Chapter 214: The Mermaid
"My shielding capabilities cannot be separated into individual components."
Karina gathered silvery-white lightning in her right hand and raised it straight above her head. The lightning burst from her hand, forming a spiderweb-like ball of lightning above their heads, illuminating them as bright as day.
Anno looked up at the ball of lightning and grabbed Karina's hand. "Second sister, you can set off fireworks!"
Karina smiled gently and patted her head. "Yes, I can set off fireworks. I'll let you set them off from now on."
A few seconds after the lightning bolt formed above her head, Karina withdrew her power, and the lightning bolt dissipated.
But after the light dissipated, a scene resembling the aurora borealis appeared before everyone's eyes; this was the manifestation of Karina's shielding ability.
This is the only way she can temporarily isolate the shielding ability right now.
Seeing the fireworks disappear so quickly, Anno's eyes clearly showed disappointment.
Karina watched as Anno's upturned lips drooped down, and even the swaying ribbons of light behind his ears fell onto his shoulders.
She never hides her emotions, and when she's drunk, she becomes even more like a child, with all her emotions written on her face.
Anuo was pouting unhappily when suddenly, a bright light shone in front of her.
She looked up and saw Karina holding out her palm in front of her, with silvery lightning rising from her beautiful hand.
Under Karina's control, the tiny electric current transformed into the shape of fireworks, slowly rising and exploding in Anno's eyes.
Her eyes sparkled as she watched the little trick, and a surge of pure joy welled up inside her.
As night deepened, a cool sea breeze began to blow across the ocean.
Anno sat on the railing of the boat, swinging his legs unconsciously, leaning on Karina's shoulder as he watched her continuously set off "fireworks" with lightning, creating various patterns with the lightning.
Caesar unfolded a blanket and draped it over her. "Your Highness, it's windy tonight, be careful not to catch a cold."
Anno unfolded the blanket and draped it over Karina's shoulders. "Second sister, don't catch a cold."
Caesar: "..."
He pursed his lips, his usually gentle expression towards Anuo now turning somewhat cold, his eyes revealing the sharpness that was always there.
But what's more in his eyes is a sense of grievance, like a puppy wagging its tail incessantly in front of its owner, only to huddle to the side in frustration, unable to get the owner's attention.
Caesar's personality wouldn't allow him to show this grievance to others, so he could only turn his back to Anno and lean against the railing.
As he leaned in, he turned his head and met three pairs of eyes that were looking at him at the same time.
Those three pairs of eyes were filled with the message: You've finally met your match.
The four high-ranking family members leaned against the railing, looked at each other for a while, then looked away in unison, and sighed to the heavens in their hearts.
I miss His Highness braiding their hair when he was drunk...
You can do whatever you want to them when they're drunk.
They were giving orders to them, and their proud little prince was just so adorable!
But with Karina around, they seemed to be invisible.
They listened to the little prince's occasional clear laughter as Karina changed the patterns of fireworks.
Seeing her so happy, their pent-up frustration dissipated somewhat.
As long as Your Highness is happy, they'll bring those fireworks next time too.
The Zerg never set off fireworks, but His Highness likes them so they do every day.
After staying on the sea for almost two hours, Anno experienced a period of heightened alertness after drinking alcohol. Now that her heightened state had finally passed, she leaned on Karina's shoulder and dozed off.
Seeing that she was tired, Karina started the boat and returned to the dock.
As soon as they left, the golden sand jellyfish that had been surrounding Anno also followed them.
Poponia immediately used her abilities to create a defensive shield, separating the Golden Sand Jellyfish from them.
If the golden sand jellyfish were to travel with His Highness, their large size and unusual behavior would attract the attention of the Northern River.
Their current task is to ensure the stability of spacetime until Her Majesty the Queen locates the location.
After their boat had sailed some distance away, a figure emerged from the sea, watching the yacht gradually disappear into the distance.
Beneath the surface, a long, silvery-white fish tail swayed, while equally silvery-white hair spread out on the water's surface. The hair and the translucent, gauze-like fin membranes on the fish tail intertwined, creating a beautiful and dreamlike scene.
This is a mermaid.
As the yacht gradually disappeared from sight, the mermaid submerged back into the water.
Caesar seemed to sense something, glancing behind him with a slight furrow in his brow.
The ship returned to the dock and moored, and the group headed towards the repair shop.
Earlier on the ship, Karina noticed that Anno seemed a bit sleepy, so she wanted Caesar to open a portal and take Anno back to their hotel to rest.
But when she saw the aircraft flying over the sea, she suddenly remembered that she still had things to do.
The outdoor flying competition starts early tomorrow morning, and her aircraft isn't finished yet. It's a gift she's prepared for her mother, Locke!
So, despite being sleepy, I had to go back.
It was quite a distance from the dock back to the repair shop, and all their aircraft were parked near the shops on the shore.
Anno's shoes were nowhere to be found, and she was barefoot on the ground.
Caesar and the others naturally knelt down in front of Anno.
"Your Highness, let us carry you on our backs."
Anno is a firefly without a hard shell; even a small pebble on the ground can cut her feet.
Anno looked at the four familiars crouching down in front of her and, mimicking Anaya from back at the base, said, "Whoever the little rooster points to, that's who you choose..."
Her fingers landed on Poponia.
She laughed, "Bobo, you've been chosen."
Poponia was thrilled, but still bowed her head respectfully. "It is my honor, Your Highness."
