I Became My Elf King Character In A Game-Like World
Chapter 123: Pearl

Chapter 123: Pearl

"Waaaah!"

"Your Majesty! Look! There are monsters in the river!"

The easily startled Grove Spirits let out little shrieks of fright and surprise, abandoning their bridge-building task instantly. They flew back towards the perceived safety of the main army in a fluttery panic.

"Monsters?" Renjiro narrowed his eyes and focused his gaze on the water.

Sure enough, the river surface was now crowded with many peculiar creatures he hadn’t noticed before.

Their faces were vaguely like distorted human ones small, flat noses with almost no bridge structure, overly large mouths that stretched wide, and big, round, unblinking eyes that stared blankly.

Their ears weren’t like elf or human ears at all; they looked more like fish fins sticking out stiffly from the sides of their heads.

Their skin, covering their entire visible bodies from the neck up, was a deep, murky blue-grey color, and it seemed to be covered in dense, overlapping scales that shimmered wetly in the light.

When one of them opened its wide mouth in what might have been a snarl or just a gasp for air, it revealed rows upon rows of small, needle-sharp teeth, making their already unpleasant faces look even uglier and more menacing.

Renjiro kept his voice low, turning slightly to Elaria. "Elaria, what are these creatures?" He had a feeling the knowledgeable and well-read Elaria, who seemed to know so much about the world’s history and inhabitants, would recognize them.

As expected, Elaria observed them carefully for a moment, her brow furrowed in thought, then she nodded. "Your Majesty," she answered, "they are Murlocs. Like Goblins, they are generally considered a low-level intelligent race. Murlocs usually live in the vast oceans far from here, but some tribes are known to adapt and make their homes in large freshwater river systems like this one."

Renjiro nodded slowly in understanding. "Ah, Murlocs. That explains why they aren’t bothered by this strong river current. They’re aquatic."

Elaria smiled faintly, a thoughtful look in her eyes. "Your Majesty, perhaps now I know how those two fox-people managed to cross the Magar River after all."

Renjiro glanced back at the horde of Murlocs bobbing and staring from the water. "You mean... these

"It seems very likely!" Elaria confirmed. "While Murlocs aren’t technically related to Orcs, they often live near Orc territories and sometimes have close ties or trade agreements with nearby Orc tribes. Besides Murlocs, there are also other water-dwelling races like the Mussel-kin who sometimes associate with the Orcs in these regions."

As the two of them were talking, the crowd of Murlocs in the river slowly drifted closer to the bank. There had to be hundreds of them now, a sea of blue, scaly heads bobbing just above the waterline.

However, they seemed hesitant to come out of the water, staying submerged up to their necks and clearly keeping a wary distance from the large, imposing army of heavily armed elves lining the shore.

They seemed more curious and perhaps scared, rather than aggressive.

Renjiro wasn’t particularly worried about them attacking. If these Murlocs were foolish enough to try and assault his forces, he felt confident he could turn the entire lot into helpless, bleating sheep in an instant with a powerful spell.

He could let them experience the rather unpleasant taste of being drowned alive in their very own river.

After a short while of tense standoff, a path cleared among the Murlocs near the bank.

Two enormous red crabs, each easily several meters across and looking like armored sea monsters, scuttled sideways out of the water and onto the muddy shore.

Perched carefully between them, carried like a king on a throne made from a huge, cut-in-half seashell, sat a very old-looking Murloc. Its skin was even more wrinkled and faded than the others.

Just as Renjiro had vaguely guessed from their fish-like features, this Murloc elder didn’t have legs.

Below its somewhat humanoid torso was a thick, powerful, scaly fish tail, curled up neatly inside the makeshift shell-seat.

Renjiro couldn’t help but grimace slightly inwardly. ’If the legendary, beautiful mermaids back on Earth looked anything like this,’ he thought with a touch of wry humor, ’countless hopeful young men dreaming of sea romance would probably wake up screaming and have nightmares for a whole year.’

Judged by the high standards of natural elf beauty, these Murlocs were just plain, undeniably hideous.

Renjiro personally thought even the fierce, snake-tailed Naga race looked far better, more elegant, than these strange fish-people.

The two giant red crabs carried their important passenger slowly across the bank until they were about thirty meters away from Renjiro and his commanders.

Then they stopped, digging their sharp claws slightly into the soft mud for stability. They made soft clicking noises, and tiny white bubbles constantly popped from their crustacean mouths.

Their bright red shells were so vibrant they almost looked like they’d already been cooked for a feast.

At that moment, the old Murloc sitting precariously in the shell bowed its head deeply, its movements shaky and frail with age.

