Rank 0 of the Awakener Special School - Chapter 86

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Awakener Special School Ranking Zero
Chapter 86
“There’s no need for it to be so serious. You’ve got your whole future ahead of you—what’s the rush? Take your time. Whatever it is, that’s fine.”
“…….”
“Right now, you have something more important to deal with, don’t you?”
Ji-u hesitated for a moment, then nodded slightly.
“…Yes, that’s right.”
Something important.
There was something Ji-u needed to prioritize above all else.
As though she already knew this, Tae Ga-yeong nodded.
“Then that’s settled.”
Tae Ga-yeong resumed rowing, the oar moving steadily through the water once more.
“You said something like that before—that the reason you saved Min-gi was because you felt you’d regret it if you didn’t act then.”
“…Yes, I did.”
“I mentioned it then too, but the reason someone fears regret is because they’ve experienced deep regret before. So the question becomes: how do you minimize regret? Do you know?”
“…No, I’m not sure.”
“You set priorities.”
Priorities?
Ji-u’s gaze moved to the back of Tae Ga-yeong’s head.
Tae Ga-yeong didn’t stop rowing. She simply stared straight ahead as she spoke.
“You decide what matters most to you—just one thing. And when you’re faced with doubt, you act according to that priority.”
“Will something like that really… make regret disappear?”
“No, it won’t disappear. But you can lighten it.”
“…….”
Ji-u’s expression was uncertain.
“What? Sounds like I’m just making it up?”
A soft laugh escaped her.
“It might sound simple, but it’s actually difficult in practice. People often forget what matters most to them. Especially idiots like me.”
“…….”
“If you know what’s most important to you, you won’t take the wrong path. Just focus on that one thing.”
It was strange.
Listening to Tae Ga-yeong’s words, it sounded like the absolute truth.
Ji-u had never truly relied on anyone before. Even with So-yeong, who looked after him, there remained a part of him that couldn’t fully depend on her.
She was placed here by his parents.
Her care was just a ‘duty’ after all.
But Tae Ga-yeong was different.
She was something else entirely.
As someone with little gift for words, Ji-u couldn’t find an elegant way to express this feeling.
Still watching Tae Ga-yeong’s back as she rowed with quiet grace, Ji-u finally spoke.
“…Your sister must be lucky.”
The voice was so soft it dissolved without a trace into the sound of lapping water.
Several seconds passed.
Then Tae Ga-yeong’s oar came to rest.
“We’re here.”
Ji-u turned his gaze toward where she was pointing.
In the middle of the dark blue sea, it floated.
──An Abyss.
A gaping hole in the water’s surface. The waves warped toward its center.
The seawater pouring into the bottomless pit below resembled a black waterfall from hell itself.
‘That’s… an Abyss?’
Waves rushed in only to be swallowed silently by the chasm.
Even Ji-u, who had seen an Abyss entrance before, felt chilled by the desolate sight.
Naturally, the waters surrounding the Abyss had been designated a restricted military zone.
Navigation was forbidden to prevent any vessel from being pulled into the vortex.
Yet when the Abyss reversed its current like this, ships even in the safety zone could be swept away, though it happened less frequently…….
In any case, aside from the small Rubber Boat they were in, no other vessels were present in these waters.
Tae Ga-yeong, holding her oar steady, suddenly spoke.
“Any diving experience?”
“No… I don’t.”
“Good. This works out perfectly.”
Before the black mist, Tae Ga-yeong raised her oar high.
“I’ll count to three, then we enter. Ready?”
“Yes?”
“One, two…….”
“Wait, hold on─.”
“Three!!”
Splash!
Black seawater sprayed in all directions like ink.
The Rubber Boat they were in dropped like they’d gone down a slide.
Toward the center of the Abyss, dark as hell’s gaping maw.
* * *
The Abyss of Jeju Island differed from the other two Abysses in the country.
The most significant difference was its location in the middle of the sea.
While ordinary Abysses resembled sinkholes punched through solid ground, the Jeju Island Abyss took the form of a Blue Hole.
Perhaps because of this, the Infected that emerged within it were entirely unlike those found in typical Abysses.
Most Infected resembled what was commonly called zombies, but here they took the shapes of massive aquatic creatures.
Various small fish, jellyfish, coral, and the like.
