Chapter 9: Mars's Desire
After carefully casting Search, I confirm there is no one around.
The moment to finally unleash the desire and anticipation I've bottled up for so long has arrived today. From this day forth, I no longer need to hold back.
And so, the time to execute my plan has at last come.
I will be true to my desires and unleash them at last.
"Lightning!"
The silence of the underwater realm is shattered as a brilliant flash of golden light illuminates the surface. Sparkling like a cluster of fine jewels, the radiance reaches down into the ocean depths. Gazing at the sight before my eyes, I pump my fist in my mind, drowning in pure satisfaction.
Yes! Just as I expected, firing off Lightning underwater keeps the sound from leaking outside!
Now I can finally train my Lightning Magic! I let out a silent cry of triumph in my heart.
Lightning Magic is exceptionally powerful, so I wanted to avoid anyone noticing while I trained. Underneath the waves, however, that concern vanishes completely.
That was why I had asked Marquis San Marina in detail beforehand about where the Afanc usually appears. According to the marquis, the Afanc only shows up far out in the open sea, so it shouldn't appear anywhere near here.
However, an unexpected turn of events occurs right then and there.
The fish swimming beneath the sea have floated right up to the surface.
Huh? I could have sworn I heard back in my past life that when lightning strikes the ocean, fish underwater don't take damage... If I remember right, the charge disperses across the surface and doesn't reach down below.
That was precisely why I made sure no one had their head above water before casting my Lightning Magic, but...
Well, my Lightning Magic isn't ordinary lightning, so maybe the electrical properties are different.
This is a bit risky. I'd better head a little farther out to sea.
Swimming out toward the open water, I find a cluster of exposed reefs.
Around here, no one should come around.
Diving into the sea, I give free rein to my desires. After re-confirming that the area is empty, I cast Lightning once again. Golden lightning shoots forth from my right hand, painting the ocean depths in brilliant gold.
Sure enough, more fish float to the top. This reef must be a prime gathering spot, because several dozen fish float straight up to the surface.
It'd really be a waste to just leave them all here like this.
Besides, if I sell these fish, there's a decent chance I can turn them into gold.
Ever since moving up to S-Class, my opportunities to dine out in the city of Regan have increased dramatically.
Call it a guy's petty vanity or pride, but I don't want to make Clarice and the others pay for our meals.
As a result, my gold coin pouch has grown considerably lighter.
With that thought in mind, I stand atop the reef and cast Water Magic to construct an ice chest, tossing the floating fish inside one after another.
This should keep them from losing their freshness.
If it turns out I can't sell them without fishing rights, I can always just give them away. My primary goal is training my Lightning Magic anyway; the fish are merely a byproduct.
I swim to another spot that looks packed with fish and cast Lightning over and over.
By the time my MP is near exhaustion, I call it a night. The ice chest now holds well over a hundred fish.
Carrying it by hand is impossible, so I use Wind Magic to levitate it. By the time I make it back to the villa, the sun is beginning to peek over the horizon.
Hurrying around to the back of the villa, I stash the ice chest out of sight and cast Water Magic again to keep the contents thoroughly chilled.
When I slip back into our room, Baron, Dominic, and Lorenz are still fast asleep in the land of dreams.
Glancing past the three of them, I take a quick bath before crawling into bed.
"Mars? Is something wrong? You look sleepy."
At breakfast, Clarice, sitting beside me, gazes at me with concern.
"Yeah, I guess I pushed myself a little too hard yesterday, so I'm still feeling a bit wiped out. I think I'll lie back down for a bit after breakfast."
Truth be told, I only got two hours of sleep, so my MP hasn't fully recovered yet either.
I need to get myself back to peak condition before starting my beach sprints.
Though before that, there's something I have to take care of.
"Instructor Lorenz? If someone happens to catch fish in the sea, is it impossible to sell them?"
I ask Lorenz after we return to our room.
"No, it's entirely possible if you accept a quest," he answers.
Of course! That counts as a quest too!
"Thank you! You're all heading to the beach, right? I'm going to drop by the Adventurers Guild for a bit!"
