Rogel took a deep breath and let the octopus clone enter the cave to explore.
The caves under the sea are almost always filled with seawater, entering rashly could easily lead to losing direction and getting trapped inside.
As an aquatic creature, the octopus clone has no such concerns.
The octopus clone made its way along the path of the cave.
The pitch-black cave was somewhat narrow, just enough for one person to crawl through. If Rogel were to enter, he might find himself in an awkward situation where he couldn't turn around.
This thought made Rogel feel a chill down his spine.
Just how brave was Holly, to dare to venture into such a deep, terrifying, and seemingly endless underwater cave? Would any normal person dare to do this?
If one exhausted their supply of oxygen inside, even turning around would be difficult.
How much courage must this require?
Or was Holly simply courting death?
With these doubts in mind, Rogel watched the screen intently.
If Holly had perished inside the cave, the octopus clone would likely discover her remains.
However, up to that point, Rogel hadn't found anything.
This seemed to be just an ordinary underwater cave.
But before long, the waterway before the octopus clone came to an end, revealing a pitch-black cave ahead!
This discovery left Rogel quite surprised.
After having the octopus clone stay in place, Rogel surfaced and looked toward Old Nelson on the shore.
[I found it.]
Rogel then informed Old Nelson about the situation inside the sea cave.
Upon hearing this, Old Nelson became a bit agitated.
[Holly must be inside!]
[She must be inside…]
At this point, Old Nelson's initial excitement faded, and his voice turned somber, as he realized that even if they found the cave Holly mentioned, she couldn't possibly still be alive.
For a moment, Old Nelson was a bit lost.
He soon adjusted his clothes, took a deep breath, and with a small package in hand, walked toward the sea with determined steps.
Seeing this, Rogel frowned slightly, trying to convince Old Nelson to stay on the shore while he went to search.
But Old Nelson was exceptionally resolute.
[Let me go down, child, this is important, more important than life itself.]
[I've waited a long time for this day.]
Seeing this, Rogel remained silent for a moment and no longer objected.
For Old Nelson, losing his beloved was always a lingering regret.
Switching back to the true perspective, Rogel looked at the old man before him and smiled.
"Old Sailor, can you manage it?"
Old Nelson walked faster toward the sea, seemingly driven by an inexplicable force.
"Lead the way!"
With a splash!
Old Nelson leaped into the sea, quickly heading toward the seabed.
Rogel, seeing this, restrained his smile, breathed in, and swiftly moved ahead of Old Nelson to lead the way.
Upon entering the true perspective, Rogel acquired all the skills of the game character and used them instinctively.
Thus, even though Rogel had hardly ever dived before, he moved with apparent ease.
At the entrance of the sea cave, Rogel gestured to Old Nelson, letting him go first.
This way, if Old Nelson couldn't make it, Rogel could provide assistance in time.
Old Nelson did not refuse, his sole focus was to find Holly as soon as possible.
The elderly man and the young man continued along the sea cave.
Despite his rich experience, Old Nelson was ultimately weakened by age.
After a while of advancing, Rogel clearly noticed that Old Nelson's pace had slowed.
However, thankfully, Old Nelson managed to push through and reach the end of the path.
Splash!
Breaking through the water's surface at the cave entrance, Old Nelson gasped for air and then collapsed to the edge, coughing violently.
Rogel gently patted his back.
Before long, Old Nelson finally recovered.
With a slightly trembling hand, he opened the package and took out a round pearl.
As the fabric of the package was lifted, a soft glimmer illuminated the surroundings.
"A Luminous Pearl?"
Rogel was somewhat surprised.
Old Nelson wiped the seawater off his face and shook his head. "What Luminous Pearl, this is called a Pearl Lamp."
"You probably know about lanternfish in the deep sea, the Pearl Lamp is taken from the head of a similar fish, the Pearl Fish."
After saying this, Old Nelson began to examine the surroundings using the glow of the Pearl Lamp.
Soon after, Old Nelson quickly walked to a corner.
On the ground lay a pattern resembling a lollipop, seemingly carved with a stone chip or something similar.
"This was left by Holly!"
Old Nelson said in a serious tone.
It was Holly who drew this. In their youth, they often left this symbol in certain places, signifying that they had been there.
He would never forget this symbol.
Old Nelson did not speak to Rogel, focusing intently on examining the surroundings with the Pearl Lamp, searching for traces of Holly.
As they ventured further in, the cave began to slope downward.
At this point, the temperature became even colder.
Old Nelson's health was not good to begin with. After spending quite some time in the seawater, he was now shivering from the cold.
Rogel inquired seeing this, but Old Nelson just waved his hand.
Having entered the cave, how could he stop at this moment?
Rogel silently agreed.
It seemed Old Nelson wouldn't rest until he found Holly, even if it meant risking his life.
After advancing for a while longer, they found another mark that Holly had left.
Meanwhile, strange sounds emerged from an unknown source.
The sound was faint, resembling something flapping its wings.
But Old Nelson, as if he hadn't heard a thing, concentrated on his search for Holly.
Soon the cave ahead began to narrow.
Finally, they stopped at a small opening, where a rope was fixed, nearly rotted through. The other end dangled inside, as if someone had gone down it.
As expected, there was still a symbol carved with stone before the opening.
"What a crazy old lady..."
Old Nelson muttered to himself, pulling out a new rope and tying it around his waist, then looked at Rogel.
Rogel, naturally, didn't want Old Nelson to take the lead since it was dangerous.
However, Old Nelson's stern stance stopped him.
"Rogel, you're a good kid. Thank you for bringing me here, but I need to take the next steps alone."
Old Nelson placed both legs into the opening, pausing momentarily.
"...If you can, I'd like you to take care of a few sunflowers for me."
After saying this, Old Nelson's figure disappeared through the opening.
Despite the seriousness and sadness of the scene, a question unavoidably popped into Rogel's mind.
What about your granddaughter, Lina?
Rogel fell into contemplation.
One woman placed adventure above life and family, and one man placed love over life and family...
It seemed there was indeed a reason this old couple could come together...
As Rogel pondered, a sudden terrified shout from Old Nelson rose from below the cave opening.