Southville County, inside Hastur's castle.
Ariella was comfortably lying in her little nest. To her left was a pile of dried fish, to her right was another pile of dried fish, and under her little pillow was yet another pile of dried fish.
During this period, Sharon had been busy playing the role of a puppet.
Sometimes she would not move even once for several days, and Ariella had naturally become the boss of the entire castle.
As long as she took a stroll around the kitchen, she could collect a pile of dried fish, and no one would stop her. They had even specially prepared a small stove for her, specifically for cooking food for her.
Compared to cooked food, she felt that the original-flavored dried fish tasted the most comfortable.
Apart from the material comforts, she could sleep until she naturally woke up every day. After waking up, she would eat some dried fish and then continue sleeping. At night, she did not even need to deliberately go outside to exercise.
Sometimes, when Sharon finished playing the puppet, Ariella would curry favor with her and accompany her to stroll around the grassland and forest.
The days were simply too comfortable.
Until someone grabbed her by the back of her neck and lifted her, now obviously a whole lot fatter, out of her little nest. She knew that her beautiful dream was coming to an end.
"Ariella, you've been eating pretty well lately."
There was special meaning in those words. Ariella hurriedly let out a soft meow, trying to curry favor with her master, who had just returned from outside.
Hastur glanced again at the piles of dried fish in the little nest and waved his hand, letting the maids come over and clean up the nest.
Ariella covered her eyes with both paws, heartbroken and unable to bear looking.
"That little belly of yours has gained at least several pounds."
"Meow!" Ariella protested. She had only become a little rounder, and with a few days of exercise, she could easily slim back down.
"Looks like I'll have to lock all the dried fish in the storeroom, so you can't sneak out and eat them in the middle of the night."
"Meow."
After reprimanding Ariella, who was almost turning into a big orange cat, Hastur came to Sharon's room. There was no one inside, and there was not even a trace of her presence.
"Meow."
Ariella jumped down from Hastur's arms and ran to a wardrobe. She gently scratched at it a few times with her little paw.
Hastur stepped forward and opened the wardrobe door. In the dark environment, Sharon was standing completely motionless, playing the role of a proper puppet.
Her breathing, heartbeat, and aura, if Sharon were put on display somewhere right now, probably no one would believe that she was a living person.
Her entire appearance was that of an exquisite and beautiful dressing doll, a puppet.
Hastur did not disturb her. He merely took two glances before closing the wardrobe door again.
After leaving Sharon's room, Hastur finally came to the study, where Caius had already been waiting with a stack of documents in his arms.
Hastur told him to place the documents on the desk, then leaned slightly against the back of his chair and listened as Caius described the changes that had taken place in Southville County during this period.
His trip to Backlund and back had taken thirteen days, with most of the time wasted on the journey.
During these days, the storms at sea had grown increasingly fierce. The Storm Church seemed intent on raising enormous waves in one breath and purifying the entire sea.
Apart from pirate kings like Nast, who could remain unmoved, many pirate groups had retreated to the Southern Continent, staying away from the waters controlled by the Storm Church.
As for the pirates near the coast of Southville County, they had basically all been wiped out. During this period, there had not been a single incident of pirates robbing merchant ships, and the coastal fishing villages had not been affected either.
Maritime trade at the various ports had grown increasingly prosperous, and consequently, more taxes were being paid.
There were even several wealthy merchants who stepped forward to donate money, claiming that they were raising military funds for the navy's efforts to eliminate the pirates.
Everything was developing in a positive direction, except for the increasingly growing dissatisfaction of the Duke of Southville.
Watching Hastur make a great deal of money while also gaining an excellent reputation was naturally something he found difficult to tolerate.
After all, these eight important ports had originally been his source of wealth. Therefore, he had sent two groups of people over to invite Hastur to discuss some matters.
At that time, Hastur had not yet returned, so he had naturally been able to refuse easily.
"Just tell them that after traveling back and forth, I haven't adjusted to the local climate and need to rest at home for half a month. No, one month."
Hastur casually came up with a reason and left it to Caius to deal with the Duke's invitation.
It was better to stall for some time. Once something happened on the Southern Continent, the Duke of Southville would naturally quiet down.
"I'll go and handle it immediately."
After Caius left, Hastur turned his attention to the documents on the desk.
Besides some important documents that had recently been signed, there were also several account statements concerning the eight ports.
