Chapter 401: The Past
Charles and Elizabeth watched as the boy ran back under the sun with his umbrella up high. The boy proceeded to dump the contents of the small bucket in his hand onto the banana tree before him.
The boy then took out a small rag that he had squeezed between his armpits and tiptoed to wipe the leaves of the banana tree carefully. He wasn't exactly doing a great job, but he was careful not to harm the leaves.
Charles' keen hearing picked up the boy's muttering as he wiped the banana tree leaves.
"Grow up big and quickly. The bananas you'll produce once you've grown up are all mine, okay? No one else is allowed to take away the bananas that you will produce.
"I'll bring manure for you every day. My poop will be yours, too.
"Remember, I planted you, so your bananas are mine. I even carved my name on your trunk."
Charles suddenly felt his ear grow warm as a magnetic, tantalizing voice pierced it.
"A cute sight, isn't it? Kids can be noisy at times, but they can be pretty adorable, too. What do you think? Do you want one?"
Elizabeth's words reminded Charles of Sparkle, and he couldn't help but chuckle, replying, "I'm afraid my child will not be like that boy."
Dissatisfaction fleeted across Elizabeth's eyes as she made a sidelong glance at the boy in the distance and muttered, "He's just like me when I was young."
"Really?" Charles said, turning to Elizabeth. "What were you like when you were young?"
Elizabeth lazily stretched her towering figure, allowing Charles a complete view of her gorgeous, seemingly flawless figure.
"I was a tyrant of one of Coral Archipelago's harbor districts. I remember being around 1.8 meters tall when I was just 10 years old. I was so tall and strong that none of the kids from the other districts could defeat me."
Charles revealed an amused smile. It was his first time hearing Elizabeth talk about her past.
"Can you tell me more about your past? I'm talking about what you've experienced before we met," Charles asked.
Elizabeth pulled Charles along as she replied, "Captains of exploration vessels all had the same experience growing up. All of us started thinking like we're unique and that we're the chosen one, but in the end, we were just as mediocre as everyone else."
"Why did you choose to become a governor?" Charles asked.
"It's all because of prejudice. Everyone's prejudiced against us, and I don't like that at all," Elizabeth said, and her amber eyes revealed a reminiscing light. "My grandfather is 3 meters tall, my father is 2.5 meters tall, while I'm 2 meters tall"
Charles didn't say anything and chose to listen quietly as Elizabeth continued, "It is obvious, but no matter where we went, we attracted a lot of attention. My hobbies are quite special as well, so everyone thinks of us as freaks.
"They dared not to say it in front of us, but I could see it in their gazes. Those gazesI absolutely abhor those gazes.
"I was young, so I was pretty ambitious at the time. I dreamed of having my own island one day, and then I'd outlaw any kind of prejudice against my family by then.
"As such, my friends and I pitched in money to buy a ship. There were more than ten of us at the time, and every single one of us had our own dream. We then swore that if one of us were to become a governor somehow, they would fulfill everyone else's wishes."
Elizabeth smiled, seemingly recalling delightful memories. Then, she continued, "I still remember the time when we stood on a table with one foot on the bar counter, making that promise under the mocking laughter of the drunkards around us. How naive and innocent we wereah, those were such good times. It has been ten years since then; time really flies."
The cogs in Charles' mind turned as he said, "Your crew at the moment are the friends you made at the time?"
"No, at the time, I was the tallest and the strongest among us, so I was the boatswain. I eventually became the Captain as my friends died one by one.
"I thought I'd suffer the same fate as themdying at sea. However, I guess you can say that a happy ending exists. I managed to fulfill my friends' wishes, all thanks to Elizarles Shores."
Charles stared calmly at Elizabeth's side profile. He truly didn't expect that she had such a past. Before Charles could offer words of comfort, however, Elizabeth's eyes abruptly lit up. She walked into the hair salon nearby and chatted with a nose-ringed hairdresser.
Charles instantly realized what she wanted to do. A wooden blackboard stood outside the hair salon, and there were a few lines written on the board in the script of the Subterranean Seascape.
Grand Opening Promo! Hair-curling Services: 260 Echo per head!
Elizabeth soon found herself sitting on a swivel chair, and her bed of bright white hair was soon drenched with an unknown black liquid. The female hairdresser carefully curled Elizabeth's hair with a red-hot iron rod.
"My hair has never really looked curly enough for me. This is really great. I'm surprised to know that the hair salon on this island actually offers such a service," Elizabeth said while staring at the hairdresser's reflection in the mirror.
"I appreciate the kind words, Miss. The coating I'm using on your hair is actually unique to Hope Island. It's a liquid often used as a dyeing agent for photos, but my teacher discovered that it can be used as a hair-curling solution as well.
"It's actually better than what we've been using before, which is sugar water and a few other raw materials."
Charles' nose twitched upon getting a whiff of the burnt hair in the air. Then, he sat down and picked up a newspaper to read. I think I got a bit too worried. It seems that those capable of making a livelihood out of the sea have long become indifferent to such emotions. Elizabeth's recovery couldn't have been even faster.
A certain page in the newspaper caught Charles' eyes.
The operational halt at the docks has caused massive losses to manual laborers and porters making a livelihood off of the docks. Two robbery cases have already been recorded in the harbor district. Four criminals have been arrested in relation to the robbery cases, and the victims were deemed emotionally stable.
Shocking news! The brain-eating phantom has reappeared! Our famous Hope Island coupleMr. Rolf and Ms. Annehave unfortunately fallen victim and passed away. We urge islanders to refrain from going out too frequently these days.
Charles looked up just then, sensing a gaze directed toward him from outside. He saw several police cars passing by the hair salon. The unique emblem of Hope Island's Police Departmentthree arrows pointing inward painted with a unique black paintwas on the cars, telling Charles that they were definitely police cars.
"Boss, you can come out now. The Governor didn't see you," Aliya said to Dipp curled up just in front of the car seat.
Dipp quickly straightened himself and got back in his seat. He sighed lightly and said, "How come the Captain is here on Second Street? He wasn't supposed to be here."
"Why are you even hiding from him?
"I'm suspecting that he already knows that I've fused with a relic. He's definitely going to scold me once he sees me, and he might even outright ban me from boarding the Narwhale!" Dipp replied. Then, he stuck his head out of the car window and stared at the hair salon.
Seeing that Charles hadn't come out of the hair salon, Dipp sat upright once more and sighed in relief.
"Boss, who was that woman with the Governor?" Aliya asked before lighting a cigarette and taking a gentle puff of it.
"She's the Governor of Elizarles Shores, and she has an ambiguous relationship with the Captain. Anyway, stop prying. How much longer till we arrive on the scene? Pick up the pace, will you? Also, I heard that the victims this time are the famous theater couple of Hope Island. Is it true?"
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