The Eagle’s Memories and a Dark Resolve

In an instant, scenes under the moonlight flashed through her mind like film reels.

The moment her gaze met those golden eyes, Ming Yu could no longer suppress the surging inferno within her heart.

Her pupils abruptly dilated, and a fierce, chilling killing intent erupted, soaring skyward.

The sea eagle seemed startled by the sharp glint in her eyes. It frantically flapped its weary wings, desperate to escape the human’s gaze.

Before the sea eagle could fully spread its wings, Ming Yu’s hand had already seized its nape. Her gaze, sharp as a blade, locked onto its dark golden eagle eyes.

Suddenly, Ming Yu frowned slightly.

Another series of images flashed through her mind.

This was…

****

The last flock of white-feathered sea eagles resided on an archipelago.

Though the islands were not vast, they represented a precious land resource in the boundless ocean, thus attracting numerous terrestrial creatures to inhabit them.

Curiously, sea beasts were rarely seen near the archipelago.

Wanderers, weary from the harsh ocean, gathered there. They began to approach the sea eagles, hoping to domesticate them into superior hunting tools.

Consequently, the blood of untamed, free wings stained the sky.

Only those sea eagles willing to submit and obey were allowed to survive.

Yet, the lineage of freedom still flowed, and newborn eaglets invariably harbored soaring ambitions.

The domestication process repeated for several years, until nearly all the new generation of sea eagles had forgotten their flock’s former glory.

Except for one.

The proud, white-feathered sea eagle broke free from its cage. Dragging its scarred body, it soared across the sky, vanishing beyond the horizon.

Ming Yu savored the images that surfaced in her mind as if she were experiencing them firsthand. Scenes of life-and-death flickered in rapid succession.

She slowly eased the pressure from her hand, the coldness in her eyes gradually receding.

A perplexing question, utterly beyond comprehension, settled in her mind.

‘Those images just now… what were they?’

Ming Yu blinked in confusion, bringing the white-feathered sea eagle closer.

Just as she was about to examine it carefully, her expression subtly shifted.

The white-feathered sea eagle stretched its neck, its sharp beak thrusting directly towards her.

Had it been an ordinary person, caught off guard, a hit to the vital eye area could have instantly caused blindness.

Regrettably, Ming Yu was no ordinary person.

Effortlessly, she tilted her head, evading the sudden attack.

Then, she exerted more force, her slender, pale fingers clamping down like an iron cage, firmly imprisoning the white-feathered sea eagle in her palm.

No matter how it struggled or cried out, she did not loosen her grip.

Ming Yu glared at the white-feathered sea eagle, but to her surprise, her warning only incited its ferocity. Its struggles intensified severalfold.

Meeting its dark golden eagle eyes, Ming Yu was suddenly taken aback once more.

‘I can, it seems, understand what this creature is squawking about…’

‘You want me to let go, do you…?’

‘Hm, no, I won’t.’

Ming Yu regarded the sea eagle as if she had found a peculiar new toy. She curiously examined its white wings, the corners of her eyes subtly upturned, a faint curve playing on her lips.

After struggling fiercely for a while, the white-feathered sea eagle seemed to accept its predicament. It understood that it could not escape her grasp and thus ceased its struggles, yet still held its neck stiffly, staring intently at the crimson pupils before it.

Seeing this, Ming Yu loosened her grip slightly, finding herself rather amused.

“You’re quite an interesting one, aren’t you…”

She extended her index finger towards its beak, only to retract it the instant the bird lunged. She repeated this motion, idly passing the time.

After playing with it for a while, another unfamiliar scene flashed through Ming Yu’s mind.

This time, the primary viewpoint plummeted rapidly, the image quickly zooming in, much like a seabird’s fishing dive.

She suddenly realized something, her expression subtly hardening.

‘Could the images that flashed through my mind earlier be the white eagle’s own observations and experiences?’

