Level 51 is a beach by the sea, with coconut trees, shells, crabs, and even changing rooms. We went in first to change back into our clothes and gear.
After that, I sat down on the sand, my stomach growling from hunger. Lina sat beside me and took out some food to eat.
I wondered if it was already noon outside, or how long we'd been here. Inside the dungeon, it was impossible to tell the time outside. If only I had a watch.
After eating, I looked at the coconut trees. I wanted coconut water, so I went to pick two coconuts. When I climbed down, Lina glanced at the coconuts in my hand, and I smiled at her.
"Lina, want a drink?"
"Mm."
Lina nodded several times; she also wanted coconut water to cool off. I split one open with my sword and stored the other in my storage hole.
Lina could never finish an entire coconut. She always left some behind, so I always helped her drink the rest.
She took a sip, then looked at me.
"Karen, aren't you opening the other one for yourself?"
"If you can finish yours, I'll open it."
"Even though I can't finish it, but…"
"Don't worry about me not having enough. Just drink as much as you can."
"Mm. Gulp, gulp… Here you go."
Once Lina drank all she could, she handed the rest to me. I drank it all in one go and then went to find the entrance. It turned out the entrance is on the sea, with small boats nearby.
Brett said that for ocean level, you always needed to take a boat to reach the entrance, since the next several floors would all be at sea until land reappeared at the 60th floor.
We got into one of the small boats. It had two oars and a small teleportation circle in the middle—apparently this boat was part of the labyrinth.
I took the rear position and picked up the oars, while Lina sat facing forward to guide me.
When we reached the entrance, we saw that its width had doubled compared to earlier floors, though the height was the same. When I looked inside, it wasn't a downward staircase but a horizontal waterway. I rowed in.
The Level 52 is an ocean full of huge schools of fish—every kind of fish imaginable. Not that we could see them underwater, but catching them would tell us what kinds there were.
"Water Cage"
Lina cast a magic, and a giant sphere of water rose from the sea, filled with fish swimming around. It was incredible—sea bream, saury, salmon, and more.
I took out some buckets and a knife and called to Lina.
"Lina, bring it over here."
"Mm."
She moved the water ball over the boat. I reached in and pulled out fish one by one, cleaning them. I only took two of each type.
After a long while, we finally finished, and Lina dumped the remaining fish back into the sea. I stored away the buckets full of blood and organs, planning to throw them away later, then drank a cup of water and continued rowing toward the entrance.
The Level 53 is an ocean with endless waves, but large-scale magic could disperse them easily.
Lina used "Storm" to scatter the waves, letting us safely move to the next level.
The Level 54 is a stormy ocean, with violent winds and heavy rain. Even though the entrance wasn't far, the waves kept pushing us back, farther and farther away—even the entrance behind us became distant.
"Lina, hold on to the boat!"
"I'm holding on!"
She clung to the boat's frame while I rowed with all my strength, forcing our way through the storm until we entered the next floor.
The 55th floor was a crystal-clear sea. The water was bright blue, and you could see the white sand, rocks, and tropical fish on the seabed.
"You can actually see the bottom. It looks shallow."
The boat's shadow wasn't far from the seabed, so it really was shallow—probably only up to the hips. Since this floor wasn't dangerous, I asked Lina:
"Want to get in and try it?"
"Mm!"
Lina nodded and took off her boots, socks, and cloak. I removed my boots, socks, and gear as well, rolling up my pants and sleeves. Lina gently hopped into the water, splashing only a little.
"So cool!"
Lina exclaimed, and I jumped in after her. Just as I thought, the water reached my hips, and Lina's waist.
While I was thinking about it, water suddenly splashed onto me. I turned to see Lina with her hands in the water, splashing me again.
"You dare splash me? I'll get you back!"
I couldn't let myself be attacked without retaliating. I scooped water with my hands and splashed her.
Lina covered her face as she was hit, letting out a cute squeal. Then her competitive spirit ignited.
"Ah—! Take this!"
We splashed each other over and over until we were completely soaked. Then I saw the dark fabric of Lina's underwear visible through her wet clothes. I quickly turned away and called to her.
"Stop, stop! Your clothes are soaked—go dry your upper body."
"Huh? Ah… You saw?"
The question went straight to my soul. She clearly knew—though with my back turned, I couldn't tell if she was embarrassed or angry. If I said I didn't see, it'd be a lie. But if I said I did, she might get mad. …But Lina isn't the type to get mad, right? So I decided to be honest.
"I… saw."
"It's… it's too early…"
She muttered something softly. I heard it, but didn't understand.
"What?"
"N-nothing! I'll dry off now!"
