Time flew by, and three days passed in the blink of an eye.
During these three days, the entire Amazon Lily was completely immersed in a carnival unique to women.
The Empress personally ordered a three-day holiday, a national celebration. The accumulated stress and energy were completely released at this moment.
In the square and along the streets, there were female warriors everywhere, singing and dancing around bonfires. They drank snake wine in big gulps, arm-wrestled, threw strict daily discipline to the wind, and their laughter and noise soared to the sky, non-stop for three days and three nights.
Of course, there were exceptions.
Compared to the deafening revelry on the island, a secluded corner in the back mountain of the palace was exceptionally quiet.
On the balcony of a house halfway up the mountain, a stooped old woman with a face full of wrinkles sat quietly. She was Gloriosa, the great-great-great-grandmother of the Amazon Lily Empress.
At this moment, her cloudy old eyes were fixed on an old, yellowed newspaper in her hand.
The news in the newspaper was about Ian's departure from the Holy Land a month ago.
Although it was news from a month ago, Gloriosa's heart sank with every word on the newspaper.
Others might not know, but she knew very well.
Back then, it was she, Rayleigh, and Shakky who secretly helped Fisher Tiger get onto the Red Line, creating the world-shaking chaos.
It was also during that chaos that the three Hancock sisters were able to escape Mary Geoise.
But what the outside world also didn't know was that even with their help, the impregnable Land of the Gods was not a place three young girls could easily escape from.
What truly allowed them to escape was Saint Ian, the Crown Prince of the Holy Land, who was only a few years old at the time. Like a cat playing with a mouse, he only deliberately opened the cage and released his toys after he got tired of playing.
Gloriosa could never forget the deep-seated fear in Hancock's eyes when she mentioned that boy after being rescued.
Now, that devil-like Crown Prince of the Holy Land had grown up.
His decision to leave the Holy Land at this time and cross the Calm Belt, his destination was self-evident.
Because the 'toy' he released back then was now the Empress of the Amazon Lily Kingdom, and was hailed as the world's most beautiful woman.
As the Crown Prince of the Holy Land, how could he allow his possession to remain outside?
"Crack."
Gloriosa clutched the snake-head walking stick in her hand and suddenly stood up.
Her wrinkled face was filled with determination.
"No!"
"Hancock must leave here immediately! The farther away, the better!"
She mumbled to herself, no longer hesitating for a moment, and grabbed her walking stick before rushing out of the house.
Soon, Gloriosa arrived at the main gate of the palace.
However, the scene before her instantly ignited her already heavy heart with anger.
The palace, both inside and out, which should have been heavily guarded, didn't even have a single female warrior on duty. Everyone was gathered in the square, around bonfires, drinking until they swayed.
"What a disgrace! This is simply outrageous!"
Gloriosa was furious. She rushed in two steps to a female warrior who was chugging from a wine jar and grabbed her ear.
"What time is it?! You still have the mood to party here?!"
"Where is Hancock?! Tell her to get out here and see me!"
The female warrior winced from the tug, and when she turned to see it was Gloriosa, she wasn't afraid. Instead, she showed a drunken smile.
"Oh, it's Granny Nyon! You've come at a great time, come on, let's play together!"
Saying that, she enthusiastically offered the wine jar in her hand.
Gloriosa was so angry that she raised her walking stick and tapped her on the head.
"Play what?! I'm asking you, where is Hancock?!"
"Empress?" The female warrior rubbed her head, nonchalantly pointing towards the depths of the palace, "In her bedchamber. She hasn't come out for three days."
Upon hearing this, Gloriosa didn't bother with the drunkards anymore and angrily headed straight for the Empress's bedchamber.
But as soon as she reached the ornate door carved with giant snakes, she was stopped by two figures.
It was Hancock's two younger sisters, Boa Sandersonia and Boa Marigold.
"Granny Nyon, why are you here?"
"How can I not come?!" Gloriosa slammed her walking stick on the ground, her voice stern, "If I don't come, this Amazon Lily will fall apart!"
She glared at the two sisters in front of her, shouting with exasperation, "Go! Call Hancock out! I have something important to tell her!"
Saying that, Gloriosa flung the crumpled newspaper, which she had clutched, onto their faces.
"See for yourselves! It's an emergency, and you still have the mind to hold a banquet here!"
Sandersonia and Marigold picked up the newspaper, exchanged glances, and both showed complex and strange expressions on their faces.
Then, the two of them leaned towards Gloriosa, lowering their voices.
"Granny Nyon, your news is a month old," Marigold whispered.
"And," Sandersonia leaned in even closer, her voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz, "you don't need to worry about when he will come."
"Because he is already here."
The anger on Gloriosa's face instantly froze.
She widened her already small eyes, and the entire person was struck by lightning, standing frozen on the spot.
"Saint Ian is here? Where is he now?"
The two sisters silently turned their heads, both looking at the tightly shut bedchamber door behind them.
"He's inside."
"He's been inside with Elder Sister for three days and three nights and hasn't come out."
"..."
Gloriosa's mind buzzed, a complete blank.
She opened her mouth, feeling her throat incredibly dry. After a long moment, she squeezed out a few words through clenched teeth.
"This, this, this is outrageous!"
After a brief shock, she grabbed the hands of the two sisters, her voice becoming sharp with urgency: "Did Saint Ian torture Hancock?!"
Sandersonia and Marigold both shook their heads, their faces full of bewilderment.
"We don't know."
Marigold bit her lip, saying with worry, "However, for these three days, we've always heard Elder Sister crying."
"Sometimes she cries during the day, sometimes at night," Sandersonia added.
Gloriosa's hanging heart finally sank to the bottom.
Just then, Marigold shook her head again in confusion, thoughtfully saying, "But that sound, it doesn't quite sound like crying."
"It's very strange. Sometimes it sounds like she's begging for mercy, but sometimes it… it seems like she's very happy? And sometimes it sounds like she can't breathe!"
"Yes, yes!" Sandersonia also nodded repeatedly, looking at Gloriosa with an innocent expression, "Elder Sister's voice is hoarse. Granny Nyon, what do you think happened to Elder Sister?"
"..."
Gloriosa wanted to speak but stopped, eventually sighing.