The water around Derek was unnervingly still, but his instincts screamed that he wasn’t alone. His pulse thundered in his ears, loud and unnatural in the oppressive silence. He scanned the black void, but the inky darkness pressed in from all sides, offering no clues, no sign of what lurked beyond. His heart hammered. Something was out there—something far more dangerous than the other captives.

A subtle current brushed against him, deliberate, like the unseen hand of a predator testing the waters. Derek’s breath hitched. His body tensed, his hands tingling with mana as he prepared to summon another Water Fist. But deep down, he knew it wouldn’t be enough. Not against whatever was coming. Did they jump from the frying pan into the fire?

And then he saw it—faint at first, barely more than a shadow in the gloom. A silhouette emerged from the black, moving with a slow, graceful demeanor. His eyes widened, fear spiking as the figure drew nearer.

A merwoman.

It was one of those monsters.

Her lithe body moved through the water effortlessly, her dark blue scales the only thing glowing in the endless darkness. Her presence illuminated nothing but the fear in their hearts, the same fear reflected in the wide eyes of the other captives. She glided closer, deepening the sense of dread.

But unexpectedly, there was no malice on her face. “You’re not safe here,” she opened her mouth and spoke. She could somehow speak underwater. While the others stared dumbfoundedly in a daze, Derek understood her. She noticed it as her gaze locked onto him. “You are not safe here. None of us are. We need to keep moving. Otherwise, they are going to catch up to us.”

Derek’s mind reeled, trying to process how she could speak so clearly beneath the crushing depths, but there was no time to question it.

"If you want to live, follow me," she continued, her tone unwavering, authoritative. She glanced around surreptitiously, scanning the inky abyss as though expecting something far worse to arrive at any moment.

Derek hesitated, looking at the other captives, their faces pale and terrified. None of them moved, their fear holding them frozen in place. He clenched his fists. What was the correct decision here? How could he possibly trust another one of the monsters?

However, deep down, a small part of him knew she wasn't lying. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be alive right now. Maybe she had some ulterior motive but for now maybe she did not mean any harm. He pushed off, his body moving sluggishly through the water, following her glowing form. Slowly, the other captives stirred, one by one, reluctantly dragging themselves after her.

The feeling of not knowing where one was going in the midst of endless darkness except for the small glimmer of light coming from the monster in front of you, leading you perhaps to certain death was a little too much for anyone to handle.

Derek kept his eyes locked on the monster, watching her every move, every flicker of motion in case she revealed her true intentions. The others followed in silence, their movements slow and weary, the weight of fear pressing them down like the crushing depths above. Everyone was just one step away from collapse, mentally and physically drained.

Then, the merwoman spoke again, “Stop. It’s coming.”

Before anyone could register her words, all of a sudden, the water around them all surged violently as if some massive force had been unleashed from the depths below. Derek barely had time to react before a powerful current slammed into him, sending him spinning uncontrollably. The others were ripped from their places, their bodies thrown in every direction like ragdolls in a storm.

The current was overwhelming, far stronger than anything they had encountered so far. It felt like the ocean itself was coming alive to drag them into its cold, crushing embrace. Derek kicked desperately against the force, his mind racing as panic clawed at him. The water howled around him, an angry torrent that seemed to pull him deeper into the abyss.

He tried to summon a Water Fist, but the current scattered his mana before he could focus, leaving him defenseless. His body tumbled and twisted in the water, his limbs thrashing uselessly as he struggled to find some sense of direction.

Through the chaos, he caught glimpses of the other captives, their faces pale and wide-eyed, terror etched into their features as they were swept away by the relentless current. The merwoman’s glowing form was barely visible now, flickering like a distant star swallowed by the darkness.

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But all of a sudden, amid the violent currents, Derek felt a jolt as something grabbed hold of him. A dark tendril reached him and then he saw it—a flash of dark blue scales. The merwoman had reached him, her grip strong and sure, pulling him against the flow of the water.

She gritted her teeth, her voice somehow cutting through the roar of the water. “Hold on!”

With surprising strength, she pulled him through the tumult, guiding him with a force that defied the chaos. Within a few minutes, everything died down and the group was left gasping, floating amidst the now-still water. What the hell just happened?

Derek turned to see the merwoman equally breathless. She had somehow managed to keep it all together despite whatever happened but it had clearly taken a good deal out of her to do so. “These currents are strong. The ocean was not like this before. It’s not natural. The fake god has changed everything.”

