The Kono was dragged by a thick rope to a distance of 20 meters from the stern of the Flying Leaf. A number of kerosene lamps and torches were placed on her deck, so that people could see clearly from the Flying Leaf.

Galadia leaned against the stern of the Flying Leaf and watched Griffith, who was on guard, walking around: "Didn't you say that you can't bring weapons with you on board? ”

Griffith couldn't help but look at the elf's slender figure, hurriedly withdrew his gaze, took out a dagger from his waist and handed it over: "This is for you." ”

"Hmm," Galadia said, taking the weapon, examining the blade, nodding and slipping into her boots.

"Maybe some of the surviving passengers are watching us through the cracks," the elf girl said with a faint grumbling tone, "he's calling for help from us, but we didn't hear it because of his injuries or for some other reason." ”

Griffith looked at the girl and swallowed back what she was about to say.

Such thoughts and thoughts are not uncommon. When Griffith first set foot on the battlefield, he and his companions often had similar thoughts.

"Have you ever seen a familiar friend or relative killed in a battle or accident?" Griffith said.

"No," Galadia shook her head, then asked angrily, "are you trying to say that I don't know?"

"It's not. ”

"And what are you going to say?"

"I'm thinking that it's hard to appreciate the regret of that moment and after that when you haven't lost your cherished person," Griffith's mouth was a little bitter, "I hope you don't have that experience if you can." ”

The elf girl was stunned for a moment, she looked at Griffith, then looked down and thought about it, and nodded as if understanding.

A few seconds passed......

"Who is she?"

"Huh?"

"Is that the girl named Christa?"

“......”

The summer nights were calm as usual. When the warm night breeze blew on their cheeks, for a moment, the two of them almost forgot why they were here on duty.

Steady footsteps came from the deck, and patrolling Lana and Murat came to the stern.

"It's a shift change. Is there anything out of the ordinary?" said Lana, looking at the two of them. When he asked, Murat was always vigilant in the opposite direction.

"The Curno is not moving," replied Galadia, "and the waters are calm. What about you?"

"Some sailors said that there was a noise in the bilge, and someone had been arranged to check it, but nothing was found," said Lana, "and the cadets who were not on duty were concentrated in the cabins on the first deck below deck for the convenience of guards." ”

"Alright, let's go rest for a while," Griffith nodded to his companions and walked with the elves to the cabin. Lana and Murat took their place and continued to be on guard.

"Do you want to go to the bilge?" I'll check with my listening and inspiration," said Galadia, slowly walking down the escalator to the stern, "the situation on the Curno is too weird, and I don't think it's enough to patrol and guard as usual. ”

It doesn't hurt to check it out...... Griffith nodded, picked up a makeshift wooden shield from the side of the deck and headed down.

The two of them first passed by the cabin where the other trainees were resting. Several Shultolar and sailors, armed with daggers and sticks, vigilantly guarded there. The other first-year students at Holmonwards, regardless of their background, all rested on the bunks with the crew.

Further down the cabin is the galley, dining room and luggage storage room. Due to the vigilance, the place was empty.

Griffith walked in front with a wooden shield, occasionally checking to see if Galadia was still following him. The ball of light formed by Sonya's spell still surrounded him brightly, showing no sign of extinction.

The third deck below deck was already below the waterline. From time to time, there was a dull rattling of the sturdy planks, as if they had been squeezed.

It is divided into several compartments, most of which are used to store some barrels and food and groceries to Holmonwards, which can be accessed and loaded and unloaded through several patios that lead to the deck. The oil lamps that have been set up long ago provide good illumination.

As if nothing was out of the ordinary, Griffith cautiously pushed open the doors of the cabins, and the firelight peeked inside.

"Whoa!"

Suddenly there was a sound of treading water under his feet, and Griffith hurriedly looked down. Colorless stagnant water seeped from the floor of a chamber in front of it and had flowed into the passage.

"Griffith. The elf girl who was following behind grabbed his arm, leaned over almost her entire body, and asked uneasily and nervously, "There is stagnant water here!"

