Chapter 47 The Chance to Expose Luo Laiyi

Chapter 47: The Opportunity to Expose Lorelei Has Arrived

The Mermaid Palace was bathed in the clear, bright glow of luminous pearls, illuminating the grand hall.

Supported by Meili, Huadiao wept, her face a picture of delicate vulnerability. Her ocean-blue eyes brimmed with sorrowful tears, and perfectly round, pearly tears continued to fall, one after another. The small section of steps where they sat was quickly becoming submerged by the cascade of pearls, leaving almost no space to stand.

Rebecca flitted about anxiously, wringing her hands as she tried to comfort her. "Annie, dear Annie, please don't cry. A mermaid's tears consume vital essence. Your body has only just recovered; shedding so many tears now will surely weaken you again. Those foolish merman aren't worth it. Princess will certainly not let the fish who bullied you go unpunished."

"Yes, I believe in the Princess," Huadiao managed to force out a faint, strained smile, feigning cheerfulness. In reality, she was utterly bewildered.

(⊙⊙)!!! *Who knew there was such a thing?*

Mermaid tears drained their vital essence, which was why mermaids rarely cried. This explained why Haiwei and the other aggressive mermaids had reined in their imposing demeanor earlier upon seeing her shed pearls. *So, they assumed she was crying because she was heartbroken to the extreme and simply couldn't hold it in anymore?*

Brilliant!

As an unassuming human acting genius, her values were quite different from those of mermaids. Since crying was so effective, why shouldn't she cry—and cry hard!

Thus, fresh, lustrous white pearls began tumbling down even more profusely.

Rebecca: "..." *What's wrong with Annie? Weren't mermaids supposed to have a high tear threshold and rarely cry?*

At that moment, the merman soldiers escorted the three offending mermaids into the hall. Huadiao's earlier ear-splitting shriek had startled every merman within miles. The three mermaids, who had just thawed out, panicked and flustered upon realizing their scheme had been exposed. Their frantic movements immediately drew attention, and they were swiftly apprehended by the surrounding merfolk, with no chance of escape.

Now, they were brought back, looking utterly miserable.

Huadiao finally got a clear look at the three mermaids: adult males, their appearances well below the average merman aesthetic. While somewhat handsome, their expressions were pale and cowering, their eyes shifty and dull, like sewer rats—utterly devoid of a merman's inherent pride.

Seated on her elevated shell dais, Princess Haiwei wore a stern expression on her radiant and dignified face. Her heroic brows were tightly furrowed. She flicked her tail and swam before the three offenders, her golden eyes filled with sharp, murderous intent as she interrogated them concisely, "Speak, why did you try to harm Annie?"

The three offending mermaids immediately shook their heads in panic, explaining, "No, no, we didn't!"

"We're innocent, Princess! How could we dare kill a fellow merman outside the palace?"

"Exactly! The Merman King's decree forbids it—we wouldn't defy it like Annie did!"

With that, they shifted the blame back to Huadiao.

Huadiao remained unfazed, having anticipated this. Outwardly, however, she paled with fear, biting her lip as she trembled, tears flowing like a spring. "N-no, I... I didn't mean to..."

Rebecca's heart ached at the sight, and she immediately stepped forward to defend her, hands on her hips, her voice fierce. "Annie couldn't have known! She's only just arrived at the palace, and she was so badly injured and unconscious while recovering. Today was her first time helping the Princess prepare the wedding hall—how could she have known about the Merman King's decree?"

"Rebecca..." Huadiao called out weakly from behind her, her face filled with gratitude.

Rebecca straightened her back, lifting her chin, even more proud.

Princess Haiwei remained standing there, regal and composed, though she said nothing, her gaze toward them softened considerably.

The high-ranking merfolk seated in the hall, clearly of noble status, also relaxed their expressions, nodding in approval. Then, their gazes toward the three offending mermaids grew even sharper.

At this point, Huadiao "finally" mustered the courage to step forward and confront the three mermaids. "If you didn't mean to harm me, then why were you sneaking around my home, trying to pry open my shell bed? When I woke up, I saw you holding clubs as if you were about to attack me! S-so, I..."

Meili patted her back soothingly at the opportune moment.

Haiwei's brows furrowed, her voice tinged with a chilling malice. "Since you cannot explain yourselves, you will be punished for attempting to murder a fellow merman. Guards, take them away."

Realizing the gravity of the situation and that their lives were on the line, the three offending mermaids broke into a cold sweat, squealing in panic. "No, no! We truly didn't mean to harm her! It was Lorelei—Princess's fiancé, Lorelei—who told us that Annie, the Princess's handmaiden, was seeking a mate! He told us to visit her secretly at night!"

"That's right! It was all Lorelei's doing! We didn't know she was unwilling!"

Huadiao's eyes gleamed. *Well, well. Lorelei, the acting genius, was actually so careless, practically handing over evidence!*

She knew her chance to expose Lorelei had come.

Lorelei, that scoundrel, coming to find her earlier was exactly what she had expected—in fact, she had deliberately lured him into it. How could she not have prepared? So, on her way back from the Mermaid Palace, she had brought along another popular mermaid item gifted by Rebecca: the Echo Conch.

The Echo Conch had recording capabilities, able to capture mermaid songs, and of course, voices. It was as beloved by mermaids as the Amplifying Conch.

The moment she suspected Lorelei's connection to Annie, she had already planned how to use this item.

Lorelei was a skilled actor with a sinister mind, but he likely didn't anticipate humans' habit of preserving evidence. Or perhaps, in his arrogance, he believed he understood Annie's nature and had her completely under his control, never suspecting she would guard against him and leave evidence. Thus, the Echo Conch had gone entirely unnoticed.

With this solid proof, toppling Lorelei would be effortless.

So, she feigned shock, angrily accusing the three mermaids of lying—she had never sought a mate, and they must be slandering Lorelei. Then, in her "distress," she accidentally let slip her past romantic relationship with him.

This revelation stunned the merfolk in the palace into a daze. Even Rebecca, who had always protected her, stared at her in disbelief.

Just then, Lorelei, having received word that the three foolish mermaids had exposed themselves, rushed in.

He swam into the palace, his handsome, refined face still wearing a charming smile. Spotting the three offenders, he asked curiously, "What's happened? Why are Billy and the others detained? What crime have they committed? They've always been timid—surely it can't be too serious. Princess, since tomorrow is our betrothal ceremony, perhaps you could show them mercy and not be angered?"

Under normal circumstances, the merfolk in the hall would have praised his kindness and generosity for pleading on behalf of unrelated merfolk.

But Huadiao had already performed her act to perfection, deeply imprinting the image of a pitiable victim. Coupled with the direct testimony of the three offending mermaids, and her own accidental revelation of a corner of his true nature, seeds of doubt had already been sown among the merfolk. How could they so easily believe him now?

Thus, the expressions of the merfolk as they regarded him now were... quite subtle.