Even though Renas had entered the real part of the factory, there was no sign of life inside — no person, no machine, no robot. Nothing.
But there were still several doors ahead. He could keep moving, checking each room one by one.
Just as he was about to continue, he heard a voice behind him — Charlos.
"R-Renas, are you sure it's safe to jump down here? …Are you even alive?"
Renas chuckled. "Of course I'm alive, idiot. If you'd lifted your head from your game, I would've explained — but forget it. If you trust me, jump. If you don't, go back. This isn't your mission anyway."
After a moment of silence, the sound of splashing water echoed. Then another sound followed — rhythmic splashes?
Charlos had activated his ability again.
When Renas turned around, he saw dozens of glowing blue notes illuminating the pit, cascading downward into the water. Charlos was already floating on the surface, exhausted, staring blankly at the ceiling.
As the last note fell and sank into the depths, the ones already in the water suddenly rose back up. They gathered around Charlos, lifting him through the air like a mass of floating liquid, carrying him right to Renas's side.
When Charlos opened his eyes, he immediately began pressing the buttons on his handheld console again. The melody changed — the tune became sharper, more mechanical — and the fluid, luminous notes began to solidify, morphing into different metallic shapes.
Some became copper, others turned to iron, and a few into stranger alloys. Finally, as Charlos cleared a line in Tetris, all the notes fused together into a sort of… mecha.
Charlos curled up, shrinking as much as he could, now sitting inside the chest cavity of the machine — still playing his game. Every button press triggered a sound that controlled the mecha's movements.
The thing looked like a jumble of junk — a mix between a human, a crocodile, and a hamster, made from dozens of mismatched metals. Yet it was alive to the rhythm, its form shifting slightly with the music. In combat, Renas guessed, it could probably take on much more dramatic shapes.
Despite being called a mecha, it was barely a meter taller than Renas. And it never stopped playing music — not for a second.
That meant, of course, that if anyone else was using this part of the factory… they would know exactly where Charlos was.
And as long as the music continued, they would keep knowing.
It was terrible, really — especially since they were supposed to explore together. But maybe… they didn't have to.
Renas had been wanting to test the true potential of Eye of the Leviathan for a while now, but never had the right moment. This was it.
He spoke up. "Let's split up. I'll head to one of the lower floors. You move forward from here. And if you see something — don't be merciful."
Charlos nodded. Flames ignited beneath his feet, and he lifted off the ground. The scorched floor beneath him left behind trails shaped like musical notes, and even the embers that fell shimmered like symbols from a song. As the three-meter mecha moved, it grew larger, the music growing louder and harsher until — crash — it smashed through a wall and vanished.
Renas, meanwhile, activated Eye of the Leviathan.
…
Suddenly, he was somewhere vast.
He couldn't see anything, only feel it — and what he felt was strange.
An endless maze.A hollow city.A bottomless pit.A massive ocean.
He tried to open his eyes, but couldn't.He tried to move his legs, but couldn't.
It was as if only his mind existed here.
Even though he couldn't see, couldn't walk, couldn't tell where he was — he kept moving forward.
He tried to think, to understand what was happening.
He'd just used his ability — so why was he here?
Had the ability brought him here? And if so… why?
He didn't know.
He wasn't sure how long had passed — not too long, probably — when a voice spoke.
"So, you don't know how to use it properly, huh? Hmm… being in someone like your range is kind of depressing, but… whatever. Since you're not attuned to the ability, it's probably impossible for you to control it well. But that's fine. Because I'm here. I'll help you. So just tell me—"
"What do you want me to do?"
Renas was startled — but he could feel that this… thing was beneath him. Waiting for his command.
"The water in this factory is really dark," Renas said. "A bit of light would help."
"That, we can do. Anything else?"
"What can you do?"
"…Anything a fish can do."
"I think light is enough, then."
"Seriously? You called us just for light?"
"It was kind of a sudden idea. I'll think of something better later."
"Ugh… fine, whatever…"
The strange voice chuckled at the end — and then Renas was pulled out of that dark, sense-deprived world. His soul felt like it had snapped back into his body — or like he'd been freed from some strange trance.
He was conscious again.
"What a stupid ability," he thought to himself. He'd never seen anything like it.
Using his rifle like a cane, he tried to steady himself — for some reason, he felt weak, almost drained.
Then he noticed something. Where the base of his rifle touched the puddle beneath him, the factory's murky water began to change — spreading outward in ripples of pitch-black.
It wasn't just changing color or texture.
It was consuming the water — turning it into a bottomless pit.
Renas looked down. The water now seemed infinite, yet his feet still touched something solid below.
Weird.
As he pondered this, shapes emerged from the dark depths — dozens of aquatic creatures swimming upward, fins rippling.
They were… weak.
All except one.
Most were grotesque sharks with twisted, hand-like growths sprouting from their skin. One looked vaguely humanoid, with a glowing lure atop its head — a monstrous fish-man. There was even a goblin shark, an actual species from his own world — slamming its ugly head into the walls like an idiot.
Renas grimaced and turned away from it, only to face something far more impressive.
The only creature that could truly be called strong — at least among those he had summoned.
It was enormous, muscular, its body covered in those same grotesque hand-like growths as the others, but far more human-shaped.
It was several meters taller than a normal person, with three arms, uneven limbs, a small head, and huge eyes — so big they almost looked… cute.
But Renas couldn't see its mouth.
Until it spoke.
Its torso split open vertically, revealing rows of massive teeth.
"Here's your light. Catch."
Then, the massive fish-man breached the surface, throwing a glowing orb toward Renas.
He caught it midair — and, for the first time, felt slightly satisfied with his ridiculous new power.