Early morning, in the castle's dining hall.
Everyone was eating breakfast, but the mood was visibly low. Today Florence was leaving.
"Mmph! This is delicious, and this one too..." Florence stuffed her face with pastries, her cheeks bulging like someone who hadn't eaten in days.
"Eat slowly, don't choke," Nicole gently coaxed.
"Mmhmm... cough, cough, cough..."
The very next second, Florence choked, clutching her neck with both hands and coughing incessantly.
"Honestly..." Seeing this, Mina rolled her eyes. She walked up behind the mermaid and lightly patted the back of Florence's neck a few times, using a clever technique to help the food go down.
"Phew... I'm saved." Florence let out a long breath, patting her chest in lingering fear.
Shortly after, her eyes filled with mist. Her small mouth formed a pout as she tried her hardest to hold back her tears.
"Florence, what's wrong?" Nicole asked with concern, reaching out to rub the mermaid's back.
"I..." Florence bit her lower lip and said with a miserable face, "I can't bear to leave everyone. And all this food... and Sedona City's noodles, steamed buns, pizza..."
Nicole, Mina, and the others listened with dark lines forming on their foreheads. So it's the food at the end that you really can't bear to leave, huh?
"Alright, it's not like you're forbidden from visiting. Whenever you want to eat, you can just come over," Lucas said helplessly.
He picked up a bag from beside his chair. It was about the size of a hand—a waterproof bag. A bag that was too large would affect Florence's swimming due to the buoyancy, but a smaller bag could still be managed.
"But it'll be a long time," Florence pouted, though her hands didn't slow down, occasionally grabbing another pastry to stuff into her mouth.
"Here, this is a waterproof bag. You can pack some things inside to take back with you." Lucas handed the bag over and instructed, "Don't open it while you're in the water, and don't let anything puncture it, or it won't be waterproof anymore."
"Mhm, mhm." Florence quickly took it with both hands, a joyful smile blooming in her eyes.
"I've prepared a few things for you, they're all waterproof," Lucas said softly. He had placed some individually packaged items inside, such as lollipops.
"Wow, are these all for me?" Florence opened the bag and found many items inside, all beautifully packaged.
"Yes." Lucas nodded. Turning his head, he caught the eager and envious gazes of the other girls and chuckled. "Alright, as for your portions, I'll have Nicole distribute them to you later."
He wasn't one to play favorites. If one person got something, everyone got it. Keeping things strictly fair and balanced was the only way to maintain a harmonious atmosphere in the castle. Mistakes would be punished, but fairness kept everyone's minds at ease. He couldn't just brush them off with a perfunctory attitude; over time, who would want to follow a leader like that? Lucas had, after all, read up a little bit on psychology.
Okay, fine, he had just searched it up on the internet.
Lucas was even planning to establish a few role models in the city—something like the Top Ten Most Inspiring Figures of the Year—to guide the populace toward positive development. Having role models for people to look up to would inspire more to follow suit. Bad people would always exist, but reducing their numbers even slightly was a win, crushing bad intentions right at the subconscious level.
"Yay, the Master is the best!" Annie jumped up in excitement.
"Lord Lucas is so wonderful!" Hazel also cheered, raising her hands.
"Hehehehe..." Everyone giggled, the cheerful laughter washing away the sorrow of the mermaid's impending departure.
"Dahlia, is the merchant caravan ready?" Lucas turned and asked Dahila.
After finalizing the deal with Gini and Isaac last night, he had immediately ordered his people to prepare the goods and load them onto the ships, ready to transport them to other cities for sale. This marked the official opening of business opportunities along the Whispering River. It was their first trial run, and Dahlia was the one in charge.
"Everything is ready. We can depart at any time." Dahlia nodded firmly. She knew exactly how important this external expansion was for Sedona City.
"Then I leave it in your hands," Lucas smiled warmly, before turning to the mermaid. "Florence, you should travel with the fleet as well. It'll be a bit easier for you that way."
"I am also a member of Sedona City now," Dahlia noted, turning her head to glance affectionately at Catherine, Lucy, and Elisa.
"Okay," Florence nodded.
"Elisa, Mira, I'm leaving their safety in your hands," Lucas said to the elf.
"I will protect them," Elisa said softly. This time, she, Mira, and a few others were acting as the fleet's escorts, responsible for its security.
"Understood." Mira put down a half-eaten chicken leg. She had been supplementing her diet heavily with meat recently; her wings were almost fully grown, likely to be complete within the next ten days or so.
"Then set off," Lucas said gently, folding his hands on the table. "Depart early, and return safely."
"Yes!" Elisa, Dahlia, and Mira replied in unison.
"I'm leaving too." Florence pursed her lips and followed the three out.
"Mina, have Chris pick a squad of special forces to go with them," Lucas turned and ordered the cat-eared girl.
"Understood," Mina said seriously, stepping out of the room.
"Annie, prepare the engineering fleet. Move into Mar City and Michelle City, and begin the construction of the military ports," Lucas said with a stern face. The steamships had already entered the testing phase, and securing fuel resupply points was a critical issue.
"Yes," Annie replied.
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200 power stones.
Top 100. All time.