“The roaring sound of the flood echoed through the eardrums as Icey, Bellmell, and a few others walked out of the house and came to the orange grove outside.
The flood had already submerged the flat land, with countless green leaves floating on it.
The neatly planted orange trees were twisted and bent, some even uprooted, letting the flowing water wash over them.
It could be said that this orange grove was almost completely ruined!
In the corner, Aqua stood blankly, staring at the devastated orange grove, scratching her head in confusion.
Next to her, the soaked Nami and Nojiko looked even more bewildered, their hair wet with water, oblivious to everything.
Their minds were blank; their only thought was that they might have to pick up garbage in the village in the future…
Seeing Icey Bellmell, and others appear, Aqua, who was confused, became even more flustered. Her two blue eyes turned left and right towards the distant mountains, trying to lower her presence.
But little did she know that this would only make her suspicious actions more conspicuous.
“Don’t pretend, Aqua, I know it was you. What’s going on?” Icey struck out.
Aqua was startled. Looking at the devastated orange grove, she stuttered, “The speed of irrigating one by one was too slow, so I thought it would be better just to finish it all at once.”
Thinking about the high compensation for destroying the orange grove, Aqua, who was penniless, couldn’t hold back her tears, crying out, “I didn’t expect those orange trees to be so fragile; they all fell; they all fell!”
In short, it was the stupid goddess who was lazy and loved to show off, embarrassing herself in front of her little followers.
“With such a large orange grove, the compensation will probably be several; you’re finished, Aqua; get ready to plant oranges here for the rest of your life.”
Icey decided to scare Aqua.
He had originally planned to compensate Bellmell’s family with enough money in this non-demeaning way.
Even without this idea, compensating for a piece of orange grove wouldn’t be a big deal.
The main thing was to make Aqua, who always wanted to cause trouble, remember it.
Although his intuition told him that this girl would probably forget everything in a few days, everything would remain the same…
“Icey, save me, please. You have to save me!” Aqua didn’t hesitate to throw away the dignity of the goddess, tears in her eyes, pitifully clinging to Icey’s trouser leg.
“You’re my partner; isn’t that what you’re supposed to do?” Icey smiled and patted Aqua’s shoulder.
“Wah! Icey!”
The simple-minded Aqua didn’t notice Icey’s unusual behavior, tears streaming down her face.
She clung to Icey like an adhesive plaster, exaggerating her movements to express her gratitude.
Nasal mucus and tears were inevitable, smearing Icey all over.
This stupid goddess…
Icey held his forehead speechless for a moment.
I wonder what kind of body structure this guy has. He is capable of turning any liquid that touches into pure water, but why can’t he purify snot?
After some persuasion, Icey finally managed to get Aqua off him and turned to the still-dazed Bellmell.
“I’m sorry, Miss Bellmell, for losing your orange grove.”
“Exactly how much compensation is needed, we will take responsibility for it.”
Bellmell looked somewhat distressed as she looked at the submerged orange grove. To be honest, her impression of Icey and the others was quite good. She never expected a simple business deal to turn into the current situation.
In the end, after a comprehensive calculation by the guard Genzo, Icey needed to pay eighty thousand berries in compensation to Bellmell.
To express his sincere “apology,” Icey took the initiative to round it up to a hundred thousand berries.
The increased amount was insignificant, and the reason was still reasonable, but it made the sharp-eyed Bellmell realize something was wrong.
“Mr. Icey, you should have known that Miss Aqua intentionally destroyed the orange goose just to claim compensation, right?”
Bellmell, smoking a cigarette inside the wooden house, blew a smoke ring and stared at Icey sitting opposite her without turning her gaze.
After receiving an emergency call, guard Genzo hurriedly returned to the village.
And King, who was never good at socializing, returned to the Wireless Dream ship alone and immersed himself in playing games.
As for Aqua, Nami, and Nojiko were busy picking oranges in the orange grove with baskets on their backs, trying to make up for the loss as much as possible.
“Is it really that obvious?” Icey chuckled, indirectly admitting the fact.
With the confirmed answer, Bellmell remained silent for a few seconds before sighing heavily.
“You don’t have to worry too much about my feelings. As long as Nami and Nojiko can live happily, I don’t mind what happens to me.”
“Miss Aqua is the same. To avoid arousing my suspicion, she even deliberately pretended to be clumsy and caused trouble.”
At this, Icey quickly clarified for Aqua, “You’ve misunderstood her; she’s just naturally like that, completely not pretending.”
“Oh, is that so?” Bellmell was surprised.
To irrigate an orange grove with such a powerful flood, not only would a normal person not think of it, but even a child-like Nami knew that the drawbacks of doing so far outweighed the benefits, right?
Thinking of this, Bellmell put the cigarette in her mouth and pressed it into the ashtray before her, looking at Icey seriously, “From the moment you entered, your gaze kept falling on Nami. Do you know her, Mr. Icey?”
To do business on the treacherous sea, one must not be overflowing with sympathy. She and Icey had never met before, and the latter had no reason to go to such lengths.
Combining the details she noticed in their recent interactions, Bellmell quickly figured out why.
“I guess you’re an excellent marine…”
Looking at her firm gaze, Icey couldn’t help but sigh.
In the original work, Bellmell was rough and reckless and admitted that she was not as good at dealing with trouble as her eldest daughter, Nojiko.
But now, it seemed she wasn’t as careless as she appeared.
At least, not when it came to matters concerning Nami and Nojiko.
“In all honesty, Nami reminds me of a friend I know. She also has bright orange.
Hair, a face that’s easy to remember, and a quick wit.”
“Moreover, she’s been through many hardships but still full of vitality and courage.”
“I just want to ask her some questions about this friend. If I can, I’d like to help her as much as possible.” Icey’s answer was simple and honest.
He wasn’t a detective nor a cold-blooded manipulator who only cared about his interests.
He was just an ordinary human being who wanted to help his friends.
Although he had to admit that, as Bellmell guessed, he was indeed a marine.
Bellmell raised her eyebrows as if pondering Icey’s words.
It was rare for her to come into contact with someone like Icey, who spoke so frankly and didn’t play tricks behind the scenes.
But as she looked into Icey’s eyes, she couldn’t help but feel that something was hidden behind that honesty.
She just couldn’t put her finger on what it was.
“Since you have no malice towards Nami, I won’t pursue the matter further. But I hope you understand one thing, Mr. Icey.”
“Whatever you want to do, remember that Nami and Nojiko are my family. If you dare to do anything that harms them, no matter who you are, I won’t let you off lightly!”
With that, Bellmell stood up, her imposing figure like a mountain, radiating an unshakable aura.
Icey felt a chill run down his spine, but he remained calm, nodding respectfully, “I understand, Miss Bellmell.”
With that, the two of them reached a tacit understanding.
It was a simple agreement, but it contained an unspoken promise that both sides would do their best to protect the people they cared about.
In the face of the unpredictable future, such trust and cooperation were perhaps the most valuable assets.
Icey stood up, bid farewell to Bellmell, and left the wooden house.
As he stepped into the bright sunshine, he took a deep breath, feeling the warm sea breeze blowing on his face.
In his heart, he made a silent vow.
No matter the challenges, he would do his best to fulfill his promise to his friends.
He was Icey, a marine, a friend, and perhaps, a ray of hope in this chaotic world.
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