Promoted to Protagonist: Persecuted by the Meta-Narrative | Chapter 17 | Depths of the Flooded City | Novela.app

Since water was everywhere and there were no paths for walking, the difficulty of navigating the Flooded City—already a seven out of ten—had spiked to an eleven. In his spare time, Xin Ye had watched a few movies made before the apocalypse. The infrared lasers that secret agents had to dodge while stealing treasures from museums seemed remarkably similar to the predicament he now faced. Just as he was about to consult his dear teammates to see if they could brainstorm a solution, they had already arranged their own exits. The cat Tang Qiuqiu transformed into was an ordinary-looking orange-and-white tabby, though notably small and thin. After shifting, he let out a few meows: "I don't have any problem weaving through the Unceasing Silk. What about you guys?" Compared to the dome, the fine threads were much easier for Leng Xianye to eliminate using his "Black Box." Naturally, he had no trouble moving, though he did need to borrow Xin Ye’s rope. Xin Ye pinned his last hope on Lian Muyun. "I probably shouldn't go with you guys, right? I really can't move around here," Lian Muyun said nonchalantly. To Xin Ye’s ears, every word felt like a stab to the heart. "But I can set up my mirrors within a certain range to provide long-distance support. Just message me if you need me to blast something." Finally, all three of them turned to look at Xin Ye. Xin Ye: "..." "What do I do?" he asked Xun Yin. The unreliable author had already prepared an unreliable plan, just waiting for Xin Ye to ask. [Isn't it simple? If you can't walk the path others take, then forge a new one.] [Brother Ye, pack your things and get ready to dive.] *** The uniforms of the Abnormal Investigation Department were generally divided into four types. The first type consisted of white shirts and military-style dress uniforms worn by clerical and management staff. They featured many complex accessories and looked refined and elegant. The parents of Leng Xianye, Xing Yue, and Lian Muyun mostly had closets full of these. The second type was the standard white lab coat for researchers—simple yet rigorous. Yi Ting, a researcher at Headquarters, wore this year-round. The third type was the Headquarters Esper uniform. The fabric was sophisticated, featuring a black bodysuit as an inner layer, while the black jacket and trousers appeared simple but were designed with various subtle details to optimize the combat experience. Paired with the functional brooches and belts issued by the department, they looked incredibly cool. Since joining Headquarters, the five members of the squad spent most of their time in this gear. The fourth type was the one Xin Ye was currently wearing: the flashy but impractical Branch Esper uniform. It was extremely prone to damage during missions, and if it tore, one had to submit an application to the stingy Branch and pay out of pocket for a replacement. Xin Ye hadn't felt much about it before—after all, he had followed his teammates all the way to Headquarters and changed uniforms there—but now that he was entering the water in this outfit, he immediately felt the hindrance. After confirming there was no Unceasing Silk above his chosen entry point, Xin Ye pinched his nose. With the mindset of a gutted fish voluntarily jumping into a frying pan, he plunged into the water. A massive splash, and a massive sense of helplessness. The soaked, cheap combat uniform became so heavy that even lifting an arm was an ordeal. Xin Ye would have preferred to go back and be sliced by the Unceasing Silk... actually, never mind, that would probably kill him. He inexplicably recalled a team cooperation theory class from his training days. The instructor had said a team needed a mountain-guarding tiger, a far-sighted eagle, a battle-hardened wolf, an agile leopard, and a loyal dog. Originally, Xin Ye’s role was quite clear: Leng Xianye was the tiger, Xing Yue was the eagle, Lian Muyun was the wolf, and Qiuqiu was the leopard. As a D-rank, he was fine being the dog—his teammates would carry him anyway. But now, he had a new realization about his identity. He was the paddling fish. Xin Ye the fish paddled along. Xun Yin had set the water here to be very clean, clear enough to see the bottom. As for the actual fish, they had all been lured to the Central Area by the butterflies, leaving only Xin Ye. Under the butterflies' technological dominance, the location-sharing function had gone on strike again. The original map had also turned into a blue butterfly. Fortunately, everyone had gained a decent grasp of the general layout over the past few days, so the lack of a map wasn't a fatal blow yet. Tang Qiuqiu had told them that if anything happened, Leng Xianye and Xin Ye should make as much noise as possible. Given his auditory range, he could hear them as long as they weren't too far away and would provide immediate support. Ultimately, the three of them set off in three different directions to search for Xing Yue. A certain navigation system resumed work without permission: [Swim straight. Turn left when you reach that half-collapsed building up ahead... Right. There’s an area surrounded by six buildings that looks a bit like a lake. The web cradling Xing Yue is right there.] Following the automatic navigation, Xin Ye quickly found Xing Yue. The girl was sleeping within a web, with two or three uncleaned butterfly corpses clinging to the edges of the massive net. He lingered at a distance for a moment. Seeing that she was merely unconscious and lacked other injuries, he breathed a sigh of relief. He swam directly beneath the web and asked Xun Yin, "I probably shouldn't touch these threads. How do I get her down?" [You can touch them. Who said you couldn't?] Xun Yin’s writing had become increasingly emotional lately. [Go, Unceasing Silk! Go snuggle Xin Ye! Use facts to tell him whether he can touch you or not!] A strand of Unceasing Silk that had