I Became a Veteran Who Has to Stir Up Trouble to Survive - Chapter 73

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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[073] Mermaid Temple
Sailing aboard Snake’s galleon, we reached our target waters with remarkable speed.
The water breaking against the bow transformed into a brilliant emerald hue, and the protruding rocks scattered throughout bore markings that appeared to have been left by mermaids.
“We should arrive shortly now.”
As Doran gazed toward the horizon and spoke, Radi asked with an anxious expression.
“We won’t be attacked by the mermaids like last time, will we?”
“Have no fear! Our ship is safe because we’ve carved special markings on the hull that the mermaids can recognize!”
Snake answered readily.
Once the hierarchy was established like a true sailor, I appreciated how he followed orders faithfully without scheming.
However, glancing around, I noticed Boggles’ gang huddled pitifully in the corner, looking thoroughly dejected.
‘They look like abandoned puppies.’
“Don’t worry. I won’t forget your efforts.”
Only then did Boggles’ gang brighten up and begin eagerly moving ropes about.
At the sandbar we reached stood a tower woven from coral—a place where the boundary between nature and artifice blurred.
The tower, built by stacking dead coral high, was impressive enough, but otherwise the place was desolate and barren.
Karen looked around with an expression of disbelief and spoke.
“Is this really the rendezvous point with the mermaids?”
“Yes! It’s not far from the Mermaid Temple! If we submerge a flag below the water surface here, a contact will arrive shortly!”
After we suspended a flag from the anchor rope and waited about ten minutes, a mermaid of considerable rank burst forth and shouted imperiously.
Thanks to having learned the language during my game days, I understood the mermaid’s words immediately, but I waited patiently for the Interpreter to relay the message.
“They say to skip the pleasantries and state your business. They’re busy and want you to hurry.”
“Good. Tell them I want to retrieve the spear I purchased from the Snake Gang.”
The Interpreter conveyed my words, but upon hearing the mermaid’s response, I fell silent in thought.
I could have sworn I just heard what sounded like a curse in the mermaid’s language….
“It’s fine. Translate it as is.”
“That is… well… they’re saying something about fish reproductive organs. Which is to say, reproductive organs are one of a fish’s bodily parts….”
“Ask what they want.”
“W-well, they say they want nothing. There’s nothing more to discuss, so they’re leaving now…!”
The mermaid turned coldly away as if to depart immediately.
‘I can’t let them leave like this!’
I had to somehow detain them and extract information.
Doran stepped forward and spoke directly.
“Your gathering of sacred relics—it’s related to Leviathan, isn’t it?”
“…How do you know that?”
In an instant, the mermaid’s eyes changed.
The mermaid Marius finally turned to face Doran.
‘The impending return of Leviathan is something only we mermaids know…!’
But how could a land ape possibly know of it?
As the mermaid warrior fixed me with a gaze brimming with killing intent, I spoke casually.
“You’re gathering Neptune’s Holy Spear because of Leviathan, aren’t you?”
“…Human. This is none of your concern.”
“Nonsense. If Leviathan emerges, every city in this region will be annihilated.”
“….”
‘He’s provoking me.’
If I let myself be drawn into this human’s pace here, I risked getting needlessly entangled in his schemes.
Marius clamped his mouth shut, turned his back, and delivered his final words.
“The spear blade of the Holy Lance is already secured in our Temple Repository. Even if you died and were reborn, it will never fall into your human hands—so abandon this futile pursuit.”
“Ah, is that so? Thank you.”
“…You’re a strange human.”
What on earth was he thanking me for?
Marius cast one final glare at Doran before diving beneath the water surface and vanishing.
As the Mermaid disappeared from sight, Malton let out a bitter laugh.
“The negotiation has fallen through. What do we do now, Doran?”
“Well, now that it’s come to this, there’s no helping it….”
I’d have to infiltrate and steal it, as always.
* * *
“You, this is far too reckless! Please reconsider this once more!”
“I understand that you’re powerful, but this is an entirely different matter! To walk directly into the Mermaids’ domain with your own two feet…!”
Boggles and the Snake Gang protested in unison.
Mermaids were a warrior race born in water, spending half their lives beneath the waves.
They were formidable enough on land, but on the seabed, there was no question about it.
And I was proposing to walk directly into the lair of these monsters?
The moment I was discovered, my limbs would be pulverized into powder.
After spending the last several days together, I couldn’t simply abandon them so meaninglessly, could I?
But Doran stared at the Pirates with indifference.
‘Do you think I want to do this?’
If the Quest hadn’t forced my hand, I would have been the first to flee long ago.
But if I didn’t steal the Holy Lance from the Mermaid Temple now, I’d lose all means of opposing Leviathan forever.
Doran issued orders to the pirate crew.
“I’ll return within half a day, so wait obediently on this sandbar. If any of you dare to sneak away, I’ll send the Ghost Fleet to hunt you down until you’re dead—don’t even think about causing trouble!”
