Chapter 224: 160. Unprecedented
“Now?”
Fisher glanced at the still hazy moonlight outside and asked Jasmine.
“Mm.”
Beside him, Jasmine nodded and extended her hand. There, on her fair skin, were complex and strange patterns, covered with pitch-black cursed power. At this moment, her curse had become so strong that even touching objects on the ship would cause erosion.
“My curse has grown too strong for me to control it any longer. Living on land any longer could lead to an accident. Xianghun and Mother have sensed my state; they want me to return to the trench for a while to rest, and I want to tell them about things on land. Besides, in my current state, even if I wanted to continue following Fisher, I doubt I can be of much help.”
“Fisher has been very helpful to me; I will return to reflect for a while. Then, I think I will come ashore again to see places and people I’ve never seen before, to understand how this world really operates. I was too naive before and caused a lot of trouble for you and others, I’m sorry.”
“And once I’ve truly grown up a bit, I will return because I can’t just be Fisher’s student forever, right?”
Fisher raised an eyebrow at this and turned to Jasmine, then smiled and asked,
“Is this also a promise of the Whale Folk?”
The Whale Folk always enjoyed making promises, and once a promise was made, they would definitely keep it. Whether it was Jasmine’s mother swearing to return the sword to Godlin the First, or Muxi and Blake’s marriage vow, it worked like this. Compared to humans who needed blood oaths to bind each other, it sounded much better.
“Mm, compared to humans, the Whale Folk are really too slow to sense time. The sun rises and sets, the ocean changes, and all things wither and bloom have no reference for us, so only sincere promises that need to be fulfilled are particularly cherished by us. I promise Fisher that I will return.”
“And please take care of Isabel as well. She’s heartbroken because of her sister, and she really struggles to adapt to the outside environment; I’m very worried about her.”
“Okay.”
Fisher leaned against the railing, gazing at the calm ocean with Jasmine. Her tail perked up a bit at Fisher’s response.
But after Fisher’s acquiescence, it seemed there were no other words left to say between them. Yet strangely, the atmosphere between them did not become awkward.
Fisher was still the same Fisher, but the Whale Folk Jasmine seemed to have changed a little.
In the quiet time, Jasmine suddenly leaned a bit toward Fisher, shortening the distance between them, and then she reached out her hand toward Fisher again.
As her hand was raised, the dark and ominous patterns faded slowly as she approached Fisher, revealing her skin once more.
Tentatively, she took Fisher’s hand and, confirming he wasn’t drained by the curse, immediately pulled him closer to herself.
When Fisher turned to face her, she had already stood on tiptoe and kissed the corner of his mouth.
“Puff.”
The sweet breath that lightly brushed against the corner of Fisher’s mouth, mingled with the sea breeze, made him instinctively tighten his grip on Jasmine’s hand, reciprocating her innocent contact.
After several seconds, satisfied, Jasmine weakly released Fisher, unable to maintain her tiptoed position. Her ears fluttered, and a faint blush blossomed on her face.
“I have nothing else to use for a promise, so… sob.”
“It’s okay, I will remember.”
“Mm.”
But the next second after their kiss, Fisher suddenly felt the nearby sea breeze growing wild, a fierce wind struck his face like a blade, tossing his black hair around.
He and Jasmine reached out to shield themselves from the gale, but looking toward the ocean, Fisher suddenly noticed that he didn’t know when, but the sea beneath the Iceberg Queen appeared to be entirely shrouded in a layer of heavy shadow.
That vast shadow was not merely lifeless; it seemed to be drawing closer to the surface with every breath, a tremendous sense of oppression surged toward Fisher from the void, but he did not take a step back.
The raging wind, like a knife, seemed to slice through the ocean, and the world felt eerily silent at that moment. From the cut ocean, a dark sea beast’s head emerged.
Because this sea beast beneath the ocean was so massive, it only revealed the topmost part above the surface.
But even this top part was still vastly larger than the Iceberg Queen on which Fisher was riding.
To be clear, the Iceberg Queen was originally a warship of the Northern Kingdom of Sardinia, which had always produced the largest vessels among several nations, so the size of the sea beast before him was unimaginable.
