What was pain, really? Lansi still had five fingernails left. He could keep digging.
With that thought, he felt like a legend. Tough and unbreakable.
So what if he had turned into a mermaid? So what if he was being kept as a pet by an octopus? So what if he had split a nail?
None of it was a real problem.
But no matter how strong the mind, the body does not always follow.
Lansi's webbed claws were inflamed.
Because of the pain, he lost his appetite. He moved less and less. His energy slowly faded.
One day, when the tentacles came to feed him again, they noticed something unusual. The little fish who usually squirmed and thrashed had not moved at all. And the fresh fish they had left for him had disappeared.
The tentacles froze.
Had he escaped?
They darted around the coral structure in a panic, searching every corner. Then one of them remembered. Lansi had been digging his own escape route.
They rushed to the pile of discarded limbs and pushed them aside. As they cleared the entrance, they saw something pale drifting from the narrow hole.
A soft, white tail fin, swaying with the current.
If a tentacle could sigh, this one would have.
It reached forward and brushed the tail fin gently. Normally, Lansi would have jumped or swatted it away. This time, there was no response.
The fin floated listlessly, lifeless in the water.
The tentacle feared the worst.
After a short pause, it split off a few smaller feelers and slid them into the hole. When it found Lansi's body, it carefully pulled him out.
Lansi was sick.
That was the only possible explanation.
The little white mermaid had always been full of life, always poking around where he should not, always trying to do something—even if it hurt. His stubbornness had a kind of charm, a vitality the tentacle had not seen in a long time.
Now that light was dimming.
Lansi lay on the pale seabed, a faint pink flush spreading over his skin. Where his scales had once gleamed with a flawless white, several now had fallen away from his waist, revealing the tender flesh beneath.
The tentacle touched his back. Still no response.
It examined him more closely and finally found the source of the illness—his split nail.
Lansi had kept digging with an open wound, ignoring the pain, pushing through for the sake of freedom.
Now, the nail was bloody, raw and inflamed. He had refused to stop. He had refused to give in.
And now, his body had reached its limit.
Maybe it was instinct, or maybe it was the last flicker of awareness, but before passing out, Lansi had hidden himself in a narrow tunnel, curled up in the dark.
The tentacle realized again just how small and fragile this creature was.
"…Ai—ya—"
Lansi muttered faintly in his sleep. The tentacle drifted closer and brushed his cheek.
The cold, sticky touch made Lansi frown, even in his unconscious state.
After a pause, the tentacle finally withdrew and slipped away in silence.
Time passed. How long, Lansi did not know.
He stirred slowly from the haze.
While unconscious, everything had felt wrong. His body was hot and cold at the same time, like he was being roasted over a fire while one side was left in an ice storm.
Somewhere in the middle of the fever, his thoughts had turned to grilled fish. He had imagined himself sizzling on a rack, surrounded by smoke. The imaginary chef was clumsy, unable to balance the heat.
He had even wondered whether they had remembered the cumin.
At some point, he had felt a sudden pain in his hand, but the fever had dulled everything. He only vaguely thought that it must be time to flip the fish again.
Then, something cool touched his fingertips.
The coolness seeped into his bloodstream and spread through his body. The heat lifted just enough for him to breathe.
Lansi exhaled a long sigh of relief.
Grilled fish finished. Time for a cold cola.
Then the world went black again.
When he next opened his eyes, he was nestled inside a bed of soft anemones.
He raised his hand. His swollen fingertip had been wrapped in layers of brown seaweed. A fresh, herbal scent rose from the dressing.
Beneath the wrapping was a thick paste of seaweed mud.
Lansi blinked in surprise. This was surprisingly well done.
Had the tentacles done this?
It was hard to believe. They didn't seem like the type for such careful work.
Even more curious, there was a neat little knot tied around his finger.
Feeling more confused than ever, Lansi quietly slipped out of the anemone.
The first thing he checked were the discarded limbs. They were still in place. A wave of relief washed over him.
Then he looked up—and stopped breathing.
Above the coral bones, something was glowing.
A blue light, flickering and soft.
He looked closer. It was not just light. It was a fish—transparent, almost ghostly, with blue fluorescence glowing from within its body.
