Extra's POV: My Obsessive Villainous Fiancee Is The Game's Final Boss-Chapter 265: The Truth In The Quiet

"What?"

Silence filled the air.

The only sound came from the waves as they sloshed around the hull of the Lady Rill.

Zuzu stared at Ren, eyes wide and her heart hammering in her chest like it was trying to escape.

"What do you—"

Ren turned slightly, resting his elbows on his knees. "You're not yet an adult Tidecaller."

Zuzu froze.

How did he know?!

She looked away from him, trying to figure out what he was going to do. Would he send her back home? But she was already here!

She said nothing, her eyes locked on the gentle churn of the water before the boat.

"You haven't taken part in a war yet." Ren added, his voice quiet, not accusing. "You haven't passed the Rite."

Still, she didn't look at him. Her hands clenched tighter around the water rope she used to steer.

"Why did you still let me come?" She asked at last, the words small, sharp, like broken shell edges.

Ren leaned back. "Because I like rule breakers."

She blinked. That wasn't what she expected.

"You knew I lied."

"I knew you weren't what you claimed." He said. "But you didn't lie. You just left things out. There's a difference. And besides, Thorn likes you."

Zuzu turned finally, eyebrows high. "Thorn likes me?"

Ren nodded. "He does. For someone who finds most people annoying, that's rare. He's never found anyone more annoying than he is."

She snorted. "He probably just likes arguing."

"Maybe. But he also doesn't try that hard with people who don't matter to him. He tries with you."

Zuzu folded her arms. "So that's it? Thorn likes me and you like rule breakers? Those are the credentials needed for this suicide mission?"

Ren grinned. "Also, you remind me of myself. When I was ten."

Zuzu gave him a long, slow stare. "You're joking."

He shook his head.

Her expression twisted with disbelief. "Ten? You're now much older than that, right?"

He didn't answer.

Zuzu squinted as if she was seeing him for the first time. "Wait… I'm seventeen."

Still, silence.

Her eyes widened. "No. No way. You're younger than me?"

Ren gave the faintest of smiles, turning his gaze out to sea.

Zuzu leaned back, stunned. "Oh, this is amazing. I'm older. I'm older than the team leader. I have seniority now."

"Should I be the one giving orders? Should we swap spots? Do I get to decide bedtime?"

She continued, clearly enjoying herself, until the air suddenly shifted.

The temperature dropped.

Zuzu felt it first as a tingle in her spine, then as a cold, cloying weight that pressed down on her shoulders. The hairs on her arms rose. Her smile died.

She turned slowly.

Lilith was awake.

The pale woman sat at the prow where she had previously been sleeping. Her eyes were open now, red and glowing faintly in the dark, locked entirely on Zuzu.

And Zuzu flinched. Her heart went haywire.

This was the stare of a predator. A killer.

Ren stood immediately and crossed to her. "Lilith. Hey."

Lilith didn't speak. Her eyes followed Zuzu as Ren approached her, gently touching her wrist. "It's okay." He said softly.

Her gaze flicked to him, some of the pressure lifting.

"You were sleeping." He said. "Do you want to go back to sleep?"

She shook her head, her voice soft and clipped. "No. I want you to join me."

Ren chuckled. "I'm on watch."

Lilith tilted her head slightly, eyes narrowing just a bit. "Watch can wait."

"Not really." He said gently. "Monsters don't exactly knock and announce themselves, do they?"

She moved closer to him, her fingers brushing against his arm. "Then make someone else watch. Come sleep. With me."

Zuzu felt the chill crawl up her spine again, even though her eyes were firmly on the water ahead. As if Lilith had glanced at her again.

Ren sighed. "How about this? You stay up with me. We keep watch together. When morning comes, we both sleep."

Lilith blinked slowly. Then nodded, curling beside him like a cat.

They sat like that in silence.

From the front of the boat, Zuzu cleared her throat. "Hate to interrupt…"

Ren and Lilith turned.

"…But we're entering the Reaching Fingers."

Ren stood. "Already?"

Zuzu nodded, pointing ahead.

In the distance, barely seen by the light of the moon, tall jagged stone columns jutted out from the sea like the fingers of a god reaching toward the heavens.

Elias stirred at the loud conversation, sitting up straighter. Thorn cracked one eye open.

"What are the Reaching Fingers?" He asked.

"A network of stone towers. Hundreds of them. Some thin, some thick. All rising straight from the ocean. Natural formations, but massive."

"Nobody knows how deep they go. Some say they were once the legs of a sleeping god. Others say they're the ribs of a dead sea dragon."

Ren leaned forward, narrowing his eyes. He could already see the vague shapes in the distance, dark spires breaking the line between sea and sky.

"And that's bad." Zuzu added. "Because there's a storm coming."

Lilith's head turned. Elias stood fully now.

"You're sure?" Elias asked.

Zuzu nodded. "I can feel the water pulling strangely. The currents are twisting. There's a pressure in the sea that wasn't there an hour ago. The Reaching Fingers amplify it."

She paused.

"If we get caught between them in high winds, we might not make it out."

Thorn groaned. "Of course. Because sailing peacefully would be boring."

Ren frowned. "Can we skirt the edge of it? Ride wide around the formation?"

Zuzu chewed her lip. "Not really. The Fingers stretch for miles. The only safe path is straight through. But we have to move fast. If the wind picks up, we're trapped."

Ren looked to the others. "Then we move. Now. Double check everything. Secure all crates. No sleeping until we pass the Fingers."

Elias was already adjusting the barrels. Thorn stumbled upright, muttering complaints as he tied extra rope to the netting.

Lilith returned to the prow, now fully awake and silent.

Zuzu gripped the water rope with her palms, redirecting the current with more control. Her eyes narrowed as she focused.

Ren stood beside her.

"Still think I'm too young?" She asked quietly, not looking at him.

He smiled faintly. "I never said you were too young. But you're still untested. There's a difference. Fortunately for you…"

He gestured around them, a grin appearing on his face.

Zuzu said nothing.

And behind them, the sky began to darken.

Then, Thorn spoke.

"Wait a minute."

Everyone turned to him.

"Why don't we just turn around and wait out the storm?"