Chapter 146: The Sea Emperor Turtle
“I’ve heard from other adventurers about a massive shadow offshore. First, let’s hear your report.”
Seated on the same sofa in the same room as in the morning, I faced the Guild Master. Tea had already been served for everyone, and we were ready to discuss.
“The enormous island is actually a monster known as the Sea Emperor Turtle.”
“Huh?”
“What?”
The Guild Master widened his eyes, while the Guild Staff member, acting as the scribe, looked up from his notepad. A moment of silence followed, and then the Guild Master, regaining his composure, cautiously spoke.
“I apologize, but could you repeat that? I hope I didn’t mishear you.”
“The Sea Emperor Turtle is heading towards Port Town Reburos.”
“…Is that really certain?”
His expression was one of someone who had just bitten into a sour fruit, but that wouldn’t change the answer.
“I believe it’s accurate, as it was confirmed through appraisal.”
So far, I hadn’t heard of any skill that could fake an appraisal. Those who possess the appraisal skill capable of discerning such deceptions are already exceedingly rare. Unless someone openly confessed to having a skill for that, it would be nearly impossible to uncover. Besides, I couldn’t imagine a hulking turtle like that possessing such a skill.
“What! You have the appraisal skill too…? In that case, it seems unlikely that you made a mistake.”
With a deep sigh, he leaned back against the sofa, staring up at the ceiling. He seemed reluctant to hear more, but he couldn’t avoid it. After taking a sip of tea, he steeled himself and returned his gaze to me, urging me to continue.
“I estimate its length to be around five hundred meters. I couldn’t confirm its limbs, head, or tail, as they were all submerged in the sea. As for its status—”
The Guild Master nodded along as I spoke, while the scribe, finally snapping back to reality, hurriedly scribbled notes.
“I never expected you could see its status… A person with appraisal skills on par with Kant is indeed rare, but this increases the reliability of the information.”
“B-but this status is quite despairing…”
“By the way, do you all know about this monster called the Sea Emperor Turtle?”
The Guild Master and the scribe were visibly flustered, seemingly recognizing the name as a threat.
“Ah… There are records of it appearing about one hundred and fifty years ago, off the southern coast of the Empire. At that time, it was spotted moving from west to east, far enough that it wasn’t heading towards land…”
As he stroked his white beard, the Guild Master recalled that it had been seen merely moving across the sea. However, numerous residents had witnessed it, and due to the anxiety of not knowing when it might change course towards land, a subjugation plan was initiated.
“However, that subjugation ultimately ended in failure.”
“Failure…?”
At that time, the Sea Emperor Turtle was estimated to be around three hundred meters in size, and it seemed that even full-force attacks had no effect.
“I believe they managed to inflict some damage, but to it, it was probably akin to a mere insect bite. It continued on its way across the sea, eventually disappearing beyond the Empire’s waters.”
After finishing his tale, the Guild Master picked up his empty teacup, realizing it was already empty, and placed it back on the table.
“Wow…”
Rio covered her mouth with both hands, utterly shocked. It seemed that the Sea Emperor Turtle from the past had been an insurmountable foe.
“What was the strength of the forces back then?”
“Ah, there were supposedly three S Rank Adventurers present. The commander of the Empire’s knight order was also recorded to be of similar strength.”
“Even then, they couldn’t deal any significant damage?”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
That sounded almost hopeless. Kant had mentioned that even the maximum status of an S Rank Adventurer barely reached five digits. I doubted things had changed much since then… but who knows?
“Regardless, this is no longer just a problem for the port town. We need to inform the Imperial Capital immediately.”
That was certainly true. This was a matter for the military, not just adventurers. Considering that adventurers typically avoid confrontations they cannot win, I doubted we could rely on them much.
“I-I understand! I’ll prepare right away!”
“I will write a letter to the Guild Headquarters in the Imperial Capital and to the Empire itself. Of course, I will continue the investigation request to Kant and the others. I want to hear their firsthand accounts as well.”
“Y-yes!”
The staff member nodded vigorously and exited the room.
“You all must keep this matter confidential.”
“Of course.”
There was no need to unnecessarily plunge the town into chaos. It was clear that everything should be prepared before making any announcements. Fortunately, the Sea Emperor Turtle moved slowly. We had a decent amount of time to prepare after spotting the enemy.
After receiving the Completion Certificate from the Guild Master, we left the room and descended to the second floor. Other adventurers cast curious glances our way, but no one approached us. It seemed that those ranked C and above were quite aware of their boundaries, which was a relief.
After reporting the completion of the designated request at the counter, I returned to the inn while contemplating effective methods of attack against the Sea Emperor Turtle.