Chapter 279. A Divinity
"Is that so? Then, what if it's another fellow Divinity?"
A trace of unease rose in Charles' heart. Divinity? I thought Swann believed in science, considering his island's development. Does he also believe in those bizarre Divinities like those cultists?
"Yes, I admit that your god has given you great power. I've thought hard and long about it, but you're just too strong for me to beat. You're incredibly strong, but..."
Swann somersaulted onto the console and pressed a button. The monochrome monitors flickered to life, showing the marred streets of the Albion Isles.
Ronker's lasers had carved massive valleys filled with lava, and the lava had already cooled down and turned black, which made it stick out like a sore thumb.
The carved-out lines were a variety of short and long lines scattered throughout the island. Staring at it from afar, it resembled a creepy-looking array.
"I said that all of you are going to die today, and I'm going to keep my word! None of you will escape! Hahaha!" Swann erupted into uproarious laughter.
The Pope frowned slightly in displeasure, and the steam pipe next to Swann burst open. Spraying scalding hot white mist, it flew and impaled Swann's chest. The brass pipe was stained crimson, but the blood dripped to the floor and created a pool beneath Swann.
Swann seemed unperturbed despite the injury. He stared mockingly at the Pope as he roared, "Since I can't beat you myself, I decided to ask for help, and I don't mind gambling my everything on it!"
"What are those?" The unease in Charles' heart intensified as he stared at the scorched marks on the streets of the Albion Isles.
For the first time ever, Anna's expression changed into that of extreme panic. "Leave! We have to leave now! He has decided to use everyone on the island as a sacrifice!"
Anna's words had yet to finish echoing when Swann lowered his head and started chanting. His words weren't spoken loudly, but they seemed to resonate with the surrounding metal, eliciting a ringing noise in everyone's ears.
"All praise to the Great One! Please have mercy for the immaturity of our souls, the weakness of our flesh, and our ignorance of the truth!"
Splat!
A gear popped out of Swann's half-metallic side. A thick, white, rubbery tendril uncoiled, and a moist, grey eyeball emerged from the opening. As Swann's voice grew louder, all kinds of strange flesh and bodily fluids seeped out of his limbs along with his blood. Both flesh and metal interweaved to form something bizarre that Charles couldn't quite describe.
Charles grabbed Anna and ran as far away as he could as swiftly as possible.
Swann's chanting continued. His voice echoed loudly from Ronker's speakers.
"Forgive our transgressions and shortcomings; forgive us—members of a rebellious and sinful generation and use your nafh to cleanse us and our dwelling so that we may be cleansed as we worship gof...nn...!"
Swann's words had become incomprehensible as he uttered syllables that humans would find difficult to utter. However, he kept going, and his vocal cords seemed like they were being distorted to allow him to continue the incantation.
Charles finally saw light up ahead, and he didn't hesitate to rush toward it until he finally exited Ronker.
To his astonishment, however, the inscrutable incantation remained at the same volume. In fact, it seemed to have pervaded the entirety of the Albion Isles as every device capable of making noise—gramophone, radio, tape player—emitted Swann's frenzied murmurs.
Charles grabbed Anna in his bat form and rushed toward the docks. He ran with all his might, wanting to flee the island that had begun to emit an ominous aura. In the corners of his eyes, he saw slender hair-like palms sticking out of the carved-out lines on the streets.
Swann's chanting continued. "So that we may Ulnagr... praise and worship Your throne of grace lthkh...ngha. We beseech your acceptance and favor. Vugtlagln! shaggornyth...lloigor!"
Swann's chanting had finally become incomprehensible to humans. Charles felt a shiver down his spine, and he felt as though the seal on certain memories in the deepest recesses of his mind was beginning to crumble. "Dishtu nilgh...ritell...bsna kn..." Incomprehensible murmurs pierced Charles' ears, but the voice no longer belonged to Swann. It was the voice of that Divinity in the deep sea. He had arrived!
"Close your eyes!" Charles shouted before using his echolocation to navigate.
Splash!
A loud splashing noise entered Charles' ears as something enormous emerged from the water. He also heard deep pulsed noises reminiscent of whales, and the noise overlapped with the murmurs, bringing about a wave of vertigo to Charles.
The sound waves he had sent out had struck something and had bounced back to him, but there was something amiss. Every time they were bounced back, the interval would get shorter and shorter, but the frequency remained high.
It felt like a massive object capable of sustaining high-frequency vibrations was on Charles' left.
There's something wrong! There's something enormous behind the Divinity! And that shape... It's a tsunami, and its waves are taller than Ronker! Oh no, we're going to crash!
Splat!
Charles plowed straight into the water, and his world spun violently. Charles couldn't do anything; he was at the mercy of the waves.
Thud!
A dull thud echoed as something struck him. It was followed by an audible crunch and a wave of sharp pain that emanated from his left shoulder blade. His left shoulder blade had shattered from the collision just now.
Charles tumbled violently amidst the waves, but he forcefully twisted and somehow managed to hold tight to Anna, whom he hurriedly embraced tightly in his arms. Regardless of how many times he got hit by objects in the sea, he refused to let go of Anna.
An unknown amount of time passed, and Charles felt like every single bone in his body had shattered. His breathing began to go faint. Soon, he felt the slithery grip of something tentacle-like before he was rapidly pulled to the depths.
Was that Anna? No, Anna's in my arms. Charles' thoughts ceased there as everything went black.
"Was I dreaming?" Charles looked around at the dazzling world before him and found that he was sitting on a bench just outside his neighborhood. It was daytime, but the stars were shining radiantly in the sky.
Just then, Charles noticed something wrong with his vision. He could see his back, and he could see what was beneath the soles of his feet. It seemed like his entire body was riddled with eyes.
Suddenly, Charles noticed someone standing on a distant tree. The figure clad in a black cloak was staring at him. Their figure was wrapped in black bandages, and Charles deduced from their protruding chest that they were a woman.
"Do you have something to say to me?" Charles asked. The woman was pretty far, but for some reason, Charles felt like the woman could hear him.
"Hahaha, this is just absurd, Gao Zhiming! I had no idea that you experienced such fate!" a familiar feminine voice pierced Charles' ears.
The scenery before Charles peeled away. When he opened his eyes once more, he found himself lying inside a ship's cabin.
Anna was sitting next to him, and she was laughing while reading his diary.
Seeing that Charles had opened his eyes, Anna smacked Charles' bandage-covered belly with the diary in her hand before saying, "Why are you writing down everything here? You even wrote about becoming a part of someone else's harem. Wouldn't it be embarrassing if a stranger were to find and read this?"
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