The water traces on the tabletop dried quickly.

Yu Bai noticed this too.

So he used his other hand to wipe the table, dipped his finger in water again, and rewrote his name.

Those sea-blue eyes were filled with unconcealed anticipation, and if Fu Linyuan wasn’t mistaken, the little mermaid even seemed a bit inexplicably proud.

Yu Bai was indeed feeling a little proud.

In his previous life, the first two characters Fu Linyuan taught him to write were his own name. Although he’d never had much chance to practice, he still remembered how to write them.

Thinking of this, Yu Bai became even prouder.

Under that eager and expectant gaze, the Imperial Marshal was silent for a moment before saying, “…Lu?”

Yu Bai, full of anticipation, froze.

What kind of strange pronunciation was that?

It didn’t sound like what he remembered at all.

Shaking his head at Fu Linyuan, the little mermaid wiped the water stains from the table and wrote again.

This time, Fu Linyuan was silent even longer.

“…Yue?”

Yu Bai shook his head and wrote it once more.

“……” Seeing the disappointment growing more and more obvious in those eyes, the Imperial Marshal uncharacteristically felt a strange twinge of guilt. “…Mo?”

Yu Bai was stunned: …Huh?

This was nothing like he had imagined.

The glass of water was almost empty.

The little mermaid’s head, which had been held high with pride, gradually drooped, and even the ear fins peeking through his hair drooped dejectedly.

His vivid, expressive emotions evoked an involuntary sense of sympathy.

Seeing this, Fu Linyuan’s gaze shifted slightly.

But just as he was about to say something, the little mermaid, who had been sulking a moment ago, suddenly looked up and pointed to his silver-white hair.

Afraid that Fu Linyuan still didn’t understand, Yu Bai grabbed a few strands and shook them toward him.

The silver-white strands traced a beautiful arc in the air.

“…Bai?”

Yes!

Yu Bai’s eyes lit up instantly, and he nodded vigorously.

But whether from nodding too hard or from his tense nerves finally relaxing, Yu Bai suddenly felt the world sway before his eyes.

A light wave of dizziness followed.

Once his mind relaxed, the sedative dutifully took full effect.

The auction was nearing its end.

When Duke came in carrying the items his superior had requested, he saw the Marshal standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, watching the exhibition stage below.

The unfamiliar boy he had seen earlier through the video feed was now curled up asleep on the nearby sofa, eyes closed, breathing steady, as if in deep sleep.

Duke first noticed the disguise device on the boy’s ear, then quickly realized the coat draped over him belonged to the Marshal.

The oversized dark coat made his small frame look even more delicate.

Retracting his gaze, Duke stepped behind Fu Linyuan and saluted. “Boss, I brought the clothes you asked for.”

After arranging the reverse tracking team, Duke had originally planned to return to the auction floor. But halfway there, he received a message from Fu Linyuan, instructing him to prepare a clean set of clothes—smaller in size.

Duke didn’t even need to think to know who the clothes were for.

The current scene made him even more curious, so he asked, “Boss, who exactly is he?”

Fu Linyuan’s gaze remained on the stage below. His tone betrayed no emotion: “The mermaid being auctioned tonight.”

Duke nodded in understanding. “Oh, no wonder he had the auction house’s tracking on him…”

…Wait, what?!

Then Duke couldn’t help but widen his eyes, stammering in shock: 

“M-Mermaid?”

Fu Linyuan gave a quiet “Mm.”

“……” Duke looked again at the sleeping Yu Bai on the sofa, opening and closing his mouth several times before finally managing, “…He looks pretty human.”

At least his body shape did.

Aside from their aggressive nature, the second most well-known trait of mermaids was that their overall appearance was usually not very attractive — some were even downright frightening.

With appearances as ferocious as their temperaments, merfolk seemed closer to instinct-driven star beasts than to intelligent beings capable of logical thought.

Duke’s words involuntarily reminded Fu Linyuan of the way the little mermaid had been gesturing and miming just now.

Throughout the whole interaction, he had seemed entirely unaware of the psychic tendrils lingering dangerously close to Fu Linyuan’s temple — tendrils that could kill him at any moment.

Instead, his excited expression had looked obedient and endearing, softening the heart.

He lacked the violent aura typical of other merfolk, even appeared overly docile.

And he was very clever.

Meanwhile, down on the auction stage, the spotlight finally illuminated a transport vial placed on a rotating stand.

This transport vial looked noticeably larger than the one described in the catalogue. It stood about fifty centimeters tall, and under the lights, its mouth occasionally reflected a blinding green gleam.

There was a hint of mockery in the host’s tone as he began his introduction.

“Our next item is here on consignment. I’m sure I don’t need to elaborate—the value of this ‘green gold’ is well known to all our guests. The client consigning this batch has 1.5 tons of the same quality product. Starting bid: one hundred million transaction points.”

