Shu Tang was dazed for a long time.
“His” eyes were like an endless black sea, not frightening her, but making her feel as though she could drown in this vast ocean, gradually sinking down into illusion.
She was momentarily lost in thought, and when she came to, she didn’t understand why “he” suddenly pinched her, signaling the mermaid to let her go.
But the mermaid then lowered his gaze towards the little yellow duck.
She tensed up and instinctively squeezed the little yellow duck.
Little yellow duck: “Quack.”
“He” then pinched the little cat.
Little cat: “Ah.”
Tonight, the rain in South Island City was heavy, and the sound of rain outside never ceased.
Until dinner time, that indescribable atmosphere hadn’t dissipated.
Fortunately, the firewood Shu Tang and the mermaid had brought back last time was piled up in the corner of the living room, ensuring they could have a warm dinner in the temporarily unelectrified Bastille.
The pot Shu Tang bought came into play, naturally replacing the broken self-heating pot.
The mermaid made the fire and added wood, while Shu Tang tried to tinker with a wooden rack to support the pot. Together, they soon had a bubbling fish fillet soup cooking.
While eating, Shu Tang explained to Little Rose what “reimbursement” and “salary benefits” meant.
However, as soon as she mentioned this, Shu Tang remembered something: she had originally planned to come see Little Rose today, drop off some things, and leave.
Today was only considered pre-job training, tomorrow would be the first official day of work.
Shu Tang highly valued this opportunity to become a permanent employee. Especially since this job allowed paid slacking and reimbursements, which was a significant step up from her intern experience in the emergency department, Shu Tang was very enthusiastic about her work.
So, on her first official day at work, it was essential to make a good impression on her new colleagues and workplace.
Shu Tang’s face was suddenly pinched, and she instinctively let out a gasp, snapping back to reality.
She noticed that the mermaid’s gaze followed her like a shadow, unblinkingly fixed on her. It was as if his gaze was more intense than ever before—as if Shu Tang would disappear if he blinked.
Shu Tang admitted that she felt somewhat tender-hearted under such a stare.
She looked at the heavy rain outside and told herself: Since it’s so close, staying the night and still making it on time in the morning shouldn’t be a problem.
So, after having her fill, Shu Tang didn’t propose leaving; instead, as usual, she went upstairs to sleep with the mermaid.
On this stormy night, Shu Tang turned on a bedside lamp, and the whole bedroom seemed to be enveloped in a warm, cozy light, becoming warm and inviting.
Up until this moment, the mermaid’s tense nerves gradually relaxed. He moved closer to Shu Tang and wrapped her possessively with his tail.
Shu Tang had noticed long ago that mermaids slept sitting up. It was usually fine, but tonight, with the light on, Shu Tang felt that this posture seemed very uncomfortable for the mermaid.
She thought about it and turned to say, “Little Rose, sleeping like this will give you a herniated disc.”
The mermaid moved closer to her and hissed in confusion.
So, Shu Tang explained what a herniated disc was.
As a dominant force in the deep sea, the mermaid had terrifyingly strong core and abdominal strength, and his bones were not like those of ordinary people, making it impossible for him to have such a problem. Only a fragile creature like Shu Tang, who would scream when kicking a stone, would suffer from it.
The mermaid hissed back in rebuttal.
But Shu Tang immediately asserted that she knew more than him, so he had to listen to her.
Shu Tang’s declaration had a tyrannical air about it.
Actually, this was against the mermaid’s understanding and quite unreasonable, considering “he” could pin a cat down with just a finger and immobilize it.
But, the little cat returned and lay beside him.
Nothing else seemed very important after that.
Finally, two people lay on the pillow.
Their sleeping positions changed from LI to II.
Shu Tang first covered herself with the blanket, then meticulously covered the mermaid.
Content, she turned over and closed her eyes.
However, after Shu Tang fell asleep—
The mermaid’s tail swept the blanket away and encircled Shu Tang, changing their position back to: LI.
But, considering Shu Tang’s daily morning reluctance to get out of bed, this incident would likely remain undiscovered, just like the secret that “mermaids aren’t afraid of the cold.”