Hastur first looked through the various figures on the statements and muttered, "No wonder the Duke of Southville is so jealous and eager. At this rate, if I collect taxes for a year, I can make at least a million pounds."
One hundred and twenty thousand pounds. This was the net profit after deducting all kinds of expenses, and he could transfer it over at any time to fill up his little treasury.
Once port commerce developed, it really was an incredibly profitable business.
It was even more profitable than what those bankers like Earl Hall were making.
…
At night, the light of the stars spilled across the surface of the sea, creating shimmering waves that swayed and glowed.
A ship was casually sailing across the Sonia Sea.
It was said that the end of the Sonia Sea was the kingdom of the gods. According to the records of the Aurora Order, the Lord's kingdom was at the end of the Sonia Sea.
Unfortunately, there was a Sea of Ruins in between, blocking all brave adventurers.
Mr. A stood at the bow of the ship. Using the countless stars in the night sky as a reference, he carefully compared the route on the map, confirming that the ship's current course would take it through the dangerous waters of the Sea of Ruins.
Unfortunately, Lord Ouroboros was not here at the moment. Otherwise, he would certainly know how to cross the Sea of Ruins and enter the Lord's kingdom.
Perhaps I will die in the Sea of Ruins, because the Lord cannot possibly allow a traitor who has abandoned his faith to enter His eternal kingdom.
Mr. A's emotions were complicated. He glanced at the silent cabin.
He was not a fool. Lord Ouroboros' attitude earlier had already explained everything.
It was just that he had always been unwilling to admit it, so he deceived himself, using clumsy excuses to avoid the truth.
But the closer he got to the Lord's kingdom, the clearer his mind became, and the harder it was for him to deceive himself.
The one lying inside the coffin in the cabin was not the Lord, but a god who had come from somewhere unknown.
For some reason, He had chosen him, making him His spokesperson to communicate with the Lord.
"Your heart is in turmoil." A voice rang out, and a devout faith naturally arose within Mr. A's heart.
"Yes, my heart is in turmoil. Merciful Lord, can You answer my doubts?"
Mr. A prostrated himself on the ground, slightly raising his head as he looked at the figure he should have spent his entire life pursuing.
"Being too clear-headed will only bring trouble upon yourself."
"Lord, I can help You until the end of my life."
A painful expression appeared on Mr. A's face, and with a trace of sorrow, he said, "But I still only want to die as one of the Lord's believers."
"After traveling this far, have you only learned how to seek death?"
"…" Mr. A fell silent as he gazed at the distant Sea of Ruins, which looked like something out of a dream. It was beautiful and awe-inspiring.
Perhaps only such a terrifying yet beautiful place could become the inevitable road leading to the Lord God's kingdom.
"I really want to live. I really want to see the Lord. I really want to prostrate myself at His feet. But I know that I cannot safely cross that sea."
Once faith had been shaken, stepping into the Lord's kingdom would be a blasphemy!
A blasphemer would inevitably have to atone with death.
"You will see the figure you have pursued your entire life. This is the grace I grant you."
"But I…"
"You can also end your life here."
Mr. A remained silent. Only after a long while did he smile and say, "I will save my questions until the moment I meet the Lord."
"That is the correct choice."
"Lord, if You had appeared earlier, perhaps I would not have had to struggle so much."
"Does faith that has never gone through inner struggle have any meaning?"
Mr. A experienced a strange sense of enlightenment. It seemed that he had figured something out.
The turmoil in his heart throughout this journey, as he continued along the path of pilgrimage, was gradually allowing him to find the correct answer.
Under the moonlight, the ship sailed leisurely forward. Suddenly, a fleet appeared ahead, attracting Mr. A's attention.
Before he could take a closer look, the figure before him had already swept across the surface of the sea and arrived on the deck of the flagship of that fleet.
On the Future, Cattleya was disturbed in the captain's cabin and was told that an unidentified guest had appeared on the deck.
When Cattleya came out of the captain's cabin and reached the deck at the bow, a group of people had already gathered nearby. Her second mate was calming everyone's emotions, preventing a conflict from breaking out.
Cattleya gestured for everyone to calm down first. She took two steps forward and said in a neither servile nor overbearing tone, "I am the captain of the Future, Admiral of Stars Cattleya. Who might you be, sir? And why have you come here?"
Hastur said nothing. He merely swept his gaze across the crew of the Future, his eyes falling on Frank, who was still immersed in his hybridization research, before shifting away and landing on Cattleya standing before him.