Deep Sea Embers

That veil covered not only the face of the goddess but also the connection between the two realms. For the first time, Vanna discovered that she didn’t understand or even what kind of god she worshiped.

All this time, she had taken everything she knew about the storm and the Deep Sea for granted. Never in her mind did she ever question the teachings or the relationship mortals shared with the gods.

With a sudden shudder, Vanna jerked awake from the pounding, leaving her back drenched in cold sweat.

Thoughts give rise to heresy, and questioning gives way to darkness.

She couldn’t believe that those near-deviant thoughts would come out of her own head – she began to question the “behavior” of the gods, which was almost no different from heresy.

However, in the next second, she felt the gentle sound of waves ringing in her ears, and the gaze and comfort from the goddess emerged as usual, further alleviating the accumulated pain in her body and soothing her spirit.

Even in this holy ground of the church, even when such wavering thought appeared in my head, the goddess is as always watching me…

“…… You sure you don’t need a break?” Valentine’s voice suddenly came from the side, interrupting Vanna’s wandering mind again. After watching his peer staring at the statue for so long, the old man showed concern, “You look like you fell into a trance… Physical injuries are easy to heal, but mental exhaustion can be troublesome.”

“I…” Vanna’s expression hesitated, “maybe I’m a little tired.”

“Then go and rest. I’ll handle the rest here,” Valentine said immediately. Then just as quickly, the old bishop added before the other party could say anything, “Just now, I received news that Mr. Dante has returned to the mansion safely. I think your family would also like to have you by their side.”

“Uncle…” Vanna became startled as she recalled the scene of saying goodbye to her uncle before. Then, a strange feeling surfaced from within, dispelling her hesitation about leaving, “Okay, then I’ll leave first.”

“Go with your mind at peace,” Valentine nodded slightly, “may the storm shelter you.”

“…… May the storm shelter,” Vanna said softly.

A dark-gray steam car drove out of the church square, and after crossing the intersection of the central district, which had been checked, it went toward the admin’s residence.

Vanna sat in the car’s passenger seat, and the driver was none other than Heidi, who had just finished being questioned inside the church.

“Thank you, and sorry for troubling you in giving me a ride,” Vanna whispered to her friend while staring out the receded car window. “You could have left earlier if not for me.”

“You don’t have to be so polite with me,” Heidi casually said as she held the steering wheel and observed the road conditions, “and I couldn’t have left early because the cleric had a lot of questions for me. Besides, the safety measures weren’t in place, so there was no way they would’ve let me leave before then.”

Vanna didn’t comment and continued to stare out the window. She saw the city-state police and guardians patrolling the road together and frightened citizens scurrying about quickly after coming onto the streets – some clearly just coming out of the shelters.

Even so, Vanna still felt an indescribable warmth and happiness at this chaotic scene. Fear and tensions proved they’re alive, and only those who have survived the disaster are entitled to be anxious.

“Are you alright? Your condition doesn’t look very good,” Heidi noticed Vanna’s exhaustion and asked. “It’s the first time I’ve seen you so unenergetic since childhood. I thought you were forged from a piece of steel.”

“…… Would you believe me if I told you that I alone fought through the entire city-state when the hellfire rained down?” Vanna glanced at her friend and grinned. Her spirit has been getting more relaxed after getting into the car with Heidi, so the worry was unnecessary. “I’m exhausted.”

“Of course I do; after all, it’s you. I will still believe you if you tell me you fought your way back from subspace,” Heidi’s expression didn’t so much as flinch after hearing her friend’s story. Then eyeing her friend up like she’s examining a patient, “It’s no wonder you are like this then…”

Vanna was confused by the other party’s gazing up: “You… why are you giving me such strange looks?”

“I just got an idea,” Heidi now looked serious, “would you like to go to the marriage help center now?”

“…… Why?”

“Well, you might actually find someone stronger than you now since you’re so exhausted. This way, you won’t violate your oath and can find a partner.” Heidi’s train of thought seems to have warped unexpectedly: “Otherwise, you will keep sending your pairings from the center to the hospital every other day…”

That instantly brought forth a series of crunching sounds from Vanna’s fist.