Dozens of them drifted in the water, floating like living flames. Surrounded by ring-shaped coral, their bodies shimmered like clouds, curling and bending through the sea. The whole place had become a surreal dream, like a scene from a fantasy.
And in the center of it all stood a figure.
A mermaid.
A black-tailed mermaid.
Lansi's eyes were drawn to the fish's long, black tail. Like his own, the tail fin was gauzy and delicate, but far more dramatic. It floated behind him like a streak of ink unraveling in water.
As the tail swayed, its black scales caught the light and shimmered with a faint violet hue, adding a dangerous kind of beauty.
Lansi's gaze wandered upward. The mermaid's powerful body shifted gently in the current, each motion elegant but brimming with strength. The tail swayed like a bowstring ready to snap.
As soon as Lansi stared at him for too long, the black-tailed mermaid seemed to sense it. He slowly looked down.
Lansi blinked, stunned.
For a moment, he wondered if this was an illusion. He did not know whether to call the other creature his kind or not.
But the black-tailed mermaid clearly found him interesting.
Without a word, he flicked his tail, turned, and descended.
The glowing blue fish followed him downward like fireflies.
The black-tailed mermaid came to a stop in front of Lansi, holding a fish between his fingers. The creature glowed so brightly that Lansi had to squint. Even when the mermaid let go, the fish did not flee. It hovered there obediently.
Lansi stared at the glowing fish in silence.
He tilted his head. He was far more interested in the mermaid.
With the blue light illuminating his features, Lansi was finally able to see his face clearly.
It was indescribable.
Not because it was so beautiful, but because it was so... perfect.
Every feature was symmetrical, refined, measured to golden proportions. There was nothing out of place, and perhaps that was why it did not feel human at all.
After staring for a while, Lansi could not find the right words. Only one ridiculous thought came to mind.
Was this a demon in disguise, sent to lure him into the abyss?
The black-tailed mermaid noticed Lansi's distraction. Mistaking it for hesitation, he reached out again and gently sliced the glowing fish with a flick of his hand.
In an instant, the fish split into several thin fillets.
Lansi felt something cold and soft brush his lips.
He instinctively opened his mouth and bit down.
The taste was cold, slightly fishy, but strangely sweet—like melon and fruit.
Fish fillet?
Surprised by the flavor, Lansi took another piece, then another. He swallowed eagerly, almost like a baby bird waiting to be fed.
The figure in front of him let out a soft laugh.
After feeding him a few more pieces, the mermaid reached out and lightly touched Lansi's cheek.
The cool fingers made Lansi blink. He suddenly remembered that he had not asked anything.
After swallowing the food, he looked up and asked eagerly, "Zi…"
Who are you?
The black-tailed mermaid opened his mouth and spoke slowly.
To Lansi's surprise, the words sounded oddly familiar. Though clearly in another tongue, they somehow echoed in his mind like spoken Mandarin.
"You can call me Winsor."
Lansi's eyes widened.
After a pause, they sparkled with joy.
"My name is Lansi."
He beamed, completely forgetting his earlier confusion. Then, like an excited puppy, he swam in circles around Winsor.
"You're a mermaid too… and I'm a mermaid… Brother, were you also human? We—"
Lansi was so excited, his words spilled out in every direction. He could not contain himself.
That was the nature of people. No matter how dark or dangerous the world became, the moment you found someone like you, it felt like everything might be okay.
Winsor smiled softly as he watched him.
"Looks like your illness is gone," he said.
Lansi stopped spinning. He blinked, then looked down at his bandaged hand.
"You… gave me the medicine?"
Winsor nodded.
Lansi lowered his head, his long white tail fin drifting quietly onto the sand.
"I'm sorry."
Winsor tilted his head, brushing Lansi lightly with his tail.
"What's wrong?"
Lansi looked up, his face flushed with embarrassment.
"I'm sorry. The octopus must have captured you just to make you heal me."
In Lansi's mind, the logic was clear. The octopus had dragged Winsor into this place and forced him to cure a stranger.
Which meant… Lansi had been the reason Winsor was imprisoned.
Winsor stared at him for a moment, his expression blank.
Then he finally blinked.
His little fish was truly full of ideas.