“Xianghun! And Mother!”
Jasmine’s somewhat excited voice rang out, and in the next moment, Fisher realized that there was indeed a figure sitting on top of that gigantic sea beast.
Following the line of sight, a stunningly beautiful woman abruptly entered Fisher’s view.
She wore only a peculiar garment made from strange aquatic fabric, wet from seawater, lazily flowing down along the surface of the sea beast; she herself leaned with one hand supporting her cheek, silently watching the recently parted Jasmine and Fisher on the ship.
Her long hair—blue like the stars—floated gracefully without wind, accentuating the dark blue depths of the ocean in her eyes. In those vast eyes, tumultuous waves surged, and each wave seemed filled with countless life forms and flashes of thunder, presenting a striking contrast of both majesty and kindness.
Her face was breathtakingly beautiful, and her whale tail was quite large, with long ears similar to Jasmine’s. However, at this moment, she adorned a golden crown on her forehead, which bore no markings at all, but the air above that crown was violently vibrating under her presence, and the ocean before her and the sea beast parted simply.
That was Jasmine’s mother, the Empress of the Ocean, Xu.
What truly made Fisher feel oppressed was that despite the ocean outside the Iceberg Queen becoming so frantic and chaotic, the surroundings were dead silent, as if the sounds of the sea had been stripped away from Fisher’s ears. The entire ship seemed to have awakened no one; it was as if only Fisher and Jasmine were the living souls on board. He completely did not believe this had nothing to do with Xu.
Moreover, this sudden meeting made Fisher, who had just kissed her daughter in front of her, feel awkward.
He instinctively wanted to greet this legendary Empress of the Ocean, after all, according to generational divisions, she was even older than Fisher’s ancestors.
But how to address Xu became a dilemma for Fisher. Several alternative titles flashed through his mind, and after a pause of a whole second, he made a courteous gesture toward the woman in the ocean and spoke,
“Respected Empress of the Ocean, I am the human scholar Fisher. It is an honor to meet you.”
“The Empress of the Ocean? That’s a title my mother liked to use when she was young,”
Jasmine covered her face, seemingly a bit embarrassed for her mother. If she had known Fisher would address her mother as the Empress of the Ocean, she wouldn’t have told him that.
However, the distant woman seemed slightly taken aback but did not respond, instead a beautiful smile curled at the corners of her mouth.
The next moment, she just gently stretched out her hand, and the sea beast rose a bit higher, revealing patches of its land-like skin above the surface, forming a bridge connecting the Iceberg Queen and Xu.
Seeing this, Jasmine pressed her lips together, turned to Fisher, and finally said,
“I… I’m going home now, Fisher.”
“Go ahead, take care.”
“Mm, you too.”
After bidding farewell to Fisher, Jasmine leaped decisively off the edge of the Iceberg Queen, landing on the head of her accompanying sea beast, Xianghun.
Though Jasmine was not heavy, when she landed on Xianghun, the sea beast began running toward Xu and sank toward the ocean floor.
The flowing water gradually enveloped Jasmine, and the dark curse on her began to fade significantly. When she returned to Xu’s side, they were almost completely submerged in water. Jasmine took one last look at the calm Iceberg Queen above the sea,
“Mother, I’m back.”
“Mm.”
“Splash.”
In the quiet black night, as a woman’s “mm” crashed like thunder, it shattered the silence over the ocean, and countless sounds of the sea surged back into Fisher’s ears once more.
The massive creature beneath the ocean quickly sank, pulling the blurred shadow away from Fisher’s sight.
The vanishing sea beast created violent waves, causing the Iceberg Queen to shake violently, and at that moment, several fresh cries came from the cabin; Alagina’s crew had woken up,
“Is there an enemy?”
Alagina, coming from the captain’s quarters, pushed open Fisher’s door and, finding him absent, hurried to the deck. When she finally spotted Fisher standing unharmed by the railing, she let out a sigh of relief,
“As long as you’re fine, what happened?”
