The Real Heiress Just Wants to Be a Lazy Fish - Chapter 34

Chapter 34: Taking the Bait

They said she was “bald,” but in reality, she was only missing a few leaves. However, the Prince possessed a pair of special eyes; not even the slightest rustle of wind or grass could escape her gaze. Yet, she had no idea where those leaves that had just vanished from the tree had gone.

Although she knew Jiang Zitan held a special status and was highly valued by the Special Affairs Bureau, she hadn’t expected someone to arrive so quickly. Moreover, the newcomer’s strength was not inferior to her own. The H-Province Special Affairs Bureau, seemingly depleted of its vitality, was being quite generous with its deployments.

Heh, those humans at the Bureau… claiming that the candidate for Team One’s Captain was still being discussed, giving the outside world the embarrassing facade that H-Province had no one left to use. Such talk could only deceive naive juniors. How could those old foxes truly allow a vital city like Hai City to have a long-term vacancy for an S-class guardian?

Even if only to keep an eye on her, those old foxes would dispatch a temporary S-class esper.

Below the Waves

He had to contact Carnaro and seek his help. But every time he attempted to send a message, his power would be forcibly retracted by himself.

It was that unknown power controlling his mind again! The Master of Earth Demons struggled desperately to break free; the opponent was cooperative, releasing their grip without resisting his struggle.

Yet, at every critical moment, his spirit would be stealthily manipulated again. The Earth Demon Master sank angrily toward the seabed. That person had to be on the ship; he would split the ocean floor and swallow everything here!

But his plan failed halfway through again. Despite having merged with the seabed, he was actually yanked out by that human esper! She devoured the seafloor, and when he climbed out again, he discovered the lower half of his body was gone!

The Sea Demon didn’t notice the ferocious silhouette of Taotie appearing behind him. In an instant, he laid down hundreds of defensive magic arrays, but Taotie’s pitch-black power dissolved them instantly like sulfuric acid.

“Save me!” The Earth Demon realized he had been pushed to a dead end and could only offer bribes to beg for help from his ally. For some reason, his cry for help actually reached the Sea Demon this time.

That irrational monster responded. Under the influence of its power, the deep sea turned pitch black, and within that darkness, something squirmed. In an instant, countless eyes snapped open across the monster’s body.

Tao Yitong, biting down on a device that provided underwater oxygen, quickly retreated from the Earth Demon’s position. She clutched her abdomen; she wasn’t skilled in naval combat and had just been struck by the Earth Demon’s tail. A human body wasn’t as durable as those monsters; this strike likely caused a serious injury.

The Sea Demon suddenly extended its tentacles and coiled them around the Earth Demon’s remains. The Earth Demon thought his ally was coming to save him, so he relaxed his guard slightly.

Up on the cruise ship, sitting in the VIP suite, Liu Yue lightly tapped the armrest of her chair.

CRACK!

The Sea Demon’s body was immense. While the Earth Demon was not small, in front of the Sea Demon, he was merely like a large potato. The Sea Demon opened its giant circular maw, its serrated teeth clearly visible. Accompanied by a crisp sound, the Earth Demon was bitten into several pieces.

Then, Liu Yue lightly clapped her hands together. With a loud BANG, the Earth Demon exploded inside the giant octopus’s mouth. To be precise, in his extreme rage at being betrayed, he chose self-detonation, and Liu Yue’s puppet strings served as a catalyst.

Being an S-class monster, the consequences of such an explosion inside one’s body were predictable. The Sea Demon let out a piercing wail, and the entire sea surface began to surge even more violently. This time, the influence extended beyond the ocean; the dark clouds in the sky pressed down, with faint lightning flickering inside an omen of ill fortune.

Tao Yitong sent Taotie to capture the Earth Demon’s fleeing soul. Seeing “delicious food,” the gluttonous beast finally stopped playing dead.

These monsters recover quickly; I must finish it off while it’s down!

The Port

Tao Yitong now had a deeper understanding of that auction. It made sense; the Lester family’s backers were the vampires and the Dark Court. On the surface, those entities followed peace treaties, but in secret, they still viewed humans as nothing more than food. Such actions were not surprising.

