Chapter 79: Song of the Deep (6)
"Two duty crew members disappeared last night, and the news is still being suppressed," Qin Mubai said briefly.
The ship had surveillance in public areas, but no useful information had emerged so far.
"Did they disappear in a blind spot or was it something the cameras couldn’t capture?" Ye Nianchu asked.
Seeing her confusion, Qin Mubai continued, "The ship’s equipment malfunctioned, so there was no surveillance from eleven o'clock last night until four this morning."
Equipment failure.
"Everyone fell into a deep sleep."
Ye Nianchu placed her phone back on the desk. At sea, there was no phone signal, and the ship’s wireless connection had been intermittent.
"Last night, did you also sleep deeply?" Ye Nianchu inquired.
Qin Mubai nodded.
If even he was affected by unknown forces, the same could be true for others.
Waking up to a disappearance, no one could guarantee they wouldn’t be next.
"Is the issue with the ship or the sea?"
Regardless of the cause, they couldn't afford to fall back to sleep tonight.
During the day, nothing unusual happened. To avoid panic, the disappearance was kept secret from the tourists.
The tourists were unaware of any trouble. At dinner time, the restaurants were crowded, and the free ones were fully booked.
The sea breeze was strong at night, and clouds covered the stars.
In the distance, a thin layer of mist over the sea created a dreamlike, beautiful scene.
"Ah! What’s wrong with you?" An angry female voice came from the side.
Ye Nianchu turned to see a waitress who had accidentally spilled coffee on a long-haired girl who looked familiar.
It was the player from the conch stand.
The waitress, snapping out of her daze, kept apologizing. The girl threw the cup on the table and argued until the manager exempted them from the bill.
The waitress, tidying up the table, moved with a distracted, wooden manner.
A faint green flash appeared in her eyes.
Ye Nianchu’s hand holding the coffee cup paused.
She wasn’t sure if she’d seen it correctly and couldn’t rule out the possibility of light reflections.
But something was definitely wrong with this person’s mental state.
Qin Mubai, who had also noticed, said calmly, "Sister, let’s go back."
"Uh, okay."
Ye Nianchu stood up.
It was getting late, and since the equipment failure occurred at eleven, it was better to return to the room early.
Back in the room, they used the balcony’s excellent view to observe outside.
It was ten forty.
The fog on the sea had thickened, making it hard to see the surface.
The noise from the surroundings had faded into stillness.
Only the distant sound of the waves remained.
Tourists had returned to their rooms.
At this time, the cruise ship, usually brightly lit, was unusually quiet.
No one seemed to notice anything amiss.
Everyone accepted returning to their rooms to sleep as normal.
In the wind and waves, there were subtle, intermittent sounds.
It was like a beautiful song drifting from afar or a whisper close by.
Ye Nianchu closed her eyes, feeling a wave of drowsiness.
It seemed like it was time to sleep.
Without realizing it, she stood up.
A splash of water was heard.
A dark shadow emerged from the misty sea, and the splash quickly disappeared into the vast ocean.