Chapter 9: Mermaid

Chapter 9: The Merman

A Yu’s expression went blank for a split second, his gaze shifting slightly as if unsure whether to humor Liu Hai.

"Ah—what a shocking declaration," A Yu deadpanned, his voice devoid of emotion. "Hold on, this is a big deal. Let me go get the others."

He turned and pressed a button, whispering into the intercom, "SOS, send someone who can play along."

The door soon swung open, and A Yu let out a relieved sigh, only to see Jiang Xun standing outside.

A Yu’s eyes widened in shock. "Huh? Boss, you’re here to join the fun?"

Jiang Xun glanced at him and silently stepped aside, revealing Xiao Jin behind him.

Xiao Jin bounced into the room, her voice syrupy sweet and overly enthusiastic. "I’m here! Let me see which little darling claims to be a merman!"

Jiang Xun silently pressed a hand to his forehead.

A Yu finally relaxed, cupping his hand like a microphone and holding it to Liu Hai’s mouth. "So, uh… I assume you’re a 'Mr.,' but just to be sure—Mr. or Ms.?"

"Mr.? Ms.?" Liu Hai tilted his head, then declared firmly, "A merman!"

"That’s not what he meant," Xiao Jin said with a doting smile. "He’s asking about your gender, gender—do you understand?"

"Oh—!" Liu Hai had an epiphany, striking a pose with hands on hips. "I know this one!"

"I’m a male sea… merman!"

He corrected himself mid-sentence, almost tripping over his words, but his gaze remained resolute; at least he’d convinced himself.

The three of them fell silent for a moment, an awkward quiet settling over the scene.

Liu Hai nervously sank a little deeper into the water. "W-what? Do I not look like one? I am!"

He clapped his tail fins together, lifting them out of the water and wiggling them like a fish tail.

"Hmm—" Jiang Xun was the first to speak. "So you’re saying you’re the legendary kind of merman? The ones with enchanting voices, ethereal looks, often tied to love stories… that sort?"

Liu Hai widened his eyes guiltily. "Y-yeah, exactly."

He puffed out his chest slightly, putting on a show. "Love? I’m great at that. Singing too."

Jiang Xun: "…Then, shall we test it?"

"Huh?" Liu Hai’s eyes slid sideways toward him.

Jiang Xun smiled faintly. "Then please… sing us a song."

"Ahem, no problem!" Liu Hai took a deep breath, braced himself against the edge, and let loose!

"Oooohhh—!"

He squeezed his eyes shut, straining so hard his tail fins curled upward, presenting everyone with the rare sight of a U-shaped seal belting out a tune.

Xiao Jin dramatically draped herself over A Yu as if about to faint, pressing a hand to her forehead. "This is too adorable…"

A Yu nudged her lightly. "Praise the singing, come on. Show off your high emotional intelligence."

Xiao Jin hastily straightened up, clearing her throat to deliver her critique: "So full of emotion, so spirited! And most importantly—the sheer adorable shockwave radiating from this performance is something no human could possibly withstand! Even the most stone-cold person would crack a smile seeing this…"

Jiang Xun stated objectively, "To be honest, that was awful."

"Hey!" Xiao Jin whirled on him. "How can you say that?! Are you a monster?!"

A Yu sucked in a sharp breath. "Wow, the coldest, most heartless man in the world has appeared."

Jiang Xun: "…"

Liu Hai indignantly slapped the water. "W-what? Were you even listening properly…?"

A hint of a smirk passed through Jiang Xun’s eyes. "But then again, legends are often exaggerated. It’s understandable if reality doesn’t quite match up."

"Perhaps humanity’s standards for 'enchanting voices' have changed over time, just like how ancient aesthetics differ greatly from modern ones. Who knows—maybe ancient people loved this kind of…"

He chose his words carefully. "…Earnest, spirited… squawking?"

Liu Hai bobbed his head excitedly. "Exactly!"

"*Everyone* loves it!"

At least, his seal buddies did.

Xiao Jin couldn’t help muttering, "At least call it singing…"

A Yu shot a doubtful look at Jiang Xun. "So, boss… you’re agreeing he’s a… merman?"

"Huh?!" Xiao Jin’s jaw dropped. "No way! Boss, how can you believe this? Look, his tail is clearly furry—you’ve touched it yourself!"

Liu Hai nervously hid his tail under the water, eyes darting around. "T-that’s…"

"About that," Jiang Xun said solemnly, "Different races have varying hair and skin textures. Perhaps he’s just a merman with sparse scales but long fur? There might be such a subspecies."

Liu Hai: "…"

A furry merman sounded kind of weird.

But since Jiang Xun was defending him, he’d let it slide.

He nodded solemnly in agreement.

A Yu opened his mouth to protest, "But he—"

Xiao Jin clapped a hand over his mouth.

"No." She took a deep breath, the penny dropping. "He *is* a merman."

"If Liu Hai says so, and the boss says so, then shut up!"

A Yu: "…"

Xiao Jin grinned brightly. "So, our little merman, any other requests?"

"One more thing." Figuring he’d successfully pulled off the act, Liu Hai finally relaxed completely and remembered something that had been bothering him.

Xiao Jin propped her chin in her hands. "What is it?"

Liu Hai: "What’s a 'bonus'?" "Eh?" Xiao Jin scratched her head. "It’s prize money, human currency… Look, point is, it’s a good thing for people."

"Oh!" Liu Hai swished his tail fin cheerfully. "That makes sense!"

"Hmm... Are you interested in the bonus?" Jiang Xun found it amusing. "Do you need human money too?"

