47. Little Mermaid and the Tyrant CEO

“The light ball spirit” transformed itself into a tumble dryer and suddenly shot out of Yan Ling’s palm.

Running away, it turned back to see if the two of them were following.

The small light ball flew at an extremely fast speed. Qiu Rong and Yan Ling couldn’t sprint through the city, as it would look too much like a cat and a dog chasing a laser pointer. So they got into a car and headed in the direction of the light ball.

They had to abide by traffic rules on the road. The small light ball flew ahead for a while and then came back to see where the car was going. It would become anxious and spin around on the car roof when they encountered a red light.

Fortunately, it seemed that pedestrians couldn’t see the small light ball, avoiding the possibility of the “light ball spirit” being recorded and going viral on short video platforms.

The small light ball flew all the way to the city center and dove into a high-end residential area.

Qiu Rong found a place to park, and Yan Ling just finished his phone call.

The light ball was the energy body of the dream demon, and the most significant connection between it and the dream demon was Uriel. Yan Ling suspected that the light ball wanted to lead them to Ulysses. He contacted the Department of Violation Handling and asked the personnel who were conducting investigations in the nearby area to come over, just in case.

Entering the residential area required an access card. The two of them seized the opportunity and followed behind a resident to enter the community. Along the way, when a security guard saw the unfamiliar faces, he wanted to approach and ask. Yan Ling glanced at him, and the security guard froze in place. Three seconds later, he returned to his security booth with a bewildered look.

Qiu Rong: “…”

Indeed, it was the hypnosis ability of the vampire clan.

The small light ball was bouncing up and down in the fountain right in front of the main gate. As soon as it saw the two of them enter, it immediately flew up to continue guiding them.

The two husbands followed it further into the residential area until they stopped in front of a building.

The light ball circled around them and then soared into the sky, entering a 32nd-floor unit of this building.

Qiu Rong, Yan Ling: “…”

They looked up at the window, contemplating how to get up there.

The elevators in this type of residential building also required corresponding elevator cards. The two of them exchanged glances, realizing that they could only blend in with someone else and then take the stairs.

Just as they were thinking about it, a loud “bang” came from above. Qiu Rong looked up, his expression changing.

Shattered glass poured down from the upper floor, reflecting dazzling white light from its sharp edges.

“Be careful!”

Before the words had even finished, the falling glass suddenly vanished into thin air. Qiu Rong, who had already carried Yan Ling and dashed two li away, paused for a moment.

Yan Ling: “…”

He didn’t even have time to see what had happened.

Yan Ling patted Qiu Rong’s arm. “Quick, put me down!”

Fortunately, this unit building was relatively secluded, so it was unlikely that anyone saw the scene of Chairman Yan being princess-carried by his husband.

On the 32nd floor, the glass that the small light ball flew into earlier had a large hole, indicating that the loud noise they heard was not an illusion.

While people in the residential area hadn’t gathered yet, Yan Ling took off his suit jacket, pulled Qiu Rong to a blind spot in the corner of the wall.

Qiu Rong: “?”

Yan Ling threw the suit jacket to him and instructed, “Hold on to me tightly.”

Qiu Rong: “???”

In the next moment, Qiu Rong was caught off guard as his wife princess-carried him, and with a swish, they disappeared in a black flash.

Qiu Rong’s heart skipped a beat, and instinctively, he held onto Yan Ling’s neck. In the blink of an eye, he was carried to the edge of the 32nd-floor window.

The shattered window was floor-to-ceiling glass, and most of the glass had fallen off. Yan Ling flew directly into the room, swiftly retracting his wings. He let Qiu Rong down and then put on his suit jacket.

Qiu Rong: “…”

Everything happened too quickly.

He hadn’t even recovered from the fact that he was princess-carried by his wife.

Even more bewildered than Qiu Rong were the people inside the room.

It was a spacious living room, so spacious that it connected with the adjacent bedroom, quite literally.

A large hole appeared in the wall between the living room and the bedroom, where a high-definition LCD TV lay peacefully on the bed mixed with reinforced steel and cement. Table lamps, game consoles, flower pots, robotic vacuums… various random things were scattered all over the floor in a haphazard manner.

In short, the room was a mess.

The small light ball cowered within a fallen lampshade, its gloss appearing considerably dimmer. It popped its head out, trembled, and flew back to Yan Ling’s side, landing in Yan Ling’s palm. Then it shrank smaller and smaller until it disappeared completely.

