Chapter Sixteen: The Ocean Cruise, Part 15
Chapter 16
6:00 PM.
Zhao Jinchu, Qin Chuan, and Qi Yan found themselves together in the same room.
Qin Chuan remained silent, his eyes quietly scanning over the two of them.
An ambiguous, sticky atmosphere lingered between the pair.
Ah, it seemed they had reconciled.
Qin Chuan’s gaze lingered briefly on Qi Yan’s neck before shifting away.
He was making an internal assessment.
A faint floral scent clung to Qi Yan, reminiscent of roses, sweet and delicate.
At the luncheon earlier that day, a similar fragrance had been present, though that scent was richer, more intense, with a hint of bitterness.
Qi Yan, wearing a hat, sat beside Zhao Jinchu.
Used to being appraised by others, he paid it no mind, chewing on a strawberry candy, his lips tinted red, clearly in good spirits.
Among the three, only Zhao Jinchu was focused on the caviar.
Two takeaway boxes lay before her.
Inside were caviar and two slices of bread, accompanied by a small serving of butter.
The boxes were meticulously crafted, seemingly made specifically for this dish.
Printed on the lid was a line of text: "Taste the golden caviar, listen to the ocean’s voice, heed the mermaid’s call~"
Zhao Jinchu looked puzzled. “Eating this lets you hear the mermaid’s call?”
She was pondering this when—
Ding dong.
The entire cruise ship was filled with the tolling of a bell.
Dong dong dong, dong dong dong.
The ancient chime rang six times.
Qi Yan’s gaze shifted toward the window, then quickly to the door.
After a brief silence, he leaned close to Zhao Jinchu’s ear and whispered, “Something’s crawling out of the sea. Hmm.”
He rested his head on her shoulder, frowning—he absolutely despised any kind of sea crawler.
Zhao Jinchu glanced at him sideways.
Suddenly, a heart-wrenching scream echoed near the door.
She raised an eyebrow, stood, and moved to the door, peering through the peephole.
On the floor, someone was being dragged, a translucent, puff-like claw hooking onto their body, leaving a trail of blood.
The creature was half-human, half-fish, crawling on all fours like a lizard, its tail blackish-gray and filthy.
Knock knock knock.
A sharp, clear female voice called out: “Hello, room service.”
Through the peephole, Zhao Jinchu watched with wide eyes as the half-mermaid monster spoke in a human voice, flicking out a long, lizard-like tongue.
A shiver ran down her spine.
Qin Chuan seemed to be confirming something. “Mermaid?”
Zhao Jinchu’s expression was hard to read. “Probably.”
“What do they want from us?”
Quickly, Zhao Jinchu recalled an old legend.
[The mermaid clan favors raw flesh and lays eggs. They are fiercely protective and should not be provoked.]
“Are they here for revenge, thinking we lost some mermaid eggs?”
Their eyes turned toward the table.
Under the moonlight, the plate of caviar actually moved.
It was alive.
Suppressing her nausea, Zhao Jinchu looked away.
At the door, the mermaid kept up the act of a room service attendant: “Hello, room service.”
“Hello, room service.”
After calling several times, as if realizing the ruse had been uncovered, it began pounding on the door with force.
If the mermaids had come for their eggs, perhaps giving them the caviar would make them leave.
Zhao Jinchu latched the door’s safety bolt and asked, “Should we toss it out through the crack?”
Qin Chuan, grasping the gravity of the situation, nodded.
As the door cracked open, a clawed hand shot through, suddenly digging into Qin Chuan’s abdomen.
Bang!
Without knowing where she’d drawn it from, Zhao Jinchu pulled out a knife and stabbed it into the mermaid’s hand.
Qin Chuan, alert, dodged immediately, but the creature was too fast, leaving three bloody scratches on his stomach.
The good news was the wounds weren’t deep; he was still alive.