Chapter 48: Aerial Lake

Chapter 48: Chapter 48: Aerial Lake

[ATTENTION! Please place the compass on the floor of the mobile cabin to establish a connection! Otherwise, the compass will be unable to move the cabin!]

[ATTENTION! Once sunshine is used, it is non-refundable! In the event of movement failure due to user error or unforeseen issues, the sunshine is also non-refundable!]

Seraphina Sinclair: "..."

’These terms are completely one-sided.’

But she was in a tight spot and had no choice but to yield.

Seraphina Sinclair obediently followed the instructions, placing the compass on the floor.

The instant the two made contact, the compass seemed to activate, erupting in a blinding flash. Almost at the same time, the entire mobile cabin began to hum, as if brought to life by the device.

The sight was rather incredible. Seraphina Sinclair couldn’t resist glancing out the window several more times. The mist was still swirling, but now she could see clear tracks being left in it.

It wasn’t the mist moving anymore; it was the mobile cabin beneath Seraphina Sinclair’s feet.

But the stability lasted for only a moment. In the next instant, the entire mobile cabin began to shake violently.

Seraphina Sinclair froze, then instinctively grabbed onto the wooden bed to steady herself, bracing for danger.

All the while, she could clearly hear the grinding of gears.

Her mobile cabin, like a stiff, clumsy robot, ground its way through a U-turn on the spot.

Then, it began moving toward the aerial lake of uncertain location mentioned in the Description.

’But this revealed one thing.’

’There really is an aerial lake within a 100-sunshine radius of my location!’

’That hundred sunshine wasn’t wasted after all!’

Seraphina Sinclair patted her cheeks, forcing herself to stay alert.

’Entrusting sunshine to the compass was a completely different experience from giving it to the door card.’

’She had boarded a pirate ship, so to speak.’

’The sunshine was non-refundable. No matter how unhappy she was, she was stuck with this compass to the bitter end.’

’After all, the system hadn’t provided an option to stop...’

Seraphina Sinclair sighed silently. She shook her head, trying to stay awake, and glanced at the time with eyes that felt like a blurry mess.

’Why isn’t any black mist pouring in...?’

’It’s definitely been twenty minutes since the cabin started moving, and yet no black mist has seeped in!’

No black mist meant safety, but it also meant losing the opportunity to acquire supplies and monster drops.

It was a double-edged sword.

Seraphina Sinclair stared intently out the window, her heart racing in time with the cabin’s jolts.

’Whatever I get from this aerial lake better be worth 100 sunshine!’ she prayed. ’Otherwise, this whole trip will be a total loss!’

Another violent tremor shook the cabin, and Seraphina Sinclair nearly lost her footing.

She instinctively braced a hand against the wall, suddenly feeling the cabin begin to decelerate.

"Are we here?"

She muttered to herself. After a moment’s hesitation, she reached down and picked up the compass from the floor.

’That’s what the pop-up said: "Remove the compass immediately upon deceleration, or you may be carried past the aerial lake."’

Seraphina Sinclair had been uncertain at first. But when she realized the compass, which had previously felt glued to the floor and impossible to budge, now lifted away with a simple touch, she knew she’d done the right thing.

The needle had settled, and its light had dimmed, but it still pointed in the same direction.

Seraphina Sinclair stored the item in her Silver Moon Earrings and tightened her grip on her dagger.

’By all rights, this should be the destination.’

’Too bad I didn’t get any notification. The system’s guidance can be pretty lacking at times!’

Seraphina Sinclair cautiously approached the window, trying to get a clear view of the scene outside.

Through the glass, she noticed the black mist outside seemed a little thinner. She could vaguely make out a massive shadow up ahead.

Just as Seraphina Sinclair was about to push the door open and investigate, she realized the cabin was still moving, albeit slowly.

’Gliding, perhaps, was a more fitting word.’

As the cabin drew closer, the shadow came into focus.

The moment she saw it clearly, Seraphina Sinclair held her breath.

It was a lake, suspended in mid-air. Its water was black, but the surface held an eerie, silvery sheen, and it was wreathed in mist that was visibly thinner than anywhere else.

"I really found it..."

Seraphina Sinclair’s eyes were fixed on the bizarre spectacle. Just as she was wondering what to do next, the cabin gave a violent lurch.

It felt as if they’d hit something. Seraphina Sinclair stumbled a few steps, then heard a sound from outside—SPLASH! SPLASH!

’This...’

’The mobile cabin couldn’t have just plunged into the water, could it?’

Seraphina Sinclair steadied herself and rushed to the door. After a moment’s hesitation, she pushed it open.

The scene before her left her stunned.

Her mobile cabin had come to a stop at the very edge of the aerial lake, just a single step away from the inky black water. From this angle, illuminated by what looked like glowing fish swim bladders, she could even see all sorts of bizarre aquatic creatures swimming within.

’But... there shouldn’t have been a splashing sound from this distance, right?’

A sudden realization struck Seraphina Sinclair, and she immediately scrambled back three or four steps.

The next moment, the lake floating in the sky began to pulse as if it were breathing. It suddenly swelled, expanding outward by the width of two paces, before contracting again.

The process was brief, but it would have been more than enough time to drown someone caught inside.

Seraphina Sinclair fell silent. ’This isn’t like water on the ground; I can’t just walk into it. Gravity might not apply to the lake, but it sure as hell applies to me.’

’If I just swaggered out there, I’d meet the same end as someone bungee jumping without a cord.’

’Which brought up a problem.’

’How am I supposed to get any resources from it?’

Unable to come up with an immediate answer, she just sat down on the floor, propping herself up with her hands and staring at the mass of black water blocking her doorway.

Once the cabin’s movement had stopped completely, another pop-up appeared before her.

[Movement Halted!]

[Friendly Reminder: Until you initiate your next move, your position and the position of the nearby aerial lake will remain fixed! Begin your exploration, survivor!]

’This friendly reminder came at the perfect time!’

Knowing this, Seraphina Sinclair was no longer in a rush. If she couldn’t figure out a solution today, there was always tomorrow. She’d find a way to earn back that hundred sunshine eventually!

As for how long it took, she didn’t really care.

From a slight distance, the inky water completely hid the creatures within. Only by getting closer could Seraphina Sinclair make out what was in the black water, thanks to the light from the glowing fish swim bladders.

There were several Black Mist Catfish; that was the only type she recognized.

As for the rest of them—the fat ones and the thin ones, the short and the long, the vibrantly colored ones that looked both edible and inedible—she had no idea what they were called.

Perhaps because the creatures were submerged in the black water, her Insight ability was unusable on them.

’I have to find a way to get those things out of the water!’ It was a sight to make one drool with frustrated tears.