Hauling the stashed ice chest along, I set off for the Adventurers Guild.
I had mapped out the location of the Adventurers Guild when we first arrived in San Marina, so I don't lose my way.
Heading straight for the guild, I immediately address a staff member at the counter.
"Excuse me. I'd like to take on a quest for catching fish..."
The female receptionist responds with a polite smile.
"A fish harvesting quest, is it? Could you please provide a few more details?"
"Well, I caught a lot of fish in the sea yesterday. I was hoping to register a quest to turn them in."
After pondering for a moment, the receptionist pulls out a quest form from behind her desk and responds while reviewing her records.
"I see. San Marina has several quests related to fishing. In this case, we can process it as a quest for fish you have already caught, if that works for you."
"Yes, please! That would be perfect!"
The receptionist checks the fish species and calls over a specialized appraiser, officially accepting the quest on the spot and immediately marking it as completed.
She hands me ten gold coins.
"Huh? They're worth this much gold?"
That's one million yen in Japanese currency! Talk about a massive haul!
"Yes. While poor catches recently have driven prices up, the fish you brought in are completely undamaged and in immaculate condition, hence the premium payout, Master Mars."
"Thank you so much! I'll bring more if I manage to catch any again!"
Leaving the Adventurers Guild behind, I return to the villa and immediately dive back into bed.
When I open my eyes, a sweet, fragrant aroma tickles my nostrils. Even without opening my eyes, I know right away—this scent belongs to Clarice.
"Good morning, Clarice."
When I call out without opening my eyes,
"Huh? How did you know?" she asks, sounding slightly flustered.
Clarice's voice carries a hint of panic.
"Because your scent is special to me."
Opening my eyes, I find Clarice's face right in front of mine. A shy smile plays across her lips.
"How are you feeling? Did you get some rest?"
"I'm all good now. But what are you doing here, Clarice?"
"Huh? Ah, well... I was worried about you, Mars, so I came to check on you. Plus, there was something I wanted to consult you about. Before I knew it, time just slipped by... Oh, !? don't worry, I got permission from Instructor Lorenz first!"
I guess she did need permission since this is technically the boys' room.
Getting up from the bed, I sit down on the plush sofa, and Clarice settles down right beside me.
By the way, Clarice is wearing a different color variation of yesterday's swimsuit. Yesterday was white with pink accents, but today's is white with light blue. Over top, she wears a sheer white rash guard.
"So? What was it you wanted to consult me about?"
Averting my gaze awkwardly, I ask while looking down.
"How much should we tell Karen and Misha about ourselves?"
"How much? You mean about Holy Magic?"
"Yeah. They're in our party, and they've become candidates for your fiances, haven't they? I think the time to make a decision will come eventually."
Well, they're technically candidates... but Clarice might have accepted them as my fiances even before I did.
Getting back to the topic, revealing our Holy Magic would certainly broaden our tactical options.
The only condition is ensuring neither of them lets it slip to anyone else...
"Yeah. I think we should tell them if necessity demands it... but did something happen to make you ask?"
Clarice nods as she answers.
"We were at the beach all afternoon yesterday, right? Normally, anyone would get sunburnt. But whether it's because I'm a Holy Magic user, my skin hasn't changed color at all, and it doesn't hurt either. Misha's skin hasn't changed either, probably because she's an Elf. As for Ellie, when the two of us took a bath yesterday, I cast Holy Magic on her just in case, so she didn't get any skin trouble either. But we haven't told Karen yet, right? When she woke up today, she was the only one in Dawn who got sunburned, so she was feeling a bit down. On the flip side, Minerva was thrilled, saying she'd take this chance to get a nice tan."
Ah... from a girl's perspective, sunburn is a serious matter. I'd like to solve Karen's worries too.
"...It's something we'll have to reveal eventually, so maybe it's better to tell them sooner than later. We just need to make sure they understand it's strictly off-limits to share. If they ever broke that promise, then..."
I have to consider the worst-case scenario.
As if seeing right through my inner turmoil, Clarice's slender white hand gently rests atop mine on my lap.
