Ashes Of Deep Sea

Chapter 249: Chapter 253 Frost Grand Rebellion

Tirian’s narrative had finally concluded, yet in Duncan’s view, the bizarre story had ended too abruptly.

“Is everything over? Is it just over like that?” He couldn’t help but look through the mirror at the great pirate opposite him, his tone full of skepticism. “A submarine, carrying a hold of explosives, runs down to a thousand meters deep, and just solves the continuously worsening ‘uncontrolled Transcendent phenomenon’? Let’s not discuss how much power those explosives could unleash at a thousand meters deep—the key issue, from a Transcendent perspective, is whether such an explosion could destroy a… supernatural phenomenon?”

“We can only think so,” Tirian obviously wasn’t surprised by his father’s skepticism. “In fact, nobody knows what exactly happened a thousand meters underwater at that time, nobody knows what the Homeloss Submersible No.4 actually encountered there. Our only connection with the depths below was the partial perceptions shared via Psychic Echo by the priest… a scream, a roar, and a boom, these minor fragments assemble too little of the truth.

“And in fact, after the explosion of Submersible No.4, there indeed were no more ‘Replication of Submersible No.3’ rising from the deep. So, we can only believe … that the issue was resolved.”

“The issue was resolved…” Duncan frowned and shook his head, “All right, let’s assume the issue was resolved, then the Abyss Plan…”

“The Abyss Plan hasn’t ended, and that is exactly the most unsettling part,” Tirian cut to the chase, “After such an incident, having paid a huge price, and barely solving the eerie crisis of Submersible No.3, logically, we should indeed reconsider and promptly terminate this dangerous project. However, Lei Nora, in her highness, overruled all objections. Not only did she announce the reboot of the project and the construction of Submersible No.5, but even… escalated the priority of the Abyss Plan to the highest, sparing no unusual amount of manpower and resources.”

Duncan’s gaze grew profound, and he faintly realized that the truly “uncontrolled” aspect of the matter probably began here—from the “crime” of the Frost Queen, to the rebellion half a century ago, it all stemmed from this.

He stared into Tirian’s eyes, “It sounds like you didn’t support your queen at that time.”

“I had a dispute with her, a fierce one, which is why I said I no longer directly participated in the ‘Abyss Plan’ after reaching the ‘thousand meter’ depth—because after that, I felt things were sliding towards danger,” Tirian spoke slowly, his voice low, “But now I think, I should have done my utmost to stop the Frost Queen, instead of avoiding her… I trusted her too much, to the extent that I didn’t realize she, too, could make mistakes.”

“Do you believe the Frost Queen indeed made a mistake?”

“The Abyss Plan caused a series of crises under Frost and gave adversaries their opportunity. This increasingly extreme exploration eventually even claimed the life of Her Highness Lei Nora, at least from this point of view, it was certainly a mistake.”

“…What happened after Lei Nora insisted on implementing the Abyss Plan?”

“After that, I no longer directly participated in the project, and I know little about it, but from what I occasionally heard, the plan was not going smoothly, and furthermore… increasingly strange and serious incidents were occurring,” Tirian said calmly, “Submersible No.5 was completed, employing the most advanced engineering techniques and durable materials of the time, but its dives were always accompanied by various accidents, as if something in the depths was resisting human penetration into the sea…

“People involved in the project began to go mad, some were inexplicably injured, others suddenly disappeared, only to reappear dazedly in the City-State. The explorers who descended in the submarine became suspicious and irritable, no longer resembling the rigorous, respectable scholars and soldiers, but more like gloomy, fanatical zealots. And even… it was said that even ‘Submersible No.5’ itself underwent some incomprehensible changes during its dives, its internal operations increasingly resembling some kind of… ‘living creature’.

“And the eeriest part was, despite all these changes, despite the increasingly horrifying atmosphere of the whole project, the progress of the Abyss Plan still proceeded without hesitation. Those involved, those constantly accompanied by madness and accidents, even those who were themselves frequently encountering trauma, not a single one turned away in fear, nor did any question or resist the commands from above. It felt as if…”

Tirian stumbled a bit, seemingly at a loss for the right words to describe the atmosphere back then.

Seeing this, Duncan softly spoke up, “It’s as if the deep sea was calling them.”

