I Became an Evolving Deep-Sea Creature-Chapter 27

Chapter 27. Patrol Duty
After a bit of time had passed, Yul parted ways with Ian’s family and swam away.
‘Hmm. There’s a lot to think about.’
Information about the Moon’s sea that Ian discovered and the creatures living there.
Also, for Lucian, whose magic affinity was far too high, he needed to find something with properties that could block magic.
He also had to think about how far to advance trade with the Kingdom of Frangia.
And then, how long should he continue working as a Patroller? How long should he live as an orca?
At times like this, he needed someone to ask for advice. Nugh had gone to the Warrior Corps, and Tuania wasn’t around either, but there was a certain ghost he could ask.
-Old man!!!
Yul called for the ancestor orca. The message must have been delivered to Rukit through their Contract, but there was no response.
It probably meant he didn’t want to come out. Still, let’s keep calling.
-Old man Milkit!!! If you don’t come out, I won’t call you next time, you hear?
-My name is Rukit, you halfwit.
-Oh, you’re here.
-What’s this insolent brat who never bothered to contact me all this time want now?
-I was just busy, that’s all. Anyway, I called because I have something to ask.
-And why should I tell you anything?
-Because you’re smart, strong, long-lived, a spirit, and something like an ancestral god, right? You wouldn’t just ignore a junior orca who’s in trouble and wandering, would you?
-Cut the nonsense.
-Then what do I have to do for you to tell me?
-Hmm. I’ll think about it. Let’s just say… you can pay me later.
Yul managed to get him talking somehow, though the word “later” was a bit annoying.
He started by asking about the important things that had been on his mind.
-Hmm. A metal that blocks magic, you say? As you know, our Orca Tribe isn’t very interested in metals.
Orcas were born with naturally strong bodies, so they didn’t carry weapons.
Their physical structure also made it impossible to handle delicate metalwork or forging techniques, so among orcas, there were no blacksmiths.
-Shouldn’t you be asking the turtles about that sort of thing? The ones from the Turtle Kingdom.
-Huh?
-Yeah, those turtles. Have you ever seen their shells? Those are all metal.
Yul recalled the turtle named Kagan, who had belonged to the Turtle Knights.
That turtle, which had died after being lured into colliding with a ship, was clearly stronger than Yul, and its shell looked as hard as metal.
-It did look like he was wearing full-body armor. Did they coat their shells with metal, like armor?
-No. The hardening of their shells is their natural trait. The turtles have a special ability—Metal Consumption. They can ingest metal and convert its properties into their shells.
‘Oh. Metal Consumption? That was in my last evolution list, wasn’t it?’
Yul recalled the evolution ability that had appeared as an option alongside the Horn of the Sea King.
He had regrettably been able to choose only one at the time, but for his next evolution, he was planning to pick that one.
In any case, if the turtles consumed metal, it meant they knew where large deposits of it were located.
-Then the turtles must know the locations of metal mines?
-Of course. They even manage some of them themselves. Why not try talking to them?
-But they were insanely aggressive, though?
Yul told him about his past experience, back when he was an octopus, being chased by the Turtle Knights.
-That’s only the Turtle Knights. Most turtles of the Turtle Kingdom are wise and gentle.
-Oh.
Well, if an entire race were aggressive, they wouldn’t be able to maintain their territory. They’d destroy themselves in endless wars.
-I’ll think about it.
There were quite a few obstacles. He’d have to break through the outer perimeter guarded by the Turtle Knights to enter the territorial waters of the Turtle Kingdom, but there might be a safer route.
-And one more thing.
-Yes?
-The massive creature you said was seen on the Moon—that’s the true form of the Deep King Tribe.
-The Deep King Tribe lives on the Moon? How could they even…
-But don’t try to learn more. You’ll get hurt.
While Rukit had freely shared what he knew about magic-blocking metals, the moment the Deep King Tribe came up, he brushed it off and immediately severed the connection.
-He’s clearly avoiding the topic of the Deep King Tribe.
‘Guess I should focus on getting to my post first.’
He was still curious as to why the Deep King Tribe was on the Moon, but for now, he had more pressing matters.
Ever since obtaining the Horn of the Sea King, his speed across the Great Azure Ocean had become incredible.
Even at a relaxed pace, he could reach his destination within a month.
‘This is great. No doubt, whatever creature I ascend into next, I should make sure to install a magical evolution organ.’
If up until now his evolutions had been mostly physical, it was time to start steering toward magical evolution instead.
Yul swam around the borders between the Turtle Kingdom and the Orca Tribe’s territories before finally arriving at his new post.
‘That must be it? There’s supposed to be a cave beneath that massive reef.’
From the vast, flat seafloor, a strange, horn-shaped reef rose all the way up toward the surface.
It was too small to be called an island—more fitting to call it a reef. That was the hiding place where the orca patrollers stayed.
Inside, there was a hole in the ceiling, letting in air from above.
According to his senior patroller, the reef itself had been created by a turtle as large as an island.
‘It wouldn’t be surprising if such a turtle actually existed.’
After all, in the seas of Phantaratsa, there were all kinds of crazy things. An island-sized turtle wouldn’t even be the strangest.
Especially in the Outer Ocean, where even orcas couldn’t imagine the scale of the beings that existed there.
Normally, the previous patroller stationed here would have greeted him, but the man had stayed behind in the village to recover from his injuries, so Yul had to work alone.
〈Matriarch, this is Patroller Yul. I’ve arrived at my post. I’ll begin my patrol duties now.〉
Yul used the Mantra of Communication to send a message to Lanchia.