been fused with the others suddenly detached, dropping its end into the water. After coiling twice, the tip poked out from the surface and tapped Xin Ye on the shoulder. It was a very cautious, non-malicious probe. In response, Xin Ye tapped the little thread back. [Abilities recognize people too—those who want to harm Xing Yue or the mutated species will naturally be attacked by the Unceasing Silk, but you are teammates. The silk recognizes you.] [Message Leng Xianye and Tang Qiuqiu to come over. Once there are more people and the Unceasing Silk feels the environment is safe, it will proactively hand Xing Yue over to you.] Xin Ye followed Xun Yin’s prompt and sent the general coordinates to Leng Xianye and Tang Qiuqiu. While waiting, he suddenly realized something: "Since the Unceasing Silk won't attack me, why did you make me go into the water? Wasn't that redundant?" Something was wrong. Definitely wrong. *This guy is trying to mess with me again,* Xin Ye thought. Xun Yin: [Hee hee.] Xin Ye had been floating peacefully on the surface, but the moment Xun Yin spoke, he felt a sudden suction from below, pulling him down. He saw a small whirlpool appearing out of thin air beneath him. Xin Ye: "???" Dammit, he had been trolled hard. Having been backstabbed two or three times already, Xin Ye was too tired to stay angry. He struggled to move to the side, positioning himself where the suction was slightly weaker. He had been keeping the mirror piece in his trouser pocket, but worried it might be swept away by the current, he thought for a moment, asked his Mirror Image for a small piece of cloth to wrap the mirror, and bit down on it. *If only I were wearing the Headquarters uniform,* Xin Ye thought wistfully. The Headquarters jacket had a small inner pocket near the heart; if he put the mirror in there and zipped it up, it would never fall out. The suction at his feet grew stronger. Just as he was about to lose his hold, the voices of Tang Qiuqiu and Leng Xianye finally drifted down from above. "A whirlpool?! How... Xin Ye, hang on! We'll pull you up!" He heard his teammates calling, but he wasn't particularly anxious. Unable to speak with the mirror in his mouth, Xin Ye said to Xun Yin in his mind: "You won't let me die." Xun Yin: [That’s true. If you die, what happens to my 'What If' side stories?] This time, it was Xun Yin who made the connection. He remembered what he had written: *The Unceasing Silk told Xing Yue to sleep peacefully; everything would be fine.* [But you still have to work hard. A laborer never slacks off,] he added. The whirlpool was hidden deep underwater and hadn't yet reached the detection range of the Unceasing Silk. Once Tang Qiuqiu and Leng Xianye drew near, the silk determined that Xing Yue was safe to return to her teammates. It automatically unraveled the web, releasing her. The still-sleeping Xing Yue fell straight toward the water. Xin Ye lunged and successfully caught the falling girl, but the massive momentum dragged them both under. This time, Xin Ye had nowhere to hide. He could only hold his breath and watch helplessly as he and Xing Yue were sucked into the depths. The voices of Leng Xianye and Tang Qiuqiu grew faint. Xin Ye saw what looked like a pitch-black hole opening at the bottom of the water, swallowing the surrounding water and stones alike. This was what had caused the whirlpool. "What's down there?" Xin Ye asked. Xun Yin said: [It is the victor's crown of your preliminary rounds.] *** Xing Yue had another dream. It seemed she had returned to her childhood, to the year her ability first awakened. But the dream didn't last long, and she remembered little upon waking. Opening her eyes, she found herself lying on a clean single bed. The sound of typing nearby stopped the moment she woke up. Xin Ye, sitting before a large computer screen, turned around with a look of joy on his face. "You're finally awake. Do you feel unwell anywhere?" "No..." In fact, because she had slept for several days, her mental state was exceptionally good. She got out of bed and walked over to him. "Um, but I am a little hungry. Where are we?" Xin Ye replied, "The underground city of the Flooded City. It’s also the technological center controlled by the butterflies." Xin Ye gave Xing Yue a brief rundown of the past few days and the current state of the competition. As she listened, her brow furrowed deeper. Once he finished, she immediately lowered her head and apologized for failing to keep up with the team. Xin Ye handed her some biscuits and told her not to worry about it. "The entrance closed after we were sucked in. I've already messaged the other three; they'll find another way in. For now, the two of us will explore this place. If we find anything, we'll share it immediately. In case the butterflies have set a trap here that gets us eliminated, they can inherit our progress and keep scoring points." Xing Yue nodded, having no objection to this plan. She turned her gaze to the computer screen Xin Ye had been tinkering with. "You were searching that computer just now. Did you find anything?" "Many documents are locked, and I'm still trying to crack them. One of the decrypted logs seems useful. Take a look." Xin Ye pulled up the document and dragged a swivel chair over, wiping off the dust so she could sit closer. The year on the document was a string of seven digits—clearly a random number generated by the organizers for their fictional world-building—but the date displayed at the bottom right of the computer allowed them to calculate that the entry had been written ten years ago. Xing Yue softly read the contents of the document aloud. "Today is my last day working at this underground research facility. The 'Survivor Project' has been greenlit for activation. I don't know if any Espers will return here years from now, but I still want to record something and leave it behind." "No one could have imagined that this butterfly calamity originated from my workaholic colleague..." *** **Glossary**