The Healing Solaris Cleric

Chapter 71: The Underwater Kingdom, Aquavera (2)

Bzzz, bzzz.

The ring floating in the air vibrated in sync with Kai's heartbeat. It was as if it was asking why he was only arriving now and saying it had been waiting for him.

At the sound of vibrations coming from the ring, Kai stayed silent.

The holy artifact sleeping in Aquavera was the Holy Ring Petra.

Kai's lips curved upward as he found one of the three sacred artifacts Patrick had mentioned.

Things are working out easily. Now that I have the holy artifact, all I need is the scales, and I can head back.

Just then, Cyrus, who had been looking back and forth between the ring and Kai with a confused expression, said, “Wait, hold on. If the ring that’s been unresponsive for hundreds of years is reacting... Could it be...?”

“Yes. Let me reintroduce myself.” Kai stood up and bowed his head with a graceful movement befitting of the Solaris Cleric. “I’m Kai, the adventurer who has taken over the title of Solaris Cleric from Patrick.”

“I knew it!” Cyrus's face lit up with excitement, and he grabbed Kai's hand. “It must be fate that you have come at this time!”

“P-pardon?”

Kai, surprised by Cyrus's sudden change in demeanor, tried to pull his hand away, but he couldn't escape his firm grip.

W-what’s going on? Why is he acting that way? Something feels off...

Cyrus bowed deeply to Kai, who was looking around to understand the situation. “Please, save our kingdom... Save Aquavera!”

“...Pardon?”

Something was wrong. And that thought hit Kai like a ton of bricks.

***

“So... you're saying the nagas’ attacks are fierce?”

“The naga offsprings are. It’s a bit embarrassing to say, but we can't handle them with our strength.” A deep sense of despair crossed Cyrus's face. “Do you know that the nagas are the enemies of us merfolk?”

“Yes, I did know about that,” Kai nodded, remembering the information he had read about it from The Home of the Mermaids.

Merfolk are physically weak and primarily use magic, while nagas have high natural magic resistance and excel in close combat.

The most disliked by Wizard players were close-combat class players with high magic resistance. If those nearly immune to damage closed the distance with a charge skill, there was no escaping it.

“But I heard from Helene that there's a spatial perception-disrupting magic barrier over the entire city?”

“That's actually the biggest problem.” Cyrus sighed deeply. “The magic handed down and developed by our merfolk ancestors is remarkable.”

“I agree.”

If they could maintain a bright civilization in the deep sea, their magic level was undeniably high.

“But recently, the nagas have changed significantly.”

“In what way, exactly?”

“Well, even though the nagas have always been our enemies, we managed to avoid them with our magical skills without suffering major losses. We only lost when we faced them directly, but we could always run away. However, recently, the nagas have become different. Their temper has become violent, and their strength has increased absurdly.”

All of a sudden they have a violent temper and increased strength?

Kai furrowed his brows as that reminded him of what he experienced in the Forest of Spiders.

If the nagas were tainted by the essence of darkness...

The sudden aggression and immense strength made perfect sense.

“Have they been able to pierce through the spatial perception-disruptive magic barrier as they’ve become stronger?”

“No, that's not it. But that is the most troubling part...” Cyrus sighed softly, and water bubbles came out of his mouth. “Please take a look at this.”

A three-dimensional map unfolded in Cyrus's hand, and Kai couldn't help but exclaim, “Oh! Is this Aquavera?”

"Yes. This is a three-dimensional representation of Aquavera. Do you see this part here?"

Cyrus pointed to a cave located on a cliff quite a distance from the city, from which thin smoke continuously drifted toward Aquavera.

“Yes, I see it. But what is that smoke?”

“It’s a strange device the nagas suddenly obtained one day. The waves emanating from this device are weakening the magic that protects our kingdom.”

“That’s...”

“Of course, we are pouring all our efforts into reinforcing the magic, so the city's location won't be easily discovered. But...”

“You mean it's only a matter of time?”

“Exactly.”

Kai, deep in thought, sensed something was off and asked again, “But as far as I know, Aquavera moves around constantly doesn’t it? Is it not possible to just avoid the nagas and keep moving?”

“We do change location continuously, but once every five years, we need to stop to recharge our power to keep moving.”

“...And that time has overlapped with the current situation.”

“Unfortunately, yes.” Cyrus looked at Kai with a desperate look in his eyes. “The records of our ancestors say that the apostles of the Solarian God Helik possess incredible power. Please, destroy that device and drive out the nagas to save us.”

“Oh, well... that is...”

Kai scratched his head in frustration.

When I shook hands with Cyrus, I noticed that he was level 210.

Additionally, given that he was the prince of the merfolk, he would be quite powerful here. Sure, his opponents were just naga offsprings, but even they would be at least level 150.

This is beyond my capabilities.

If there was too much of a level difference, attacks wouldn’t land, or monsters would dodge all of them. In short, Kai couldn’t provide help, even if he wanted to!

Perhaps collecting holy artifacts can only be done smoothly with a level over 200.

He should have realized this when Patrick mentioned the Elven Forest, but it was too late. Without his help, the merfolk could face massive losses. He couldn’t just ignore the situation once he knew about it.

After rubbing his chin in thought for a moment, Kai said, “May I have the holy artifact first?”

