Shrouded Seascape

Chapter 585: Something's Amiss

"Not bad. All your parts are intact this time," Anna said, her delicate hands reaching out and cradling Charles' head.

"Yeah, the exploration was very successful this time. We didn't have any casualties, and more importantly, I found clues on the darkness. Though there was a slight interlude along the way."

"I saw that in your mind. Why did you cram so many different memories? Do you want me to help you clear them out?" Anna offered.

"No, don't touch them! Those memories are incredibly useful! You can clear them once we've located the darkness."

Anna made swift gestures around Charles' head with her hands before she leaned in and planted a firm kiss on Charles' lips. "All done! The connection between you and that eye has been severed."

Despite Anna's reassurance, Charles couldn't let go of the unease in his heart. Who knew what in the world was the entity that seized 068 or what special abilities it possessed?

"There's still a fragment of my soul in that spider. Can you completely erase it to eliminate any potential risks?" Charles asked.

"Don't worry. The soul link has been severed and that fragment will disappear soon. Just put your heart at ease. As long as I'm around, no one can harm you," Anna said with a faint smile on her lips.

Hearing her words, Charles finally allowed himself to relax. He stretched out his arms and pulled Anna into an embrace. "Thanks. How's Hope Island? Is everything okay?"

Anna closed her eyes, rubbing her fair cheek against Charles' chest like a contented cat. "What else? It's the same old. Hope Island is under martial law now.

"Everyone who can work has been sent to the factories. It's exhausting but it's better to keep them busy. As long as they are occupied, they won't have time to dwell on the despair of the rising sea levels.

"Our island is still well under control, but the situation on other islands is troubling. According to the Navy's intelligence, rebellions have started in several islands, and it seems that the Fhtagn Covenant is pulling their influence behind them.

"I've sent Sparkle to help quell the rebellions, but there's just one of her. She can't handle all of it alone."

"The Fhtagn Covenant…" Charles muttered. At the thought of those deformed traitors who had betrayed humanity, a fire of rage surged in Charles' heart.

"Charles, I know what's on your mind, but it's not the time to engage them now. We don't have the time and we're too far away from them. It'd take half a year to reach their base island and back. Time is of the essence.

"Beside, they probably prefer us to waste our efforts on them. Those trash aren't afraid of death; they are afraid that their god fails to awaken."

Charles slammed his empty glass down on the small counter. "The day the darkness returns to the Subterranean Sea will be the day those bastards will meet their creator!"

"I agree." Anna nodded. "The Fhtagn Covenant has completely betrayed humanity."

At that moment, an explorer walking down the street approached Charles. He removed his tricorn captain's hat and saluted Charles with respect.

Ever since word had spread that Charles had located the coordinates of the darkness, his reputation had grown significantly amongst the explorers.

Previously, he was already renowned for being the only explorer who continued going on voyages after becoming a governor. With his latest achievement, his reputation soared even higher.

And it was solely because he located the darkness. Whoever could retrieve the darkness would be revered as the hero of humanity, deserving of everyone's respect. After all, no one wanted to die.

"If there's nothing else, I'll head back now. Keep a closer eye on things down there," Charles said to Anna. He then rose from his stool and headed toward the bustling street.

Anna nodded toward the female stall owner with earrings before quickly jumping off her high stool and followed after Charles.

"It's not often that you come back to the fortress. Why the rush? Accompany me to a stroll. I've never been here before. Were you the one who planned the layout for this place? Nah, surely it's not you. You don't have that kind of skill."

"What's there to see? You don't even need anything from here," Charles replied as he glanced around at the various stalls.

"Says who? Look over there! That smells amazing!" Anna grabbed Charles by the arm and pulled him toward a nearby barbecue stall.

Watching the white smoke sizzling out of the dark red charcoal fire, Anna reached out and grabbed a meat skewer from the stall. She shoved it into her mouth and pulled off the pieces. Chewing heartily, she commented, "This tastes really good. Try it."

Charles' eyes widened in surprise. "You can eat human food now?"

Just as his heart raced with anticipation, Anna's reply doused his enthusiasm like a cold shower.

"Of course not. I'm just chewing on it. Don't you humans like to eat things you can't digest too? Like enoki mushrooms, for example."

"That's a pretty disgusting analogy. Since you can't taste anything, don't eat it," Charles said, before turning into an alley to reach the next street.

With a graceful leap, Anna jumped onto Charles' back. She then cupped his head with her hands and transferred the piece of barbecued meat from her mouth to his mouth.

"How is it? Does it taste nice? Don't you think it's as tender as beef?" Anna asked with a playful smile as she watched Charles start chewing.

Charles gave Anna a playful swat on her rear before continuing to walk toward his residence with her on his back.

"Anna," Charles called out. "Why do I feel like you're not worried at all? If we can't retrieve the darkness, all of us might really die."

"What can worrying do? Emotions like that are worthless. Not only do they not help in everyday life, they even meddle with your rational thinking during critical moments.

"Plus, we've already done everything we can. If we still can't make it, then we'll just have to accept our fate," Anna concluded.

Charles glanced sideways to see strands of hair falling over Anna's right profile, accentuating her peerless visage and making her look even more radiant.

"For you and for Sparkle, I'll definitely retrieve the darkness. I swear!" Charles declared, a renewed determination burning in his eyes.

"I believe you," Anna said, the corners of her lips curving up into a soft smile as she tightened her embrace around Charles' neck.

"Speaking of Sparkle, that little girl has been pretty upset lately. She said she hasn't seen her daddy in a long while," Anna started on a new topic.

Their conversation flowed naturally, as though they were a couple who had been together for decades.

By the time Anna vanished before Charles' sight, it was already night time. Charles stepped into the washroom to clean up. He planned to pen his journal entry for the day before calling it a night.

Tomorrow morning, they would set off to the coordinates of the darkness, and he needed to be well-rested.

As his pen left a trail of neat Chinese characters in his journal, the soft, rhythmic scratching of pen on paper echoed in the quiet bedroom.

As he wrote, a faint sense of unease started to well up in him. There was this nagging feeling that something was amiss, yet he couldn't pinpoint what exactly it was.

He walked over to the curtains and pulled them back to peer outward. Bathed in the usual violet glow, the bustling Colossal Hole Fortress stretched out before him.

Everything was perfectly normal.