Chapter 126: The All-Devouring Narwhal
Inside the Opera Epiclese, the audience's simmering anxiety erupted into full-blown panic. The news from the Fortress of Meropide, coupled with the grim certainty that the prophecy was on the verge of fulfillment, had already frayed their nerves. The sudden, violent tremor was the final straw. A wave of screams and scraping chairs filled the grand hall as people scrambled for the exits, their terror a tangible force.
The children were caught completely off guard by the earthquake. For a terrifying moment, the illusion of the game shattered, and raw, primal fear took over. They flinched, their small bodies tensing for a disaster they couldn't comprehend.
Fortunately, the panic was short-lived. Their wits returned, bolstered by lessons on how to handle earthquakes. With Ran Mouri and Natsume there, offering steady hands and calming words, their frantic energy subsided, replaced by a wide-eyed, cautious calm.
Seeing the children's fear recede, Natsume and Ran exchanged a look of shared relief. Only then did they allow themselves to take a proper look at the unfolding chaos.
Suddenly, Genta's voice, sharp with alarm, cut through the din. He pointed a trembling finger at the auditorium floor. "Everyone, look! The floor—it's cracking!"
Emori Tatsuya's voice quivered. "That's a huge crack… We're not going to fall in, are we?!"
His words sent a fresh wave of fear through Kikukawa Seijiro. "What do we do? It's so deep! It would hurt so much if we fell!"
"Wow… so pretty!" Ayumi's exclamation was a stark contrast to the others' terror. She was pointing directly at the newly formed chasm.
Everyone followed her gaze. From the depths of the fissure, a creature was ascending. It was immense, shaped like a whale, with skin patterned in strange, ethereal blues and horns gracing its colossal head. It swam through the air as if it were water, a being of impossible grace and scale.
After a moment of stunned silence, Haibara nodded, her analytical mind concurring with Ayumi's simple assessment. It was, objectively, beautiful. 'Though it would be much better if it were smaller,' she thought dryly.
Conan, however, was internally screaming.
What is this now?! Why does this game never give you a proper briefing! A cold sweat traced a path down his spine. And a "whale" this massive… Don't tell me we're supposed to fight that thing! Even if Natsume is a skilled fighter, there's no way she could take on something like that, right?!
Thankfully, his worst-case scenario did not come to pass. The game, it seemed, wasn't so heartless as to pit a few children against the monstrous creature now identified as the All-Devouring Narwhal.
The whale-like being circled once through the vast space above the opera house, its movements fluid and strangely silent. Then, as if sensing a target, it banked sharply and charged directly toward the stage.
"Watch out—!" a collective gasp went through the group. Their eyes snapped to Neuvillette, who still stood at the center of the stage, directly in the creature's path.
"Whoa…"
They had braced for disaster, but the scene that followed left them utterly dumbfounded.
In a movement too quick to follow, Neuvillette leaped from his high seat. With a commanding wave of his hand, a swarm of brilliant blue orbs of light materialized around the Narwhal. They struck its flank in a silent barrage, but to their dismay, they seemed to inflict no significant damage. The creature's charge didn't slow in the slightest.
Neuvillette remained unnervingly calm in the face of the oncoming behemoth. He extended his left hand, and a complex, glowing blue sigil—a magic circle of pure water—materialized in the air before him, ready to intercept the attack.
By now, the audience had completely evacuated. Aside from Focalors and Neuvillette, only Natsume's small group remained, transfixed by the spectacle. The raw display of power left Conan and the others stunned into silence.
Ayumi's eyes were sparkling with pure awe. "So amazing!"
"What were those blue orbs of light?" Mitsuhiko wondered aloud, his scientific curiosity piqued.
"I'm more interested in what that whale is," Haibara countered, her gaze sharp and analytical.
Even Emori and Kikukawa were captivated by Neuvillette's valiant stand, their earlier fear forgotten. "So, Neuvillette must be the Hydro Archon, right…?" they murmured to each other.
