Turning Chapter 961
“I’d like you to come with me and look at the sea. Exactly as it is—so you can see what lies beneath.”
Though he’d only just arrived, Mick Shuden, with his merchant’s instincts, grasped the severity of the situation quite well. After all, anyone who wasn’t a fool would understand the danger after hearing the stories on the way here and witnessing the scene upon arrival. And yet, when he was asked to head into what might be a life-threatening situation, he showed no hesitation whatsoever.
“Understood. It’s been a while since I’ve boarded a ship.”
A curved smile lifted Kishiar’s lips.
“Sorry, but we won’t be boarding a ship.”
Before Mick could ask what he meant, Kishiar turned around. Among the gathered crowd, he quickly found a red-haired young man who stood out visibly taller than most and pointed directly at him.
“Kachien Bollenvalt.”
“Eh? Y-Yes!”
Kachien, who had remained at the frontlines even after Kanna had been sent back, jerked his head up in surprise.
“Once I depart for the sea, overall command here will be handed over to my aide, Nathan Zuckerman. However, since he’s not an Awakener, we’ll need another to lead the Cavalry. Kanna Wand, who should’ve filled that role, has yet to return, so I’m appointing you as acting commander until she does.”
“...You’re entrusting me with command of the Cavalry?”
Kachien’s eyes trembled uncontrollably.
“I’m sure there’s someone more suited...”
He glanced around in panic, but none of the remaining members would meet his eyes. Come to think of it, none of the three deputy commanders, including Kanna, were present, and Kurga, responsible for the Southern branch, was in another region. There really wasn’t anyone better available.
“You already successfully led others on a mission to investigate the Sarain Great Forest in the West. You’re well acquainted with both Kanna and Nathan, so there’s no one more qualified.”
It was true. Among the Cavalry, aside from Yuder, Kachien was the one most familiar with Nathan, having secretly learned swordsmanship from him. When there were times he had to relay messages between Kanna in the medical unit and Nathan, who else could fill the role more effectively?
As Kachien struggled to find any remaining reason to object, he broke into a cold sweat and fell silent. Kishiar smiled.
“I’m not asking if you can. This is an order. You must do this—for those who haven’t yet returned.”
That final line fell with the weight of understanding. Kachien shut his eyes tightly and opened them again. He pictured Yuder, still enduring the unimaginable dangers beneath the sea, and Kanna, who, despite swallowing back her constant nosebleeds, kept trying to save even one more person.
As their faces surfaced in his mind, the panic and fear receded.
“...Yes, sir. Understood.”
After taking a deep breath, he slapped both cheeks with a loud smack and saluted.
“I will do my utmost!”
“Good.”
Kishiar turned, patting Kachien’s stiffened shoulder as he did.
“Mick, let’s go.”
“Ah—yes.”
Mick quickly followed after Kishiar. At the edge of the breakwater, the water-user who had come to report to Kishiar was waiting.
“Um... There really is no ship...? How are you planning to go?”
“Just follow me. Walk.”
That didn’t make any sense, but before Mick could ask further, Kishiar leapt from the edge of the breakwater without hesitation. And just like the water-users, he landed smoothly atop the sea’s surface. If it were Yuder, he would’ve realized Kishiar was merely repelling the water beneath his feet, but the others, unaware, were predictably stunned.
“Wh—What the...!”
“Since when could the Commander use water abilities?”
As those around gasped, Mick’s eyes glinted faintly. Though he didn’t understand Kishiar’s powers as clearly as Yuder did, he had a knack for seeing the essence of things. He could roughly grasp how Kishiar was walking on water.
“Ah... I see. Huh. Just like in Peleta. You really do have a knack for catching people off guard.”
“Afraid to come down?”
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t. But I’d rather not get kicked off by Helrem, so... I’m going down!”
Squeezing his eyes shut, Mick jumped from the breakwater. His feet, as if pushed by some unseen force, landed firmly on the surface of the sea.
Kishiar watched him without the slightest change in expression and gave a nod.
“We don’t have time to waste. Let’s go.”
“R-Right.”
The water-user, just as surprised as the others, descended to the sea and began dashing forward with incredible speed. Kishiar followed with long, even strides. He didn’t appear to be moving particularly fast, but in no time, he’d put a great distance between them. Mick, alarmed, sprinted after him.
“Commander! Are you just going to leave me behind?!”
His voice faded into the mist, vanishing over the sea. The ones left behind stared for a long while at the unbelievable sight they had just witnessed, unable to look away.
“...Alright! The Commander’s gone out to sea, so from now on we can’t let our guard down. Stay sharp, everyone!”
In a voice that was brighter than he felt, Kachien called out to rouse his companions, stealing one last glance at the dawn-lit sea.
‘...Please. Let them all come back safely.’
***
Yuder floated in the water, staring down at the pitch-black shadow beneath him.
Rumble... Rrrrrumble...
The final remaining rift continued to emit ominous sounds and tremors—but there was still no sign of it fully opening. In order to grasp its condition, he had to use up most of his remaining shards of magic stone.
What he learned wasn’t comforting.
‘The last rift isn’t like the others—it’s not just underwater. It looks like it’s half-buried in the earth itself.’
The five rifts that had vanished before had all been deep underwater, yes, but still within the sea. This last one, however, was different—it was embedded in the very bottom of the seabed.
Until now, overlapping interference from other rifts had obscured this fact. If one were to disappear, it should’ve been this one first. Why did the most troublesome rift have to be the one that remained?
Because it was half-buried, it vibrated even more violently every time a monster tried to force its way out. Yuder suspected that most of the tremors they’d experienced came directly from this rift.
And worse—since part of it was blocked, monsters couldn’t easily emerge, making the movements from within even more intense and unstable.
‘Makes sense—the exit is far narrower than before.’
Despite how many tentacles they’d already destroyed, there was still a massive bulk on the other side of the rift, large enough to produce several more. Those masses were now viciously ramming the narrow opening all at once, trying to force their way out. Ironically, this fierce activity was preventing any single tentacle from forming properly.
‘But if experience has taught me anything... it’s only a matter of time before something breaks through. And when it does—’
The earth would turn over.
In other words, a seabed quake was nearly certain.
It was just one rift now, not six. So even if it did erupt, it wouldn’t be as catastrophic. But the problem was that they simply didn’t have the people or strength left to deal with this final, and ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) most dangerous, rift.
‘Everyone’s too injured and exhausted. They’re at their limit.’
Turning his head, he saw shadows floating, looking almost like corpses. Members of the unit, too drained to even hold position, were just letting the water carry them as they barely breathed.
He had wrapped them with divine bandages—provided by the priests, designed to repel water—but that didn’t heal their worn-out bodies or restore their drained powers.
To Yuder, asking them to fight this last rift was no different than ordering them to die.
‘And we can’t even guarantee success, not with how things are now.’
It was as if this final obstacle had come just to mock everything they’d managed so far.
In the past, maybe he would’ve been overwhelmed by helplessness or despair. But when he saw the shape of the rift, the face that rose unbidden in Yuder’s mind was Kishiar’s.