Captain – Chapter 533

“Drip, drip…”

Moist fog swirled through the corridor, condensing into droplets that fell from the ceiling.

Ever since parting ways with the captain and stepping onto the stairway, Cain had discovered that his retreat had been cut off without reason.

Looking back, only strange fog remained in the direction he had come from.

That sudden surge of fog had not only blocked the passage, but even the ice walls on both sides had been swallowed and shrouded by it. Most eerie of all, when the young man tentatively tried to walk back and stepped into the fog, he found all directions became blurred.

Except for the path leading to the ocean floor that the fog perpetually revealed, the other three directions were empty void where he could no longer touch any solid objects.

Of course, compared to this explanation, Cain felt more that he himself was under some kind of restriction, so that once he entered the fog, no matter what he did, he could only pace in place.

But this was also a kind of signal, telling him it was too late for regret—he could only move forward.

“You can find the way back, right?”

At this moment, the young man crouched down, gently stroking the young dragon’s head while asking in a low voice.

When he had earlier experimented with that strange fog, he discovered the little one seemed unaffected by it, able to plunge headfirst into the thick fog and run off without a trace.

Hence this speculation.

He could see that old wooden boat and enter this place because he bore the curse of the devil’s lineage. Being cut off from retreat by this strange fog should also be for the same reason.

But Nidhogg was different. Its participation seemed more like an accident.

Like… a playful child who had wandered into danger.

If so, perhaps it could still leave.

Leave this place of certain death.

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Hearing this, Nidhogg tilted its small head slightly, its magnificent purple eyes full of confusion, not understanding why he would ask such a question. Did he want it to take him away?

But hadn’t he come here willingly?

Though puzzled, after thinking for a moment, the young dragon obediently made a low call, then turned around and ran a few steps toward the fog. It didn’t forget to look back and wag its tail at the first mate who was slowly rising, signaling him to follow.

But no matter how it urged, Cain didn’t move.

The wagging tail gradually drooped, and the little one turned back around, calling out cautiously, wanting to know if it had done something wrong, which was why he wanted to send it away.

“You didn’t do anything wrong. I just wanted to confirm this point and find a good escape route.”

Seeing the young dragon’s aggrieved expression, the young man gently shook his head and explained softly: “You weren’t at that meeting, so you don’t know that this broken path will only get narrower as we go, and at the end, it’s very likely to be just a narrow, cramped dead end.”

“In a place like that, you might not even be able to spread your wings.”

After listening with half-understanding, the young dragon roughly understood that he was saying the place was very cramped—the environment it liked least and where it would have the most difficulty maneuvering.

“In such an environment, if something unexpected happens, having you by my side might actually be disadvantageous to my escape because of the narrow passages.”

Understanding his meaning, the little one made a confirming call, half-believing.

“I’m not crazy—why would I joke with my own life at a time like this?”

Seeing this, Cain frowned and said in a deep voice, seemingly very dissatisfied with its doubt, then continued to explain: “Besides, not bringing you along doesn’t mean letting you run off by yourself. You need to stay here and be ready to provide support.”

Seeing that his male master’s expression was stern and didn’t seem to be joking, Nidhogg hurriedly sat properly in place, looking like it “absolutely wouldn’t run around,” and didn’t forget to make a few coaxing calls.

Only then did Cain let out a light breath, his expression softening as if to say “that’s more like it.”

“Just wait here obediently. I’m going to find that thing.”

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After leaving this remark, the young man walked a few steps along the stairway, not forgetting to look back and warn it “don’t run too far,” as if he had already anticipated that given its nature, it certainly wouldn’t be so well-behaved.

Watching his male master’s figure recede and finally disappear completely at the far end of the stairway, the young dragon habitually yawned, but soon shook its head vigorously.

Reminding itself that this wasn’t the time to sleep.

But it really was so sleepy.

With drooping eyelids, the young dragon fought against drowsiness, thinking of running around the vicinity to wake itself up. But just as it stood up, it froze, as if remembering some problem.

It recalled that on the old wooden boat, when the captain and first mate were arguing—or rather, bargaining—although it had been dozing, it had still vaguely heard some fragments.

Things like devils and hell.

Oh, the captain had also said that if she failed, being powerless to change things, she would give up and return to a peaceful life.

These words individually seemed fine.

The problem was…

The timing of the young man’s questions and his tone at that time.

Tilting its head, Nidhogg’s clear purple pupils suddenly became much more profound, as if it were engaged in deep thought—something that had never happened before.

Or rather, at least in front of Roy and the others, it had never displayed this expression. Not because it feared its masters would become suspicious, but simply because it was often unnecessary.

In fact, it was much smarter and more perceptive than they thought or than it had previously shown.

It wasn’t a beast, but a true supernatural being.

More noble than even sirens.

Although it had been born less than a year ago and knew very little, relying mostly on instinct and Roy’s commands, in terms of analytical and judgment abilities, perhaps even federal agents couldn’t match it.

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Most importantly, it had terrifyingly strong intuition.

So, despite the fact that on the old wooden boat and earlier, Cain’s emotional expressions and logical presentations had no flaws whatsoever, it still felt…

He was being too earnest—overly earnest.

Being like this toward Roy might still be explained as the topic being too important for him to yield an inch, but toward it, this seemed unnecessary.

His earlier behavior didn’t seem like he was giving orders, but rather just focused on explaining, very much like when he argued with the captain, bringing up reason after reason to silence her.

Like trying to dispel its concerns in the same way.

After standing dazed for a long while, the young dragon suddenly let out a low roar, its call full of annoyance at being deceived. Then, without further thought, it ran in the direction the young man had left.

If it could, it really wanted to return to the captain’s side right now and tell her that the first mate had gone bad.

Had learned to lie.

But now was obviously not the time for tattling. It had to figure out how to bring the young man back.

Bring back that person who was going to his death—no, going to die in someone else’s place.

Whether by dragging or carrying him in its mouth.

“Drip, drip…”

Water droplets continued to fall relentlessly, shattering on the stairway or on the young man’s shoulders.

Although the strange fog only cut off retreat without following, perhaps because he was going deeper into the ocean floor, the air in the corridor had become humid, which caused the falling droplets.

In fact, their frequency was increasing, as if it were raining.

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But Cain couldn’t concern himself with these things.

After leaving the young dragon’s sight, he had started running.

He didn’t know the girl’s current condition, nor what awaited him ahead. The only thing he knew was that his promise probably couldn’t be fulfilled.

Neither staying with the girl until the end, nor…

Returning alive.

He had taken on her fate and would have to face the devil’s killing formation directly. No matter how he looked at it, that person had no reason to give the girl a chance to take that divine artifact.

That would be asking for trouble and might even lead to his own miserable end.

That person had always been strategically flawless. The reasons for his failures—once because of Commander Isaac, once because of the Siamese cat—but could those really be called failures?

“Old Pirate” scattered like sparks, Mango fell into slumber with no signs of awakening, Captain Edward might slip up but had never returned empty-handed.

By this time, Cain couldn’t think of anyone else who could stop him again.

Anyone else who could help the girl.

Unless someone… could take on her fate.

Thinking silently, the young man’s eyes no longer flashed with guilt, only the calm of an ancient well. He ran regardless of everything, not caring about his increasingly labored breathing.

He wanted to reach the finale faster, even faster—preferably before she realized what was happening.

Before she regretted it.