Chapter 689 - Ghost in the Shell (Patreon)

"What are we looking for again?" Blue asked.

"For a shell with a green streak on it," Hera replied. She had already told everyone that she might have found a clue to something interesting. However, most of the party was enjoying their break, with Blue and Alex being the only ones who wanted to join her.

"How about that one? That's kind of green," Alex pointed at a giant shell with some bits that could be green, but only when the light hit it the right way.

"No, the information I got talked about something you know it's green. That felt definitive like it was something you would look at and don't feel any doubt about it being green," Hera looked around. They've been walking south for the last 10 minutes, and according to Fritz, she should take, at most, 30 minutes to find whatever he talked about. She wasn't sure if he was counting on finding the thing and going back or not, but either way, she still had time.

"Empress. I think I have found it!" Nimbus yelled from the sky.

"How far?"

"About… 1 kilometer, I think. Armory could give a better estimate."

"Don't worry about it. Do you mind keeping an eye out up there? Just to make sure we won't miss it."

"I don't think you can, but I don't have any problem staying here, the weather is really nice," Nimbus said with a smile.

"Zhow-off," Lurize huffed.

"Are you ok big guy?" Blue poked the metallic beetle with her elbow.

"Yeah. I'm fine. I would prefer not to be on a beach," he raised one of his metal feet to show how much sand was coming out of it, "That getz everywhere."

"Are you sure you don't want to stay in your weapon form? I think you would be more comfortable," Hera suggested.

"If he doesn't need to. Neither do I," Lurize gestured to Nimbus in a huff.

"Ok then. You do you," Hera shook her head.

They continued walking and talking for some time. The monsters in this room avoided the shells for some reason, but after hearing Fritz's explanation, she could somewhat understand. If she lived in a place where being dragged inside one of the many, many caves around during a high tide would mean she would turn into a pebble-sized meatball, she would avoid that area too. That's why the creatures would only appear near the smaller shells or in the paths where the ocean was much lower.

Soon, they arrived at the shell Nimbus noticed, and just like Fritz said, it was obvious which one it was. Among all the shells with different shades of various faded colors, there was a single one, in a spiral going up, with a single bright green line from the entrance to the tip of the shell.

"I get what you mean by really green now," Blue was looking up, trying to see the end of this cave.

"Yeah. Me too," Hera looked inside the cave and used her Pulse spell to see if there was something inside. The magic kept going, spreading inside the shell and going up, but the place was empty, "There doesn't seem to be any monsters," the Empress told the group.

"And what are we looking for, exactly?" Blue asked as they walked inside the dark cave. That single line of green was also present here, and more interesting, it glowed in the dark.

"I don't know. Something unique, I think. Something different. Something that pops out," Hera replied while looking around. The ground seemed stable enough, and there were no markings on the ceiling or the wall opposite the green mark.

"Something like this?" Alex moved deeper into the cave but stopped pointing at the wall where the green line became bigger.

Hera walked to the side and saw what the assassin was talking about. As the line grew, there were some carvings using the negative space, where the green was no longer present, to make the outlines of the pictures. The first one was a very large and detailed crab, not like Fritz, but a real crab, filled with scars, bumps, and barnacles stuck to its body. It also had one massive serrated claw and a much smaller one. Aside from that, the first image was a regular crab. Large body with small legs and a round shell in the back. The next one was another crab, but a very different one, with massive spider-like legs and two very long arms with small pincers, its body seemed to be spotted, and there was a spiral shell on its back. All around it, there was something, strands of web or maybe a crude representation of electricity. The last of the trio was a middle ground between both. Long legs, but not as long as the second, and a large body that didn't quite get to the size of the first one. Its pincers were different too. Instead of a pair, it had a set of five, two on each side and one coming from the top of its body, almost like a horn. All the legs also seemed to have some spikes on what would be their knees. Once more, he had a shell on its back, but this one looked different. It was bulbous and had bumps in the round parte and a thin long protuberance that was leaning on top of its head, almost as if it was an antennae. Behind them all was a set of empty shells very similar to the ones they saw outside.

Moving forward, they saw the same three crabs again, but they were a bit smaller, and the shells were different. On a closer inspection, Hera also noticed small details that had changed from the previous version. The serrated claw of the first one was a bit less aggressive, and the barnacles were smaller. The last one knee spikes were smaller, while the second one still looked the same, with the only difference being the size.

"Are they… the same?" Blue asked.

"It looks like it," Alex touched the drawings, half expecting to trigger a trap, but nothing happened.

'Look at the shells. Aren't those in the first picture the ones they are using in the second picture? On top of the rest?' Dao pointed at the second picture and then to the spots in the first one where the second shells were.

"You're right! This is weird. Is it like a timeline? And we are seeing the end of it?" Hera turned to the others, but Blue and Alex didn't hear what Dao said. Quickly explaining that they turned back to the first drawing before confirming.

"Yeah, this looks like those shells. What about the next one?" Blue rushed deeper into the cave.

"Is there a next one?" Alex followed along.