For sailboats sailing on the sea, bilge water seepage is not unusual. The timber that makes up the hull of a ship expands when exposed to water, so there are gaps between the timbers when building a ship.

"It's not surprising that the sailboat seeped water. If there is no gap in advance, the swollen planks will be deformed," Griffith explained indifferently, "and I used to vomit in such a damp place when I used to travel to the East on a Navy transport. ”

"But our people's sailboats do not seep into water," the elf shook his head, "and though our ships are more beautiful and delicate, they are also made of wood. ”

Is there no water seepage because the elven ship has the enclosed effect of magic or special materials?The Flying Leaf of Hormonwarts has been blessed with a rapid and steady spell, and the whole can be seen as a huge enchanted item. Supposedly, there should be a similar effect, then there will still be water seepage......

Don't!

Griffith's hair stood on end. He cast his gaze on the seeping cabin, clenched his dagger and his shield in hand, and gently pushed the hatch down.

"Wow~"

The hatch made a tooth-tickling sound, and the open slit allowed a soft glow to illuminate the small space.

The light of the lighting dangled in the standing water on the ground. Griffith looked inside, but didn't see danger in sight. However, the ball of light that guarded the spell suddenly dimmed, as if it had been covered with a thin veil.

The midshipman quickly looked up overhead, the low deck did not hide the enemy.

If anything was hiding in the cabin, the only place it could hide right now was the small space behind the door.

Griffith turned his head to look at the elf standing to the side, nodded at her, and slammed it hard against the hatch.

The hatch hit something, and there was no sound. At the same time, the ball of light floating in the cabin of the ship glowed with green and black shades as if it had been splashed with paint, and began to disintegrate rapidly.

Galadia's pointed ears stood up. She could clearly see that the hatch that Griffith had knocked open was not clinging to the wall.

Something in the back!something that could hide the aura and contaminate the guardian charm!Griffith realized the problem at the same time, and he raised his blade and stabbed it towards the hatch.

The dagger pierced the wooden hatch, and there was a strange feel. Before Griffith could figure out what it was like, a huge force bounced from behind the door, pushing the wooden door and smashing it in his face.

The apprentice knight didn't expect such a huge force to erupt in such a narrow space, and he was hit in the face and fell to the ground.

"Ah!!h

At that moment, Galadia, who was standing nearby, let out a scream, grabbed Griffith and dragged him towards the stairs.

Stunned by the shot, Griffith heard only the tearing sound of whips whipping through the air, the loud crash and shattering sound all around.

The familiar viscous liquid flows into the mouth. Griffith recognized it as blood from his forehead and nose.

Galadia didn't know where she got the strength, and dragged her dazed companion like a gust of wind into the corner of the stairs, leaving only a blurry vision for Griffith—

Numerous thick shadows broke through the wooden doors of the chambers, like tentacles and worms, waving wildly and twisted in the narrow passages.

Frightened by the madness, Griffith couldn't comprehend what he was seeing. Unrecognizable whispers whistled through his brain. Fear, timidity, and confusion all mixed together, and he lost the ability to think.

If it weren't for Galadia dragging him, Griffith wouldn't even be able to move.

......

The Flying Leaf was in disarray, and screams of terror were heard everywhere. At the same time, the guards in various places were attacked.

"Griffiths, hold on. ”

A soft, frightened voice rang in my ears. Immediately afterwards, two different flavors of liquid are poured into the mouth.

"Ahem, ahem!" Griffith came to his senses and found that Sonia was looking at him with concern, and his head resting on the girl's lap.

"What happened to me?" Griffith, who regained consciousness, sat up like a spring, "What's going on now?"

"You've fainted," Sonya's face turned pale, "the Flying Leaf is being attacked by monsters, and the Professor and everyone have just sealed the hatch. ”

Beside the two of them, Galadia and several other Shultolars were armed at the hatch at either end. Several boys, armed with wands and tables and chairs, shivered as they stared at the wooden hatch.

The twin boys they met in the old book house were also on the boat, and they hugged each other and screamed at the same time in the same tone:

"What the hell is this? (How did it come out!)

"They're coming in!" (We're almost finished!)"

The sound of chaos came and went.

