To The Cerulean Shrine
“The Cerulean Shrine. It’s a settlement of merfolk who live in a palace made of sea crystals with a slightly different hue from here.”
“Heh, so there are shrines other than the Blue Waters Shrine?”
“Yes, there are several scattered throughout the ocean. However, we do not have interactions with every settlement, so I can’t give you an exact number.”
“Heh~.”
So, there are other merfolk settlements~ It seems that there are other places in addition to the Cerulean Shrine
“So, what’s the matter with the Cerulean Shrine?”
“Well, it’s a very impolite request, but…”
The Shrine Princess seemed very hesitant, her gaze wandering.
“I can refuse if I don’t want to do it, so could you please tell me first?”
“Well, um, we would like you to help with the garbage collection at the Cerulean Shrine!”
“Ehh!?”
The request was unexpectedly about garbage collection.
“Well… you see, the garbage is a problem in every settlement… and, during a conversation with the people from the Cerulean Shrine… that…
“Miko Himesama accidentally mentioned that you had helped us with the collection.”
“Goodness! Gard! I told you to keep that a secret, didn’t I!?”
“The people from the Cerulean Shrine are in regular contact with us, and the idea was brought up to formally request Takumi-sama’s assistance. I’m really sorry for our Miko Himesama.”
“Gard~…”
“Hahaha~”
It seemed the cause of this request was the Miko Himesama’s unintentional revelation. Although she said “unintentional,” it wasn’t as if I had asked her to keep it a secret.
“N? Ah, but even if it’s garbage collection…”
“I think the contents are similar to what’s here.”
I remember that it was mostly things like shells, bones, seaweed, and so on… all of which had some use. And, above all, there were many oversized pearls, which should be rare by nature~
“While I can accept the collection itself…”
“You’re opposed to it, after all?”
“No, it’s not that I’m opposed to it.”
“Oh?”
The things I collected here before are still inside my Infinite Storage at the moment.
So, it would only mean more items gathering dust.
“Let’s see~ I’d like to visit the Cerulean Shrine, so I’ll accept the request.”
“Oh my! Really!?”
This Blue Waters Shrine made of sea crystals is beautiful, and the idea of a shrine with a different color is intriguing.
“Yes.—Is everyone okay with that?”
“”((((((Yeah.))))))””
“Umu. If we can go together, I’m fine with anywhere.”
It seems I have made the decision on my own, but since everyone agreed, I decided to go to the Cerulean Shrine.
◇ ◇ ◇
“Please come visit us again.”
“”Yeah, see you again~””
“Thank you for everything.”
After staying overnight at the Blue Waters Shrine, we decided to head to the Cerulean Shrine the next day.
Moreover, by that time, the ceremonial clothes were ready and were handed to us along with the mermaid bracelets.
(Alright, let’s go.)
“Ah, yeah, please. But go safely please.”
We decided to ride on Kaiser’s back as he transformed back into a dragon.
Additionally, two people from the Blue Waters Shrine joined us, serving as guides and intermediaries with the merfolk there.
However, for some reason… they were wrapped in Kaiser’s tail.
It turns out that he didn’t want anyone but us on his back.
(I think we’ve arrived, it’s around here, right?)
“Y-yes, we’re already close.”
(Fumu. In that case, from here, I’ll take on a human form.)
The Cerulean Shrine was located to the west, near the Regulus Empire.
When we got close to the Cerulean Shrine, Kaiser transformed into a human form. Well, it would probably cause a commotion if a Leviathan approached the merfolk settlement in its original form.
“By the way, what happened when you first arrived at the Blue Waters Shrine?”
“Nu? Well… it caused a bit of a commotion, but it worked out once I explained that I was an acquaintance of yours.”
“……”
So, it did cause a commotion. But in the end, it seems things worked out, which is good.
“There was no other choice! I didn’t have any clothes with me at that time. Even I, knew better than to wander around naked as a human. It was an unavoidable situation!”
“Ahh~ That’s certainly true.”
“Right?”
“N? By the way, what happens to your clothes when you transform back and forth?”
In his natural form, well, he’d be naked. I had been watching when Kaiser transformed back to his original form and when he took on a human form, I realized that he was already wearing clothes. His clothes weren’t torn or damaged when he changed back either.
“It’s thanks to this!”
Kaiser happily pointed to his right ear.
There was something like a piercing on his ear. Could it be some kind of magic item?
“Can I appraise it?”
“Of course.”
With Kaiser’s permission, I used Appraisal on the item, and I found out that the earring was a magic item for changing equipment.
“… Equipment change?”
“Umu, indeed. This is a magic item that allows me to instantly put on or change into clothes that have been registered with it!”
It seems that Kaiser uses the equipment-changing magic item when transforming into a human to put on clothes and removes it when changing back to his original form.
Furthermore, this magic tool can be used not only for changing in and out of regular clothes but also for instantly changing into combat attire.
“Wow~ so there are magic tools like that, too. That’s really convenient.”
I typically have no significant difference between regular attire and combat gear, but I think this magic tool would be incredibly useful for people who need to switch into armor for battle.
“Yes, when I found this in my lair, I was really pleased. With this, there’s no worry about tearing clothes anymore.”
… At the very least, there was one time when he transformed back to his original form while still wearing clothes and ended up tearing them.
(Oniichan, Oniichan! Let’s look for this equipment-changing magic tool along with the magic rings!)
Joule proposed collecting equipment-changing magic tools with shining eyes.
“N? I do think it’s a handy magic item, but… do you want it that much?”
(Yeah! We might learn the Humanization skill too, right? For times when we need it, I want to collect them in advance!)
Not only Joule but the rest of the Contracted Beasts were also nodding eagerly.
While it’s unclear how to acquire the Humanization skill, they know that such a skill exists, so it seems Joule and the others are aiming to acquire the skill.
They want to be well-prepared for when they do acquire it.
“Understood. We’ll look for it in the dungeons, but we should also keep an eye out in shops and auctions.”
“Allen will help too~!”
“Elena will do her best too~!”
(Okay, we will leave it to you, Oniichan, Allen, and Elena too!”
Allen and Elena also offered their assistance while hugging Joule.
If Joule and the others could humanize, the future would likely be even more fun than it is now~
“Oh, I’m sorry for keeping you waiting.”
We had gotten lost in our conversation, and we had kept the merfolk guide waiting.
“Nono, it’s not a problem at all. Thanks to Kaiser-sama, we arrived here quite early.”
“Indeed. Since we overheard your conversation, we will inform the Miko Himesama about the matter of the equipment-changing magic tools, and we’ll keep it in mind as well.”
“Oh, you don’t have to do that.”
“We are very grateful to Takumi-sama for all the help he’s given us, so this is a small matter for us.”
“Is that so? Well then, please just keep it in mind.”
“”You can count on us!””
Finding an equipment-changing magic tools doesn’t seem like an easy task, so having more people looking for it is honestly appreciated.
So, I’ll ask them to search, and once they find it, I’ll make sure to reward them properly.