‘This…’

‘It feels a bit far-fetched…’

Ming Yu had always been a firm believer in science, never crediting supernatural occurrences.

Yet this time, with such an anomaly before her, she found herself unable to conceive of any rational explanation.

With a new focus, she continued to stare into those dark golden eagle eyes.

Images of eagles soaring through the sky surfaced repeatedly in her mind, confirming her hypothesis again and again.

She could read the memories of this white eagle.

Although the images were fragmented and chaotic, the information they conveyed was remarkably clear.

Ming Yu was utterly astonished, scrutinizing the white-feathered sea eagle in her hands, yet finding nothing particularly unusual about it.

‘It’s merely a somewhat rare, bipedal seabird.’

‘Could the issue lie with me instead?’

When Ming Yu attempted to close her eyes, the images in her mind swiftly faded, leaving only the acquired information etched into her memory.

‘How truly miraculous.’

Her interest was immediately piqued. Her gaze towards the white eagle was no longer casual, but filled with an eager anticipation for the unknown.

****

After several rough attempts, Ming Yu had largely grasped the pattern for reading memory images.

The eyes were indeed the windows to the soul.

If she merely stared into its eyes, arbitrary memory fragments might randomly appear, or she might glean no information at all. However, if she probed with a specific intent, subconsciously desiring to extract information, success was highly probable.

Moreover, she could more accurately pinpoint the specific memory images she wished to perceive.

For now, however, these rules likely applied only to the white eagle in her hands.

After several attempts, Ming Yu had largely mastered the method.

Just as she was about to scrutinize the images related to Jörmungaṇḍr, an inexplicable wave of fatigue and drowsiness washed over her.

She yawned, a flicker of inexplicable confusion in her mind.

Still, she forcibly suppressed her drowsiness, searching her thoughts for images of those golden eyes.

Soon, the image of golden eyes under the moonlit night resurfaced in her mind.

Ming Yu was now utterly certain that the enormous shadow emerging from the sea was none other than Jörmungaṇḍr’s head. To her surprise, Jörmungaṇḍr’s size appeared even more colossal than before, exuding an even greater sense of oppression.

‘Damn it all.’

Not long ago, she had practically hacked this creature into mincemeat.

‘How on earth had it managed to win a resurrection match?’

****

During the voyage, danger was an ever-present companion.

On the very first night alone, there were already a small number of casualties.

Aside from the sea beast hunters, the ship also carried specialists responsible for various other tasks. These were ordinary individuals, mostly orphans, assisting with the hunting mission at the request of the Pharos government.

They placed their hopes for survival entirely on the accompanying sea beast hunters.

Of course, a very small number of crew members also risked their lives for hefty salaries, attempting to gamble their existence for wealth and renown.

Beyond these, there was another type of person.

Exxon, once a sailor, had intended to cease voyaging after marriage, settling down in the Outer City’s Sixteenth District to live out his days in peace.

However, all those beautiful aspirations were shattered by a single vice.

Gambling.

Exxon became almost possessed, descending into a terrifying madness. He not only used the girl living with them as collateral for his bets but even sent his own biological daughter into that grim ‘paradise.’

It was only when the enforcers summoned him to identify his daughter’s body that Exxon awoke from his nightmare.

Some individuals, the moment they chose to step into the deep blue, had already forsaken all hope of survival.

As the cold, sharp point pierced his chest, he found release from his torment.

Behind him, a grotesque sea beast had opened its maw, its jaws already clamped around more than half of his body, yet it did not bite down further.

A streak of silvery-white blade light pierced both the sea beast’s abdomen and the human’s chest simultaneously.

The moment she recognized Exxon, Ming Yu paused slightly, a swift decision forming in her heart.

‘I am, at heart, a kind person; I couldn’t bear to see others suffer.’

‘So, I might as well personally send him on his way.’

Withdrawing her blade, she melted back into the shadows.

Ming Yu licked her lips, a bloodthirsty crimson dancing in her scarlet eyes.