Although she had sent people to watch the transaction site, she knew that making arrests now would only alert the enemy. She was just worried that there was more than one “commodity” targeted like that child. If she could take this opportunity to find the place where they hid the “goods,” it would be much easier to give them a little “surprise.”

Considering the danger, two A-class espers skilled in stealth were assigned to track the matter. Soon, Tao Yitong received good news: because the Lester family’s cruise ship hadn’t arrived yet, all the “goods” in China were concentrated at the Hai City port. The two colleagues followed the targets and found their warehouse.

Meanwhile, An Yu had successfully gained the trust of the traitors in Noreen’s lineage and had now made contact with Prince Carnaro’s confidant. This auction involved Carnaro’s handiwork, so she naturally infiltrated the event and positioned her own people in key spots.

Then… she only had to wait for that extravagant cruise ship, reeking of blood, to dock at the port under the cover of night.

The previously pitch-black coastline was illuminated. Perhaps because the other party’s display was so open and lacked any sense of sneakiness, they actually didn’t arouse much suspicion.

The invitation for the Lester family’s auction wasn’t limited to Hai City; guests from other places had also been invited. The last time the ship docked was ten years ago. In that decade, various families had risen and fallen, so many were seeing the Lester cruise ship for the first time.

Even though the invited guests came from wealthy families, they still gasped at the extravagance of the ship. Whether it was the famous paintings on the walls or the jewelry and antiques on display, everything was incredibly precious. Some of these were auction items, but those displayed openly were considered “ordinary” goods; the true treasures were still hidden by the Lester family.

“Such a grand display. No wonder the big families from the capital sent people. It seems there really are good things at this auction,” the guests whispered.

Guests were guided onto the ship by staff, but on the other side, there was a private channel for internal personnel. A masked woman walked through the internal passage; the Carnaro family crest embroidered on her collar announced her identity, and a timid, pale young girl followed behind her.

Staff bowed immediately upon seeing the masked woman. She was the newly favored subordinate of Prince Carnaro, destined to be at least a Marquis. Even the head of the Lester family had to be respectful before her, so they didn’t dare be negligent.

As for the identity of the human following behind, they knew without asking that she was a Blood Slave. After all, they were vampire nobility; how could they drink frozen bagged blood? They always traveled with blood slaves to provide fresh blood at any moment. This one was no exception.

The staff were accustomed to this, so no one questioned the girl’s identity and let them pass.

Near the front of the ship, Liu Yue looked with slight disdain at the somewhat restless person beside her.

“Let me calculate… how long have you two been apart? Has it even been two hours? You know she’s safer staying with Rong Zhen than with you, so you don’t need to act like you have separation anxiety.” She sighed. She didn’t know who this child had inherited this trait from.

Jiang Zitan had received an invitation, but this cruise ship was a den of monsters. Tao Yitong didn’t dare put such a “sweet little cake” in the middle of them. However, the invitation couldn’t go to waste, so Liu Yue took her identity, eliminating the need for further arrangements.

“Aunt Liu, you don’t understand…” Tao Yitong was wearing a black gown. She chose black because she was worried she might need to handle some “dirty things” during the auction, and blood would be too visible on any other color.

It’s been two hours! Ever since all those incidents started, Tao Yitong hadn’t dared let her sister out of her sight, and now she wouldn’t see her for an entire night! Even knowing Senior Rong could protect her, that feeling of her heart hanging in mid-air was impossible to control.

Buzz!

Tao Yitong felt her phone vibrate. She hurried to check it, and a smile instinctively touched her lips. Her previously wilted aura vanished instantly. One didn’t need to look to know the message was from the other girl. Liu Yue found that ever since she returned, the frequency of her sighing had been increasing.

After replying to her sister to say she was safe, Tao Yitong satisfiedly put her phone away. She looked toward the boarding area, ready to head over with Aunt Liu, when her expression suddenly froze.

