Chapter 233: This is gorgeous. (2/2)

”Fascinating,” Evangeline commented and Layla nodded.

”True. It's really incredible. Maybe Arima would like to see one of these Kryon cores,” she said and looked behind her at the globe of light. ”{I can safely assume that this is the Kryon core, right?}”

”{Yes,}” the old man replied obediently.

”{Then what about the dimensional path we took to come here? What is that?}”

”{Each Kryon core has a space crack within it that connects every nebula. As for how it works, nobody knows. We only are aware that the nebulas are connected together in a one-way road by them.}”

”I see…” Layla mused and Aergia stepped forward.

”{Tell me, have you ever heard of the Pillars of Elysium or the Plane Guardians?}” She questioned and the old man shuddered.

”{I did hear about them... I was told that they are the strongest beings in the world but nothing more.}”

”{So, you know nothing about their whereabouts?}”

”{No… I don't know.}”

”Tch,” Aergia clicked her tongue. ”Things can never be easy, huh?” She complained and Evangeline chuckled. She looked around the nebula then a weird thought came to her.

”{Hey, hum… sorry, what's your name?}”

The old man groaned. ”{My name is Garo.}”

”{Then Garo,}” Evangeline pointed at the surface of the nebula. ”{Do you happen to know what's behind?}” Aergia and Layla widened their eyes when they heard her. They both looked at Garo for an answer.

Garo blinked in confusion. ”{My apologies but… what do you mean?}”

”{She's asking you if you know what's outside of the nebula,}” Aergia told and Garo blanked out for a second. He seemed to be stunned.

”{I… we never tried to learn what was outside,}” he stuttered and the three girls looked at each other. Layla suddenly swept her eyes over the entire nebula and noticed something.

”{From where do you get your water? Without rain, how do you avoid drought?}”

”{The water… we get it from underground and as for your second query, I'm afraid that I have no way of answering it,}” Garo was even more puzzled than before.

”Hey… do you think what I think?” Aergia muttered.

”Yes…” Layla dazedly nodded and flapped her wings. Her figure dashed and left an afterimage.

The aftermath was only a weak breeze but Garo paled when he saw that. He didn't even get to see in which direction she had gone. Aergia and Evangeline didn't lose her though and were looking right below.

Garo looked down too and spotted Layla casually crouching on the ground as if she always had been there. He was shocked and scared. When he looked away to face Aergia and Evangeline again, they had already disappeared too. He got a chill and hoped he was wrong as he looked down again. He almost fainted when he did so.

”Do we do it?” Evangeline asked Layla.

”It should be fine. If this nebula can create a gravitational field to keep everyone stuck to the ground, there shouldn't be any problem if we make a hole in it,” she replied and knocked on the ground a few times. ”Hm, I think there are around twenty kilometers to go through,” she mumbled and drew her rapier.

She stood up and the blade glowed. She slowly pulled her sword until her waist then thrust it in a quick motion. Before anyone could react, Layla had already stored her sword back and a two meters large hole had been dug in front of her. You couldn't see the bottom at all.

Layla wordlessly looked down the pit. ”Well, let's jump,” she uttered and went inside. Evangeline giggled and followed her with Aergia. Garo gaped as he watched them vanish into the bottomless hole.

The trio freefell for a short moment before they reached a certain depth where they found themselves underwater. Layla's eyes glowed and illuminated the surroundings. She could see that this wasn't groundwater, but water that came from the bottom of the tunnel she had made.

She squinted and dashed like a literal torpedo. The water was split by her movement. She reached the end of the tunnel in no time. She was still submerged but had exited the tunnel, and supposedly the nebula as well. Layla didn't even need to conjure a source of light. There were already multiple ones.

Aergia whistled and Evangeline exclaimed in surprise. In the pitch-black depths, titanic spheres of different sizes were shining with a blue color. Amid them, large aquatic animals were serenely swimming.

Some were even bigger than the spheres. A whale-like animal who could maybe swallow in whole the nebula that the three girls just came out from, passed by and observed Layla with his giant eye for a second before swimming away.

She smiled as she admired the scene. ”This is gorgeous, undeniably.”