When Huggins and the others arrived on the west shore of Waiheke Island, they found that everything here was like another world.

The seashore was home to buildings they had never seen before, looking like makeshift caves made of wood and stone.

When I looked closer, I realized that the entrance of the cave looked small, but the space inside was huge.

The sand and earth were hollowed out, and the massive stone pillars served as load-bearing walls, supporting the weight of the entire cave.

The beach at the entrance of the cave is surrounded by small circles with weeds and wood chips, and some edible fish, insects, shrimp and crabs are raised in them.

As Huggins observed the caves, a strange creature with a dark blue coat emerged from the water.

He was ugly, with ears like the fins of a fish, a mouth full of spikes, eyes like fish bubbles, and a closed gill lobe on his chest.

Huggins subconsciously took a step back, reaching out to pull out the short sword in his crutch.

Carol hurriedly stopped him: "Calm down, this guy is just a child of the Flounder Clan." ”

Flounder Clan?kids?

Huggins looked at the dark blue creature that was more than a man tall, and his mind couldn't turn for a while.

Aldenan lazily took a sausage from his waist and threw it in front of the flounder creature.

Seeing the other man lying on the sand and munching on the sausage, Aldenan howled twice and made a fishtail swing with his hand.

The flounder creature nodded, grabbed its food, and plunged into the sea.

The group didn't wait long.

A few minutes later, a mermaid poked her head out of the sea and shouted to the land, "Distinguished guests of the Dragon Kingdom, please come with me!"

Monk Jo looked at the sea and asked with difficulty, "She means to let us jump into the sea?"

Carol shook her head and said, "Follow her, follow the coast, not far from here is the mermaids' mansion." ”

Under the guidance of the mermaid, the group set off along the coast to the north.

Along the way, there are more and more strange buildings built on the seaside.

There are large pools of seawater that resemble open-air salt farms, and there are also "bird's nests" made of wood that are half fixed to the land and half floating on the sea.

Elijah wrote and drew in his sketchbook as he walked: "The style of these buildings is really interesting. ”

Monk Joe scratched the back of his head, incomprehensible.

"It's the Shark Man's paddock, and it's home to the Goldenfish. Carroll was relatively familiar with the area, with the occasional faceless sea refugee, and he could even name them.

Huggins stopped abruptly.

At the end of the field of view, there is a huge water village built on the waterfront.

A fence made of coral, a wall made of shells and mica stone.

Hudgens said, "Let me guess, that's where the merfolk live. ”

Carroll said, "To be precise, it's the residence of the Salamo merfolk, and other races don't have the money or heart to build such a building." ”

Huggins slowly approached the water house, looked at the pearls and gems set in the door, and sighed.

Aldenan leaned over and said with a smile, "Does it feel like you are seeing a palace in a slum?"

Monk Joe touched the top of his bare head: "It reminds me of a scene I saw before, when the farmers lined up to go to the squire's house to borrow grain during the disaster year. ”

Huggins turned to Carroll and asked, "Why are the Salamo merfolk so rich?"

"The Salamo merfolk almost dominate the maritime trade, and without their permission, no sea refugee would dare to trade with Dusk West. ”

"Why?"

Carol shrugged: "God knows, maybe as the legend goes, they can demagogueize people by singing." ”

Seeing the frightened look on the old monk's face, Carol hurriedly added, "I'm kidding. ”

Huggins continued to walk towards the water village, and the door slowly opened as he approached.

A huge waterway filled with sea water is gradually unfolding in front of people's eyes.

To their surprise, dozens of sea patriarchs, including Rita, Gray Bird, and Yege, were already waiting in the seawater pool in the front yard of the water village.

Huggins' appearance made Rita's face instantly show a look of surprise.

She is already familiar with most of the official lists in Twilight City.

But she has never seen this official headed today.

Rita lowered her head and said, "Children of the old gods, dwellers of the sea, greetings to the messenger of the dragon god. ”

Huggins looked around and saw that several chairs and a small table had already been prepared on the stone floor in the front yard.

Finding a chair to sit down, Huggins rubbed his legs and feet, and said, "Your Majesty...... The dragon god has agreed to the request of the sea tribes to join the dragon kingdom. ”

Rita bent in the water and said, "We are all very grateful for the mercy of the Supreme Dragon God. ”

"Since you are already citizens of the Dragon Kingdom, then you should be clear about the teachings of the Dragon Kingdom and fulfill your obligations as citizens. Huggins tapped the ground with his cane: "The land under your feet belongs to the dragon god, the food you catch belongs to the dragon god, and everything you have belongs to the dragon god." ”

Rita looked up and said, "I once took a promise from the dragon god that allowed us to keep our original faith, that is, the faith of the ancient gods of the sea. ”

As soon as these words came out, the atmosphere present suddenly became solemn.

The patriarch of the sea refugees stood together, nervously awaiting Huggins' reply.

The soldiers of the Holy Cult Army roared angrily and loudly rebuked the infidels.

Huggins held his cane with both hands, stared at Rita, and said unhurriedly: "As I said before, everything in this land belongs to the dragon god, and his words are naturally the highest standard. ”

This answer sounds a bit ambiguous.

Huggins both emphasized the authority of the dragon god and upheld the dragon god's promises.

This can be regarded as finding a step for both sides.

Rita looked visibly relieved: "As you said, the dragon god is the lord of this land, and his will cannot be disobeyed. ”

Huggins first glanced at the sea chiefs, then pointed to the monks Joe and Elijah behind him.

"The two people with me, one is the official in charge of the census of the kingdom, and the other is the official in charge of the survey of the land and the construction of roads. They will confirm with you the size, planning, and population of the marine ethnic colonies. ”

Rita swung her tail and swam to the edge of the pool, looked at Huggins and asked, "What about you?"

Huggins touched the dragon-shaped badge on his chest: "Servant of the Dragon God, janitor of the royal city, a stupid but cautious steward." ”

Rita blinked, confused.

Huggins didn't continue to explain, but turned to the man behind him and said, "Let's get to work." ”