Lina seemed to realize she said something strange and hurried to end the topic. The mood had cooled anyway; it was time to move on.
"I'll get back on the boat first."
I climbed aboard, wrung out my clothes, and dried my hair with a towel. While doing so, I stared at the teleportation circle on the boat and thought about what Lina had said.
(Too early? Too early for what?)
I saw Lina's underwear, and she said it was too early… meaning it wasn't time for me to see it yet? Usually, men only see that sort of thing when doing that, which meant Lina knew about such things?! But yesterday she didn't understand the landlady's joke at all.
(So Lina only has theoretical knowledge, but is still pure.)
She was probably influenced by that clerk at the underwear shop. I had gone with Lina to the lingerie store once and had been mistaken for something else. I just sat by the door waiting for her. When she came to get me afterward, her face was red and she avoided my eyes. The clerk even gave me a thumbs-up. I had no idea what was going on then, but now it all made sense. I finally felt relieved.
After drying my legs and putting on socks and boots, Lina finished drying herself.
"Karen, I dried my clothes, but I can't get up."
Her clothes were dry again, so nothing showed through now. She was holding onto the edge of the boat, unable to climb up, so I helped her.
"I'll lift you up."
"…Mm, thank you."
I bent down and placed my hands under her arms—lifting her like a child—then set her on the boat.
She dried her legs with a towel, her pale, smooth thighs gleaming with droplets—a sight that was truly beautiful. I mentally gave her a huge thumbs-up.
I didn't stare too long; it'd make her uncomfortable. Once I finished equipping my gear, I noticed my hair was messy, but it didn't matter. It wasn't long enough to cover my vision anyway.
When Lina finished changing, I rowed us to the next entrance.
The Level 56 is an ocean filled with underwater plants. It wasn't as clear as the previous floor, but you could still see colorful coral and seaweed.
The Level 57 is filled with whirlpools. Normally, you'd go around them in a huge arc, since the whirlpool region wasn't infinite. But that took a lot of time. People with wind or water magic could get through quickly.
Water magic "Whirlpool" creates a whirlpool in any body of water, spinning clockwise or counterclockwise depending on the user.
Wind magic "Tornado" can also create whirlpools when inserted into the sea, also able to spin either direction.
Lina sat at the front of the boat since she needed to touch the water. She dipped the end of her staff into the sea and created whirlpools spinning opposite of the sea's natural ones.
Two whirlpools rotating in opposite directions cancel each other out, so Lina had to keep casting the magic.
"Lina, cancel just one whirlpool first. Let's see how long it takes for a new one to form."
I wanted to calculate the time window to pass safely.
"Okay. Whirlpool"
I stood and watched as the two whirlpools collided, splashing water before disappearing. I began counting.
(1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10…)
At 10 seconds, a new whirlpool appeared, growing rapidly.
"Ten seconds. A bit short, but enough."
I sat back-to-back with Lina and began rowing with all my strength. As the boat moved, Lina cast "Whirlpool" repeatedly every few seconds.
I couldn't see what was happening in front of us. I didn't know how far we had gone or whether we'd passed the first whirlpool. All I could do was keep rowing.
Suddenly, near the rear of the boat, I saw a whirlpool forming. We had passed it—relief washed over me. Then we passed the second, the third, the fourth… until finally, after the tenth whirlpool, we reached the entrance.
Level 58 is an ocean with massive sea tornados—just like tornadoes on land. I couldn't use enhancement magic, so Lina dispersed them one by one, and I rowed quickly to the next entrance.
Inside the passage leading to the next floor, a deep blue scene appeared before us.
Level 59 is the seafloor—the blue surface was seawater itself.
(Amazing… it's like the water is being blocked.)
Given the difference in height, water should've rushed toward us in huge volumes, but not a single drop came through. It felt like the water below us simply couldn't rise past this level.
Thinking too hard wouldn't help; the important question was whether the entrance was underwater or above the water. If underwater, we'd need to dive; if above, we'd swim upward.
Breathing wasn't an issue—Lina could create oxygen spheres to cover our heads.
"Oxygen Bubble"
Lina conjured a large bubble over my head. It wouldn't burst easily—able to withstand ten years' worth of water pressure for every ten meters. With Lina's age plus the staff containing a five-year magic stone, the total was 20 years—meaning a depth limit of 200 meters.
We jumped off the boat. The water inside the entrance only reached our knees. Standing before the sea, I looked at Lina.
"Ready?"
"Mm."
"Then let's go. One, two, three!"
At three, we ran in together.
Level 59 truly is the seafloor. Schools of fish swam around us, coral and sea grass swayed gently—a perfect underwater world.