"Lana, where is Lana?"

"Lady Marianne, we need support!"

All of them had frightened expressions, and several of the freshmen collapsed to the ground, drooling from the corners of their mouths, unconscious like Griffith.

"Calm, composed," shouted the dignified Provost, Lady Marianne, with her wand in hand, "we have closed the door and it can't get in." The professors of Holmonwaltz and the royal fleet will arrive soon. ”

Listening to Ms. Marianne's words, there was a little silence in the noisy cabin.

At that moment, a series of screams and angry shouts were suddenly heard from the deck overhead, followed by the loud sound of heavy objects hitting the deck, as if a giant had used the deck of the Flying Leaf as a drum to beat it hard. Immediately afterwards, the doors at both ends of the cabin were knocked up.

The freshmen, who had just calmed down a little, screamed again.

Griffith grabbed a torch and prepared to rush to the hatch. At this time, there was a slight tug on his waist, and he hurriedly turned his head to look, only to see Sonya's eyes wide, pointing to the wall on one side, and saying in a trembling voice:

"That, there. ”

Griffith hurriedly turned his head to look, and instantly understood why the Kono's hatch showed no signs of breakage.

There was a tiny gap in the closed porthole, and a twisted, dead-gray mass of mollusk-like tentacles was squeezing in little by little through the gap, then rapidly expanding and swollen.

"Ahh

Several of the freshmen screamed together at the horrific sight, and several of them fainted to the ground.

Before Griffith and the others could rush over and chop the thing up, more tentacles wriggled through the hatches, portholes, ceilings, and gaps in the deck, popping out as if they had grown out of wood, twisting and twisting in the cabin.

One of the tentacles slowly approached Fiona, who was stunned, as if observing something, swaying from side to side less than a meter in front of the girl.

Still worried about Lana's safety, Fiona, who usually likes to read adventure stories and is bold enough, trembles like a morning alarm clock. Fisher, a freshman beside her, poked his disgusting tentacles with his wand. The thing immediately shrank back.

"Hehe!" Fisher's already frightened face showed a terrible grin, "this thing ......"

Before he could finish his sentence, the swollen dead gray tentacles swooped in, splitting the slippery skin and opening six petals like a flower. Inside the cracked tentacles, there were layers of fangs and a huge bottomless mouthpart filled with the stench of corpses.

Fisher was so frightened that he fell to the ground, and his fanged mouthparts pounced on Fiona like a foraging viper.

Griffith swooped in and pulled Fiona away, facing her open mouthparts and inserting the lit torch into it.

The tentacles twitched immediately, and the open six-petaled limbs danced like epileptic patients. Immediately after, the tentacles exploded with a "boom", and the flying slime and bone fragments covered Griffith.

"Fight back!" Griffith, recovering from the confusion and vertigo, raised his axe and shouted, "Bayeran—Wan Sheng!"

“Hurrah!”

The trainee knights, almost petrified by the sight, instinctively roared in unison. Although they were not many in number, the battle cry that they uttered at the same time was like the momentum of hundreds of sergeants. Lady Marianne, the teaching assistant, and a few brave freshmen who were using a spell to fend off the tentacle attack were all shocked, and the magic gathered on the wand vanished in an instant. However, those new students who did not cast the spell felt refreshed and had the courage to resist.

Exuberant blood qi stirred in the confined space, and the tentacles of the opener shrank back as if they had hit an invisible wall.

Galadia felt that she saw the familiar scene again, and immediately put away her useless wand and stepped aside. The midshipmen immediately gathered around Griffith, brandishing their weapons and slashing at the wriggling tentacles.

"Lady Marianne, please cover up and follow us," Griffith cleaved a tentacle and turned to the somewhat dazed professor and shouted, "Everyone, follow!"

It's not always safe on deck, but it's better than staying in this cabin surrounded by tentacles from top to bottom. Relying on the effect of the battle cry, nearly a hundred cadets ran towards the upper deck together.

Countless swollen, twisted, dead-gray tentacles had enveloped the Flying Leaf. They writhe wildly in crevices, or spread their disgusting mouthparts in voracious feed.