“Of course. We were just holding onto it. Now that you're here, we should give it back.”

Cyrus got up and carefully brought the Holy Ring Petra to Kai with both hands.

From close up, it emitted a constant radiant glow, with an intricately carved sun at its center. Although it was just a carving, the craftsmanship was so exquisite that it felt like it was almost radiating heat.

“It's stunning.”

“Helene, one day I will buy you a ring as expensive as this.”

“Oh, Crawford. Although that ring is beautiful, I still love the engagement ring you gave me the most.”

Ignoring the middle-aged couple's affectionate conversation, Kai reached out with trembling hands to pick up Petra.

“Item information.”

[You greatly lack the skill needed to discern information about this item.]

[This is a sealed item. A premium identification skill is necessary to show information about this item.]

Tsk, of course.

Kai anticipated this could happen. If he was correct, the holy artifacts were likely legendary or beyond that, requiring a high-level class to use. And with his appraisal skill at beginner level 4, the information Kai could obtain wasn’t much.

[Sealed Solaris Ring - Petra]

Grade: ???

Requirements: Level 200+, Solaris Cleric Class.

Kai let out a deep sigh at the significant lack of information.

I thought I could find out the grade at the very least... but I guess not.

Furthermore, the Holy Ring Petra required an advanced-level appraisal skill, not an intermediate one.

Needing an advanced appraisal skill means... I’ll have to do quite some work.

Of course, in major cities, he could find NPCs who appraised items for a fee, but if he used them, there would inevitably be traces left behind.

This isn't just an ordinary item. If rumors spread...

It didn't matter if the rumors weren't vague or detailed. In MID Online, even a small hint or speculation could trigger PKs to go on a rampage.

I'd probably never be able to hunt in peace.

In the end, the best option was to increase his appraisal skill level and check the information himself. And to improve his appraisal skill, he would need to identify a lot of items!

Turning his head to look at Cyrus, Kai said, “Is there a time limit for dealing with the naga offsprings by any chance?”

“Well... we are still holding out. But the sooner, the better.”

“Understood. I need to think of a way to deal with them. Moving underwater is also quite a challenge, so...”

“Oh, I can help with that.”

Cyrus asked an attendant to bring something. A moment later, the attendant brought a set of jewelry made from blue pearls.

Helene was the first to be amazed. “Oh, Cyrus, is that...?”

“I knew you’d recognize it, Helene.”

Kai, listening to their conversation, asked cautiously, “Cyrus, what are these?”

“These are treasures held dear by our royal family.”

“I-is it okay for me to accept something so valuable?”

“Of course. If you can help protect us from our enemies, this cost is nothing. Please, take a look at them.”

Kai, looking at Cyrus's confident expression, carefully checked the items’ information.

[Mermaid's Sapphire Necklace]

Grade: Rare (Set)

Defense: 201

Magic Resistance: 187

+20% Underwater Movement Speed

Requirements: Level 70+, 100+ Intelligence.

Durability: 37/100

[Mermaid's Ruby Bangle]

Grade: Rare (Set)

Defense: 174

Magic Resistance: 157

+20% Underwater Movement Speed

Requirements: Level 70+, 100+ Strength

Durability: 45/100

[Mermaid's Emerald Ring]

Grade: Rare (Set)

Defense: 152

Magic Resistance: 129

+20% Underwater Movement Speed

Requirements: Level 70+, 100+ Underwater Movement Speed

Durability: 28/100

"This is...!"

Kai's eyes widened as he checked the information.

It’s a set item, and it even has underwater movement bonus!

It could also be understood as the underwater movement bonus being the only advantage of the set. But for Kai, who felt frustrated by his movements underwater, this was like rain during a drought!

Moreover, it wasn’t a good idea to quickly judge a set item by only looking at the effects of the individual items. Like the Black Gnoll set, the true value was found in the effects of the whole set itself.

[Set: The Three Treasures]

When each of the Mermaid’s three treasures are equipped, gain +5 to all stats and an additional +5% to underwater movement and attacks.

W-what’s with these lovely options!?

Kai's expression brightened so much that it could brighten up the deep sea. The set’s effects were very good, given the strict requirements!

Thinking about the set’s unbelievable effects, Kai slowly nodded.

Amazing. Not many people would be able to use this set.

There were very few who usually increased Strength, Agility, and Intelligence at the same time, and it was certain that less than 1% of all users did so.

In other words, unless someone had the Benevolence stat that raised all other stats like Kai did, they couldn’t enjoy the full benefits of these items. Most would only be able to wear items related to their main stat.

But I can wear all three pieces of jewelry.

After helping unite Helene and Crawford, he had gained an additional 30 Benevolence stats, pushing all his stats past 100 except for Dignity!

This meant that Kai could bring out the full potential of The Three Treasures set.

+15 to all stats, +15% to underwater movement speed, and +15% to underwater attack, huh...

Then Cyrus asked Kai, who was smiling happily, "So, did it help? It might be a bit challenging for humans to use..."

"Not at all." Accepting the three pieces of jewelry with care, Kai flashed a confident expression. “It helps immensely. More than enough, really.”

With the title Discoverer of Aquavera, Kai's underwater movement speed now reached a whopping 105%! It was almost ridiculous that this allowed Kai to move more fluidly and quickly than he could on land.