〈I see you’ve been putting in the effort. Let me know if anything important comes up.〉
First, he decided to explore the surrounding area where he’d be working for a while.
‘Quite a vast seafloor plain.’
The depth here was considerable, and since seaweed and other shallow-water life couldn’t grow in this area, it felt empty.
‘The soil must be different here.’
Naturally, even the sea had different kinds of seabed soil. Some kinds nurtured marine life better than others. Especially in the southern seas of the Continental Ocean, enormous ecosystems thrived.
But for some reason, the Great Azure Ocean had far fewer such regions.
Maybe it was because the sea was too deep, and sunlight couldn’t penetrate well.
While patrolling the seafloor plain, Yul discovered something peculiar.
There stood a pillar that was clearly artificial. It was inscribed with markings in the language of the Turtle Kingdom.
[Great Azure Ocean – Territorial Marker of the Turtle Kingdom]
Back in his days as a jelly octopus, he had once wandered into the Turtle Kingdom’s waters without realizing it and been attacked—but now he knew better.
‘If I go in there, those Turtle Knights will definitely attack. They’re a combative bunch.’
It was the same old problem. Even on Earth, nations with vast borders didn’t always guard every boundary.
No fences, no outposts—crossing borders into another’s land was often easy.
The sea was no different. Turtles sometimes crossed those invisible borders and entered the Orca Tribe’s territory.
Yul’s top priority was to patrol and stop the turtles from crossing over.
His second priority was to monitor strange beings coming from the Outer Ocean. They usually came from the northwest, though sometimes they took other routes.
‘If I spot anything suspicious and it seems like I can handle it, I’m supposed to contact command first, then eliminate it.’
The autonomy of a patroller came from decisions like these.
Usually, the Turtle Kingdom and the Orca Tribe maintained distant but peaceful relations.
Unless a political crisis arose, the patrollers stationed along the border ended up living rather uneventful lives.
‘Yaaaaawn.’
Surprisingly enough, orcas could yawn.
No one knew why. It wasn’t like they needed to breathe through their mouths, but sometimes a yawn just came, and opening and closing his jaws wide helped drive away the drowsiness.
‘There’s really nothing to do.’
That was the conclusion he came to after spending several days here.
Aside from occasionally hunting fish that swam by, the sea remained mostly silent.
There weren’t many creatures around, so there wasn’t much to see. Yul’s job was basically just to wander lazily around the vast patrol area.
He spent the dull hours of patrol deep in magical contemplation.
He was pondering the next formula of the Great Balance, following Devourment.
He had the canvas, but there was still so much left to draw—that thought alone kept his mind occupied.
For months, he’d discussed these ideas with Ian, and he’d come to believe that the step after Devourment would be Equilibrium.
* * *
-In the end, our goal is the final formula and magic itself—Great Balance (Magna–Libra). We need to know how long it’ll take to reach it, and how many formulas we’ll need before we can even attempt it.
Formulas were the lower units of magic.
To create the unique magic [Great Balance], one had to build up and refine the underlying formulas, stacking them like steps on a staircase.
“The records left by our ancestors only went as far as Devourment.”
-So, the fourth stage is Devourment.
That was the state in which one’s will overpowered the opponent’s, linking to them—whether through the magic circuit or even as deep as the soul’s domain. The scope of that devourment could vary greatly.
“If there’s a next stage, wouldn’t it be Equilibrium? Adjusting the energy balance between oneself and the target that’s been devoured.”
-I think Equilibrium comes right before the final stage. There must be something that comes before it. After all, could you really balance yourself with a typhoon just like that?
According to the principles of Great Balance, one had to be “connected” not only to other living beings or matter but even to abstract concepts in theory.
“So my body must be able to endure that connection.”
-Exactly. I believe the stage that should come before is Assimilation—where your body becomes one with something tangible or intangible.
“Then, once Assimilation is achieved, Equilibrium follows, and after that, the final magic—Great Balance—can be used.”
Ian let out a low hum.
“But if you assimilate with something like a typhoon, wouldn’t that strip you of your humanity—or even your existence as a living being altogether?”
-That’s true.
“To endure Assimilation while still maintaining one’s physical form… I’ll have to think carefully about that.”
Even after reconsidering it, this unique magic, Great Balance, was utterly insane.
The very idea that the target could be not just a living being but an abstract concept—whoever created this spell, Arthur Beltaine, must have been out of his mind.
-You’d need something to undergo the Assimilation in your stead… but I’ve no idea what that could be.
“If we sum up everything we’ve discussed so far, it’d go like this: Perception – Connection – Transmission of Thoughts – Devourment – ?? – Assimilation(?) – Equilibrium – Great Balance, right?”
-That sounds about right.
* * *
Yul snapped out of his recollection.
‘After Devourment… could there be a stage where one separates a part of themselves?’
If one were to fully assimilate, there would be no room left for thought.
Maybe there was a process of dividing a portion of one’s own soul’s domain—a necessary step before complete unity.
While lost in thought, Yul suddenly sensed something strange.
‘What’s that?’
Multiple magic sources were rapidly approaching.
They were coming from the direction of the Turtle Kingdom’s territory, moving at considerable speed.
Yul infused the formula of Perception into his ultrasonic waves and sent them out in a wide pulse. The reflected echoes painted a clear picture.
‘Five of them. One’s fleeing, four are chasing?’
He confirmed that the pursuers were Turtle Knights—broad, heavily muscled figures swimming with brute force.
And the one in front… looked like an ordinary turtle.
The only notable difference was the pair of glasses perched over its eyes.
‘What in the world…?’
Yul positioned himself near the border and blocked their path to intercept them.
-Stop! Beyond this point is Orca Tribe territory!