Gacha System: Reborn In The Hardest World
Chapter 66: Under The Sea

Chapter 66: Under The Sea

"This mission couldn’t be off to a worse start, could it?" Gael asked, ripping a mysterious fruit from one of the blue-leaf trees.

Jaxon leaned against a tree, "We could all be dead already. That’d be worse."

"...Well, besides that, I mean," Gael responded at the obvious exaggeration, sniffing the fruit as he hesitated to take a bite.

There was nothing to do but to wander with the off-chance that one of their comrades might be somewhere on the same floating island. Yet, the sight of the cobalt trees and sea-like foliage, it felt like there was nothing to find.

"What the hell did those fish guys even eat up here?" Gael asked, finding no sight of critters.

"Looks like fruit," Jaxon answered. "Or each other."

"Seriously?" Gael glanced over at the fellow Outlander.

"Just a dart in the dark, or is it?" Jaxon said, giving him a look.

Gael stared at the British man before sighing, "You’re trying to mess with me."

"Nah, I’m being serious here, mate," Jaxon doubled down. "Think about it, yeah? Mindless savages, snapping their jaws at whatever moves—only makes sense."

It wasn’t a pleasant idea, nor one he wanted to give much credence to, though he couldn’t deny the theory. While the scenery of the blue forest was a calming one in itself, the idea of walking amongst cannibal shark-men didn’t comfort him.

"Well...They’re not all that tough," Gael reasoned.

"Sure," Jaxon casually agreed. "’Cept for how you got plowed through a hundred twigs by one, yeah."

"I was just caught off-guard, alright?" Gael corrected.

"Right, right, just busting your chops—" Jaxon said.

Looking ahead while the man talked, Gael found a shining beacon of azure light just ahead.

"Hold on—look," he pointed out.

Jaxon stopped just as a twig crunched beneath his step, "—Ah? Let’s get a look at that."

With careful steps, he followed alongside the more tenured Outlander, pushing through the obscuring bushes. It sat in the middle of the clearing; an ever-spinning whirlpool of glistening water leading down.

The constant sound of swirling aqua filled the area, splashing though not reaching far. Just standing near the mystical whirlpool brought a refreshing sensation, like a cool mist.

"Strange. The hell is this?" Jaxon quietly questioned, kneeling down as he peered down.

It was difficult to make out anything beneath the water, though by squinting, the sky past it could be made out.

"Kind of looks like it’s leading down into the ocean," Gael remarked. "Like a one-way elevator."

"A straight shot into Atlantis, maybe," Jaxon guessed. "Could send your familiars into it to check it out."

The idea was insulting as he looked over at the Outlander, clearly tempted to throw a fist at him.

Jaxon quickly dismissed the idea, "Just a joke. Speaking of, why didn’t you call on any of them earlier? You’re a summoner, right?"

"Sure, but I like to fight my own battles if I can. The idea of sitting back and letting others fight for me just doesn’t really sit right," Gael explained, scratching his cheek. "Most of what I summon increases my own strength, anyway."

"I respect that attitude," Jaxon said, standing up while staring down the peculiar descent of water, kicking a pebble into it.

The small rock circled around the layers of the whirlpool, being pulled downward until it disappeared beneath the folds of the water.

"A quick ticket into Atlantis, or being drowned. Those are the two outcomes I presume," Jaxon remarked. "I’m a gambler, but not that kind of gambler."

Gael curiously knelt by the glistening, spiraling pool, reaching his hand out to touch the water, "When you put it like that, it is scar—"

The moment his fingers grazed the ever-moving liquid, he felt his entire body be sucked into the whirlpool. It wasn’t something that could be physically resisted; like his being was warped into the spiraling water, he was pulled right in.

"Waoooo–!" Gael shouted, reaching his hand out.

Jaxon extended his hand, trying to grab on, "Gael–!"

There was no chance; he was pulled deeper, being enveloped in the mystical swirl, brought into its downward spiral. As he was dunked into it, he found himself unable to breathe, though he did not drown.

’What is this—? I’m being pulled down, but it’s oddly...calming?’ He thought.

There was no threat felt to his life, perhaps it was the glistening water washing away his unease.

He stopped resisting, letting the motion of the water guide him downward through the tower of spiraling aqua. From the heights of the flying island, he could partially see the sky, along with the sea that he was being brought into.

As the motion intensified, it was hard to make out anything but the swirling aqua around him before—

"Pyuh!"

He spat out the water from his mouth, suddenly freed from the whirlpool as he was dropped to his feet. A quick drop to his knees led him to find sand-washed tiles of sea stone beneath him.

Though he was sure he was brought beneath the sea, he drew in oxygen to his lungs. As he raised his gaze, finding the sky replaced by the deep-blue depths of the sea, the air hummed—

Looming before him was a creature of impossible scale, planted like an organic region of land.

A whale as pale as moonlight, coated in algae and barnacles stared down at him, opening its maw.

"Welcome, boy from a world far away," the whale spoke, causing the sands to move beneath the force of its bellowing voice. "...to the remnants of Atlantis."

Its breath pushed against his body like a summer breeze, pushing through his hair as he picked himself up.

’It...talked?’ He thought, looking up at the colossal creature.

Out of the desire to defend himself, he held his hand out, calling forth his familiars. Around him, the warrior, scholar, and capybara manifested.

"Woah! Look at that!" Florentine immediately remarked upon seeing the massive creature.

Matteo took quick interest in the subaquatic scenery, "A land beneath the sea’s waves? You always bring me to such interesting places, Boss."

Colorful coral of shades ranging from pink to the shade of tangerines spanned greater than redwood trees. Schools of fish swam in the isolated air beneath the countless miles of water, flourishing in the vibrant depths.

The whale’s mouth opened again with its air-quaking voice, "Do not be afraid, Outlander. I have brought you here to request your assistance."