Yan Ling furrowed his brows, and Qiu Rong asked with his eyes. Yan Ling gently shook his head in response.

Qiu Rong also tried for himself but didn’t sense anything unusual.

The person standing in the middle of the living room interrupted their conversation, saying, “Are you all together?”

The merman with white hair and a white tail looked coldly at Qiu Rong and Yan Ling. The pupils in his fluorescent green eyes turned into a straight line, ready to attack at any moment.

“Roy Kate, the Violation Handling Department, Vampire Clan,” Yan Ling put his hand down and took the lead in stating his identity. He didn’t mention demons but instead asked, “How did a merman end up here?”

The icy merman’s expression momentarily showed panic upon hearing the Violation Handling Department.

He moved back a little, looking guilty, but still maintained a strong tone, saying, “Why can’t I be here?”

“Mermaids don’t live in the city,” Yan Ling took a step forward. “What happened here?”

The little merman retreated further, glancing to the side and being cautious. “Someone attacked me, and I was just retaliating.”

The young and ferocious little merman, though lacking in cunning, cautiously said as Yan Ling approached step by step, “That person suddenly appeared in my… my home and tried to hypnotize me. You’re chasing after him, right? I threw him out; he’s not here anymore.”

Yan Ling suddenly stopped and pointed to the shattered glass scattered by the window, “Did you retrieve the fallen glass?”

The little merman followed his gaze and nodded, “Yes, I was afraid it would hit someone.”

Taking advantage of the moment the little merman turned away, Qiu Rong grabbed him and bypassed the door that the little merman frequently paid attention to.

“You!” The little merman realized what was happening and immediately turned to pounce on Qiu Rong.

However, his actions changed direction upon seeing the person inside the room. The little merman hurriedly moved towards a room that seemed like a game room, saying anxiously, “How did you get injured!”

Inside the room was not Uriel but a man in a suit, standing at the doorway, seemingly eavesdropping on their conversation.

The man covered his forehead, his hands stained with blood. The little merman glared angrily at Qiu Rong.

Qiu Rong raised his hands and took two steps back.

The man held the little merman’s hand, whose nails had lengthened in an attempt to attack Qiu Rong, and said, “It wasn’t him who opened the door and bumped into me. I accidentally hit something in front; it’s nothing.”

“How can it be nothing when you’re bleeding so much!” The little merman put down his claws and pressed against the man, his iridescent white fishtail swaying restlessly.

Yan Ling also followed inside. At first, he was drawn to the room filled with figurines and neatly arranged game cartridges. Then, he saw the bleeding man and exclaimed in surprise, “Chairman Zong?”

The man looked up, his reaction somewhat sluggish. After a long pause, he replied, “Chairman Yan.”

The man seemed like he wanted to say something, but instead, he opened his mouth, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

The little merman held him tightly and shouted, “Zong Yuming!”

The personnel from the Violation Handling Department arrived neither early nor late. Yan Ling handed over the aftermath to them, and together with Qiu Rong, they took Zong Zong to the hospital.

The little merman “panted” and dug out an electric wheelchair from the ruins of the bedroom. His beautiful white fishtail transformed into a pair of long, straight legs.

He climbed onto the slightly deformed wheelchair and looked at Qiu Rong and Yan Ling with eager eyes.

Qiu Rong, Yan Ling: “…”

They took the little merman with them as well.

Several different hats hung on the hooks at the entrance of the apartment. The little merman took a black fisherman hat to cover his half-length white hair, which was dazzling.

The man who fainted, Zong Yuming, was the CEO of a game company. This game company had collaborated with New Moon Media before, so the two CEOs knew each other.

As for the white-haired little merman, he indeed belonged to the mermaid clan and was a fish that Qiu Rong knew—Shu Ya, who was mentioned by the mermaid clan’s leader as having strong abilities and recently ran away from home.

According to Shu Ya, he had been living at Zong Yuming’s house during his time away from the ocean.

“Do you know about the games made by the mermaid clan?” Shu Ya continued when the two nodded. “I’m one of the mermaids involved in game recording, and I met Zong Yuming in the game.”

The mermaid clan developed interactive romance games where, with enough in-game currency, you could interact one-on-one with real mermaids.

Of course, the external promotion claimed it was AI technology.

Shu Ya said that Zong Yuming was a player of “Mystery of the Deep Sea” and would spend a lot of money every day to interact with him. One day, Zong Yuming suddenly bought everything in the game store and gave it all to Shu Ya. He also stocked up on an endless supply of small fish snacks (also in-game items) for Shu Ya. After that, he never logged into the game again.

