Became the Patron of Villains Chapter 307 : Raksas (3)

The Mother of Greed and Sin had utterly laid waste to the Greynifra forest.

While the elves were working hard on its recovery, their progress had only reached the heart of Fildagreen.

The outskirts remained trapped in a state of ruin.

At the center of this desolate, broken landscape—

“Mmm~”

A figure clad in black sacred robes wore a satisfied grin while scanning the surroundings.

He first looked toward the path Sin had originally taken.

Next, he turned toward the site where Sin had engaged in battle.

Even though he had not been present during those events—

The man in black sacred robes moved his head in sequence, as if he were watching a replay of the past.

“Not much remains now.”

He brushed the edge of his lips, his smile deepening significantly.

“Actually, it might be the right time to escalate things a bit.”

Having concluded his inspection, he whispered to himself and began to walk.

“What do you think?”

As he shifted his eyes to the side—

Another person stood there, appearing out of nowhere.

“You agree, don’t you?”

***

While Evan had opted to rest, Alon had traveled to the eastern coastline accompanied by Radan.

They reached a secluded beach, completely devoid of people.

Alon gazed at the water, lost in contemplation.

He checked the eastern horizon and the ground beneath his feet once more, then gave a small shake of his head.

Despite the passage of time, Alon had a vivid memory of the exact location where he had encountered the Observer.

The eastern coast looked almost identical to how it had years ago.

Nevertheless, the Observer was nowhere to be found.

Alon looked down at the necklace Yongrin had given him.

During their previous encounter, simply strolling along the shore with this necklace had been enough to summon her.

Alon sank into deep thought.

However, he quickly dismissed his worries.

“If I may ask, is something bothering you, Brother?”

Seeing Alon’s silence, Radan—who looked slightly uneasy himself—spoke up.

“A little. But you don’t look very happy either.”

“Oh, this? Please don't worry about it. I just had a sudden urge to fix the shape of that boulder over there.”

“Ah.”

Alon nodded as if that made sense and explained his situation.

“I assumed I could meet her by coming here, but she hasn’t appeared.”

“Oh, are you talking about the mermaid?”

“You were aware of her?”

Surprised by the question, Radan gave an awkward nod.

“Yes. I happened to see her passing by once before.”

“Is that so?”

Alon found the reaction slightly strange, but he pressed on with the conversation.

“I came to see her, just as you suspected… but it looks like it won't happen today. I thought she would show up if I had the necklace with me.”

As Alon gripped the jewelry, Radan spoke after a brief pause.

“If you’ll allow it, Brother, should I go look for her?”

“Look for her?”

“Yes. From what I know, mermaids reside in the deep ocean. I can dive down and search for her.”

“Won’t that be risky?”

“I possess an artifact. I don’t believe it will be very dangerous.”

After considering it for a moment, Alon nodded in agreement.

“In that case, I’ll leave it to you. Sorry for the trouble.”

“Understood!”

“Just make sure not to overexert yourself.”

“Don’t worry!”

Alon shared every detail he could recall from his previous underwater journey with the Observer.

In truth, he had mostly just stayed inside a bubble she created while she moved him around.

Even so, he hoped these minor details might be of some use.

And then—

“I will return shortly.”

With his instructions finished, Radan plunged into the waves.

Several hours went by—

The sun, which had been high overhead, began its descent.

[Wait, wait, wait!! I was wrong—guooooogh]

[Kreaaaagh—save me! Stop!!!]

By the time Blackie was shoving seawater down the throat of Basiliora—who had been teasing him for being "just a parasite that sleeps all day"—and pinning his head down with a small, adorable paw—

“I have returned, Brother!”

Radan surfaced from the water, where previously only the rhythm of the waves could be heard.

“You did well.”

“It was nothing. Scouting is quite simple for me.”

Alon passed him a towel he had taken from Evan earlier, just to be prepared.

Radan thanked him quietly, took the towel, and began his report.

“I managed to find what looks like the entrance to the Observer’s dwelling, just as you described.”

“Really?”

“Yes. I stayed outside to be safe, but would you like to go see it?”

“I’d like to, but I can’t survive underwater for long.”

“If that is the only problem, don't worry, Brother. I have an artifact for you as well.”

“…Truly?”

“Yes.”

With those words, Radan pulled a small earring from his robes.

