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

The long-dormant Pearl Garden has received guests today.

—The quantity is quite large.

Risborne sat gracefully on the large princess bed, dressed only in an ordinary silk dress, her dazzling golden hair casually draped over her shoulders. In her hand, she held a carving knife and slowly carved patterns on a black pearl.

"Bang!"

The heavy, fine gold door was violently pushed open, and a torrent of water rushed into the palace, creating a turbulent flow.

However, the noise did not make her hand tremble even a little.

"Search! The Crown Princess has ordered a full palace search for the escaped criminal from the Rift!"

More than a dozen guards clad in golden scale armor swam in. They didn't treat this place as a royal palace at all, and unceremoniously overturned the shell-shaped tables and chairs that were in the way.

The lead guard swaggered in.

"Your Highness, we meet again."

In fact, everyone knows perfectly well that the Third Princess herself is in dire straits, and it's impossible for a fugitive to hide here unnoticed.

But what does it matter?

This person is going to be executed tomorrow...

How could he possibly let go of this opportunity to trample the former royal family underfoot and rub them mercilessly while also currying favor with the eldest princess!

Riesbourne didn't even look up, his fingertips gliding across the surface of the pearl.

And behind that magnificent white jade wall.

Behind a huge oil painting depicting a siren riding the waves lies a very cramped, enclosed space.

In the darkness, several fish huddled together.

"Hey... excuse me, the axe is poking my back."

Nathan muttered something under his breath.

"Where am I supposed to move? There's the red-haired monster's back in front, and a wall to my left!"

Ivan was suffocating.

His physique, crammed into this small, less than two-cubic-meter room with four other equally large men, made him feel as cramped as a sardine.

Sean, on the outermost side, clung tightly to the wall with both hands, afraid that he might accidentally break the outer canvas.

Carlos was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.

Through the easel, the sounds of shattered decorations and the guards' rude curses outside reached his ears without missing a single word.

Those bastards!

Carlos endured it all, but continued to nudge and wiggle restlessly.

"If you keep pushing, I won't be responsible if you prick me." Aurora tried her best to control those colorful, poisonous stingers.

Just a stroke apart.

The lead guard kicked open a jewelry box on the ground, and precious deep-sea gems rolled to the corner. He poked and prodded with his halberd, tearing expensive silk hanging on the shelf to pieces.

His gaze swept across the bedroom, finally settling on the painting of a siren.

This painting is not only exquisite and vivid, but its frame is also inlaid with hundreds of round pearls the size of eyeballs, clearly the work of a famous artist.

The lead guard, Qiu Fudi, snorted coldly, swam forward, and thrust his trident at the painting.

Sean, separated only by a sheet, even stopped breathing.

Ivan's muscles tensed. As soon as that halberd pierced the canvas, he would use his heavy thoughts to open up a space for the guy outside to think!

"How's it going? Did you find it?"

A clear, authoritative female voice rang out.

The guard's halberd stopped half an inch from the canvas.

Riseben didn't even change his posture, only staring at the guard with the eyes of someone looking at a dead object.

"You'd better pray that nothing goes wrong with tomorrow's execution."

There was a moment of stillness in the air.

The lead guard sheathed his halberd and let out a heavy sneer.

"Your Highness."

His tone was full of smug satisfaction.

"Still putting on airs... There will only be one future crown prince, Princess Brona!"

"I think there's a lot of space under this bed; maybe some ruthless robbers are hiding there. Go, search it thoroughly for me!"

Two guards, acting on orders, grabbed Risbane's arms from both sides without hesitation and forcibly dragged her up.

Several tridents were simultaneously inserted into the gap under the bed and pried it open with force.

The magnificent curtains were torn to shreds, and the heavy princess bed was overturned, revealing nothing but a pile of missing biological gelatin inside.

"unlucky!"

The lead guard spat.

The incident began when they received an alert from the Craft Workshop, reporting the appearance of strange and suspicious fish shadows in the palace. They had searched three palaces but hadn't found a single fish scale.

He waved his hand impatiently. "Let's go! Let's go check the west side!"

The guards quickly withdrew from the main hall.

The sound of metal chains being re-wrapped could be heard outside, and the gate was sealed shut again.

The bedroom was left in a mess.

Risburn waited for a while before getting up and swimming to the door, pressing his ear tightly against the cold, pitted door panel.

The patrol outside was becoming less and less active.

I waited for another ten minutes or so.

She turned around, swam to the perfectly preserved painting of the Siren Queen, and tapped the lower left corner of the frame three times.

"Click."

A crisp sound came from the edge of the painting, which popped open a crack, and then the mechanism turned, flipping it outwards.

"Ouch...don't push!"

"My foot was stepped on! My foot was stepped on!"

"Thump!" "Table tennis ball—!"

Five figures shoved and pushed each other, falling into the narrow, enclosed room like dumplings being dropped into a pot.

Ivan was still clutching the large axe in his hand. When he fell out, he almost chopped Sean in half. Sean quickly rolled twice on the ground to avoid the sharp edge of [Heart's Thoughts].

Nathan crawled out from the bottom, panting heavily.

Aurora used the buoyancy of the water to swim to the side and tidied her messy long hair.

The four fish each stood still.

And in the middle of the water layer, a fish was floating straight up.

Carlos's eyes were closed, his face was pale, and his tongue was half sticking out. He remained motionless, swaying back and forth with the faint ripples of the water, like a dried salted fish that had been moistened by the sea.

"Carlos?!"

Riseben cried out in alarm and lunged forward.

But a figure was faster than her; Nathan stood firmly in front of her, as elegantly as if inviting her to dance.

"Don't worry, Your Highness."

"It was too crowded inside just now, and he accidentally got pricked by one of my thorns."

Aurora explained:

"I've already taken back the toxins, and he'll wake up soon."

Riseben blinked.

The atmosphere froze for a moment.

Ivan scratched his head, trying to break the awkward silence: "I thought he was so excited he fainted..."

"..."

Riesben's gaze fell back on Carlos's somewhat foolish face, and he suddenly smiled helplessly.

The third princess, who was about to face public execution, showed no trace of gloom.

"I originally wanted to invite everyone to sit down and chat."

She glanced around the palace, which had been ransacked by the guards, and shrugged.

"However, those rude guys didn't seem to have left me a chair to sit on."

This joke instantly eased the tense atmosphere.

Although Carlos isn't very bright,

But Rhys knew that he... wasn't very good at lying, and didn't easily trust others.

"Since he brought you here, I trust you too."

"Well then, friends."

Riseben gave a slight bow, performing an impeccable greeting, his azure eyes flashing with sharpness:

"Can you tell me who you are and why you've come?"