Chapter Three The Seaweed Named "Forgiving" [page3]

dived into the bottom of the sea again.The bright red thorny seaweed was not it. The polka-dotted seaweed sparked burning flames all over when it was put into the fire. The striped seaweed smelled awfully when burnt.I dived into the bottom of the sea again and again. I transported all the weeds which caught my eyes.I started to hate what I was doing. The sun had risen high above already. I just felt like quitting. Why do I have to do this kind of thing?Perhaps the old man suspected my feelings by now, for he spoke to me in a calm dignified manner.

"Try and search at around the dark side of the brilliantly outstanding ones." "I've looked all around this seashore already." "No, no, I'm sure there's a place where you still haven't searched yet. Did you search the shadow of the rock laying at that point where the water gets a little deeper?" "No, but anyway, this is going to be the last time," I said, as I dived into the bottom of the sea again. And indeed, there was a small rock existing a little apart from where the beautiful seaweeeds were growing thickly and wavering in the waters. The rock was half-buried in the dirt. A variety of colorful seaweeds grew from the rock. But they were all seaweeds I had taken and tested before. "Oh, well, tell me about it, there's nothing here." I decided to give up and go home. "What a liar that old man is." At that moment, a dust of dirt whirled in the waters as I kicked the sea bottom with my tail. Something wavered slightly. I hurriedly dug up the mud. The dirt muddied all around my surroundings. A small seaweed was growing among the muddied waters.

Attentively and carefully, I dusted and removed its surrounding mud. Relatively speaking, the seaweed was never the kind to stand out in comparison to the other ones, and a rather unpretty, drab one, if one had to say. Its leaves were also small and frail, and one was left with the impression that it was barely surviving there. However, its roots were very deep, spreading surely and stably into the muddy bottom. It did not move an inch although I had tried to pull it out with all my might.