Ark Undead

Patch seemed to see things very clearly; his gaze toward the Doctor was deep and powerful.

"Or do you still hold the same belief as before, that you can change the world with your own power?"

"..."

Upon hearing this, the doctor fell into an unusual silence.

This has indeed been his long-held belief. However, after experiencing so much, he has indeed changed his mind.

The doctor leaned against the wall, his legs standing crookedly.

"I still have this idea, but I need to change it."

"That's what the doctor said."

"Not just me, but also Kal'tsit, and you, and the undead."

"It is the opportunity we created that gives everyone the chance to change the future together."

Patch shook his head as he squatted down against the wall.

One person stood, and the other squatted down.

Time suddenly stopped there. They stared at the ground in front of them, each lost in their own thoughts.

"Do you still have that thing?"

The doctor suddenly turned his head and glanced at Patch.

"It's that snack you used to throw to me, what ball did you say it was?"

"Moss ball?"

Patch paused for a moment, then suddenly laughed twice.

"Why do you suddenly want to eat this stuff at this time?"

As he spoke, Patch pulled out two round objects from behind him, seemingly out of nowhere.

With a casual wave of his hand, he tossed one to the doctor.

This thing called a moss ball isn't very big, about the size of a thumb. It looks like it could be blown away by the wind, but it's actually quite heavy.

The doctor tossed the thing into his mouth and chewed it casually a couple of times.

"Ugh...it's so bitter..."

The doctor's expression suddenly furrowed.

This stuff is much more bitter than coffee.

"This is the tool used to recreate the Age of Fire, something that only appears in dreams."

Patch looked at the moss ball in his hand, his tone slightly nostalgic, and unconsciously softened.

"The food I used to give you was all made by myself with other ingredients. Do you want to know what those ingredients were?"

The doctor paused for a moment while chewing the moss ball, then stiffly continued chewing.

His voice carried a hint of resistance.

"Forget it, I don't want to hear anything weird."

Previously, when the PhD student was staying up all night, he relied on this thing called a moss ball to keep himself awake.

At that time, the moss balls that Patch gave him had a very cool and refreshing taste, which kept him from losing his mind even if he stayed up for several nights.

The way the two were acting made it seem like they were sneaking out to catch fish together, squatting in a corner chatting.

Time seemed to rewind to the past. The doctor took a deep breath, savoring the bitter taste in his mouth.

The bitterness eventually transformed into a refreshing coolness that gradually spread from the mouth throughout the body.

"How long have you been trapped in this dream?"

The doctor turned his head and looked at Patch.

"I can't remember."

Patch didn't move; he just stared at the ground in front of him, chewing on a moss ball.

"I've been fighting that guy who's possessing Agor for so long, my physical body must be rotting by now, until the dream ends..."

Patch stretched out a hand and scratched his neck.

"Click, that's about it."

The doctor clearly didn't believe it; he even crossed his arms over his chest.

"Come on, you've lived since the Age of Fire, and even the immortals can't tell who's older between you two."

"He at least died twice, but you've really been alive the whole time. Do you think I'd believe someone like you?"

The doctor didn't believe it, and Patch didn't explain.

He just smiled.

The cunning and comical expression on his face seemed to have become an illusion.

The soul named Patch showed a rare sign of weariness.

"You know, the longer people live, the more they forget why they live in the first place."

Patch's voice had become unusually weathered.

"I'm quite envious of the man who doesn't die; his experiences are much more exciting than mine."

"The first undead hero, the Lord of Cinder who continues the world. The hunter of gods, the nameless seeker of kings. I can't even count all the titles he has."

"But you were the last one left behind."

The doctor's sudden interjection silenced Patch.

"Patch, I don't know what you really want."

This is something the doctor has been unable to glean even a single clue about all along.

As a wise man from the past deep-sea generation, the doctor has seen many things.

He was a wise man of his time, and as a behind-the-scenes force, he brought an end to the darkness of the deep-sea era.

But even someone like that couldn't see through Patch's true intentions.

Everything he did seemed to have the same reason.

live.

But if it were simply about surviving, why would Patch put himself in so much danger?

Doctor, I don't understand.

However, since Patch remained silent, the doctor simply changed the subject.

"So, what's the actual situation inside Agor? Is the World Barrier still intact?"

Upon hearing the doctor change the subject, Patch naturally picked up the conversation.

"The world barrier is still secure; the wedge-shaped stone barrier cannot be broken by the filth that cannot even comprehend the divine writing."

"But they can destroy the facilities that support the wedge stones in order to achieve their own goals."

Patch looked up at the sky outside the camp.

This direction leads directly to the sea.

“Back then, we set up countless watchtowers along the shore. As nails to the world's wall, they were driven into this land and fixed Agor's position.”

"From then on, Agor was separated from the land and remained forever in the deep sea. This was to make Agor a place isolated from the world."

"It must have been the disaster that happened about fifty years ago that destroyed almost all the anchor points, which means that Agor's return is inevitable."

“Agor is getting closer and closer, and I don’t know what has happened to it. But I can hear it crying... like a mother who has been separated from her child, calling for its return.”

Patch looked into the distance at the two deep-sea hunters who were testing the fire's potential uses little by little.

"Their brothers and sisters, those monsters of the same blood, are trying to assimilate them through the whispers of the abyss. This process is slow but effective, and no external force can stop it, including you."

"This dream is a barrier set up by the big guy who is currently entrenched around Agor. It is also his means of gathering information, increasing his followers, and calling on his companions."

"The day Agor finally sets foot on the shore will be the day the war between the Abyss and Terra is reignited."

Upon hearing Patch's words, the doctor's hand unconsciously clenched.

His arms hung limply, and his fists pounded against the wall behind him, making a dull thud.

"Is there really no way out? Do these deep-sea hunters have no future that can avoid assimilation?"

"No... wait, maybe it is."

Patch squinted; he remembered something important.

"I saw a Deepsea Hunter in a dream earlier, and he escaped the dream at an extremely fast speed after the incident where all the Deepsea Hunters entered the dream."

"If you can find him in real life, that might be a means you can use."

...

Everything in the dream proceeded smoothly.

But things weren't very peaceful at the camp.

The entire camp seemed to be shrouded in some kind of obscuring force.

The lights in the camp dimmed, and the light could not reach more than a few dozen meters away from the camp.

A strong wind blew, and raindrops fell in dense, sweeping fashion.

In this bizarre environment, Kal'tsit was conducting her experiments in the battalion.

Suddenly, Kal'tsit's two furry ears stood up, and she herself got up from the table where she had been lying down and looked around.

Meanwhile, at the Rhodes Island operators' rest area.

The Fire Mage, who was resting against the undead who was now seated, propped herself up from the undead's embrace.

The elegant lady turned her head, her eyes, hidden by an eye patch, seemingly looking out the window.

Some danger is approaching.