Though they appeared as marine life on the surface, these things could fly through the air or walk on land—moving freely beyond water as well.
…Though, so far, none had been sighted.
“The oxygen does seem a bit thin, doesn’t it?”
Ji-u observed, looking around.
He’d thought they’d dived, but when he came to his senses, the boat they were in still floated on the sea’s surface.
A sea beneath the sea.
‘This is… the Marine Abyss.’
The only difference from the sea he’d known was that the seawater was as black as ink.
Most Abyss interiors took the form of caverns, but this was entirely different.
“Since it’s technically an underwater region, breathing will be harder than on the surface.”
Just as with ordinary Abysses, the deeper they penetrated here, the stronger the Toxic Miasma would become.
Especially in this underwater location—with even thinner air than a normal Abyss—the Toxic Miasma would have a far more potent effect.
Perhaps that was why Tae Ga-yeong had chosen Ji-u. Among the Special Unit’s personnel, he had the greatest resistance to Toxic Miasma.
Ji-u lowered his gaze slightly toward the water below the boat.
Black ripples undulating like breath.
Beneath them, an enigmatic light—whether from coral or Mana Stones—pulsed softly, then faded, then returned.
Despite being the sea, the sound of waves was almost absent. The surface remained eerily calm, as though black mist were undulating rather than water.
Meanwhile, Tae Ga-yeong, who had been rowing steadily, ceased her movement.
“There it is.”
Following Tae Ga-yeong’s gaze, Ji-u’s head turned slowly.
On the ink-black water, something existed.
At first, it appeared like a single island floating on the sea.
But as his murky vision gradually cleared, Ji-u realized what it truly was: a ship’s hull.
The hull, drifting silently and serenely, resembled a phantom ship from legend.
It was instantly recognizable.
That was the Cruise Ship that had gone missing.
“At least its sudden appearance saved us some trouble.”
Tae Ga-yeong’s oar cut through the water without hesitation, and soon they reached the Cruise Ship anchored in the middle of the sea.
“I thought it might have been destroyed in a wreck after being swallowed by the Abyss, but it’s in surprisingly good condition.”
Tae Ga-yeong spoke as she examined the ship.
Ji-u likewise studied the vessel’s state.
Following the layered decks with his eyes, he spotted a curved golden balcony in the distance.
In that moment, something strange caught Ji-u’s attention.
“Commander, are these Mana Stones?”
Ji-u pointed to the ship’s hull surface.
Stones emitting an ominous light clung to the surface like barnacles on a turtle’s shell, clustered densely together.
Tae Ga-yeong approached and observed them intently.
“They do appear to be. Seeing this makes me think the people inside may not have fared well.”
…Now that she mentioned it.
Despite the intact exterior, not a single sound was audible.
A ship of this size should produce at least the groan of metal somewhere.
Meanwhile, Tae Ga-yeong spotted an Anchor Chain descending from the upper levels.
“We should climb up using that.”
Tug, tug.
She tested it by pulling hard, confirming its stability, then gestured to Ji-u behind her.
“Go ahead and climb.”
Ji-u grasped the chain without complaint.
Thanks to the Mana Stones clinging to the chain’s surface serving as convenient footholds, they reached the upper deck without difficulty.
“Do you see anything?”
Tae Ga-yeong’s voice came from behind, still in the process of climbing.
Ji-u swept his gaze quickly across the surroundings.
Railings overlooking the sea.
A lounge and white sun beds.
An empty bar…….
“Nothing particularly unusual.”
There was no sign of Infected—or even of any presence at all.
A little further along, a spacious swimming pool came into view. Instead of water, its floor was covered with black Mana Stones like sand.
“Indeed, there are no signs of wreckage.”
Tae Ga-yeong, who had by now climbed onto the deck to join Ji-u, spoke.
As she slowly examined the deck, Tae Ga-yeong’s gaze lifted upward.
The highest point of the ship.
Something enclosed in glass appeared to float in the darkness above.
Tae Ga-yeong’s eyes narrowed.
“That looks like the captain’s quarters.”
“…That one?”
“Let’s confirm it first.”
A staircase leading upward was visible nearby.
The two headed toward it along the stairs.
When they finally reached the door, they found it slightly ajar.
After exchanging a glance, Tae Ga-yeong carefully pushed it open.
Creak—
A prolonged metallic groan echoed sharply.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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