I turned my head left and right, taking in the beauty. Since the bubble hadn't burst, we knew we were within 200 meters.
Lina looked ahead with sparkling eyes, letting out an awed sound. I hated to interrupt, but we needed to find the entrance.
"Lina, let's go."
"Mm."
We couldn't swim well with just our legs, especially wearing boots instead of flippers—flippers gave much more propulsion. So we used our arms, and Lina increased the air amount in the bubble so our equipment wouldn't drag us down. We searched for the entrance while admiring the scenery.
Then a shark appeared. Its terrifying appearance and large, sharp teeth startled us both, but Lina hid behind me in fear—more frightened than I was.
"Karen, what kind of fish is that? It's so scary…"
Her voice trembled. I quickly reassured her.
"That's a shark. It won't eat people."
"It has no hostility… but are you sure it won't? Why?"
Lina was terrified it might bite, but I wanted to get to land quickly, so I didn't explain.
"I'll tell you on the next floor. Don't be scared."
"Mm… not scared, not scared… it won't eat us… but it's still scary…"
She peeked at the shark, then immediately hid again. It was a little mean to think so, but she was adorable.
"We should find the entrance quickly, or more sharks might show up."
"Mm! Let's hurry!"
Though Lina had grown up, moments like these made her resemble her childhood self—impatient and flustered. It was nostalgic. I looked ahead and spotted a long rope dangling down.
"Lina, look—there's a rope."
"Does that mean the entrance is up there?"
"Probably. Let's swim to it."
"Mm."
We swam up to the rope and climbed. At the surface, we found footing, and the entrance really was there. The rope must have been placed by adventurers before us.
Level 60 is an island—beaches, forest, and mountains. Basically, an uninhabited island. The water only reached a little above our ankles.
But our clothes were completely drenched—again. Time to change, and conveniently, there were changing rooms nearby.
I open the door and saw a shower head hanging inside. It was actually a shower room—how thoughtful! I felt sticky all over and desperately wanted a bath.
I close the door, took off my clothes and gear, and began showering. The hot water washed away the sticky seawater. It felt amazing.
I could hear Lina showering next door. After finishing and changing into fresh clothes, I stepped outside and put on my gear.
Lina wasn't done yet, so I ate a sandwich while waiting. Just as I was about to eat the third piece, Lina came out, wearing a gray long-sleeved sweater, black pants, and her cloak. The hem of her sweater was tucked into her pants, making her figure slightly more noticeable.
Why a sweater? Because the next floor was an icy snowfield—extremely cold. I wore a brown sweater myself.
When Lina came over, I figured she might be hungry, so I held out my untouched sandwich.
"Want some?"
She didn't answer—she simply opened her mouth and took a bite directly, creating a scene where it looked like I was feeding her. But this sort of thing was normal for us.
I took out a new sandwich for myself, but just as I bit into it, Lina grabbed my hand and took a bite out of my half-eaten sandwich. I was so startled that I blurted out:
"Why are you eating mine!?"
"Because I wanted a different flavor."
I looked at the two sandwiches in my hands. Both had the exact same fillings, and Lina knew very well that I always made them identical. I held the sandwiches toward her, narrowed my eyes, and asked:
"Rea-lly?"
"...I-I'm not telling you."
Lina realized her excuse had already been exposed, but she still refused to admit her real reason. She crossed her fingers in front of her mouth and her face turned bright red.
"Come on…"
I let out a helpless sigh. How could she use such an easy-to-see-through lie? Since she was so embarrassed and didn't want me to know, I decided not to pry. It was probably just her wanting to act spoiled with me.
After that, I fed both sandwiches to Lina. Then Lina took out the dessert we bought yesterday and fed it to me. I originally wanted to hold it myself, but Lina refused to back down and insisted on feeding me. She even said something that left me no room to refuse.
"You fed me sandwiches, so I'll feed you dessert. So Ah~"
Hearing that, all I could do was surrender and open my mouth.
Once we finally resumed searching for the entrance, I kept my promise and told Lina about shark.
"Sharks like animals with a lot of fat and meat. Humans don't have much of that, so sharks normally don't target us. But sharks have bad eyesight, so sometimes they mistake humans for prey. That's why people get bitten for no reason."
"That's so sad… Why do they mistake people?"
"Probably because someone's swimming posture looked like a big fish, so the shark got confused. Also, sharks have very strong sense of smell. If they scent blood, they approach immediately. So you shouldn't be injured or bleeding in the ocean."
"I understand."
Later, we defeated a tiger and a giant lizard, then spotted the entrance on the mountain. Before heading in, we put on warm coats, gloves, and earmuffs, then stepped into the cold environment.