The heavy airtight door on the side hull closed behind them.
The metal latch locked section by section, emitting a low and short muffled sound.
The outside sea breeze, wave sounds, and noisy voices were completely isolated by steel in this instant.
The passageway was narrow and low, with cold gray steel plates on both sides, without an inch of extra decoration. Rows of rivet heads nailed to the wall were neat and dense, like some kind of giant beast's exposed joints.
Every few steps, an explosion-proof glass lamp was lit.
The lamp cover, slightly yellowed from long-term exposure to high temperatures, shimmered, casting the shadows of several people fragmented and broken.
Orland walked in front, his steps steady as if he were not an old man.
He stopped in front of an especially heavy watertight door and raised his hand to pat the solid brass knob on the side of the door, the metallic sound crisp and solid.