Fisher glanced at Alagina, followed by the Fat First Mate in pajamas yawning, and even the Steel Knife parrot flew out. He smiled apologetically and said,
“Sorry to wake you all. Nothing happened; I was just sending my student home.”
“Your student? That Ocean Subhuman? Oh, thank heavens, I thought a sea monster was attacking us.”
Paz leaned over the side of the ship, gazing at the dark water below but seeing nothing. She turned back, clicking her tongue, only to see the Fat Mate also staring down.
“Look? What are you looking at? And you all, hurry back to sleep! Nothing happened!”
“First Mate, it’s almost six-thirty, still sleeping?”
Hearing the crew’s reminders, Paz lifted her head in surprise, glancing toward the distant east, where indeed, on the horizon, rays of brilliant sunlight were beginning to spread across the ocean, enveloping the entire Iceberg Queen within it.
It turned out that day had already dawned.
All the crew members looked at the rising sun, as warm sunlight spread out, offering an inexplicable sense of hope. Even Paz stared at the sun blankly for a second before she realized and scolded the chattering crew with a smile,
“Then get going to freshen up and have breakfast, then get to work!”
“Clean the deck! Start the engines! Hoist the flags!”
“A new adventure awaits us!”
The newborn sun drove through the cold sky, illuminating half of the sky over Saint Nali, but even hotter than the sunlight was the atmosphere before the Golden Palace.
In front of the square before the Golden Palace, crowds had gathered before dawn, pushing forward as if afraid of being too slow.
Though the door of the upper floor of the Golden Palace remained tightly shut, it did not stop them from picking a good spot to wait for the significant ceremony that would soon take place.
A few days ago, something major happened inside the Golden Palace; Prince Lunsis had actually colluded with Black, a shareholder of the Exploration Company, to conspire to assassinate Prince Dexter, throwing Saint Nali into chaos. The public’s disappointment in the New Party and their perception of the Exploration Company had shifted sensitively, entering a phase of deepest distrust towards the authorities since the surge of exploration.
Various discussions filled the newspapers, and countless opinions and debates unfolded every day.
However, while everyone was at a loss, Princess Elizabeth decisively stepped in to turn the tide.
With the sudden deaths of two princes, only two underage princes remained in the entire Golden Palace. In contrast to these underage princes, the public could no longer restrain their anger, demanding for two consecutive days in front of the Golden Palace that the parliament recognize Princess Elizabeth as the next queen.
This breaking of tradition, allowing a woman to inherit the throne, was finally included in the parliamentary resolution that lived up to public expectations, voted on by the New Party, Griffin Party, and other minor parties as representatives of the public. With a total of 460 seats, the resolution was passed unanimously by the Griffin Party and gained a majority vote from the New Party, achieving a unified opinion.
At this moment inside the Golden Palace, Elizabeth stood expressionless in front of a tall floor mirror. Around her were several anxious maids from the Golden Palace, helping her don a completely golden dress meant for queens.
The royal robe used when King Nali was enthroned was traditionally only available in male styles, but due to Elizabeth’s ascension, Nali’s designers worked overnight to produce an official garment.
As per Elizabeth’s request, the outfit was sleek yet not bulky, understated but not extravagant, perfectly capturing the essence of a queen.
As the last golden crown was placed atop Elizabeth’s head, she gently opened her hollow golden eyes.
“Your Majesty, the heads of the New Party, Griffin Party, the director of the Hidden Office, and representatives from the Magic Association and Church have all arrived at the Golden Palace and are now seated.”
“Call Martilon in.”
“Yes.”
According to the rules, no ministers were allowed to enter the Golden Palace before the ascension of the Nali Emperor. However, Elizabeth did not care about any rules; if you insisted on citing rules, she would slice off your head and have another rule-abiding person take care of things for her.
As the maid from the inner palace exited the spacious dressing room, Elizabeth waved her hand gently, dispersing the heads of the many maids who bowed their heads beside her, clutching her golden scepter and long gown, she left the room.
Walking through the wide corridors of the Golden Palace and bypassing the stern-faced guards standing along the way, she found herself alone in the room at the foot of the ascension platform.
