Shrouded Seascape

"Can becoming a god truly allow us to go to the surface world? If that were the case, the surface would have been in chaos back when I was still in school. There must be something blocking the way between the Subterranean Sea and the surface world," Charles said, gently pulling his wife into his embrace.

Anna's brows furrowed. "Ah, why are you so torn about this? Do you want to go back or not? What's the use of hesitating so much?"

"If you want to do something, set a goal for it, and then put in your all for it."

The wonderful scenes from Charles' recent dream flashed in his mind. Then, he muttered, "It's been so many years, and I was convinced that I no longer crave it, but it seems that I can only deceive others, not myself.

"Ever since my memories returned, their appearances have become nothing but a blur, and I've forgotten their names, but I've been missing them."

Longing suffused Charles' face as he added, "I really want to see them again. I truly want to put everything down and return to their side to live a simple and carefree life—like the life I led as a student back then."

"That is my home… that place was where I grew up. That civilized place without these bizarre dangers… that is the Land of Light in our hearts.

"I know that I'm tied up to way too many things in the Subterranean Sea, and I know that I can no longer live that kind of life with what I've become. My ghastly appearance alone is going to scare them away, so I can't go back.

"Despite that, my heart can't help but keep longing to go back."

A hint of helplessness appeared on Anna's face upon hearing Charles' words. In the end, she said, "Then sort your feelings out, and tell me your final answer. Anyway, are you hungry? What do you want for breakfast? I'll make it for you."

Charles sat up straight, carrying Anna with just one hand. He placed her on the sofa next to him and said, "Don't bother about breakfast. I have no appetite. Since you're here, let's talk business instead. How's the war going on in the Eastern Seas?"

Hearing that, Anna's eyes lit up as she remarked, "Our gains are huge. We surrounded them twice and attacked them twice; the Fhtagn Covenant's fleet is almost annihilated, and we're only fighting their remnants at this point.

"We're occupying their territories island by island.

"The Subterranean Sea fleet is slowly making its way into the Divinity's Land. Once we've occupied their headquarters, the Fhtagn Covenant will completely disappear in the face of the Subterranean Sea."

Charles wasn't surprised at all by Anna's words. He had predicted this outcome, and it made complete sense. The series of major incidents had left the Fhtagn Covenant greatly weakened, so this outcome made perfect sense.

"Don't let your guard down; those lunatics might make a desperate move. The Fhtagn Covenant's sacrificial rituals are very troublesome to deal with.

"Once they've determined that they'd either live or die, they'd most likely sacrifice all of their remaining people to make a gamble and attempt to drag you guys down with them."

The incident on Albion Isles made Charles realize that even though God Fhtagn Himself hadn't been responding to them, other beings that believed in God Fhtagn would respond to their call.

In the face of Charles' warning, Anna remained confident as she said, "It's fine, it's fine. Do you really think that I won't reach the same conclusion as you did?

"I absolutely won't let them sacrifice even a single person, so don't worry about me here. How are things on your end?"

Charles walked up to the wooden table and looked down at the reports strewn across it. "The Foundation has left behind many things, and there are too many of them to clean up in a short period of time. I'll have to leave some people in the Sea of Mist to finish the clean-up operation."

Charles turned to look at his wife with a calm gaze. "By the way, the Divinity's corpse suspended above SITE 6 is missing. I suspect it was taken away by 004."

Just then, Charles' and Anna's gaze met in midair, and they seemed to have seen something in each other's eyes, which prompted them to quickly look away.

Anna looked down and stroked her flat abdomen, saying, "I know. Sparkle has already told me."

Charles was stunned.

"What's up with that look? You think your dear daughter won't tattle on you?" Anna stretched out her fair barefoot and lightly kicked Charles' knee.

Charles snapped back to reality and shook his head. "No, I mean, she didn't say that she already told you, so I thought you didn't know. Anyway, let's not talk about that anymore. Upon your return, tell Jax to issue a top-tier commission throughout the Subterranean Sea in my name—the task is to search for the Divinity who has my arm.

"That's all I need to retrieve to obtain those three wishes from 005."

Anna nodded lightly and replied, "All right. I'm also going to help you with that. Sometimes, one has to rely on other creatures to find things that humans can't find."

"If you're talking about the Prophet, then you don't have to go there," Charles replied, "I asked it, and it said that it couldn't find it."

"Are you kidding me?" Anna asked, rolling her eyes at Charles. "My information network is far bigger than you can ever imagine."

Charles raised his hand and stroked Anna's delicate face. "Thank you."

The corners of Anna's mouth curled up slightly, and her figure floated slowly as her exquisite face slowly drew close to Charles. "My dear, there are some things that can't be expressed through words alone.

"You need to show it through your actions, too."

In response, Charles gave Anna a gentle hug, and then his mouth opened slightly in astonishment as Anna whispered something into his ear.

Charles glared at Anna, whose amused eyes had narrowed into slits. Eventually, he smacked her back and walked toward the bed on the side.

***

Dipp was standing on the top floor of the tallest building on Hope Island. He was yawning with a spray bottle filled with seawater in his hand. He was in the middle of moistening his scales.

"Ah, this is so boring. Why aren't there a lot more people who don't cherish their lives?"

Dipp nodded in agreement at the voice in his head. "I completely agree. And it's best if they're a bit stronger; it's no fun if they're weak."

"It's pointless even if they're stronger. Nowadays, we can't kill those we catch; we have to send them to court to be sentenced there. Who came up with such a troublesome process?"

Just then, another voice echoed in Dipp's mind. "It was more fun when the island was just founded. Back then, there were no laws. Whoever I said was guilty was guilty. Whoever I wanted dead would never wake up again."

"The crime rate was so low back then, even though there were no laws. That goes to show that laws are useless."

While Dipp was busy chatting with the two personas in his head, an orange firework suddenly blossomed in the skies—southeast of Hope Island.

Orange meant a request for reinforcement from the police department, so Dipp instantly perked up at the sight of it. Then, he transformed into a cloud of mist that rushed toward the orange firework.