"No." Liu Hai shook his head. "When I was asking the sailor about mermaids—I mean, when we were discussing mermaids, he said if he could find a real merman, the company bonus would be enough for him to buy his daughter a very expensive piano."

His eyes lit up. "So, it's a win-win for everyone, right?"

Even though he lied, at least it should lead to a good outcome.

Xiao Jin's lips quivered as she pulled A Yu's sleeve to wipe her tears. "You're such a sweetheart, Liu Hai! Don't tell me you're..."

"Alright." Jiang Xun cut her off. "Let him finish his meal. We'll discuss this later."

The group tacitly changed the subject and spent some time playing with Liu Hai.

...

That night.

Jiang Xun was writing a report when his desk communicator buzzed. He glanced at the caller ID and swiftly declined the call.

Undeterred, the caller redialed half a dozen times. Only after Jiang Xun finished his current task did he finally pick up.

A slender man with dark green hair, also wearing a researcher's white coat, appeared on the screen. His expression was slightly arrogant as he sneered. "Playing hard to get, aren't you, Jiang Xun?"

Jiang Xun replied calmly, "What is it, Dr. Kong?"

"Just heard your expedition was quite exciting, so I thought I'd call and ask." Dr. Kong wore a gloating smile. "Word is you hauled up some guy from the ancient sea claiming to be a 'merman'? Ha, it’s already reached company headquarters."

"I heard your excitable assistant even submitted a report, asking everyone to humor this charade and treat him like a real merman? Is that true?"

"Absolutely true." Jiang Xun raised an eyebrow. "Do you have a better idea?"

"Wait." Kong Tela’s smile faded as he leaned closer to the screen, disbelief in his voice. "She didn't do this on her own—you approved it?"

Jiang Xun propped his chin on his hand. "Didn’t you see my signature at the end of the report?"

"I wasn’t at the report presentation! I only heard the joke and came to ask you!" Kong Tela’s expression turned serious. "Hey, I didn’t think you were this stupid, but you didn't actually fall for it, did you?"

"That appearance is clearly more like a genetically altered human than an ancient creature. This could easily be a setup! And now he’s even demanding merman privileges—what'll you do when he’s exposed as a fraud?"

"Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Plenty of people are eyeing your position, myself included. Most aren’t planning to compete head-on like me, though—I’m the only one this nice."

"I know." Jiang Xun remained unfazed. "That’s the only reason I’m still tolerating your useless chatter."

"Done? My break time's up."

"You still scheduling your day down to the minute, don’t you?" Dr. Kong gave him a strange look. "Anyway. Just be careful—that guy might be a scam artist."

"I’m looking forward to seeing your look of awe when I unveil my groundbreaking discovery. Don’t get ousted by some nobody's underhanded tactics before then."

"He won’t." Jiang Xun finally responded. "Meet him and you'll see."

"Huh?" Kong Tela looked thoughtful. "Meaning what? Is he... not smart? Completely incapable of scheming?"

Jiang Xun snapped back, "Don’t call him that."

Kong Tela looked as if he’d seen a ghost.

Jiang Xun quickly corrected himself. "...I mean, it’s unprofessional to label someone an idiot without first testing their IQ."

"Fine, fine, ever the perfectionist." Kong Tela shrugged. "So if he’s not an idiot, why tell such an obvious lie?"

"Multiple factors." Jiang Xun allowed a faint smile. "Some insecurity—he’s in a completely unfamiliar place with no way to fend for himself, and coincidentally, everyone around him keeps mentioning mermaids. He probably thinks pretending to be one will offer some protection."

"Some misunderstanding—he seems to believe we treated him well because we mistook him for a merman."

"And some... kindness—he likely doesn’t fully grasp what the 'company' is, but he’s heard that finding a merman would benefit us all. He probably thinks this lie will bring everyone a positive outcome."

"Lastly... there’s probably a bit of cleverness too."

Kong Tela stared at him with a complicated expression.

"Alright, Dr. Kong, I need to go now." Jiang Xun’s smile faded. "I have work to do."

"Yeah, yeah." Kong Tela waved dismissively. "As usual, don’t forget your promise—if you extract merman DNA, you’ll prioritize sharing it with me."

"I haven’t forgotten." Jiang Xun shrugged lightly. "But I also said I don’t believe mermen exist."

"Hmph." Kong Tela snorted. "Same old stubborn you."

"One more thing—it’s 2 a.m. If you keep working, you might just work yourself to death in your office."

He ended the call.

Jiang Xun checked the time, sat at his desk for a moment, then idly turned on the news feed—

"Notorious pirate group Black Shark clashes with marine patrol again..."

"'Most Beautiful Mermaid' Angelina releases debut album! A genre revolution..."

"Stock market outperforms expectations in Q3, major corporations..."

After flipping through several channels, Jiang Xun turned it off and headed to Liu Hai’s room.

He pushed the door open quietly. Liu Hai, alert, looked up and relaxed upon recognizing him. "Hello, Jiang Xun."

Jiang Xun stood at the doorway. "Sorry, did I wake you?"

"No." Liu Hai shook his head. "I was already awake."

"Aren’t you sleeping?"

Humans weren’t like seals—they had to retreat into tents to sleep at night.

Jiang Xun stepped into the habitat and sat down across from him. "Couldn’t sleep."

"Wait—" Liu Hai studied his face. "You can’t call it 'couldn’t sleep' unless you at least tried. You look like you never intended to rest."

"This is just you staying up late!"

"Fine." Jiang Xun conceded gracefully. "I admit I was wrong. Can I rest here for a bit then?"

Author's Note:

Human, why aren’t you resting properly? The seal is worried about you.