Should I raise you too?

Thanks to Mr. Sigmund, the Church of Neptune, which received financial assistance, is much better off this year. The church storeroom is still stocked with supplies, including oatmeal and bread.

But even if we don't lack anything, we might as well take advantage of something that's free.

Father Victor was initially hesitant about whether to remove the part about exploiting the Holy Radiance Church if Mr. Sigmund attended the gathering, since the Holy Radiance Church pastors' gazes were quite piercing.

Since Mr. Sigmund didn't participate, there's no need to worry about it.

Sister Winnie also declined the party, perhaps because she was with Mr. Sigmund. Sister Winnie's status seems quite high, but in the Church of the Sea God, such a status is practically worthless. I wonder if Mr. Sigmund cares.

He led the believers to the City Hall Square, watched a program in the special area for Southern Continent people for a while, and then returned to the Holy Radiance Church Cathedral, where they received another bowl of porridge and bread.

“Praise be to Mr. Sigmund.” They clinked their bowls together, drank their oatmeal with gusto, and smiled broadly.

Despite their poverty and material difficulties, they felt happy at that moment.

Father Victor knew that many people in the Southern Continent, especially the young, were dissatisfied with the status quo and with being discriminated against.

Just like in front of the city hall, they could only watch the show in a secluded area and could not move around freely like the people of the Eastern Continent. As a result, many young people were unwilling to come and participate in the Sea Breeze Festival at the city hall.

But Father Victor felt that as long as one had friends, oatmeal, bread, and salted fish, and warm clothes, it was a life worth thanking the sea god for and worthy of joy.

He soaked the bread in the oatmeal porridge, picked up the bowl and drank it in big gulps. Steam rose from the rim of the bowl, ascending through the brightly lit streets and dissipating into the darkness above the town.

……

Bishop Gerard, along with his fish-like subordinates, followed the underground water flow and entered the frozen ocean.

Their fish-like organs help them breathe and eat underwater.

Bishop Gerald grabbed the squid in front of him, bit off its head, and swallowed it.

"We've arrived. Get ready," he said to his subordinates behind him.

The eight fish-like priests spread out, catching and eating the fish in preparation for the upcoming battle.

They had been traveling in the sea for half a month and had entered the deep sea area, where there was no light and they could only rely on the current to find their way.

From the dark sea beneath them, strange currents of water surged and crashed against their bodies.

They spat out the fish meat in their mouths and looked down at the sea.

Bishop Gerald raised his hand, unleashing the power of the "Sun" domain, and a golden sphere of light illuminated the sea below.

One by one, pale-faced fishmen with white eyes surrounded them from below.

They were even more terrifying than the fish-men who had attacked the fishing boats before; their upper bodies had no scales, only pale skin.

They are deep-sea fish-men, unlike ordinary fish-men. They live in the ocean where the water pressure is high enough to kill an ordinary fish-man instantly. Compared to shallow-sea fish-men, they have higher intelligence and socialization.

Like mermaids and sirens, they were, or at least once were, followers of the sea god.

Several deep-sea fishmen, wielding bone spears, launched an attack. Bishop Gerard dispatched his subordinates, who dealt with them, and their dark blue blood spread in the seawater.

The deep-sea fish stirred and scattered to both sides, revealing a path.

An elderly fishman holding a bone staff swam out of the deep sea and came before Bishop Gerard.

It scrutinized Bishop Gerald and his companions with its pale eyes, a chilling smile spreading across its fish-face as it reassured its people behind it: "They are our kin, fish-men with somewhat deformed appearances."

Bishop Gerald remained calm, while the several fish-like priests beside him raised their heads and glared at the impudent old fishman.

“When the time comes,” Bishop Gerald raised his scaly hand, revealing pale fish eyes in his palm, “if the goddess succeeds in seizing power over the ocean and storms, you will be able to replace the mermaids and sirens and control all the seas.”

The old merman stared at the fish scales on his hand for a long time, sensing the sincerity of the Holy Radiance Church. A demigod bishop transformed into a fish, a group of elite priests—these were gifts from the Holy Radiance Church to the merman race, representing the merman race's positions of power within the Holy Radiance Church.

It slowly raised the scepter in its hand, and a tiny ripple spread from its hand, instantly reaching the surrounding sea.

A murmured, incoherent murmur echoed in the depths of the sea.

“We were originally the holy spirits of the sea, living under glory and freely chasing the storms, but the sea god abandoned us, giving his mercy to greedy humans and imprisoning us in this dark place.”

“They have never answered our prayers, nor shown mercy to our suffering. My people, it is time to abandon that useless god and take control of our own destiny!”

"Follow me to the land and reclaim everything that is ours!"

Chapter 168 Since things have come to this, let's go fishing first.

The festivities of the Sea Breeze Festival aren't limited to Granville; Kingston Harbour is equally vibrant.

In recent months, the frozen sea has not only blocked port operations but also the entertainment of port residents. Now that the Sea Retreat Festival has finally arrived, they are determined to have a great time.

As dawn broke and the drowsiness became unbearable, the port residents returned home and fell into a deep sleep.

Around noon, Viscount Harry, who had just fallen asleep, reluctantly got out of bed, put on thick clothes, and opened the door.

A blast of cold air hit him, and Viscount Harry cursed under his breath.

This is utter garbage, a truly garbage life! The entire Southern Continent is garbage! And I, who came to the Southern Continent, am garbage too!

Reflecting on his miserable life over the past few months, Viscount Harry bowed his head and wept.

