Ashes Of Deep Sea
Chapter 474 - Chapter 474 Chapter 475 Taking the Steps to Explore

Chapter 474: Chapter 475: Taking the Steps to Explore Chapter 474: Chapter 475: Taking the Steps to Explore Taran El, a distinguished elven scholar, an expert in mathematics, mechanics, and natural history, recipient of four lifetime honors bestowed by the Academy of Truth.

A person immersed in scholarly research, industrious and devoted, one who could tirelessly stay in the laboratory, someone Lucy was always worried might suddenly die at their research site.

Now, this erudite scholar, in front of everyone, had announced his inability to cope with the geometric light body that descended from the sky.

Lucy lifted her head; her gaze passed beyond the crystal ball in front of her, falling upon the grand splendor spreading from the direction opposite the window. Even at midnight, the entire sea seemed bathed in “sunlight,” and amidst that brilliance, the mountain-sized luminous geometric body still quietly floated on the water’s surface, its flat walls of light like sheer cliffs between the sky and sea.

Another small boat crossed the luminescent sea, heading towards the interior of that luminous geometric body, ready to pick up the research team that had completed its rotational duty near the “stone sphere.”

Lucy sighed, withdrawing her gaze from the window, looking down at the tabletop–a strange, dusty sphere was resting upon the stand.

The sphere’s surface was rough, rocky in texture, with bizarre, irregular, and seemingly patternless lines all over it. Appearing unremarkable, yet it was filled with an indescribable sense of mystery.

At the center of the giant geometrical light body floating on the sea was a peculiar “stone sphere” ten meters in diameter, and the one before Lucy’s eyes… was an exact, miniature replica of the stone sphere.

It was pretty much the only “achievement” of a large group of experts and scholars after such a long period of study.

“Master Taran El has already returned to Light Breeze Harbor to rest–or more accurately, his students ‘dragged’ him back to Light Breeze Harbor,” Lucy shook her head, speaking to her brother across the crystal ball, “If he doesn’t rest, he might indeed die suddenly out there–as an elf, dying suddenly at the age of five hundred would really be dying young.

“He looked very dejected when he left because this ‘gift from the heavens’ was beyond our understanding. Whether it’s the luminous area surrounding it or the nature of that central sphere, both are mysteries to us.

“Researchers scraped some samples from that ‘stone sphere,’ but the analyses suggest they are nothing more than fine stone dust. Efforts to scout inside the stone sphere made no progress–all methods have failed, including transcendent powers. It’s as if the thing is wrapped in a dense ‘shell,’ keeping all its secrets hidden. At least for now, we have not resolved to carry out any destructive… ‘tests’ on it.

“After so much effort, we’ve only reached one consensus, that this giant geometric light body is indeed likely a piece that detached from the Rune Circle surrounding anomaly 001. This was the conclusion from Light Breeze Harbor’s ‘High Tower,’ where they carefully observed the fringe of anomaly 001 and discovered the missing part matches the ‘geometric light body.'”

Lucy spoke at length, clearly venting some pent-up frustration, while Tarian served as an excellent listener, not interrupting his sister’s narrative until she finished speaking. Only then did he slowly begin, “So it has been confirmed as a part that detached from anomaly 001… Lucy, father had already issued warnings about this to the Church of the Four Gods, saying that the ‘sun’ might be in decline.”

“I’ve heard about it,” Lucy nodded lightly, “the warning from ‘Captain Duncan’ can’t be taken lightly, although most people’s first reaction was anxiety and fear for the Homeloss after hearing his warning…”

Tarian tugged at the corner of his mouth. Having often met with “Duncan Ebnomal” recently and witnessed their father’s new approach, he could not really comment and instead changed the topic, “What are your plans there? Regarding the problem with the ‘sun’…”

“What plan could there be? Throw that giant stone sphere back into the sky? Reattach it to the sun’s Rune Circle?” Lucy shrugged her shoulders, “Perhaps only the Ancient Crete Kingdom knows how to repair the sun in the sky.”

Tarian remained silent.

After a moment of silence, Lucy suddenly asked, “Does father know about my ‘research’ here?”

“I didn’t tell him,” Tarian shook his head, “Without your consent, I wouldn’t presume to speak… What, do you want to ask for his help?”

Lucy visibly hesitated, seemingly tempted but quickly shook her head, “I’ll think about it some more–such matters, father might not be of any help and, well… I’m a bit afraid of him, to be honest.”