It spoke, its voice surprisingly clear despite a wet, gurgling quality. "Great King... of the Elves!" it croaked respectfully.

"I am Fushi’ide, elder... of this Murloc tribe... I greet Your Majesty! Your radiance... your light... it is like the sun in the sky, blindingly bright! To see... one such as you... here in our poor, humble Magar River valley... ah, it is the greatest honor... for our simple Murloc tribe!"

With that difficult speech finished, the Murloc elder waved a thin, webbed hand towards the Murlocs still waiting nervously in the river’s edge. He let out a series of loud clicks and gurgles.

"Quickly! Bring the offering! Bring it up! Present it... to the noble King of the Elves!"

Renjiro hadn’t even said a word in reply yet. He simply watched as another large crab, slightly smaller than the elder’s carriers, emerged dripping from the river.

This one carefully carried a massive, closed scallop shell, easily two meters in diameter. The crab placed the huge shell gently on the muddy ground before the elder Murloc.

Inside the opened shell, resting on a bed of glistening, dark green seaweed, was a single, enormous pink pearl.

It was truly huge, significantly larger than a basketball, maybe even bigger than Renjiro’s head. It glowed with a soft, captivating internal light, shimmering with misty colors.

Damn! Renjiro thought again, genuinely surprised by the sheer size and beauty of it. Can pearls really grow this big in this world? That’s unbelievable!

He noticed that even Queen Elaria, normally composed, and his three usually stoic elf commanders Lorien, Selena, and Lirael were also staring intently, clearly captivated by the stunning, giant pearl.

It seemed that even the nature-loving elves, who valued life and forests above gems, couldn’t completely resist the allure of such a unique, beautiful, and rare treasure.

The Murloc elder spoke again, his gurgling voice filled with reverence and perhaps a touch of pride.

"Your Majesty, great King of the Nature Spirits! This... this Misty Pearl... is a treasure our Murloc tribe has guarded and cherished for many, many generations! It is said... that possessing it brings great fortune... and good luck! To show our deep respect for your noble presence, we Murlocs wish to offer this Misty Pearl... to you."

A welcoming gift just for showing up on their riverbank? Renjiro saw absolutely no reason to refuse. Besides, a pearl this massive, regardless of any supposed luck, had to be incredibly valuable in terms of materials or potential magical properties.

"Very well," Renjiro said, his voice calm and steady, showing none of his inner surprise. "I accept the gift from your Murloc tribe!"

He waved his right hand casually, using a simple telekinetic magic pull. The enormous pink pearl lifted smoothly from its seaweed bed inside the shell and floated gently through the air towards his outstretched hands.

However, as the glowing pearl drew closer, Renjiro’s eyes widened slightly in shock. He suddenly saw something insidethe pearl’s swirling, misty depths. It wasn’t just light and color.

There was a figure. A tiny, incredibly delicate figure, barely larger than his thumb. It looked astonishingly like a miniature girl, impossibly small, wearing a flowing dress made of sheer, almost see-through silky gauze that shimmered like moonlight on water.

And delicately attached to its back were a pair of small, translucent, fluttering wings, much like a dragonfly’s.

Just as the giant pearl settled gently, weightlessly, into his waiting hands...

The tiny figure suspended inside the pearl also opened its eyes. It had huge, innocent eyes that seemed too large for its tiny face.

It stared up directly at Renjiro, looking completely stunned, wide-eyed, perhaps even... instantly captivated? It seemed just as surprised and awestruck to see him as he was to see it.

"Guckoo?!"

A tiny, questioning sound, like a miniature bird’s curious call, seemed to echo not in the air, but directly inside Renjiro’s mind.

He didn’t understand the word, or if it even was a word spoken in any language he knew, but he felt a jolt of utter amazement course through him.

Unexpectedly, impossibly, there was a living creature inside the pearl!

"A creature?" the Murloc elder asked, tilting his head again, his wrinkled face showing complete confusion. "Your Majesty Elf King, I... I do not understand... what creature do you speak of?"

Renjiro glanced quickly sideways at Elaria, who stood near him. She too wore a look of utter confusion, her eyes fixed on the beautiful pearl, but clearly not seeing anything unusual within it other than its impressive size and lovely glow. His commanders looked equally clueless.

Renjiro fell silent for a moment, cradling the giant, glowing pearl in his hands. A strange thought entered his mind.

Could it be... that only I can see this tiny, winged creature hidden inside? he wondered, feeling a strange mix of excitement and confusion.

Or... is this so-called Misty Pearl playing tricks on my eyes? Is it some kind of illusion, making me see things that aren’t really there?