573 Bard
573 Bard

The woman in the black nun’s attire felt Lumian’s gaze, turning her head slightly and locking eyes with him.

Lumian’s gaze met hers, filled with indescribable colors, and the figure in his line of sight vanished.

Simultaneously, Lumian recognized the insignificance of this occurrence. It didn’t warrant further consideration.

Beside the incumbent Governor of the Sea, Juan Oro noticed the once calm azure sea undulating. In the gray sky, stars barely visible to the naked eye underwent changes, stirring an inexplicable throbbing and emotional shift within him.

An anomaly? Juan Oro couldn’t determine if it was good or bad. Given the circumstances, any change was treated as an accident, potentially caused by a hidden enemy.

Without hesitation, he forcefully thrust the Ring of the Sea Queen into the hands of the incoming Governor of the Sea, Simon, growling, “Hurry up and marry the sea!”

In a moment of desperation, the president of the Fisheries Guild unintentionally failed to alter his voice to sound like Jorge. However, his vocal cords had changed, making him sound younger than usual.

Simon, taken aback by the shout, didn’t notice Juan Oro’s voice shift.

He raised his hand, clutching the Ring of the Sea Queen, and recited, “I espouse thee, O sea, as a sign of true and perpetual dominion!” With that, he threw the unique golden ring. It trembled with light, its surface covered in a gentle glow.

As the Ring of the Sea Queen submerged, its glow intensified and expanded to the size of a baby before transforming into a cone of light, vanishing into the azure seawater.

In the next moment, Juan Oro, Lumian, and the rest heard a deafening boom.

Splash!

The sea boiled, unleashing huge waves that catapulted the colorful flower boat into the air. A destructive aura echoed in the surroundings.

Wh… The sea’s fury! How could this happen? Juan Oro’s pupils dilated in disbelief. He couldn’t fathom that they had angered the sea again. It seemed like this year’s sea prayer ritual had failed once more.

He had meticulously followed every step, witnessing the placement of the Ring of the Sea Queen on the dilapidated stone platform representing the ancestors. He personally retrieved and guarded it with utmost vigilance. Everything went smoothly!

How could this be?

As the bridal boat teetered on the verge of capsizing, Juan Oro clenched his fists, and crystalline scales resembling starlight manifested on his body.

His eyes darkened, resembling resplendent stars emerging within.

He melded with the “sea.”

The crashing sound abruptly ceased, and the majestic, terrifying azure waves froze in midair, as if held tightly by an unseen hand.

…

In Milo Village, within the cathedral-like Governor of the Sea’s building.

The imposter Governor of the Sea, Miguel, lay in the servant’s room. Suddenly, he sat up and leisurely rose from the bed, a self-satisfied smile playing on his face.

Standing before a glass window overlooking the weeds outside, he muttered to himself, It’s almost time…

I wonder how Juan Oro will react when he discovers the sea sacrifice has failed again. Heh heh, this is payback for all the ‘care’ he’s given me over the past year.

What’s Loki up to? Why the sudden deviation from the original plan? Isn’t he concerned about potential accidents?

Miguel—a key member of April Fool’s, Bard—had previously disguised himself as the sailor, Iru, and boarded the ship, escaping with Mad Lady when he jumped into the sea.

Their plan over the course of the past year was devised last year. They had selected locals from Port Santa who resembled the unfortunate governor. After disrupting the sea sacrifice and returning ashore, they promptly killed one of their targets, allowing Bard to assume the guise.

Their confidence in Miguel—disguised by Bard—becoming the false Governor of the Sea stemmed from Ultraman taking charge of the matter.

To prevent potential rebellion from peripheral April Fool’s members, Bard, a former Swindler, intentionally wrote Emperor Roselle’s Secret Chronicles and handed them to Loki. The latter discreetly distributed them in Trier, creating the illusion of Bard’s activity in Intis. This tactic prevented others from connecting Miguel—obediently residing in the Governor of the Sea’s residence—to Bard.

Writing about Emperor Roselle’s romantic past indeed amused Bard, and witnessing Juan Oro’s reactions, including the lashing with a crutch before intimate encounters with his granddaughter and the wives and daughters of relevant personnel, greatly satisfied Bard’s mischievous tendencies.

However, pranks were secondary. Bard’s main objective in assuming the disguise of the Governor of the Sea was clear:

He gained unrestricted access to the basement of the building, believed by Milo Village’s inhabitants to be the sacrificial ground for their ancestors!