"It's okay. Those two will never leak it. After all, they love you, Mars."
"Thanks. All right, I'll talk to them after lunch, so give me a bit of time."
"Okay. Thank you."
Grasping her hand in return, we head together toward the dining hall.
"Karen, Misha. There's something I need to tell you both. This is strictly confidential. If either of you speaks of this to anyone, consider our relationship over."
After lunch, the members of Dawn gather in an empty room to begin our discussion.
Sensing the serious atmosphere radiating from me, Clarice, and Ellie, Karen and Misha look noticeably tense.
"S-Sure... but what's this about all of a sudden?"
"Yeah! You're totally not acting like yourself, Mars!"
Without answering their questions, I turn my gaze toward Clarice.
"Clarice, lend me that sword for a moment."
The heightened tension between the two of them might stem from the fact that Clarice is holding the Salamander Sword.
Taking the blade and drawing it from its sheath, I see their expressions visibly stiffen.
"Don't worry. I'm not going to hurt either of you. Just watch."
Slicing the tip of the blade lightly across my fingertip, a thin bead of blood trickles down.
"Hey! Stop hurting yourself!"
"Yeah, Mars! What's wrong with you !? You're acting so weird today !?"
Karen scolds me angrily, while Misha looks like she's on the verge of tears.
However, when I show my cut finger to Clarice, she nods and gently enfolds my fingertip with both hands.
"Heal."
As Clarice chants the Holy Magic spell, a bright white light gathers at my fingertip, closing the wound in an instant.
"Huh !? Don't tell me... Clarice... you can use !?"
"How !? Clarice can already use Water Magic and Wind Magic..."
Karen and Misha cover their mouths with their hands, their eyes wide with shock.
"It's not just Clarice. Watch again."
Slicing the exact same spot on my finger once more, I cast Heal on myself this time.
"Mars too !? That's impossible!"
"No way !? No way !? How is that even possible !?"
Overwhelmed by shock, their voices grow increasingly loud.
"It's precisely because we trust you both that we shared our secret. Please, under no circumstances must you tell anyone. If this gets out, I'm sure you two understand what would happen, right?"
Karen and Misha fall silent. Exchanging a long glance with each other, they nod with expressions far more serious than usual.
"Yes, I understand. You told us because you trust us."
"Yeah, me too... Hey, can I ask something? Remember back during the Dungeon Examination when I got hurt on my stomach? Was that...?"
Misha rubs her smooth, unblemished stomach as she asks.
"Yeah. Clarice healed that."
"I knew it... There was no way just chugging potions could heal a wound like that. I thought it was weird back then, but Mom insisted it was all thanks to the potions... Wait, does Mom know about this too?"
Well, it's natural for her to wonder that.
"Yeah, but Instructor Sasha only knows about Clarice's Holy Magic. And she found out through Sir Dameze—we never told her ourselves."
"Ah! Dameze!"
An expression of realization washes over Misha's face.
Then, Karen speaks up as if connecting the dots for herself.
"Does that mean... back when we were attacked by those Golems as well...?"
"Yeah. I drew your attention away with Fire Magic, and while you were distracted, Clarice healed your wounds."
Recalling that moment, Karen claps her hands together.
"Then what about Dominic's injuries during the Freshmen Tournament?"
I nod silently at Karen's question.
"...Without us even realizing it, all of us had been saved by you two... I swear on my name as the second daughter of Ducal House Fressbald that I will never speak a word of this to anyone. I will never repay kindness with betrayal."
"Me too! I swear it too! You saved me in the Forest of Magic, in the city of Ganal, and during the Dungeon Exam!"
The two of them promise faithfully to guard our secret.
"Yeah. Thank you. That's all for now. Clarice, I'll leave Karen to you. I'm going back to sprint on the beach."
Karen, still clueless about what Clarice has planned, is led away by Clarice to the girls' room.
They are going to take a bath together so Clarice can cast Holy Magic on her.
Apparently, severe skin trouble needs to be healed by direct physical touch. Ellie and Misha follow close behind the two of them.