Anuo jumped onto his back, "You're such a good girl."
The other three are itching for a fight!
Poponia carefully helped her stand up, supporting her legs, and carried her towards the aircraft.
Anno rested his head on Poponia's back, listening to the "thump thump thump!" sound coming from his heart.
"Bobo, your heart is beating so fast," she said.
Poponia took a deep breath. "Your Highness, I will calm my heartbeat now."
Two minutes later
"I'm sorry, Your Highness, I can't do it."
His voice was full of apology.
Apart from Secris, who was on the front lines almost all day due to his duty to lead the battle, he had the least contact with His Highness.
He was also the most gentle-natured among them, never arguing or fighting for anything.
Now that he finally had the chance to meet the prince he had been longing for, he couldn't help but feel excited.
Anno rested her head on his shoulder. "It's okay."
Because she was a little tired, her voice softened and became slightly hoarse. As she spoke, her warm breaths caused Poponia's face to flush and her ears to turn bright red.
He looked ahead, hoping the road would be longer, much longer.
That way he can carry His Highness for a little longer.
Sensing Anno's weariness, Poponia said softly, "Your Highness, why don't you go back and rest first? We'll take care of the aircraft."
They have already learned from the consciousness network how Anno wants to modify the aircraft.
Anno muttered softly, "No, I want to fix it myself..."
She said this, but by the time Poponia carried her to the aircraft, she had already fallen asleep.
They all tacitly agreed not to disturb her, and turned on the soundproof mode of the aircraft so that she could sleep on it.
This aircraft is a new one that Poponia bought at the repair shop; the one Karina drives is the one given to Lockin.
Upon arriving at the repair shop, they continued modifying the still unfinished aircraft.
When Bazel saw them return, he glanced through the aircraft window and saw Anno sleeping in his seat. He then returned to the unfinished aircraft and continued his work.
They modified the aircraft's components, while Karina continued to optimize and improve them.
It's past 10 p.m., but the repair shop is still brightly lit. Besides them, many other teams participating in the competition are repairing and modifying their aircraft.
After the modifications are completed, a test flight is required, followed by further adjustments to the details.
Because this was a spacecraft modified according to the flying habits and rules of the Northern River people, Karina was the one who test-flew it the whole time, and Caesar and the others could only follow her advice.
The aircraft given to Lockin had been almost completely modified beforehand, all according to Anno's ideas. Now it's just a matter of adjusting some details and painting the outer shell.
At one o'clock in the morning, Anuo woke up groggily from her sleep.
The aircraft was heated, and she was covered with a blanket; she was woken up by the heat.
She sat up, sat in her seat for a while, and then reached out and opened the door of the aircraft.
Just as she was about to jump off the aircraft, Tanville, who was waiting outside, caught her.
"Your Highness, you're awake."
Anuo clung to him, still feeling a bit listless after drinking and sleeping for a short while.
"Hmm." She gave a faint "hmm" and then stopped moving.
Tanville put his arms around her, took a bottle of water from the table next to him, sat down on the stool, unscrewed the cap, and held it to Anno's lips.
"Your Highness, please have some water to calm your nerves."
Anno straddled his lap, resting her head on his chest, staring blankly at the bright lights of the repair shop, completely out of sorts.
After taking a couple of sips of water from Tanwell's hand, he still felt too lazy to move.
Tanville could tell from her appearance that she was still drunk and hadn't slept well because she was thinking about things. Now, she was not only drunk, but also completely out of it.
"Aircraft..."
Anno murmured softly as he looked at the several aircraft being modified in the repair shop.
Seeing her like this, Tanville couldn't help but have a selfish thought.
He paused on her head, then slowly lowered his hand, stroking her long hair, and said, "Your Highness, don't worry, it'll be finished soon. You can get some more sleep."
As he spoke, a faint light appeared in his hand, and he used his power to try to put her to sleep.
Anno's eyelids were half-closed, and he nuzzled his head against Tanville's chest a few times. Tanville's body immediately stiffened, his hands clenched and unclenched, and his eyes looked at Anno with tenderness.
"No, I can't sleep..."
Anno mumbled to himself, struggling with sleepiness.
Tanville patted her back gently and whispered in her ear, "Your Highness, please sleep soundly. I'll wake you when the aircraft is ready."
"Yes, you must wake me up, I have to keep an eye on things." Anuo unconsciously wrapped her arms around his waist, shifted her body against him, and found a comfortable position to lean against and sleep.
Tanville watched her move like a small animal, and his breathing slowed down until she calmed down before he slowly exhaled.
Five minutes later, Caesar walked around from the front and saw the person sleeping in Tanvel's arms. His expression paused, and his eyes gradually turned cold.
Tanvel's lips slowly curved into a smile as he said softly, "It's too stuffy on the aircraft. Your Highness will be more comfortable sleeping in my arms."
Caesar tried his best to maintain a composed expression. "It's my turn."
Anno's aircraft was parked on this side of the rest area, and they took turns guarding it every half hour.
Tanville shrugged, glanced at Anno sleeping in his arms, and his meaning was clear.
"Her Highness has just fallen asleep, and her sleep is still very light. We don't want to wake her, so we can only let her sleep like this."
Caesar gritted his teeth, gave Tanville a cold glance, and went back to work.
Tanville watched his sullen back and felt much better.
Caesar always gets the better of His Highness; it's time he experienced their feelings.
Make him understand that His Highness will not belong to him alone.
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