He and It Chapter 25: The King’s Pearl (25)

Chapter 25: The King’s Pearl (25)

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: KarateChopMonkey

Only after the clamor subsided, did someone notice Jiang Mian’s presence. The executive officer asked excitedly, “Is this the adopted son of Dr. Jiang, the mermaid’s handler?”

Fabian stiffened and laughed, “Yes! We were able to pacify… control the experimental subject, Mr. Jiang took the most credit!”

The executive officer smiled with satisfaction, he didn’t care about the unnatural pause in Fabian’s words, and walked in front of Jiang Mian. Above him, Raperth’s lid membrane silently turned a gap, a ray of merciless golden aura, coldly looking down on his every move.

The executive officer patted Jiang Mian’s shoulder, completely unaware of the stinging killing machine overhead, and said with satisfaction, “What’s that saying, son of a tiger? You’ve done well!”

Jiang Mian reluctantly pulled the corner of his mouth, and whispered, “You’re too kind.”

“Don’t stand here making pleasantries!” Before the executive officer could remove his hand from Jiang Mian’s shoulder, the many scholars of the institute had already enthusiastically rushed up, almost semi-forcibly embracing him away from Jiang Mian, and some even took advantage of the chaos to step on him several times, “Come, come, it’s not easy to come all the way here, are you hungry? Quick, serve!”

The executive officer was dumbfounded, the protective clothing could certainly withstand a lot of damage, but the weight of the human body was real, several feet stepped on him, but his face must maintain a polite smile.

Jiang Mian, “…”

At the command, the waiters came in through the other side of the door with their sterling silver plates.

At the command, the waiters carried sterling silver plates, and entered through the other side of the door.

On the long marble table, dozens of pure white plates were placed one by one, with tender meat and crystal red sauce poured over them, more like some kind of artwork than food.

As the host, Fabian warmly invited Jiang Mian to a side table, right next to the executive’s hand.

Given Jiang Mian’s accomplishments, it was a great honor to be seated at the end of the table, but the executive was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt because of Fabian’s previous praise.

Jiang Mian didn’t say a word, examining the table in front of him. The appetizers were served, the soups were served, the side dishes were served along with the main course… Mist flowed, snow-colored plates filled with various shades of bright red, bright red, scarlet, and the hall indifferently bright pale strong light, for all the five senses were marked with a deep shadow, there is a kind of morbid feeling like being in a morgue.

——This is a meal decorated with Immortal Water.

Jiang Mian gripped his fork and looked motionlessly at the executives and seniors at the headquarters, watching them open their shields and eat the strange food with joy and unawareness. Across from them, the senior executives of the Institute held their knives and forks in unison, like a group of wooden dummies with blurred faces and identical smiles at the corners of their mouths.

“How does it taste?” Fabian asked.

“Is it good?” A scholar spoke up.

“Do you need anything more?” Another scholar spoke eagerly.

“No, I think it’s very good.” The executive officer picked up the white towel aside and elegantly wiped the corner of his mouth. The progress of the Immortal Water was remarkable, behind him was the cage holding the mermaid heir, sitting in the most unfathomable underground institute in the world — how many people could have such a dining experience? He was so proud of himself, and felt so completely smug.

The executive officer smiled, “So, next…”

He frowned slightly, cleared his throat uncomfortably, and resumed, “Well, then, the next…”

The man’s tongue swirled helplessly in his mouth, his brow furrowing tighter and tighter as he tried several syllables but couldn’t pronounce them. He slapped the table hard and his face suddenly changed dramatically.

The security officer behind him drew his weapon and shouted, “Shoot!”

The scholars around Jiang Mian instantly rose up and pounced on him, covering the rest of his body with crossfire.

The guards at the headquarters wouldn’t allow any of them to slip through the net, and before they could aim at Jiang Mian on the ground, a furious roar came from behind them—

The mermaid, who should have been unconscious and firmly caged, now opened his eyes in anger and roared out of the observation room on the roaring water!

A dozen guards immediately turned their guns, however, they only saw the mermaid’s open bloodied mouth, hideous as the passage of hell.

——This was the last scene that was reflected on their retinas before they fell.

Jiang Mian let out a breath, stood up from the ground and complained, “I used this method to avoid trouble, but in the end, I still had to make a big fuss…”

The guards were paralyzed, and Jiang Mian looked at them and asked Raperth, “Are any of these people missing?”

Raperth glanced sternly at the fallen guards, his golden eyes glanced at the Sigma patriarchs who were clutching their throats, completely unable to speak, and then turned to Jiang Mian with eyes as soft as spring water, he shook his head, “Anyone left out? No, no one in the net? Neither.”

“So all of them drank the Immortal Water voluntarily, and none of them are innocent?” Jiang Mian asked.

Raperth nodded again, “No.”

The Enforcer writhed and struggled on the smooth floor in a writhing form, younger than any of the other genin who had been struck, and thus able to resist for a moment or two as he was eaten away by the mermaid’s blood.

He stared at Jiang Mian, his eyes mixed with shock and anger, his heart full of indignant cursing sludge clogged in his throat, he just couldn’t spit out.

Jiang Mian took a deep breath, “Since this is the case…”

Behind him, Fabian fell in a pool of swept blood, his silver protective suit creased and disheveled, filled with sparkling, shattered bright red.

His fingers twitched weakly.

“…It’s time to pay the debt they owe.”

