A torn upper body burst through the surface and flew into the air. Blood fell like rain, and Ian, instantly drenched red from head to toe, wiped his face and clearly made out the shape of whatever was flying.
“…….”
It was an anglerfish. The upper body of a human with a gigantic anglerfish head surged upward against gravity, spraying blood. From its gaping maw rang out a roar loud enough to shake heaven and earth.
[Ooooooh!!]
[Be silent.]
At that moment, black thorns shot up from beneath the sea, pierced through the anglerfish’s upper body, and dragged it back down into the water. With a splash, a burst of spray erupted, and the pirates who had yet to disembark from the pirate ship hurriedly cut the grappling hooks loose and fled.
[It’s a monster war! Run, fuckers!]
[Motherfucker! Is that a kraken?!]
[They’re worse than that! Raise anchor, hurry!]
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
The anchor they had dropped from the pirate ship rose with a thunderous noise. The folded sails unfurled, and the black pirate flag flapped in the wind.
But they could not escape. The red eyes blooming over the sea moved like piranhas, devouring the pirate ship and the pirates aboard it in an instant. They did not last even a single second before turning to dust and vanishing.
“……This is ridiculous. Those guys aren’t supposed to be that weak.”
Lee Seo-a, who was covered in blood just like Ian, muttered. Instead of answering her, Ian gripped the grimoire tightly and glared beneath the surface.
He could see nothing. Only the eyes blooming over the black seawater entered his vision. There was no way to know what was happening down below.
Still, one thing was certain.
[Aaaaaaagh!!!]
The Producer was slaughtering the Outer God’s Anchor.
[A dog that cannot bite is bound to bark.]
Shaaaaaa……!
Each time the sea churned, blood and organs scattered in every direction. Horrific screams, contrasting with the Producer’s low voice, shook the air, and the small anglerfish that detected the sound swarmed in from all sides.
It was meaningless. The moment they revealed themselves, they became lumps of meat and were buried beneath the sea. It was impossible to tell what had killed them. The eyes had merely moved, and their limbs and upper bodies had simply disintegrated without the slightest warning.
Death by unknown causes.
That was their cause of death. Ian let out a hollow laugh and swept back his blood-soaked hair.
“Maybe it’s because we’re at sea, but it feels like his potential has gone up even more.”
[Indeed.]
The Producer answered Ian’s mutter. His voice echoed from the depths of the sea.
[This sea is far inferior to the Outer Sea, but even so, a sea is still a sea. I can move far more freely than I can on land.]
“……Is it the same for the other creatures?”
[It is.]
Slaaaash!!
One of the anglerfish’s arms was torn off and flew into the air. The arm, which had embedded itself precisely at the end of the cruise ship, twitched before soon going limp.
[So if you ever have the opportunity to fight at sea, it would not be a bad idea to release them once. There is a high chance they will run wild with joy.]
“……Is that a good thing for me?”
[The sea is vast, after all. If released, they will swim on their own and devour the marine life here.]
“Couldn’t they attack humans too?”
[Hmm. Regrettably, humans other than you, Proxy, are not a consideration for me.]
The Producer answered as he slowly revealed himself above the surface.
Beside him hung the head of the dead anglerfish, its tongue lolling out. The head, dripping red blood, had been grotesquely torn apart until it resembled a flower. Red flesh formed the petals, and its brain replaced the pistil.
[It has been dealt with.]
The Producer said, holding out the anglerfish’s head as if showing it to Ian.
[If it is all right, may I eat this?]
“……I ordered you to eat it. You can eat it.”
[Thank you.]
The Producer lowered his head slightly, then opened his mouth and crunched down on the anglerfish’s head. The sound of bone and flesh being crushed rang out clearly, along with the scream of something.
[My apologies. Creatures eaten by me always tend to make such beautiful sounds. It is likely not a pleasant sound for humans to hear.]
“……I’m fine. More importantly, is it over now?”
[It is. I can feel the space collapsing.]
The Producer said that, and at the same moment, the sky and sea began to collapse from the far end of the horizon.
Space vanished like scattering ash. The Producer glanced back, then submerged half his body into the sea.
[Once the collapse is complete, everything that occurred here will likely be resolved. The location will remain the same, but you will be free from the mystery.]
“…….”
[Please return safely. I shall take my leave here.]
The Producer closed all his eyes and bent his upper body as if in farewell. Just as Ian exhaled and was about to answer that he understood, the Producer spoke first.
[Lastly, this is a message from Him.]
“What?”
[He says, “I am waiting.”]
Snap.