The ascension platform was above the Golden Palace’s main door. According to tradition, the newly crowned Nali Emperor must step through that grand door alone and face the multitude, declaring that they had inherited the throne from their ancestors, pledging their lives to protect the safety and development of Nali’s subjects.
Typically, this area would be filled with ceremonial officials, but at this moment, there was only Elizabeth.
It was where she had killed her own brother, Dexter, although the carpet had been replaced once by those in the Golden Palace, Elizabeth didn’t mind if they left behind what resembled war trophies. However, since they had already replaced it without permission and had dealt with Dexter’s corpse, she could let that slide too.
Sitting disinterestedly in the only chair in the room, she didn’t wait long before the sound of hurried footsteps approached, followed by a knock at the door,
“Knock knock.”
“Your Majesty, Mr. Martilon, the leader of the New Party, has arrived.”
“Let him in.”
Martilon’s frail body awkwardly pushed open the massive door. He cautiously scanned the decor inside the room only to find it spotless; apart from Elizabeth sitting in the center with her back to him, there was nothing else.
But whether it was an illusion or not, he couldn’t shake the faint scent of blood from his nostrils, and as he walked into the room, that scent only grew stronger.
Elizabeth did not turn around; she simply beckoned lightly with her hand. This simple action made Martilon inadvertently swallow hard, as if the figure before him was not an about-to-be-crowned empress, but a terrifying monster.
The immense pressure made his elderly frame stoop further as he halted roughly four or five steps away from the chair, then tentatively began to speak,
“Your Majesty, was I summoned for something?”
Elizabeth did not speak but merely turned her head slightly, her light golden eyes easily capturing Martilon’s old form.
In the next moment, she beckoned again, but it was as if she could control Martilon’s body, causing him to involuntarily take two steps forward.
“In the previous vote, 460 votes, the ruling New Party secured 270 votes, yet 93 votes opposed my ascension agenda.”
Visible sweat broke out on Martilon’s aged face as he carefully stole a glance at Elizabeth. Ever since Elizabeth ascended, he knew the New Party was in serious trouble.
At that time, the New Party faced a dilemma; if they agreed to Elizabeth’s ascension, they risked losing their ruling position in the future as she had the Griffin Party supporting her, and they possessed evidence against the New Party that could easily turn against them. Conversely, if they opposed Elizabeth’s ascension, that evidence could lead to the immediate disbandment of the New Party since most members would end up in prison.
In light of such a significant decision, Martilon had chosen to let the New Party members decide.
The outcome: most decided to survive and voted for Elizabeth, while only a small handful, whether out of greed or lack of greed, held onto their beliefs, confident that Elizabeth wouldn’t dare touch them, revealing the underlying situation of the New Party’s votes.
Martilon heaved a sigh, speaking to Elizabeth,
“Tomorrow I will formally resign from the position of leader of the New Party, and the New Party will no longer participate in the next official election.”
“No, Mr. Martilon, you cannot resign; your New Party cannot abstain from the election.”
Elizabeth’s words caught Martilon off guard, lifting his head to see the beautiful queen smiling softly, her hands resting meaningfully on her abdomen, looking at him.
“What do you mean? But the Griffin Party has been waiting for this position for quite some time. They didn’t help you for nothing.”
What was said was already quite obvious.
Martilon knew the Griffin Party had staked their chips on Elizabeth, using her ascension as leverage, with the reward being to regain their ruling status once she became queen; that was their deal. Yet now Elizabeth was mentioning that the New Party should not abstain from the election.
Then what did Elizabeth mean?
“You’re not wrong; the Griffin Party has placed great hope in me, attempting to take off with my ascension. But they never considered that I never intended to fulfill any commitments with them. Martilon, you are a dying old man and also a wise one, which is why I’m telling you this; I trust you already understand after hearing it.”
“You not only cannot resign but also should lead the New Party to contend with the Griffin Party for me. How to contest, and what approach to take, I will teach you. But the premise is that all 93 votes within your party must be disposed of; it is best if there is only one unified opinion—that is, obey my orders. Otherwise, my eyesight is poor; if I mistakenly cut the wrong places, don’t blame me.”
Upon hearing this, Martilon’s breathing became rapid.
