I Became an Evolving Deep-Sea Creature-Chapter 21

Chapter 21. The Patroller
Borgin didn't have as much to hand over to Yul as expected.
Since the job itself was rather free, as long as he maintained the general framework, the rest was up to him.
-Your job is to patrol the borders between the western and northern seas, and the boundary lines between the territories. If I hadn’t been injured, I would’ve still been there myself.
Because Borgin’s tail fin had been severed, it seemed he had retired from his duties as a Patroller.
-Even the western area alone is quite vast, isn’t it? What you’ll do is patrol around the boundary between the Turtle Kingdom’s waters and the Orca Clan’s waters.
-Aha. Understood.
Yul thought of that fellow called the Turtle Knight. That’s where he said he had come from.
-You won’t be the only Patroller patrolling that area. Each Patroller has their own Mantra of Communication, so recognizing one another shouldn’t be difficult.
-When something dangerous happens during patrols, we usually take care of it ourselves, but sometimes Patrollers call for reinforcements from one another. When that happens, make sure you go.
-Understood.
-But right now, there’s some trouble up north, in the Arctic.
-The Arctic? Where the penguins live?
-That’s right. It’s a bit of a headache. I heard there’s a penguin who calls himself the Sorcerer King and is waging war.
Yul remembered that time when he and Nugh had helped evacuate the penguin refugees to an island.
-I heard that they had built a gigantic smelting furnace. And that a hero of the Penguin Tribe had risen to fight the Sorcerer King. I also heard they even established a nation.
-Hmm.
A lot must have happened while he wasn’t paying attention. Penguins forming a nation—who would’ve thought?
-Would that affect the orcas in any way?
-No one knows. But you should be aware of it. Every sea creature living in the Sea of Phantaratsa tends to keep each other in check, fearing that the others might grow stronger.
-Understood. I’ll keep that in mind.
-Aside from the penguins, there’s one more thing to be cautious about. To the northwest lies the path to the Outer Ocean. There, unless under special orders, you’ll find a Patroller said to be the strongest among the Orca Clan. He’s one of the Great Powers.
-The strongest? The Great Powers?
-Hm? You don’t know about the strong ones of the Great Azure Ocean?
-No.
-I can’t believe this.
Borgin scratched his head roughly against the wall, as if it itched, then said:
-You mean you don’t know about the Five Great Powers, the Three Grandmasters, and the Four Dragon Lords?
-No.
-Hmph. The Matriarch told me a bit about your origins, but you really lack common sense, don’t you? Fine. I’ll explain. These are the most dangerous beings that dwell in the sea.
It seemed that each title represented a kind of top-tier powerhouse—like something straight out of a martial arts novel.
-The Great Powers refer to sea creatures with the greatest combat ability. Two orcas, one turtle, one mackerel, and one black conger eel.
‘Huh, a mackerel? Isn’t that… prey?’
Something seemed oddly out of place.
-The Grandmasters are masters of marine martial arts who’ve achieved incredible skill. Each of them was strong enough to found their own school. One turtle, one spear-squid, and one solar flying fish.
‘Now those are names I know.’
Among the creatures Yul had once considered evolving into, some had reached the level of masters. That meant those species had enormous potential.
-The Four Dragon Lords refer to the Sea Dragon Tribe of the southeast. They’re said to be as powerful as the Great Powers.
-Oh-ho.
-These strong ones usually belong to the Surface Layer (Epipelagic Zone). From what I’ve heard, once you descend into the Deep Sea (Bathypelagic Zone), there are beings with power rivaling the Great Powers scattered like plankton.
-I see. But is there no Deep King Tribe?
-They’re considered a tribe of the Deep Sea. The Deep King Tribe rarely involves themselves with the Surface Layer dwellers.
‘Feels like a heavenly realm kind of hierarchy.’
Living among the Orca Clan, Yul had learned that the Deep Sea was considered something extraordinary.
Beings who lived in a completely different world from the sea creatures of the Surface Layer—and ones they deeply feared.
‘Hm, so that’s how it is.’
Yul had been living a fairly ordinary life as a jelly octopus, but thinking back, he recalled the Sea God and the Lord of the Abyss who had once waged a monstrous war in the Deep Sea.
‘Yeah, I can see why they’d think it’s dangerous.’
In their worldview, all beings of the Deep Sea were said to be comparable to the strongest in existence—and they feared them greatly.
In any case, Yul was able to learn from Borgin which parts of the Turtle Kingdom’s waters he was to patrol, what markers to use as references, and various tips and know-hows.
-If I weren’t injured, I’d have escorted you directly to your post, but it can’t be helped.
Despite his boastful attitude, Borgin was actually rather kind. Though it probably helped that Yul had been good at keeping on his good side.
-Borgin, may I ask you things again next time?
-Are you going to use the Karma of Communication? Sorry, but I’m heading into a Dark Cave for physical regeneration. Even if you try to contact me, I won’t be able to respond.
He had heard that entering the Dark Cave meant being in stasis for quite a long time to regenerate the body.
Yul had also heard that there were orca Healers who oversaw that kind of recovery.
After completing the final handover, Yul said goodbye to Borgin and decided to leave the village.
He also parted ways with Nugh’s family. They each had their own work to do, after all.
‘Three months, huh.’
The place he was assigned to was fairly distant, but three months should be enough time.
Before leaving, he met Nugh to say goodbye.
-Nugh, thank you for teaching me so much.
-Take care of yourself, Yul.
-Yes, I will.