“You can wear this.”

“This is—”

“A relic that enables underwater breathing.”

“Does it consume mana?”

“It does, and it has a daily time limit. I believe it lasts about an hour.”

“Wouldn’t that be a bit risky?”

When Radan had first entered the water, the sun was high, but now it was halfway across the sky.

That indicated he had been submerged for quite a while.

Alon also remembered that his previous exploration with the Observer had taken a significant amount of time.

“It’s fine. I took my time today because it was a scouting mission. Now that the entrance is located, one hour is plenty for a round trip.”

Radan then suggested, “Since it’s getting late, why don’t we head out tomorrow instead?”

“Let’s do that.”

Alon agreed.

The following day, after spending the night in Shifra.

Alon brought the necklace again just in case, but the Observer still failed to appear on the shore.

“Then, let’s go.”

“Yes, Brother.”

Alon equipped the artifact Radan had provided, and the two of them dove into the ocean.

The moment they submerged, a strange sense of buoyancy washed over them.

Alon instinctively held his breath and shut his eyes, but he soon realized he could breathe normally and slowly opened them.

As he did, the blurry water cleared, and Alon was momentarily captivated by the beauty of the undersea world.

Once he saw that Alon was comfortable, Radan pulled a blue gemstone from his chest.

As soon as Radan tossed the glowing blue jewel into the water—

Woooom~!

The currents shifted violently, and a tunnel began to form in the water.

“Let’s go, brother.”

“We are using this passage?”

“Yes, following this will get us to the destination very quickly.”

Following Radan’s lead, Alon moved toward the opening.

As soon as his hand touched it, he was pulled inside and began traveling at incredible speed along the set path.

“Now, just wait a moment.”

Radan’s voice reached Alon, who was looking around in astonishment.

“You have many talents.”

“Aw— no, brother. This isn’t actually that hard.”

“......Regardless, I doubt many people can navigate the sea like this.”

“Haha— perhaps. But it is entirely due to the power of the relics.”

For a split second, a look of bitterness crossed Radan’s face.

Alon caught the expression and felt a spark of curiosity.

“Brother, it’s about to get a bit dizzying.”

“What—urk~!”

No sooner had Radan spoken than the passage took a sharp downward plunge. Alon clamped his mouth shut tight.

Before long, Alon was dragged into the dark, unseen depths of the ocean, feeling as if he were being swallowed by the abyss.

“We have arrived.”

They reached the place he had once visited with the Observer.

Entering a massive hole and walking through a long tunnel with Radan only confirmed it further.

Despite being deep beneath the ocean—

The cave ceiling was covered in shimmering clusters that looked like stars reflecting from the sky.

Gazing at those stars, Alon walked deeper into the cave, and soon—

“You’ve arrived.”

He found the Observer.

However—

“I’ve been waiting.”

The Observer was impaled by a giant spike rooted in the wall.

“Are you alright?”

That was Alon’s immediate reaction upon seeing the mermaid.

It was only natural.

The spike through the Observer’s chest was so massive that anyone could see the severity of the wound.

But his alarm was short-lived.

“There is no cause for concern. This is a requirement for maintaining the observatory.”

“...To maintain the observatory?”

“To keep this space preserved, I must periodically channel my essence into the observatory.”

“......In that state?”

“Yes. Once the process begins, it must be held for over six months. That is why I could not leave, even though I knew you had arrived.”

As the Observer explained, Alon began to grasp the situation.

“So you were aware I was here.”

“Yes, because you were carrying that necklace.”

The Observer replied simply. She then looked past Alon toward Radan, a flash of surprise appearing in her eyes before it vanished.

“So, why have you come? If you are here to check on that same ‘longing’ from before, I cannot do that in my current condition.”

“It would be good to check that as well, but that isn't my reason for coming this time.”

Alon pulled out the curved jewel he had acquired in the East.

“Do you recognize this?”

He presented it to the Observer.

At first, the Observer took the curved jewel with a confused expression.

Then—

“...?”

Her eyes went wide as realization struck.

“Where... did you obtain this?”

She looked at Alon, visibly shaken.

“............What is it? Why are you so shocked?”

“This is—”

The Observer spoke the words.

“It is the Egg of Sin.”

Alon and Radan could only stare at her in stunned silence.