Chapter 48: Fairy King v. Lord of Chaotic Water II

Every droplet scattered throughout the cavern stopped midair.

Water left behind by the destroyed constructs no longer attempted to reform. Instead, it flowed backward, gathering around Felix’s body.

’Rian,’ Sylph warned. ’Something’s coming.’

’I noticed.’

’No, not from here.’

He spread his perception into the currents of air. Each individual thing that they passed through was registered in his mind.

Yet, passing beyond the cavern ceiling and into the countless cracks running above the ceiling...there was water inside them.

Far too much water to be called a coincidence.

Every flooded tunnel within the mines had begun flowing toward the cavern. The Eisen River reversed direction, dragging the water constructs throughout the city back into itself.

Even the colossal serpent looming over the port collapsed.

Its gigantic body lost its shape and crashed down upon the city as an enormous wave before being pulled toward the mountain.

Leviathan was recalling all of it—every last fragment of its power that had crossed into the Mortal World.

’Move!’ Sylph shouted.

Quickly, Rian commanded the Sovereign’s Arsenal to gather around him. Dozens of wind swords overlapped above his head, their edges joining together into a spiraling shield.

CRRRRACK—!

The cavern ceiling fractured before a single stream of water broke through. That one single stream, then turned into a raging downpour...

Before the stone above them collapsed from the sheer pressure.

CRASHHHH—!

An entire ocean crashed into the cavern.

Rian’s swords spun like a saw blade, slicing through the first wave and reducing it to a cloud of mist. The compressed wind forced water apart, creating a temporary pocket of air around him.

Yet, the water never stopped coming. For every portion his blades scattered, ten times as much poured through the gap.

The place overflowed within seconds, as stone pillars snapped and the entire cavern came crashing down.

Rian clenched his teeth. "Like hell you’re—"

But that was when a second wave crashed into him, forcing his wind barrier to fold inward.

Several swords shattered into green particles while the rest of them were torn from formation. Rian’s four wings spread as he tried to stabilize himself, but there was no longer any open air for them to command.

Water swallowed him from every direction.

The force ripped Rian across the cavern, sending him crashing through stone and debris from above. Even so, he couldn’t tell which way was upward, as his senses were becoming swamped and dulled from overuse.

’Rian! Fold the wings around yourself!’

He did as she said, wrapping the wings around his broken body and compressing whatever trapped air was left into a protective shell. Even then, the pressure continued crushing him from every side.

The mana passing through Rian’s right eye increased sharply as Sylph struggled to keep the water away.

’Too much—!’

A crack of pain tore through Rian’s skull. Blood streamed from his right eye before dissolving into the surrounding water.

’Sylph, what’s happening?’

’I can’t see through it! Leviathan is controlling every current at once!’

For the first time since activating Sacred Assimilation, Rian’s newfound perception had become a hindrance rather than a benefit.

There was simply too much movement, too much water to get through.

’Where is he?’

That was when a darkness suddenly blitzed through his vision. At first, Rian thought it was an enormous wall stretching across the submerged cavern.

Then, a dark-blue eye opened, contradicting everything he thought he knew. The iris alone was several times larger than his entire body.

’That’s...’

The water shifted as the creature uncoiled itself.

A serpentine head emerged from the darkness, covered in overlapping scales formed from water denser than steel. Jagged fins extended from either side of its skull while a crown of crooked horns curved backward along its neck.

Its body continued far beyond the reach of Rian’s enhanced vision, coiling throughout the flooded mine like an endless abyssal serpent.

Deep within its chest, Felix’s body floated motionlessly behind layers of dark water.

When the creature opened its jaws, rows of translucent fangs appeared—each one large enough to impale Rian whole.

The resulting growl passed through the water and shook the entire mountain.

’That isn’t Leviathan’s true body,’ Sylph whispered. ’But every fragment of its power within the Mortal World has gathered into its original shape.’

Rian recalled the wind swords scattered throughout the flooded cavern.

One after another, they appeared behind him, their green light revealing more of the colossal creature.

"So I have to fight the whole damn serpent now?"

〈Disaster Manifestation: Lord of Chaotic Water — Leviathan〉

The massive creature surged forward, its enormous body displacing enough water to create a current that dragged everything toward its jaw like a black hole.

Rian commanded his remaining swords to move, hoping to create a strong enough current to push him out of the way.

The blades raced beneath him and generated a powerful updraft, but there was no open air left for them to manipulate. Each current dispersed almost as quickly as Sylph created it.

’The water is suppressing my authority!’ Sylph warned.

’Yeah...I figured that part out.’

Rian tried to recall the air stored within his wings. The compressed pocket surrounding his body grew thinner, supplying him with a few more precious breaths.

But even that was beginning to fail.

The pressure had damaged the lower pair of wings, leaving green mana to leak from their edges. His royal mantle had already dissolved, while several segments of the halo behind his head flickered unsteadily.

’How long can you keep the air around me?’

’A few more seconds.’

’Shit...’

And just like that, the current seized his body completely. Rian tumbled helplessly through the water, straight into Leviathan’s gaping jaw.

Freezing water flooded into his mouth.

His body convulsed as he fought the instinct to breathe, but his already damaged lungs needed air that no longer existed.

’Rian! Stay awake!’

Sylph’s voice sounded increasingly distant.

’I’m...trying.’

But just as he was about to become fish food, a streak of black and white shot through the darkness and seized him by the arm.

His body was violently pulled sideways a fraction of a second before Leviathan’s jaws slammed shut.

BOOOOM—!

The impact sent a shock wave throughout the flooded cavern.

Rian was dragged through the water at a speed his disoriented senses could barely follow. And a few seconds later, he emerged onto the lake’s surface. Air rushed into his lungs, finally allowing him a precious chance to breathe.

"GHAH—!"

He coughed violently, holding onto a wooden shaft that had passed under his chest. After a second, he realized he was holding onto a broom.

Someone was balanced atop the shaft, soaking wet, but relieved that he was alive.

"Why do you always get into trouble when I’m not around—"

"Young Master?"