“Yes, just like the deep sea was calling them,” Tirian blinked in surprise, immediately nodding his head, then looked at Duncan with a somewhat peculiar gaze, “Very… accurate description.”

“Don’t overthink it, just continue,”

Tirian averted his gaze, organizing his thoughts: “That’s the nature of the entire plan. It seemed as if some force was calling and pushing it forward, as if the ‘plan’ itself had developed a will of its own, resolutely advancing into the deep sea, with each member involved, turning into a cell of this massive will.

“And in such an atmosphere, Submersible No. 5 had unconsciously surpassed a depth of one thousand meters. I don’t know how deep it ultimately went; I only heard… it was a staggering figure, incredibly overwhelming. According to engineering, material science, and the technology of the time… it was a figure that should have been impossible to achieve.

“The deep sea embraced the Abyss Plan, accepted Submersible No. 5. That increasingly bizarre machine and its equally strange crewmembers moved effortlessly through the dark depths thousands of meters below, while in the surrounding waters of the Abyss Plan… strange incidents began to multiply.

“Merchant ships began to continuously observe ‘reflections’ of their own vessels appearing near the surface of the water. Dense fog frequently descended on the eastern part of Frost, with shadows in the fog that seemed like ships, or like massive beasts. In the City-State, some…’strangers’ began to appear, an exceedingly large number of strangers. They gathered around the facilities related to the Abyss Plan, all claiming to be participants of the plan, and the number of these strangers even exceeded the actual number of participants in the Abyss Plan.

“In such circumstances, rumors… actually, they couldn’t be considered rumors anymore, spread everywhere. Initially, people said that the Frost Queen was conducting some suspicious research, but soon, the narrative changed to the Frost Queen researching the Subspace. Later on, it turned into the Frost Queen conspiring with the Subspace and had even already reached an agreement with a major figure within the Subspace—Captain Duncan.”

Tirian sighed lightly and spread his hands: “And then, as you know, came the shocking Northern Rebellion in Frost.”

The tiny storeroom, filled with “antiques,” fell silent for what seemed like an eternity until Duncan’s voice leisurely emanated from the mirror, “It’s understandable that people would link this to the Subspace, but linking it to Homeloss is quite an overactive imagination.”

“Actually, that’s a very normal connection, and the process even involves me,” Tirian said with a bitter smile, shaking his head, “given that I am your son—while also loyally serving the Frost Queen and involved early in that dreadful project. You should know that conspiracy theorists always possess the wildest imaginations.”

Duncan remained non-committal and after a brief pause, he added, “If you want to look at it that way, then truly, the outbreak of that major rebellion wasn’t at fault. Lei Nora’s insistence on pushing forward the Abyss Plan was too dangerous, and from what you describe… her mental state at the time also didn’t seem quite right.”

“That’s exactly what I wanted to add,” Tirian suddenly said, “I know, all signs indicated that the Frost Queen had lost her rationality at that time; she acted like a madwoman lured by something, single-mindedly pushing forward. But I know that she… was always lucid, incredibly lucid and rational, and fully aware of what she was doing.”

“Oh?”

“We had disagreements, but I was still a trusted general of hers, and I could get close to her—other senior officials from the City-State could too. They all knew, the Queen was never insane; she didn’t have any plot to destroy the City-State or threaten the world. Yes, they knew… but they were afraid, they hesitated, and some were bribed and misled, unlike my firm stance.

“But I know, perhaps the other participants of the Abyss Plan were indeed gradually influenced by something, but she… apparently resisted this influence and was instead using it to her advantage.”

“What you mean is, the Frost Queen actually had a clear and ‘safe’ plan, and she was confident she could accomplish it, but she didn’t tell anyone—not even explaining it to you,” Duncan pondered as he looked at Tirian, “and yet you still trust her unconditionally? Because you believe that, even if something beneath the sea was threatening the City-State, everything was under Lei Nora’s control?”

“In your view, this trust might seem too blind.”

“Whether or not it’s blind is up to you,” Duncan shook his head, “I just want to say, it seems the Frost Queen didn’t quite manage to keep ‘everything under control’—she was killed by the rebels in the end, and the Abyss Plan was completely buried. Things didn’t unfold as she had planned.”

“…I indeed can’t refute that point.”

Tirian sighed in resignation.