Impeachment. (cont.)

These fish often have an extremely long, serrated, pointed mouth, which makes them incredibly lethal when they are speeding through the ocean!

Most importantly, these Cavalry Fish travel in large groups!

Seeing the first one means there's the Swarm behind it!

"Damn it!"

The blue-haired woman's expression changed drastically upon seeing the Cavalry Fish.

The argument with Malitus had cost them their best chance to escape.

Next, they'll have to face these damned monsters on their own!

The problem is... they might be able to find a place to escape the Cavalry Fish's attack, but the life support tubes connecting them to the submarine might not be able to hold out!

Once a crack is made, they will surely die!

The expressions on everyone's faces changed several times, eventually turning ashen.

Meanwhile, Malitus couldn't resist turning his head to look back at the passages he hadn't yet finished searching.

This infuriated the blue-haired woman standing nearby.

You're about to die, why bother with these things?

A madman who's lost his mind!

But just when this group of people were anxious and at a loss, Maria noticed something different about the Cavalry Fish.

Its body... seemed to be divided into two halves; the lower half looked quite natural, but the upper half...

"The color of Seaborn..."

Maria whispered, her eyes slightly furrowed.

But a moment later, she realized that these creatures were not Seaborn; at most, they were simply infected by Seaborn.

"Was it because of our intrusion?"

After Maria for a few moments, Maria remained silent.

She simply watched silently as the creatures relentlessly approached, her eyes gradually reddening...

"Gurgle..."

Just as everyone was arguing, Heratia suddenly noticed the abnormality of the creatures.

"Look!"

She called out.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound.

Not far from them, the cavalry on the sea suddenly began to change their charging direction...

And the speed is constantly decreasing...

"This is..."

Everyone's eyes widened slightly, somewhat surprised.

But soon, everyone realized that this was not the result of the creatures acting on their own initiative.

This group of Cavalry Fish is heading towards the deep sea.

They...

Is he unconscious?!

Ah?!

For a moment, everyone was stunned.

Heratia, who was in the lead, almost immediately turned her gaze to Maria.

She realized that Maria had muttered something just now.

But clearly, this is not the right time for discussion.

"Cavalry Fish is usually a apex predator in a region. Since they've all left, it means there shouldn't be any danger nearby. Shall we continue our investigation?"

Malitus still couldn't forget it.

But clearly, this time no one hesitated.

Although they didn't quite understand what had just happened with the Cavalry Fish, they all realized that they had actually been given a second chance at life.

They can't have this kind of luck forever; leaving early is the only way to truly take responsibility for their own lives.

Heratia was even more direct.

Faced with this member who repeatedly contradicted her orders, she decisively pressed the button in her hand.

The submarine, having received the order, began operations, and the life support tubes that sustained everyone's lives now became the chains that pulled them back to the submarine.

No matter how hard Malitus struggled, he couldn't fight against these machines.

This made him so angry that he could only shout and yell incessantly.

But nobody paid him any attention...

The speed at which they returned to the submarine was significantly faster than their initial speed when they came down.

In just five minutes, everyone was pulled back into the submarine.

After the seawater receded from the cabin, everyone emerged from their diving suits.

Malitus was still bothered by the matter, but now that he was back, he couldn't say much. He simply glanced at Heratia and turned to leave.

Meanwhile, the blue-haired woman, seeing that the other party still had the nerve to be angry, was also furious.

But after racking her brains for a long time, she still couldn't find many swear words in her head.

After much deliberation, he finally managed to utter the phrase "sea worm."

For someone like Maria who doesn't understand marine ecology, it's impossible to even comprehend whether it's an insult or not.

Of course, none of this matters.

After briefly confirming the situation, Heratia nodded.

"Since everyone is alright, let's go and rest. I'll go arrange the return mission."

Heratia spoke, but her last words were clearly addressed to Maria.

Maria nodded slightly and returned to the room where she and Heratia were temporarily sharing.

After taking a deep breath, she sat down to the side and gently rubbed her temples.

Recalling what she had just seen, she pondered for a moment and then felt somewhat puzzled.

"Those things aren't exactly Seaborn, but they do exhibit characteristics of Seaborn... If nothing unexpected happens, they will soon be transformed into Seaborn."

But this doesn't match what Gladiia said about the first appearance of the Seaborn occurring after the fourth Mantle Exploration.

"Could it be... that these Seaborn are not aggressive?"

After much thought, Maria could only conclude that this was a possibility.

That's where the problem arises.

What then led to the large-scale attack that Seaborn launched against them, as described by Gladiia?

Maria was a little confused.

At that moment, Heratia also entered the room.

Seeing Maria deep in thought, she felt relieved.

Do you need to take a shower?

She has a private bathroom here.

"... bath?"

"Mmm, take a shower."

As Heratia spoke, she closed the door and began to undress herself.

"The Aegir actually like to socialize through concerts and ballroom dancing. Although I quite like it too, I always feel that this kind of socializing is just everyone shaping their own image."

"Only in private spaces can people reveal their most primal and pure selves."

"And... I also wanted to talk to you..."

Heratia spoke, turning to look at Maria.

By this time, she had taken off all her clothes, and on her smooth body, one could vaguely see some fish-like features.

Her long, flowing golden hair cascaded down her sides, making her appear not only natural but also somewhat ethereal.

His Platinum eyes were fixed on Maria.

She turned her body slightly to indicate that she was not carrying anything extra.

"..."

Maria remained silent for a few moments.

I chose to refuse.

"I made a promise to someone that I shouldn't act too intimately with other people."

"Um?"

I have a wife.

"Huh?"

Heratia was taken aback, then looked somewhat surprised.

"I'm not very fluent in land languages, but... wife, if I remember correctly, you mean female companion, right?"

"Yes..."

"Land-Dweller... are truly amazing."

Heratia blinked, but then calmed down.

After thinking for a moment, she nodded.

"For the group, such behavior is not suitable for reproduction, but if it's about pursuing affection, then I think it's all perfectly acceptable..."

As she spoke, she decided not to take Maria to the bathroom. Instead, she found a spot, too lazy to put her clothes back on, and simply looked at Maria, her legs slightly crossed and her head resting on her hands.

"We've already started our journey back, which means you've decided what you want. In that case, would you be willing to have a frank discussion with me about some things?"

"... as long as it doesn't involve certain special cases."

Maria nodded slightly.

"You have a scent that's very, very similar to mine... although it's masked by a relaxing aroma, I can sense that it's very similar to mine, yet... somewhat different."

Heratia blinked, her Platinum eyes slowly moving.

"I initially thought this might be an accident, but... your familiarity with the deep sea, your power, and your origins... all of this makes me curious. Is there some connection between all of this?"

"You don't have to answer, but... if you have to answer, I hope you can tell the truth."

Heratia's words were very frank; in fact, she even took a step back and was willing to accept Maria's silence.

But this attitude, in turn, raised another problem for Maria.

"So, your trust in me is based on this aura?"

"Yes."

Heratia nodded.

She couldn't quite describe her feelings, but... admittedly, Maria's aura did give her a strong sense of familiarity.

Heratia didn't think this was something Maria had prepared in advance... because she could clearly feel the scent dissipating.

Maria must have had contact with some people who were particularly close to her.

For example, her parents, her siblings...