The rain taps gently outside the window, while inside, the urge to sleep deepens.
…
On a rainy day, the warm embrace of the covers is just too inviting.
Shu Tang, who tossed and turned restlessly in her new dorm bed last night, found comfort wrapped in a mermaid’s tail and promptly fell asleep.
So, unsurprisingly, Shu Tang was late.
Though she always arrived just on time—a real stickler for punctuality—because the looming threat of fines (like the Sword of Damocles) hung over her head, she diligently made it to the door at the last minute. However, after being interrogated and taken for a medical checkup the entire day yesterday, her sleep schedule was completely reversed, leading to her waking up late despite setting an alarm.
In a rush, she got up and saw it was already eight o’clock, her mind buzzing.
Shu Tang worried that she might be fired tomorrow just for stepping into Zone 01.
So, after quickly washing up, she said to the mermaid, “Little Rose, I’m going to be late, I have to go!”
Upon hearing this, the mermaid paused.
This morning, the mermaid had woken up early to bring Shu Tang delicious tiny silverfish. However, the pause wasn’t because Shu Tang skipped the breakfast he had prepared.
—It was because he had accidentally broken the elevator.
Shu Tang didn’t notice the mermaid following her; she just ran quickly. But upon seeing the sorry state of the elevator, she froze, struck as if by a bolt from the blue.
A tall shadow loomed behind her. Seeing her staring blankly at the elevator, with her pale lips tightly pursed, he seemed unsure of what to do.
However, after standing still for a while, Shu Tang didn’t get angry. Instead, she swiftly turned around, looking surprisingly cheerful.
Shu Tang: “Oh, Little Rose, you came too. Let’s go have breakfast.”
On the way back, Shu Tang cheerfully explained to the mermaid what “force majeure” meant:
If Shu Tang was late on her first day at work, she would certainly be harshly criticized;
But now, with the elevator broken, this was a case of force majeure.
This meant the incident of oversleeping could be overlooked, and Shu Tang would immediately become the victim, claiming the moral high ground.
During this time, the mermaid gained a deeper understanding of Shu Tang’s true nature:
Poor hunting skills, lazy (making the mermaid do all the work), fond of teasing cats and dogs (like repeatedly getting pinched by crabs but never learning), loves to laze around in the sun and bask in the sun, and her favorite activity is all talk.
For instance, now, the lazy cat, clearly reveling in her chance to continue being lazy, yet her reasoning was detailed.
However, the mermaid made a connection:
If Shu Tang wanted to leave, “he” forcefully staying would have resulted in her scolding;
But if the elevator was broken, and she couldn’t leave, that was “force majeure.”
Shu Tang noticed that the mermaid was listening very intently, occasionally nodding in agreement, which made her quite proud.
Shu Tang thought: “He” must really admire her.
Due to the elevator incident, Shu Tang passed her first big test at her new job without any danger.
Shu Tang and the mermaid had finished breakfast before she finally opened the communicator to check in with Chen Sheng.
The signal in the restricted area had been restored—Zone 01’s staff couldn’t control it and could only reconnect it whenever it broke. How long it stayed connected depended on the mermaid.
This time, the mermaid didn’t cut off the signal, so Shu Tang managed to get through successfully.
Honestly, when Chen Sheng found out last night that there was another problem in the restricted area, his first thought was that Shu Tang might have accidentally died. So, when he received a distress call from Shu Tang this morning, learning that it was just a broken elevator, Chen thought to himself: indeed, a cat has nine lives.
But what Chen Sheng never expected was that Shu Tang’s first question was about being late.
Shu Tang asked anxiously, “Brother Chen, I can’t make it to work today. I won’t get docked pay, will I?”
Chen Sheng: “…”
Chen Sheng: “…No, you won’t lose any pay. Just wait for the elevator to be fixed before coming to work.”
Shu Tang: “Brother Chen, what about the morning meeting today…”
Chen Sheng: “…I’ll add you to the work group chat in a bit.”
Shu Tang made the call without avoiding the mermaid.
