The Morania's fore cabin was deathly silent.
An hour after contact with the Diving Team was lost, faint, continuous, and very regular vibrations began beneath the surface, their cause unknown. From the moment the vibrations began, Zero, Caesar, and Manstein had stared fixedly at the monitor. A full fifteen minutes had passed without any of them looking away.
There was no word from the two underwater. Whether they were alive or dead was unknown.
"We dive," Zero said calmly.
"Wait another fifteen minutes. Trust Lu Mingfei." Manstein looked into Zero's eyes. "My Word Spirit is Snake, the same as Ye Sheng's, but my domain is larger than his and reaches all the way to the bottom. The movements down there aren't particularly violent, and their rhythm is slow and regular. Caesar, you sensed it too, didn't you? Water carries sound well. What did your Kamaitachi hear?"
"Slow metal scraping. Extremely slow," Caesar said.
"I can't tell what's happening down there, but we've all seen Lu Mingfei's strength. I even believe he could kill Norton outright. Seventy-five minutes of the original ninety-minute plan have passed. If there's still no word in fifteen minutes, you can dive."
Zero turned and left the bridge, returning straight to her cabin to put on her diving suit and prepare.
Watching Zero leave without a word, Caesar said to Manstein, "Those fifteen minutes don't really matter. Something unusual has happened underwater, after all. It would be perfectly reasonable for us to go straight down."
"I know, but I'm not worried about Lu Mingfei. I'm worried about the others." Manstein shook his head. "If there really is a crisis, Lu Mingfei is safest alone. Every extra person will distract him."
Caesar fell silent. He thought of Lu Mingfei's two battles. Lu Mingfei had handled Constantine more easily