Chapter 152

Seo Jian’s confidence wasn’t misplaced; fortunately, we were able to proceed with our investigation as desired, even crossing into areas off-limits to civilians.

Whoosh!

“…The terrain is too rough. It’s harder to move around here than on a cliff.”

As Cheong Joohwa said, this area was clearly not made for people to pass through.

Overlapping with a mountainous region that had experienced volcanic activity, the currents were swift and cliffs were everywhere.

If one were to fall into the water and be swept away, there was a real possibility of becoming stranded.

But there was no choice. Precisely because it was such a place, there was a chance the Yeoijoo was hidden here.

“Can you keep moving?”

I asked Seo Jian, who had the weakest stamina among the three of us. She let out a slightly labored breath and nodded.

Fortunately, it seemed she was still okay.

“Do you sense any particular energy?”

With water all around, this was a place where Seo Jian’s detection abilities could truly shine.

After taking a deep breath and closing her eyes to concentrate for a moment, Seo Jian soon pointed with her finger and continued.

“…Amazing. There’s something about 2km away, at the base of a cliff.”

“You can see that far in one go?”

“Normally, it’s difficult. The energy is just that strong, so I could sense it.”

That was quite good news. If something was emitting that much presence, there was a decent chance it was none other than the Azure Dragon’s Yeoijoo.

We hurriedly picked up our pace and moved in the direction Seo Jian guided us.

And finally, we reached the cliff.

“This place really feels remote. An ordinary person wouldn’t be able to get back up if they went down.”

“…The signal is weak too. We’ll need to be careful.”

But we couldn’t hesitate. I once again summoned Black Yin and the flock of Black Birds, taking the lead to guide the group.

“Where is the energy coming from?”

“…Inside the cliff rock?”

Somehow, it felt like déjà vu.

As if following the traits of games from that era, this time too, the place where something was hidden was a secret space inside the cliff.

Soon, we broke the rock, found the entrance, and entered one by one, beginning to look around.

However, this time, we couldn’t easily locate the source of the energy.

“Don’t you feel anything?”

“…Maybe because we’re inside the place where the energy is emanating, I can’t distinguish it from here.”

Then we had no choice but to search on foot.

After rummaging around for a long time, tirelessly searching the inner space, I was soon able to reach a definite conclusion.

“This space itself is emitting energy.”

“Is that so?”

“I don’t know the reason, but the entire ground is imbued with powerful Spiritual Power. Perhaps it was used as a training ground in the past.”

I didn’t know the original reason the ground came to hold energy, but in any case, it meant this was another dead end.

Cheong Joohwa and Seo Jian, with disappointed expressions, walked over and climbed back up the cliff.

Our spirits dampened somewhat, but with this, only one final destination remained.

‘So that place was the answer after all.’

In fact, if there was one location among the three with the highest probability, I thought it was precisely that place.

Somewhere beyond the sea, off a beach in Sokcho, Gangwon-do.

Towards the place where the Yeoijoo awaited, we set off once more.

There were quite a few people at the beach.

Even though it was late April and the weather hadn’t fully warmed up yet, it seemed people occasionally came to pitch tents, boil ramen, and spend a night with family.

Perhaps because of that, a safety officer was out inspecting the beach, so we first approached him to explain the situation.

Sigh.

“I am Han Kangyoon, a state-certified 3rd-Rank Exorcist. We need to investigate something further out at sea, so I came to inform you not to worry.”

“Huh? Ah, I see. Understood. Is it a dangerous situation?”

“Not at all. There’s no need to evacuate the citizens.”

The other party was unexpectedly a young man. He stared intently at the Exorcist license in my hand, then soon began to leave somewhere with a surprised look.

He probably found it quite novel that I, who likely looked like just a student, was a state-certified Exorcist.

A short while later, a familiar voice began to echo from the speakers installed at the beach.

[Ah, ah. Mic test. This is a public announcement. Currently, a party of Exorcists dispatched by the state is entering the beach for investigation. We ask all citizens to please refrain from crossing the boundary line and continue your activities within the inner area as before. This is a repeat announcement…]

Listening to the gist of it, it seemed they were worried that citizens seeing us go further out to sea might break the rules.

By the time I reached the edge of the waves, Cheong Joohwa quietly spoke up.

“But how will we move? Do you have a maritime Shikigami by any chance?”

She asked with a hint of anticipation, but unfortunately, I didn’t possess such a Shikigami at the moment.

Instead, there was a means of transportation more convenient than that.

Swish.

“…I kind of expected this.”

Seo Jian, meeting my gaze, let out a small sigh and began to draw up her Spiritual Power, creating a thin curtain of water.

Soon, the circular curtain surrounding us naturally blended into the waves, floating on the water and leaving the beach behind.

Cheong Joohwa let out a gasp at the rare experience, and I too nodded with a satisfied look.

And so, we drifted around as before, searching for the Azure Dragon’s Yeoijoo.

“Nothing particularly special seems to be in sight.”

“…Same here.”

“It’s fine. I was planning to go a bit deeper from the start anyway.”

The Specter that appeared at Ayajin Beach was originally first discovered on Oki Island in Japan.

