novelraw Chapter 85
Chapter 85
Ch.85 Selena! What Have You Done?!
“We should catch up to them within a few hours if things go well.”
At Leah’s words, Mia wiped her forehead and sighed in relief.
“Thank goodness. I won’t have to suffer through this anymore.”
Mia possessed exceptional talent in communing with spirits.
Even so, the recent schedule had pushed her to her limits.
Summoning two mid-tier spirits per day was impressive—but it drained her stamina relentlessly.
Cecilia grinned wickedly.
“Hehe… We’ll finally catch Priest Hans!”
She already imagined grabbing him by the collar and shaking him senseless—to punish him for all the heartache he’d caused.
Determined to deliver divine retribution for his betrayal, her mood lifted instantly.
In contrast…
‘What should I even say when I see him?’
Scarlet considered slapping his face and scolding him thoroughly—but hesitated.
After all, the Patron was Scarlet’s savior.
Striking him felt too harsh.
The gentle and pure-hearted Scarlet fretted over what to say.
Meanwhile, Leah’s eyes burned as she stared toward the direction where her master was.
‘Just you wait, Master! If I catch you this time, I’ll burn every last strand of your hair off—leave you bald!’
She was furious that he’d faked his death to deceive her.
There was no way she’d let him off easily when they met.
Hans was already family to her—and she’d never hand over her long-held first love to a friend.
‘Not to that fox-faced woman—never!’
Leah prided herself on having sound judgment—and she had no intention of sharing Hans or letting him go.
By comparison…
‘Ugh, I’m exhausted. Once I see the Sage, I’ll beat him senseless until I feel better.’
Mia, worn out from spirit summoning, felt oddly confident—almost smug.
Regardless, all three women ground their teeth in anticipation, eager to finally confront Hans and vent their pent-up frustration.
Hans’s future looked grim indeed.
***
Several days later…
The ship suddenly stopped.
Having sailed at breakneck speed, the abrupt halt sent everyone lurching forward by inertia. I barely managed to grab the railing on the deck.
“Kyaaah!”
Nephert let out a girlish shriek, feigning fragility.
Nekhuf quickly wrapped his arms around her before she could fall.
“You okay?”
Ugh… so nauseating.
Even though he wore a blindfold and couldn’t see, just hearing his voice made my stomach churn.
—Kyaaa?!
—Wha… what’s going on?!
The deck descended into chaos.
People tumbled across the floor, drinks spilled everywhere—it was pure pandemonium.
If the ship had stopped so suddenly… there could only be one reason.
“Did we finally arrive?”
I asked calmly.
Selena’s eyes lit up.
“Are you talking about the treasure ship?”
I smiled.
“Yeah. Exactly.”
We’d finally reached the spot where my ship had sunk after the Kraken attack.
The nostalgia hit me hard.
—Why did the ship stop?!
—Oh… dear gods…
—Did we hit a reef?!
—Captain! Where’s the captain?! Get out here now!
—Do you even know who I am?!
Passengers panicked, assuming they’d struck a reef.
The crew was surely in for a rough time—after all, everyone aboard was elite nobility or wealthy merchants, and their complaints would be especially fierce.
Who wouldn’t be angry? They’d paid a fortune for a relaxing voyage, only to have the schedule disrupted.
I silently prayed for the captain’s soul.
But that wasn’t my concern right now.
I pulled the Trident of the Sea God from my spatial bag.
“Oh? Brother, is that a spatial bag?”
“Yep, it is.”
I gave Nekhuf a casual reply while spinning the trident dramatically in my hand.
I didn’t need to—it just looked cool.
“Rise!”
As I raised the Trident high, foam erupted from the sea—
—Splash!
The split wreckage of my sunken ship surfaced from the depths.
—Kyah?!
—Wha… what is that?!
—No way…
Long submerged, the vessel was now encrusted with barnacles and seaweed—resembling a ghost ship.
“Brother…?”
“No… no way…”
Nekhuf and Nephert stood frozen, jaws dropped, staring blankly at the wreck.
I couldn’t retrieve all the gold and conceptual artifacts alone, so I called for help.
“Selena, Nekhuf—come give me a hand.”
Nekhuf nodded dumbly, still in shock.
“Yeah.”
—Splash!
“Hans! Is that the treasure ship?”
At Selena’s question, I gave the trident a light flourish.
Water surged between the passenger liner and the wreck, forming a beautiful staircase.
“Yep. There’s something incredible inside. Ready to go?”
The three of us stepped onto the watery stairs and climbed onto the stern of the broken ship—where the cargo hold once was.
—Creak…
The deck was a mess.
Rotting wood groaned underfoot, and flopping fish, seaweed, and barnacles littered every corner.
The stench of rotting fish filled the air.
Perhaps because elves had sharper senses than humans, Nekhuf pinched his nose in disgust.
“Ugh… this reeks! I’ve never smelled salt and rot this strong in my life.”
Selena frowned, clearly uncomfortable too.
“Watch your step. The floor’s really slippery.”
“Got it.”
We headed toward the cabin.
I grabbed the doorknob and turned—
—Screech!
