Looking at the white mouse's proud expression yearning to be showered with compliments, Charles found the situation to be extremely bizarre. "You mean you can operate the deck cannon?"

He initially thought it was Chief Engineer James who had fired the turret, but it turned out to be the mouse, Lily.

"My friends and I operated it together. Aren't we amazing?" Lily let out a couple of squeaks and a large group of brown rats swarmed onto Charles' bed.

Seeing the bed full of mice, Charles felt extremely repulsed. "Get them off my bed. Aren't you going back alone? Why did you bring all these mice with you?"

"I promised them that I would invite them to my house to have a taste of the sweet fish soup cooked by my mom. Promises cannot be broken," Lily asserted eloquently.

Charles said a few more words of reassurance to Lily before he turned to look at Second Mate Conor.

The young man with red hair seemed to know what Charles wanted to ask and answered, "Don't worry, Captain. We've checked everyone. We don't have anyone missing nor any extras."

"That's great… That's great…" Charles muttered to himself.

With all the dangers resolved, a sudden drowsiness consumed Charles. The exhaustion of the wounds all over his body and the intense sprint had his body sounding the alarms.

"Don't let your guard down. Get back to the safe route as soon as possible. Please leave. I'm a bit tired."

Before the others could even leave the room, Charles closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

When he woke up, he had no idea how much time had passed.

"I should really buy a pocket watch."

Despite feeling recharged, Charles didn't get off the bed. A faint smile appeared on his face as he leaned against his pillow.

All along, he had been worried about one thing—whether he was still on Earth or not. If he weren't, even if he got back onto the surface, he would still not be able to return home.

However, the fleshy gateway, 1068, had confirmed one thing through its words. The world outside of this subterranean sea had a sun. And if there were a sun, he was surely on Earth and there was a high probability that his house was still where it was.

With renewed determination, Charles was about to get off his bed when his gaze landed on the collection of relics that he had retrieved from the depths of Laboratory 3. They were neatly stacked into a pile on the cabinet.

The sight of these objects stirred something within him.

Although he was the one responsible for all the events that had transpired in that place, presently, Charles felt a strange sense of detachment from the person he had been when he was there.

That version of him had been driven by an insatiable desire for the relics, much like a cat drawn to a scratching post. Acting on impulse, he had ventured in to steal the relics while remaining oblivious to the dangers involved.

Looking at the relics before him now, Charles could only comfort himself that Lady Luck had been on his side. He had managed to seize all these items with a body full of injuries, but it was a trade-off that undoubtedly seemed worthwhile.

Charles began to carefully examine the items he had acquired—a knife covered in rust, a quill as thick as a forearm, a purple crystal in the shape of a miniature pyramid. Not to forget the silver ring that looked like interwoven tentacles, which he was now wearing on his ring finger.

He had retrieved four artifacts and they all looked extraordinary. However, Charles hesitated to experiment with them.

His encounter with the locusts had resulted in the loss of some of the accompanying documentation, and when he had jumped into the sea, a few records had been soaked and ruined by the water.

He was now left with only the documentation of two relics, one of which was the ring on his finger.

Project ID: 168

Project Name: Tentacle Ring

Description: 168 is a ring made of 925 silver. It is crafted to resemble three octopus tentacles intertwined. It was discovered by Dr. Tina in the accessory shop [Data Purged] during her vacation at Newbound City.

Addendum 1: Due to Dr Tina immediately detecting its anomalous properties and promptly reporting it, the Foundation decided to directly contain 168. The description of its anomalies will be included in Addendum 2 through interview records.

Addendum 2:

"Dr Tina, could you please describe how you encountered 168?"

"My husband took me to choose a wedding ring. The moment I laid my eyes on 168, I immediately put it on. I only realized something was amiss when I returned to my apartment. I came to possess a certain special ability."

"Please explain what you mean by special ability."

"Erm… My hand can transform into three invisible tentacles. It feels really strange. It was like the tentacles were naturally an extension of my body.

"I know what you're going to ask next. The tentacles have a strong gripping power, equivalent to the strength of two adult males. They are also incredibly flexible and can extend up to five meters when fully stretched. As for the drawbacks, the ring tempts humans to subconsciously wear it; once worn, it will tighten over time. The wearer needs to periodically take it off for it to return to its usual size."

"That's it? Just that simple?"

"Yes, it's that simple. It's really a straightforward little item. If only the other projects were as well behaved as this one. Sophie, the one under my care, 1068, is manageable as long as it has enough food and doesn't cause trouble. But 641 is a headache.

"Oh, Tina, I've heard about that one. It's indeed difficult to deal with. If it fails to be contained, the whole island is at risk of being assimilated by it. But if we want to talk about danger, I still have that 134 under my care—"

"Ahem! Ladies, it's working hours now. We can chat later. Please be mindful of the situation."

"Sorry, sorry."

The interview concluded at 11:41pm.

"Transform into tentacles?" Charles pondered for a moment before raising his hand. Something extraordinary happened. He could feel his fingers rapidly extending and thickening. Yet to the naked eye, his hand remained the same.

Suddenly, the drawer of the table in the distance was pulled open and a bottle of alcohol floated into the air. The scene was incredibly eerie.

Charles started experimenting with the new relic within the room. Various small objects flew in the air.

After getting accustomed to the relic, Charles decided to keep it for his own use. While it could not compare to the Clown Mask or Black Knife in terms of its direct offensive aspect, it could be quite useful if utilized well.

What made Charles waver was that this little item had the most limited side effects he had encountered among the relics.

Caressing the ring, Charles' gaze landed on another piece of paper—the documentation of the purple pyramid.

Project ID: 434

Project Name: Purple Pyramid

Description: 434 is a crystal pyramid measuring 10 centimeters in length, 10 centimeters in height, and 10 centimeters in width. It was transferred to the Foundation due to the chaos it caused, as reported by the Shadow Island Police Department.

Experiment 1: Subject 13 was instructed to hold 434 and silently recite the phrase 'I am powerful' in his mind.

Experiment Result: The subject's body underwent a sudden transformation and increased in size proportionally. His height reached 2.5 meters, but his ability to articulate diminished significantly. After testing, it was revealed that his intelligence had reduced to 80.

Experiment 2: Subject 13 was instructed to hold 434 and silently recite the phrase 'I am powerful' in his mind three times.

Experiment Result: The subject's height increased to 3 meters while his intelligence further decreased to 60.

Experiment 2: Subject 13 was instructed to hold 434 and silently recite the phrase 'I am powerful' in his mind four times.

Experiment Result: The subject's height increased to 4 meters while his intelligence plummeted to 40. Because of the subject's significantly reduced intelligence, he was unable to comprehend further instructions and the experiment had to be terminated. The subject returned to normal approximately 30 minutes after being separated from 434.