Was all hope lost? Was the entire journey and plan worth nothing but death and ruin?
'Nah, not really. It was all part of the plan.'
Of course, Light had expected the main ship to inevitably plummet inside the whirlpool, which was why Scarn had left it early on.
But that was not the end. Light had predicted that as the main ship revolved around the whirlpool's edge, it wouldn't have fallen straight into the epicentre of the whirlpool. It would instead stay close to the edge and revolve around the topmost inner layer of the whirlpool.
That's exactly how it played out: the ship toppled over the edge, and due to its revolutionary momentum, it kept circulating inside the whirlpool as well. It also pulled on the secondary ship with the anchor rope and made it revolve in the air at extreme speeds.
'But this still went beyond my expectations. Not only did the main ship plummet earlier than I expected, but it also pulled the secondary ship into the air. I can't believe we are actually flying right now, this is ridiculous!
'But the hell were those red things? Could they be responsible for the main ship's early descent?'
Light shook his head. 'Maybe I am getting dizzy with the spinning. It's probably just my mind playing games with me… I hope so, at least.'
The forces acting upon the two humans were unbearable. Light grimaced as he placed himself on the floor of the deck, not to fly away because of the brutal wind. On the other hand, Scarn gritted his teeth and struggled to hold onto the edge of the ship with all his might.
Light slowly looked up with great trouble and noticed the partially cut anchor rope. 'This is not good… Scarn can't hold on forever. I have to do something… I can maybe try to save Scarn, but what if the main ship pulls us into the whirlpool by then? No-no, I need to cut the anchor rope before that happens. I can save the lieutenant later.
'But with this much wind resistance because of our incredible speed, it's impossible to try and use my sword. It would fly away after the first swing, no matter how tightly I grip it. Think, think, think…'
Light went through all of his memories, trying to find an idea or tool that would help him cut the anchor rope as soon as possible.
As he was tracing back his life in this new world, he remembered his very first day, the day he arrived in this world. The day he had looted a dead pirate of his belongings.
'The revolver… I took a gun from him. It had a single bullet, and I tied it to my pocketed belt.'
The gun he had taken from the dead pirate was the best one he had ever seen. Its craftsmanship and design impressed him so much that he opted to carry it instead of any other gun the Marines had in their arsenal.
He knew the gun only had one bullet, but wasn't worried enough to switch the weapon with another because their opponent was, well… a whirlpool. A gun wasn't exactly a necessary component in a battle against a natural disaster.
But all that didn't matter to him. The only thing he needed right now was with him, and there was no space for any unnecessary thoughts. He was going to need all the focus he had to lock in and shoot at the exact spot where the anchor rope was half-cut.
He also needed to time his shot perfectly. If the shot was mistimed, the secondary ship and its two passengers would be thrown away in the wrong direction.
And all of this needed to be done through the crazy winds while moving at extreme speed..
'But that's all good.' He already had a plan to perfectly time his exit.
'The setting sun just needs to be exactly to my left.'
As they were currently in a state of revolution, they were under the laws of the centrifugal forces. And using them, Light had calculated that the direction of East had to be exactly at his right in order to get released and fly off in the same direction.
And as the sun sets exactly in the West, he had to make sure that it was exactly to his left.
But before he could even think about doing so, the pitch-black ship got brutally jerked again, even harder than last time. He got launched off the deck and flew back, only to be stopped beside Scarn in the air, due to the rope he had tied around himself for safety.
Grimacing with pain, he thought, 'What the hell is this? This was not a part of the plan…'
He gritted his teeth and struggled to grasp the rope holding him to the ship. But after a few moments, he somehow managed. However, due to the high speeds and brutal winds, it was almost impossible to get back onto the deck.
Light focused, and tried to locate the cause of this sudden jerk. He then looked down at the main ship… and saw something that left his eyes wide open.
In the abyssal depths of the whirlpool, near the centre, a hideous sea creature lurked. It was a colossal sea serpent with azure scales, aqua fins, and demonic blood-red eyes that unrelentingly followed the trajectory of the main ship.
…