Chapter 47: Assembly

Chapter 47: Gathering Forces

North.

Xiao Jin and A Yu clearly didn't want Liu Hai to worry, taking turns diving into the water to play with him. Liu Hai, not wanting to disappoint their kindness, maintained his usual cheerful demeanor.

Only occasionally, Liu Hai would show a hint of concern, glancing at Jiang Xun and his intermittently buzzing communicator.

*Is everything alright…?*

Humans truly were a constant source of worry for the Seal King.

In the end, it was Liu Hai who proactively suggested they return early, and the group packed up and boarded the ship for home.

As the boat neared the shore, they unexpectedly spotted a familiar figure—Mr. Laurence, his expression unusually grave.

“Mr. Laurence!” Liu Hai called out, scrutinizing his face, which seemed even more strained than usual. “Are you okay? You look like you’re about to snap.”

“Ah…” Laurence touched his face, smiling wryly. “Sorry to worry you. I’ve run into a bit of trouble. I need to speak with Dr. Jiang Xun…”

Jiang Xun cut straight to the chase: “You received the news too?”

“About Kontra?”

Laurence glanced at Liu Hai, nodded slightly, and gestured for Jiang Xun to step aside. “So you already know.”

“It is indeed about Dr. Kontra.”

“They’ve designated a search and rescue area, and a section of it is very close to the North. We plan to organize a team to help search from here.”

“Close to here?” Jiang Xun instinctively looked out at the sea.

“Perhaps the area is just drawn broadly,” Laurence sighed. “They say they’ve marked out a huge search radius centered around the ancient *Siren* wreckage. After all, they’ve been missing for a day; they could be anywhere.”

“We’re short-staffed, so we can only help as much as possible.”

Jiang Xun nodded. “We’ll go too.”

“I came to you because I figured you wouldn’t sit idly by,” Laurence agreed simply. “Our ship still needs its Ancient Sea isolation coating. We should be ready to depart in about half an hour. All supplies are packed; you just need to…”

Liu Hai quickly squeezed in. “I’m coming too!”

“No need to worry,” Jiang Xun said to Laurence. “He knows about Kontra. There’s no need to keep it from him.”

“Ah.” Laurence crouched down. “Sorry, Liu Hai, this is dangerous. We can’t take you into harm’s way.”

He gently patted Liu Hai’s head. “I know you must be very worried about Dr. Kontra, but we only have one ship. The number of people on board won’t significantly impact search efficiency. Most people are just doing something to ease their own minds.”

“After all, no one knows where he is right now…”

“That’s it!” Liu Hai’s eyes lit up. “That’s where I can help!”

“If humans don’t know, ask the ocean currents! As long as they took a boat, the sea will know where they went!”

Laurence asked, puzzled, “Ask… the sea?”

Jiang Xun froze, then instinctively sought confirmation: “Can you do that?”

“Huh?” Laurence stared at Jiang Xun in shock. “Y-You believe that? Ah, sorry, I’m not questioning, it’s just… this child suddenly said something as incredible as a fairy tale.”

“Incredible?” Liu Hai widened his eyes slightly. “I think your technology is far more incredible.”

*Is it always the things you don’t possess that seem more desirable? Yokai find technology amazing, while humans who master technology find the art of communicating with nature unbelievable…*

Liu Hai furrowed his brow. “Ugh—it’s hard to explain! Anyway, just take me!”

He looked pleadingly at Jiang Xun. “We promised to treat Kontra to dinner and make up. We have to go save him together, or it’ll become a lifelong regret!”

For a moment, Jiang Xun wavered. “I… I can’t put you in danger.”

“Ugh—you’re being so fussy today!” Liu Hai bumped him with his head in frustration. “If you don’t take me…”

He narrowed his beautiful eyes threateningly. “I’ll go by myself.”

“The pool is very close to the sea. It wouldn’t take much effort for me to get into the ocean on my own.”

“Oh dear!” Xiao Jin tried to lighten the mood. “Don’t you two get angry! Um… oh! Wow, you’re standing taller than usual!”

Liu Hai, holding his breath, used his tail fin to push his upper body up, glaring defiantly at Jiang Xun.

Jiang Xun finally gave in with a wry smile. “You say *I’m* fussy today, but you’re the one being exceptionally willful.”

“I told you, I’m the Mermaid King,” Liu Hai said, knowing he had won, and proudly lifted his chin. “This is called… a dictator!”

“A new word I just learned!”

Jiang Xun sighed. “Then promise me, you’ll only participate in the search.”

“Mmm.” Liu Hai looked away guiltily. “Depends on the situation.”

Jiang Xun: “…Should I be relieved that you’re not even trying to lie to me?”

“Heh heh.” Liu Hai mumbled softly. “I’ve learned my lesson. I’m not going to lie anymore.”

Laurence asked, still somewhat uneasy, “Are you really coming along?”

He looked around at everyone, then finally sighed. “Alright, let’s board.”

When they arrived, Liu Hai found there were more people than he had imagined, and they were also…

Less professional.

He even saw the owner of Smoked Granny’s shop pulling along an old woman with a hunched back and white hair: “Honestly! I told you, at your age, you shouldn’t be going out to sea! Someone will have to look after you!”

