Chapter 810: Pasture [1]

"Marcus!"

Adrian was the first to react as he moved before the empty harness could drift away. He caught it with one hand, fitted his mouthpiece, and disappeared beneath the surface.

His light swung towards the bottom of the gallery.

Then farther down.

I leaned over slightly, watching the beam move through the water. For a moment, it caught something pale beneath the stairs.

Adrian immediately turned towards it.

The light passed over the same patch again.

But there was nothing.

Only a few bubbles rose to the surface.

"....."

I waited.

Splash!

A little while later, Adrian came back up, one hand catching the railing as he pulled the mouthpiece away.

"Fuck."

Water ran down his face.

He looked towards the spot where Marcus disappeared before turning back to me.

I gave him a small smile.

Probably not the best expression to make.

"You..."

"Nope. Not me."

His gaze stopped on my face.

I could more or less tell where this was going.

"I’m just looking at you like this because there’s no point searching right there. He’s already much farther down."

I glanced towards the harness in his hand.

"And if his breathing set came off with that, he’ll probably drown in the next couple of minutes."

Adrian’s expression hardened.

For a moment, I thought he might grab me.

Instead, he turned towards the scout.

"Give me another light. And whatever line we have left."

The scout immediately reached towards the equipment beside the bench.

"Keep the five civilians together."

Adrian continued.

"Check their straps again, and don’t let anyone else slip under."

"What about Vera?"

"I’m looking for her too."

He took the line and secured it around his waist.

There was no shaking in his hands.

His jaw was tight, and he kept looking towards the water, but he continued working.

’...Not bad.’

I expected him to lose a little more time shouting at me.

Perhaps I was being unfair.

He was an elite, after all.

I left him to it and lowered my gaze.

There was something else I needed to check.

My nodes.

With the bracelet switched off, I could feel them a little more clearly. The pressure behind my eyes remained, occasionally growing sharper whenever I tried to focus.

I would have to be careful.

Not just because of the pain. Adrian was still nearby, and as far as he was aware, I was a Third Order Sonorous user.

It would be rather troublesome if he started asking questions.

Thankfully, he seemed quite occupied.

I lowered my hand beside the railing, holding it just above the water.

Then I tried to activate my fifth node.

".....!?"

A sharp pain ran down the back of my neck the moment I did.

My fingers stiffened.

For a moment, it felt as though something pricked every part of my body at once. My toes curled inside my boots, and I kept my other hand against the railing until the feeling eased.

My expression barely changed.

I was getting quite good at that.

Unfortunately.

I slowly let out a breath and looked around.

The surroundings remained dark, only patches visible through the pale glow of the torches.

Adrian was adjusting the line around his waist while the scout checked the people on the bench.

There was no sign that anything had happened.

’...Did it work?’

I waited a little longer.

But...

Nothing.

It didn’t seem like I did anything at all by activating the fifth node.

How disappointing.

’I even suffered quite a bit to activate it. I guess I’m not using it right?’

The silence around us grew uncomfortable. I could hear Adrian breathing beside me, along with the faint sound of air passing through the civilians’ masks.

Beyond the railing, there was only water.

Occasionally splashing.

I was about to lower my hand when something caught my attention.

"Hmm?"

A small red spot appeared on the surface in front of me.

I stopped.

At first, I thought it was blood.

My gaze briefly moved towards the case beside the bench before returning to the spot.

It wasn’t spreading.

Even when a ripple passed through it, the red remained in the same place.

I leaned closer and tapped the surface.

"Hey."

I called out.

Adrian looked towards me.

"Do you see this?"

I pointed at the red mark.

His gaze moved towards my finger, then towards the water beneath it.

For a moment, I waited for him to say something.

Instead, he put his mouthpiece back in.

"....."

He checked the line once, then pushed away from the railing and went under.

Splash!

I watched his light disappear.

’I guess not?’

Or perhaps he simply didn’t feel like answering.

That was also possible.

I returned my attention to the red spot.

It was quite small.

Barely larger than the end of my finger.

I touched it again.

My finger passed through the water, but nothing else happened.

I moved my hand to the side, stirring the water a little, but the red spot remained where it was.

"...Oh?"

I brought my hand back and looked at my fingers.

There wasn’t anything on them.

It didn’t seem to be a substance floating on the surface.

A marking?

I tilted my head.

’A marking...?’

My gaze moved towards the darker end of the hall.

Then back to the spot.

An idea surfaced in my mind.

’Maybe it’s worth a try.’

I moved along the railing until I reached its end.

The scout was still beside the civilians. His light passed over their faces one at a time, stopping whenever someone’s chin slipped lower.

He didn’t look towards me.

I checked the light on my harness before pushing away from the railings, my body submerging deeper into the water.

’Just a little farther.’

I kept my head above the surface and moved further away from the first marking. Beneath me, I could see the outline of the pool.

The light on my harness dipped into the water with each stroke. Whenever it did, I lost sight of everything ahead.

I raised my chest a little.

The beam caught the wall.

Then it sank again.

It flicked on and off as I swam through the dark waters.

I continued.

Behind me, the scout called Adrian’s name. He even seemed to call for mine, asking what I was doing, but it was my turn to ignore.

’This might not be a good idea, but it’s worth a shot.’

I turned my head slightly, but the movement pushed water against my mouth.

I faced forward again.

Right.

Probably best to look where I was going as I craned my neck to keep it above the water.

A ceiling light flickered.

Flick!

For an instant, I could see the wall ahead and the water stretching away on my left.

Something disturbed the surface farther out.

I instantly stopped moving as I turned my head, my eyes blinking as I caught sight of what appeared to be a long, pale finger.

The light went dark before I could get a proper look.

"....."

The surroundings grew silent once more as I strained my ears, my legs moving in different directions as I kept above the water’s surface.

There was a small splash.

Then another.

I remained still, keeping myself afloat with slow movements of my legs.

The splashing stopped too.

I looked back towards the gallery.

The scout’s light was still there, moving between the bench and the water. It wasn’t very far away.

It just felt far away.

I started swimming again.

This time, I kept my movements smaller.

My sleeve brushed against something beneath the surface.

I immediately pulled my arm closer.

A loose strap floated past my elbow.

I watched it drift away without touching it.

I didn’t particularly want to know where it came from.

Eventually, my fingers reached the wall. I pressed my palm against them and turned so I could keep the gallery in sight.

From here, the scout’s light was no longer visible.

Neither was the red spot.

Or perhaps it was simply hidden behind the railing.

I wiped some water from my sunglasses before lowering my hand towards the surface again.

’Let’s try one more time.’

My fifth node stirred.

The pain returned immediately.

Sharper this time.

My shoulder jerked, and I pressed my lips together until I could properly control my breathing again.

For a moment, I wanted to close my eyes.

But I didn’t.

There were quite a few reasons not to do that.

I watched the water beneath my hand.

One second.

Then another.

A small red spot appeared.

My eyes widened slightly.

’That’s it!’

I moved my hand away, and the spot remained.

"...Ah."

So it really was a marking.

But what did it do?

I was confused, and just as I was wondering, a notification appeared before my eyes.

[Markings 2/4]

My eyes lit up.

I was about to push away from the wall when something closed around my leg, right above my ankle.

"....!?"

My fingers scraped against the tiles.

But it was too late.

Splash!

My head went under.