“He’s actually pretty approachable now,” Tarian chuckled, “But since you’re not keen on it, I won’t intervene. However, just to be clear, regardless of whether I tell him or not, this news might reach his ears someday. After all, he’s now making contact between the church and the City-States. If he takes an interest later, I certainly can’t stop him.”

With a frustrated gesture, Lucy waved her hand. This “Witch of the Sea,” shrouded in a mystical aura to outsiders, always wore her emotions plainly before family, “I got it, I got it–stop talking about that. When can I get the Spirit Realm lens you mentioned before?”

Tarian: “…”

Two seconds later, Lucy’s irate voice sharply emanated from the crystal ball, “You forgot again?!!”

…

“Tarian, you don’t look very well.”

Early in the morning, Duncan arrived at the south harbor and couldn’t help but comment upon seeing the slight fatigue in Tarian’s expression.

Tarian rubbed his forehead, sighing in resignation, “There’s just too much to worry about lately.”

“`

It was not just an excuse, there truly were many matters in need of his attention recently. Managing a City-State evidently required far more effort than commanding a fleet, but then again… the impact of his sister’s relentless nagging for two hours could not be underestimated.

However, Taran El quickly steered the conversation away from this slightly embarrassing topic. He adjusted his expression, “I called you here so early today to tell you–the submersible is ready.”

Duncan raised an eyebrow, “That quickly?”

“Once we considered that the occupant wouldn’t need to breathe, many preparation tasks could be accelerated,” Taran El nodded, “Moreover, the submersible secretly built by the former Frost government is based on queen-era blueprints. Although there have been many improvements, the basic principles haven’t changed much. If it’s just about understanding the operational method, it’s actually quite simple.”

Duncan looked at Taran El for a moment and then, satisfied, nodded, “Very well, take me to it.”

“You want to start right away?” Taran El was somewhat surprised, “We can conduct more tests. I invited you here today just to let you have a look…”

Duncan interrupted him, “You’ve already done some tests, haven’t you?”

“A few,” Taran El hesitated for a moment, “After completing the system verification, I arranged for two Undead sailors to perform a short dive of a few tens of meters last night, mainly to confirm the submersible’s operational procedure and working status. There were no problems…”

“That’s enough,” Duncan nodded his head and turned to walk towards the warehouse leading to the underground facility, “Consider it as my conducting the follow-up test procedures personally. In any case, the official deep dive operation will have to be carried out by me.”

Taran El paused for a moment, then hurriedly followed Duncan’s steps. As they rushed to the facility, doubts inevitably arose in his mind.

He wasn’t sure if it was an illusion… he always felt that his father seemed somewhat preoccupied today, and this sense of urgency was different from the usual.

It was as if he had suddenly noticed some clue or stumbled upon some great secret, a strong desire to unravel the mystery, to explore the truth, was driving him.

And this hurried demeanor… it faintly gave Taran El a sense of familiarity.

The tall figure in the black coat hurried ahead, with Taran El’s steps equally fast as he desperately tried to keep up.

The latter, watching the former’s back, felt a sudden realization of the source of this familiarity during this pursuit–

It resembled the days of years gone by.

When relics of ancient ruins were found, when a new sailing route surfaced on the nautical charts, when news of mysterious phenomena in the frontier regions suddenly reached the civilized world, his father would act this way.

It was the way he looked when he was about to embark on a long voyage.

Long-forgotten, yellowed memories uncontrollably surfaced from the depths of his mind. Scenes of setting sail with his father in the past appeared before his eyes, and amidst the overlapping images, Taran El subconsciously slowed his steps.

Duncan stopped and turned around with a puzzled look at him.

“Taran El, what are you daydreaming about–hurry and follow.”

Taran El started, quickly speeding up his steps as he hastily responded, “Ah… Oh, yes, Father!”

Duncan then turned back and continued walking forward, not too concerned with Taran El’s reaction just now.

Because once again, a sense of urgency to explore the world surged within him.

This urgency stemmed from the findings of his exploration with the brass key yesterday, a corner of the world’s mysterious veil that suddenly lifted–

A vast ship that had crashed in lost ages upon this world. Known as the “Profane Prototype,” a creation from the hidden history of an ancient civilization, touched by not even the great scholars like Morris, it held deep secrets.

There was too much that was unknown; the occasional clues that emerged only made the secrets of the world seem more complex and intertwined, like layers of curtains.

Therefore, any opportunity to step toward the truth of the world was immensely precious.

An explorer ought to be so.

“`