Shrouded Seascape

"The tree's branch?"

Anna's pupils contracted ever so slightly upon hearing Olivia's response. The grotesque, flesh-woven tree—the physical manifestation of Charles—surfaced in her mind.

Anna had been the reason for Charles' appearance. She witnessed every moment of him, right up to the second he left. She even watched the makeshift massive tree of flesh rapidly dissolving away into a pool of crimson.

If Charles had intended to leave something before, be it a branch or anything, she should have been the one to receive it.

Not someone else.

Is that bastard hiding something from me? What the hell is he up to now? Anna's brows furrowed in thought. She paced in agitation as her thoughts continued to spiral.

Wasn't he addicted to playing savior and risking his life down in the Subterranean Sea to hunt down Fhtagn? The surface world is calm, with no war or chaos. Why would he need to leave anything behind?

If I was the intended receiver, then it makes even less sense. I died once already, and he didn't even do anything then.

Suddenly, Anna halted in her path. Turning on her heel, she gazed downward at Olivia, who was still curled up against the wall and trembling.

"Tell me in detail. Describe the tentacle in the water tank. Are you certain that it's from that giant tree? Or could it be something else?" Anna asked in a firm tone.

Olivia's head remained down. Her voice was but a mere, trembling whisper as she spoke in a broken mix of English and Greek.

"I-I-I don't know. I never saw the branch."

"What? You didn't see it?"

"They told me to take a look. But there was nothing in the tank! But that madman kept claiming that there was a branch there. He was the only one who could see it."

A madman's delusion? Anna thought to herself. She could have dismissed it as that, but her instincts told her that things weren't that simple.

"What was his name?"

"Jackal," Olivia answered. "I heard the others calling him by this name." The more questions she answered, the more her voice began to steady.

"That madman kept repeating that the tree branch was very, very dangerous. He said it had to be contained as soon as possible.

"They even made me talk to him. During our conversation, he told me that he used to be one of those people.

"He also said he wasn't crazy. That in his dream, he could feel how powerful the tree was. And that all of humanity is nothing compared to it. The tree is there; it never disappeared. If it wanted to, it could easily wipe out all humans in an instant," Olivia concluded. ȓΑ𐌽Ò฿ÈŜ

Anna had originally come to Olivia to find out how IMF managed to brainwash the witnesses. But now, it seemed that the so-called tree branch had become a far more important issue.

At this, Anna turned her gaze back onto Olivia and asked, "Do you remember where they held you?"

The freckled girl pondered for a long moment before she nodded slightly. "They altered those memories, but now that I remembered about the tree, those related memories had returned as well. I can roughly remember the location."

"Great." Anna reached down and helped Olivia to her feet. She then wrapped an arm around the freckled girl's shoulders and led her toward the door.

"Let's go. This place isn't safe to talk. We need to find a safer place and continue our chat."

Upon arriving at the temporary residence where Anna and Gao Zhiming were staying, Anna immediately made a beeline for her laptop and placed it in front of Olivia.

She then instructed the freckled girl to indicate the place where she was locked up on the map.

The large digital map was rapidly zoomed in and out a few times before a large, ordinary-looking city came into view.

With evident unease, Olivia explained, "They blindfolded me when they transferred me out. But I think it should be somewhere in this city."

Never had Anna anticipated that the IMF would set up a base inside a city. Perhaps, it could be because the organization often dealt with people they claimed were "treatable patients."

With her gaze locked onto the map on the screen, Anna's mind raced as she strategized her next move.

Firstly, she had to go there. That much was certain.

If the branch was just the delusion of a madman, then it was fine. But if the branch was real, she had to figure out exactly what the hell Charles was up to.

Also, she hadn't forgotten that Charles had become a God now. If she could establish contact with him through that tree branch that he left behind, all her problems would be resolved easily. She could perhaps even convince him to help her get back to the Subterranean Sea.

As for whether that bastard would help her or not, that was a problem for later.

On top of that, Anna hadn't forgotten that in that IMF's base, there was an Anomaly that could alter memories.

With that item, the IMF had managed to rewrite Olivia's terrifying experience into an amazing vacation by the beach.

In the same way, that item could also alter Gao Zhiming's memories to match what they were when he first arrived at the Subterranean Sea.

Having decided on the plan, Anna turned toward the freckled girl, who was still visibly nervous and tense.

"Thank you for your cooperation. Your answers have been very helpful to me," Anna began. "Now, it's time to talk about our situation. I mean… You've seen my face."

Fear crept onto Olivia's face. Despite her young age, she could still understand the unspoken threat in Anna's words.

If she gave the wrong answer, she might just die on the spot.

A delicate hand landed on her shoulder and a chill ran down her spine.

Anna leaned into Olivia's ear and softly whispered, "Aren't you afraid? Afraid of that tree? Do you still remember how it appeared?"

Anna lifted her hand, gently running the black diamond ring on her finger across the freckles on Olivia's cheek. "Your memories have returned. If you were to leave now, your nightmare would follow you. And if my guess is right, your mental state will break down very soon.

"Since ancient times, whenever humans faced unexplainable disasters like plagues or death, they would personify the situation and create some higher being to worship. They hoped that through offerings and devotion, they could let their terror stand on their side.

"You could do the same. You just need to switch a perspective. Rather than living in constant fear and drowning in uncertainty, you can choose to embrace the fear," Anna said in a soothing and persuasive tone.

"This is humanity's oldest tradition, after all."

"Think about it," Anna added after a moment to let the words sink in. "That tree is so terrifyingly powerful. But, what if, He's on your side… then He's not so terrifying anymore, is it?

Olivia continued to shiver as she lifted her head ever so slightly. Her gaze darted away to avoid meeting Anna's gaze.

"Do you know Him? Does He have a name?" Olivia asked.

"His name is Fhtagn. He exists. As long as you help me, He will not harm you. In fact… He might even grant you some special benefits."

Sickly green corrosive flames flickered to life and surrounded Anna, bathing her face in an eerie hue of green.

"But… There's nothing much I can help you with. I'm just a student," Olivia replied, her voice tinged with hesitancy.

Anna gently ran a hand across Olivia's cheek. "No… You're more useful than you think. In fact, this face of yours is very valuable to me.

"Of course, you can refuse," Anna added casually. "But that tree doesn't take rejection well. You'd better think of the consequences before saying no."

It was a simple and direct psychological manipulation, but yet it worked just as it always did. After all, Olivia was just a young, naive, highschooler.

As the memory of the tree resurfaced in her mind once again, Olivia started trembling all over again. Raw terror gripped her heart, squeezing it ever so tightly that she felt like she could hardly breathe.

The psychological stress weighed down on her chest until finally, she could take it no longer.

With a sharp intake of breath, Olivia squeezed her eyes shut and let out the fear in a desperate exhale, forcing the pressure out of her lungs the only way she knew how.

"Alright! I'll help you! I'll help the great Fhtagn!"

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