Chapter 110: Cruise Ship: Captured by a Time Loop

Chapter 110: The Cruise Ship: Captured by the Time Loop

Originally, after the monsters aboard the Golden Anchor plunged into the sea, they should have quickly dispersed, swimming toward the deep ocean or other waters.

However, before they could leap into the sea, someone had already activated the "time loop" ahead of them. Everly wasn't sure whether creatures caught inside the loop when it formed could freely enter or exit its coverage, but she thought they probably couldn't—otherwise, there would be no point in creating the loop in the first place.

Once activated, the time loop was like an invisible cage, tightly sealing off a vast expanse of sea centered on the Golden Anchor, trapping all those mutated monsters within a limited space. It caused the monsters and the cruise ship to be forgotten by time together, trapped in a cycle, endlessly repeating the process of "sacrifice—mutation—plunging into the sea—wandering" for the next thirteen years, until thirteen years later, when the Mary Jane inadvertently stumbled into this time-frozen domain.

"As far as I know, the 'time loop' involves the power of space-time. It's an extremely abstruse and difficult spell. Throughout history, very few people have managed to learn space-time magic on their own. However, besides self-taught practitioners, there's another type of person—those who, from birth, are greatly favored by nature and can innately manipulate space-time forces. They are called 'Space-Time witches.'"

"Witches! The letter in the Captain's office mentioned that there's a witch hidden aboard the Golden Anchor!" All the clues clicked into place, and the group broke out in goosebumps even as realization dawned.

Everly nodded: "Exactly. I suspect that the one who cast the time loop on the cruise ship was a rare Space-Time witch."

That was an existence so scarce that even among witches, they were exceptionally rare. It was said that a Space-Time witch would only appear once every several generations.

Moreover, because the power of space-time was so overwhelming, even a Space-Time witch, blessed by nature, found it extremely difficult to wield it. All they could typically manage were minor feats like "restoring a wilting flower to its blooming state" or "making an aging self regain youth." Something like carving out a "time loop" to trap an entire massive cruise ship was unheard of and unseen before.

Therefore, although she spoke with conviction before the group, Everly herself wasn't entirely certain whether Space-Time witches truly existed.

"Captain, that concludes my analysis of this 'ghost ship' incident—though, of course, there's also a more optimistic possibility: when the time loop forms, it might not trap creatures within its bounds. In that case, the Cultists who leaped into the sea would have already swum off in all directions, only to revert to human form and return to the ship when time resets. Which scenario it is can be easily verified—you could try lowering fresh meat into the water on a rope and see if a large number of humanoid aquatic creatures gather."

The Captain pondered briefly, then nodded: "Let's do as you suggest."

He picked up the phone and issued instructions via the internal line to the kitchen and the crew working on deck.

About ten minutes later, the internal line rang, and a crew member's terrified voice reached everyone's ears: "C-Captain! There's something under the sea—lots of them! We dropped a huge chunk of meat down, and it was devoured in no time. And strangely enough, those things look... a bit like people!"

The ominous speculation was confirmed, and everyone's expressions grew grim.

"Captain, let's leave. What happened to the Golden Anchor has long surpassed the realm of science. For ordinary people to get too deeply involved would only invite misfortune. If you truly can't let go of the glory of discovering the Golden Anchor, you could note the coordinates and contact headquarters to have them send specialized Psychics to handle it. There's really no need to risk all our lives for this." Everly seized the opportunity to persuade him.

Several explorers who had personally boarded the giant ship also chimed in: "Captain, maybe we should leave as the witch lady suggested. If we can reach shore in time, Dali might still be saved."

"Exactly. That ship's situation is just too bizarre. We really don't dare get near it again."

Seeing everyone urging him to leave, and even his usually supportive First Mate shaking his head slightly with disapproval, the Captain finally gritted his teeth and made the call: "Understood. This was only meant to be a short trip anyway. If we keep lingering here, the passengers will grow dissatisfied. Let's pack up and prepare to depart."

Excellent!

With her goal achieved, Everly finally breathed a slight sigh of relief.

The Captain moved with remarkable efficiency. Everly had barely left and hadn't even reached her cabin door when the ship-wide broadcast came over the speakers, notifying all passengers that the cruise ship would set sail in 10 minutes, leaving the vicinity of the Golden Anchor. During that time, the ship might encounter heavy rain and rough seas outside, and passengers were advised to stay off the decks for safety.