Moroboshi Hideki gave a rare nod of approval. "He is… quite cool," he admitted, a grudging respect in his tone. It seemed that even the privileged heirs of Japan's elite weren't immune to such a dazzling display of power.
Hearing the others' speculation and noting Neuvillette's exclusive use of water-based attacks, Conan felt his own suspicion solidifying. The evidence pointing to Neuvillette being the Hydro Archon was mounting.
And yet, a part of him remained skeptical. Based on their earlier conversations, Neuvillette didn't seem to understand the prophecy—or at least, not as deeply as Focalors did. That made it less likely he was the true Archon. 'But as expected of a being who can live for five hundred years,'Conan mused,'he was hiding his true strength all along.'
The battle raged. After several exchanges, the two combatants reached a stalemate. Neuvillette couldn't seem to land a decisive blow on the Narwhal, but the creature, in turn, could not breach his defenses. Finally, with a flick of its massive tail, the Narwhal retreated, disappearing back into the fissure and leaving behind a gaping wound in the opera house floor that looked like a gateway to the abyss.
With the immediate danger gone, the children's curiosity surged. If Natsume and Ran hadn't moved quickly to hold them back, they would have rushed right to the edge of the chasm to peer inside.
Seeing that Genta and the others were safely restrained, Conan approached Neuvillette, adopting his most innocent, childish voice. "Mr. Neuvillette, you were so amazing just now! Do you know what that whale was?"
Neuvillette turned, his expression as placid as ever, and gave them a brief explanation.
The creature was called the All-Devouring Narwhal, and it was not of this world. It greedily consumed the energy of the Primordial Sea—which, he revealed, was the very reason the sea level in Fontaine was rising.
The Primordial Sea? The people of Fontaine?
Conan's head snapped up. The pieces clicked into place with horrifying clarity. The Narwhal's target was the people of Fontaine, who carried the essence of the Primordial Sea within them. It was also the direct cause of the rising waters. This creature… it was the source of the catastrophe foretold in the prophecy.
A muscle in Conan's jaw twitched. The game's objective was to resolve the prophecy crisis. Don't tell me, he thought with a sinking heart, that they expect this group of kids, plus two adults, to fight a monster of that magnitude?
The same dreadful realization dawned on the others. Moroboshi was the first to voice their despair, his voice a low, angry growl. "Did that 'Noah's Ark' ever intend for us to clear this game? Who could possibly be a match for a monster like that?!"
"Everyone, don't get discouraged. There has to be a way," Conan said, though his words were more for his own benefit. He looked up at Neuvillette, his eyes sharp with inquiry. "Mr. Neuvillette, who exactly are you? Can you deal with that All-Devouring Narwhal?"
To their collective disappointment, Neuvillette did not answer the question. He simply shook his head.
"Then what about the Hydro Archon?" Ran interjected, her voice laced with worry. "Focalors is a human, so there must be a real Hydro Archon somewhere. Would she have a solution?"
Ran had been concerned for Focalors ever since the judgment was passed. Even as the situation escalated, she had kept an eye on the dejected figure on the throne. Seeing that Focalors had remained seated with her head bowed, seemingly unharmed, had been a small relief. Now, she was the first to think of her as a potential source of answers.
It made perfect sense. At Ran's suggestion, everyone turned toward the throne, ready to press Focalors for any information she might have.
But before a single word could be spoken, the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale, which had been silent until now, began to glow with an ominous light.
Oh no. The death sentence is about to be carried out…
The thought struck Conan, Natsume, and Moroboshi at the exact same instant. There was no time to explain. They broke into a desperate sprint, racing toward Focalors's position on the stage.
They were a step too late.
Just as they were about to reach her side, a wave of pure darkness slammed into them…
Meanwhile, Haibara, Mitsuhiko, Ayumi, Genta, Kikukawa, and Emori, who had remained with Neuvillette below the stage, witnessed something entirely different. Where the others were consumed by shadow, they saw only a blinding, intense burst of brilliant blue light…
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