Chapter 57
“Hehe, I don’t even need to ask. That bouquet’s from Tenor, isn’t it?”
I grinned teasingly and nodded toward the bouquet arranged on the worktable.
Just one look was enough to tell that it was a gift from Tenor, the leather craftsman.
“T-That’s beside the point! So, what brings you here today?”
Taylor quickly tried to change the subject.
I took out a roll of waterproof cloth from my inventory and laid it across the worktable.
“I was thinking of making myself a diving suit with this.”
“Hm, did you weave this yourself? The texture’s tight, and the waterproof enchantment is solid.”
Taylor ran her hand over the fabric, clearly impressed.
It would’ve taken me three days and nights just to explain all the trial and error I went through to make it, so I decided to skip that part.
“Do you already have a design in mind?”
“Ah… no, not really. Do diving suits even have designs?”
I’d been picturing something simple — a black, tight-fitting outfit that covered the whole body.
Like the wetsuits divers wear in the real world.
Something like what haenyeo (female divers) in Korea wear.
‘Since I’ll be doing some real diving soon, after all.’
That’s why my fishing skill was called Harvesting, not Fishing.
Diving underwater to gather shellfish was considered part of harvesting.
So far, I’d only done line-fishing, but now I was planning to start collecting abalone, conch, and other sea creatures myself.
But, as it turned out, this world had many kinds of diving suits —
from bikini-style ones with robes to full-length one-piece dresses.
“Wait… are people really supposed to dive wearing this? Wouldn’t it be uncomfortable to move? And what about keeping warm?”
When I asked in disbelief, Taylor blinked at me like I was the strange one.
“You’re going to drink a Water Breathing Potion, aren’t you? That solves everything.”
“…Ah. Right.”
I’d momentarily forgotten that this was a magical world.
Hmm, in that case, my options were wide open.
A robe fluttering underwater could actually look quite pretty.
A one-piece could be nice too.
‘But… that might just get in the way.’
In the end, comfort and movement won out.
“I’ll go with this one. It looks simple enough to make.”
I pointed at a design featuring shorts and a zip-up rash guard.
Taylor looked slightly disappointed.
“You sure you don’t want something a little… cuter?”
Her gaze kept drifting toward the bold bikini options.
That must’ve been her taste.
Unfortunately, I was firmly on Team Practical.
So, with her help, we began cutting the fabric and stitching it together, piece by piece.
If I’d done it alone, it would’ve taken ages — but with a professional’s help, it came together quickly.
By lunchtime, the diving suit was finished.
“Try it on!”
Taylor practically shoved me into the fitting room with the completed outfit.
The fit was perfect, the seams were clean, and most importantly — it looked good.
“Hm, not bad,” I murmured, striking a few poses in front of the mirror.
Everything looked good when the hanger — that is, my body — did its job.
Was it vain to admire my own handiwork? Maybe.
But hey, it was a body I’d shaped carefully from head to toe to fit my taste.
I deserved to appreciate it.
Ah, though… I remembered Belinda giving me a death glare labeled “conceited fool” the last time I did this.
Worried, I glanced at Taylor.
Her eyes sparkled as she nodded eagerly.
“It’s beautiful, Elaine!”
“Ah, th-thank you…”
Being complimented by someone else made me want to crawl into a hole.
In games, if someone said “Wow, your character design is amazing,” I’d beam with pride.
But now that it was about my actual appearance… it was kind of embarrassing.
“Next time, please try on something I design,” Taylor said, eyes blazing with artistic fervor.
It was the look of a designer who’d just found her muse.
‘…So she’s not just shy and gentle after all. She becomes a whole different person when she’s designing.’
She truly had the soul of an artist.
After leaving her atelier, I stopped by the apothecary to return over a hundred empty potion bottles.
Dioscorides blinked his sleepy eyes wide in surprise.
“You… drank all of those already? Remarkable.”
“Ha… yeah, I guess so.”
I hadn’t expected it either.
Then, combining my own materials with some I bought from him, I brewed two more Water Breathing Potions.
Each lasted two hours — giving me a total of six hours underwater.
