Chapter 1170 - Trauma
— Now, now.
Though I was called upon and begged, and didn't entirely mind accompanying them in their 'training,' I, for my part, have a 'special training'—or rather, a karma I must face—that lies before me now.
Therefore, after chatting with my friend for a while, we disbanded, and while replying with a heartbreaking "No, not now~" to Nia's suddenly sent "Are you free now~?" in a seemingly pampered voice...
"......Can you do this, me? ...Can you do this?"
A point five hundred kilometers due north from the Divine Creation Garden Central District [Safe Area]. In other words, in front of the closest giant lake, I had come alone, prepared for death.
What do I plan to do, you ask? That much is obvious.
"............C-can I do this...?"
I'm going to dive into that great whirlpool, that's what.
It's not that I suddenly went mad, pushing past my trauma, nor that I suddenly became unable to forgive my own weakness of being bound by past fears. Yes, simply...—
—Hypothetically, if I were to request your accompaniment in conquering the [Deep Realm of Blue Source],
—what is the probability... that you would accept?
Because, being relied upon by my friend (contrarian), I didn't want to say 'No' without even trying anything first.
...I can't help but think I'm way too easy, getting happy whenever anyone relies on me, but since I end up wanting to respond, it can't be helped. That's just my nature.
Whether I should lament it as a disadvantageous disposition or think of it positively as a point to praise myself for, if I can choose freely, the current me chooses the latter. I shall proudly boast of it as a strength to my heart's content.
"......Suuuuuu... Alright, here's the thing."
In order to go on, proudly.
"There is no ground, it's far away. That doesn't change whether in water or in the air. In other words, water can be called the air (?), and if it's the air, it's synonymous with my backyard. In other words, water is also practically my backyard (?)"
The man, Haruka Nozomi.
"Yeah, alright... —If it's my backyard, taking a walk should be a piece of cake!!! (???)"
Now, at this very moment, I shall confront the fear that dwells within my heart.
Well then, time to uselessly activate [Rocket (Sky Walk)].
With uselessly exaggerated movements, I uselessly leap high into the sky, uselessly spin my body wildly, and uselessly tear through the clouds with acrobatic flair. Then, from the peak I could reach in a single bound,
"H-here... I gooooo!!!!!"
Re-igniting [Rocket] dive. Instantly to the heavens, and then instantly to the earth... no, to the water's surface.
Into the pitch-black, perfectly circular giant lake, into the further center of the great whirlpool drawing a second circle in its middle, toward the cluster of light existing with a familiar brilliance — the dungeon portal (entrance to another space),
I plunged in, completely and utterly desperate.
◇◆◇◆◇
—When I was young, I once fell into the sea.
It seems there was some sort of business, but this is a story from when my family went on a trip (?) to Hokkaido. At the port we arrived at after finishing our voyage on a large vessel (ferry)... well, I met with a minor accident, and a pitiful five-year-old child with too much bad luck fell headfirst into the sea alone.
To put it simply, I was pushed off the bridge used for passengers to board and disembark... but putting it into detailed words is a bit embarrassing, or rather, the recklessness unique to children was the root of the disaster.
In other words, it was just a story of a child who ran ahead, leaving his family behind, and got nudged by the foot of a passing madam. Neither in the past nor now have I thought about who was in the wrong.
I, for my part, was keeping just enough rationality for a kid to stay within a distance not too far from my family, and the madam, for her part, probably didn't expect a Chibisu buried in the wave of adults to suddenly stop in the middle of the bridge.
Why did I stop again... well, most likely, I felt lonely being jostled by the crowd of people alone. It sounds like self-defense, but children are just like that.
You must not demand rationality from them, including my past self.
And to top it off, there existed a 'hole' in the bridge just large enough that 'if rare bad luck and a miracle aligned, a small toddler might barely slip through.'
I wonder what kind of bad luck and miracle that even is, but I slipped through beautifully.
And then, splash — or rather, splat! Naturally, unable to take a proper passive landing, I fell from a high place. After an impact that made me admire how I didn't lose consciousness at such a young age, I broke through the sea surface, and my panicked body went straight to the bottom of the water.
Whether it was because it was summer that my life was saved in terms of water temperature, or because 'someone in my family' who instantly sensed the abnormality left the other two behind and jumped over the railing to rescue me.
With various strokes of luck and salvation, I survived safely, but... what was engraved in my young memory was the despairing sensation of my body sinking lower and lower no matter how much I struggled. The poisonous forest of seaweed beckoning while shining colorfully in the sunlight filtering into the water.
And right before my eyes. The emotionless eyeball of a huge fish that leisurely passed by at a distance of a few centimeters...
Since then, 'water with something in it' is completely no good for me. If it's just water alone, or fish alone, I don't particularly feel anything, but when they are combined, it is seriously impossible.
The secret realm of the Great Water Spirit I went to some time ago consisted mostly of things like 'phenomena' rather than 'living creatures,' so I could barely endure it, but even so, it was quite tough.
—Therefore,
"............................................................,"
Three seconds after throwing myself into the water of the [Deep Realm of Blue Source]... where I had received information from the contrarian and the Saintess that there was something 'nasty' dwelling. I was about to throw up, no joke.
As far as the eye could see, pitch darkness. However, whether due to the super-vision equipped on my avatar, or due to the mercy provided by the dungeon environment, the fact that I could see slightly was conversely a deadly poison.
Soaking in, an immense feeling of rejection.
Crushing me in its embrace, the coldness of the water.
Creeping closer — the presence of 'something.'
"..., ..., ...!"
The skill [Water Spirit's Blessing], which increases water-attribute-limited magic output and grants adaptability in special environments, namely underwater, is undoubtedly, certainly active. Undoubtedly.
Therefore, compared to ordinary players, I can swim around underwater far more easily, and I can hold my breath far longer — but that doesn't matter.
The body in the virtual world links with the mind far more prominently than that of the real world.
It won't move. The cold yet burning dread that instantly welled and boiled up turns my body — which I believe to be faster than anyone else's in this world — into stone. Truly, a stone in the water.
Without even being able to struggle, I simply sink, quietly and without resistance.
Thus,
the water current caresses my skin, my brain capable of doing nothing more than counting numbers.
The current born in the water that had been filled with tranquility caressed my skin. If so, that meant the 'something' that created the current in the water had approached me —
And that thing finally showed its face from within the darkness,
"—Ah... i, e... ah...?"
And then, my awakened eyes...
"....................................Eh...?"
Did [Arcadia], detecting some kind of abnormality, execute a forced logout process, just like that time the other day? Or did I carry out a forced logout in a non-safe area without even realizing it myself... I don't know, and I don't remember.
And so, smeared with cold sweat that was not virtual. I stared blankly at the ceiling of the mechanical bed, its opening and closing cover, with my own real eyes for a while.
"..................Is that all you've got...? Me..."
There was no one in this place to laugh at the voice that spilled out.
You'd think, "Is there really such a dangerous ferry?" right?
There is (one defeat for a relative).