A bloody dinner knife was suddenly placed across Jiang Mian’s neck.

“You’re right…” Fabian’s voice was hoarse, comparable to that of a severe ghost, “It’s time to pay back!”

Jiang Mian sucked in a breath of surprise, standing opposite him Raperth, golden eyes also flashed with amazement.

“Don’t try to control me with mermaid blood!” Fabian hissed harshly, “Watch out for me stabbing you in the soft little neck!”

Jiang Mian quickly closed his lips, and in a flash of thought, he raised his bright eyes, stopping Raperth’s intended killing motion.

The male mermaid paused, he read that look.

From his look to his body language, Jiang Mian made one thing clear: the land people behind me are the prey of my decision, and in my hunting season, no mate is allowed to interfere.

Raperth’s eyes widened.

In his heart, Jiang Mian was small, cute, smart, the perfect pearl, and Raperth collected his every message like a hoard of jewels, but the mermaid had never seen this side of Jiang Mian, had seen his brow cold, sworn sovereignty for his prey… 

Raperth’s heart was about to swell with a mixture of pride and exhilaration, and he flicked his tail with fascination, his fins beating the surface of the water.

Jiang Mian looked at him helplessly, wondering why he was getting excited again.

“How did you regain consciousness?” Jiang Mian asked, for the second time now, as Fabian hid behind him in an attempt to ward off the mermaid’s attack, only this time, his tone was distinctly calm, as if he wasn’t afraid of the consequences of the kidnappers tearing him apart.

“Mermaid blood… It’s not perfect,” Fabian’s mouth was full of blood and there were gunshot wounds in his abdomen from the set fire, “It’s not like I can’t get rid of it and get rid of that monster’s torment purely by my will!”

Jiang Mian’s brow furrowed slightly as he locked eyes with Raperth.

Fabian was the most arrogant and cocky person he had ever met in his life, and this arrogance was reflected in his attitude towards other species. For him, there was nothing that humans could not overcome, and to show even a hint of concession to other creatures was a crime of utmost shame, worth a lifetime to wash away. But at this moment, hearing the word “monster” come out of his mouth, Jiang Mian could only analyze the fear, the deep-rooted fear.

What exactly did you do to him?

To his surprise, Raperth averted his eyes sheepishly, not daring to meet his gaze.

At this moment, Jiang Mian’s brow jumped slightly, and he did think of something.

“I guess, you didn’t rely purely on your own will to break free from the control of mermaid blood.” Gazing at Raperth, Jiang Mian said slowly, “Of course, if you would like to think so, there’s nothing wrong with that.”

Fabian’s willpower was certainly strong, but Raperth’s strength was already at the limit of what he couldn’t catch up with even in his lifetime. In this extremely descending blow, he should need a little opportunity, a loophole, like a lever to pry the boulder, the key to open the lock cylinder, in order to escape Raperth’s grasp.

——Fabian had tasted his blood.

Thinking about it, Jiang Mian suddenly understood that as the mermaid’s soul mate, his own blood had played a crucial role in helping him escape.

Jiang Mian asked, “So, what exactly are you trying to say?”

“All you love is a beast! A monster!” The German, regardless, continued to yell in agitation, “Do you know what he did to me… He, who ate me! Made me watch myself being eaten alive!”

Jiang Mian looked fiercely at Raperth, and the mermaid looked eager to kill the tell-tale land dweller, but due to Jiang Mian’s demands, he could only clump in place, occasionally glancing sheepishly at his mate.

“Creak, crack, munch, rustle… I can hear it, I can hear it! I can hear the sound of being gnawed on a little bit, right inside me, while I was still alive, and it all just happened!” The man was frothing and blood was coming up from his throat, making his wails accompanied by a boiling water gurgling sound, but he was oblivious to it, just focused on venting, “My mind was clear, my brain was working, but I couldn’t move, I couldn’t make a sound… I was being eaten alive! It hurt so much… It hurt so much!”

The mermaid bared his fangs and roared low at the coward who was hiding behind Jiang Mian, whose chest was like a thunderbolt, while Jiang Mian stood motionless.

At this moment, he finally understood the meaning of that bee.

——The Jiji wasp was used to capturing other insects as nourishment for its offspring’s young, but never killed its prey completely, only stabbed out wounds and then laid its eggs in the wounds of live prey, and its larvae hatched to enjoy the freshest food.

Nearly unlimited cellular activity, the cell’s powerful ability to proliferate in vitro… Raperth manipulated his blood like water, allowing the mermaid cells that multiplied to their heart’s content to devour the flesh and blood of the body and then completely replace it.

This wasn’t a hallucinogenic ability at all, or if it was, it was a very small part of the effect. The real effect of mermaid blood was to completely empty the stomach of the person who took it, so that the other party was reduced to a puppet-like thing, even if they still retained their wits, they couldn’t help themselves, listening to people through the nose.

The air was silent for a long time, except for Fabian’s exhausted panting, like a broken bellows, whistling and stirring.

Raperth’s gaze implied awe, he was afraid of Jiang Mian’s gaze, afraid of his condemning scowl, he wouldn’t forget that Pearl was raised by humans, his ideas and thoughts, were infinitely closer to the human—

“This is all the retribution you deserve.” Jiang Mian lowered his eyes and said flatly, “You deserved it.”

The male mermaid lifted his head at once, his eyes instantly lit up.