Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 498 - 62: Prison of the Mind_1

Chapter 498: Chapter 62: Prison of the Mind_1

"So, Sister Doris." The girls remembered when Pannis first sincerely called the High Priestess of the Sea God "sister": "Actually, we are all prisoners, prisoners of ourselves."

"Enough." Doris’s voice became sharp and piercing: "Stop it."

"Hehe, am I wrong, dear sister?" Pannis’s voice was sharp, yet gentle: "We are all cowards, the most cowardly people. We seem capable of anything, as if there’s nothing we cannot do in the world. But when we realize our weakness, when we feel helpless, we seek escape, descending into madness, even refusing to face our weak selves, don’t we? When we commit an irrevocable crime, we imprison our own souls, retreating back into our shells like newborn birds, as if that’s the safest place, even choosing death as a means of escape, right? No, your case is even worse. I dare not confront the sins I have committed, but you, you can’t even face the possibility of guilt. Just thinking of the possibility of guilt makes you prefer death as a way to escape. This is why you’ve entrusted me with the safety of your Vitality, isn’t it?"

"I told you to stop!" Doris let out a desperate shriek: "Just shut up."

Several kilometers beneath the sea, an intense undercurrent suddenly kicked up. They could clearly feel a massive whirlpool appearing out of nowhere on the otherwise calm seabed. The whirlpool spun faster with Doris’s fluctuating emotions, causing the water to churn violently, making it nearly impossible for them to stand on the seabed.

"Are you trying to attack us?" Pannis asked without any panic: "Do you want to kill us, my sister?"

"No, I don’t..." Doris’s voice had lost its former edge, trembling as she said: "Please, I beg of you, stop."

The sudden whirlpool that had appeared on the seafloor soon dispersed before it could fully take shape. The wild undercurrents calmed down as Doris’s hysteria faded. But it wasn’t until the seawater returned to calm that the girls breathed a sigh of relief, once again realizing the truth of Pannis’s words: in the sea, no race can compete with the Sea Race. They were invincible on the seabed.

"Sister." Pannis went on softly, "Over these years, you may not feel my pain or regret, but you must at least understand, right?"

"Of course I understand, you’re my brother," Doris confessed bitterly. "Ever since I learned you were still alive, I’ve never stopped gathering information. How could I not understand?"

"I’ve walked the path of retreat, and all it brought me was endless regret and harm," Pannis shook his head. "Sister, do you really want to keep walking this dead-end road? You have chosen to escape this time, but even if you get the best outcome by some fluke, do you think you will have the courage to face the second challenge that could come at any time? Wake up; it’s not too late to realize your mistake. Once you run away once, turning back will cost you a hundred times more."

"Like what you’re doing now?" Doris’s voice steadied: "Is that what you’re going through?"

"Heh, you couldn’t be more right," Pannis laughed, betraying no emotion. "Just like me, tormented by the prison I’ve built for myself every single day. But even so, I want to step out again - do you want to step in and take my place?"

"I’d rather not, my foolish brother," Doris regained her spark, yet still asked somewhat weakly: "So, what do you think I should do?"

"I’m too foolish to know," Pannis threw his head back and rolled his eyes: "Stop asking me."

"Although we don’t fully understand what’s going on between you two, if you want to face your fears, it’s time to make a choice," Catherine interrupted when things finally settled, swimming towards Pannis. "Firstly, you could abandon this mission now. We’ve found the Sea Emperor Crown; Amphitrite, who you just mentioned... oh, yeah, she used this crown to become immune to Vitality control and fought her enemy. So once you abandon the mission, we will definitely bring the crown back. You can use it to enter this sea area on your own to search for whatever you’re looking for, and we’ll save ourselves the risk of running around in danger."

"Unfortunately, this is impossible," Doris admitted with a wry smile. "The Sea Emperor Crown’s ability to resist Vitality control can only last 22 hours at a stretch, which isn’t enough to guarantee finding what I’m looking for. If I fail to find it and become trapped here, the crown will be lost again, and the fundamental problem will remain unresolved."

"Then there’s only one last method left," Catherine shook her head: "I don’t know what will happen after we find this thing, and I don’t know why you’re so nervous. But I know that death can’t solve anything. No matter what lies ahead, we must make the best preparations to face it head-on. That way, even if we fail in the end, we won’t have any regrets."

