National destiny: Starting with a coffin, building an aircraft carrier is broadcast live globally.

......

Push open the hidden side door.

Renyi and his companions walked out of the casino through the frenzied betting guests, the refreshing breeze dispelling the stench of corruption that even money couldn't mask.

Nathan let out a long sigh of relief, patting his cheeks to dispel his daze:

"Boss... those six thousand gold coins are just left there? There wasn't even any sense of ritual like a soul returning to its rightful place or being redeemed..."

There should at least be some kind of beam of light, right?

It's being handled so hastily now, like paying for a room after checking out... Have their souls really been redeemed?

"11:30..." Renyi opened the pocket watch that Vili had "given" him, glanced at the time, and then tossed it to Nathan.

"Here you go."

Nathan frantically grabbed it, the watch cover popped open, and the hands spun slowly in circles—

Tick.

Tick.

He stood there, stunned, the words he had casually uttered on the ship the day before yesterday flashing through his mind: "Excessive focus on the heartbeat over a long period of time can easily induce arrhythmia."

...He thought this was just a sarcastic remark from his usually capricious boss...

"Boss..."

Nathan sniffed. "I—"

Without even turning his head, he said, "Don't you like keeping track of seconds? Take this and play with it, remember to wind it up."

"..."

Damn it, why does the feeling of being moved have such a short shelf life here?!

Nathan held the gold pocket watch carefully, but his expression was like that of someone who had swallowed a peeled lemon whole.

Ivan forced his laughter into a distorted cough, Klaus lowered his head and focused on studying the beveled edges of the floor tiles, and Siddo tried to pinch her thigh... but couldn't. Oh... she didn't have legs.

"Laugh all you want!"

Nathan gritted his teeth and stuffed the pocket watch into his pocket. "At least this is a valuable gift from the boss! Do you guys have one?"

"That's stolen goods, Mr. Animal Trainer." Renyi continued walking.

They happened to walk into a square.

The square was bustling with people, peaceful and serene, while the church spire stood silently at the end of the street, facing the sky.

"The mayor just let us go like that?" Sido asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Um."

After what just happened...

It is certain that Mayor Willy was merely going through the motions as an agent; in reality, someone else was in charge of deciding whether they could leave the town.

"He thought he was the fisherman, but in fact he was just the bait."

"So..." Klaus frowned, looking up at the church steeple, "are we going to find the real 'screenwriter' now?"

Correct.

He thought about it silently.

......

According to the time, it should be noon now.

But the town was still shrouded in mist, and a few crows perched on the stone tablet at the church entrance, tilting their heads to observe the townspeople coming and going.

The church is no longer as cold and dilapidated as it used to be.

Xiao Jiu was lying on the edge of the holy water basin, its two tentacles idly poking at the murky water inside, occasionally blowing a bubble.

And Father Myriel stood before the cross—

He pretended to be listening to the conversation between the townspeople and Aurora, and the suppressed sobs and relieved thanks, but in reality, his eyes were constantly glancing at the holy water basin.

"..."

That evil mollusk...

They actually used the sacred holy water basin as a bathtub to play with!

He dragged himself forward two steps, his lips pressed into a serious line.

Grab this thing and throw it out the door.

...That's right, that's it.

Miri Ai reached out and touched Xiao Jiu's bouncy head with her fingertips.

puff--

Xiao Jiu turned her head towards him and blew an even bigger bubble.

The fingers that had been hanging in mid-air twitched, but eventually fell down, and the breath that had been stuck in his chest turned into a sigh.

He had a sudden thought.

Ripples appeared on the murky water in the basin, as if the filth had been dispelled by something invisible, and the water became clear again.

Xiao Jiu turned around, her beady eyes looking at the priest with a silly, innocent expression.

Perhaps its silly and adorable expression was too funny, because Miri Ai's straight lips twitched slightly, and she raised her index finger to her lips:

secret.

He scrutinized Father Myriel for a moment—

"Relative! But you're a good relative!"

One tentacle reached out and hooked onto the priest's sleeve, while the other reached under his head and pulled out a knotted, jet-black wig from who-knows-where!

Xiao Jiu held the wig in mid-air, as if inviting the priest to wear it.

If anyone, Klaus, or Ivan were here, they would realize that this is the same head of Wilson's that was traded for half a fishing rod!

Myriel's messy eyebrows were all tangled together.

really......

It's better to just throw this wicked mollusk out...

Just as the priest and Xiao Jiu were locked in a stalemate, the confessional door opened again, and Aurora and a young woman walked out at the same time.

The young woman had a smile on her face, but tears were streaming down her cheeks.

"Thank you, sister."

Her voice trembled as she gripped Aurora's hand tightly.

Aurora gently patted the back of her hand, just as the headmistress had done countless times: "Peace be with you, may you find true peace."

After watching the young woman leave.

Aurora glanced at Little Nine and saw that it was getting along well with Father Myriel, so she felt relieved and led the next townsman into the confessional.

Xiao Jiu instantly revealed her true colors, pulling out the wig from under her head once again and eagerly holding it up to the priest's nose.

"Put it on! Put it on!"

Father Myriel endured it all...

Then he suddenly reached out and snatched the wig away—

"Smack!" It landed on Xiao Jiu's head.

Dora's haircut perfectly covered Xiao Jiu's head, and two bewildered, beady eyes peeked out from under her center-parted bangs.

The effect is so good?

Just like the sopranos I used to see in the city's opera house... a mini version!

Father Myriel's tightly clenched lips twitched several times, and he almost couldn't keep up his lifeless expression.

Just then.

"Squeak—Bang!"

The heavy wooden door of the church was suddenly pushed open by the intruder, who seemed to have ill intentions.

"Father Myriel...we—"

They came to confront us... or at least they were supposed to.

The intruder's voice abruptly stopped, and Ivan pointed ahead, his hand trembling:

"That...that's not..."

Klaus, almost as if in a dream, finished the sentence Ivan hadn't said.

"...Wilson's hair."

Nathan and Sido had no idea what the joke was, they just found the image of an octopus wearing a middle-part wig quite striking, but judging from Ivan and Klaus's reactions, it was clearly not a simple matter.

"cough."

Finally, a soft cough from Renyi broke the silence.

He walked forward without changing his expression, pretending not to see Xiao Jiu wearing a wig at all, and calmly fixed his gaze on Father Myriel.

"Father, we meet again."