“Y-yes, understood!”
After dismissing the Pirates, Radi approached with a worried expression.
“…You do realize this is incredibly reckless, right?”
“There’s no choice. If I can’t obtain the spear, I’m dead either way. We’ve come this far—I can’t give up now.”
And….
“That Mermaid said the Holy Lance is stored in a ‘Repository,’ didn’t she?”
From what I recall, there are four Repositories total in the Mermaid Temple.
She’d mentioned it offhandedly, thinking humans could never possibly find them, but with my disguise skill, infiltration was practically my specialty.
“Then, I’ll be going.”
Splash─!
“You have disguised yourself as a Rapid Crayfish!”
I transformed into a crayfish and dove beneath the surface, my tail thrashing propulsively through the water.
As I swam swiftly through the currents, the brilliantly illuminated Mermaid Temple came into view.
A marble structure draped entirely in vibrant coral.
Fish and crustaceans of every imaginable variety swam freely through the waters—a veritable paradise for marine life.
‘The Mermaids’ Storage Vault was in the lower levels of the Tower, if I recall correctly….’
As I circled the Temple conducting reconnaissance, I suddenly noticed something peculiar.
‘There are only two towers?’
The remaining two were still under construction, their massive stone blocks haphazardly stacked.
‘Fortunate. That narrows my options to two.’
East and west.
Which one held the answer?
As I pondered while fluttering my fins, an Octopus drifted past me, humming cheerfully.
─Andada-shi~ Andada-shi~ I’m an Octopus of the Sea~.
─Hey, wait a moment.
─What are you… a Crayfish?
─Do you happen to know which of those two towers holds the Sacred Spear?
─Sacred Spear? What’s that?
A dead end, then.
Just as I was about to leave, the Octopus scratched his head and answered.
─I don’t know about any Sacred Spear, but I saw the Mermaids moving busily in the East Tower! They were carrying something with great urgency.
─…I see. Thank you.
─But I’m rather hungry right now!
‘Yikes!’
As the Octopus extended his suckered tentacles toward me, I quickly swam away.
─Andada-shi~ Andada-shi~ Stop right there, Crayfish sir~!
─Damn it…!
As the Octopus gave chase, I fled toward the Temple Building.
But he pursued relentlessly, cutting through the water with determination.
‘I must shake him off somehow…!’
Thinking quickly, I smashed the lighting fixture mounted on the Temple’s marble column with my claws.
The Octopus, suddenly blinded by the brilliant light, covered his face with his suckers and fled.
─Argh!! My eyes!!
─Kahahaha! Run with your tail between your legs, you spineless cephalopod! Next time we meet, I’ll make you into sashimi!
I waved my claws triumphantly as I shouted.
Following the Octopus’s directions, I headed toward the East Tower.
Fortunately, I was able to enter the building interior without significant difficulty.
“You have infiltrated the Mermaid Temple!”
“It is one of the buildings the Mermaids use for multiple purposes! Normally, young Mermaids play freely here, but recently the atmosphere has been unsettled due to incidents occurring in the Sea.”
‘Fortunately, security doesn’t seem particularly strict.’
The Mermaids are intelligent and wise, yet because it’s so rare for other races to dive into the depths, they tend to have lax security measures.
The spacious interior of the tower was empty, with water blocked by a barrier rising to about human waist height.
As I splashed forward through the tower, I suddenly detected a loud commotion.
Peering from behind a pillar, I saw heavily armored Mermaids swimming in formation with purpose.
“Everyone, hurry! All units, move to your designated positions!”
“The final battle draws near! Give your all in training! I will not tolerate laziness!”
‘Are they conducting a rehearsal before launching another assault on the Temple?’
They all wore thick armor, and I could see a fair number of cavalry mounted on Kelpies and Hippocampi.
‘If security thins out, that works perfectly for me.’
I waited until the Mermaid Unit disappeared from sight before swimming onward.
Due to spatial constraints in the Seabed, Mermaids often repurpose buildings for multiple functions—passing through the Prayer Chamber and Training Ground, I reached the Prison, where guards stood watch.
I had to pass through here to reach the Storage Vault where the Holy Spear was kept.
But the moment I tried to slip past the guards and enter the Prison, I bounced off an invisible barrier.
“I’ve hit a barrier!”
“As long as this sturdy barrier holds, no creature can pass through! Only the guards here can dismantle it.”
‘So even this critical facility has a barrier to block intruders.’
If it were a physical mechanism like a key, I could have stolen it—but a magically-operated barrier left me without options for now.
Was there a clever solution?
Some way to make the guards willingly dismantle the barrier themselves?
As I pondered, a brilliant idea suddenly struck me.
This is a Prison—a place where inmates are held.
So why not simply bring them a prisoner?
I grinned, raised my tentacles, and swam back the way I came.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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