Observation Deck, 2:00 PM
The Observation Deck was a circular room at the ship's top, with glass walls providing a beautiful sea view. The sunlight and the waves of the water crashing at the ship cast a mysterious glow. Captain Fervier stood by the railing, his back to the door, holding a mug of Abstine Wine, gazing out at the vast expanse. The Leviagon's fang hung on a chain around his neck, glinting faintly in the light.
As he drank his wine, he wondered about the incident that happened this morning.
His expression turned serious as he started to mumble, "That Levaigon...something's weird about this...Aren't those beasts supposed to travel in groups? What was one child doing here in the calm seas?"
The Captain chuckled, but there was no humor in it, "Her appearance here definitely isn't a coincidence...Something...or should I say, someone bought her here...And for what reason now..." He trailed off, his voice filled with suspicion.
The Captain continued to sip his wine, as he molded over what was possibly going wrong with this ship currently.
...
Artis and Alice's room, 4:00 PM
Artis woke up from that deep sleep, and his body was almost healed. He still felt the pain in his fingers and legs as he glanced at his fingers which still had marks from earlier training.
"Phew...Maybe I was too rash with my decision to become Captain's student...But what can I do? I wanted to prove myself..."
He exhaled sharply, leaning back against the wooden frame of the bed. His gaze drifted to the Leviagon scale resting on the table as he began wondering.
'Captain did say this beast was a small one and I also remember they tend to travel in rash oceans instead of calm seas...and definitely in group! So why the hell was one alone when there is no rash ocean from miles here?'
His mind then diverted towards Alice. She definitely has the answer to this! She has an answer for everything!
The thought of Alice brought a strange mix of warmth and unease. Her presence had always been his comfort, but lately, there was something different about her—something distant.
He glanced at the closed door. She hadn't returned yet but said she'd be gone for a meeting.
"What kind of meeting takes this long?" Artis wondered aloud, his brows furrowing. "And why does she always look so...troubled after them?"
Just as he was wondering about Alice, the door to their room opened up. Artis looked up, startled, to see Alice stepping in.
She looked exhausted, her posture slightly slouched and her usual calm demeanor tinged with an air of distraction.
"You're awake," she said, forcing a small smile as she closed the door behind her.
"Yeah, just woke up." Artis tried to gauge her expression, but she avoided his gaze. "You were gone for a while. Everything okay?"
Alice hesitated, her hand still on the doorknob before she took a deep sigh and faced him.
"Yup, everything's fine on the ship side." Alice said, her tone steady but unconvincing, "But on my side?... Sigh..."
Artis straightened up, his curiosity and concern piqued. "What's wrong, Alice? You can tell me."
Alice hesitated, her gaze shifting to the Leviagon scale on the table. She walked over, her fingers brushing its surface. She seemed lost in thought for a moment, as though debating whether to share the weight she carried.
"It's just..." she began, her voice barely above a whisper. "Artis, do you ever feel like the more you try to protect someone, the more you put them in danger?"
Her words caught him off guard. Artis furrowed his brow, unsure how to respond. "What do you mean?"
"...Can we talk about this later? I want to rest for a bit. Let's talk about it later at night. Okay?"
"Sis! Don't edge me again! You are again, hiding things from me!" Artis's voice carried a hint of frustration, his brows knitting together as he stood up. He limped slightly as he took a step closer to Alice, his legs still sore from training. "What is up with you, Alice? Are you not able to put your trust in me for a moment?"
For the first time, Alice's face lost her composure as her jaw tightened and it was replaced with a spark of anger, "You think it's that simple? That I can just tell you everything and it'll magically be okay?
Alice's voice rose, and her usually calm demeanor cracked under the weight of her frustration. She took a sharp step closer to Artis, her eyes narrowing.
"You don't get it, Artis! The last thing I ever want is to put you in danger. So, be a good brother and behave yourself!"
Artis wasn't backing down either, as a hint of frustration and anger was building within him, "Behave myself? Hah! Sis, you're being completely unreasonable right now! You haven't given me a single reason to-"
His words were immediately cut off. Not because he was interrupted, but because he couldn't speak. His mouth was surrounded by an almost invisible chain as he looked at them in surprise, as his entire will to fight was absorbed by those chains and he looked at Alice in disbelief.
"Not. A single word after this."
Her face was full of fury as she controlled the chain by making Artis choke for a moment before releasing him as she turned her face away from Artis as if she had just realized what she had just done.
"Gasp!" Artis was in complete disbelief as he grabbed his jaw and looked at Alice with a hint of anger in his eyes.
How dare she do this? Why in the world is she so damn upset she would almost attack me to ask about it?
Alice froze as the chain dissipated. Her trembling hand hovered for a moment as if she wanted to reach for Artis but couldn't bring herself to. Without another word, she turned away, "...I'll be in Battlegrounds if you want to see me...We'll talk about this tonight..."
Alice's shoulders slumped as she walked to the door. She paused, her voice barely above a whisper. "You'll understand someday, Artis. When it's too late to change anything… as she opens the door and leaves the room leaving only a hanging silence in that room.
Artis could only look at her back as he was again, alone in the room, his thoughts jumbled as he gritted his teeth and threw the Levaigon fang he grabbed from the desk at the floor, his eyes blistering with tears.
"Why...in the world...is she being this unreasonable! How in the world am I supposed to support you if you don't even let me in your burdens!"
...
Evening time, Sonia Sea, The place where the Levaigon corpse lay,
The place was completely silent, with only the birds chirping, as the sun started to set, with nighttime approaching just after.
The Levaigon corpse lay floating above the water, half the scales taken from her body as some vulture-like creatures started to tower over it.
At that moment, Robcael "appeared" over the corpse out of nowhere and looked at it with a complicated expression.
"..."
He stared at the dead body of the corpse and clicked his tongue, "Tch! Only a baby child appeared and not the adults...Well, Can't complain about it if this is the best we get for Project Spiral..."
As he silently mumbled those words, he took out a globe-like item and placed it on top of her corpse. The corpse started to glow quietly as a red light started to cover it up as it began shrinking. The corpse continued to shrink until it didn't enter the globe-like item and completely disappeared.
After "absorbing" the Levaigon, Robcael grabbed the globe and mumbled a few words with a complicated expression, "...You poor thing, a daughter separated from its family and is dead without its parents knowing what happened to their child. But don't you worry, we will revive you, and after your revival, you can go and rampage wherever you want..."
In saying that, he completely "disappeared" from that scene as if he never existed.
...
Midnight, Dining Hall, 10:00 PM
Artis just finished having his dinner, by himself as he continued to wander around the ship, his thoughts still jumbled because of the argument with Alice.
As he was walking, a notification popped up on his smartphone and he opened it to check it out.
It was from Alice!
-Come meet me outside at the Pool area, and let's...talk.