CHAPTER 86: ARRIVING AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA

I’m going to one of the mermaids.

"Hey, could you describe the scenery?" I want to know how far the mermaids can really see.

"...We are in a slightly dark cyan blue ocean, multiple species of fish are visible, while some sea monsters pass by, we are currently 11 kilometers above the surface."

"The seabed is not visible because we are still far away, it is also possible to see some mermaids exploring this area for fun or fighting sea monsters to strengthen themselves."

"If you look to the left in the distance, you can see a large rocky formation resembling a mountain, that formation is the active volcano [Huiana] that erupts every 2 years."

"Further to the right, you can see a large city, this is one of the many underwater cities created by my people, that specific city was built closer here so that the council can live ’near’ our goddess."

"And we are currently sinking into an oceanic deformity with a depth of 25 kilometers, the ocean pressure at the location we are going is about 2,500 atmospheres, or 250,000 kPa, or for a more crude measure, about 250 MPa."

"Currently, all the crew members on board are servants of the council who can reach down there."

She then falls silent after saying all this.

’This is too heavy...’ I roughly calculate the weight.

’It’s about...319 planes, each weighing 80,000 kg.’ Seeing this weight, I can only think.

It’s a good thing that the ocean pressure is not really a problem for me, although I still feel a slight weight on me.

Imagine having the weight of 319 planes on your body, it’s absurd, the mermaids who can reach down there swimming are very powerful.

I thank my passives that help with this, if I had been teleported there, I would have died due to the instant change in pressure, but as we are going progressively, my passives have adapted to the pressure.

’How does this ship hold up? Is it reinforced with magic?’

"What is the ship made of?" I ask, maybe it’s a good idea to build things the same way.

"State secret." She seems unwilling to tell me more than necessary, so I return to my chair and stare at nothing, contemplating the space.

I start making mana lines and forming shapes with them between my fingers, spheres, cubes, animals, I even managed to form an image of Zephyra.

I shift my attention to something else and start making ice statues, I make one of Zephyra, I wanted to make one of Mikael but I saw little of his real body to be able to make something really good.

’At least the one of Zephyra is perfect.’ Soon I melt the ice and evaporate the water and think about how else I can entertain myself, this place is so boring.

No one talks to me, no one tries to have a conversation, and everyone only responds when needed, they are practically robots. I wonder how tyrannical the goddess of the mermaids really is to make them act this way.

"More tea, Demon King?"

"..."

’AGAIN?’ This is already the 59th cup of tea, my hatred for this drink increases with each new cup, why the HELL do they keep offering me tea? Isn’t there any other drink in this place.

Also, why offer it so many times repeatedly, initially I thought there was something in the tea, but it’s just regular tea, nothing special, and that’s annoying.

"Can I drink your blood?" I ask angrily, I’ve only been accepting it out of politeness, but now I’m irritated.

"...You can." She responds after a moment, then takes a new cup, cuts her hand with a knife, and lets her blood flow until the cup is full, then she stops the bleeding and offers me the cup.

"..." I didn’t think she would accept the request, I only asked out of anger. I take the cup and drink, it’s good, it has a more watery texture than human blood, its taste is slightly sweet with a scent that reminds me of seafood.

It’s very good. I’ve never tasted a mermaid before, this makes me wonder what she tastes like.

’I’ll have to stay wanting...’ it would be terrible if I killed a mermaid just to eat and that caused me problems.

’There are only women...why are there no men among the mermaids?’ When I studied the races, there were also no men cataloged in the mermaid race, besides saying that they are only women.

’How do more mermaids arise then?’ It’s such a complex race, the mermaids who currently have fish tails are positioned in the same place as the beginning, but from the shape I deduce that it’s a magical formation.

A combined magic, but I don’t know what type, but since my table is in the center of the room, which is precisely the center of the formation, I deduce that it’s to attack me or contain me in case something happens.

"Hey...what’s your goddess like? Could you tell me a little about her?" I ask one of the mermaids, but I’m completely ignored.

"...Tsk" If it wasn’t for the goddess, I would have transformed this girl into my snack.

Soon there is a slight impact.

"We’ve arrived, now we’ll guide you to your quarters, Demon King." The same woman from the beginning says as the back of the ship opens, water doesn’t enter as if a barrier connects the area.

