"What???"
Atlas was so shocked by the answer that he immediately looked up at the horizon.
"Deepy... I don't see anything..."
The boat slowly stopped, and Deepy resurfaced from the water, gracefully moving her giant fins.
"It's right there..."
Atlas followed the direction indicated by the creature's snout, but nothing was there.
Not even his unique eyes could see anything...
The dialogue between the two alerted the old man, and although he could not fully understand the conversation, he still stared at the place pointed by his beloved companion.
"Atlas... what is going on?"
The young man summarized the creature's words briefly and then rechecked the map in his hands.
"Maybe... there is a powerful Formation all around the island... that's why we can't see it."
"Hmm... If we can see it over the illusion, maybe we could... "
Gulp! Gulp!
Drunkum swallowed up all the wine in the bottle and then threw the object toward the direction with all his force.
SWOOSH!!!
The two followed the bottle with their eyes, but surprisingly, they saw the object whizzing over the water quietly, mowing through the air without a hitch.
"How strange..."
Both of them were puzzled by the result, but in Deepy's eyes, it was a different story...
"Hahaha... As expected of my friend... Look at the mess he made..."
Hearing the creature's praise, Atlas looked at her a bit strangely: "What are you talking about?"
"Hehehe... Didn't you see what a mess it caused? There's a crater at least five meters wide on that mountain... Look at the way those birds are flying away..."
"What the..."
The young man did not know whether or not to believe the creature's nonsense, so to resolve any doubts, he had the boat towed forward.
The trio resumed their journey, but at one point, the creature resurfaced, ranting nonsensical phrases: "I don't understand what's going on, but we just teleported past the island... It doesn't make sense..."
"It was in front of us before, but in the blink of an eye, it vanished... Look, it's there!"
Once again, amazed by her words, Chaos looked in the direction indicated by the creature, but there was nothing there: "Deepy... your words do not make sense... it's impossible..."
"There is something that doesn't add up."
Suddenly, Atlas thought back to the Soul Compass and checked the indicated direction, finding that it was pointing precisely behind them, where that elusive island supposedly was.
"Drunkum... look at the compass... it has changed direction!"
The young man turned his gaze toward the old man and saw him looking behind them with a grim expression.
"Drunkum... did you sense anything strange?"
The old man had heard his words well, but he did not immediately respond and instead pointed with his index finger behind them: "Deepy, turn back...quick!"
The creature carried out its master's orders without delay and, exactly as before, resurfaced after a few minutes, telling the same thing.
At this point, it was clear to both of them that something was strange in those waters.
"Hmm... Boy... I sense a strange power repelling my mind that way... I don't understand why... but it's as if something or someone is trying to stop my mind from going beyond that point..."
"What the hell is going on?"
Bewildered by his words, Atlas observed the horizon for answers, but it was useless.
Suddenly, Drunkum changed his expression as if he had something on his mind and asked: "How far is the beach from our position?"
Atlas thought the old man wanted to swim to the shore and quietly replied: "According to Deepy... about a mile... Probably swimming would take a few minutes."
"Hmm..." Drunkum looked down at the young man and then approached him calmly and with a stony smile on his face: "Since something is preventing me from going in, maybe you'd better go alone."
"Well... Maybe I can't go in either, but I can try... it will take me a couple of minutes to get to and from the island if all goes well..."
"Hmm... don't worry, you won't need that much time." Drunkum grabbed him by the shoulders and lifted his body effortlessly: "Well... maybe I should reduce my strength slightly..."
Finding himself in that odd situation and thinking back to the bottle of wine, Atlas immediately thought the worst: "Hey... don't get any stupid ideas... put me down! I can swim!"
Unfortunately, Drunkum ignored his pleas and scrupulously assessed his weight, shaking him lightly: "Yes... that should be enough..."
"Hey!!! You old fool... put me down!"
Atlas struggled with all his might, but in the old man's clutches, he felt like an infant lifted into the air by an adult.
"Damn... Don't be stupid..."
"Calm down... You'd never make it to the shore... These waters are infested with sea creatures that are way more powerful than you. How do you expect to survive one of their attacks?"
Drunkum's explanation made sense, but surely there were more reasonable alternatives to attempt before this crazy plan.
"How about letting Deepy accompany me to the shore? Doesn't that seem safer that way?"
"Absolutely not!" Drunkum shook his head: "Your presence in the water would attract too many creatures, and it would be too dangerous for Deepy... After all, she is not a creature with many offensive capabilities..."
"Well... I could... I could borrow your b..."
The old man was tired of hearing his pleas and interrupted him calmly: "Enough of all these excuses... this is the safest way."
Atlas railed forcibly against his absurd words, "What nonsense are you talking? How can I survive in that place if monsters are as powerful as those in the water? You are literally sending me to my death..."
"Well... It doesn't seem to me that there is a better solution... For what I care, you could just go back and forget about your loved ones. Should we do this? It's up to you to decide... But..." Drunkum handed an old crystal to the young man: "... This crystal contains my power. It will save your life once in case of need and give you enough time to escape from death."
Atlas grabbed the object instantly, but his expression remained unchanged: "And then what? Once it is used, it will have no effect. So, what will I do next?"
The young man's goal was clear, but Drunkum did not pull out anything else. Instead, he lifted it above his head, holding the young man's body horizontally: "I am confident that you will find a solution... After all, you dared to reach this point... You should have your trump card, too..."
"However, I warn you, we cannot stay in the same place for a long time, so let's do it this way... I will return to this spot every five days... Good luck!"
The old man's arms began to move back and forth, and before he could disagree, Atlas felt his body hurtle through the air like a javelin.
SWOOSH!!!