The Failure Marquis Is A Genius [EN]: Chapter 155

Chapter 19: Ruins: The Prodigal Son on a Business Trip

Central Underwater City.

The royal palace in Poseidon City.

Luminescent stones of various colors brightly illuminated the royal palace.

Merfolk statues stood in every corner, the floor was decorated with uniquely shaped seashells, and the heads of giant lobsters and sharks were mounted and displayed.

The ceiling of the royal palace was filled with water, like the sky of the underwater city, creating a massive artificial aquarium.

The aquarium teemed with thousands of species of fish, a captivating sight. In addition, jellyfish swaying their tentacles gracefully and sea anemones displaying their splendor even underwater added to the aesthetic.

A space where one could spend a day simply marveling at its beauty. On the throne sat the Merfolk King.

The Merfolk King was unique, even by Merfolk standards. One would expect fins and a tail, but he possessed no physical features reminiscent of a Merfolk.

Rather, he resembled an ordinary human child.

With the appearance of a ten-year-old, he chewed on plump, fleshy fish, bones and all. Each time he opened his mouth, the sharp teeth inside were briefly visible.

He was currently listening to the Prime Minister’s report. The Prime Minister was the second-in-command of the royal palace, managing all affairs on behalf of the Merfolk King. Her clear and resonant voice echoed through the room.

“The martial arts tournaments in all four districts have concluded. The MVPs [Most Valuable Players] who showed the most outstanding performance in the tournaments have been summoned to the royal palace.”

Even as the Prime Minister reported, the Merfolk King was engrossed in his meal. The sound of his smacking lips nearly drowned out her words. The area around him was littered with food scraps.

“I’m hungry. Bring more.”

“Your Highness, are you listening to me?”

“Huh?”

The Merfolk King’s cold gaze turned to the Prime Minister. Sensing a threat, she flinched and lowered her head.

“Ilina.”

“Yes.”

“The reason you’re still in your position is because there’s no one as strong and smart as you. If I could find a replacement, I would have replaced you a long time ago. Do you understand?”

“I will keep that in mind.”

“So, the martial arts tournament winners are coming?”

“Yes, here is the list.”

Reading the personal details, the Merfolk King’s eyes lit up.

“What? The MVP from the Northern District is a human?”

“Yes, that’s correct. I also found this unusual, so I verified it several times. He is said to be a considerably strong human.”

“A human… Is he really strong? Not just moderately strong?”

The Prime Minister sighed inwardly, knowing the Merfolk King’s intentions. He wanted to eat humans.

“It is said that he is quite skilled, but if Your Highness wishes, I will have him captured and brought to you.”

“No. It would be a waste to make a meal out of someone like that. No matter how delicious he is, he won’t be as good as the Merfolk King’s Orb.”

While pondering, the Merfolk King, who was picking at a crab shell, clapped his hands.

“Good! Bring them all. I’ll have to see them in person to decide.”

* * *

On the way to the capital.

If there are carriages on land, here there are seahorse carriages. Seahorses with four legs pulled the carriage, and I and my party were riding comfortably.

I was sitting cross-legged, contemplating my inner self. The awakening status of the dual mana coiled in my dantian [energy center in traditional Chinese medicine] was as follows:

[Green Mana Awakening: 50%] [↑0.0%]

[Blue Mana Awakening: 48%] [↑0.0%]

[Dragon Blood Awakening: 48%] [↑0.0%]

[Mixing Rate: 44%] [↑0.0%]

After gaining enlightenment in the Bellanus Holy Nation and a significant increase in awakening, there had been no noticeable changes since then.

The green mana had been stuck at half its value for a while, and the rest seemed blocked just before reaching 50%, remaining stagnant.

To overcome this, there needed to be a trigger, like when dealing with the Lust, but I had no idea what kind of trigger was needed.

‘I also need a demon corpse to feed Coco.’

Coco is currently a Stage 3 Hatchling, with an evolution rate of 75%. Only 25% more to evolve into a fully grown dragon.

Feeding her more demon corpses would quickly raise it. However, demons of similar rank to Lust are very rare. Above all, taking them down is a challenge, so I had to wait for an opportunity.

“Young Master.”

I was shaken out of my thoughts by Sion’s words from beside me.

“What is it? Have we arrived already?”

“Yes, this is Poseidon City.”

As the capital of the underwater city, its scale and area were considerable. Merfolk with distinct personalities roamed around. It was a stark reminder of how rural the Northern District was.

Of course, having experienced the capital of the Calon Empire, Osdin City, I wasn’t surprised by the size of Poseidon City, but it was a place with a strong unique character of a Merfolk city.

From residential complexes made of solid shells to citizens walking turtles or giant frogs instead of dogs or cats, merchants trading pearls, and sanitation workers cleaning the streets with seawater.