Soon we exit and I see a stunning building, in the shape of a temple and made of a luminous greenish prismatic material, the entire structure resembles a temple while the center is a gigantic dome.

And much larger than my original castle.

The lighting of the place is also stunning, and stands out amidst the darkness of the area, I think that if Atlantis existed, it would be something more or less like this.

We walk through what appears to be a corridor, the water does not enter, making the surrounding area like those theme park aquariums where there is a glass walkway to observe the outside.

It’s incredible, although the pure darkness of the outside diminishes some of the beauty. Soon we enter the structure that is the goddess’s dwelling, and the interior is as luxurious as the outside.

Entirely made of pure white marble with fine details engraved in pure gold, various statues and paintings representing the ocean, the mermaids, and the sea creatures are visible.

This place is so beautiful that it would leave the world’s museums behind, it seems the goddess likes ostentation, since this place is so amazing.

And this is just the corridor, even the floor is magnificent, it’s a white floor with a red walkway, it was carved in some kind of red stone to simulate a red carpet, but the stone has an intricate design that resembles scales.

’I wonder how the goddess is personally.’ I hope she’s not as difficult as I’m imagining.

...

...

...

"Delphina-sama, the Demon King has arrived." I, as one of the goddess’s servants, inform her of the Demon King’s arrival.

"..."

Naturally, no response, I soon walk away, a response was never expected, just needing to inform and leave.

There was once, 500 years ago, when a servant did not do what she should have by not informing and was torn to pieces by the goddess, without questions or inquiries, as soon as the goddess saw her, she killed her in front of everyone and then went about her business, ignoring the incident completely.

And this is quite common, for minimal mistakes the punishment is death, if an order is received, it must be carried out absolutely, anything else is irrelevant.

Newcomers generally always die from making slips, it’s an honor to work here but it’s also dangerous.

Soon I arrive at my area and wait standing in perfect posture.

"Hey, did you hear?" A colleague next to me speaks.

"One of the newcomers knocked over Delphina-sama’s daggers."

"...She’s going to die," I say with absolute certainty, those twin daggers in one of Delphina-sama’s many rooms are very important.

"It’s a shame, she had so much potential." Reaching here is difficult, but reaching this depth is easier than surviving this job.

There are only 3 veteran servants still alive working here, they have never made a single mistake and have managed to maintain their positions.

Soon I see a colleague walking nervously, she is the newcomer, she knows well what will happen.

After all, she is working in a place that became known as the "Prismatic Cemetery" when you work here, the only way out is death.

This place is almost a prison, no servant can resign or leave.

This girl has only 3 fates, the first is to be killed by Delphina-sama when she encounters her here, the second is to be devoured by sea monsters if she tries to escape, and the third is to be killed by the ocean itself according to Delphina-sama’s will.

The rules in the ocean are very strict, but here in this place they are even more rigid than out there. Although it is an honor to work here, it is also terrifying, you never know if you will have a tomorrow.

Moreover, no one even dares to defy Delphina-sama or try to reprimand her, she does what she wants when she wants, not only because she is a goddess, but because everyone knows her status is bizarre.

A colleague in the past had a skill that allowed her to see the status ignoring the level, she looked at Delphina-sama’s status and died, but before dying she managed to say that Delphina-sama’s [Life] is over 1 billion.

A number that leaves any other behind, with this amount of life, it is impossible to even try something against her, normally the life number is less than the power, that is, Delphina-sama’s attack power exceeds 1 billion.

We don’t know if it was just a delusion in the midst of death or if this number is real, but it is a fact that she is invincible when it comes to the ocean, and no ocean creature can challenge her.

Soon I hear footsteps, I recognize well who it is, the only person who can make sounds of footsteps besides the guests is Delphina-sama, no servant can make the slightest sound while walking.

All the servants nearby bow their heads to wait for her to pass, soon I hear the footsteps stop for a second and then continue, when the sound stopped, a noise had occurred while the decapitated head of the servant rolled to my feet.

When it is no longer possible to hear Delphina-sama’s footsteps, we raise our heads and start cleaning the corpse, after all, if we delay, the next corpses will be ours.

This is our routine where deaths have become commonplace, now we will take this corpse to Delphina-sama’s divine beast to eat and then return to our workplaces calmly.