"Yes," the old man said, lifting his hand and pointing ahead. "That… is the Gate of Atlantis."

All of them turned their eyes toward where he was pointing.

And there.. not too far away was a massive whirlpool.

The sea itself seemed to twist inward, forming a giant spinning vortex in the middle of the ocean. The center was a dark abyss, an endless black spiral that devoured everything near it. Water crashed and spun violently, creating a sound that echoed through the air deep, constant, and powerful.

The ship had already begun drifting toward it, the pull of the current growing stronger with each passing second.

Razeal narrowed his eyes, studying it. "A whirlpool?"

"Yes," Yograj replied calmly. "That's the entrance to Atlantis. Don't be worried.. going through it will take us directly to the Seventh and Outermost Ocean of Atlantis. It might look terrifying, but it's perfectly safe. I've gone through it many times never once facing any problem."

His voice was calm, reassuring, almost casual.. though none of the others shared that same calmness.

The ship was being drawn closer now, the sound of rushing water growing louder. The waves were starting to tilt the deck slightly, and everyone automatically grabbed onto something for balance.

Razeal frowned a little, glancing at Yograj. The old man looked completely unbothered confident, even.. so he said nothing. Still, his instincts kept him sharp, ready for anything.

Maria, however, looked less than convinced. "That's supposed to be safe?" she muttered under her breath, holding onto the railing tightly. "Looks more like death to me."

Aurora stood beside her, her hair fluttering in the wind as she gazed down at the swirling abyss below. "It's… beautiful," she whispered, almost mesmerized by the sight.

Levy, holding onto the wooden mast nearby, glanced at her. "Beautiful? Ofcourse it is.. Of you say so.."

Aurora gave a faint smile, but didn't reply.

The closer they got, the louder the sound became the roar of the spinning current was like thunder, and the wind whipped across the deck. Spray from the ocean splashed against their faces, stinging their skin.

Yograj remained at the front, one hand calmly gripping the railing, the other still raised slightly as he judged the movement of the ship. His calmness seemed unreal as though he'd done this a hundred times before.

"Hold steady," he said simply, voice raised just enough to be heard over the storming sea.

Maria, Aurora, and Levy exchanged glances but said nothing. Even though their expressions showed a mix of concern and disbelief, none of them moved. They trusted, reluctantly, that Yograj knew what he was doing.

The ship tilted forward, now fully caught in the gravitational pull of the massive whirlpool.

Waves crashed violently against its sides, the entire vessel creaking under the pressure. The air was thick, the roar almost deafening.

And yet, somehow, it was still steady as if something invisible was holding it upright even as it spiraled downward.

Razeal's eyes never left the vortex. His expression remained calm but sharp, his hand resting near his waist where the blue bag hung.

The others braced themselves knuckles white, hearts pounding.

Within seconds, the edge of the ship crossed into the swirling water, and they were swallowed whole by the whirlpool.

For a moment, all sound vanished.

Then, with a deep rumble, the world spun. The sea turned into a blur of blue and black. The horizon disappeared.

The ship descended slowly at first, then faster, spiraling downward into the heart of the vortex.

It was going pretty well at first. The descent through the whirlpool was surprisingly smooth the ship spinning steadily, the currents holding them firmly as they sank deeper into the blue abyss. Everything seemed under control.

Then.. Suddenly

BOOOOOOM!

A deafening explosion of sound echoed through the air, shaking the very ship beneath them.

The entire whirlpool.. that massive, spinning current of sea and magic suddenly stopped. For one terrifying heartbeat, everything went still.

And then, with a violent surge, it started spinning again only this time, in the opposite direction.

The reversal was brutal. The waters churned violently, faster than before, spinning hundreds of times harder than they had a moment ago. The air screamed around them, the ocean roared as if it had come alive, and the entire ship groaned under the overwhelming pressure.

"What is happening?!" Razeal shouted, trying to stabilize himself as the ship pitched sideways. His boots scraped across the slick deck as he grabbed the railing, dark tendrils instinctively flaring from his shadow to anchor him in place.

"It's… the Reverse Gates of Atlantis!" Yograj yelled back, his voice barely audible through the chaos. His old eyes were wide with disbelief as he gripped the deck rail, trying not to fall. "I've heard of it.. but it only happens twice in a hundred years! This isn't supposed to happen now! What the hell.. we can't be that unlucky!"

"Unlucky…?"

Razeal's expression darkened immediately as he realising why.. what was happening. The term was quite close to him..

The ship continued to descend deeper, the current accelerating, the whirlpool twisting faster and faster until it became a monstrous spiral of chaos.

