Survivor

He quickly scanned the cabin corridor.

Surprisingly, there was light inside the sunken ship. Looking up, luminous algae covered the cabin ceiling, their green glow illuminating the empty chambers.

The corridor was empty; all the deep ones on the entire ship seemed to have gone out to fight. The cabins were silent, but this quiet environment made Lynch feel a surge of unease.

He couldn't afford to be nervous; he had to find his target as quickly as possible.

Lynch's mind raced.

From the dying resonance of Mark, who had been silenced, it was clear that after Princess Chloe handed the gem to the deep ones, they prepared to leave Rhine. This suggested that this deep one tribe had likely come for this very reason, with other actions merely opportunistic.

If this speculation held true, then such an important item would very likely be personally guarded by the tribal leader. And as a tribal leader, it would be normal to choose the most comfortable room on the sunken ship to reside in.

So… the captain's quarters?

A thought sparked, and his body immediately moved. Lynch turned and sprinted towards the captain's quarters.

Having previously toured ships belonging to the Black Night Cathedral and the Commercial Alliance, Lynch had a general understanding of ship structures from this era. Thus, he didn't exert much effort before finding the thick door to the captain's quarters.

Outside the door were large patches of dried bloodstains and signs of forced entry. It seemed a fierce struggle had taken place when the ship sank. The good news was that the damaged door couldn't be locked. Lynch pressed himself against the doorframe, took several deep breaths to steady himself, and gently nudged it with his pistol. The heavy wooden door creaked open, slowly revealing a crack.

A strong, fishy smell assaulted him. This was the typical scent of deep ones, intensified in the enclosed space.

This cabin must have been regularly inhabited.

Clink.

Lynch flicked a penny coin, which clattered on the floor. At the same time, he held his breath and listened. The cabin remained silent, with only the sound of the coin rolling across the floor.

Concealing his presence, Lynch silently rolled forward, slipping through the door crack. As he rolled, his gaze swept around, confirming the captain's quarters were empty.

Safe.

But the sight was shocking.

The floor was covered with patches of dried mucus, emitting a foul, fishy odor, likely bodily fluids that had dripped from the occupant.

The room's contents were in disarray. Torn and shredded uniforms and nautical equipment were piled in a corner of the room. The glass cabinet door against the wall was shattered, and all the wine bottles and collectibles inside had been swept away, leaving only fragments.

In the center of the room, several daggers were plunged into a long table laid with a large sea chart, tearing the chart to shreds. Scattered on the table were several pallid skulls, each with an open mouth and dark, empty eye sockets staring directly at the intruding Lynch.

What kind of hobby is this, putting these things on a table?

But in reality, it wasn't just the eerie skulls. The room contained many bizarre items: shriveled dead fish, huge scales, withered sea grass, sharp fish bones, and many other unknown fragments, strewn haphazardly throughout the captain's quarters.

In the center of the table was a large bronze basin filled with an eerie green liquid. Though there was no fire beneath it, the liquid bubbled as if boiling, occasionally churning up tiny fish bones, emitting a strange aura.

Lynch felt as if he had entered a medieval wizard's room; everything felt so sinister. But even more sinister was the blonde, blue-eyed doll he found by the bed. The doll was exquisite, but the moment he saw it, his mind immediately conjured the image of a burly fish-man holding it.

Too disturbing. Lynch quickly shook his head, trying to control his imagination.

Nothing, nothing, still nothing.

Lynch quickly searched the entire room but found nothing.

Such a bizarre room must be the dwelling of the tribe's religious figures. Lynch immediately thought of the white-haired old deep one who led the charge earlier, or the enemy who led the chanting of the declarations. This room must have been occupied by them.

This means there might be another tribal leader or commander who, out of respect, allowed the wizard or priest to occupy the best environment?

Then he would check the first mate's cabin, which was also a very good room on the ship.

Boom.

The entire sunken ship vibrated violently again, making Lynch sway. He barely managed to stabilize himself. It seemed the battle outside was growing more intense.