After several seconds of silence, Heidi muttered again: “If you are not happy, then just say it. You’ve always picked on me during our childhood. All my lunches are in your tummy because of that…”

The car then quieted down again until Vanna broke the silence this time: “Thank you, I’m much calmer now.”

“Humph, I am the best psychiatrist in Pland after all. You must keep yourself in good shape when meeting Mr. Dante; otherwise, you will worry him.” Heidi grinned and successfully parked the car before the mansion,” We’re here. Go now, Miss Knight. Cheer up because we all managed to pick up a second life today.”

A second life…

Despite the casual remark from the doc, Vanna’s head couldn’t help but recall a phrase often spoken by the members of the Death Church – survival is not an innate right but an item that has been paid for in advance.

Vanna lowered her eyes and breathed gently, thanking her friend before leaving the car and heading for the front door.

Heidi watched her friend’s departing back, and only after a good moment did she restart the car, leaving with her own woes in mind.

Is Father safe now? If he is also safe, then… what is he doing now?

……

Lightning and thunder ran rampant outside the cabin, and the wind’s continuous battering of the Vanished was enough to sink any ordinary vessel. Imagine an indescribable beast that had awoken from its slumber. Its rage was enough to destroy any ordinary interloper that dared to trespass into its domain.

The ship’s crew watched in horror through the porthole as the flaming giant outside wrestled with its catch through the burning chains extending from his hand. Whatever behemoth this was beneath the waves did not like it, for it was thrashing violently with those tentacles and dragging the ship in the wayside.

Shirley and Dog, the latter with the keenest eyes of them all, trembled the hardest at the terrifying scene unfolding before them.

“Yo-Yo-You sure this is the captain fishing?!” The gothic girl asked the doll, who had been smiling like it’s nothing special.

“Mhmm!” Alice nodded firmly, her expression somewhat confused by the fuss from these city folks. “Fishing is the captain’s greatest hobby!”

“I finally know why you react that way whenever you talk about Mr. Duncan’s fish…” Shirley sobs to her partner, “I… If I had known what I had eaten…”

Before she finished speaking, Morris, who kept his eyes closed out of fear, also yelled in horror at what the girl meant: “You… ate Mr. Duncan’s catch… Eh, ‘fish’?”

“How am I supposed to know!” Shirley exclaims defensively before turning to Nina, “You… You didn’t tell me how your uncle got his fish…”

“I don’t know either,” Nina shook her head. The girl’s expression wasn’t as exaggerated as the others, but she did appear quite excited, like she’s found a new hobby. Of course, the youthful girl had been watching through the porthole the entire time and didn’t once leave it. “Hey… do any of you know how those things become fishes?”

To be fair, Nina’s current behavior was actually no different from when she was in the city-state, as cheerful as ever and as lively and sunny as ever. However, this attitude definitely didn’t fit in on this vessel that’s currently wrestling with a sea monster.

“You… both uncle and niece are absolutely terrifying…”

Nina scratched her hair like she didn’t understand why her friend would say that. “Are we? I think it’s okay…”

Out of the blue, Alice suddenly stood up and walked out of the cabin, causing Shirley to jolt up in fright. “Ah, what are you going to do?”

“Go get dinner read, of course!” Miss Doll answered while glancing back, “Captain is about to finish reeling in the big fish.”

This left the unexpected passengers sharing looks between themselves, all showing faces of confusion and distraught.

“I… I want to go home…” Shirley hugged Dog hard, her eyes already dripping droplets of tears.

The red light in the bloody eyes of Dog flickered on and off over the pressure: “You’re about to strangle me… let go~”

Morris sighed as well.

“Teacher, why are you sighing?” Nina quickly asked after seeing this.

“I think I can write a book when I go back,” Morris said while spreading his hands. “I’m just worried that my daughter will think I have a mental problem like her patients though…”

Nina: “…?”