Fake god? Derek frowned. Was she talking about the system? He couldn’t help but wonder at the strength of her magic. If she was also new to the system, then perhaps all these creatures had powers even before the system was introduced. That was the only explanation for why she seemed so much stronger than him, even though he was still a beginner. And if they all had magic before, then where the hell did they come from? From the same world as him, or perhaps from another entirely?

Derek’s thoughts raced as he floated there, trying to process what she had said. His eyes darted between the other captives, their expressions filled with the same confusion and exhaustion. He glanced at the merwoman again. She seemed too sure of herself, too knowledgeable about what was happening in these waters. She had said they needed to move quickly, but they were still in the middle of an ocean, surrounded by darkness. What was ahead? And how far could they trust her? Where exactly were they going?

The merwoman once again started moving, her dark blue scales shimmering faintly as she cut through the water with effortless grace. Derek hesitated for a brief moment, his instincts still screaming at him not to trust her, but he had no other choice. He glanced at the other captives—pale, exhausted, and terrified—but they, too, began to move, pulled along by the faint glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, this creature was their salvation.

The eeriness of the deep waters pressed in around them as they followed her through the inky blackness. Each stroke felt heavier, the weight of the unknown bearing down on them like the ocean waters. Occasionally, Derek caught glimpses of the other captives out of the corner of his eye. Some of them struggled to keep up, their limbs moving sluggishly through the dense water. He clenched his fists, forcing his tired muscles to keep going. He had no idea where they were heading, but the alternative—staying behind in the endless darkness—seemed far worse. The merwoman, for her part, moved with purpose, occasionally glancing back at the group to ensure they were following.

As the group swam on in silence, the water began to change. To Derek's surprise all of a sudden the darkness that had surrounded them for hours now started vanishing. It was subtle at first—a faint flicker in the distance, barely noticeable through the inky black. But as they continued, the faint glimmer of light grew stronger, piercing through the gloom like a distant beacon.

As they drew closer, the light revealed itself to be more than just a single point. It flickered and danced, illuminating shapes in the water that hadn’t been visible before. Tall, jagged structures rose from the seabed—rock formations, their outlines shimmering with an otherworldly glow. When they got closer it was finally clear what they were looking at.

A mountain—or rather, several mountains, their peaks rising like sentinels from the seabed. Each one was cloaked in bioluminescent life. Strange plants, glowing corals, and swaying seaweeds clung to the rocky surfaces, their light casting the mountains in a surreal, ethereal glow. It was as though the entire range pulsed with a life of its own, bathing the area in a hauntingly beautiful light. It was as if they had stumbled onto some sort of a hidden world.

The merwoman paused for a moment, glancing back at them. "This is a safe passage," she said, her tone a mix of caution and respect. "The mountains block the strongest currents, but they are not without their own dangers. Stay close, and don't touch anything."

As they swam closer to the mountains, Derek couldn’t help but marvel at the strange, almost alien beauty around them. The light from the plants and corals danced along the rocky surfaces, creating an ever-shifting mosaic of colors and shadows. No one spoke, too mesmerized—or perhaps too terrified—to break the fragile silence.

The merwoman continued swimming, her form gliding effortlessly through the glowing waters. As they neared the mountain's surface, she abruptly stopped. For a brief moment, Derek’s heart lurched, fearing another sudden current, like the one that had nearly swept them away earlier. His body tensed, ready to react, but the water around them remained calm.

He squinted at the merwoman, watching as she raised a hand cautiously, her eyes scanning the surface of the rock. The bioluminescent plants pulsed gently, casting faint waves of light that shifted with the gentle motion of the water.

“Wait,” she whispered, signaling for the group to halt.

Derek’s pulse quickened as he tried to make sense of what was happening. His eyes followed the merwoman’s gaze, scanning the rock formation for any sign of danger. For a moment, all he saw were the glowing plants and corals, their eerie light painting the seabed in hues of blue and green.

Then he saw it.

Barely distinguishable from the rocky surface, a faint movement—slow and deliberate. Something long and sinuous, camouflaged against the corals, began to shift.

Derek's eyes widened as the creature revealed itself, its body blending seamlessly with the glowing plants. It was an eel-like creature, its scales shimmering with the same bioluminescent light that had made it nearly invisible. Its long, serpentine form undulated slightly, watching them with pale, unblinking eyes.

The next second, it moved. It bolted like an arrow straight at them, its form slicing through the water with terrifying speed.