He didn't know how long the Yellow Apostle could hold out, but he had to prepare for the worst.

Lynch dared not delay. After a final check of the captain's quarters, he decisively left.

Before leaving, he didn't forget to pick up his penny coin.

I'm avoiding leaving traces, not being stingy.

The corridor remained silent, which somewhat reassured Lynch. It seemed the deep ones had truly poured out, so there was no risk of one suddenly ambushing him.

Maintaining his lurking state, he sped down the corridor. This time, Lynch changed his approach, relying on silence to kick open the first mate's cabin door and roll inside.

Without a sound as a warning, any enemies inside would be caught off guard.

However, the situation inside left Lynch utterly unprepared.

The first mate's cabin had been completely emptied, and a large hole was dug in the center of the cabin. Lynch almost fell straight through.

Barely steadying himself at the edge of the hole, he immediately broke out in a cold sweat. This place was even more bizarre than the captain's quarters.

Around the large hole, a glowing green pentagram was drawn with green liquid, which flowed along fixed paths on the flat floor, constantly bubbling with eerie foam. This immediately reminded Lynch of the large pot in the captain's quarters.

At each of the five points of the pentagram lay a human head, and on top of each head burned a cluster of green flame. The flames twisted and flickered occasionally, emitting a demonic glow.

The heads had already begun to rot, but it was still visible that a round hole had been broken open at the back of each head, and the brain tissue and flesh inside had vanished, as if sucked away, leaving only an empty skull.

Yet, even so, after Lynch rushed in, these heads still moved their eyebrows and eyes, contorting into expressions of desperate wailing. Lynch could even faintly hear painful groans, low moans that struck his soul, causing a cold despair to rise inexplicably within him.

However, this was only the beginning. Standing at the entrance of the hole, Lynch immediately saw the scene inside.

The deck below had been completely dug through, extending all the way to the ship's bottom and opening into the sea. Seawater filled the lower cabins, where over twenty headless sailors' corpses floated. A large mass of gray gelatinous substance enveloped these bodies, which were severely decomposed, some even reduced to bare bones.

It was practically a jump scare. Such a stomach-churning scene almost made Lynch vomit on the spot. He covered his mouth and staggered back a few steps, barely suppressing the urge to throw up.

Damn it, this is probably where the deep ones feed that big monster. Gotta go, gotta go, otherwise... hmm?

Thump, thump, thump...

From the silent corridor behind him, faint footsteps suddenly echoed, unusually clear in the quiet environment.

Holy hell.

Lynch, who was used to horror films, felt his hair stand on end. He stealthily rolled out of the cabin, pistol raised. The corridor was still dark, but at the far corner, a figure flashed and disappeared.

Judging by the size and features, it wasn't a deep one; it was definitely human, and there was no fishy smell, so it must be right.

More importantly, this figure was clearly a child of about ten years old, and a little girl.

Recalling the doll in the captain's quarters, Lynch suddenly realized: Could she be a passenger who hitched a ride on the cargo ship, which is why her toy was in the captain's quarters? After the shipwreck, she hid due to her small size, and now, with the deep ones out fighting, she's come out?

No, I have to chase her and see. If this is true, she might know the location of the deep ones' leader.

Gritting his teeth, Lynch, cane in hand and gun raised, pursued her down the corridor. At the end of the corridor was the sailors' recreation room, its door slightly ajar and still gently swaying.

There were no glowing algae inside, just pitch blackness. Lynch pondered for a moment, then pushed the door open with his cane.

The fishy smell inside was very faint, indicating that no deep ones had occupied this room. Could the child have been hiding here all these days?

After some hesitation, Lynch took off his top hat, hung it on his cane, and slid it through the door crack. The next moment, a whooshing sound descended from above, and a ceramic pot smashed onto the hat, accompanied by the tender cry of a young girl.

Lynch pushed the door open, grabbed her arm, and pressed her to the ground, then let out a sigh of relief.

It really was a human, a girl of about twelve or thirteen, with fair skin, unbelievably beautiful.