Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

Hughes felt a thunderous explosion in his mind, as if lightning had struck.

No wonder people had forgotten about Monica's existence, just as they couldn't remember the Sea God. This was the reason.

Monica had fused with the Sea God's soul. This… this should be a good thing, right?

But thinking of that small banshee, Hughes still felt as if a piece of his heart was missing. Had that once-familiar little girl just disappeared like that?

Looking at the somewhat unfamiliar banshee before him, from now on, she would assume the identity of the Sea God.

Wait a minute!

Hughes suddenly realized something. No, if Monica was the Sea God, then what was that thing in the Pirate King's Court?

The information Chloe had sent was very clear: the monster entrenched in the Pirate King's Court was constantly absorbing the pollution from the Storm Ocean. From Monica's side of the information, that presence seemed more like the Sea God.

Moreover, if Monica knew all this, why hadn't she contacted him?

"Monica, let me ask you directly. Right now, you can go to Castel through the Eye of the Storm, right? Why haven't you gone over?"

Monica was stunned for a moment before hesitatingly saying, "I… I don't want to go there. I am the Sea God now. The moment I enter the Sea Temple, I will start absorbing the pollution from the sea. Those pollutants are the flesh and blood of the Sea God Church's believers. That makes me feel…"

"You're not absorbing it, but another monster is!" Hughes grew anxious. "Don't you know what's happening on the other side?"

"The other side?" Monica's expression showed confusion.

"The seawater there is rising, and Castel is about to sink! Monsters keep emerging from the ocean, possessing the very power of the Sea God you mentioned. They're nearly unstoppable! And in the Pirate King's Court, a monster is continuously drawing in the Sea God's power. It's about to become the Sea God you're talking about!"

Monica froze. Her emerald-green eyes blinked in bewilderment.

"Huh?"

Hughes finally understood why everything felt off. Monica had never contacted the outside world. She hadn't gone to Castel, and she had deliberately avoided the Black Pearl. As a result, she had no idea what was happening!

Hughes immediately stepped forward, grabbing Monica's hand. "There's no time to explain. Come with me to Castel first. Who knows how powerful the monster in the Pirate King's Court has become? How much power do you have right now? What can you do?"

Monica hesitated. "I… I'm not sure either. This knowledge is part of the Sea God's soul, but I won't know the specifics until I enter the Sea Temple—that is, the other side of the Eye of the Storm."

"Alright, let's go now!"

Hughes glanced at the setting sun, hoping it wasn't too late.

Monica led Hughes swiftly through the sea. The two swam together toward the Eye of the Storm. According to Monica, it had originally been just a conceptual link between two worlds, but as the Sea God gradually revived, it had transformed into a physical connection.

In other words, they could now pass through it directly.

"Monica, do you know what that monster in the Pirate King's Court is?"

"I don't know. Theoretically, there should only be one Sea God—me. My plan was that as long as I never entered the other side of the Eye of the Storm—the Sea Temple—I wouldn't absorb power or become the Sea God. That way, I could stay here. Even if I couldn't see everyone, at least…"

Hughes understood what she meant. She probably had a vague feeling that once she truly became a god, she wouldn't even be able to communicate with others anymore.

Even Hughes' current body wasn't divine yet, and he had already scared off several people just by speaking.

Thinking of this, Hughes' gaze darkened slightly. "Let's see if we can solve the immediate problem first. As for the Sea God fragment in you, I'll think of a way to help."

"Mm."

Monica was incredibly fast in the water. She didn't swim so much as she was propelled forward by the ocean itself. Soon, they arrived near the Eye of the Storm.

The constant thunderstorms that had once surrounded the Eye of the Storm were now completely gone, leaving behind an unimaginably massive vortex.

Seawater surged downward madly, creating a huge whirlpool that compressed the surrounding air, producing an ear-piercing howl. Hughes held onto Monica's hand and peered down into the abyss.

Water. It was all water.

The vortex was like a gaping maw, spinning endlessly downward into a bottomless chasm—an abyss.

Like a drain in a pool, the ocean water spiraled downward, forming towering walls of water.

The terrifying shrieking of the wind made Hughes feel as if he were falling.

"So this is the true face of the Eye of the Storm? Let's go through—Monica?"

Monica, however, stood frozen, staring into the distance. She murmured absentmindedly, "Why are they here?"

"Huh?"

Hughes looked around but saw no one. He didn't hear anyone speaking either. After a few seconds, he realized, "A Mind Link?"

Only Hughes' original body, the lord, could establish a Mind Link with the banshees. His worker self couldn't.

"Yes." Monica's expression was strange. "I just linked with Nini. She… she actually swam over from the other side!"

Nini?!

Wasn't Nini dead?!

Wait—Nini's sea serpent spell had disappeared because the connection had been severed. If she had died, the spell would have ended. But if she had gone to another world, the spell would also have been cut off!

Could it be… Could Nini still be alive?!

Hughes' hands trembled. When he saw the sea serpent disappear, he thought he would never see Nini again. The pain had been like a tear through his soul. He still remembered it vividly.

Hughes clutched Monica's hand tightly. Soon, in his expectant gaze, figures emerged from the water. They looked at Monica and Hughes with a mix of shock and wariness.

"Who are you?"

"Nini!"

"Nini!"

Hughes looked at the golden-haired banshee before him, overwhelmed with emotion.

"You're alive… That's wonderful."

Nini and the others exchanged confused glances. As a mind-linked race, banshees could sense the sincerity in the emotions of those before them. But the situation was simply too strange.

After disembarking from the airship, Nini's group had dived into the ocean to investigate. They quickly realized that vast amounts of seawater were pouring out of the Eye of the Storm—meaning water had to be rushing in from the other side. They decided to explore.

But after struggling to swim through, they suddenly found themselves linked to an unfamiliar presence. And when they surfaced, they saw a strange banshee and… a talking corpse?