Shrouded Seascape

Chapter 797: Meeting 005 Again

Grace was stunned, not expecting the captain to ask such a question. She pondered briefly over it and said, "I wish these peaceful days would last forever. I really like our peaceful lives at the moment. Everyone is very happy, and there's no more fighting at sea. At last, there are no more massacres."

Charles reached out and caressed Grace's fissured face. "I thought you wanted to be healed. Tell me honestly, do you hate me for essentially forcing you to become a bomb?"

"No, not at all." Grace shook her head in denial. "If what I did was immensely helpful to everyone, then I have no regrets! Besides..."

Grace paused, a hint of bitterness in her smile as she continued, "No boys really liked me back in the Western Seas, so being a bit uglier doesn't matter."

Charles stared deeply at the naive young woman before him. Clearly, she wasn't exactly confident about herself. "You're a crew of the Narwhale, so be more confident, will you? Pick any man on the island, and we'll help you get him."

Grace's face instantly flushed red, looking very shy. She was still a young woman, after all.

"Captain, I still have something to do, so I'm leaving first," Grace said. She then turned around and fled in a hurry.

"Wait! You're good friends with Lily, aren't you? Do you know where she is right now? I've been around the island, but I haven't been able to see her," Charles asked.

Grace, with her books in her arms, turned around and pointed at the canopy of Hope Island, where warm sunlight from the outside was poured in steadily to illuminate Hope Island.

Newbound City above Hope Island was still arid and hot. The ruins up above were being cleared, and new buildings were being constructed. Some of those buildings were already in use, and people wearing black rubber suits all saluted Charles.

The altar that the Divine Light Order used to perform sacrificial rituals was still there, and Charles found Lily giggling on top of the altar.

"Mr. Charles! You're here!" Lily exclaimed. She flew over and stood on Charles' shoulder, nuzzling him affectionately.

Charles looked up at Dawn One and asked, "Is that your new friend?"

"Yes! It's really fun to talk to! We're good friends now," Lily replied.

The massive, dazzling ring overhead said, "Mortal. What business do you have with the great Light God?"

Charles grabbed Lily and walked away.

"Don't interact with this thing too much, or you'll pick up bad habits," Charles said.

"Mr. Charles, why did you come here? Were you worried about me because I haven't been home for a while now?" the smiling Lily asked as she snuggled in Charles' palm.

Charles put down Lily and stared deeply at the shining mouse, asking, "Do you want to become human once again?"

Lily's wish had always been to become human once again, and there was no doubt that she still had the same wish.

Lily's ears instantly perked up, and her pea-sized eyes became full of excitement, but she quickly suppressed it.

"I do want to become human once again, but if it means putting you in danger once again, then forget it, Mr. Charles. Besides, I've already gotten used to being a mouse."

Charles was moved. He stroked Lily's smooth fur and said, "Let's go. Let's head down."

"Mr. Charles, I recalled the exploration ship that I sent out to look for my parents. Sparkle was right. Maybe I shouldn't be so selfish. I love my parents, so I should be the one to make sacrifices for them rather than the other way around.

"It's better for everyone if I don't show up, so I'm not going back."

Lily looked up at Charles with a hint of bitterness in her eyes.

"Mr. Charles, since I can't go back, can I stay by your side forever? I want to stay by your side just like this. You definitely need a pet, right?" Lily asked.

Charles picked up Lily and kissed her furry head. "Lily, you're not a pet. You never were a pet."

The two chitchatted until they reached the rift that connected Newbound City to the Subterranean Sea. From up above, Hope Island looked so tiny that it was like a toy.

"Let's go home," Charles said and lightly kicked off the ground. He took to the air with Lily in his hands before plummeting directly into Hope Island.

On that same night, Charles lying in bed suddenly opened his eye. He glanced at the sleeping Anna, who was hugging his arm. He detached his arm and stood up to leave the bedroom.

As soon as he left the bedroom, Anna opened her eyes.

Charles' destination was the canopy of Hope Island. No one had been cleaning the place, so it had become what looked like a grassland. He bent down and began drawing a special array made out of concentric circles.

It was the array that Swann had used to summon the Feaster on the Albion Isles.

The array immediately shone as soon as Charles walked into it.

"Tell your master that I've made up my mind," Charles said.

The next second, a voice echoed directly in Charles' mind.

"Hmm, it seems that you've made up your mind."

Charles turned around and saw 005.

"As I said, these two wishes are formidable, but there is a small price to pay for them. You haven't forgotten that, have you?" 005 asked.

Charles nodded quietly.

With a cat in her arms, 005 walked slowly around Charles.

"You also have to know the limitations of the wishes. First of all, you can't make the same wish twice, and you can't wish for something beyond my abilities.

"For example, if you wish to become stronger than God Fhtagn, then I can only merge you with Fhtagn."

"What's that 'small price'?" Charles asked. He had been worried about the so-called "small price." 005 had specifically said that it was "small," but Charles believed that it couldn't possibly be small from the point of view of mortals.

"Simple. I just need you to find everything that you've lost."

005 raised her right hand and pointed at Charles' severed arm, his missing eye, and finally at his head.

"I want you to find whatever you've lost in the Subterranean Sea. It doesn't matter whether they've rotted, withered, or have become something else. I need them all."

Charles was caught off guard. He couldn't have expected Her to make such a request. "Why?"

"No reason. I just want them. Pay that small price, and I can fulfill your wishes, even if you want to return to the surface world or establish a new Foundation."

Charles fell silent and began pondering over everyone's wishes as he bathed in sunlight. Half an hour later, he folded his thumb and pinky into his palm and raised three fingers at 005. "Three wishes. I'll exchange everything I've lost for three wishes."

"Hiss!" The black cat in 005's arms stood up, and its fur stood erect as it hissed at Charles. It seemed to be furious at Charles' blatant disrespect of its master.

The sight of a cat threatening a human was a bit absurd, but Charles knew that the cat before him was just an illusion. The real Feaster couldn't be a cat.

A hand wrapped in black bandages gently stroked the raised fur on the Feaster's back.

"You're actually bargaining with me. This is really interesting."