“What nonsense!” The old woman waved her cane. “I was knocking those damned pirates off fishing boats with this stick before you were born!”

Liu Hai: “…”

*It seems this is Smoked Granny herself.*

*She’s old but still very enthusiastic…*

Remembering her delicious smoked fish, Liu Hai quickly joined the dissuasion team and successfully pulled up the gangway before Smoked Granny could squeeze onto the ship, leaving her behind.

“Haha! Thank you so much for that.” The shop owner patted Liu Hai’s back. “Earlier, when you said your legs were inconvenient, I thought you were injured. Turns out you’re a merman!”

Liu Hai glanced back. On the ship were seemingly ordinary office workers, lavishly dressed nightclub regulars, a group of enthusiastic college students radiating righteousness, an old man with a majestic hunting dog, and… reportedly, the North’s mascot doll.

Liu Hai realized that, blended into the crowd like this, he wasn’t so conspicuous after all.

He softly responded, “Mm.”

He seemed to realize once again that there was no need for him to pretend to be a merman.

“Liu Hai,” Jiang Xun called out to him. Liu Hai looked up alertly, meeting Jiang Xun’s gaze.

He hesitated for a moment, then clung to Jiang Xun’s side, whispering, “I’m sorry.”

“Hm?” Jiang Xun was puzzled. “Sorry for what?”

“Um—” Liu Hai, uncharacteristically bashful, stammered, “I’ll… I’ll tell you why when the time is right.”

Jiang Xun: “…”

He didn’t press further, simply saying, “I think you’ve probably guessed how things developed, but there are some details I haven’t told you yet.”

Liu Hai pricked up his ears. “I’m listening carefully.”

“The person who kidnapped Kontra was an assistant working in Kontra’s lab,” Jiang Xun said, lowering his eyes. “We’ve likely met him before—his name is Wang Yiliu.”

“Mm—” Liu Hai slowly shook his head. “I don’t remember him.”

“It’s normal that you don’t remember him; he never actively approached you.” The two sat down by the ship’s edge, Liu Hai leaning against Jiang Xun’s shoulder. Jiang Xun smiled. “When I asked Feng Yan to look after you before, Feng Yan also noticed Wang Yiliu’s unusual behavior.”

“I suspected that he might have been responsible for your abduction at the TV station, but there’s no evidence yet.”

“Anyway, because of his abnormal behavior, I privately alerted Kontra.”

Liu Hai thought for a moment, then whispered, “It sounds like you didn’t do anything wrong.”

Yet Jiang Xun still seemed to be blaming himself.

Jiang Xun was silent for a moment. “Because, if I had followed protocol, I should have reported the matter to the company and let them intervene in the investigation.”

“My lab has a very high security clearance. If I had reported it, Wang Yiliu would definitely have been investigated, and at the very least, suspended for a period.”

“I…”

“I considered some things outside of protocol and didn’t report it to the company. Instead, I privately approached Kontra.”

“He defended Wang Yiliu at the time and claimed he would give me a reasonable explanation. I think Kontra might have gone to negotiate with Wang Yiliu.”

“Perhaps that’s the real reason he was kidnapped.”

Liu Hai frowned, understanding his meaning. “Are you thinking of A Yu and Xiao Jin?”

Jiang Xun hesitated, then nodded slightly.

“Then, in that case, I don’t think you or Kontra did anything wrong,” Liu Hai mumbled. “If someone told you A Yu and Xiao Jin had done something bad, you’d investigate too, right?”

“Kontra must have trusted Wang Yiliu to go and ask him.”

Liu Hai poked his cheek. “Apologize where you need to, but don’t take on unnecessary responsibility! People can only bear so much weight; too much will crush them.”

“You need to pull yourself together. Once we find Kontra, we’ll have to comfort him. He must be quite shaken.”

“Mm.” Jiang Xun stroked his head. “I will.”

“I just want to warn you, Wang Yiliu has an unusual obsession with merfolk. If you appear before him, he might target you.”

“So, before you act, make sure you’re safe, okay?”

“Don’t worry,” Liu Hai nodded seriously. “Self-preservation is the first rule of survival!”

Jiang Xun finally smiled, relieved. Liu Hai then put a hand on his shoulder, saying with some concern, “But you shouldn’t act recklessly either.”

“I think he has bad intentions toward you as well.”

Jiang Xun hesitated, then took his hand. “Okay.”

“Rest for a bit. I’ll call you when we get close to the Ancient Sea.”

“No need!” Liu Hai lifted his chin slightly. “A dip in the seawater has made me feel much more energetic!”

Laurence stood at the bow with the captain, looking at the map and discussing where to begin their search.

“I still think they wouldn’t be out at sea,” the captain said, a cigarette in his mouth. “It’s too obvious. There are many private islands with vacation homes around here; hiding there would be much easier than drifting on the water.”

“Mm—” Laurence frowned. “The company has deployed helicopters. It’s easier for them to search the open sea. Since we have people, let’s search along these resort islands instead.”

“Right.” The captain narrowed his eyes and grabbed the intercom. “Attention, passengers. We are approaching the Ancient Sea region. Please be careful and avoid falling overboard.”

“Repeat, we are approaching the Ancient Sea region—”

Author’s Note:

The seal rescue team is back in action!