In fact, there wasn't just a single extra picture, but several. Each showed the three crabs in different sizes, almost like this was a record of their growth. Eventually, other crabs started to appear. They also had their own unique features, but it was something different from the three, who lasted till the end. Just smaller or larger limbs, maybe some markings on the shells, or an extra limb. Every single one of the crabs followed the same pattern, they would appear in the image with a shell, and in the next one, they would see them with a different shell than they could now find in the previous picture. It seemed like they were moving the opposite way, which made this even more confusing. Despite that, it was very well made. Each carving had consistency with one another, and the details were very well put together. Eventually, they all reached the end of the drawings, where a consortium of crabs appeared, all without any shells moving to the beach in search of their home.

"Is this how it ends? Or starts?" Blue looked deeper inside the cave, where there was still a large chunk of this green mark but now without any drawings.

"What are you talking about? There is one more drawing," Hera tilted her head. She could perfectly see one last picture.

"What? This is empty, Hera," Alex turned to her with a confused expression.

"No, it's not," Hera walked in front of the picture and tried to touch it, but unlike the rest, the grooves here were smooth, like they were actually not there. Paying a bit more attention, she realized that she wasn't looking at some carvings, at least not in the regular sense of the word. Instead of it being something that was engraved on the wall, it was made with mana.

She followed the line with her finger until she reached the center of the picture, where her nail got caught on something. She put a little bit of pressure, and a small oyster shell popped out in her hand. It was only one-sided and completely made out of rock, and it had the same green color where all of the pictures were represented. Just as that happened, the mana that was creating the picture glowed and carved the entire path with the last picture. Hundreds of small crabs were all looking at one another on top of a small platform. This apparent leader crab was showing them all the shell that Hera had just got, which was now a hole in the same shape.

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Green Shell

A material that can be used to increase the defense of any equipment by 40%
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"I think it's showing the first crab to get a shell?" Alex was confused, just like everyone else.

"Yeah. It's a material, and that kind of makes…" before Hera could finish her sentence, the crabs in that last picture started to move. They popped out of the carvings like a messed up game of whack-a-mole and started skittering on the ground, climbing over the three women's legs.

Blue yelped and started trying to push them away, but her hand passed right through the crabs, "Are those freaking ghosts?"

"I don't fucking know!" Alex gasped, stepping away.

Hera tried her best not to be creeped out and to understand what was going on. Since she constantly had Daskka around her neck and could summon around 30 snakes on a whim, her stomach was a bit stronger when dealing with 'creepy crawlers.' She focused on the leader, who was walking in the air and getting close to her. When it turned to the side, it was clear to see one big difference between this crab and the others. This one had a shell on his back. The exact same shell that was currently on her hand. Eventually, the leader crab got close to her hand and just stared at the shell. The Empress couldn't help herself and placed the shell in her hand on top of the crab. It was like a piece of a puzzle, a spot that fit perfectly, and she had to do it.

The moment the green shell was let go on top of the leading crab, everything stopped. All the crabs stopped moving and jumped back to the carving. The leader shook its body, and the shell dropped to the side. That's when it used its tiny serrated claw to grab the shell and place it back on Hera's hand. Now instead of green, it had a transparent Viridian tint.

Hera read the description of the item and couldn't help but smile, "Ok, this is cool."

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Ghostly Shell of the Reef
Amulet

Very rare
Level Requirement: 28

When active, it envelops the user and all its equipment in a coral barrier that increases all defensive capabilities by 25%
Duration: 10 minutes
Cooldown: 24 hours
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"What is it?" Blue asked before Alex, and she checked the information themselves, "Now that's just stupid. We go inside a cave, and you get something like that?"

"I mean, she was the one who found out about this," Alex sighed.

"Yeah, but who would put the shell on the ghost? That doesn't make any sense," Blue looked back to the carving that now was gone, even the shell-shaped hole was nowhere to be seen, "Can I get one too?" she started poking around, trying to take out a piece of shell.

"Blue, those things usually don't work like that," Hera put a hand on her friend's shoulder, but to everyone's surprise, another green shell popped out in her hand.

"Ha! I got it," the controller celebrated.

"Wait… does that mean…" Alex just looked at the carving that appeared again, and after a few moments, the crabs all popped out and started crawling over them all one more time, "Just do the thing already!"

Blue repeated the same process that Hera did, and just like the first shell, the second one was improved as well. She tried again, but this time, the moment she took out the green shell from the wall, the one she had turned to sand. Alex also tried, and she got one, but subsequent attempts resulted in the shell they already had destroyed. Lurize also tried, but the moment he took the shell, the one in Hera's possession was gone.

"We should call everyone else, right? You said we had a few hours," Alex turned to Hera.

"Yeah, I don't think this is something anyone is going to pass up," Hera nodded as they walked out of the shell cave.

"We are telling them how to get this upgrade, but not about the ghost crabs climbing over you, right?" Blue asked when they reached the beach.

"Of course. What's the fun in letting them know everything?" Hera said with a smile.