Back inside the ocean, Isaac was met with several narrowed eyes. The first person to smack him was Skyler, who rolled his eyes.
"When did I ever say that?"
Isaac cleared his throat.
"It was a precaution. So they wouldn't come after the weak me and would instead target the strongest among us... which is you."
Yuris was the second to smack him.
"Who told you to ride the wave? Weren't we supposed to stay mysterious and only send the wave up to throw the bodies back onto the ship? You just stole all the attention!"
Charles also gave Isaac a pointed look. Austin just laughed. Seeing their looks, Isaac instantly tried to defend himself.
"It was an accident! I was controlling the wave and forgot to leave! Believe me!"
Of course, he didn't mention that he had noticed someone recording with a camera before he jumped into the water. He had purposely wanted to appear in the news so his family could see how cool he looked and know that he was still alive and well.
Most importantly, he wanted to tell them that he hadn't gone to meet his deceased grandma after entering the Battle Royal.
Yuris muttered with an aggrieved expression.
"Next time, I'm doing it if there's something like this. I want to have my moment too."
Skyler smiled at their bickering. As Riruru returned to her smaller form and settled on his shoulder, he pointed to the distance.
"Let's go. I can see a dome in that way. The challenge for this level is probably there."
As he moved forward, the others became serious as well and followed after him.
Along the way, the mermaid began to feel sleepy and, under Skyler's coaxing, entered the pocket space to rest. Seeing this scene, the others secretly clicked their tongues.
This bastard was truly two-faced.
They were tired as well, but had Skyler ever asked them to go and rest? The instant she yawned, he immediately sent her away to relax.
Of course, when Skyler looked toward them, they all smiled back innocently, their previous looks of complaint completely gone.
Skyler's lips twitched.
Obviously, he understood what was going on in their heads after seeing their forced smiles. But he refrained from saying anything and turned to continue deeper into the ocean. His voice was muffled by the water around them as he rubbed Riruru's head.
"Let's continue."
Soon, the group found the massive dome containing the challenge of the 26th level.
Inside awaited an army of giant squids. Their massive bodies moved through the vast space with terrifying speed, their sharp blade-like tentacles cutting through the air, while their numerous round eyes glowed with an eerie green light. However, the creatures posed no real threat to them.
Austin and Charles alone handled the entire challenge, effortlessly clearing the level before they entered the next one.
Honestly, the only real problem they had encountered so far was not the powerful monsters, but the annoying Devil Clams. The moment those creatures caught sight of them, they began chasing after them, refusing to stop no matter what they did.
The 27th level challenge was cleared by Yuris. He faced a pair of giant blue-brown isopods—a massive underwater creature that resembled a heavily armored insect.
Despite their terrifying appearance, they were actually sea creatures capable of surviving outside the water as well.
The 28th level challenge was cleared by Riruru, who had grown bored from simply watching the others fight. With Skyler's help, she completed the challenge.
On the 29th level, Skyler kicked Zack, who had been staying invisible at the back all this time, forward and told him to fight.
Zack clicked his tongue.
"Alright, alright."
But after seeing the ugly long-snouted underwater monsters with pale bodies, he felt his stomach churn and immediately turned around.
"I'll fight the next level challenge. These monsters are too ugly to even kill. Ugh."
Skyler raised an eyebrow.
"You want to fight the half-water dragon alone? If so, be my guest."
Zack's eyes widened.
"Wait, which level are we on?"
Isaac chuckled.
"Unbelievable. But the 29th level."
Zack blinked in a daze.
"Already? Wow. Even the..."
He swallowed his next words.
'...protagonist wasn't this fast.'
Shaking his head, Zack turned to face the ugly monsters once again. His expression twisted with disgust, but he endured it and defeated the creatures while trying to avoid touching them. The gate to the next level opened, and Skyler looked inside the gate.
"Get ready. The next level is something we all need to clear together. We don't need to kill that half-dragon; defeating it is enough."
With that, they stepped through the gate.
Everyone became serious. After all, they were finally about to face a truly powerful enemy.
Once again, they appeared on top of a massive ship. However, they knew this would be the last time they would appear on one. Just like on the 26th level, many powerful villains were waiting in ambush for them on the 30th level. However, this time, they were already prepared.
Without hesitation, they jumped into the ocean and dealt with the Dark Lights who followed them underwater. The battle was quickly settled, and this time, a massive space rift appeared above the ship, tossing the enemies' bodies back onto the deck.
From within the space rift, Yuris waved toward the people watching with a grin.
"We told you. Next time, choose your targets carefully. Don't be so foolish as to fight those far stronger than yourselves."
He paused for a moment before adding with a mocking smile.
"But you still don't get it, do you?"
With a sneer, Yuris vanished back into the space rift and regrouped with the others.
The others saw his smug look and rolled their eyes. Then, they continued forward to find the half-dragon guarding the level.
Yet, before they could find the half-dragon, the half-water dragon found them itself.
Everyone froze when the dragon appeared and released its overwhelming pressure.
A massive shadow appeared, followed by an enormous head stopping directly in front of Skyler. Its deep blue scales shimmered faintly, and its sharp golden eyes stared at him with curiosity. The creature resembled a giant serpent with four powerful limbs, long whiskers, and a body covered in thick dragon scales. It lowered its head and sniffed slightly, as if confirming something.
Then, the snake-like dragon opened its massive jaws and spoke in a deep voice.
"I sensed my kind... So, it's you."
While everyone else was frozen in shock, Skyler had the audacity to open his mouth and argue with a clearly displeased look.
"Wrong person. I am clearly a human."