Nugh had looked after him like a grandfather. Because of that, Yul felt a special bond with him—something he didn’t feel with any other orca.
After that, Nugh returned to the Warrior Corps and resumed his usual duties.
-I've decided to join the Warrior Corps, too. If I go now, I’ll be the youngest.
-Take care, Tuania.
-You too. Don’t forget to visit when you come by the village sometimes.
After saying goodbye to Tuania as well, Yul soon set off for the southwestern sea.
Yul rose to the surface and looked up.
Several stars hung in the sky. The enormous blue moon stood out the most, and among the constellations, faint stars glittered.
‘At last, I’m free!’
Yul felt a sense of relief as he left the village behind.
He really wasn’t the type to enjoy being tied down by others.
A free profession like that of a Patroller suited Yul perfectly.
In truth, he could have ignored the orcas’ work altogether and run away. The ocean was vast, and the Orca Clan’s territory was only a fraction of it.
Eventually, as Yul continued to evolve, he would move beyond the orcas anyway.
But Yul had received much help from the Orca village.
He’d learned about the Surface Layer—about marine knowledge that was considered common sense among sea creatures. Because of that, he intended to do his share.
Once he felt he had worked enough to repay what he had received, he planned to stop.
‘Anyway, maybe it’s about time I evolved.’
[3,900/600]
This was the experience he had gathered over the past two years of steady effort. In the beginning, he’d earned it by eating the food that Nugh’s family brought him—basically being fed and doing nothing. But later, he started hunting on his own.
After evolving into an orca and losing his previous evolutions, Yul had been debating what to evolve into next—but the first choice came easily.
The part he’d long felt was necessary: breathing.
Ordinary orcas could hold their breath for about fifteen minutes. But those were the unintelligent, ordinary orcas of the Continental Ocean.
The Orcas of the Great Azure Ocean, on the other hand, possessed high intelligence and could stay underwater for up to an hour.
But was an hour really enough? For Yul, who—back when he lived as a jelly octopus—never needed to breathe at all, that kind of time limit was irritating.
‘I’ve gained strength and bulk, but also the limitation of needing to breathe. Evolution isn’t all good after all. Let’s make the first evolution about breathing.’
Rather than amplifying his strengths, Yul’s approach to evolution was to patch up weaknesses and strive for perfection.
The moment he made up his mind, a list of options appeared before him.
[Stage 1 Evolution]
[1. Oxygen-Storing Pigment: Increases the level of myoglobin in the blood, allowing muscles to store large amounts of oxygen. Enables extremely long dives.]
-Type: [Physical], [Internal Transformation], [Fluid Transformation], [Versatile]
‘Oh, so additional tags appear like this, huh.’
[2. Heart Enhancement: Strengthens the heart, allowing it to deliver oxygen with lower energy consumption, reducing overall oxygen use.]
-Type: [Physical], [Internal Transformation], [Metabolic Adaptation], [Versatile]
[3. Skin Oxygen Absorption: Alters the skin tissue to absorb trace amounts of dissolved oxygen through the surface. Not a perfect gill, but it supplements oxygen during prolonged underwater activity, extending breath-holding time.]
-Type: [Internal Transformation], [Biological Adaptation], [Versatile]
Even the status window itself seemed to be evolving. Each new evolution appeared to define what part of his body would change.
‘So, in short, I can either alter my blood, strengthen my heart, or change my skin—one of the three.’
Exactly the kind of evolution Yul wanted appeared before him—something that wouldn’t change his outward appearance much, but would still enhance him.
‘They all serve the same purpose through different means. Ah, but if I strengthen my heart now for oxygen retention, I probably won’t be able to enhance it again later.’
It felt like equipment slots in a game—once one body part evolved, it couldn’t evolve again.
After a short moment of thought, Yul chose the first option. As long as it didn’t create something bizarre like acidic blood, enhancing his breathing efficiency seemed like a good choice.
‘Number one it is.’
Once the acquisition was complete, there was no visible change, but Yul realized he could now dive deeper and longer with less oxygen than before.
He tested it out by diving deep—and found that his diving time had increased by thirty minutes. He could now stay underwater for up to three hours.
‘Amazing. And there’s no drop in physical ability, either.’
Yul then began his second evolution. This time, he hadn’t thought ahead about what to choose.
‘Give me three random evolutions.’
[Discovering three suitable future evolutions for the user.]
[Stage 2 Evolution]
[1. Horn of the Sea King: As an orca’s massive body holds great magical power, the horn that grows from your forehead becomes an organ that can manipulate surrounding ocean currents using magic.]
-Type: [Magical], [Control Ability], [Speed Enhancement], [External Transformation]
[2. Bladed Tail: Strengthens and hardens the tail fin, allowing powerful physical attacks.]
-Type: [Physical], [External Transformation]
[3. Metal Consumption: Enhances your feeding ability. Each time you consume metal from the seafloor, your jawbone and teeth gradually adapt and reshape themselves to match that metal. This process occurs slowly over time.]
-Type: [Physical], [Internal Transformation], [Versatile], [Continuous Effect]
‘Whoa, what’s this?’
Yul was a little surprised—these evolutions were completely different from the ones before.
This time, they were truly fascinating. Two of them especially stood out.
‘The Horn of the Sea King and Metal Consumption. I didn’t know evolution could go in this direction.’
Until now, Yul had always thought of evolution as enhancing strengths or covering weaknesses. But these… these were entirely new abilities.
‘Which one should I choose?’