“I was worried that something happened to him because he spent all his savings like that,” Shu Ya held Zong Yuming in his arms, sitting in the backseat of the SUV, and explained to Qiu Rong and Yan Ling. “So, I traced the IP address from the game login to find his house.”

Shu Ya swore he had no ulterior motives; he just wanted to quietly confirm the safety of the player who had been so kind to him online and then leave quietly.

That’s why he specifically chose a time when humans were sleeping.

Unexpectedly, at three o’clock in the middle of the night, Mr. Zong wasn’t sleeping in his bed but was sitting in the bathtub taking a bath.

Shu Ya, who teleported to the bathroom, was caught red-handed.

Under the regulations for the control of supernatural abilities, supernatural beings cannot let ordinary people discover anything related to the supernatural realm.

“…So, it’s because of you?” Qiu Rong asked with a complicated expression.

“I didn’t violate any regulations,” Shu Ya pouted. “At least not until today.”

The character from the game suddenly appeared before their eyes, greatly shocking Zong Yuming.

“He thought I was a game character who came out of the game,” Shu Ya explained.

Qiu Rong: “…”

So, this is the CEO’s power of imagination when it comes to 2D characters.

The power of imagination in the world of 2D shouldn’t be underestimated. Without Shu Ya having to explain much, Zong Yuming himself arranged a plausible explanation for Shu Ya’s appearance. He readily accepted Shu Ya’s presence and happily started taking care of the little mermaid in his own bathtub.

The fake paper-cutout Shu Ya and the truly chuunibyou Zong Yuming got along exceptionally well… until today when a winged nuisance disrupted their peaceful life.

“I was sleeping, and that person suddenly appeared in my dream out of nowhere, saying that he would fulfill my wishes.” The little mermaid, skilled in illusions, immediately sensed that something was wrong.

So, he simply and forcefully confronted the strange person who kept urging him to make a wish and gave him a beating.

Shu Ya: “I already drove him away. If it weren’t for you suddenly showing up and asking so many questions, Zong Yuming would never believe that supernatural beings really exist!”

Qiu Rong couldn’t immediately decide which was more unbelievable, the paper-cutout person traveling through dimensions or the existence of real supernatural beings in the world.

Qiu Rong used his healing ability to stop the bleeding on Zong Yuming’s forehead. In order to prevent Zong Yuming from knowing more about supernatural matters, Qiu Rong didn’t directly heal the wound completely.

Fortunately, after a check-up at the hospital, it was determined that the wound on Zong Yuming’s forehead wasn’t serious enough to require stitches. However, the possibility of a concussion couldn’t be ruled out. The X-ray images showed no apparent issues, but the exact condition would have to be confirmed once Zong Yuming woke up.

Qiu Rong went to handle Zong Yuming’s admission to the hospital and when he returned to the ward, he saw Shu Ya holding Yan Ling’s hand.

“Do we really have to erase his memories?” Shu Ya, sitting in the wheelchair, looked pale.

“It’s a regulation,” Yan Ling calmly replied.

According to the central regulations, to protect the peace between the two realms, anyone who comes into contact with supernatural-related matters will have their memories modified.

That’s why Shu Ya panicked when he heard Yan Ling introduce himself as being from the Violation Handling Department.

Shu Ya held Yan Ling’s other hand as well. “Is there no other way? Must it be like this?”

Yan Ling raised an eyebrow. “Are you still willing to be kept as a game character in his house?”

Shu Ya: “Well, it’s not entirely impossible.”

Qiu Rong: “…”

Qiu Rong stepped forward and pulled back his own spouse’s hand, asking, “Do you know if there have been any demons in City A recently?”

Shu Ya shook his head in confusion and blinked. “You mean the guy I sent flying with a flick of my tail today?”

That statement made Uriel sound like a weakling. Qiu Rong nodded. “Yes, him.”

“People who are targeted by demons usually have some kind of special trait,” Qiu Rong observed the little mermaid, who didn’t seem to have any connection to the “Seven Deadly Sins.” “Do you have any wishes?”

“No,” Shu Ya decisively shook his head.

Qiu Rong rephrased the question. “What were you doing before the demon approached you? Or have there been any special events recently? How have you been feeling?”

Shu Ya furrowed his brows and recalled. The more he thought, the deeper his frown became. He pouted and said, “I’m angry.”

The little mermaid complained, “Someone came to the house, and I can turn into legs, but Zong Yuming shoved me into the closet and made me hide!”

