Chapter 356. Daily Life

The Pope seemed rather upset about Charles injuring his eyes and couldn't restrain his outburst of anger at the latter.

Being on the receiving end of such treatment, Charles certainly wouldn't reciprocate with any positive response. He pushed back with a firm and assertive attitude.

Eventually, the two parted ways on less than amicable terms, and this was the first time they had such a falling out.

As he watched the Pope storm out of the room with a gloomy expression, Laesto wheeled himself over to Charles and commented with a hint of surprise in his voice, "He cares so much about you?"

The corners of Charles' lips curled up slightly in a disdainful smile. "Do you think that's possible? He's probably worried that I won't be able to explore the islands for him anymore. It won't be easy for him to find a tool like me."

Staring at the bandages over Charles' eyes, Laesto let out a helpless sigh once more. "So what are you going to do about your eyes? Or do you plan to retire and just stay on the island now that things turned out this way?"

"Get prosthetic eyes. Why? Those guys can't do it?" Charles' heart tensed with slight anxiety.

Laesto shook his head in response. "Eyes are different from muscle parts. Their prosthetic eyes aren't as good as real ones. What good are those that only allow you to see some blurry outlines and shapes? No matter how good they are, they won't be as good as your original ones."

"Only outlines and shapes?" Charles tried to imagine that special world replacing the darkness before him, but he failed to envision the scene.

"Well, it's still better than seeing nothing." Strangely, Charles sounded quite optimistic about it.

The door swung open with a creak, and the sound of hurried footsteps entered the room. He was familiar with those footsteps—the visitor was Dipp.

"Why did you come back alone? Where are those prosthetics makers?" Charles inquired in the direction of the footsteps.

"Captain, I originally brought all of them over, but the Pope chased all of them away. He said he would find a solution for your eyes and something about retrieving your eyes for you."

Charles was rather surprised by the Pope's actions. The elderly man had just quarreled with him and left in rage just moments ago, but now, he was going to help restore his vision.

But as Charles reflected on the Pope's motives, the pieces began to fall into place. If he couldn't embark on another voyage, it would certainly impact the Pope's interests.

The Pope had mentioned that finding the surface's exit would allow the Light God to be freed from His confines. Therefore, not helping Charles at this critical juncture would only delay the Light God's release.

"At last, he's finally playing his part as an ally. I was still thinking this guy was just planning to wait around and enjoy the benefits.

Ah,

I was so engrossed in my argument with him earlier that I forgot to tell him that I found the map of the surface's exit."

Charles rose to his feet, and Dipp quickly ran over to support him but was gently pushed away.

"Alright, I don't need your help here. Go home; your Aliya has probably been missing you all this while."

"Captain, why would you say that?" Dipp responded with a hint of surprise in his voice. "What do you mean by 'my Aliya?' She's just a former subordinate of mine."

Charles turned toward the direction of the voice and retorted, "Subordinate? Which subordinate would dare to break you out of prison and even plan an escape route for you?"

"That was just her way of showing her loyalty to me!"

A wave of helplessness washed over Charles. He pointed a finger toward the left and commanded, "Get out. I thought I was dense enough, but to think that you're even denser than me."

"Alright, I'll head home first. By the way, Captain, you're pointing at the wall rather than the door," Dipp commented before he dashed out of the room.

Charles awkwardly put his hand back down and turned toward Laesto. "Doctor, how's the research on the relics going?"

Yet, despite multiple probing, Charles' question was met with silence. He kept quiet and listened intently for a while and realized that Laesto had fallen asleep in his wheelchair.

Hearing his long breaths, Charles let out a soft sigh.

He has been claiming that he's healthy, but his old age has really caught up with him.

Feeling around with his hands, Charles found the wall and walked along it to find the door. He slowly opened it and exited the room.

No news outlets dared to report about the Governor losing his vision. Similarly, no one dared to openly discuss the matter. However, the news still spread across the entire island at an unimaginable speed.

After receiving his pay, Weister returned with a spring in his steps to his underground apartment. The moment he entered the unit, his mother approached him with a worried gaze.

"Weister, are the rumors true? Did the Governor really become blind? What about you? Are you injured? Quick, take off your clothes and let me have a look."

Flustered, Weister pushed his mother's hands away and assured, "Mother, I'm fine, really. I'm just a sailor, and my job on board is just to clean the decks and organize the cargo hold. Even when we're on land, I'm merely helping to carry their food and water. What can possibly happen to me?"

"Really? Don't lie to me." Elena appeared rather doubtful of Weister's words.

"It's really true. Apart from the captain's eye injury, there were no casualties among the crew this time. All of us came back safe and sound," Weister assured with confidence. With enough practice, he had become quite skilled at lying.

Hearing her son's reassuring words, Elena let out a sigh of relief. "That's great then, as long as you remain safe and sound. Actually, why don't you resign? I saw that the post office is hiring mail carriers, and they pay over three thousand Echo a month."

A hint of disdain surfaced on Weister's countenance upon hearing the meager sum. If he were still the young boy who used to carry cargo at the docks, he would have been overjoyed to hear such a figure, but he was no longer the same boy from back then.

As a sailor of an exploration vessel, he had come to despise such ordinary work.

"Mother, please don't worry about me. I can handle my own matters. I'm finally back after so long; let's go out and have a nice meal."

Weister then beckoned his younger siblings over and gently nudged his mother toward the door.

As they walked on the bustling streets, Weister had intended to go to the luxurious restaurant they had patronized before in the island's Central District. However, his mother wasn't agreeable to the plan. She felt that it was too expensive and the meal was not worth it.

Ultimately, Weister couldn't sway his mother's stand, and they ended up in a more modest restaurant. Though the dishes still tasted rather delicious, they were noticeably less exquisite than the previous restaurant they had visited. However, Weister chose not to make any comments at the sight of his family enjoying their meal.

After the satisfying meal, they made their way back home. Seeing the smile on his mother's face, a slight grin appeared on Weister's visage. "Mother, you look rather happy. Don't worry; we can afford to eat at restaurants like the one we just went to every day."

Elena looked up at her eldest son, who had grown to be a head taller than her now. With a hint of emotion in her voice, she said, "Weister, my happiness isn't because of the nice meal we had. I'm happy because my son returned home safely."

Weister sheepishly averted his gaze. He understood the underlying message in his mother's words, but he didn't want to give up on his job on the Narwhale. It was the highest-paying job he could ever get for now.

And if he were to be honest with himself, working alongside those influential figures had greatly enlarged and soothed his ego. No longer did he feel like a penniless boy; he felt like a comrade of those influential figures.