Chapter 142. Sunlight
Watching Kord's crazed antics, Charles couldn't concern himself with the elderly man. He turned and approached the others who stood rooted to their spots like wooden stakes.
He snatched the telescope from his second mate, Conor, and lightly tapped him on the head with the tool. "Well, what a brilliant lad. You are surely the first to try staring at the sun with a telescope," Charles remarked sarcastically.
"Captain, wh-what's that thing?" Conor asked in a stammer as he pointed toward the sky.
"The sun. What else could it be?" Charles replied nonchalantly and pushed the telescope into Conor's arms. He crouched down and picked the frozen white mouse up from the ground. Placing her in his open palm, he patted her head and commented, "Stop staring, or you'll turn into a blind mouse."
"Mr. Charles, is your home up there? Is that the place with the televi or was it a computa?" Lily's voice trembled with excitement as she popped her head out between Charles' fingers.
Charles smiled slightly and playfully tossed the white mouse into the air. He caught her once more amidst her squeals.
"Little Lily, you've guessed correctly. That's my home."
In a joyous mood, Charles had barely finished speaking when a heavy thud from behind him indicated something had struck the sand.
"Hmm?" He turned around to see Kord, who had been seated upright moments ago, was now lying face-first in the sand.
Charles instantly felt that something was amiss. Grabbing Lily with him, he rushed toward the elderly man and pulled Kord back into a sitting position.
"Hey, what happened? Speak to me!" Charles roared.
However, Kord seemed unresponsive to Charles' cries. A placid smile remained frozen on the elderly man's visage.
A cold dread consumed Charles, and he gradually extended a finger and placed it under Kord's nose. Kord was no longer breathing.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
The chilling sound of bodies collapsing onto the sand resonated around him. Despite being in the warm embrace of the sun rays, Charles felt a numbing cold coursing through him.
He swiveled around to witness sailors collapsing one after another, landing face-down and remaining motionless in the sand.
The joy within him instantly dissipated without a trace. With trembling lips, Charles shouted hysterically, "Back to the ship now! Everyone, get back! The sunlight is deadly!"
Charles' sudden shouts snapped everyone back to the grim reality and the demise of their fellow crewmates. A brief pause of uncertainty flickered across their ecstatic faces, which swiftly morphed into comprehension, then sheer terror.
A mass movement ensued. They ran toward their ships at a speed even faster than when they were running toward the shore. Some stumbled and fell in the midst of their sprint. Unfortunately, those who struck the sand never climbed back to their feet again.
With his enhanced agility, Dipp was the first to make it back to the deck of the Narwhale. Standing at the ship's edge, he hurriedly helped his comrades aboard. As he did the headcount, he noticed an unsettling absence.
Dipp's gaze turned toward the shore to see the figure of his captain, Charles, standing at the intersection of the light and darkness. One half of his body was illuminated by the radiant sun rays, while the other half was shrouded in the darkness of the Subterranean Seascape.
"Captain! Come back quickly! It's dangerous!" Dipp anxiously called out in desperation.
As the crew's frantic shouts echoed, Charles turned toward them and signaled for them to wait using flag semaphore. He then took a step back and allowed the sunlight to completely envelop him.
He began to shed his upper garments and revealed his torso marred with scars. Bathing in the brilliant rays, he stood still with his arms open wide as if embracing the light. His eyes shone with unwavering determination.
He knew the most logical course of action was to return to the ship and figure out what went wrong. However, Charles had no more patience for that. He couldn't endure it any longer. If the sunlight from the surface were truly deadly, he would rather face it head-on and be killed by it now.
One minute, two minutes, and three minutes later. Charles felt nothing else aside from the sun’s warmth.
Gazing at the light filtering through the fissure, a smirk tugged at Charles' lips. He had been right. Having spent countless hours under the sun in the world above before his nine-year hiatus in this subterranean realm, how could the sunlight possibly become unfamiliar to him?
Charles placed his arms down and turned his gaze toward the Narwhale shrouded in the darkness. Looking at the myriad of faces aboard the vessel, a mix of emotions welled up in him.
Kord's previous words echoed in his mind. The elderly man had described the Land of Light to be the sacred domain of the Light God, and it banished all impurities and darkness.
Charles had no idea who made such tales up, but judging from the current situation, it seemed like the sunlight's aversion was not only limited to vampires.
The sun seemed to shun the humans in the subterranean realm as well.
"Perhaps the humans here have dwelled in the darkness for too many generations that they have evolved and can no longer survive under sunlight," Charles mused to himself.
After standing in the sunlight for a few more moments, Charles started gathering the lifeless bodies on the beach. Doing a swift tally, he counted seventy-nine deaths, including one of the captains, Kord.
It was a tragic loss.
Previously, Charles had been perplexed as to why hadn't the Sottom pirates claimed this paradise even when their leader, “King,” knew of this place. But now, his question had been answered.
With a heavy heart, Charles gently closed Kord's widened eyes. Glancing at the piercing sun rays for the last time, he turned and swam toward the Narwhale.
The moment he climbed aboard the Narwhale, he saw that the remaining captains and crew from the twelve ships had already gathered and were awaiting him. No one uttered a word, but their eyes were fixated on Charles.
A mix of emotions filled their gazes. Wasn't this the Land of Light? Why had so many perished? Why was Charles unharmed? What was the true nature of their mission? A flurry of questions swirled in their minds.
Taking the towel from Dipp, Charles briskly wiped his body before he turned to address the crowd. "I won't dwell on unnecessary words. As you guys have seen for yourself, Kord hadn't been lying. Our mission had been to seek the Land of Light from the very beginning. But this isn't the legendary land. The true Land of Light is beyond that fissure in the sky.
Whispers erupted among the group, but they ceased the moment Charles continued with his speech.
"And I’m from there... the very fact that I remained unharmed from the sunlight is proof of it."
Charles had made the same claim countless times for the past nine years in this subterranean realm. However, this was the first time that no one responded with a mocking laugh.
"Our next goal is to find a way to get up there."
"But the divine light from the Light God will kill us all. Why should we get up there? The Divine Light Order's tales were deceptive lies! It's nothing but lethal light up there. There's no way anyone can live in the Land of Light!" A voice from the crowd retorted Charles.
"No, no, no. You lot still don't get it. Yes, the sun is lethal; it's indeed a tough obstacle to overcome, but there's surely a way to resolve it. If we can't find answers down here, there are plenty of smart people above, and they will find a solution.
”Even if it means wearing protective suits around the clock or only being able to venture out in the night, the world up there is still way better than this cursed realm. Tenfold, hundredfold, thousandfold better!" Charles tried to appeal to the group as he swept his gaze across them.
"Every one of you is surely aware of the sinking of Shadow Island. Do you plan to live in perpetual fear of these islands sinking at any moment? Let me tell you—up there..." Charles pointed at the radiant crack in the sky. "In that legendary Land of Light lies a continent greater than the entire subterranean seascape. Not only are the lands incredibly fertile, but they also never sink!"
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