‘These are a real pain to make…’
Still, all that struggling shot my alchemy proficiency way up.
It seemed tackling something difficult boosted skill growth faster than endlessly repeating easy tasks.
With preparations complete, I treated myself and bought a pair of rubber flippers from the general store.
‘Right — even in modern times, rubber fins were considered the best.’
One of those random TMI facts I’d picked up while out deep-sea fishing with my dad.
Following the direction marked on the minimap, I arrived at the beach.
Huff.
Ah, right. I didn’t need to take a deep breath.
The potion would handle breathing for the next two hours — but instinctively, I inhaled anyway.
Old habits die hard.
Then I dove into the water with a splash.
It was my first time diving since coming to this world.
If I’d followed the main storyline, I’d be diving for a crashed airship’s black box right now —
but since I’d skipped that part, I was free to just… explore.
I’d worried about not having goggles, but I could see perfectly clearly — as if my eyes were still above water.
‘How strange.’
I could breathe easily too.
No sudden gills sprouting, no webbed fingers like in fantasy novels —
just natural, effortless breathing and clear sight.
As I got used to the underwater world, the scenery unfolded beautifully before me.
Schools of fish glided past, and strange sea plants swayed gently in the current.
It was… breathtaking.
In the game, I’d only seen this sort of view occasionally —
but seeing it for real was something else.
Some of my friends used to love scuba diving and snorkeling.
They’d always begged me to join, but I’d refused, saying I was too busy gaming.
Now, I finally understood why they loved it so much.
‘But I can’t just sit here sightseeing.’
I needed to find what Faber had asked for, then spend the remaining time gathering abalones, conches, octopus —
all sorts of marine goodies to raise my harvesting skill.
I’d even packed a lunch for the occasion.
After swimming around for a while, kicking hard with my flippers, I surfaced when the potion’s effect wore off.
Haaah—!
Even though I hadn’t needed to hold my breath, I exhaled dramatically.
Climbing ashore, I shook off the water and headed straight back to the dormitory to wash up and change.
I needed to drop off the item at the magic workshop before it closed.
‘I’ll be relying on them a lot from now on.’
If I wanted to create mana-saving artifacts, I’d probably end up spending half my life in that workshop.
Following the now-familiar Mid-Isle market streets — as familiar as my old neighborhood back in Korea —
I arrived at the magic workshop.
As always, the frail-looking blond young man, Faber, was there.
I handed him the large pearl I’d found underwater.
“Ooh, finally…!”
He accepted it with trembling hands, eyes glistening.
“Sorry for the delay.”
I scratched my cheek awkwardly, but he shook his head vigorously.
“Not at all, Hero! I heard you were busy saving the Silvagrove Forest! The Guardian of the F—”
“So, what exactly do you need this pearl for?”
Sensing where that conversation was headed, I quickly cut him off.
“Ah, yes. This pearl is no ordinary one. It’s a rare, high-conductivity magic pearl! It can be used to craft various magical devices…”
He went on and on in a long explanation — but at least it was better than him trying to put me on another airship.
So I just nodded along, pretending to listen, offering empty “uh-huh”s.
Most of it went over my head anyway — magitech was still a foreign language to me.
After that, I returned to the dormitory, handing Bess the haul of seafood I’d collected underwater —
a mountain of abalone, conch, sea cucumber, sea squirts, and heaps of seaweed like kelp and laver.
“I’ve said it before, but you really have a generous hand. This is plenty! Enough to feed the whole Hero Party.”
Bess sounded genuinely impressed.
Even though I’d only taken out enough for one meal — keeping the rest stored fresh in my inventory — she still said that.
‘Inventory really is the best. The miracle fridge that keeps everything forever fresh!’
These would serve as my future provisions.
I often traveled for long stretches, leaving the island for weeks at a time.
When I missed Bess’s cooking, I’d have to cook for myself — so I needed to be prepared.
The next region was the Western Edaphosia Desert, where seafood was extremely rare.
I could already taste it — day after day of glorious seafood feasts, right in the middle of the desert.