The seahorse carriage entered the royal palace without hesitation.

Upon arriving at the reception room, a stunning beauty greeted us.

“Welcome. I am the Prime Minister, Ilina. Please, call me Prime Minister.”

Blue hair and eyes that looked like blue pearls were embedded in them. The Merfolk’s uniquely graceful and elongated limbs were very impressive.

I paid more attention to the aura she exuded than her beauty. She was concealing her energy, but the sharpness of a trained warrior emanated from her.

I had imagined the Prime Minister to be a pot-bellied middle-aged man or a withered white-bearded old man, but she was far from my expectations.

“Welcome to Poseidon City. Are you from the Northern District martial arts tournament winning team?”

“Yes, Prime Minister. I am Kahn, the top performer.”

The Prime Minister had Sion and the others wait and took only me to another space. There, other contestants were sitting. They seemed quite strong.

“Everyone, say hello. This is the top performer from the Northern District. Kahn, these are the top performers from the East, West, and South Districts.”

“I’m Kahn. Nice to meet you.”

Everyone nodded slightly with a nonchalant expression. An atmosphere where they weren’t very interested in each other. It was like a job interview.

“It’s time to meet His Highness.”

Following Ilina’s guidance, we entered a large hall.

The Merfolk King was sitting on the throne.

In front of him was a long table, and he was mindlessly devouring the delicacies placed on it.

A guest has arrived, but he is eating. Even if he is a king, is that okay?

Looking around, the other district’s top performers also looked puzzled. Only Prime Minister Ilina’s face was flushed red, as if she was embarrassed.

“Your Highness, the top performers from each district have arrived.”

Only then did the Merfolk King briefly stop eating and glance over the top performers.

He casually passed over the first three and fixed his gaze on me at the very end, unable to take his eyes off me for a long time.

Feeling his blatant gaze, I couldn’t help but raise my head and meet the Merfolk King’s eyes.

‘His eyes… are familiar.’

This was instinct and intuition. It was certain that the Merfolk King and I were meeting for the first time today. But why did it feel so familiar?

That’s when it happened.

Zap!!!

A lightning bolt struck my head, and a memory replayed.

The Kraken [a legendary sea monster] that suddenly appeared in the Golden Branch’s test, which I had seen most recently, suddenly appeared. The giant octopus that kept shouting hunger and rushed at Merlin. The eyes of that octopus and the eyes of that boy were exactly alike.

‘No, it’s not just similar. They’re exactly the same.’

I’m sure of it.

I fought with my life after possessing Merlin’s body, so there’s no way I wouldn’t know.

The octopus that fought Merlin a thousand years ago and that boy were the same being. I don’t know how he lived for a thousand years, though.

As I unintentionally continued to make eye contact with the Merfolk King for a long time, Ilina cleared her throat to draw attention.

“Ahem!”

I regained my senses and lowered my head again. Realizing that the Merfolk King’s true identity was a Kraken, I felt like I knew why he was looking at me so intently.

‘He’s looking at me as food.’

That octopus head from Merlin’s memories was the type to chew on stones if they were edible.

The more that kind of guy is, the more he craves foods he can’t usually eat.

In a place full of only Merfolk, a human, especially a strong and unique human, would make that octopus head drool.

The question here is this.

Why is he trying so hard to suppress his appetite?

Has he cultivated patience for a thousand years?

Or is he trying to save it for later?

“Prime Minister, test the top performers. See if they are qualified to be my direct warriors.”

Everyone questioned the Merfolk King’s words. They had each won in their respective districts, so why reconfirm their qualifications? As we were puzzled, Ilina stepped forward to explain.

“Just because you showed some talent in the provinces doesn’t guarantee that you’re strong even in Poseidon City. We will have a simple sparring match with me and eliminate the unqualified.”

The top performer from the Western District raised his hand.

“I don’t mind fighting. The problem is if the Prime Minister gets hurt. How can I fight properly if I’m worried about that?”

“I’m sorry, but don’t worry about that. In my opinion, you are all country bumpkins and frogs in a well [idiom for someone with limited experience].”

They were representatives who had struggled to win and come up here. The Prime Minister Ilina’s provocation instantly heated things up.

Except for me.

I didn’t have any particular attachment because I won easily. Rather, I was more curious about why the octopus head was acting as the Merfolk King.

A sparring arena was quickly created. The Merfolk King continued to eat throughout it all. He watched the test while tearing apart fish.

Ilina and the Western District representative faced off.

She wore ten round iron rings on each of her arms like bracelets, and the surface was quite sharp. It was quite an interesting weapon.

“I won’t go easy on you just because you’re the Prime Minister.”

“Do your best if you don’t want to fall off.”

“I’ll finish you right away!!”

The Western District representative, who was full of anger, drew his sword and charged. Towards that guy, Prime Minister Ilina unleashed ten rings.

