Chapter 126: The Sea God’s Awakening

“Where are you rushing off to like that?”

“Don’t concern yourself.”

“You act like you don’t care, but…”

I ignored Runox following behind me and kept walking.

Living sacrifices—these weren’t just animals. They said people were being offered up.

I tried to look away, tried to dismiss it as a cultural difference.

This wasn’t Earth, after all. Maybe the values I carried from my past life were simply wrong here.

But I couldn’t turn a blind eye.

Sitting there with my bowl of noodles left untouched, I finally stood up and left the inn.

“You’ve made the right choice, Seris. Enlightening the ignorant and leading them on the correct path—that’s the mission of a mage. I knew you’d understand.”

The dawn wind was cold. My steps quickened naturally.

I wove through the busy footsteps of those preparing for the early morning.

The closer we got to the port, the stronger the scent of the sea became.

The breeze carried with it a sharp, fishy stench. A smell you couldn’t help but get used to while traveling.

It naturally brought to mind the color red—blood. The scent of human blood.

With enhanced physical abilities, my sense of smell had also improved. The blood smell wasn’t my imagination.

“Which way?”

“That way.”

I looked where Runox pointed. Tucked into a hidden corner of the port, far from plain sight, stood a black stone altar facing the sea.

The top of the altar was empty.

“There’s nothing there.”

“That’s strange…”

Runox tilted his head at my comment. Then he strode directly toward the altar.

I frowned watching him. The altar definitely reeked of human blood. But there wasn’t a single trace of the living sacrifice he had claimed to see.

Could they have finished the ritual and cleaned everything up?

Just as I followed after Runox with that thought in mind, a group of men in white robes suddenly rushed in from all sides and blocked our path.

“Do not come any closer. You’ll disturb the ritual.”

Runox furrowed his brow at the man who stood in his way.

“A ritual, you say? A special ceremony for the Sea God?”

“Have you ever seen one of the Sea God’s rites?”

The man raised an eyebrow at Runox’s question.

Black symbols representing the Sea God rippled like waves across the white robe he wore.

“I saw one from afar. You were lighting candles atop the altar and dancing with a large blade…”

“It was merely a ritual to calm the Sea God’s wrath. It’s nothing outsiders should concern themselves with. Did you perhaps watch the entire ritual?”

“Did something else happen afterward? You were dancing all day, so I left after watching a bit…”

At Runox’s reply, the robed man’s eyebrow twitched sharply.

A tense silence hung in the air. Then Runox took a step back.

“If I’ve overstepped, I apologize. I was simply curious.”

Though clearly displeased, the robed man didn’t press further. He gave a curt nod.

“Be careful. Unless you wish to be expelled from this place.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

With that, Runox turned away. I had no choice but to follow him.

The gazes of the Sea God’s followers in white robes lingered on our backs as we left the port.

As soon as we were out of sight, Runox finally spoke.

He didn’t use sign language this time. What came from his mouth was Dadel, the common language of the Karma Empire and the Kingdom of Abel.

“What do you think? Suspicious, isn’t it?”

He wasn’t wrong. The hidden altar, the thick stench of blood around it, and the aggressively hostile attitude of the Sea God’s followers—it all felt incredibly shady.

“It is suspicious. But why did you back down so easily?”

“The altar was spotless. That means they didn’t want the signs of the ritual seen by others. While roaming the city last night, I noticed that the average townsfolk have no idea human sacrifices are being offered. In a situation like this, demanding they produce the missing corpse would be pointless. All they have to do is deny everything. Between a deeply rooted local religion and an outsider, who do you think the people will believe?”

“You’ve thought this through more than I expected…”

“That’s a rather rude thing to say.”

“Sorry if it sounded that way.”

“Hmph. So, what’s your plan? You’re coming with me, aren’t you?”

I didn’t answer Runox’s question. After a long silence, we arrived at the inn where I was staying. Standing in front, I finally asked him:

“What’s the first step?”

“I plan to study the Sea God Cult’s doctrine.”

“Their doctrine…?”

“We need to understand their mindset if we want to make any plans going forward.”

“And where will you learn that? Planning to join the cult?”

“I already acquired it.”

He responded and pulled a black booklet from inside his robe.

“It’s the scripture used by the regular followers.”

I stared at the ominous-looking black book. For some reason, it gave me a bad feeling.

What if reading that thing scrambled your mind? What if fish scales started appearing on your body or something?

I sighed and nodded.

“So what happens after we study it all?”

“If the Sea God Cult really is corrupt… then I plan to destroy it.”