And it crossed the East Sea in a straight line from there to land here at Ayajin, achieving an increase of two or three whole grades in the process.

In other words, it meant that somewhere along the straight line connecting this beach and Oki Island on a map, the Azure Dragon’s Yeoijoo existed.

‘…The direction is certain.’

But honestly, I couldn’t guarantee how far we needed to go.

The reason I prioritized other locations even though Gangwon-do seemed most certain was the same: I had an intuition that the search here wouldn’t be easy.

Swoosh.

Splash.

Splash.

Squelch!

About an hour passed like that, but still, there were no noticeable results. Doubt began to appear on the faces of the group.

“Um… How far are we going? If we keep going like this, we’ll just reach Japan…?”

That was true.

Frankly, if we went further, there was a risk of conflict with both the Korean navy and the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force.

‘Honestly, I thought we’d find it by around here.’

But I had no intention of retreating. This was absolutely necessary. The trials to come were far from trivial, and I couldn’t back down just because of such issues.

Having made my decision, I quickly began giving instructions to the two.

“From here, we’re going down. We’ll submerge the air bubble, wrap it in a Concealment Art, and move without being detected.”

With the Cursed Techniques from the future that I possessed, I could sufficiently neutralize this era’s detection devices.

At that, Seo Jian, while diligently drawing up her Spiritual Power, expressed her dissatisfaction to me with a somewhat sulky expression.

“…It would be nice if you told us about this kind of thing in advance. I’ve never done this before.”

It felt more like a complaint than anger. Well, since we were suddenly embarking on such a dangerous task, Seo Jian’s role of moving the air bubble had become crucial.

Of course, I gave the order judging it wouldn’t be difficult for her now, but Seo Jian seemed somewhat burdened by the responsibility of being in charge of the two of us now.

To that, I honestly admitted my fault.

“Sorry. I didn’t anticipate we’d come this far.”

“…Fine, just cheer me on so I don’t make a mistake.”

Splash.

Seo Jian slowly lowered the air bubble below the surface, creating multiple small bubbles to form a passage for oxygen to come in.

And I steadily deployed the Concealment Art in response.

Whoosh.

Swoosh.

Seeing the two of us like that, Cheong Joohwa asked.

“What should I do?”

“…If any Specters appear, intercept them.”

“Hey, there’s no way one would suddenly appear in a place like this.”

At that flag-tempting statement, Seo Jian and I looked at her with somewhat uneasy eyes.

Cheong Joohwa averted her gaze slightly but continued.

“The saying that there are many Specters in the sea is just an old tale. These days, with systems in place, it’s the same as on land. There aren’t many Specters that can even operate in places like this to begin with.”

It was certainly true, but hearing it stated so bluntly somehow didn’t feel reassuring.

And as if on cue, that thought of mine soon became reality and confronted us.

“Uh, uhh?”

“…Sigh.”

Cheong Joohwa looked flustered as if this couldn’t be happening, and Seo Jian let out a sigh.

‘Level 44. Stats and Traits are about average.’

An opponent of this level wasn’t too difficult. Having assessed it, I quietly gave Cheong Joohwa an order.

“Can you handle it alone?”

“…Y-yes. I’ll deal with it quickly.”

Perhaps sensing it wouldn’t be good to disturb Seo Jian, who was concentrating, Cheong Joohwa unleashed her Cursed Technique with more speed and precision than ever, crushing the opponent.

Truly incredible power and speed. It had only been a little over a month since we last fought, yet she showed even more growth than before.

“I-I didn’t disturb you, right?”

“…Yeah. No problem.”

Leaving behind Cheong Joohwa, who let out a sigh of relief, I cast a somewhat questioning gaze at the strange sight before my eyes.

Because I had caught sight of the Specter’s body shrinking as if withering just before it was exorcised and disappeared.

‘Could it be?’

A phenomenon that appears in Specters that have temporarily gained power due to the influence of some energy.

If so, that meant it was at least nearby. The artifact that had channeled power to it.

“Focus. The target is probably nearby.”

“Huh? Just now, Azure Dragon-nim…”

As if confirming my thoughts weren’t wrong, the Azure Dragon, who had been silent all along, began sending a signal to Cheong Joohwa.

The content was very simple.

“He says he feels a familiar energy? Around here.”

“…Wait, I just sensed it too.”

Seo Jian, who had slowly moved the air bubble somewhere, landed on the sandy seabed submerged in water and pointed below with her hand.

“This time, it’s here. Definitely.”

The Azure Dragon’s reaction and Seo Jian’s feeling. This was clearly the answer.

Finally sensing that this tiresome journey was over, I began deploying various Cursed Techniques to find the entrance.

And immediately after. Perhaps in response to one of the techniques I sent out, a vibration was suddenly felt, and the ground shook.

“Wha? This feels strange…”

Whoosh!*

Without even a chance to finish speaking, we felt something with powerful force pulling at our bodies and were sucked into the ground along with Seo Jian’s air bubble.

Unable to control our bodies from the shock, we tumbled around inside the bubble, clutching our dizzy heads when the impact finally ceased, and a new world unfolded before our eyes.

‘…What is this?’

It was a massive structure submerged beneath the sea.