Chapter 941

Steber stared into Yuder’s eyes, swallowed once, then opened his mouth to address everyone.

‘You all have a point. But wasn’t there someone else besides me who also felt something strange?’

‘......’

‘I’m not asking you to listen to only me when there are other suspicious signs. Just once—could you trust me and go down there? There’s definitely something below. If we still don’t find anything this time, I won’t say another word after that.’

The massive tremor they felt had clearly originated from under the sea. Going down was dangerous, but if necessary, it was something that had to be done. After emphasizing that point, Steber placed a hand over his chest, extended three fingers, then folded them in and clenched tightly.

Although he wasn’t wearing the hooded uniform coat he usually wore—which had the Cavalry’s insignia embroidered on the buttons in that very spot—under normal circumstances, the place where his hand rested now symbolized that logo. The three raised fingers were a simplified hand signal representing the three divisions of the Cavalry.

We are the Cavalry.

That signal, laced with a desperate plea not to forget that what they were about to face was something unprecedented and unknown, made the members look at each other.

‘What should we do.......’

Lost and unable to decide, their gazes naturally turned to Yuder, the one they all relied on. As if he’d been waiting, Yuder gave a firm nod.

‘I’ll follow.’

At that, the other Cavalry members also raised their hands one by one, determination on their faces.

‘...Understood. Then I’ll follow as well.’

‘Me too.’

Once everyone had decided to follow Steber’s lead, their actions moved quickly.

‘Steber. Stay by my side and point the direction. I’ll ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) move as you indicate.’

As Yuder approached Steber, he activated the power of water. The surrounding water, which had felt tightly compressed and barely bearable as a protective layer, immediately softened under his influence. Seeing the expressions on the members ease noticeably, it was clear Yuder had extended his protection to all of them.

‘Got it.’

Steber replied, then pointed with his fingers. Shoulder to shoulder, they began to swim downward.

As they descended, Steber finally relaxed the strained expression he had maintained and glanced sideways at Yuder beside him.

‘...Ha, damn it.’

If Yuder hadn’t said what he did earlier, Steber wouldn’t have been able to assert himself so strongly just now. The others’ concerns were valid, and Steber himself hadn’t been able to maintain full confidence in what he sensed. So how had Yuder managed to stand so firm?

‘If I really felt something that wasn’t there, what the hell was I thinking, pushing forward so recklessly.......’

And yet, the fact that the person everyone relied on had shown unwavering trust in Steber’s ability, without question, stirred something in a corner of his chest. His clenched lips grew tighter with emotion.

‘I thought I was past the age of getting emotional just because someone backed me up.......’

But how could anyone not be moved? When you realize you’ve been given that kind of trust, wanting to return it doesn’t depend on age.

Steber decided to erase all the doubts in his head about being clumsy or inexperienced because this was his first mission deployment. Now that Yuder had made it clear—despite the difficult circumstances—that he would shoulder the burden and responsibility together and place his trust in him, Steber’s failure would no longer be his alone.

‘There’s only one chance. The Deputy Commander himself believes in me—how could I, as a sub-commander, produce anything shameful? This time... I will find it. No matter what.’

Strength returned to Steber’s eyes. In that moment, the man who had always maintained a calm, gentle demeanor like flowing water now bristled with firm resolve—and his power responded gladly to its master. A haze, many times larger than anything he’d released so far, surged fiercely around Steber’s body.

Those sensitive to energy could almost see it with their eyes. And right beside him, Yuder’s golden eyes watched that heightened power with complete clarity.

‘It’s a relief... looks like Steber understood what I meant.’

Contrary to Steber’s thoughts, Yuder wasn’t actually feeling much pressure. That held true even when Steber claimed to have sensed something no one else had, and Yuder realized he himself couldn’t sense it.

‘If monsters are involved, then that makes sense.’

Though he had never dived this deep into the ocean in his previous life, he had encountered monsters that appeared from the water. The monsters that surfaced during the Southern Great Earthquake were all adept at hiding their presence by blending into the water. Even with considerable ability, detecting them wasn’t easy.

And the one who had contributed greatly to sensing and capturing those monsters back then—was none other than Steber Rendley, now beside him.

‘He was remarkable.’

Back then, Steber was one of the few original members of the Cavalry who had remained until the Southern Great Earthquake. But he wasn’t a sorcerer or sub-commander like he was now. That was because he had declined Yuder’s offer for the position of sub-commander. Yuder hadn’t taken it personally, since it had already been surprising enough that Steber remained with the Cavalry even after Kishiar’s death.

He had stayed quietly in the background as a regular member until the flood disaster caused by the Great Earthquake led to his deployment to the South. There, he performed outstandingly—helping save towns and cities swallowed by waves and detecting and eliminating countless sea monsters.

Had he not been there, Yuder, who at the time had been trapped in the capital by greedy nobles, wouldn’t have been able to mitigate the Southern damage as much as he did.

Still, even with his powerful water abilities, Steber’s status as a mere regular member held him back. Conflict arose between him and the members stationed in the Southern branch and those sent from the capital. No matter how well-liked he was, those who resented this older, high-profile “original member” for showing off didn’t magically change their minds.

In the end, he went on a relief mission with only a small group and suffered serious injuries while protecting a junior member in danger—leading to his retirement.

It was a shame, since had he gone with a larger team, he might have been injured, yes, but not so severely as to be unable to continue using his powers. The Cavalry's Southern branch leader at the time, who had clashed with Steber, fled with classified info before he could be held accountable—adding his name to the long list of traitors who stabbed the Cavalry in the back.

Still, the story of how Steber Rendley once twisted the course of a river to save people from a flood remained a legendary tale passed down like a sacred myth.

‘Back then, by the time I arrived in the South, Steber had already fallen into a coma from his injuries, so I never saw firsthand how he fought.’

But the reports recorded from that time remained in Yuder’s memory.

Even then, Steber detected monsters that other water-users failed to sense. In his past life, Yuder had spent most of his time in the capital and hadn’t had many chances to see Steber’s abilities in action. But in the realm of water, Steber’s sensing power may have far surpassed Yuder’s own.

‘Even now, he’s been sensing something on his own nonstop. With power like that.......’

Yuder recalled again the strange “rift” he had seen in his dreams—and the horrifying beings that had been crawling madly toward it. If those things were in any way linked to monsters, then the earthquake they were expecting to happen soon might also be tied to the anomaly or monsters.

‘All I can do is hope this situation backs up that theory.’

Hoping for that, Yuder had revealed his weakness and asked for Steber’s help honestly right before the mission began. Now, he could only hope that honesty would start to pay off.

Not long after, Steber raised a hand, signaling them to stop. They had gone so deep that even each other’s faces were hard to make out. With a firm expression, Steber shaped his lips carefully to convey a message.

‘Don’t scatter. Stay here for now. I’ll release my power first. Then, if you could release yours right after, from the same spot, that would be best.’

‘Understood.’

Steber inhaled sharply and released the power wrapped around his body in all directions. To Yuder’s golden eyes, it looked like a massive haze scattering in an instant through the darkness.

The others followed, releasing their powers in turn. Yuder did as well, and added an extra layer of protection over them in their now-vulnerable state.

The convergence of power expanding from one point was an awe-inspiring sight—but for Yuder, who still felt nothing distinctly, it only added to his tension.

He grit his teeth as he watched Steber pouring out his strength, face reddening from exertion.

‘Just a bit more... just a little longer.......’

Muttering as if chasing something, moving the water at terrifying speed, Steber suddenly snapped his eyes wide open and locked onto a direction.

‘......Got it. Below!’

In that instant, something deep in the darkness beneath their feet squirmed violently.