With those words, the Producer vanished. Ian stared silently at the place where he had stood, then rubbed his face and leaned against the railing as he sat down. Lee Seo-a, who had been blankly staring at the Producer as well, sidled over and stood beside him.
“……By any chance, that grimoire of yours too……”
“…….”
“……Mm, pretend I didn’t say that. I won’t be curious either.”
“Thanks.”
Ian smiled bitterly, tucked the grimoire into his coat, and reached into the pocket where he usually kept his cigarettes.
But there was nothing to grab. Thinking about it, he had thrown away the broken cigarette pack long ago, and he had smoked the last remaining mast after the battle ended.
He had been trying to make them last, so it was a shame. He let out a deep sigh and tilted his head back.
The collapse of space had already reached near the cruise ship. Like the iris-out technique often used in films, everything except the cruise ship was surrounded by pitch-black darkness. As if it had never existed from the start.
With this, the incident on the cruise ship was over too. It did not leave the cleanest aftertaste, but even so, this much was not bad. He had learned why the creatures of the Outer Sea were trying to eat him, and he had become aware of the existence of a cult connected to the Cthulhu Mythos and of Outer Gods. It could not be said that there had been no gains at all.
‘I don’t know who the Provider who supplied the mystery is…… but at least I know their intentions aren’t good.’
A freak who committed the bizarre act of handing out mystery to others. He had, of course, known that not everyone connected to mystery was a good person, but seeing it firsthand like this made him feel quite strange.
Only for a moment. Ian soon organized his thoughts, took in the darkening space with his eyes, and slowly closed them.
There was no need to track the Provider down personally. He had been dragged into this unintentionally, but he bore no particular grudge, nor did it bother him all that much.
It would probably be enough to pass the information to the Management Bureau. Then they would take care of it on their end.
‘I should finish the commission, then rest for a while and focus on recovering.’
Thinking that, Ian quietly steadied his breathing.
A short while later, along with the scent of the sea brushing the tip of his nose, the space completely collapsed.
*
To state the result, the commission was successfully completed. The moment the space collapsed, the mystery ceased operating, and the two of them returned to reality. They gathered the unconscious survivors sprawled throughout the cruise ship roughly in one place and called the Cartel. The Cartel did not refuse the call.
Surprisingly, the Cartel even had a service for customers stranded in the middle of the sea. Aside from using a yacht instead of a van, it was not much different from Indemnis.
Ah, the cost was a little higher. Still, the service was not bad. It was worth the money.
“Here’s the USB. This was the cause of the disappearances. The survivors should still be inside the cruise ship.”
He also handed over the USB, the evidence that the commission had been completed.
It was a black USB that had appeared before his eyes after the space collapsed. Its appearance was not particularly unusual, but the aura it gave off was extremely alien. Since it had the property of staying fixed as though inserted into a port even when plugged into empty air, the Cartel took the USB without much suspicion.
Thanks to the clear evidence, the first payment was deposited on the spot. The second payment was scheduled to be made after they checked the condition of the survivors.
He was not desperate for money, so he did not have much dissatisfaction with their decision. It did not really matter when the money came in.
After spending a day on the yacht like that, the two of them set foot on Korean soil once more.
“Thank you for your work on the commission. I hope to see you again if the opportunity arises.”
The Cartel employee dropped the two of them off at Incheon Port and left. The two yawned and slowly began walking.
“Why does it feel like it’s been so long since I stepped on land…….”
“Because it actually has been a while. Aren’t you hungry?”
“Ah, I was fine, but now that you said that, I’m hungry.”
“Then let’s eat. What do you want?”
“Let’s go to a buffet, a buffet. I saw it on social media, and apparently there’s a buffet in Incheon with a really nice atmosphere. I wanted to try going there.”
“Then let’s go there.”
Fortunately, the bike he had parked in the lot was still there. Ian put on his helmet with practiced ease and had her sit in the back seat. Lee Seo-a looked around with a face half full of curiosity and half full of fear at the bike she was riding for the first time.
“This is safe, right?”
“The Godmother’s magic is on it, so there shouldn’t be any real problems. I don’t have a spare helmet, so we’ll have to go without one for now. Is that okay?”
“If it’s safe, then sure. But isn’t that illegal?”
“It’s fine as long as we don’t get caught.”
Ian chuckled and started the engine. Lee Seo-a laughed as well and wrapped her arms tightly around Ian’s waist.
“Step on it, oppa!”
Vroooom!
In time with her words, he pulled the throttle. The RPM rose rapidly, and the bike left the parking lot and began to move. The two of them headed straight into the wind, racing toward the buffet Lee Seo-a had mentioned.
Unfortunately, the buffet was not very tasty compared to its fame.