The knob spun uselessly—rusted shut from years underwater.
“Brother, move aside.”
“Think you can handle it?”
I stepped back slightly—
—Swish! Swish!
In a blur too fast to see, Nekhuf slashed his sword, reducing the door to splinters.
Wow… he challenged me to a duel with that kind of skill?
I silently congratulated myself again for refusing.
If he ever asks again, I’m running.
Selena’s eyes widened in awe.
“Whoa… unbelievable!”
Seeing her amazed expression annoyed me a little.
Tch. I’m way more impressive than that.
Honestly… I felt a twinge of jealousy.
“Were you using Mage’s Eye just now?”
Nekhuf shook his head.
“No. I only use it when absolutely necessary—it’s way more tiring than it looks.”
He shrugged nonchalantly—a little too smug for my liking—so I took the lead.
The cabin was pitch black.
So dark I couldn’t see the end, and the foul stench gave me a headache.
“Light Ball.”
I conjured a glowing orb and stepped forward.
—Creak.
“Careful. The wood’s rotten.”
After being submerged in salty seawater for so long, the planks could collapse at any moment—I warned them as we advanced.
Following the corridor, we soon found stairs.
I remembered clearly: the conceptual artifacts were stored in my room, and the precious metals were in the lowest hold.
Better grab the money first.
I’d collect the artifacts on the way back up.
“Where’s the treasure?”
“Probably in the cargo hold.”
I led the group swiftly to the hold’s entrance.
“Hehe… I’m rich again.”
I already had plenty of money—but compared to what I used to have, it was nothing.
Once I recovered the gold and artifacts here, a life of comfort awaited me.
I grabbed the doorknob and twisted hard—
—Click!
This one wasn’t as rusted—it opened easily.
Then, a bright blue glow flooded my vision.
Huh? Bright light?
“No way!”
Beyond the door was a gaping hole in the hull—
sunlight poured through, and ocean waves rolled in.
“The cargo hold… is it halved?!”
At least some cargo boxes remained inside—but compared to the original stash, only a tenth was left.
“No… no, this can’t be!”
The shock made my legs give out.
—Thud!
All that hard-earned wealth… gone.
“Hans, are you okay?”
“Brother! Snap out of it!”
I sank to the floor, seawater soaking through my pants.
Sure, I could earn it all again—but the effort it took to build that fortune…
Running a trading company demanded immense time and labor.
And now, all that effort had vanished into the ocean before I could even enjoy it.
Retrieving each sunken cargo box one by one would be nearly impossible—even with conceptual artifacts, my current level had limits.
Selena gripped my arm, her eyes filled with worry.
Seeing her face eased my turmoil slightly.
“Sigh… guess there’s no choice. I’ll earn it again.”
What’s lost is lost.
It’s a shame—but money can be made later.
Right now, the King of the Dead was a far bigger problem.
“Hans?”
“Brother?”
I stood up and pried open the nearest cargo box—
Inside, golden light blazed brilliantly.
Well… salvaging even a few boxes is better than nothing.
The sight of countless gold coins soothed my aching heart—each box held an enormous fortune.
“Nekhuf, give me a hand with this?”
“Huh? What do you need, Brother?”
I handed him my spatial bag.
“Nothing much. Just help me open it wide.”
“Sure, one sec.”
***
Selena watched silently as Nekhuf helped Hans expand the spatial bag.
Then her gaze dropped to the Trident of the Sea God in her own hands.
‘If I strike now… could I drown them both? Could I steal the pocket from Nekhuf?’
With the Trident, she held absolute power over the sea.
Unaware of her thoughts, the two moved to another crate, stuffing it into the spatial bag.
The Goddess’s Wedding Ring on Hans’s finger couldn’t protect him from everything.
If it truly granted omnipotent protection, he wouldn’t have suffered so badly at the hands of the Guardian in the Arctic.
‘Hans’s divine power is important… but what if I can eliminate the Master of Equality?’
Wouldn’t it be worth losing that power—if it meant destroying him?
‘Even if I fail… I can just regress.’
In her mind, failure wasn’t even a possibility.
She likely already knew:
This was her chance to finally send Hans to his death.
Yet bitterness filled her mouth.
‘If only you’d taken my hand…’
She shook her head, banishing the thought.
She already knew his true intentions—how he followed false gods and sought to harm the true one.
That’s why she had to uphold justice.
After it was all over… once everything was settled…
she’d meet Hans again, apologize, and be with him.
‘So please… don’t hate me too much.’
With sorrowful eyes, Selena stared at the defenseless backs of Hans and Nekhuf.
It pained her that innocent Nekhuf would be caught in this—but this was her only chance to permanently eliminate the Master of Equality.
Killing him would remove a future variable and grant humanity true freedom.
That was her sacred purpose.
Her resolve hardened.
Without hesitation, she stepped toward them.
And then—
—Thud!
“Aaagh!”
The Trident of the Sea God pierced straight through Nekhuf’s chest.
Selena stood holding the trident.
Hans stared in utter horror.
He looked between Nekhuf and Selena, disbelief etched on his face.
“Nekhuf! Selena! What have you done?!”
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