After everyone leaves, I remain in the room for a short while to organize my thoughts before heading back out to the sandy beach.
Arriving at the beach under the blazing sun, I begin running, my feet sinking into the soft sand with every stride.
The resistance of the sand feels satisfying, putting a heavy strain across my entire body.
As I run along the same course as yesterday, I catch sight of Gon and the others swinging their weapons and running along the shoreline just like me.
Seeing the regular students of Lister National academy training hard on the beach reminds me that they, too, are striving relentlessly toward their own goals.
Offering them a light wave, I pick up my pace to push my body even harder.
In the end, I run back and forth between the private and public beaches again today. Whenever I get overheated, I plunge into the sea to cool off before resuming my sprints for two full sets, after which I head off to the dinner banquet with Marquis San Marina.
"Hey... are you really okay? You're not feeling sick somewhere, are you?"
Unable to wake up early two days in a row, Clarice's anxiety over my condition grows even stronger. Naturally, I spent last night training my Lightning Magic again. Swimming all the way out to the reef takes a heavy toll.
But I can't tell her the truth.
If she finds out I'm training in the middle of the night, she'll insist on coming along with me.
Staying up that late is terrible for her health and her skin.
"If you're that exhausted, let me give you a massage."
Out of pure concern, she offers to massage me, but that's a dangerous idea.
Just seeing Clarice in her sexy swimsuit is already testing my limits; if she actually touches me, Baron and the guys will bury me in the sand without a second thought.
Still, if she's this worried about me, I really have to come clean.
Alright, tomorrow I'll tell only Clarice. Then I'll ask her to stay in the girls' room so the others don't follow along either.
With that resolve in mind, I slip out of the villa tonight after everyone has fallen asleep.
However, my plan was one step too late.
"Mars? Where are you going?"
Clarice's slender voice echoes across the pitch-black beach wrapped in total silence.
"Huh !? Clarice !? What are you doing here !?"
I briefly regret not casting Search more thoroughly out of sheer habit, but I quickly realize that even if I cast Search after slipping out, Clarice would catch on anyway, so I give up.
Hesitating over how to answer, I look at Clarice and see tears welling up in her eyes, on the verge of overflowing. To think I worried her this much... I have to be honest with her.
"Well, actually..."
When I tell her the truth, Clarice blinks in sheer bewilderment.
"Huh? Training? Not... cheating on me or sneaking in for a midnight rendezvous?"
Unbelievable words tumble from Clarice's lips. I hadn't even considered it, but I suppose it's only natural to interpret sneaking out in the dead of night that way.
"...I know you'd never cheat on me, Mars... but I thought maybe the summer atmosphere got to you..."
No, Clarice has a completely valid point.
In my eagerness to train my Lightning Magic, I completely neglected to consider how Clarice would feel.
"I'm so sorry, Clarice. I didn't mean to make you anxious. From now on, I'll be sure to talk things through with you properly."
I offer a sincere apology filled with remorse. Clarice offers a soft smile and nods.
"Okay. Then as punishment, take me with you right now."
"No, wait, that's..."
"No excuses! I'm coming! That way I can believe in you one hundred percent!"
Clarice hugs my right arm tightly against her chest. Her resolute determination to never let go radiates loud and clear.
Even so, despite her rash guard, Clarice is wearing a swimsuit. And I'm just wearing an unzipped rash guard on top.
The soft, generous curves of Clarice's chest press directly against my arm, causing my heart to leap into my throat.
My heart isn't the only thing surging right now, but let's chalk that up to youth.
"Alright, alright. Let's go together. But danger might be lurking around, so please stay on your guard."
"Of course! I won't hold you back."
Clarice nods with a bright smile, releasing her lock on my right arm to firmly interlock her fingers with mine.
When the two of us reach the reef area,
"We've come pretty far out to sea, are you sure it's okay? What was it called... the Afanc? Won't it come out?"
She asks anxiously while scanning our surroundings.
"I don't think we're that far out... All I can say is it was fine yesterday and the day before, but keep your guard up just in case."