The Prince’s Suite

This stupid thing… if it can’t help find people, it can at least stop dragging me down. Heh, sending it to follow him the Dark Court dogs really have no class.

But the Artifact of Hai City… he indeed wanted to seize it. He had no choice; he had been pushed to a dead end. His eldest sister had already broken the existing balance, mercilessly raising her sword against the remaining siblings.

Carnaro always felt that the eldest sister had the power to deal with them long ago, and watching her younger siblings fight all these years was purely for her own amusement. Carnaro feared this mysterious eldest sister most; he had never seen the depth of her power. Now, for some reason, she had lost patience with the game. He had to add another trump card to his hand to stand a chance as the final winner among the Princes!

Noreen alone was far from enough! That eldest sister’s power might have already touched the level of the divine; perhaps only the power of a God could kill her! If not for the prophecy saying Hai City held an Artifact, Carnaro might not have set foot on Chinese soil so easily.

“Forget Sarobey, where did the other fellow go? Is he still seasick?”

Carnaro called An Yu and told her to find the Earth Demon’s whereabouts. An Yu hadn’t expected to get the Earth Demon Master’s physical description so easily. Unfortunately, it was too late; the Captain had already dragged him underwater to begin the battle. She carefully hid her concern and left Carnaro’s VIP room with a natural expression.

This vampire was already suspicious; she had to find a way to stall for more time.

Deep Water

Below the sea surface, Tao Yitong encountered some trouble. The ocean was the Sea Demon’s home field. Both she and Taotie were limited in underwater combat. This disparity was wide, but fortunately, the Earth Demon’s self-detonation had heavily wounded the Sea Demon, bridging the gap.

But the monster’s recovery was rapid. Tao Yitong’s stamina would be depleted; it wouldn’t be long before the gap widened again. She had to finish this quickly.

Tao Yitong drew a long blade a weapon specifically sent to her by the authorities after they learned of the Dark Court’s movements, designed to suppress these sinister entities.

The Sea Demon’s tentacles surged from all directions. Tao Yitong evaded their attacks, using their own momentum to slice them in half with her blade, then quickly closed in on the demon itself. Visibility was nearly zero; she locked onto the Sea Demon’s location through the vibrations of energy in the water.

The Sea Demon’s power crushed toward her like a tidal wave. After dodging several fatal attacks, Tao Yitong lunged with her blade. Just then, a soft call suddenly echoed in her ear.

“Tongtong.”

It was Jiang Zitan’s voice.

Tao Yitong’s heart stalled. The momentary, instinctive hesitation allowed the enemy to catch a weakness. A magic array flashed in the inky ocean. Countless spikes like sea urchins attacked from all directions. Her arm was nearly pierced; if not for years of combat instinct allowing her to dodge in time, she would have been turned into a pincushion.

The scent of human blood stimulated the monster. Strange patterns appeared on its body, and tumor-like growths writhed across its flesh.

“Tongtong…”

Tao Yitong heard the voice again, and even blurry images appeared before her eyes. Her face instantly darkened.

A mental trap!

Humans aren’t the only ones who use bait to fish. For predators of the deep sea, this technique was etched into their instincts.

Earlier in the Office

Tao Yitong immediately guessed what the Prince wanted to do. It was impossible not to be worried. It wasn’t until An Yu and Noreen disappeared through the conference room door that she worryingly withdrew her gaze.

Forget it, check this contract first. If there were a problem, she could invite the other party to the Bureau for “tea” immediately.

Tao Yitong took the document. Jiang Zitan initially intended to stop her, but considering Tao Yitong’s specialty and the eeriness of the contract, she withdrew her hand with a complex expression.

Tongtong… did she come here for this?

Tao Yitong took the contract and flipped through a few pages, beginning to decode the vampire ciphertext hidden behind the Chinese characters. The general meaning was: To my friend, wishing you good health and prosperity… purely greetings. There was none of the curses or contracts she had imagined.

Tao Yitong nearly laughed from anger.

She understood. That vampire Prince was fishing for a “big catch” from the Special Affairs Bureau, and in her concern, she had taken the bait.

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