Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by XephiZ
Edited by Aelryinth
By the afternoon, the national team was on its way to Tokyo.
The rules were the same. Their identities were still frozen, and since they could only buy train tickets with valid identities, they ended up taking the railway to the outskirts of Osaka in the east before taking a bus there.
Mochizuki Chihaya did follow the team on their journey. Many were still confused about why she was traveling with the team.
Mochizuki Chihaya was too lazy to explain herself. She knew that this bunch of Chinese representatives did not like her in the first place. Her job was to look after Mo Fan, making sure that he was delivering the orb to the right place.
On the bus, Mo Fan was leaning against the window, yet he was not in the mood to enjoy the scenery along the way. Zhao Manyan was sitting beside him mumbling non-stop. The guy would always grumble a lot if he had not touched a woman for a certain period. He had totally lost the imperious manner expected of a tyrannical CEO that a son of the Zhao Group should have, and was behaving like the autistic child of some close relatives in an old village.
“Did you hear what I said in the morning?” Zhao Manyan nudged Mo Fan.
Mo Fan was feeling sleepy. The nudge did wake him up, but it also annoyed him.
“As if it’s something important, can you stop talking about it?” snapped Mo Fan.
“Something really feels strange, I first dreamed about the shadow we saw under the ship when we were traveling on the ocean. After that, I dreamed about a gigantic creature in the sea where the Twin Guardian Towers watch over. The creature was making a sound that can travel a long distance, similar to the sound of a dolphin,” said Zhao Manyan.
“Can you please spend some money in Tokyo and find an AV actress to satisfy your needs…” Mo Fan was just about to scold Zhao Manyan when he realized that something was not right. He immediately blurted out, “What did you just say?”
“I said I dreamed about the shadow in the Pacific Ocean when we were flying in the sky!” said Zhao Manyan.
“The sentence after that.”
“There was a gigantic creature in the sea where the Twin Guardian Towers watch over.”
“Give me a second,” Mo Fan rose to his feet and went to the back of the bus.
The person sitting in the last row was none other than Mochizuki Chihaya. She had a confused look when she saw Mo Fan approaching her.
“Is the orb showing some reaction?” asked Mochizuki Chihaya alertedly.
“It’s not about the orb, did you guys tell anyone about the creature in the ocean when the alarm went off last night?” asked Mo Fan in a serious tone.
“No. The truth is, I didn’t know what happened either. The upper floor belongs to the military. Most people aren’t allowed to go there, and we would never tell anyone the information that the upper floor has collected,” answered Mochizuki Chihaya.
“Then how did Zhao Manyan know about the gigantic creature in the sea?” said Mo Fan.
“He knows? That doesn’t make any sense; apart from you, I didn’t hear there was anyone else who trespassed on the upper floor,” said Mochizuki Chihaya.
Mo Fan went back to Zhao Manyan with a frown.
Zhao Manyan was aware that something happened when he saw Mo Fan’s expression. He immediately got rid of his playfulness.
“Are you sure you were having a dream?” asked Mo Fan.
“Yes,” said Zhao Manyan, nodding sincerely.
“The truth is, there was indeed a gigantic creature in the ocean close to the Twin Guardian Towers last night,” said Mo Fan.
Zhao Manyan opened his mouth. He tried to speak, yet he was lost for words.
“What exactly is going on?” exclaimed Zhao Manyan.
“Do you remember the island that never existed in Xixiong City?” said Mo Fan.
“Are you referring to the island that Miyata said she stayed on for a whole night, but it somehow disappeared the next day?” said Zhao Manyan.
Zhao Manyan had only learned about Miyata and the series of events from Jiang Yu and Ai Jiangtu after he regained consciousness.
Mo Fan nodded. That was the island he was referring to.
At the start, Mo Fan could not understand why Miyata would even tell the lie, an utterly ridiculous tale. However, when he caught a quick glimpse of the island on the train leaving Xixiong City, Mo Fan started to believe her words.
“Ai Jiangtu, do you think Miyata was lying?” Mo Fan stood up and asked Ai Jiangtu, who was sitting a few rows behind him.
Ai Jiangtu was taken by surprise. Why would Mo Fan suddenly ask him the question?
He replied after a slight hesitation, “I think there was no reason for Miyata to lie, and it did not seem like she was lying, either.”
“Are you two referring to the island that did not exist?” Jiang Yu joined the conversation out of curiosity.
“How boring, the island never existed. We even went to the cliff to confirm it. Are you telling me that the island had flown away?” said Mu Tingying.
“Miyata wasn’t lying; she did spend a night on the island,” said Mo Fan sternly.
“Humph, do you take us as three-year-old kids?” mocked Guan Yu.
Mo Fan ignored the sarcastic comment. He recalled the series of events and said in a stern voice, “Zhao Manyan, can you please turn off the Detective Conan’s soundtrack first…”
“Oh, sorry, I couldn’t control myself.”
“What I’m saying is, the island at Xixiong City was f**king real. I could not understand why Miyata was telling the ridiculous lie in the first place, nor could I understand why I saw the island when we were on the train. The truth is, the thing was never an island to begin with,” said Mo Fan.
“Mo Fan, did you forget to take your pills today? What would it be if it wasn’t an island?”
“Miyata did not spend the night on an island. She was on the back of a living creature! The island went missing the next day, because the creature simply swam away!” said Mo Fan confidently.
Mo Fan’s words shocked the whole group.
The bus fell silent. Everyone tried to imagine the scene, yet they immediately felt themselves tensing.
“Mo…Mo Fan, that’s not funny, how is it possible that a creature is as huge as an island? There’s no way Miyata would mistake a living creature for an island, no matter how stupid she was.” Jiang Shaoxu’s voice was trembling slightly as she spoke.
“Yeah, if that island is actually alive, what kind of creature would it be?” said Jiang Yu.
“Do you remember the giant shadow under the water when we were traveling on the Pacific Ocean?” said Mo Fan.
It went without saying that everyone in the group clearly remembered the shocking scene… they were all overwhelmed by fear and the sense of feeling minuscule in that moment.
Now, everyone’s face was full of astonishment when Mo Fan reminded them about it!
“So you’re saying, the island that disappeared was the…the creature we stumbled into on the ocean…” Jiang Yu had trouble speaking fluently. The stammering clearly displayed the shock he was experiencing.
“Mo Fan, why would you mention it all of a sudden?” asked Mu Ningxue curiously.
Mo Fan was mentioning it now even though a few days had already passed after they left Xixiong City. It was obvious that something else had happened.
Mo Fan was grim after hearing Mu Ningxue’s question.
“Last night, there was a gigantic creature in the ocean close to the Twin Guardian Towers, too. You can ask Mochizuki Chihaya about the details… somehow, I believe the creature has been following us!”