Chapter 1328 Serene Peril


    It was peaceful in the eye of the storm, if a little bit eerie. The strange lack of the sensation of time had been uncomfortable at first, but Sunny quickly found himself forgetting that time had ever existed at all. The view of the azure sky reflecting on the perfectly calm water was beautiful and tranquil. The silence was like a lullaby, making him feel at ease. Sunny had not felt such peace in a long, long while...


    There was no need to hurry, and no possibility to do so anyway. Without telling how long their actions took, they could not know whether they were being slow or swift either. So, it was fine to just let go and remain still for a bit, enjoying the serene stillness of the world...


    Which was why Sunny soon found himself feeling cold dread. ''N-not... this is not good...''


    It was just too easy to be lulled into inaction in this strange and frozen place. At some point, Sunny realized that he did not know how long he had remained sitting with his back against the side of the ketch, without a thought in his head. His eyes widened slightly. If they weren''t careful... would they end up frozen forever in the eye storm, too, just like everything else was frozen in this tranquil haven?


    Shuddering, he turned to Ananke and asked:


    "How long has it been since we reached this place?"


    She helplessly shook her small head. "I don''t know, my Lord."


    He hesitated. "How long before we dive back into the storm, then?"


    The child priestess looked up at her with a startled expression. "But, my Lady!"


    Neph stared at her somberly for a few moments, her gaze heavy. Eventually, she said bluntly:


    "You have grown too weak, Ananke. I am sorry. Your body is not strong enough to handle the strain. You can''t even reach the deck with your feet while sitting on the helmsman''s bench... how are you going to control the oar?"


    She looked down, then sighed. Walking up to the child priestess, Nephis patted her on the shoulder and forced out a smile. "Don''t worry. Isn''t that why you taught me? You taught me well. I will steer the ketch while you keep the broken time at bay. Each of the three of us will make sure that we escape the storm alive."


    With that, she threw a poignant look at Sunny. He felt sorry for Ananke, but knew that Nephis was right. Their guide... was not capable of guiding the boat through a raging storm anymore. Even if it hurt her pride and went against her determination, it was time for the two of them to protect Ananke instead of being protected by her. They had to make sure that she survived the storm. And after that... they had to make sure that she had the means of returning to Weave, too. ''How did everything become so complicated...''


    The damned storm had thoroughly destroyed their plans. Now, all they could do was finish their battle against it, and then come up with new ones. The strain on Sunny was going to increase, considering that he would be draining the water from the ketch alone this time. But he would have to manage, somehow. If there was one consolation, it was that half of the journey was already behind them. Knowing that each minute brought them closer to safety, he wouldn''t need to preserve his essence as much. Sunny smiled, then clapped his hands. "Alright! Let''s get out of the eye of the storm first. Honestly, this beautiful place... is way too creepy. I''ll feel better once we''re drowning in raging water and being battered by devastating winds. Wouldn''t you?"


    Not to mention that he was still struggling against an overwhelming desire to peer into the reflections frozen in the still water, consequences be damned.


    Ananke lowered her head, despondent, but there was nothing she could say. Her small frame was indeed not suitable for steering the ketch through the powerful storm anymore. Transcendent or not, she was still a child now. Feeling a sense of urgency, the three of them struggled against the lulling tranquility of the frozen time and hurried themselves, hoping to return to the crushing embrace of the storm as soon as possible.


    The most uptodate novels are published on n0velbj)n((.))co/m