Free Web NovelChapter 228: We’ll Be Back
Now that they were apparently out of danger, and seeing no reason to hide the general details, Lucas briefly explained what just happened and who the big white fox was.
"Incredible..." Christina muttered aloud as she, and all of the others aboard the Sunchaser who were still conscious, listened to Lucas’ story.
It was a surreal experience, to say the least, and one that none of them was eager to re-live as it was also absolutely terrifying, but that didn’t diminish their fascination with what had just transpired.
After Lucas finished his story, he sank into contemplation for a moment before he noticed that a few among the crowd onboard the Skyship were now giving wary looks towards the tiny fox kit in his arms.
Seeing this, the young boy’s first instinct was to tell them not to be afraid as the Soul Manifestation’s power had already been used up, but then he paused to re-consider as he realized this misunderstanding might be beneficial in its own way.
Debating the matter internally for a moment, despite having faced life and death with all of these people multiple times already, Lucas decided that it was better to let the misunderstanding stand.
It wasn’t that Lucas didn’t trust these soldiers, but considering all the challenges he would face in the future, having one more layer of protection was never a bad idea. On top of that, there was no guarantee that these people wouldn’t tell others, who would then tell others, eventually leading to someone with ill intentions learning about how ’special’ Yuki was.
As such, the young boy intentionally said aloud, "Yuki’s mother is obviously incredibly powerful, probably a Ninth Order Beast, so there’s no telling what kind of life-saving means she left with her daughter."
When everyone heard this, many unconsciously took a step backwards. They had seen the five-tailed fox effortlessly kill a Seventh Order Beast, and that was just an avatar! It was easy to imagine that Yuki’s mother was far stronger than that, so it was impossible to know what kind of methods such a powerful existence could employ.
Noting that his words had the desired deterrence effect, Lucas worked to keep a straight face while following up, "However, Tina, Eris, my Master, myself, and several others have interacted with Yuki a lot over the past few days, and no harm befell us, so there’s probably no danger as long as one doesn’t harbour malicious intent towards her."
"En, I’ve slept together with Yuki, and even rolled over on top of her, and I’m still fine," Eris added, her words causing both Lucas and Christina to wince slightly as they too had been victims of her terrible sleeping habits.
As for the others, they also seemed to relax somewhat, though many were still wary of the little fox kit, something Lucas was fine with.
A minute or two later, the rest of the people aboard the Sunchaser began to wake up. They were dazed and confused at first, but after realizing that they were all alive, and that the whole incident had seemingly come to an end, most were satisfied to just lay there and catch their breath.
Leaning on anything they could, a quiet celebration took place. Smiles began to break out, along with laughter and cheers as taut nerves slowly unwound.
Even Lucas couldn’t resist slumping to the deck while grinning slightly. He realized he had made some mistakes and misjudgements tonight, but in the end, with help from everyone here and a lot of luck, they had managed to survive.
With all the bad things that had happened tonight, like Commander Levins’ death, Lucas felt just being alive was worth celebrating.
Still, now that he had a moment to reflect, Lucas couldn’t help taking stock of what had gone wrong and what he could improve upon.
He would call it being thorough and meticulous, others might think of him as neurotic, but whatever the case, this kind of self-reflection had become a habit, one Lucas had no intention of breaking.
Before the young boy could delve too deeply into his own thoughts, however, he quickly remembered that while they were out of immediate danger, they were still drifting aimlessly through the sky.
Shaking his head wryly, Lucas forced himself to his feet, hobbled over to the bridge together with Christina and Eris, and asked, "Captain Gage, how’s the ship?"
"There’s substantial damage to the hull and the Propulsion Array, but we’re still afloat," Lana Gage replied while trying to balance and stabilize the slightly listing ship.
"Can we make it to Herald City?" Christina asked next. She had ridden on Skyships before, but she wasn’t familiar with their design, maintenance, or operation, so she couldn’t help worrying when she saw the various Spirit Arrays aboard the ship randomly flickering.
Checking the control panel and ship again, Captain Gage frowned for a few seconds before eventually nodding, "If we turn and head straight for the city, we should just barely be able to make it. We could probably improve our chances by setting down and making some repairs first, but given the circumstances, it’s probably better we just forge ahead and hope for the best."
