I! Cleaner!-Chapter 1171 - 1074: Fence-Sitter and Giant Clam

"Leon..."

Looking at the Carriage which had sunk after moving less than two hundred meters, Veronica, standing on the lifeboat in a robe, tightened Leon's old coat around her and asked with a slightly worried expression:

"Even though this Carriage is only a trial piece from the Ship Research Institute, its safety is absolutely guaranteed, but it sank just after moving a little... I feel this might not be a simple accident, perhaps it's aimed at us!"

"Uh..."

"Could it be that Miss Wendy is not content with just approaching us and sends the Sea Race over to sabotage? Or that the other five kingdoms are trying to delay us by scuttling the ship and secretly plotting something?"

"..."

Well... I can only say you might be overthinking this...

Watching the emblem panel where the [Big Ship Couples] had just dulled out, the corner of Leon's mouth twitched. He didn't have the nerve to tell her it was probably his fault, so he mumbled:

"It doesn't have to be that extreme... Could it really just be an accident?

Think about it, our watertight compartment was already damaged by that Salted Fish Queen, many sailors had stomachaches from bad food yesterday, resulting in not enough hands to operate the ship, leading to some errors when repositioning, and the position was a bit off when exiting.

Then a small surge came in afterward, and the ship eager to dock and unload got too close, was carried by the surge into the broken side of the Carriage, then the watertight compartment flooded massively, directly causing the ship to... Okay, this accident indeed is a bit too much of an accident."

Recognizing that the situation seemed to be getting darker as it was described, Veronica's eyes began to scrutinize him further; Leon, the prince who botched the Carriage, clicked his tongue and said earnestly:

"One must always be cautious, and even if it's just an accident, we should be prepared."

"I think the same."

After staring at Leon for a moment, Queen Veronica withdrew her suspicious gaze, and instead said:

"Leon, you should have noticed my aunt's attitude, right?"

"Yes."

Tightening the coat around Veronica to shield against the chilly night wind at the port, Leon nodded thoughtfully:

"At first, it was hard to confirm, but it became clear later on, either she never intended to support us from the beginning or something happened that made her abruptly change her mind."

"It's probably the latter."

Unable to resist glancing at Leon, Veronica leaned back against him and softly analyzed:

"Compared to a king deciding the fate of a nation, my distant aunt resembles more of a savvy businesswoman, precise in judging people, farsighted, extremely sensitive to changes in the situation and her own circumstances, and always able to find the course most beneficial to herself in complex situations.

But this business trait, while allowing her to be opportunistic and successfully expand Kingdom of Morna's business across both continents, also limits her vision, making her more accustomed to focusing on commercial tactics and profit distribution, always waiting for the situation to clarify before placing bets, and sometimes it's a bit..."

"A fence-sitter swaying with the wind?"

"Ha! Pretty much."

Amused by Leon's accurate metaphor, Queen Veronica snuggled closer to him, nodding: 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

"She indeed has the character of a fence-sitter, but different in that she doesn't just lean wherever the wind is strongest, rather, she maintains a balance where both sides need her support but can't force her to lean towards them.

In simple terms, she is keen on detaching herself from the situation, wanting to become the final deciding weight on the balance, so she can sell herself at the highest price with the least effort."

Got it, a textbook opportunist.

A hint of realization flickered in Leon's eyes, and he slightly shook his head:

"Your aunt's plans were good, but this time they might completely fall into nothing."

"Indeed."

Nodding slightly, Veronica grasped the hand Leon placed on her waist, instinctively caressing his somewhat rough palm, shaking her head as she said:

"If we, like those other five kingdoms, were fighting for just profit and rule, Aunt Lena's opportunistic plans wouldn't be wrong.

But what you want to truly fight for this time is something far beyond profit and status, and you're not planning to start from the areas she's most familiar with, then her little schemes... huh?"

Realizing something seemed odd midway, Veronica raised her head in surprise towards the dim harbor, while Leon, having risen earlier, narrowed his eyes, assessing the emerging sea vessel, or rather... a giant clam shell?

...

"Wendy!"

Watching as the Salted Fish Miss was brought over by two Clam Women, the middle-aged Mermaid Matron with a similar fish tail couldn't help but pat the giant pearl she was floating on, heading towards her proactively.

"You child!"

After examining the dust-laden clothes on Wendy and noticing her somewhat dusty garment, the Mermaid Matron took out a handkerchief-like scarf, helping the Salted Fish Miss to wipe off the dust, then chided her:

"I told you not to rush; you could have traveled with the Kingdom of Saio's ship, but you just wouldn't listen, now look at you, all dirty!"

"Mother..."

Grabbing the hand of the middle-aged mermaid, preventing her from continuing to wipe her face, the Salted Fish Miss couldn't help but counter:

"I had to come early because there's not much time left! The day after tomorrow is The Twelve Kingdoms gathering, the other kingdoms with plans have all found allies and even signed alliances.

If I didn't hurry, following the Kingdom of Saio's pace and arriving tomorrow night, then everything would have been settled by the time I got there, and we, as well as the Kingdom of Saio, would definitely suffer greatly at the gathering!"

"Haven't you suffered enough loss?"

The Mermaid Matron threw the handkerchief onto the Salted Fish Miss's face in exasperation, letting her wipe her face herself, then poked her daughter's forehead vigorously, half annoyed, half anxious:

"When you had that swordfish come and send a message, saying you bumped into the Food God's ship yesterday, both Uncle Andy and I were scared to death!

That's the Food God! Those earth-born folks in the Northern Kingdom faced him and were each killed over a hundred times by him! It's said the True Gods who died at the hands of the Food God formed a small mountain in the Realm of the Dead!

And you say you didn't lose out... Forget losing out, the fact that you can still come back to see me in one piece, without having a piece taken out by that Food God for a taste, is already quite a win!"