Chapter 74

I wanted to describe a swimsuit... but to be honest, I just wanted to write a setting that takes place underwater.

There is a headgear called the "Rich Salmon King Mask."

A monster called the Richman King Salmon... I encountered it in Lulias, and it was a bizarre creature with only its head resembling a fish while the rest of its body was a well-built, muscular man... from which I obtained the "Richman King Salmon's Head Mask," an item that can be equipped on the head, made from a special material.

The Richman King Salmon's Head Mask... well, it was just a fish head that I had stripped and worn, so it was fishy, had dead eyes, and had no value beyond being a novelty head. However, the Richman King Salmon Mask, which became a proper headgear, had the wonderful effect of "extending underwater activity time"... and as a bonus, its eyes regained some life and its gills occasionally moved. Is it alive?

Putting that aside, with the beneficial effect for underwater activities... a question arises.

──Could this become a full underwater breathing apparatus if fully upgraded?

◆

"So, we're going 'fishing.'"

"Understood: I have grasped the situation."

At the underwater Colosseum, which has become the secret base of the Revenge Hunters, now known as the Dress-up Squad, I briefly explained the situation to Saina, who looked puzzled.

The Rich Salmon King Mask currently only slightly extends underwater activity time. Compared to diving without it, it extends underwater breathing by about five minutes.

"In other words, I think if this is fully upgraded, it might enable full underwater breathing."

"The possibility is high. Current human processing technology retains some of the material's properties."

Underwater, or rather, in the ocean. In Shangri-La Frontier, it can be considered a kind of black box.

After all, humans cannot live underwater. They breathe air. Therefore, no matter how much they train their lung capacity, they can only stay underwater for as long as they can hold their breath.

There are fish people who can breathe and even sleep underwater, so it might be possible to gain underwater breathing through "Conversion"... but to perform "Conversion," you need to bring a fish person to a dedicated facility.

However, the only known conversion facility is in the Forest People's village... but fish people have a penalty for land activities. Players have not yet explored the Great Tree Sea, which stands in the way of conquering the New Continent, with weakened NPCs.

What about the conversion facility in the fish people's "capital"?

Q: I want to go to the fish people's conversion facility to gain underwater breathing.

A: Obtain the underwater breathing skill.

That's putting the cart before the horse.

"If we can breathe underwater, we can encounter materials and monsters in the ocean. Being able to dive for five minutes is only useful for warming up in a bath. We need at least thirty minutes to make it worthwhile."

"Confirmation: I recall that the contractor has visited the underwater city dominated by the Abyssal Kutannid before the contract."

"Yeah, that's right. This salmon head also originated from Lulias."

"The contractor tends to store monster materials without a specific purpose. Was it the same in Lulias?"

You know me well. Indeed, in Lulias, I hunted a considerable number of monsters, including the Atlantic Repnorka, and with the inventory I had at the time, I could recover materials without any capacity concerns...

"Well, I've used most of them... "

I used most of the Atlantic Repnorka materials to make a shield... and ate most of the fish... But most importantly,

"The Sea Eater Sword requires a large amount of materials from various underwater monsters."

It's a weapon that is extremely effective against fish and other swimming monsters, and I don't regret making it, but it was a glutton for materials. Well, I guess it's my fault for dumping materials on Beirak and saying, "Make something with this!" without specifying the number or type of weapon.

"So, I need to secure new fish materials. Hence, 'fishing.' Luring them with bait would be inefficient."

"Is this not just luring, but a full-scale underwater operation?"

"Pretty much. I've prepared a few underwater measures... "

First, the seaweed "Oxycelp" that grows along the coast of the New Continent! It allows you to breathe underwater for five minutes when placed in your mouth! Of course, you can't cast spells with something in your mouth, and if you accidentally swallow it, it's game over, but since I don't use magic, it's no problem. I've heard that most players who challenge the sea extend their underwater activity by continuously using this.

Next, the "Empress Skin Pseudo-Fins"! Most of the drops I got in Lulias were used for the Sea Eater Sword, but I still had a few left. One of them was the fin of the Sluggish Carrier. I processed it into this accessory... essentially, diving fins. However, wearing them attracts male monsters. It's a toss-up whether this is better than the刻伤的杂兵散射 (Note: This phrase seems to be a leftover from the original text and doesn't fit the context. It should be translated as "the swarm of minor enemies with scars" or similar, but it's unclear what it refers to in this context, so I'll leave it out for now.)

And then, "Water Vision Eye Drops." A drug to ensure clear vision underwater, as the name suggests, it's eye drops.

"This time, I'm diving without the Rich Salmon King Mask."

"Why: I don't see the need to avoid using the performance of that headgear."

"Well, this time I'm using a different headgear."

Not all players swing swords or cast spells from wands. Some create dangerous potions through alchemy, while others pour their hearts into making weapons and armor. Players who produce "sellable" items naturally need to sell them.

Even in the New Continent, the front-line base is crowded with players, so I usually avoid going out and tend to walk through less crowded areas at night. One day, I found a player selling this headgear in a quiet spot.

It's called the "Calling Coral Horn." In shape, it's closest to headphones, but with coral attached to the earpieces, making it a strange headgear. Depending on how you look at it, it might seem like horns growing from the temples, which is probably why it's called a horn decoration.

