Ailoma seemed to have a momentary brain freeze after hearing Lucas’s plan.
After a long pause, she blankly replied, “Ah?”
“That’s right, you’re going to rescue Lina,” Lucas said, pointing in Lina’s direction.
“B-but b-but, I can’t get through. And I probably can’t fight those monsters either…”
“I’m not asking you to fight. You only need to deal with the two Drowned Ghosts holding the Chains, understand?”
“But…”
Ailoma hesitated, trying to say something else.
“No buts,” Lucas grabbed Ailoma’s shoulders.
“This isn’t the time to hesitate. Make your choice.”
“But my Hook Cable doesn’t reach far enough,” Ailoma pointed at her sleeve.
“It’s too far. I can’t get through.”
Lucas estimated the distance from their position to where Lina was tied up—it was roughly twenty meters in a straight line.
No matter how long Ailoma’s Hook Cable was, it simply couldn’t reach that far.
“What’s the maximum range of your Hook Cable?”
“About ten meters. That’s already the limit.”
Alright, that’s enough.
Without hesitation, Lucas grabbed Ailoma by her legs and hoisted her up, aiming her toward Lina’s location.
“W-wait, mister?!”
Ailoma shouted, but before she could say more, Lucas flung her toward Lina’s direction.
Ailoma’s screams echoed through the air as she flew like a meteor toward Lina.
When she was less than ten meters away, she threw out her Hook Cable, hooking onto the Sunken Ship Wreckage and pulling herself forward.
She screamed loudly, but in reality, she was very calm.
The rest was up to Ailoma now.
“Ding ling”
A few crisp bell tones interrupted Lucas’s thoughts. Looking toward the source, he saw three piles of Sunken Ship Wreckage, each with a Drowned Ghost holding a Strange Bell.
The bell sounds came from these Drowned Ghosts shaking those Strange Bells.
Was this some kind of strange ritual?
Watching this eerie scene, Lucas didn’t dare delay any longer and dashed toward Noli’s position.
A few Drowned Ghosts were preparing to pounce and slash Noli with their knives. Lucas shot one from a distance, killing it instantly, all while his mind raced.
In his memory, Noli had been sacrificed here and had her blood drained.
Now these Drowned Ghosts still wanted to harm her.
Could it be that their target was the elf’s blood?
A blood sacrifice…
Could something be yearning for the blood of elves?
Hurting Noli with knives urgently… and the bells these Drowned Ghosts were ringing…
Could it be that these creatures were summoning that Spirit Yearning for Blood?
Lucas quickened his pace, climbing the Sunken Ship Ruins in three strides, efficiently executing two Drowned Ghosts clutching Chains, and freeing Noli.
Noli hadn’t regained consciousness yet but was alive, breathing steadily.
The moment Lucas held her in his arms, he finally exhaled in relief.
Glancing toward Ailoma, she was already carrying Lina on her back, swimming with all her might toward the shore, only a few dozen meters away now.
This girl’s stamina was surprisingly good.
Even Lucas was a bit astonished.
No need to worry about Ailoma anymore.
With Noli rescued, it was time to regroup.
Just as Lucas prepared to jump down from the Sunken Ship Ruins, a massive shadow swept across from beneath the sea surface.
Lucas didn’t even catch a glimpse of what it looked like before the whole wreckage violently shook.
Lucas tightened his hold on Noli to prevent her from falling.
Then, a huge, webbed claw covered in scales shot out from under the water, slamming fiercely onto the ruins.
The Sunken Ship Ruins instantly collapsed, and Lucas plummeted rapidly along with a mass of wooden debris from high above.
Even now, Lucas held Noli tightly without letting go.
This thing was after Noli—he absolutely could not let her fall into its grasp.
Lucas fell into the sea, back facing the ocean. In an instant, a tremendous force slammed against him.
Completely submerged underwater, Lucas slightly opened his eyes and saw a pair of bright yellow eyes not far ahead.
They were exactly like the lanterns he had seen on the ship last night.
Lucas didn’t dare slack off. Holding Noli, he surfaced and treaded water.
The sea beneath was pitch black—who knew what might lurk there?
Maybe the owner of that hand was directly below them.
On shore, Ailoma waved at him—she was safely ashore.
Lina was already propping herself up, regaining consciousness.
But for some reason, Ailoma’s hand froze mid-wave, the raised hand slowly drooping, turning into a gesture pointing behind Lucas.
No need to think twice—Ailoma’s perspective must have caught sight of something.
Suddenly, seawater splashed onto Lucas’s head as a huge shadow loomed over him.
No time to look back; without hesitation, the massive hand was about to snatch him. Lucas could only clutch Noli tighter and sprint toward the shore.
Faster, faster—Lucas’s heart was filled with only that thought.
The shadow descended, ready to grab Lucas.
It was too late; no matter how hard Lucas ran, he couldn’t outrun that giant claw.
Several Ice Shards shot past Lucas, striking the shadow.
The shadow clearly recoiled, which gave Lucas a chance to escape its attack range.
“Noli?”
Lucas called softly.
“I’m fine…”
Noli’s hand gripped Lucas tightly.
“I’ll hold it off. You get to shore.”
“Are you really okay like this?”
Lucas worried about Noli, who had just recovered from drowning and was forcing herself.
“I’m fine. This is nothing… I can handle it.”
Noli’s words reassured Lucas, but at the same time, he felt the girl’s body temperature suddenly drop.
Above the sea, a fierce snowstorm suddenly whipped up.
Right now, all Lucas could do was trust Noli.
He quickened his pace, using the shadow’s retreat to break free from its attack range.
Behind them, Noli’s Ice Shards continuously shattered, blocking the giant claw’s strikes again and again.
Noli waking up at this moment was truly a big help.
“Mister, catch!”
When they were only dozens of meters from shore, Ailoma threw her Hook Cable toward Lucas.
Lucas reached out and grabbed it, reeling the cable in and pulling both of them ashore.
The giant claw missed and slammed into the sea, splashing waves everywhere.
But for now, there was no need to worry about being caught by that thing.
Lucas finally had a chance to look at the sea surface and see what had happened.
Of the three piles of Sunken Ship Wreckage, one had been completely smashed by the giant claw.
The other two were also damaged to some extent by the claw’s assault.
At the moment, the Drowned Ghosts on those two ruins couldn’t cause much trouble.
The giant claw then disappeared beneath the waves without a trace.
Had it left?
Just as Lucas was wondering, thick sea fog suddenly rolled in, enveloping them in dense mist.
At that moment, the owner of the giant claw also surfaced, revealing its true form.