Shrouded Seascape

Chapter 509. Solution (2)

Charles narrowed his eyes and looked at Anna. "Do you women think of nothing but romance?"

"I mean, why else are you going to such lengths to find a way to save her? Is that little mouse really that important to you?" Anna retorted with a teasing smile.

"Because she's my gunner and she has been through life and death with me!"

"Relax, relax! I was just teasing you. So how do you plan to save that little mouse of yours?"

Charles let out a soft sigh. "I have no idea. Lily's situation isn't that simple. The Pope had even utilized the entire Divine Light Order's resources but still failed to find a solution. Conventional methods probably won't work for Lily."

Anna gave a gentle pat on Charles' cheek and said, "Well, slowly take your time to think about it. I've got other things to settle so I'll leave now." She then turned toward the door and made her way out.

Just as Anna cracked open the ornate wooden door, a tentacle shot out from her back and swiftly coiled around a small silhouette outside.

Having been eavesdropping on their conversation from outside, Lily let out a yelp as she was caught.

"Catch your little mouse, Charles. Be careful that she doesn't get eaten by a cat," Anna said as she tossed Lily through the air.

Charles extended a tentacle and caught Lily in mid-air as she flew toward him.

"Mr. Charles, good morning," Lily greeted with an embarrassed smile.

"What brings you here today?" Charles asked.

Lily cast a glance at Anna, who had disappeared through the doorway, and shook her head vigorously. "Oh, nothing really! I just haven't seen you for a long while and wanted to come take a look at you."

Charles gently stroked Lily's soft fur as he placed her on his shoulder. "Next time, just come in directly. There's no need to sneak around. You are not a real mouse, you know."

"Okay!" Lily responded with a sweet smile and quickly brought up another matter. "By the way, Mr. Charles, can you fix the roller coaster in the backyard? It's covered in rust and won't run anymore."

"Roller coaster?" Charles was stunned momentarily but soon recalled the miniature roller coaster he had built to fulfill one of Lily's dying wishes.

"Let's go have a look," Charles suggested and with Lily on his shoulder, they headed to the backyard.

When he arrived, he immediately saw the neglected track which resembled a racetrack for four-wheel drive cars. It was rust-stricken and covered in dust, but it wasn't a strange sight. After all, this area had been abandoned the moment Lily passed away.

Charles himself had deliberately avoided coming to the backyard to spare himself from the sorrow.

Soon, a team of shipyard engineers was called in. They oiled and removed the rust, quickly restoring the roller coaster to its former gleam.

Lily's shrieks of delight filled the air and breathed new life into the backyard as a group of mice gathered around, watching her in excitement.

Watching Lily zoom through the track again and again, a soft smile spread across Charles' face. Sometimes, he really envied Lily.

Not only had Lily's mouse body constrained her physical self, but it also restricted her mental growth. Though nearly sixteen by human age, she still had the temperament of a child.

Everyone yearned to grow up when they were young, but only after growing up, did they realize that their childhood was the best time of their lives.

Just as Charles watched the roller coaster making yet another loop around the track, something unusual in the distance caught his eye.

Hmm? What's that? Charles thought as his gaze drifted past the roller coaster to a towering structure swaying in the background.

The black tower was rapidly ascending—ten meters, twenty meters, and thirty meters—before finally piercing through the overhead canopy and into the sunlight.

Charles looked on as the metal construct continued to rise and a sudden thought came to mind. He was reminded of the dome rail project that Gordon had proposed to him.

"They've started building it already?" Charles muttered to himself.

He hadn't received any recent updates on this project, and he discerned that it had probably been approved by Anna. While the islanders were mesmerized by the astonishing construction, the high tower wobbled alarmingly.

Then, amidst everyone's gasps and shouts, the tower tilted at a sharp angle before crashing to the ground, stirring up clouds of dust.

"So it failed..." Charles muttered to himself. He wasn't particularly disheartened. After all, groundbreaking endeavors were often built on a foundation of failures.

With Anna taking charge now, he felt relieved that he no longer needed to concern himself over this particular project.

Time ticked by as Charles patiently waited for the Navy's intelligence department to update him on the Fhtagn Covenant.

Fortunately, the telegraph network across the Subterranean Sea was gradually being restored and just as Elizabeth reluctantly boarded a ship to depart, a comprehensive folder containing the latest details about the Fhtagn Covenant landed on Charles's desk.

Under the bright illumination of the crystal chandelier, Charles' brows were furrowed as he set down the papers he had been reading.

As per his anticipation, the Fhtagn Covenant was in dire straits after enduring two consecutive setbacks. Their numbers had decreased sharply, leading to a significant decline in their influence across the Subterranean Sea.

The Fhtagn Covenant had retreated to their headquarters—Divinity's Land—to recuperate slowly. On top of that, in a desperate attempt to recover their numbers, the twelve-member council of the Fhtagn Covenant had imposed a ten-year ban on human sacrifices and even introduced rewards for childbirth.

For a cult that thrived on human sacrificial rituals to come to such extreme measures—it was an indication of just how dire their situation had become.

At the same time, the cult's new laws highlighted the smartness of their leaders. They were zealots, but they were not foolish; Charles knew that if he wanted to make a deal with them, he had to be exceedingly cautious.

The scratching of Charles' pen against the paper filled the room as he rapidly listed down the currently available forces of Hope Island on one half of the paper and the Fhtagn Covenant's resources on the other half.

He meticulously weighed all scenarios, including the likelihood that the Covenant might harness the strength of the Deep Dwellers, as well as the possibility that the Giant Bird of Suffering religion, known for their animosity toward the Fhtagnists, might take advantage of the Fhtagnists' weakened state to further beat them down.

After a long period of strategizing, Charles set down his pen. Staring at the information before him, he scratched his head in frustration.

The balance of power was too even; starting a war would lead to devastating casualties, and this did not even take into account any trump cards that the Fhtagn Covenant might have hidden up their sleeves.

Given these considerations, rash action seemed unwise.

Do I really need to put the mission to cure my crew on the bench? Charles pondered and rose to his feet, heading toward the sanatorium.

The moment he stepped through the doors, the wails and cries of anguish from within struck him

There seemed to be some changes to his crew's symptoms, but regardless of the change, it only ranged from mild insanity to severe insanity.

The Deputy Chief of the Police Department, Aliya, also entered Charles' sight. Despite always portraying her resilient and strong side to others, her sharp gaze mellowed and was filled with sorrow as she watched her husband, Dipp, clawing at his own scales in the water tank.

Hearing footsteps from behind her, Aliya quickly wiped away her tears with the back of her hand and turned around. Though Aliya masked it quickly, the hint of resentment in her gaze didn't escape Charles' eyes.

"You don't have to hide how you feel. I'm the reason why Dipp became like this. Your hatred toward me is justified," Charles commented softly.

Aliya turned back toward the water tank. A conflicted expression painted her visage as she looked at her deranged husband.

"I'm sorry, Governor," Aliya spoke. "But seeing him like this breaks my heart.

"I love him, and deeply so. All along, I've always felt that someone like me didn't deserve him. The day that he proposed to me was the happiest day of my life."