Made in Abyss Chapter 063

The Curse Fleet is the sixty-third chapter of the Made in Abyss manga series.

Synopsis
The chapter opens with Riko's group travelling further into the 6th layer and Reg having one of the Artifacts they recovered from Cravali's corpse now attached to his cut-off arm. Nanachi notes that it is the Gentle Knock, an Artifact one can control with the mind. They note that the relic is not durable enough for Reg's strength.

Riko notices that Reg's arm can be used remotely, even while it's in possession on her backpack. Nanachi notices that the force field has calmed down greatly in the area they are approaching due to the lack of small creatures ahead. RikAs such, they speculate somebody might have set a trap up ahead. This excites Riko due to the possibility of someone besides them being out this deep. Riko sends Faputa to scout the area.

As the group tries to trigger a potential trap by throwing stones in its possible general placement, Nanachi arrives at the conclusion that it would be easier for Reg to just check it out, as his ridiculous toughness and reactions would most likely keep him safe. Reg successfully triggers the trap, causing the release of a gas that smells like boar excrement. It is used for tracking by marking the target; Ibeho scent.

A short exchange follows surrounding Reg's scent. Faputa rushes back saying that two presences stacked on top of each other are approaching. Shortly after, Nishagora and Tepasté emerge. For a brief moment, all the characters take note of each other. Nishagora notices Riko's whistle and gets enraged, assuming Riko's group to be underlings of the "Shrine Maiden."

Tepasté tries to disarm the situation by noting that she has no idea who these children are. Riko states she is Lyza's daughter, enraging Nishagora once again, as she knows Lyza's daughter was stillborn. Only with further explanation, and mention of the Curse-Warding Box does she calm down. Nishagora begins to note names of people that she is reminded of by Riko's circumstances, before becoming seemingly lost in thought.

After becoming active again, Nishagora decides to take Riko's group to her boss, if they want to follow her and Tepasté. Upon the reveal that Nishagora's boss is a White Whistle Delver, Riko immediately wants to tag along and the rest of the group follows. Before they start following Nishagora, Nanachi thinks of what possibly led to the reaction Nishagora had after seeing Riko's white whistle.

Nanachi thinks about how all the shapes of the revealed White Whistles are relatively known to the general public. Riko's whistle is the only one with a form that is unknown to the world. Only Riko's group, and possibly Bondrewd by peering into Nanachi's vision, know about the shape of Riko's whistle. As such, she theorizes that Nishagora's group is possibly looking for a white whistle with a never seen before shape, with even its name being unknown.

As the group travels, Riko and Co. theorize about the Shrine Maiden, as it is something mentioned in Orth's fairy tales and in Hariyomari's song. During their journey, Nishagora also asks them if they believe in souls, to which Nanachi states that she wants to believe in the existence of souls. Faputa however confirms the existence of souls, and states even layered creatures like Nishagora and Tepasté have them.

Soon after, the group arrives at the outpost of Hail Hex in the 6th layer. It's in a rock wall, that can only be found by lifting a hidden door. As they enter, they are greeted by a member of Hail Hex who welcomes them. Inside the outpost, Nanachi marvels at the amount of equipment and shortly afterwards they are addressed by the boss of Hail Hex, who is cooking food in a big pot. As the conversation progresses, the boss tells them that the goal of Hail Hex is to reach the deepest depths of the Abyss and asks what Riko's goal is.

As Riko counts in her mind the many goals that she and her group still have. She tells the boss that, "There's quite a lot!"

After hearing Riko's answer, the boss of Hail Hex introduces the group, known as the Curse Fleet Delver Troupe, Hail Hex. She also introduces herself as Captain of the group, the White Whistle Delver, and the Sovereign of Mystery, Srajo. Srajo praises Riko, and gives her recognition as a White Whistle. However, she also notes that they will have to put Riko through her paces first, as Srajo is a bit timid.

Character Appearances

 * Faputa
 * Meinya
 * Nanachi
 * Nishagora
 * Riko
 * Srajo
 * Tepasté
 * Unknown Member of Hail Hex

Bestiary Indexing

 * Unknown Creatures

Trivia

 * Ibeho scent is essentially a scent that smells like Boar excrement and is used in marking.
 * When Faputa sensed Nishagora and Tepasté coming after the trap was activated, Faputa interprets their huge size and the way Tepaste is riding on top to be that they are "stacked/layered" on top of each other, as though sensing it as one "layered" entity and keeps using that phrasing to refer to both of them when they talk about souls and says "Even you layered creatures have them...."