The moment the host’s words fell, murmurs rippled through the hall on the first floor.

Yes, while Medusa was dangerous, the profits were substantial enough to drive desperate individuals to take the risk.

But there were two major concerns now.

First, the quantity of the item being auctioned far exceeded what most space pirates had anticipated. A starting bid of one hundred million transaction points — there weren’t many who could produce that amount without blinking.

And that massive figure of 1.5 tons led to the second problem.

The entire Federation already knew the emperor had recently ordered Marshal Fu Linyuan of the Aon First Legion to thoroughly investigate the Aon Empire’s contraband drug case. Although Fu himself seemed to still be stationed at a remote frontier base, the mere fact that he was leading the investigation was enough to make 90% of space pirates reconsider.

After all, the First Legion represented absolute strength, and the man who led it — Fu Linyuan — was infamous across the empire for his ruthless and savage reputation.

There are no secrets that stay buried forever.

If word of this auction leaked, the First Legion would inevitably take notice of this cargo.

No matter how high the profits, the risk of being hunted down by Fu Linyuan made many previously tempted buyers start to back away.

The host seemed to anticipate the guests’ hesitation. He let them talk for a while, then began elaborating on the market prospects for Medusa.

At the same time, his gaze drifted toward the observation windows of the private boxes upstairs.

These goods weren’t intended for the small-time thugs on the first floor.

The real targets were the high rollers upstairs.

Thinking of that — and the commission he would earn from the sale — the host unconsciously ramped up his enthusiasm.

Fu Linyuan stared at the transport vial on the stage for a moment. Seeing no one make a move, he raised his hand and pressed the button beside him.

Beep—

The signal light outside the window lit up.

“…Such a high-yield product, esteemed guests…” The host paused, then exclaimed, “Ah, our first bidder has entered! Guest No. 203 bids one hundred million!”

The auction floor fell silent for a second — then erupted into another round of chatter.

Soon, another signal light lit up.

Beep—

“Guest No. 201 bids one hundred and ten million!”

Beep—

“Guest No. 203 bids one hundred and twenty million!”

Beep—

“Guest No. 207 bids one hundred and forty million!”

The bidding didn’t stop there.

But it remained concentrated among the three boxes: 201, 203, and 207.

With each chime of the signal light, the price soared rapidly.

Several guests on the first floor couldn’t help glancing up at the one-way glass panels above, speculating on the identity of those wealthy and daring enough to engage in this bidding war.

The atmosphere in the auction house became increasingly lively with each raise in price.

But in Box 203, Yu Bai, curled up on the sofa, was completely unaware of the noise outside.

However, because he hadn’t received the full dose of sedative, he hadn’t fallen completely asleep either.

Half-dreaming, half-awake, he recalled something from long ago.

It had happened a long time ago — so long when he still wasn’t able to maintain a stable human form.

The sky had just darkened, the stars not yet fully awakened, and he was still in the shallow bay practicing his transformations.

At that moment, a certain light in the sky suddenly began to enlarge at an abnormally fast rate.

Then it trailed behind a tail of thick black smoke.

The escape pod crashed into the sea at a distance, and Yu Bai, who had been near the shore, witnessed the entire scene.

At the time, Yu Bai didn’t know what that falling spherical object was.

He only sensed that inside the cracked ball, shattered by the impact, there seemed to be a life — one that was growing weaker and weaker by the second.

Yu Bai remembered the lessons his mother had taught him as a child.

So even though the young and innocent little mermaid was also injured, he swam with all his might toward the crash site.

His silver-white tail flicked agilely in the black sea, sending up beautiful waves.

That day, he pulled a human out of the ocean.

The human stayed with him for a while, and they experienced many things together.

But just when the little mermaid thought he had finally made a friend, that human — taking with him the scale Yu Bai had gifted — vanished from his world as suddenly as he had appeared.

He left without a trace.

They met again several years later.

Though the human’s voice had changed, he showed the very scale that had once been given to him, so Yu Bai believed him.

He left the ocean he had grown up in and followed the human to a strange planet.

In the blur of his memories, he thought he could once again hear the auctioneer’s voice.

“Starting bid… twenty billion transaction points!”

Yu Bai hadn’t misheard.

The auction had indeed moved on—to the sale of the merfolk.

The previous item was finally purchased by the guest in Box 207 for two hundred million.

And the lively atmosphere in the venue never once died down.

Twenty billion—a sky-high price,

For a merfolk that could extend life.

At the same time, the door to Box 203 was gently knocked a few times.

“Honored guest?”

The vaguely familiar voice of the scar-faced man came from outside the door.

“Our boss has something he would like to discuss with you in person. Would you happen to be available right now?”