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Floating Wakame didn’t have hearing or sight, and instead decided on the prey based on the smell drifting in the water… apparently. As such, it should not have noticed our attack from below.

I openly started to chant and granted Enchant to Finia and Cloud. As the movement was restricted underwater, this spell was supposed to be very effective.

I couldn’t use the threads underwater so I decided to take the rear guard position. The fact that we had Finia, another vanguard, was one of the reasons.

If too many of us rushed to attack a single enemy, there was a chance of friendly fire.

Thus, I removed myself from the count and instead strengthened the other two to raise the certainty of the blow. And yet, this preemptive strike failed to produce any results.

“Let’s go, be careful everyone!”

Along with that shout, Michelle threw one of the spears she held. Her Marksmanship Gift could normally produce a 100% hit accuracy. The situation was far too different from normal now, however.

The feeling of the sea coiling around your body. The waves gently swaying you around. The target drifting irregularly. All those factors added up and significantly decreased her usual accuracy.

The spear she threw didn’t land but instead went right past the Floating Wakame. Cloud who had never seen her miss her mark was astonished.

“No way!?”
“Michelle… Missed?”
“We are in the sea so that can happen… Then, it’s my turn!”

Seeing that, Letina decided to attempt the next attack. But this too ended in a failure. The Firebolt she chanted didn’t even fly five meters before it got extinguished by the surrounding water.

I mean, I wanted to retort that it was silly to even think of using it underwater, but I guess it would be a bit harsh to tell that to a child who was unfamiliar with things. I suppose this would serve as something to learn from for her.

Floating Wakame predated plants consisting of wood. It hasn’t been heard of them ever attacking a living being. There have only been extremely rare cases where it aimed to eat a fisherman’s harpoon and dragged him down along with it, drowning him.

As such, I was unconsciously underestimating this opponent at this point in time. That was such an overly optimistic attitude from me.

Instead of approaching the Floating Wakame, I just stood and watched as the water extinguished the Firebolt with a lukewarm gaze. Until now was, well, within my expectations. Michelle and Letina should have learned what a pain it is to fight underwater.

The rest was for Cloud and Finia to go and finish it off with close combat… That was what I thought.

But that expectation was betrayed the next moment when Finia’s attack missed by a long shot. Due to having a small build, the moment she swung her sword water resistance instead threw her back. Due to that, her sword cut the empty space.

“Huh?”

She never thought she would miss on hitting an opponent that was just drifting around, making her let out a silly voice. Cloud was… Also lagging behind Finia. His new metallic shield was slowing down his movements also due to water resistance.

“You idiot! Cloud, cover for her!”

Finia ended up exposed contrary to her expectations. Naturally, the Floating Wakame wasn’t about to let this chance go. No, more accurately, it didn’t have the ability to think like that.

Still, in reaction to the attack, it reached out with its tentacle (?) towards Finia. Having her movements slowed down in the water, she had no way of dodging it.

Cloud finally arrived on the scene in the meantime and swung his sword with all his might, but this too was pushed back by the resistance, making it just as ineffective.

The Floating Wakame coiled around Finia as if to lift her up, binding her left leg along with her torso. And then it started reaching towards her chest with suggestive movements.

“W-What… I thought they didn’t attack humans?”

Finia didn’t have anything wooden on her, only her swimsuit and a sword. When researching their ecology, we judged that wooden items would be dangerous, so we decided to switch Cloud’s trusty wooden shield with a metallic one.

Michelle’s lances were also metallic all the way to their handles just in case. And yet, the monster was clearly determinedly coiling around Finia.

“…Ah, that reminds me, swimsuits are made of cotton, aren’t they?”

We heard Maxwell’s dull comment from above. He seemed to have been able to keep track of the situation from there. But rather than that, what he said was more important to me right now.

Cotton… In other words, a material made from plants. That would become the target of a Floating Wakame’s predation. Only the swimsuit, that is.

“You damn old man!”

In the first place, if Floating Wakame had this kind of ecology, he should’ve taught me in my previous life! If he did, I would have dragged Cortina to one whatever it took. And then, I’d have seized that photo tool from you.

Wait, there was no time for that. At this rate, Finia would end up in a risky situation due to the monster’s tentacle play(?). Forgetting about the rear guard duty, I headed to remove the Floating Wakame off Finia.

I normally carried my dagger on the back of my waist, but as it would cover my body line, Finia gave me the belt that I could attach to my thigh instead. I pulled out the dagger in one swift motion and started tearing the Floating Wakame off her.

“Cloud, come and help!”
“Uh, I’m kinda also…”

I judged that my strength alone wasn’t enough so I asked Cloud for help, but he was already bound by the Wakame. Moreover, it was particularly concentrated on his groin area. Speaking from the perspective of its ecology, it was currently in the middle of devouring his swimsuit.

Squirming tentacles and slimy surface, and Finia in an unladylike state. This was by far the biggest crisis that he had ever faced.

“Cloud you dumbaaaas!?”

I could only curse at the situation. I could injure Finia if I used the oscillation. And given how entangled it was, Michelle couldn’t do anything about it either. While I was racking my brains, the Floating Wakame started to twine around me.

As my upper body was busy getting it off Finia, it instead coiled around my lower half like with Cloud.

Like that, the situation turned messier by the second.

Author’s note: Fanservice chapter ＼(＾ー＾)／