At dawn, the vast, boundless sea was swept by the ocean wind.
Belle blinked her deep blue eyes, wrapped her clothes tightly around herself, and slowly pressed forward through the air—her figure now so weary it seemed barely able to stay aloft.
She had flown for a full day and night without seeing land; her spiritual power was nearly spent, and her speed had slowed to a crawl, kept airborne only by sheer willpower.
By now, all she had left was a stubborn resolve.
"Don't give up, don't give up. I absolutely cannot fall here." She repeated this to herself, over and over.
After a long while, as her consciousness began to blur, she finally caught sight of birds circling in the sky.
The sight instantly revived her spirit.
Where there are birds, there must be land. Maybe Blossom Mountain was finally near!
Summoning the last trace of her spiritual power, she forced herself onward, gliding slowly above the waves.
At last, swaying and barely steady, she reached the place where the birds circled...
"What is this?" She stared helplessly, on the verge of tears.
It seemed she was lost.
This wasn't land, nor even an island or a reef. It was a solitary, wounded whale adrift on the sea, letting out faint, mournful cries—its life clearly slipping away.
The whole surface of the sea was stained with its dark red blood.
"At least there's somewhere to land, right?" Belle took two deep breaths, quietly encouraging herself. She carefully settled onto the whale's back, but nearly tumbled into the ocean all the same.
The seabirds that had been perched on the whale scattered in fright.
After finally steadying herself, she walked step by step to the whale's eye.
Those eyes, almost human, gazed at her helplessly.
"I'm sorry, I can't save you either." Belle bit her lip and looked at the whale, just as helpless.
The whale seemed to understand, spraying a column of water that fell as sparkling droplets, like a gentle rain.
She gazed helplessly at the rain-like spray, staring for a long time. Her eyes reddened as she looked down at the whale and sighed, "I can't save you, but you saved me."
With her abilities, there was simply no way she could save this whale. Though the journey hadn't been truly perilous, Belle had learned much. For things she simply couldn't help, the only solution was to try not to think about them.
She took out her compass and began to search for her bearings again.
In Crescent Star Cave, she had learned to read the stars well. Unfortunately, these past days at sea had been nothing but drizzle and gloom; she couldn't see a single star, and so couldn't determine her position.
After fiddling with the compass for a long time, Belle finally found her approximate direction. But her spiritual power was utterly depleted; to fully recover would take at least three or five days. Even just enough to use Wind-riding Technique would require a full day and night.
Could she really set out again with only a partial recovery, here on the open sea?
Putting away the compass, she bowed her head and murmured words of comfort to the whale—though they sounded more like she was talking to herself, filled with confusion, helplessness, and the last bit of resolve.
Gradually, drowsiness overcame her, and she drifted off to sleep.
Under the clear sky, on the boundless sea, a girl nestled beside a dying whale, quietly keeping it company.
The scent of blood spread with the current, quickly attracting a large swarm of sharks.