First, on the Kingdom Star, he encountered three despicable men who conspired to cheat him out of several hundred pounds, and he lived in fear for quite some time.

After finally getting the cruise ship to dock, he didn't hesitate to leave Kingston Harbor, and didn't even go to Granville, which he had booked, just to get away from that despicable captain, that despicable lieutenant, and that despicable businessman.

At first, he did enjoy a period of peace and happiness, making new friends and having several new lovers.

But just as he had once mistaken the captain, lieutenant, and wealthy merchant for card-playing buddies, his judgment failed him again, and he was deceived once more! This time, his new friends, new servants, and new lovers also deceived him, and by the time he realized what was happening, he didn't have a single pound left.

He sold his clothes and pocket watch, barely scraping together enough money for the journey and ship ticket. He hired a carriage to return to Kingston Harbor, intending to wait for the next cruise ship to arrive in the spring and leave this godforsaken southern continent.

Then he encountered another unexpected event, this time not a scam, but a robbery. He lost his ticket money and walked for a long time before finally returning to Kingston Harbor.

He was too embarrassed to ask the governor's office or the church for help, too embarrassed to say that he, a viscount, had been completely fooled by a bunch of scoundrels, so he went into hiding, pretending to be an ordinary tourist from the Eastern Continent, and spent all his money looking for work.

Fortunately, in the Southern Continent, anyone from the Eastern Continent can find a decent job.

His current job is as the head of the port warehouse, also handling some less important accounting calculations. His salary is not high, but it's enough to buy a standard cabin ticket next spring.

He still owns businesses in the capital; if he goes back, he can resume his affluent life.

He was ready to anonymously send his story to the newspaper and expose those despicable villains from the Southern Continent!

What a load of crap! It's all their fault that I have to work in this freezing weather! I should be curled up by the fireplace, sipping coffee made by the maid!

Viscount Harry raised his hands, exhaled hot breath, rubbed them vigorously, and hurried toward the warehouse.

His superior told him that the rebels in the southern continent often set fire to warehouses during this season, so they had to check every half day. These rebels are bastards!

As they approached the warehouse, Viscount Harry pushed open the iron gate. Everything was as usual; there were no sparks, no smoke, and not even a mouse to be seen.

He locked the door again, stepped into the snow-covered landscape, and followed the footprints he had made. The entire harbor was silent, except for the soft rustling of the snow beneath his feet.

The cold wind dispelled his drowsiness. He returned to the duty room, picked up his fishing rod and bucket, and headed towards the shore.

Although the people of the Southern Continent are all cunning and treacherous villains, the Southern Continent itself is truly wonderful. In one's leisure time, one can move a small stool, take a fishing rod, bring a pot of wine, fish, and enjoy the scenery, experiencing a kind of joy different from that of the Eastern Continent.

Especially winter fishing, sitting alone on the silent ice, with only a fishing line and a peaceful scene before you.

Actually, as long as those villains are eliminated, it's not impossible to come back to the Southern Continent, and it's not impossible for me to say some good things about the Southern Continent.

Viscount Harry walked onto the ice near the sea, swept away the snow, swung his pickaxe, and struck the ice repeatedly until he was drenched in sweat.

With a splash, the pickaxe tip pierced the water, successfully breaking through the ice.

He lowered the fishing line, set up the stool, and just three seconds after sitting down, the line stirred.

So fast today?

Viscount Harry was somewhat surprised and hurriedly grabbed the fishing rod. A strong force came from the fishing line, causing him to stagger twice.

This is a big shipment!

He strained his fishing rod, wrestling with the big fish below, pulling back and forth for half an hour. In the end, he was the one who prevailed. The fishing rod was raised high, and a white figure leaped out of the ice hole and splashed on the ice.

Viscount Harry, having exerted himself too much, fell on his backside. Before he could feel the pain, he hurriedly got up to check his catch.

It was a large white fish, about the size of a ten-year-old child, with arms and legs growing from its fins and tail.

Viscount Harry stared wide-eyed at the monster before him in astonishment.

The fish-man thrashed about on the ice for a moment, then braced himself with his hands and feet and got up. His pale fish eyes looked in the direction of Viscount Harry, his mouth opened, revealing sharp teeth, and he charged at him with both hands and feet.

Viscount Harry felt a chill run down his spine and his hair stand on end. He immediately drew his revolver from his waist, and a loud gunshot echoed across the ice as the bullet struck the fishman's head.

The fishman fell to the ground, his dark green blood spreading across the white snow, his limbs twitching like those of a recently dead insect.

Viscount Harry calmed his heart, walked around the fishman's corpse, reached the entrance of the ice cave, and looked down.

Beneath the sea surface, pale fish shadows darted about. The fish-men on the ice were not accidental mutated monsters; these were the creatures that roamed beneath the ice!

"Bullshit!" Viscount Harry stomped on the fishing rod, snapping it in two. "This sea fishing is bullshit! This entire Southern Continent is a pile of bullshit!"

Anyone who catches such a monster while sea fishing would be unable to remain calm. Viscount Harry quickly retreated and saw several hands braced against the entrance of the ice cave, and several fishmen were landing on the ice!

He fired two shots into the ice cave, then ran quickly toward the shore, shouting for help.

He vowed never to have any expectations of the Southern Continent again; it was a complete devil's land! A malignant tumor of human civilization that should be sunk to the bottom of the sea!

……

Granville, the estate.

It was already broad daylight, and the maids, who had played too much last night, had just woken up.

Maria went out to check on the maids in the Southern Continent, Eve went to Simon's bedroom, and Elsie was assigned to entertain Sister Winnie.