Compared to anger, Shu Ya’s expression seemed more like sadness. Qiu Rong felt that it hadn’t reached the level of “rage.”

Shu Ya said again, “He has so many wives! And he goes on blind dates every day!”

Qiu Rong and Yan Ling: “…”

What kind of scumbag is this?

As Shu Ya continued speaking, he became disheartened. “You’re right, he can’t support me for a lifetime. I’m just a ‘game character.’ He has other characters he likes more, and he calls them his wives. And in the future, he’ll get married, have a real wife, and even children. He can’t keep me hidden in a closet.”

Emotions are 2D wives.

Qiu Rong mouthed to Yan Ling, “It’s probably ‘jealousy.'”

There must be a reason why the demon targeted Shu Ya. Based on Shu Ya’s description, Qiu Rong thought it was more likely that the emotion of “jealousy” had attracted Uriel.

Time was running out. Yan Ling glanced at his phone and said, “Someone from the Violation Handling Department will come later to modify Mr. Zong’s memories. The explanation provided by Mr. Zong’s family is that there was a small explosion due to a gas leak. The central authority will compensate for the damages caused, so there’s no need to worry too much. However, regarding you…”

Yan Ling’s words suddenly stopped, and shortly after, the door to the ward was pushed open.

An elegantly dressed woman hurriedly entered, followed by a distinguished middle-aged man.

“You’re the ones who brought Yuming to the hospital, right? Thank you so much,” the woman politely thanked the three of them and then approached the bed, holding Zong Yuming’s hand. Seeing that he was still unconscious, she anxiously looked at the three people present.

Yan Ling explained, “The doctor said there’s nothing to worry about. He’ll wake up soon.”

Only then did the woman breathe a sigh of relief. She sat on the chair next to the bed and patted her chest, saying, “This child really scared me.”

The two people who arrived were Zong Yuming’s parents. They happened to have something to discuss with their son today and went to his apartment. They didn’t expect to find his home with two large holes and learn that he had been taken to the hospital due to a gas explosion.

Mrs. Zong quickly pulled her husband to the hospital.

Now that the parents had arrived, it was inconvenient for Yan Ling and the others to continue staying in the ward. They got up and bid farewell.

Mrs. Zong saw Shu Ya sitting in the wheelchair and had a momentary look of surprise, but she quickly covered it up. She held Shu Ya’s hand and gratefully patted it, saying, “Good child, thank you so much.”

Shu Ya pursed his lips and handed the medical report on his lap to Mrs. Zong. He took a deep look at Zong Yuming lying in the hospital bed and left the ward with Qiu Rong and Yan Ling.

Outside the ward, a member of the Violation Handling Department was standing. When Yan Ling came out, the person extended their hand and said, “Prince Kate, I’m here to accompany Mr. Zong’s parents. I apologize for not informing you earlier as we were in a hurry. Leave it to me from here. I’ll find an opportunity to complete the memory modification before Mr. Zong wakes up.”

Yan Ling shook hands with the person and then turned to Shu Ya, continuing the conversation they left unfinished in the ward. “You’ll have to visit the Violation Handling Department. The matter of your supernatural ability being exposed wasn’t voluntary, but you violated the rules by using your ability to enter a regular person’s residence. The central authority will impose a fine.”

Shu Ya: “…”

There was a problem with Shu Ya’s electric wheelchair. It was unresponsive and moved in a jerky manner. Qiu Rong took the initiative and said, “Let us accompany you there.”

Shu Ya nodded with a low mood.

While getting off the elevator, Qiu Rong noticed a significant wound on Shu Ya’s leg.

Shu Ya didn’t even feel it herself. “Maybe I got injured when I flicked away that stupid bird with my tail.”

Yes, the stupid bird referred to Uriel, who had wings.

Shu Ya blamed that stupid bird for getting him discovered, and now Zong Yuming was going to have his memories erased.

The three of them found a secluded spot. Qiu Rong squatted down and used his healing ability to close Shu Ya’s wound.

As Shu Ya watched his wound gradually disappear, he suddenly looked up. “I want to go back.”

The wound wasn’t deep, so Qiu Rong quickly finished treating it and stood up. “Why do you want to go back?”

Shu Ya maneuvered his wheelchair back two steps and said firmly, “I don’t want him to forget me.”

Author’s Note:

(The scene of the dog carrying the cat for two miles is exaggerated and not meant to be taken literally!)

(Shu Ya and the content related to the merfolk game can be found in Chapter 34~)