Darkness, that was all Blake could perceive once the light filtering through the water slowly dimmed as he was pulled deeper into the lake, only a few seconds had passed, but that was enough to that he was aware that, if everything continued in the same way, things would not end well for him.
The only security he could cling to at that moment was the oxygen that was still in his lungs and the fishing rod that was in his hands as he resisted the force that he was pulling on it.
The moment he had been dragged into the lake, he knew something was wrong, he could clearly sense that whatever was on the other side of his rod line was anything but a fish, the force behind it made him think that it was some kind of monster and the speed with which it was pulling made those thoughts even stronger.
His vision was barely enough to make out his surroundings, and that combined with the shock he was feeling at the moment didn't help Blake keep his calm, but despite all that, the only thing he could perceive in the whole situation was a brilliant emerald light that seemed to be hooked on the tip where the bait of his rod should be.
The chase was getting to the point where Blake didn't know how much longer he could hold out, coupled with the difficulty of using all of his strength underwater and his arms seeming to tremble causing a huge worry too well up inside him.
He didn't know how deep he had gone or how bad his situation really was, he was doing everything possible to make an idea come to his mind, but the moment he felt the force of that thing seem to escape from his hands and that a huge whirlpool was forming at that precise moment, it made any ideas he had completely useless.
The pressure of the water was strong enough to hit Blake and he was thrown even farther away from his position, all that force made him unable to hold his breath any longer and a quick feeling of oppression came over him.
At that moment, it seemed that his life was passing before his eyes, although there was not much to remember... He could feel how he was losing the little strength he had left at that moment, his eyes wanted to close and his continuous descent into the dark abyss seemed to be unavoidable.
'So this is it... It's a shame I didn't complete my revenge list.' And with that last thought, Blake's consciousness began to fade as a faint pink gleam was visible in the distance.
...
…
...
"Somebody does something quick!!" A pink-haired girl was showing an expression that was rarely seen on her.
"He won't hold out until Marjorie arrives!" The green-haired boy wasn't very helpful with his comments.
"I have never used magic to draw water out of the lungs, I will only make things worse!" Those were the words of an orange-haired girl who looked incredibly worried.
[Death resistance skill, increased.]
Those screams, in addition to the familiar notification, were the first thing Blake managed to perceive, his consciousness seemed that he had recovered at that precise moment and little by little he was feeling his whole body.
"Stand back, I'm the only one who can save him!!"
"Wait, you won't do what I think...!" Turning his attention back to the screams around him, Blake finally opened his eyes to see what exactly all the commotion was about, but just as he did, the image of a muscular green-haired guy inching closer to him as he raised his lips and the distance between them was almost zero it was enough for Blake to understand everything clearly.
"Wait, wait, I'm awake!!" That sudden cry of terror was heard by everyone and especially by Carlos as he walked away at that very moment.
"Are you okay, Blake!" Shara's voice appeared a few seconds later and you could tell how worried she was.
"Looks like you took a good dip. (Making jokes is tiring)" Karina had also reached out, though she didn't do much to help.
"I came as fast as I could, where is he...! Damn, I'm late!" Marian had Collette dragged with her as she had heard of the emergency.
"Pant... Pant... I need a good portion of rice after this." The voices that Blake was hearing quickly became the faces of his acquaintances as they approached him to ask how he was and explain what had just happened.
…
"So Pia was the one who saved me. Thank you very much, Pia!" Now Blake was very grateful to Pia and he did not hesitate to express his feelings.
"Ahaha, it's nothing, although from the amount of time you were underwater, I might think you're half Mer, Blake!"
"Yeah, I really doubt it." Blake realized that she was joking with him at the same time that he heard Carlos's voice again.
"The good news is that you seem to be in perfect condition, brother. Hahahaha!"
"You mustn't act so nonchalant, Carlos. Maybe Blake is hurt somewhere!" Shara kept looking at Blake's body for any visible injuries quickly using her healing magic.
"Not really, I already did the quick check and it's nothing serious." Marian spoke to calm her down.
"I'm sleepy..." Karina didn't want to get involved in the whole situation.
"I'm hungry..." It seemed the same was the case for Collette.
"I think I'll ignore that last... Wait, what time is it?!" Blake was now wearing his usual clothes, so he felt like it was slowly drying off, but then he remembered that the event wasn't over.
"I think it's five minutes to six... It's almost six!" And as soon as the entire crowd heard Marian's voice, a large group of people came back to reality as they grabbed their respective buckets of water and ran out of the area, leaving a simple trail of dust behind them.
Blake was no exception, and when he felt all the tension in the air, he sped up even more to reach his destination.