Weighing the options before him, Lucas quickly concurred, "I agree. The Seventh Order Beast is dead, but there’s no telling what other threats might be lurking nearby. Our combat capabilities have been drastically reduced, so we should rendezvous with Master and the others as quickly as possible; only then will we be a bit safer."
"What about..." Eris started, then hesitated for a second before continuing in a somber tone, "What about our home... what about Redwood Town? Will we... will we ever be able to go back?"
Hearing this pitiful plea, everyone fell silent.
Even though Lana and Christina weren’t originally from Redwood Town, the time they had spent in the small countryside settlement had been incredibly impactful and memorable, so knowing it had been essentially wiped from existence was still quite upsetting to them.
As for Lucas and Eris, who were born and raised in Redwood Town, it couldn’t be more obvious how the two of them felt about losing their home.
Before tonight, the 2 children still held out hopes that one day, they would return to Redwood Town, but after the disaster tonight...
Eventually, Lucas reached out and grabbed his big sister’s hand, holding it tight as he muttered quietly but firmly, "We’ll be back. You, me, our parents, our friends, everyone. I promise."
Pursing her lips, Eris nodded, squeezing her little brother’s hand. She had never doubted Lucas’ words before, and he had never broken a promise he had made to her, so she decided to believe in him once more despite the sinking feeling in her heart that told her the Redwood Town she knew and loved was gone forever.
.....
Flying at just over 30 kph, the Sunchaser’s progress felt incredibly beleaguered. This couldn’t be helped though, as any faster and the damaged Propulsion Array would likely fail entirely.
Currently, everyone other than a few Sea Establishment Realm Captains who were on lookout duty was sitting around, trying to process all the extraordinary events they had just lived through.
No one could credibly claim they were ’alright’ after what had happened, but they were alive, and there was little more they could do other than keep trudging forward.
Leaning against the starboard gunwale, Lucas also appeared to be deep in contemplation, but in reality, his mind was just wandering aimlessly, unable to focus on one single thing as there were too many issues he needed to deal with.
As he was lost in thought, Lucas felt someone approaching him and looked up to find a familiar man and woman standing before him.
Seeing that they had the boy’s attention, Captains Cassandra Reed and Justin Cole bowed deeply, the former explaining, "It’s only thanks to Captain Anna that our group of survivors is still alive; without her guidance, we would have all died tonight."
Raising his brow, Lucas asked curiously, "You’re saying my mom saved all of you? How?"
Lifting their heads, Captain Cole wore a puzzled expression as he replied, "Somehow, your mother was able to perceive whatever was causing everyone to disappear. She would warn us each time the phenomenon got close, allowing us to avoid being swept away."
Hearing this, both Eris and Christina, who were sitting on either side of Lucas, turned curious looks towards him, wondering why both he and his mother seemed to be the only ones capable of sensing the Spatial Tears.
Lucas himself had some thoughts on the matter, specifically regarding the incident where both he and Anna had been exposed to warped space, but that wasn’t important at the moment.
If what Captains Reed and Cole just said was true, then out of all the people who had been in the last group of survivors, his mother should have been the one most likely to have escaped being swept away in the Spatial Storm.
Why, then, was she not with them when they reached the Sunchaser?
"Your mother..." Captain Reed seemingly sensed Lucas’ unspoken question and tried to explain, but seemed to be having trouble getting the words out. freewebnøvel.coɱ
It took a moment, but Cassandra Reed eventually steeled herself and said, "When the Seventh Order beast appeared, I immediately shouted for everyone to escape to the east, but before I could start running, someone shoved me to the ground. At first, I thought it was just an accident, but when I looked up, I saw Guard Captain Anna vanish before my very eyes."
Lucas wasn’t quite sure what to feel when he heard this.
In a sense, he wasn’t surprised by Anna’s actions, as it was just like his mother to save someone without first thinking about her own safety, but before Lucas could sort out his thoughts on the matter, he was caught off-guard by a loud *thunk*.
Coming back to his senses, the boy was stunned to find Captain Reed kneeling before him in a formal manner, her right arm crossed over her chest and her head hung low, "Your mother saved my life more than once today, sacrificing herself in the process. Since I can’t ever apologize to, or even thank Captain Anna, all I can do now is try to make it up to you, her son."