Despite being a fake Governor of the Sea under the watchful eyes of sea spawn in the house, he had free rein everywhere except the ring-making ritual grounds and the vigil room. Only those two areas were off-limits unless he crossed a line. Moreover, Ultraman confirmed that the basement of the Governor’s residence held no value for the sea spawn. Except for two symbolic guards at the staircase, there were no monitors or protectors inside.

Villagers of Milo Village only visited occasionally, showing respect for the Governor of the Sea by not entering or leaving the building without permission.
This provided ample opportunities for Bard, the imposter Governor of the Sea.

Thinking about the expressions of Juan Oro and Lumian Lee when they witnessed the sea prayer ritual’s failure again, Bard couldn’t help but chuckle. He muttered in a mocking tone, You know the sea sacrifice, ring-making, and vigil happen once a year. Haven’t you considered that the ancestral sacrificial ritual can only occur annually?

That dilapidated altar requires the slow accumulation of worshippers’ spirituality. It takes almost twelve months to gather the necessary enchantment.

Over half a month before the basement gained serious attention, he had strategically placed an item related to one of the three pathways on the altar, openly siphoning the accumulated theft powers!

With this plan, Bard believed that, regardless of the success of the previous night’s ring-making ritual, regardless of how closely Juan Oro and Lumian Lee guarded against the replacement of the Ring of the Sea Queen, it wouldn’t possess the ability to steal power from the sea bottom.

Hence, the sea prayer ritual was destined to fail. The seal would further open, and the long-accumulated “volcano” inside would erupt!

Anyone attempting to stop it would perish!

Last year, the reason April Fool’s took the risk of making Mad Lady a deputy host and deliberately replacing the Ring of the Sea Queen on the sacrificial ancestor’s stone platform with another item arose because the theory that the high-level stealing power could only be used once a year wasn’t entirely confirmed. Although Ultraman could analyze and experiment in the basement, he refrained from doing so too frequently to avoid suspicion.

Following the sea prayer ritual failure last year and the subsequent monthly experiments over the past eleven months, Bard, Ultraman, and Mad Lady were now certain that they didn’t need to go through the trouble of replacing the real Ring of the Sea Queen. Instead, they could preemptively take away the theft power. Thus, they sneered at Lumian Lee’s efforts, unconcerned about his actions or the need for destructive measures to avoid detection by the Earth Mother Church.

Despite their confidence, they still had to maintain appearances, including seeking help from Lumian Lee.

Bard shifted his gaze, averting it to his left hand.

There were signs of a ring being worn there.

This was, in fact, the item carrying the key functions of the Ring of the Sea Queen!

…

Port Santa, Solow Motel, at the entrance of the fifth-floor suite.

“Hugging” Madame Giorgia, Lugano’s thoughts faltered, as if the iron gears were covered in yellow rust or lacking lubricant.

W-what’s… going on?

Am I… under attack?

No… I have to hurry… I have to… get rid… of this state…

Lugano attempted to push away the woman in his arms, only to realize she had become surprisingly heavy. Using her joints subtly, Madame Giorgia prevented him from raising his arms and legs. The movements resembled a lovers’ playful interaction.

Coupled with his disjointed thoughts, even a Planter like Lugano couldn’t break free from Giorgia’s restraints.

Panicking, Lugano opened his mouth, about to call for help.

Just then, Giorgia lifted her head, pressing her red lips against his.

Lugano was momentarily taken aback.

In the adjacent room, Jenna, disguised as a female mercenary, held a mirror to “reflect” the situation in Lumian’s living room through the glass and other items.

Seeing Lugano and Giorgia embracing and flirting, Jenna couldn’t help but curse under her breath, “Dammit, can you even go into heat at a time like this? And in front of a child!”

Considering that Franca would be joined by members of the Curly-Haired Baboons Research Society, Lumian tasked Jenna with secretly monitoring Lugano to figure out what was wrong with the interpreter.

As a former Showy Diva, Jenna had witnessed similar scenes and even more restrictive ones. She couldn’t fathom why they chose to display such affection at the door.

At that moment, Anthony Reid, standing beside her, looked at the mirror and frowned.

“It doesn’t seem like they’re making out. Their actions and expressions aren’t typical of people engaged in such activities.”