"Apparently, wearing this attracts special monsters."

"Question: Is it reliable?"

"Who knows? As long as I can make money, I can afford such whimsical purchases."

The player selling it claimed that using this would benefit them in some way, like an NPC's suspicious claims... but I bought it anyway, as pointing out such things to role-players would be rude. It apparently has a slight temperature resistance, which should help reduce stamina loss due to water temperature.

"And I'm wearing a swimsuit to assist with swimming!"

I bought this from another player's stall, but I can't help feeling that the creator's evil intentions are leaking through the bikini-style swimsuit.

But if it slightly reduces water resistance and has overlapping temperature resistance, I wouldn't mind equipping it even if it changes my gender...

Paaan!! (The sound of the bikini exploding and reverting to initial equipment after three minutes)

One less evil intention in the world, and that's a good thing.

"Alright... by the way, Saina."

"What is it?"

"Will you short-circuit or rust if you fall into water?"

"Indignant: I will not rust from mere water. Are you doubting my intelligence?"

"I didn't know intelligence could prevent oxidation... but you can operate underwater, right?"

"Affirmative: While the Elma-type is not as specialized for underwater activities as the Mana-type, it is equipped with underwater functions. And as a combat model, it includes underwater combat capabilities..."

"Does it?"

Saina, who apparently felt offended by the assumption that she was a poor swimmer, started explaining the Elma-type's performance specifications using holograms. I felt like the information I heard with my right ear and left ear collided in the middle of my head and bounced back out. I was only half-listening, but it seems Saina is ultimately going to prove the Elma-type's, or rather, her own underwater capabilities.

Her body was enveloped in light, and when it subsided,

"──Elma-type Underwater Combat Protocol [Kyoei Diver]: It has mid-to-high performance compared to all other types of Conquest Dolls."

"Ah, yeah, I get it. You're ready to go."

Saina, now in a knee-length swimsuit and goggles, stood confidently in full "let's swim" mode... Yeah, you're ready to go, alright.

I later heard that there's also an underwater enlightenment protocol [Mermaid Gravure] separate from the combat form. I declined it because I need combat power.

...

...

...

"..."

Kicking with my feet in the diving fins, I moved through the water, moving the kelp in my mouth to the best position while turning my head to check on Saina, who was following behind, with the clear vision provided by the eye drops.

If you ignore the kelp in my mouth, it might look like two women and a Conquest Doll are enjoying diving. They'd be the ones who die at the beginning of a shark movie.

"..."

Of course, when you breathe in, you have to breathe out. I exhaled a few bubbles from my slightly open mouth and looked around again.

It feels like a tropical sea. Colorful corals, fish, and anemones that clearly consider humans as prey. The fish seem to have more spines and horns than usual, probably because this is a fantasy world with diverse threats and ways to combat them.

"..."

Suddenly, a savory taste spread in my mouth. The effect of the Oxycelp had worn off, and I was told that when it gets soggy and flavorful, it means the effect has ended. I chewed it and swallowed it, then put another Oxycelp in my mouth. The seawater that entered my mouth with it was salty, a testament to the quality. Or perhaps the seawater is salty even on planets that aren't Earth.

Hmm. I've been diving for about ten minutes, but there have been no encounters so far. No fin slashers or other monsters that fearlessly attack my scars have appeared. Well, if no monsters attack, it's good for gathering materials... Oh, there's some Oxycelp. My oxygen reserve has increased.

"..."

"..."

I signaled Saina with a hand gesture. From the prearranged signals, I formed the "move forward" gesture, and Saina grabbed my hands in recognition. Being pulled by Saina, who was equipped with underwater jet boosters, was faster than my dolphin kick, which once made me feared as the "Killer Whale of the Frog World" in a certain game.

I don't intend to go to the deep sea, but I want to reach an area with stronger monsters.

While being pulled by Saina, I kept an eye out for any promising monsters... and a large shadow appeared in my field of vision.

"!"

I tugged on Saina's arm. I pointed down to her, and then I slowly approached it.

"..."

I couldn't help but let out a bubble. What I had spotted from above and was looking down at turned out to be much larger when I approached and touched the seafloor. It's as big as a small truck.

While savoring the savory taste in my mouth, Saina and I gazed at it... a fantastically large clam.

Protocol [Mermaid Gravure]

The Elma-type wears a bikini. There are various options like a pareo.

It also has a self-defense mode that delivers an electric shock similar to a stun beat to any non-contractor within a 2-meter radius. Whether it's due to Andrew's "will" or his creepy nature in life is unknown, but it can stun through all resistances.

Incidentally, if the contractor pees, they get an electric shock.

The manga adaptation of Shangri-La Frontier Volume 11 will be released on December 16th!

In the manga, we're just finishing the Lulias arc (GGC arc), and I was worried that Rist and Mord (and Aki Tsu) wouldn't join the Traveling Wolves soon, which would keep the side stories focused on the three outlaws... but it's already Volume 11. Double digits!

In the special edition, the three outlaws are seen cooperating to attack or be attacked by humans. It's the tragic end of beasts that have strayed from humanity.

In any case, how about spending the end of 2022 with Shangri-La Frontier? Hardrin will probably be selecting different colors for Salmon Run or something similar to ring in the new year.