I immediately unleash Lightning, and together we watch golden electricity surge through the waters.
This reef must be a fantastic feeding ground, because despite harvesting over a hundred fish here yesterday and the day before, another massive academy floats up today.
I toss them into an ice chest created by Clarice five times in a row.
Suddenly, Clarice raises her voice.
"Mars! I feel something flying toward us from over there!"
Standing vigil atop the reef, Clarice points into the distance.
Focusing my Heavenly Eye, I spot a swarm of several dozen fish flying straight at us at unbelievable speeds. Their snouts are sharp and pointed; if they impale us at this velocity, we'll suffer serious injuries at best, or have our hearts pierced through at worst.
"Stone Wall!"
"Ice Wall!"
The moment I cast Stone Wall reflexively, Clarice layers an Ice Wall over it.
A barrier of stone and ice stands before us as the flying fish slam directly into the wall.
I expected them to tumble into the sea, but their momentum was so fierce that they lodged themselves deep into the barrier.
There's no way these are normal fish.
Using Appraisal on the stuck fish, my suspicions are confirmed—they're monsters.
【 Name 】 —
【 Title 】 —
【 Species 】 Spearhead Fish
【 Threat 】 C-
【 Condition 】 Good
【 Age 】 1
【 Level 】 1
【 HP 】 102 / 102
【 MP 】 5 / 5
【 Strength 】 50 【 Agility 】 80
【 Magic 】 1 【 Dexterity 】 1
【 Endurance 】 32 【 Luck 】 1
Spearhead Fish !? Well, their snouts definitely look like spears.
No wonder they had enough penetrating power to pierce right into the wall.
As more fish impale themselves, cracks begin spreading across the surface, so we recast Stone Wall and Ice Wall to withstand the onslaught of Spearhead Fish.
Once the final Spearhead Fish lodges into the barrier, I send the entire wall crashing into the sea and cast Lightning, causing my level to rise.
Seriously !? I've never experienced leveling this ridiculously efficient before!
Unable to contain myself, I thrust my fist into the air and splash the water in triumph.
Clarice claps her hands with a radiant beam, seemingly delighted to see me so happy, but her expression quickly shifts to one of seriousness.
"Mars? Isn't there something right beneath you? It's too dark for me to tell clearly..."
Swimming in the water, I can't see it, but from atop the reef, she has a better vantage point.
Diving beneath the surface and focusing my Heavenly Eye, I behold a fish of colossal proportions, unlike anything I've ever seen.
As the massive creature gradually ascends, I cast Lightning from a distance, causing its giant body to float slowly upward.
The instant it breaks the surface, I immediately recognize it as a Diamond Tuna.
Because a portion of its scales are genuine diamonds.
【 Name 】 —
【 Title 】 —
【 Species 】 Diamond Tuna
【 Threat 】 C+
【 Condition 】 Electrocuted 《 Severe 》
【 Age 】 10
【 Level 】 1
【 HP 】 44 / 245
【 MP 】 5 / 5
【 Strength 】 88 【 Agility 】 88
【 Magic 】 1 【 Dexterity 】 1
【 Endurance 】 88 【 Luck 】 1
Even though I struck it with Lightning from a long distance, it still took this much damage.
Perhaps Lightning Magic is a natural weakness for Diamond Tuna, but this reminds me once again of the frightening destructive power of my spell.
"Hey, isn't this an unbelievable haul? Don't you think we should call it a day?"
"Yeah, I was thinking the exact same thing. But why did monsters show up today when none appeared yesterday or the day before...?"
The only difference between today and the past two days is whether Clarice was with me or not.
"Maybe they were drawn in by your overwhelming charm, Clarice."
"Then can I come with you tomorrow too? If my presence helps you level up, isn't that great? Besides, being with you makes me happy and puts my heart at ease."
Clarice definitely has a point.
Still, I don't want her staying up late, and my theory is almost certainly wrong. No, it has to be wrong.
However, at this point in time, little did we know that in this world, there exist monsters with an unbelievable, obsessive fondness for beautiful women—
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