The turtle's body ascended, leaving the violently shaking seabed.
Having his meal interrupted left him quite displeased.
He wondered how long this earthquake would last.
Thinking this, he paddled his limbs, suspending his body in the water.
His neck, capable of freely extending and retracting, twisted around as he observed the commotion below.
Suddenly, an inexplicable sense of foreboding washed over him.
"..."
His gaze pierced like lightning into the dark chasms. First, a flicker of confusion passed through his huge eyes, followed immediately by what seemed like a realization, leaving only fear in their depths.
The rhythm of his limb strokes abruptly quickened. His massive body no longer hovered… it began ascending upward.
Law noticed this and felt puzzled.
In his view, given the turtle's size and power, even if it didn't leave the seabed, it wouldn't be affected by the violently shaking, chasm-like fissures. At most, it would just be uncomfortable.
Because no matter how large the fissures below expanded, they wouldn't be enough to make the massive turtle fall into the abyss.
This was evident from the sea creature carcasses lying tilted on the seabed.
But the turtle temporarily leaving was one thing… now it seemed to be fully retreating, which didn't seem to align with the turtle's usual principles.
Inside the shell room, everyone watched the still-expanding fissures with grave expressions, not noticing the slightly discordant aspect of the turtle's behavior.
Vast amounts of seawater continued pouring into the chasms, forming massive undersea waterfalls… a spectacular sight at first glance.
Even though they were watching the undersea changes from an isolated room, everyone could sense powerful downward-pulling suction currents in the water.
At this moment, even the heaviest submarine from human society would probably be tossed around like in a washing machine, spinning uncontrollably before falling into the seemingly endless chasms.
Only a magical sea beast of the turtle's colossal size could resist this pulling force.
Law stood rooted to the spot, unmoved despite the intense shaking.
He used one hand to protect the mural, then turned his head toward Bruna, who had clung to his shoulder at the first sign of disturbance, and said softly, "Little Nana, help me connect with the turtle."
Bruna, trying to hide her fear, nodded bravely. From the tentacles tightly gripping Law, she extended one down to the ground, instantly establishing communication between Law and the turtle.
"Law?"
As soon as the connection was made, the turtle always spoke first.
"Yeah, what's going on?"
"Can't you see for yourself?"
"I can see it, alright. But this doesn't seem like your style. A mere earthquake shouldn't be enough to make you abandon food that's already in your mouth."
The turtle suddenly fell silent.
In Law's view, he saw the turtle continuously rising upward, and at full power too. It didn't look like a temporary retreat… it seemed like it wanted to leave quickly.
After several seconds of silence, the turtle replied in a flat tone, "I ate not long ago. If these beasts hadn't delivered themselves, I wouldn't have been interested. I'm full enough now, I've lost my appetite."
"Is that so? I thought you were afraid of the earthquake, or maybe something else," Law said calmly.
He was thinking that besides being good at 'speaking' first, and its lightning-fast snapping neck in the water, the turtle's other aspects, including its way of thinking, seemed rather slow.
Like just now, the sudden pause and silence felt somewhat strange to Law.
Or like now, hearing Law's casually probing words, the turtle fell silent again, seemingly pondering how to respond.
"No, I'm just full."
After several more seconds of thought, the turtle replied this way.
Law didn't speak. Instead, he signaled Kuro to come over and temporarily store the items brought from the ruins into his space.
After Kuro put the items away, Law walked to the semi-transparent shell as if on flat ground despite the intense shaking and looked down at the chasm waterfalls below.
He could see the ruin site utterly destroyed, and the sea creature carcasses shaking and bouncing like beans in a wok.
Other than that, he noticed no other abnormalities.
Throughout this, Bruna's tentacle maintained the communication link.
Law suddenly said, "Why are you in such a hurry to leave? The earthquake probably won't last long."
"Is there any point in staying?" The turtle countered.
"Yes, maybe we could see something amazing."
"You've already seen it."
"I'm not talking about the undersea waterfalls."
"Law, what exactly are you trying to say?"
Law paused, then said, "I think you're deliberately avoiding something. I'm just a bit curious."
A sigh from the turtle echoed in Law's mind. "Your fanciful, persistent questioning hasn't changed one bit."
"Has it?"
Law could almost picture the turtle shaking its head helplessly.
"Don't press any further. The only answer I can give you remains the same: I left because I'm full, not because of some possibility you've imagined."
"Turtle, you're only making me more curious this way." Law's gaze remained fixed on the still-disturbed seabed. He was certain the turtle was hiding something, or perhaps afraid of something.
But aside from the earthquake phenomenon, there were no other anomalies.
The turtle seemed determined not to discuss the topic, silently swimming onward and switching off its green light.
With the light source gone, the seafloor plunged into silent darkness. Combined with the soundproofing of the shell, the room was left with only the breathing of its occupants, a terrifying quiet.
Everyone stared into the darkness outside, feeling the depths of the ocean grow ever more horrifying, utterly unfit for human presence.
No matter how advanced technology became, no matter how incredible the submarines built, they would be useless in the Dark Waters.
It was like the aerial domain. Even if human aerospace technology were flawless, encountering a group of colossal beings fighting for aerial dominance would leave them utterly helpless.
The light from the light algae filled the entire room, bringing a sliver of warmth to the dark, cold seafloor.
Ging and the others all looked into the darkness outside, lost in thought, not noticing the communication link between Law and the turtle.
Faced with the turtle's stubborn silence, Law made several more attempts to probe, but was met with continued silence from the turtle.
Unable to do otherwise, Law could only give up his questioning, gazing down at the seabed now swallowed by darkness.
In the silence, only the intense shaking remained.
"What are you really afraid of?" Law muttered to himself over the communication link as he watched the darkness.
In the water, the turtle slowly retracted its twisted neck.
He had heard Law's muttering but still chose not to respond.
He knew those split-open chasms would eventually be repaired.
Repaired by the presence that all life should revere… the Mender.
That was a taboo in his mind, and silence was the best choice.
Because he didn't believe luck would favor him twice.
…
The earthquake lasted over two minutes before subsiding into stillness.
Fissures spread like spiderwebs, the ruins largely destroyed, the sea creature carcasses lying haphazardly on the fissure-riddled seabed.
Then, a breath emerged from the abyss.