joke not very good…?”

His sentence was soon cut short. It was because Yohan suddenly lunged forward and kissed him. Lee Hyunmook smiled and returned the salty kiss. The two pressed their lips together and intertwined their tongues until the saltiness had completely disappeared.