Chapter 152: Sweet Explosion

The battle was over, but the grotto still hummed with residual mana. The five Starfall Seekers lay scattered across the moss, their crystalline plates dimming, their central eyes gone dark. The silver light of Cindy’s barrier had faded, leaving only the soft, steady glow of the blue coral on the walls.

Cindy let out a long, exhausted sigh, her frills drooping.

"I didn’t expect the residents to come back," she said. "They must have been out hunting when we arrived."

Gray drifted toward the nearest Seeker corpse, his blade-tentacles trailing behind him. He pressed his feeding surface against the crystalline plates and began to absorb. The flesh beneath was dense and strangely fibrous, and the taste hit him immediately, sharp and bitter, like biting into a sea urchin that had been soaked in brine and left to rot.

’Ugh...’ he muttered.

Cindy made a face. "Is it edible?"

’Barely.’ Gray forced himself to swallow another mouthful. ’But it’s biomass. I’m not wasting it.’

He continued eating, his carapace slowly mending as the nutrients settled into his body. When he finished the first Seeker, he drifted back toward Cindy, his bell tilting toward her.

’Good thing you woke up,’ he said. ’If you hadn’t, I might have slept through the whole fight.’

Cindy crossed her tiny arms, her frills lifting with a flicker of pride.

"Of course I woke you up. They were circling us like they were curious, and then they started attacking. I had to put up a barrier just to keep them off." She paused, her silver eyes narrowing. "But you... you were sleeping so deeply that even all that chaos didn’t wake you. I had to bite your tentacle just to get a reaction."

Gray let out a soft pulse of embarrassment.

’Yeah... I was tired. We fought a lot of monsters back-to-back.’

"A lot?" Cindy repeated. "A berserk Guardian, a Colossus, a Gasbloat Crawler, and five Starfall Seekers. In one day. That’s not ’a lot.’ That’s a death wish."

’It’s not like I planned it,’ Gray muttered. ’They just kept showing up.’

Cindy let out a soft, tired laugh.

"Yeah... we’re just unlucky. That’s all."

Gray drifted back toward her and settled onto the moss, his blade-tentacles curling loosely against his bell. The coral’s gentle glow washed over them both, steady and warm.

’Better to rest until we’re in prime condition,’ he said. ’I don’t want to die from exhaustion.’

Cindy nodded, her frills swaying.

"That’s true. You rest, Gray. I’ll wake you if anything attacks again. So just relax."

Gray’s bell tilted toward her.

’You rest too, Cindy. Don’t stay up on my account.’

She blinked, caught off guard by the concern in his voice. Then her silver eyes softened.

"...Alright."

And for the first time in days, they slept without interruption.

The next morning, they woke fully restored and in prime condition.

Cindy was already awake, hovering near the grotto entrance, her frills swaying as she read the mana currents outside.

"You’re finally up," she said. "I was starting to think you’d sleep forever."

’How long was I out?’

"Long enough. We’re both fully recovered. But..." She paused, her small body tilting slightly. "I’m hungry."

’Then let’s hunt,’ Gray said. ’We need to find our way back to the Verdant Hollow anyway. Might as well eat on the way.’

They left the grotto and began to hunt.

They left the grotto together, Gray leading the way through the unfamiliar terrain.

The hunt was quiet at first. A few small fish, a stray crab, nothing worth noting. They ate as they moved, Gray absorbing what he could, Cindy picking at the smaller pieces he offered her.

After eating their fill, they continued traveling, trying to find their way back to the Verdant Hollow while keeping their eyes open for anything new.

And then they found it.

In a small basin hidden behind two massive spires, there was a group of creatures Gray had never seen before. They were small, about the size of a fist, with round bodies covered in thin, pale pink scales. Along their backs, rows of small yellow spines glowed faintly, and on their bellies, transparent sacs held a silvery liquid that pulsed slowly.

The creatures moved slowly, floating through the water like little balloons that couldn’t swim properly.

The system flickered, and the analysis materialized.

[BLOOM SAC — Level 8]

HP: 40 / 40

Count: 12

Threat Level: NONE

« Analysis »

A small, slow-moving creature found in sheltered basins of the abyssal zone. The Bloom Sac’s silver sac contains a volatile crystallizing agent used for defense. When the sac is punctured or the creature is threatened, it ruptures and releases the agent in a small burst, temporarily crystallizing anything it touches. The creature itself is harmless and non-aggressive.

Warning: Do not puncture the silver sac. The crystallizing agent is non-lethal but highly immobilizing.

Gray stared at them seriously.

’That one,’ he said, pointing with tentacle. ’Looks delicious.’

Cindy immediately turned, her frills stiffening.

"What? That one? Are you crazy? It’s definitely poisonous!"

’Impossible,’ Gray said casually. ’My analysis is never wrong. They’re not showing any signs of being poisonous. They might be sweet.’

"Pale pink with glowing yellow spines and pulsing silver sacs? That’s called warning coloration, Gray! Nature doesn’t make creatures look like candy unless it’s trying to trap something!"

Gray was already swimming closer.

’Wait here. I’ll grab one.’

Gray fired a small Riptide Slash to separate one creature from the group. The small creature was knocked out of the basin and floated alone, its yellow spines pulsing faster.

Gray approached, blade-tentacles ready. The creature didn’t fight back. It just floated there, its silver sac pulsing slowly.

’See?’ Gray said. ’Not poisonous.’

He drove one tentacle into the creature’s body.

And then the creature exploded.

Just a small pop, like a balloon bursting. But the silver liquid from its sac sprayed in every direction, and a few drops landed on Gray’s carapace.

And Gray’s carapace immediately froze.

The entire surface touched by the liquid hardened, lost its flexibility, and Gray suddenly couldn’t move three of his eight blade-tentacles.

[-0 HP]

[STATUS: CRYSTALLIZED — 3 TENTACLES IMMOBILIZED]

[EFFECT DURATION: 30 SECONDS]

Gray stared at his hardened tentacles with a blank expression.

’...’

Cindy, from behind, couldn’t hold back her laughter. Her frills quivered, and her soft laugh echoed through the water.

"Pffttt! Your analysis is never wrong, huh?" she said, her voice full of victory. "What did you say earlier? They might be sweet?"

Gray didn’t answer. He just floated there, three tentacles hardened like crystal, while the other pink creatures in the basin began to pulse faster, as if they knew one of their own had just exploded.

’...Don’t say anything,’ Gray finally said.

Cindy was still laughing.

"I’m not saying anything! I’m just remembering this moment forever!"

Gray let out a mental sigh as his hardened tentacles began to crack slowly, the crystallized effect starting to fade.

’Alright. We’re not eating those.’

"Agreed," Cindy said, still smiling. "Let’s find something else. Something that doesn’t explode."

’...Yeah.’

And they swam away from the basin, leaving the pink creatures to float peacefully, their yellow spines pulsing as if nothing had happened.