"It’s rather embarrassing for someone who has lived for hundreds of years to be taught a lesson by a twenty-year-old." Doris’s voice became solemn, stating firmly, "No matter what happens in the future, I need to thank you... no, all of you ladies."

"Not including your foolish brother?" Catherine teased.

"Of course not, he’s my brother." Doris laughed brightly, "It’s his duty to worry for me and to wake me up. I’m not going to thank him for just that."

"But, you still don’t trust him fully," Catherine noted: "Even though he’s your brother."

"It’s two different matters. If I didn’t trust him, or to put it better, didn’t trust the five of you, I wouldn’t have entrusted you with this mission. However, this trust merely represents me as an individual." Doris said, "My doubts and distrust represent the entire race, and the two notions cannot be confused. That’s the cost of leadership, even if it’s your own brother, even if he’s foolhardy, even if your reputation and moral character are the best among the land species, I must maintain suspicion."

"Hey, is it polite to say that in front of me?" Mr. Pannis slyly said, "At least you could make such comments in private, right?"

"Heh heh, there’s no need." Doris completely regained her previous calm, "Let me out, it’s time I returned."

"No way." Pannis replied, looking up, "We agreed that you’re our hostage, how can we let you go?"

"Oh, dear brother, do you really plan to imprison your poor, helpless sister?" Doris whimpered, "If this is your wish, I won’t resist. You can toy with your sister’s spirit as you please, despite... the state of her physical form..."

"I was wrong, I truly know it now." Pannis felt the sting of several piercing gazes, promptly lowered his head and desperately pleaded, "I beg you, please just leave, as far as you can. Thank you."

"Hmph, now you’re afraid." Doris’ muffled laughter echoed around the five of them, no longer coming from all directions, "but, once I leave, you’ll all be in danger if anything like earlier happens again, don’t you think?"

"Why wouldn’t we use a cheat if it helps us save energy." Pannis shrugged, "Don’t underestimate us. Even though we only have four of Legendary Rank plus one of Silver Rank, we could still deal with a situation like before if it comes to a fight for survival."

The girls suddenly noticed that the seawater around where Doris’ voice had come from was distorting abnormally, quickly forming a merfolk image, with Doris’s voice echoing from the image, "Oh? A Silver Rank?"

"Of course, unless there’s some kind of extreme exception, I’m just Silver Rank." Pannis announced, "You should know that."

"You really care about them, don’t you." Doris’s water shadow chuckled, hand covering her mouth, "Well, I’ll be going then. Oh, before I leave, I must tell you that there’s an island three kilometers north of here. A man with a broken leg and no strength, moreover, in the deep sea, I don’t think he could escape beyond a 5-kilometer radius."

"Understood, you better head back now." Pannis waved a hand, "You can’t stay here, but leaving shouldn’t be a problem, right?"

"Of course." Doris bid her farewell with a flick of her tail, "I’ll hurry back and make preparations. I hope the next time we meet, it won’t be as enemies."

"I didn’t expect that." Pannis watched as Doris swam away, murmuring, "I thought you would be angry and refuse to help persuade her with me."

"She’s our employer, and that’s all there is to it." Catherine whispered a reminder, "Also, isn’t she your friend?"

"But, I also kept her existence a secret from you all." Pannis acknowledged, "I apologize."

"Hah, you just wanted to find the best time to tell us, didn’t you?" Lina jabbed at Pannis’s waist with her hammer, "So you summoned her to clear up everything. It’s better for both sides that way, right?"

"Hey, stop poking me. What’s gotten into you again?" Dodging Lina’s attacks, Pannis defended himself, "And I did not think that way, I merely wanted to laze around."

"Really? You’re not being honest. It was obvious you felt it was the right time." Lina continued to jab at him, even Vivian joining in on the fun, the girls seemingly elated despite him withholding information, "What did you mean by ’just a Silver Rank’, Mr. Considerate Pannis?"

"Ah, it’s getting late, we should get going." Pannis suddenly turned and tried to escape, "North, right? I’ll scout ahead."

"You’re only a Silver Rank, it’s natural for you to be bullied by us Legendaries." With Lina leading the girls chased after Pannis, "Stop right there."