Chapter 419: Going Down
Dipp swallowed nervously, watching as the captain stood up on the deck, his body swaying with the waves.
The crew of the Narwhal looked on anxiously at their captain, relieved that this time, he wasn't venting his anger and attacking anyone, thanks to Tobba's method, which had proven effective.
With drool dripping from his mouth, Charles stumbled around the deck, following Tobba, who held a paper rabbit in his hand, circling around the deck.
Charles' limbs were uncoordinated, his lips were twisted into a smirk as he mumbled something inscrutable. It was an utterly bizarre sight.
"Hey, Tobba, what are you doing?" Dipp asked hesitantly.
"Shh, don't make noise! I'm taking Charles somewhere. It's none of your business. Just stay quiet and wait," Tobba replied, tweaking the ear of the paper rabbit. He and Charles then abruptly dropped to the ground, crawling in circles.
Having returned to her human form, Sparkle watched the amusing scene and her eyes sparkling with excitement. "I want to play, too."
But just as she was about to run over, her mother pulled her back. "No! Stay put."
Anna's elegant brows slightly furrowed as she studied the sight before her.
Bandages glanced at the golden statue of Fhtagn on the ground and walked over to Anna. "You really... have no way...?"
"I've said it many times. Charles's memory and cognition are fine. He's my man. If there were a way for me to help him, wouldn't I know that? Also, why is he the only one having issues in this cursed place? None of you have any problems?" Anna snapped.
Bandages cast a glance at the eager Sparkle beside Anna and didn't reply.
Anna spoke again, asking, "Where did this old man come from? Is his method reliable?"
"He... is a special... lunatic... maybe... useful," Bandages responded.
"Hmph!" Anna's displeasure showed on her face. "He said he could bring Charles back. He's dead if he dares to deceive me!"
"I don't think... a monster... could have... such deep feelings... for the captain... What exactly are you... planning...?" Bandages asked while staring at Anna with deadpan eyes.
"Why are you saying that as if you know him more than me? I slept with him, and I gave birth to his child. Did you also sleep with him and give birth to his child?" Anna asked sarcastically.
Sensing the tension between them, Feuerbach endured the pain radiating from his stitched-up stomach and said, "Stop arguing, you two; the priority here is to save our Captain. Anything else can wait until then."
Everyone went silent and stared at Charles crawling after Tobba in circles.
"Guys" Dipp trailed off, sounding reluctant as he asked, "Where do you think they're going?"
"You're asking where we're going?" A young-looking Tobba turned to Charles behind him and explained, "Of course, we're going to resolve the ongoing issue. What? Do you want to stay in this perspective with me forever?"
Charles standing on the giant paper rabbit looked around. The sea was on his left and vertical, while the pitch-black sky was on his right, vertical as well. He had no idea what was going on; all he knew was that when Tobba tweaked the paper rabbit's ear, the world became vertical.
"Just what drove me crazy, and when did they make a move?" Charles asked.
Tobba tweaked the paper rabbit's ear as he replied, "They made their first move when you entered the waters. However, the symptoms didn't show until much later."
"They? Are you talking about those sea otters?"
"No, those sea otters serve them. They are much more 'advanced' and special," Tobba replied.
Tobba was unwittingly transfixed on the inky black sea up ahead as if he were a rookie driver.
"What do you mean 'more advanced'?" Charles asked, sounding confused. He truly had no idea what Tobba meant. The young Tobba from this perspective had a penchant for speaking in riddles.
"You don't have to know them, as they only exist in this perspective. You just have to leave this region of the sea, and you'll never encounter them again."
"I didn't provoke them, did I? Why did they drag me into this perspective?"
"Hahaha. Borrowing your words long ago, I'd say that they're a group of collectors. Their goal is to collect everything you havethoughts, memories, and even your soul. These are all appetizing to them."
Tobba then turned to Charles and grinned. "Good thing I managed to wake you up. Otherwise, they would have already collected you, and you would have become a part of their collection to wear."
"Thank you," Charles said solemnly.
"No need to thank me. You'll have plenty of chances to do so later," Tobba replied and turned around to steer the giant rabbit.
"How come you know this place so well? Are you not new here?" Charles asked.
"How long have you been a lunatic? Can you even compare to me when it comes to how long I've been one?" Tobba asked, looking proud. "I've been in this place for over four hundred years now, and I'm sure you know my ability, too."
"Your ability? Is it foresight?"
Tobba laughed and replied, "I guess you can put it that way."
Charles went silent and chose to stop asking such questions. After all, he had a more important question to ask.
"What do we have to do to get out of here once we reach our destination?" Charles asked.
"We have to find them and disperse them. Then, we'll take advantage of the time they need to regroup to return to your perspective. Afterward, lead your crew and kill all the sea otters.
"Without those sea otters as mediums, they cannot influence your world," Tobba replied.
Charles looked down at his mutilated figure. He lifted his prosthetic arm, and it briefly transformed into a chainsaw as Charles asked, "How do we disperse them? Can I use this as a weapon?"
"Anything works; you can even use your fists. Ah, don't use your lightning ability. Its range is too big, and you might accidentally hurt the others," Tobba replied.
Then, without any warning, Tobba tweaked the paper rabbit's ear. The giant rabbit turned sharply, and the vertical world rotated ninety degrees clockwise to become normal once again. The sea was back on the ground, while the pitch-black sky was back overhead.
"What are we going to do next?" Charles asked with knitted brows while looking around.
Tobba pointed at the inky black sea covered in seaweed and lotus leaves. "We're going down."
"What?"
Before Charles could ask any questions, Tobba reached into the hole in Charles' torso, grabbed his spine, and pushed him gently overboard.
A crashing noise echoed as Charles fell head first into the water. The turn of events was so sudden that Charles felt both dizzy and disoriented. He took a moment to compose himself and found that he was in the middle of densely packed seaweed.
"What is going on?" Charles muttered, dumbstruck. He was standing on the surface of the water, and he saw Tobba on the other side of the surface along with his giant rabbit. Tobba eventually jumped into the water, and his figure melted quickly in the water, disappearing into thin air.
Moments later, however, Tobba's figure manifested once moreright before Charles' astounded eyes. The two found themselves standing upside down on the "underside" of the water.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