The water was so clear on the outside of the bubble you'd think we were in a museum rather than an aquarium.

"Sweetie, no touching the glass," The woman muttered, pulling me out of my trance as I had been hypnotized by the beautiful sight held out on a platter for me.

"S-Sorry, Auntie Ethel,"

The woman seemed pleased that I knew her name already, and as we continued our walk down the palace, I found myself becoming more and more intrigued with this wonderful underwater city.

"This place is gonna be fun,"

First, I was introduced to my room which wasn't as nice as the one Auntie Clio had granted me, but I was thankful for it as the view was amazing.

Plus, this room actually had a balcony which allowed me to look over the entire city if I wanted to.

"Do you want some snacks?" Auntie asked as we finished up the room tour and made our way down another long hallway.

Embarrassingly, I asked her, "C-Can we explore the city?"

"Why be ashamed to ask that?" She chuckled. "Of course, we can visit the city. We have lots of seafood so I hope you like it or can at least stand it,"

"I like seafood," My eyes brightened, but they glowed even more once we stepped out of this massive palace.

This place was so fucking cool that I could barely keep my cool and suppress the drool slowly sliding down my chin.

"Oh, are you that hungry?" Auntie asked as the smell of seafood wafted over to our location.

It might've been a bit too pungent as we walked further and further into the city, but the bustling streets with tons of stores and amazing restaurants really took my mind off of the smell.

"Are you alright?" Auntie asked, presumably because of the smell.

"Auntie, I want to go to one of these restaurants. Not a mighty fine one but something a bit more underground,"

"Underground, you say? Hmmm… I know just the thing," She smiled, but all of a sudden, we were stopped by a few children who had intense looks on their faces.

"We want your autograph!" They all shouted while staring at Auntie, who only continued to smile.

"Of course…" She muttered before taking their little belongings and signing them with a marker that the others had.

Soon, I noticed the attention we had drawn, and everybody couldn't help but stare at the woman who had built this place… the first underwater city in the existence of Earth.

And even in this world's horrible environment that was under those dark and eerie waves, she was able to build something unforgettable.

"Let's pick up the pace, shall we?"

Suddenly, she began to sprint, disappearing like the wind and leaving me in the dust as I quickly began to pick up the pace.

I was running as fast as I could, but as Auntie slowed down to match my speed, I gritted my teeth and attempted to run faster.

Before I knew it my legs were carrying me through this street at an almost unstoppable pace.

This new speed that I acquired from evolution was incredibly good… much better than I initially expected.

"Oh, we're here,"

"Huh?"

BAM

Auntie grabbed onto my collar, breaking my speed immediately and flipping me over, causing me to crash into the ground.

"Ouch…" I rubbed the top of my head as Auntie picked me up and brought me into an alleyway of darkness with a single large man standing at the end of it.

He guarded a large inconspicuous steel door that obviously led to something important.

"Password," He demanded, and Ethel's smile slowly faded.

The man who looked like he was about to press her and kick her out of this alleyway took one more good look at her and…

"F-Forgive me… please proceed," He tried to say professionally, but at the split moment of realization, his eyes nearly popped out of his head.

I couldn't help but chuckle as I followed Ethel through the now-open metal door leading down a flight of dark stairs.

Every now and again we would encounter another guard meant to check out identity and such, but upon seeing who it was, they quickly let her pass.

"How come nobody wants to know who I am? Do children pass by free or something?" I asked Auntie as we continued to clack down these seemingly endless stairs.

"Sweetie, do you know who you're with?" Auntie lightly smiled at me, and just then I came to a certain conclusion.

It might've just been a bit of paranoia, but it always seemed like Auntie's smile was fake, so I guess she just didn't like me.

I didn't have much of a problem with that, but… it was still a bit disappointing.

She might've just been stressed from her work and was extremely tired, so I wouldn't have been in the mood to play around with a child as well.

"A-Auntie… if you don't want to be with me, I can just explore this place on your own. I know you're busy," I pouted, but I didn't really expect the expression that I received as Auntie's fake smile faded and her dead expression sent chills down my spine.

She looked like a battle-hardened veteran who was still traumatized by the war they were just coming back from.

It was almost scary.

"*sigh*... My bad… As expected of Lucy and Mia's child… But I need a break, and it's been a while since I've seen Athena, so don't worry about it,"

Her genuine expression was a bit refreshing to see despite how scary it might've been, but I know all of the leaders of Tolf must've gone through a lot.

I haven't heard many stories from my moms, but I do know that they had some horrible experiences as children and even as they entered their late teens.

"Alright, now, welcome to the second floor of the Ocean City," Ethel announced as one more guard pulled open a metal door, revealing an extravagant dark sight before me.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.