BBYW Vol. 2 Interlude Part 14 (WN)
Interlude – Dietrich Maxwell’s Adventure
Part 14 – The Guardian of the Ruins
After defeating the Lion King crew, we eventually reached Alexandrite island.
The day was nearly over: the sinking sun illuminated the western sky orange.
Alexandrite was supposed to have been the home of an ancient magic civilization, but there were no ruins or relics in sight: it looked like any other desert island.
“Are you really sure that pirate booty of yours is here?”
“Aye, no doubt about it, sir. In this bay right here.”
Gourd replied to my doubts with confidence.
The White Demons’ ship did not drop anchor immediately, but sailed around the island, until it reached a certain bay on the opposite side.
On the other side of the island, a wide-reaching coral reef made it difficult to navigate.
I, Grace, Gourd and a few other pirates boarded a small boat and advanced towards a cave next to the bay.
“This cave only appears when the tide is low: usually it’s under sea level.”
“Huh, so it only appears at night? Pretty magical.”
“The civilization on this island was built by people driven out of the continent for some political reasons, apparently. I guess that’s why they chose a place as hard to find as this.”
The ancient civilization’s heritages — also called “Dungeons” could be found in the Lamperouge kingdom too.
I had also visited some in the past: the scenery inside was always something out of this world.
Our boat proceeded into the dark cave. Eventually, we reached a brighter place.
“This is…”
“Impressive, no? This is the other face of this island.”
The cave led to a surprisingly wide clearing.
There was enough space to build a whole fortress. In fact, four large buildings had been erected there.
On the walls, blue and white lights glowed intermittently, almost as if they were breathing.
“Amazing…this view alone is like a treasure.”
“Those buildings are coated in a special paint, which makes them glow at contact with the air, sir. I think it was called…fluorescent paint?”
Gourd started explaining, despite no one asking him to.
I looked at the man, expounding knowledge rarely expected from someone of such burly physique, with sincere surprise.
“…you’re a lot more knowledgeable than you look.”
“Hehe, I actually love ruins like this, sir. I know I don’t look the part at all, but I wanted to be an archaeologist when I was a kid.”
“Even more surprising.”
Only people from rich families ever thought of becoming researchers or professors. Who knows, Gourd might actually be of high class birth.
“Enough chatting! It’ll come out any moment now!!”
“Eh? What’s coming out?”
Grace, who had been quiet until then, suddenly interrupted us.
The woman, who had changed in her dress, was staring daggers at the depths of the ruins.
The captain’s intense air soon caused the rest of the pirates to grow tense.
“…we’ve come here before, sir. But it won’t let us go any farther.”
“They…right, you said there was a guardian?”
“Aye, sir. We brought you here to help us take it down.”
I scowled at Gourd’s words.
There was an opponent that even that monster woman, Grace Draco Omari, couldn’t defeat?
“Sir!! It’s here!!”
The sound of something slithering, crawling on the ground echoed from deep within the ruins. The noise gradually became louder, and eventually the lights on the walls revealed their source.
“What the…!!”
The silhouette was that of a snake. Its body was covered in red scales, like the forked tongue darting in and out of its wide-open maw.
The snake was large enough to swallow a ship whole, however: to top it all off, its neck split in two: the beast had two heads.
“Sea Hydra…this snake’s poison can melt even iron!!”
Grace, an excited grin on her lips, announced the monster’s name.
I doubt the snake understood her words, but it raised its heads in response, as its red eyes turned towards us.