At first, when Shu Tang was fiddling with the communicator, the mermaid didn’t pay much attention to it.
In fact, due to a psychic magnetic field, the mermaid could pick up many signals and the sounds of electricity, controlling and modifying them as if by a natural talent. Many such devices had appeared in the restricted area at first.
—Until human voices came through the communicator.
Shu Tang started focusing on that voice.
The mermaid turned its head, its dark eyes focusing on the direction of the small black box.
Whether in the restricted area or in the dormitory at night, there had never been “outsiders” during their interactions.
During the days they were forgotten by the main group, although Shu Tang had a communicator, there was no signal. So, whether playing with sand, crabs, or even eating, some of her attention was always on the mermaid.
But now, it was different.
The mermaid heard Shu Tang start to talk and chat with that unfamiliar voice.
She shifted all her attention to that voice, even sparing a glance at the little silverfish on her plate.
Their conversation was unlike that between the mermaid and Shu Tang: one speaking, the other listening.
It was a fluent dialogue.
The mermaid couldn’t completely understand their conversation.
A strange emotion enveloped the mermaid, making its tail movements very slow and its ear fins suddenly stand up at a sharp angle.
The expression in its eyes also became somewhat frightening.
Humans have seven deadly sins: pride, envy, wrath, sloth, greed, gluttony, and lust.
However, the mermaid was unaware that the strange emotion he felt was one of the Seven Deadly Sins known as envy.
“He” did not understand that he was envious of the voice that had stolen her attention; envious of their fluent conversation, and it provoked in him a strong sense of repulsion and hostility.
Despite this, the mermaid did not immediately take any action.
Instead, he stared at the little black box with a cold, guarded, and hostile gaze.
Fortunately, the call was not long.
Shu Tang quickly ended the communication, excitedly saying, “Little Rose, I have two days off!”
The fierce creature’s gaze quickly shifted away from the small square box, as Shu Tang pulled out a new brush and shower gel she had bought, eager to clean the mermaid’s tail.
Her attention returned to the mermaid, and so the mermaid temporarily set aside the little square box, and that anxious and strange emotion slowly faded away.
On the rocks by the seaside.
Shu Tang prepared a large bucket of clean water, a bottle of lemon-scented shower gel, and a large brush.
The mermaid didn’t understand what she was going to do, nor did it comprehend the purpose behind her fiddling with the bubbles, so it lazily leaned against the rocks, flipping its tail while she busied herself.
Occasionally, when Shu Tang was about to fall off the rocks, the mermaid would use its tail to stop her.
With great enthusiasm, Shu Tang squeezed out the lemon shower gel and rubbed her hands to create a rich lather, then spread it over the blue fish tail as if she were icing a cake.
Once completely covered, Shu Tang rolled up her sleeves and began to gently clean the tail with the brush.
In the mermaid’s eyes, Shu Tang’s actions resembled a kitten curiously pawing at its owner’s hand, flipping it over, and even curiously nibbling at it as if it were dead.
The mermaid neither felt angry nor offended, and indulgently allowed the kitten to romp all over “him.”
Shu Tang noted that the mermaid’s tail was quite clean, always soaking in the sea, so it wasn’t dirty, but it was still large and dragged a long tail, so cleaning was necessary.
She sat by the tail and scrubbed—
Shu Tang scrubbed out some sand and small shells.
Shu Tang scrubbed out a hair clip that she mysteriously couldn’t find a few days earlier.
Shu Tang scrubbed out a few strands of hair.
Spring is a season for shedding. If Shu Tang’s spiritual chicken leg wasn’t transparent, it would surely be like a mobile dandelion, with cat hair flying everywhere; but obviously, even though the spirit form didn’t shed much cat hair, her physical body still shed hair.
Shu Tang guiltily removed the obviously own black-brown hair.
Finally, Shu Tang scrubbed out a hair tie that she couldn’t find anywhere after going out.
Shu Tang: “…”
—The mermaid’s tail, the lost and found for big chicken legs.
Shu Tang is quite a lazy person, preferring to just lie around during her leisure time.
