Cain's skin turned bright red.
He was vibrating. His muscles were moving so fast that they created friction heat. It was biological physics.
SSSSSS.
Steam poured off his body. The water bubble around his head didn't just pop; it evaporated.
Luna stumbled back. She felt her connection to his blood snap.
"You... you are boiling yourself?" Luna gasped. "That should kill you! Your heart should explode!"
Cain fell to his hands and knees, panting. White steam rose from his shoulders like smoke. He stood up slowly. He looked like a demon made of mist.
"I run hot," Cain rasped. His voice was dry.
He took a step. The water on the ground sizzled when his boot touched it.
"You control water," Cain said, walking toward her. "But you can't control steam. Gas is harder to hold."
Luna's eyes narrowed. "You are a monster."
She raised both hands. The water in the fountain exploded upward. It formed five massive Water Dragons. They roared, their mouths made of spinning whirlpools.
"Drown!" Luna screamed.
She sent the dragons at him.
Cain did not dodge. He did not punch.
"Inventory," Cain whispered.
He reached into the shadow at his feet. He pulled out a yellow, square object. It looked soft. It looked full of holes.
It was a sponge.
But not a normal sponge. It was the Sponge of the Dead Sea. Cain had found it in a dungeon five years ago. It was an item that was cursed with eternal thirst.
"I have to clean up this mess," Cain said.
He threw the sponge.
It did not look impressive. It was just a yellow brick flying through the air.
The first Water Dragon opened its mouth to swallow Cain. The sponge hit the dragon's tongue.
SLURP.
The sound was loud. It sounded like a giant drinking through a straw.
In one second, the giant Water Dragon vanished. It was sucked entirely into the small yellow sponge.
Luna froze. "What?"
The sponge fell to the ground. It was slightly bigger now.
Cain kicked the sponge toward the second dragon.
SLURP.
Dragon number two was gone.
Luna panicked. She threw wave after wave of water at Cain. The sponge drank them all. It grew bigger and bigger. Soon, it was the size of a sofa.
"Stop it!" Luna shrieked. "That is my mana! That is my essence!"
Cain picked up the giant, heavy sponge. It was dripping.
"You said you are the ocean," Cain said. He walked right up to the Goddess.
Luna tried to turn into a puddle to escape.
Cain slammed the sponge onto her chest.
"NO—"
SLURP.
Luna, the Water Goddess, screamed as her physical form was sucked into the cursed yellow brick. Her blue dress, her water hair, and her divine soul—all of it twisted and vanished into the pores of the sponge.
The sponge dropped to the floor with a heavy, wet SPLAT.
The market square was silent. The Crab Knights dropped their weapons. The citizens stared.
Their Goddess was gone. She was in a cleaning supply.
Cain wiped sweat from his forehead. He poked the sponge. It wiggled.
[Target Captured: Third Divinity Luna.]
[Inventory Upgrade: Liquid Body.]
[Effect: User can turn into water for 1 second to dodge attacks. Cooldown: 10 minutes.]
"Gross," Cain said. He kicked the sponge into his shadow inventory.
Isolde ran up to him. She was soaking wet and shaking.
"You... you mopped her up," Isolde whispered. "You just defeated a God with a bathroom item."
"It was a legendary bathroom item," Cain corrected.
He looked up at the shattered glass dome. The ocean water was held back by a magical barrier, but it looked weak.
"We should go," Cain said. "Before the fish realize the landlord is dead."
Suddenly, the ground shook.
It was not an earthquake. It was something else.
A projection appeared in the sky above the city. It was a giant hologram. It showed the sky outside the planet.
A fleet of black spaceships had arrived. They were huge. They blocked the stars.
A mechanical voice boomed over the entire world.
[SYSTEM ALERT: THE GUARDIANS ARE DEAD.]
[PLANETARY SHIELD DEACTIVATED.]
[INITIATING PHASE 2: HARVEST.]
Cain looked at the hologram. He frowned.
"Guardians?" Cain asked. "Solus, Terra, Luna... they were shields?"
Isolde looked terrified. "We... we killed the planet's defense system."
Cain cracked his neck. He smiled. A real, savage smile.
"Oops," Cain said.
He looked at the alien ships on the screen.
"Well," Cain said, pulling his coat tight. "More loot for me."