Chapter 334. Aliya
The corners of Charles' lips twitched slightly. Honestly speaking, that was the dream of every man.
Anna pushed Charles out of the way and headed down the stairs.
"If I find another man, you'd probably understand how I feel right now," she remarked without looking back, her voice laced with a hint of bitterness.
"Anna," Charles said as he reached out to grab her wrist. "I can explain. There's a reason for it. I thought you were dead when I first met Elizabeth. How could I have known that you were still alive? Things just eventually ended up how they are now."
Anna's head whipped around; a look of fury crossed her visage. She charged toward Charles with an intimidating aura, causing him to retreat.
"Oh? So it's my fault now?" Anna taunted.
Charles was at a loss for words, and silence permeated the air. Seeing his reaction, Anna turned around once more and continued her descent down the stairs.
"Forget it. I will not take it against a man who's part of someone else's harem," Anna jested in spite.
"Hey, where are you going? Don't wander around the island."
"I'm a little hungry. I'm going to find a human to eat."
***
Drip. Drip.
The continuous sound of dripping water droplets echoed within the dimly lit prison of Hope Island.
In a crowded cell where the ground was laid out with straw, a bald man dressed in a black and white prison uniform had his face pressed against the iron bars. His nose twitched as he sniffed the air, and a look of ecstasy appeared on his face.
"Take a whiff, quickly. The bloke down in the darkest hole's got himself some grilled fish tonight."
"You think smelling food's enough to fill you up? It only makes the belly roar louder. Just shut your eyes and get some rest, mate. We've got a long day ahead tomorrow. Miss that quota, and we're starving again."
The conversation between the two prisoners clearly caused the displeasure of the burly, topless man seated on the opposite side of the cell. Overwhelmed by fury, he swung his fist at the stomach of the skinny guy next to him.
"Fuck it! We are all convicts. But that bastard gets to live in a single cell, doesn't need to work and eats well every day. If I fucking get out of here, the first thing I'll do is rush in there and kill him!" the burly man cursed.
"Killer Whale, don't just talk big. I heard that the holding area for the death row prisoners is particularly spacious. Maybe you'd like a private room there."
Killer Whale stood up and started hurling curses and swearing at the dirty dwarf in the adjacent cell. The two sides exchanged heated words, but that was all there was to it—a verbal confrontation.
They were being held in a high-security zone meant for serious offenders, and they already had enough charges against them. If they attempted a prison break, the death row zone would be their final place of rest.
Although they were prisoners, their information was more up-to-date than anyone would have imagined. They knew what other islanders didn't—an old man in a wheelchair had been taking away the death row inmates for some kind of experiment.
They had no idea what experiment it was that required the assistance of death row inmates, but the unknown was the most fearsome. As a result, the prisoners held here had become more well-behaved.
The bald man who had been sniffing the air lay flat on the dry straw and muttered, "They have been going on for a while; why haven't those blue dogs come in to hit the bars with their sticks? Have they all died outside?"
Just then, the sound of footsteps entered his ears. His ears perked up. He was certain that it wasn't the usual sound he heard from the blue dogs' boots. It was the sound of a woman's high heels!
He shot up straight, and his gaze was fixated on the iron gate next to him.
"A woman! There's a woman! I can smell her!"
As soon as a woman dressed in a gorgeous purple high-slit dress stepped through the iron gate, all the prisoners rushed excitedly to the bars of their holding cells.
Whistles and cat-calls erupted in the area. However, the moment their eyes landed on the red scorpion tattoo on the woman's neck, the excitement on their faces vanished instantly. All of them lay down on the straw, and silence descended.
The fear in them was ingrained. After all, the majority of them ended up here after being captured by Aliya and her team.
"Who the hell designed these damned high-heeled boots. They bloody hell deserve a bullet!" Aliya cursed in annoyance and removed her boots. Tossing her boots to the side, she then dashed toward the deepest cell barefooted.
One of her boots rolled to the side and came within reach of a dirty hand. Soon, a fierce clash over the prized possession erupted in the cell.
However, Aliya couldn't care less about the commotion behind her. She approached the cell door made of thick steel plates and pulled out a key. Inserting it into the keyhole, she then gave it a gentle twist.
Click.
The door opened instantly to reveal a terrifying fishman inking a pen.
"Aliya? What are you doing here?" The fishman put down the pen in his hand and was about to approach her. However, his movements were restricted by heavy handcuffs and leg irons.
A bitter smile appeared on Dipp's scaly face. "You probably can't recognize me, do you? If I say I'm Dipp, would you believe me?"
Aliya rushed forward and proficiently unlocked the restraints on Dipp.
"Boss, hurry up and leave. Most of the people on the island are at the Governor's Mansion to attend the celebratory banquet. My men have prepared a boat, and I've also subdued the prison guards outside. Once we're out, we can take the boat and leave Hope Island immediately!"
Looking at his former subordinate's anxious expression, Dipp shook his head. He bent down to pick up the handcuffs and put them back on his wrists once more.
"Get out of here quickly. You'll get into big trouble if they catch you."
"I don't care! I can always return to being a pirate!" Aliya replied in defiance.
Dipp leisurely took a comfortable position on the floor and held up a piece of paper with words written on it.
With a prideful smug on his face, he said, "Look, I've learned to spell quite a few new words here."
"That punk, Charles, said that he will settle the scores with you! Staying here is just waiting for death!" Aliya exclaimed, her eyes turning red from desperation.
Dipp lowered his head and placed the paper he was holding onto the low table by the side.
"Captain won't kill me, I'm sure of that."
"Why do you trust him so much?! Boss, I'm begging you! Hurry up! The guys from District 4 will catch on soon."
"Because he's my captain," Dipp replied nonchalantly as he picked up a poorly drawn picture beside him.
The picture depicted a crooked and distorted ship, which was supposed to resemble the Narwhale, and a variety of crooked and twisted humanoid figures were standing on the deck of the vessel.
***
The night passed by quietly.
The sun shone brightly upon a large canopy roof on Hope Island. Docked out in a bikini and a pair of sunglasses, Anna lay on Charles' shoulder as the couple enjoyed the sun's warm glow.
"I didn't expect you guys to have sunglasses here. I've never seen this on other islands," Anna remarked.
"They belong to Audric. No one on this island will go seeking their own death under the sun," Charles replied as he gently stroked Anna's fair and soft abdomen. The pair indulged in this rare moment of intimacy.
After a brief, quiet moment, Anna suddenly turned over and crawled on Charles' chest. Her slender and fair fingers pulled the sunglasses down.
Looking at Charles, she said, "Actually... if you want me and Elizabeth to get along, there is a way."
Charles' eyes flew open at Anna's words, and he slightly propped himself up to look her in the eye as he waited for her to continue.
The corners of Anna's lips curved into a faint smile, and she continued, "You just need to agree to one condition of mine, and I will not hold any grudges for what happened in the past. Also, you, me, and Elizabeth, we can have some fun together.
"Don't you covet those delicate ladies in Elizabeth's harem? If you agree to this condition of mine, I can make all of them become your harem. Even if you were to hold wild parties in the Governor's Mansion every day, I won't interfere. In fact, I will join in the fun, too."
Charles could already deduce Anna's condition from her gaze. He let out a sigh, closed his eyes and lay back down.
Annoyed by Charles' silent rejection, Anna repeatedly hit Charles on the chest.
"Hey, is it really that hard to give up searching for the surface world? You have family up there, but don't you have family down here, too? Sparkle and I are your family, aren't we?" Anna questioned.
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