However, brushing a mermaid’s tail is different; it’s not work, but one of the joys of keeping fish.
Bathing pets, cutting their nails, and similar activities can provide pet owners with a strong sense of satisfaction.
Shu Tang also finds great pleasure in this, diligently polishing every part of the mermaid’s tail until it sparkles.
The mermaid’s tail feels very resilient to the touch, but the fins are adorned with large, flowing “trailing edges” that look like gauze and feel incredibly soft.
Shu Tang couldn’t help but touch it over and over again. At that moment, the mermaid would gently slap her hand away. In similar areas, particularly from the waist downwards, the mermaid would pick up Shu Tang and move her further away.
At this point, Shu Tang knew she shouldn’t brush there, so she would find another spot to continue playing with the tail enthusiastically.
Most of the time, the mermaid was very cooperative. Shu Tang knew exactly where to scrub, and the mermaid would lift accordingly for as long as needed, maintaining the pose effortlessly.
As Shu Tang was feeling a sense of accomplishment and started to “wrap up” her work, a ray of light pierced through the clouds after the rain.
Suddenly, Shu Tang froze.
She stared blankly at the mermaid’s tail for a while before turning her head:
“Little Rose, look at the rainbow!”
The rainbow was not in the sky, but on the mermaid’s tail.
The blue tail, washed clean, shimmered beautifully, and the elegant, gauzy fins trailed behind like a blue comet tail. The sunlight hit it, creating a dazzling, mesmerizing rainbow of colors.
The mermaid’s tail had never been so shiny and eye-catching.
Occasionally, when the mermaid gently flicked its tail, the sparkling rainbow would move with it.
Shu Tang stopped what she was doing and scooted next to the mermaid.
The mermaid had never seen its tail so luminous before.
The two of them quietly admired the “rainbow.”
Shu Tang said, “From now on, I’ll come to clean your tail every month!”
The tail flicked in agreement.
…
Shu Tang decided to make tail cleaning her favorite leisure activity.
—Coincidentally, the mermaid felt the same way.
…
Dinner was on the rocks.
Shu Tang still preferred dining outdoors, enjoying the picnic-like joy.
So, she had “him” move the pot and stand over.
The two of them were still one adding wood and the other waiting with hands in pockets.
However, in the evening, Shu Tang was added to a new work group chat, and her communicator kept ringing. She had to check it now and then and reply with a “Received.”
Her actions naturally caught the attention of the mermaid.
His hand paused slightly as he added more firewood.
Joining a new company or unit is always a hassle. Shu Tang had to join several work groups and complete registration.
Soon, Shu Tang received a message from Old Wu. Since she was joining as a therapist to a key founder, the documentation process was complex, involving checks on various records.
Old Wu mentioned there was a slight issue with her employment paperwork, requiring her to submit additional documents. It was so complicated that he decided to call Shu Tang directly to explain the process.
Shu Tang, feeling overwhelmed, even took out a notebook to jot down notes, unaware that the mermaid was intently watching her communicator.
The conversation lasted particularly long—almost forty minutes with Old Wu.
The mermaid continued to quietly add firewood, but his gaze subtly changed.
That unprecedented, strange and surging emotion welled up in his heart again.
It seemed as if he realized he had been overlooked. When Shu Tang turned around to say something, the mermaid casually shifted his gaze away, focusing on the fire as if it didn’t matter.
After all, he was mostly expressionless, making it hard to discern any emotion.
Thus, Shu Tang didn’t notice the subtle shift in the atmosphere.
She continued talking, and finally told Old Wu, “Once the elevator is fixed in a couple of days, I’ll go out and complete the paperwork…”
However, Shu Tang suddenly felt a cool temperature behind her.
The voice in her ear seemed to grow distant.
She heard another steady breathing coming from behind her.
The posture was as if someone was gently embracing her from behind.
The sound of the waves, the crackling firewood, and the conversation all faded away.
It was as if he was curious about Shu Tang’s communicator, moving closer to her.
The mermaid’s cool, long hair fell—
And his chin gently rested on her shoulder.
Then he motioned for her to continue the phone call.