Having been adrift at sea with no signal for nearly a day—and with the long-lost giant ship right before their eyes, yet no passengers allowed aboard—the passengers were already growing restless. Most supported the decision to leave.

Everyone obediently returned to their cabins and watched through the windows as crew members bustled about on deck, stowing the gangway and raising the rudder. After a wait, the horn sounded, and the Mary Jane sailed off in the direction away from the Golden Anchor.

Ten meters, nine meters, eight meters... Everly pressed against the window, holding her breath, silently watching the raised bow slicing through the waves, plunging headlong into the storm that had been sealed off outside.

But the expected sound of wind and rain never came.

As the Mary Jane's bow touched the invisible membrane at the outermost edge of the time loop, it was as if swallowed by an unseen maw—Everly watched the bow "disappear."

And at that moment, the great Mary Jane, moving at full speed, could no longer stop in time.

Everyone aboard, including Everly, could only watch helplessly as the Mary Jane, driven by inertia, plowed forward—from bow to hull, then to the middle of the ship... As the membrane reached the cabins, Everly and Misha clutched each other in despair and squeezed their eyes shut.

But the death they imagined never came.

When they opened their eyes, they were still alive.

Everly, stunned, opened the window and leaned out to look behind the ship. Its stern was emerging outward through the invisible membrane, like a mold being pulled free. Beyond the membrane, wind and rain raged and waves towered, while inside, all was calm and serene.

And not far ahead, a brand-new giant ship floated silently on the sea. It stood like Mount Olympus from Greek mythology, rising silently from the waters, watching the "Mary Jane" like Sisyphus, futilely repeating the task of pushing a boulder uphill.

Yes, exactly—as the ship passed through the membrane, it hit an invisible barrier and was pulled straight back into the time loop.

They were trapped in the time loop!

...

About ten minutes later, everyone, including Everly, had gathered once again in the Captain's office.

"Why is this happening, Ms. Everly? Why can't we leave this time loop?" The Captain paced anxiously, furrowing his brow.

Everly looked equally grim.

She had assumed the time loop only trapped those who were inside when it was created—that those who wandered in later, like them, could come and go freely.

She hadn't expected that after just one day inside the loop, the Mary Jane would fail to leave. Why? Could it be that the time loop was a one-way door—once caught, you were trapped forever?

"No, wait... This time loop isn't completely sealed—there's a gap!"

After a moment's thought, Everly suddenly recalled Misha mentioning the "giant ship aging" the night before.

"Between 7:59 and 8:00 PM, there's a brief window when the time loop deactivates. During that time, not only does the Golden Anchor age thirteen years in an instant and become dilapidated, but the storm outside can also hit us without any barrier. If we leave during that window, we should make it out!"

"Ms. Everly, can you give me an exact time frame? I need to know if that window is long enough for the whole ship to get out. If the loop resets halfway and cuts the ship in two, I don't know what would happen—everyone aboard could die."

The Captain's concern was valid, but Everly had only heard about this phase and couldn't specify its exact duration.

"Maybe you could ask the other passengers over the ship's broadcast for information," she told the Captain.

"Understood."

The Captain nodded in agreement.

Before long, the ship's broadcast sounded again. The Captain himself got on the intercom and, with utmost sincerity, asked all passengers for information.

Unfortunately, although some passengers had indeed seen the Golden Anchor age and decay, they, like Misha, had been so shaken by what they saw that they hadn't thought to check the time.

So, even though everyone in the Captain's office was eager to leave, the Mary Jane couldn't set off right away tonight for safety's sake.

This was a small cruise ship, about 180 meters long, with a top speed of 50 km/h. Assuming the time loop's edge had no thickness, it would take at least 12.96 seconds for the ship to get out.

The Captain needed to time how long the loop disappeared with a stopwatch and compare that to 12.96 seconds. Only if the interval was longer than 12.96 seconds could the Mary Jane escape safely.

Besides timing, the Captain also prepared an empty lifeboat. When the loop vanished, he'd have crew push the lifeboat to the edge of the "membrane," leaving it half in and half out.

That way, when the loop reset and they pulled the lifeboat back, they could tell from its condition whether they could just sail the ship out next time without worrying about the timing.