“Just the two of us…?”

“Exactly.”

“Are you planning to kill the Sea God too?”

“If necessary, yes. If it means enlightening the ignorant…”

“That thing looked like it was the size of a small island… Do you really think that’s even possible?”

“You have to believe it is. Belief is the foundation of all magic.”

Runox adjusted his glasses with a small smile. The sunlight glinted off the lenses.

“Alright. Let’s at least look into it.”

“A wise choice.”

Runox and I ended up spending the entire day poring over that little book.

There were still many letters I hadn’t learned yet, but thanks to his help, we managed to interpret all of it.

“Hmm…?”

“Hmmm…”

After going through the scriptures, we found that most of it was pretty mundane.

Not a single word about human sacrifice. The only unusual part was this: when a follower dies, their soul crosses over into the Sea God’s realm and joins him there.

“The last part is bothering me. ‘The soul will cross over and join them’… Only dark magic can bind a soul like that.”

“Do you believe this is related to dark magic?”

“I didn’t sense any trace of dark magic from the cult members performing the ritual.

It’s just a possibility. It’s hard to say definitively that dark magic is involved.”

At this point, it wasn’t something we could just overlook.

If this really was tied to dark magic, just as Runox suspected, then the entire continent of beastkin was in danger.

That’s when it happened. The whole inn shook as if a massive earthquake had struck.

RUMBLE—

“W-what is this…?”

It felt like every hair on my body stood on end. Instinctively, I understood. Something—some enormous being—was making its presence known.

Moments later, an eerie wailing sound echoed through the air.

It was a deep, resonant sound, impossible to produce with any normal vocal cords, like it had slowly risen from the depths of the ocean.

“Seems the Sea God has finally awakened.”

“The boats that left today won’t be coming back.”

The locals—beastkin who were dining at the inn—peeked outside and nodded.

They seemed familiar with both the quake and the dreadful wail.

After exchanging a glance with Runox, I burst out of the inn.

Nightmare was already waiting out front. It must’ve broken free from the stable upon hearing the ominous howl to protect me.

Nightmare’s mane stood rigid. The jagged crystal shards jutting out from its body looked especially threatening.

Snort—

Nightmare reacting like this meant things were seriously dangerous.

I climbed onto its back without hesitation. Runox looked up at me and asked,

“What about me?”

“Ah, sorry. This guy doesn’t carry men.”

At my words, Runox sighed and began gathering mana.

He must’ve cast a body-enhancement spell, as turbulent mana swirled around his limbs.

“Let’s ride. I want to see what this ‘Sea God’ looks like.”

I felt the same. As I kicked off atop Nightmare, Runox followed right behind.

Some of the townspeople and Sea God cultists also seemed to be heading out to witness the being for themselves.

The people who had rushed outside were now sprinting toward the dock.

As we broke through the gap between white buildings, the view opened up to reveal a wide expanse of blue ocean.

I narrowed my eyes, staring at the distant, blurry figure in the distance.

The unearthly wailing—impossible to describe in human language—rode the wind to reach us.

The Sea God, now rising above the ocean’s surface, was parting the clouds hanging high in the sky as it moved further away.

“The seawater’s receding…”

It was Runox’s voice, arriving just a beat late. Just as he said, the seawater that had filled the area beneath the dock was rapidly draining away.

The boats that had been floating on the surface were now settling onto the exposed seafloor.

Then, once all the water had vanished and the sea bottom was laid bare, a man clad in the white robes of the Sea God cult spread his arms wide and shouted,

“This is the Sea God’s blessing!”

“Woooaaah!”

Before his words even finished echoing, the townspeople charged into the exposed tidal flat.

Mud splashed into the air as they shoved and scrambled, fighting to grab as many fish as they could.

The fish flopping across the mudflats were each the size of a grown man’s forearm.

As I gazed toward the Sea God now hidden beyond the clouds, I asked Runox, “Think you can catch it?”

Runox said nothing. A cold breeze brushed against my cheek, and then he finally spoke.

“Why ask the obvious?”

Even after witnessing a monster that defied all understanding, Runox’s confidence remained unshaken. He adjusted his glasses and strode forward.

“Where are you going?”

“What are you waiting for, Seris? The path to the Sea God is open.”

“You’re actually going over there…? Who knows when the tide will come back in…”

“Which is exactly why we must hurry.”

Without hesitation, Runox stepped out onto the sticky mudflat.

His blue leather shoes sank into the muck as he moved forward with unshakable determination.