Deep in the waters of Tsloch Sea, a group of corals seemed to be getting moved by the undercurrents. These corals bounced and crashed into each other, sustaining damage from time to time.
Pieces of coral split off and scattered away while the majority of the larger corals continued to be carried by the undercurrent.
The corals seemed unassuming at first glance, but were in truth a Race of Pranic Beasts that had disguised themselves into unassuming corals, which even when damaged, didn’t reveal any presence. And the broken fragments were truly coral, without any hints of their actual body parts.
Advanced Silver Grade Pranic Beast–Nirclick!
The undercurrent gradually grew in speed as the group of corals numbering in the three digits moved nearby the Empyrean Snapper positioned close to the Academy of Accumulation.
And for an instant, they released a tinge of presence, before the undercurrents carried them away faster. These undercurrents were ever-present at the Tsloch Sea, and arguably dangerous for even Silver Grade Pranic Beasts.
The Nirclicks were just tanking it out by relying on their Prana reserves for recovery. And the moment their presence leaked out for an instant, the head of the Empyrean Snapper nearby sprang to the location.
Primary Nature–Subtle Terrain Domination!
The Empyrean Snapper extended its neck to the limit, at which it was positioned a couple kilometres away from the moving group of corals. The Empyrean Snapper was alarmed, as the corals were moving towards a strategic location of the Cooter Clan.
The scale of their numbers meant significant damage to the Cooter Clan base at the destination. Without a moment’s hesitation, the Empyrean Snapper gave chase.
The Cooter Clansmen stationed on its back noticed the group of corals and armed up for a fight. A small group promptly veered off and boarded a ship accompanying the Empyrean Snapper.
While the Empyrean Snapper and the many ships accompanying it gave chase, this ship, containing 60 Cooter Clansmen with Iron Grade strength and 10 Cooter Clansmen with Silver Grade strength, made way to the ferry carrying Runthral.
Since the Empyrean Snapper had to leave with urgency, a small group had been dispatched to protect Runthral in its place. This group had enough power to go against even a Gold Grade Pranic Beast, which was plenty enough at the Tsloch Sea.
...
’This ferry is strange, now that I think about it.’ Torq calmed himself and analysed the situation first, eyeing the deck, ’I can only sense the Captain in my vicinity.’
’The rest of the Cooter Clansmen must be working from their quarters within.’ These Clansmen were in charge of generating waves to move the ship. They typically took turns, while one group generated the waves, the other drank medicines to rest and replenish their expended Prana reserves.
Torq walked into the cabin and looked around, observing an eerie silence. There was no one in sight, ’Shouldn’t there be at least a small group of Cooter Clansmen travelling on the ferry?’
Typically, the Cooter Clan dispatched its people across the various islands situated on the Tsloch Sea, whether it be to mine for ores, farm Pranic Beasts, refine minerals, etc. depending on the geographical location and natively available resource on an island, the size of the Cooter Clan stationed there varied.
Stationed away from their Deity for extended durations, Cooter Clansmen experienced withdrawal symptoms. The stronger they were, the greater the symptoms they experienced. Hence, at regular intervals, Cooter Clansmen rotated between their dispatch locations and the headquarters, where most of the Empyrean Snappers were situated.
Cooter Clan had three primary classifications for their ships: Battleships meant for Raids, Cargo Ships for transportation of goods, and Ferries to shuttle Clansmen between various destinations.
Battleships typically reached 180 metres in length varying slightly based on their intended use and deployment area. Cargo Ships ranged between 60-90 metres while Ferries spanned around 40 metres.
The Ferry maintained by Wudwud was decently known, as it frequented the route between the Academy of Accumulation and the headquarters. Wudwud was pretty competent in this regard, having managed a track record of transporting students without a single incident to date.
It was why Principal Khakha recommended his Ferry, among all the available options, for Runthral.
’Dammit!’ Torq’s expression was foul as he externally appeared calm and strolled through the cabinspace, ’Unless the enemy is aware of our inner workings, they couldn’t have made such plans.’
’This is too soon for them to learn about the Cooter Clan.’ Frowning, Torq arrived at the topmost room where Runthral was stationed. The door to the room was closed, and within, Runthral seemed to be casually browsing through a series of scrolls, which were meant to entertain him.
Right as he was about to barge into the room, Torq felt disinclined to do so, ’Maybe I’ll return later...’
’Later?’ He noticed the oddity of the situation immediately, ’Me? I’m hesitant to disturb him? That’s unlike me.’
"Is something not to your liking, Boiboi?" Vice Captain Soso’s voice resounded from behind, calm and soothing.
"Take a bath." Snorting in disdain, Torq brushed past the woman and walked to his room, "Disgusting fuck."
Veins popped all over Vice Captain Soso’s forehead as she glared at Torq’s back, inching to teach the other party a lesson. She stopped upon hearing the door slam shut and revealed a smile, ’His moments were a tad sluggish.’
’Go on, get some sleep.’ She coolly eyed Runthral’s room with a heated gaze, ’The world will be different by the time you wake up, if you ever do, that is.’
Vice Captain Soso walked past Torq’s room while en route to the deck, unaware Torq was leaning on the door all along and listening to her echoing footsteps. ’The fact that she hasn’t reacted to my taunt tells me everything I need to know.’
"The fucks have already infiltrated this deep, huh?" Once he was sure both the Captain and Vice Captain were out of earshot, Torq condensed water on his index finger, shaping it into a tiny knife that he used to incision his stomach.
The blade of water turned into a tube and stabbed into the fat layer on his stomach. It formed a stream outward, sucking out fat that spilled to the floor.
T-Twitch!
"Yuck!" He eyed the gooey mass on the floor that wriggled like maggots before beginning to break down into dust undetectable to the naked eye. ’To think so much of it has already accumulated in my body.’
’And my Prana didn’t even realise this.’ Understanding the terror of the substance before him, Torq layered a curtain of water around the wriggling fat. It expanded like a balloon as the fat seemed to turn into vapour.
Soon, a large balloon of water hovered before him, seeming to contain nothing. However, the pressure applied on the walls of his water balloon meant otherwise. A white fluid layered the water balloon and hardened into the Gentle Coral.
Torq increased the coral’s thickness until he was sure it could withstand the pressure. Only then could he focus on the next place of concern, the fat deposit on his thighs. In the same manner as before, he ejected as much fat as possible from across his body, all of which wriggled creepily once ejected out.
He encased them all in Gentle Coral boxes, relieved only upon seeing his Prana work on regenerating his fat reserves. He promptly thought about Runthral, ’Good! I no longer have any hesitation in annoying him.’
"That means I’ve gotten rid of enough that I’m no longer influenced by it." He patted the skin of his stomach in relief, feeling faint traces of sweat, ’Good, my Prana is now able to detect and eject the faint traces remaining in me.’
"The Nirclicks are in control of this ferry." A second of consideration later, Torq refrained from taking action impulsively, ’Let’s wait and see what happens.’
He eyed in the direction of Runthral’s room, ’That gullible idiot is their target.’
’It’ll be easy to use him as bait.’ Slowly, he pressed his forehead on the floor and prepared himself, ’Once the enemies appear, I’ll destroy them and use the opportunity to increase my strength.’