Then.. another explosion of water.

A massive wave slammed into the ship from behind, striking it with the force of a giant's fist.

The wooden hull cracked, half the deck shattering as the vessel lurched upward, almost taking flight before slamming back down onto the raging sea.

Everyone aboard was thrown violently off their feet.

"Aaahhhh!" Levy shouted as he was flung backward, his body rolling across the deck before crashing into the railing near the stern. He barely managed to grab onto a beam to stop himself from being thrown overboard.

"Motherfucker!" Razeal barked, his eyes flashing dark. Without a moment's hesitation, a black tendril burst from his shadow, whipping through the air and wrapping around Levy's arm. He yanked hard, pulling the boy back toward him, catching him before he could fall.

"Got you," Razeal muttered under his breath, holding Levy's arm tightly with one hand.

"Arghhhh! Save meeeeee!"

A terrified scream tore through the chaos.

Razeal's head snapped up ..it was Aurora.

She was dangling off the side of the ship, one hand gripping the slick railing as waves slammed violently against her. The roaring current spun around her, pulling her body toward the sea below. Her voice was almost drowned out completely by the storming water.

"Aurora!"

The first one to react wasn't anyone else..but Yograj. The old man had already regained his footing on the deck, his instincts kicking in as soon as he heard his daughter's voice. His eyes widened in panic, his mana flaring, and he shot forward with supernatural speed.

But before he could reach her

CRASH!

A massive wooden pillar.. torn from the ship itself came hurtling toward him like a spear, carried by the storm's force.

"What!?"

Yograj tried to dodge, his instincts sharp even amid chaos, but the turbulence made it impossible to predict the movement. The floor beneath him tilted violently, throwing off his balance. The wind howled, the ship cracked again, and the beam struck him full force across the chest.

"Ughhh!"

The impact sent him flying.. his body hurled off the ship, straight toward the spiraling vortex of the Reverse Gate.

"Old man! What the fucking hell are you doing!?" Razeal shouted, his eyes wide as he saw Yograj disappear into the raging water below.

Without wasting a moment, he summoned more shadow tendrils long, dark, writhing shapes that extended toward both Aurora and the spot where Yograj had vanished. The shadows lashed out across the deck, moving like living serpents, aiming to grab them both.

But before they could reach

The shadows flickered. Then suddenly... they vanished completely.

"What..Nowww?!"

Razeal's eyes cursed.

[Insufficient Dark Mana.]

[Your dark mana has reached zero, host. I have been informing you for several minutes.]

The system's monotone voice echoed in his head.

"Shit!" Razeal cursed sharply, his breathing heavy. His shadows dissolved into thin air, leaving him with no way to reach them. His mind raced.. instincts blazing as he turned toward the chaos around him.

Suddenly, another scream cut through the storm.

"Arghhhh!"

It was Maria.

The ship shook violently again, another massive wave hitting it from the side, throwing her up into the air. Her body was lifted by the wind, floating helplessly above the deck and for a terrifying second, it looked like she would be thrown overboard completely.

Her eyes widened as she met Razeal's gaze midair.

"Where the hell are you going nowww cant you see its already dangerous enough..!?" Razeal snarled.

Without hesitation, he released Levy's arm, letting him go just for a moment. Then, moving with blinding speed, he lunged upward. His hand shot out.. catching Maria by the arm just as she began to fall past him.

He grabbed her tightly, his grip unyielding, stopping her from being thrown into the sea.

"Got you!" he shouted over the roar of the storm.

Maria gasped for breath, clutching his wrist, her face pale and eyes wide.

But now.. he had one arm holding Maria, the other still braced against the deck for balance.

And Levy the one he had just let go stumbled as the ship tilted again.

Levy looked at Razeal, then toward Aurora. She was still clinging desperately to the railing, her fingers slipping, her body halfway off the ship.

Their eyes met.

Levy froze. The world seemed to slow for a brief instant.. the spinning water, the screams, the chaos it all blurred into silence for him.

And then

"Fuck it!"

He didn't think twice. He didn't care about the risk.

Something in him.. something raw, desperate, and reckless took over.

Before anyone could stop him, Levy pushed off the deck and ran toward Aurora's direction. His feet slipped, his body leaned forward against the pull of the storm, but he didn't stop.

He sprinted across the shaking deck, every step defying the violent waves and howling wind.

He wasn't sure if he could reach her in time or even if he'd survive it.. but he didn't care.

All he could see was Aurora's terrified face, her hand slipping one finger at a time.

And all he could think was.. I won't let her fall.

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