“Hoh?”

I exclaimed in admiration.

The inside of the rings was filled with water. Prime Minister Ilina manipulated the water to control the rings.

It wasn’t just the ability to control water. Each ring contained blue mana, making its power and cutting ability terrifying.

Imagine blades of wind rushing in from ten directions. Even the rotational force was good, so even a graze would cause at least a serious injury. Ilina’s weapon was that destructive.

“Keuk!!”

The Western District representative struggled with the unique combat method and surrendered in less than 3 minutes.

“Please go through the left door.”

The Western District representative, with slumped shoulders, exited in the direction she pointed.

Next was the Southern District representative.

The sturdy Southern District representative seemed to have learned a lesson from the previous match and tried to engage in close combat from the start. It was a strategy that was quite conscious of the rings flying from a distance.

He was quite smart, but only up to that point.

Prime Minister Ilina wasn’t only skilled in ranged combat.

She summoned all the rings and wore them on her arms before engaging in hand-to-hand combat. Piercing vital points using her long limbs and well-learned fist techniques. When defense was needed, she crossed her arms to block the opponent’s blade with the iron rings on her arms.

She showed a figure that overwhelmed the Southern District representative in many ways.

“I surrender.”

“Go through the left door.”

Next, the Eastern District representative.

Close combat was no good, and ranged combat was no good either.

In the end, his decision was to endure to the death. He held up his shield tightly and endured the bombardment pouring in from all directions, like a turtle hiding in its shell.

What I felt here was that Ilina was also excellent in mental cultivation, unlike other Merfolk. She used mana only as much as needed at the exact point needed. That figure was no different from a skilled Arnia Continent master.

“Keueok!!”

The Eastern District representative, who had run out of stamina while defending, was hit in the butt by a ring and was eliminated.

“Go through the left door.”

Only I was left.

“It’s my first time fighting a human.”

Ilina didn’t seem to have any particular emotion. Especially towards me, a human, she didn’t seem to expect anything at all. She mechanically unleashed the rings to get rid of me.

‘Should I use Druid skills?’

I hesitated and erased the choice. According to past memories, the Merfolk King was severely defeated by Merlin. If I showed Druid skills to that Merfolk King, he might have a fit.

I had no choice but to fight with swordsmanship only. It wasn’t a very difficult task.

Ilina seemed quite strong, but at best, she was similar to or slightly above Sion. I, who had faced Sword Masters as if eating rice, had different experience points.

-That girl has quite interesting weapons.

-Left, right, right, left.

-Concentrate on the center and block the back.

The Cheonma Navigation [likely a skill or technique] was working normally. I swung the Cheonma Sword to block all the rings flying in from all directions.

It wasn’t just barely blocking like the Eastern District representative, but perfectly blocking and even having hands left over to advance.

At this point, the person who was embarrassed was Ilina. Her pupils were shaking as if she had never experienced such an opponent. Her hands became faster.

“It’s no use.”

My hand became faster.

I was already within her reach.

Perhaps thinking that ranged combat was impossible, Ilina summoned all the rings she had unleashed and attempted close combat.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve had an opponent with good hand feel [skill in close combat].”

Unlike the tone that looked down on me, beads of sweat were forming on her forehead.

On the other hand, I was energetic. Now, my stamina wasn’t so lacking that the tenacious vitality would be activated against an opponent of Ilina’s level.

In the end, I inflicted humiliation on her. I began to use the sword with only my right hand while my left hand was behind my back.

“Eek! Do it properly!”

“I’m doing my best.”

It was at that moment.

The Cheonma’s thunderous roar.

-Kid! Dodge!

Ilina, gritting her teeth, unleashed all the rings at close range. It was a hidden trump card. On the other hand, it was also a strategy with no future if it failed.

“When using a finishing move, you have to aim for the opponent’s carelessness. How can I get hit when you openly signal that you’re going to use it?”

On the outside, I pretended to be relaxed, but on the inside, I was slightly surprised. If it wasn’t for the Cheonma’s warning at the end, I might have been severely cut.

“I lost.”

Ilina, with a hollow expression, knelt down. Tears welled up in her eyes. The examiner was crying because a passer came out. It was a sight I couldn’t understand.

“Wow! You’re stronger than I thought? It’s the first time I’ve seen Ilina lose.”

The Merfolk King, who had been eating throughout the test, looked at me and gave me a thumbs up. Even in the midst of it, he was tearing apart plump shrimp with his other hand.

“You passed the test, so go through the right door.”

“What will happen to me now? Will I be assigned to guard duty as Your Highness’s direct warrior?”

“Huh? No.”

The Merfolk King, sucking the seasoning on his finger, said.

“From now on, you will go to the ruins. The Merfolk King’s Orb, a treasure, is there. Find it with Ilina.”

The first mission was a business trip.