He understood now; any talk of a deal with the Griffin Party was utter nonsense. Even the Griffin Party was merely a stepping stone for her, as she never had any intention of elevating them.
She didn’t want a weakened New Party nor a strengthened Griffin Party. What she desired were two adversaries, both fighting to the death yet remaining half-alive!
And what Elizabeth presented to Martilon this time was not an olive branch but a chain of bondage!
To her, if the New Party could follow her directions and continue treading water with the Griffin Party, she would not mind helping them extend their lives; if not, destroying them and raising a new pup would also be a viable choice.
Retreat or perish?
Other newcomers to the New Party might hesitate, but Elizabeth was very choosy; she picked Martilon, who had devoted his heart and soul to the New Party his entire life.
And she knew precisely what decisions to impose on this elderly man longing to leave a legacy…
Martilon opened his mouth, and after a dry swallow, he responded with somewhat hoarse words,
“I will make those 93 representatives resign.”
“Ding ding ding!”
At that moment, the bells signaling the beginning of the ascension ceremony rang out, echoing across the throng gathered in front of the Golden Palace square.
Simultaneously, the royal orchestra began to play uplifting music beneath the Golden Palace, as if heralding the curtain being drawn for a grand ceremony,
“Golden souls flow eternally! My king, Godlin, noble bloodline, may you continue, leading Nali toward glory! Ah, Godlin!”
As the royal orchestra’s song resonated, countless citizens rose to their feet, singing along with them.
In an instant, the thunderous ascension anthem for Godlin filled every corner of the Golden Palace, laying a red carpet for the impending emperor.
Amidst the thunderous song, Elizabeth calmly stood from her chair; she smiled slightly, but there was a chilling ice hidden in her gaze as she looked at Martilon.
“Mr. Martilon, resigning will not silence anyone; you know this.”
The chill from her words coursed down Martilon’s spine to his head. He stared blankly at Elizabeth, who was gazing at him, and after a moment’s silence, he bowed his head and said,
“I know what to do.”
“That’s good.”
Ignoring the lowered head of Martilon, Elizabeth walked expressionlessly to the door of the ascension platform. Through that not-thick door, she effortlessly heard the sounds of the audience outside.
She gently closed her eyes; in the dark void of her vision, Fisher’s face remained distinctly clear. Yet the clearer he became, the more apparent it was that he had already distanced himself from her.
She had let him go once more, failing to grasp him.
Perhaps it was because he had once expressed genuine affection for her that touched Elizabeth; for even one as obsessed as she, deep down, she still hoped that Fisher would take the initiative to be with her, rather than through this coercive method.
Thus, when Fisher proposed that deal, she agreed.
It wasn’t that she was too soft-hearted; it was that she hadn’t given up on Fisher yet.
But having just let him go, Elizabeth regretted it immediately.
That sense of solitude from his absence, that agonizing pain of not being able to see him made her days stretch unbearably, intolerable.
“Fisher.”
Closing her eyes, Elizabeth felt the pain of not having grasped Fisher, yet at the same time, she also perceived from her eyes a delightful sensation coming from Pandora.
“So, is your ultimate goal to make me toil in pursuit of everything, yet in the end, not obtain what I desire the most?”
The mocking words received no response from Pandora, and Elizabeth opened her eyes, instantly pushing open the door before her.
Facing the rising sun, countless gazes, countless devoted souls, and innumerable wills that cheered for her out of fear or worship surged before her.
She smiled, gripping Godlin’s inherited golden scepter, walking slowly to the front, her gentle demeanor resembling both a celestial angel descending like a goddess and the most beautiful gem in the world.
“Your Majesty!”
“Empress!”
“Your Majesty Elizabeth!!”
Countless shouts overshadowed the music and artillery sounds from the Golden Palace, propelling the incandescent, unprecedented empress to the peak of Nali.
Elizabeth smiled, waving to everyone below, the New Party, Griffin Party, the Exploration Company, and all of Nali, who at this moment lay beneath her feet.
A new era had already arrived.
(Volume Two: The Mysterious Child of the Sea)
(The Chapter Ends)
