Translator:- Max
Editor:- ChibiSqueaks
“Hey, I’m warning you, let me get out of here!”
I struggled desperately in his embrace, scratching and biting at his arms, but his body was as solid as iron. I felt his rigid chest pressing against my back, and that excited ‘thing’ kept hitting my tailbone with each swing of his fishtail, making my scalp tingle. The surrounding stone forest grew larger and denser, forming structures overhead that resembled twisted connections of old trees, as if luminous and unidentified objects covered the stone walls like veins. Jellyfish and shrimp of all sizes floated and swam in the air like birds, their bodies seemingly mirrored, reflecting the starry sky and clouds, creating moving galaxies. As the mermaid leader took me deeper into this strange world, I felt more and more like I was entering another universe. I gazed at this strange world, momentarily forgetting to struggle as I unconsciously recalled the situation just moments ago.
All the words I heard seemed to contain the same meaning—— the mermaid leader knew me fifty years ago, and there was some kind of relationship between us—— descendant and spouse? No, no, no, what a messy relationship! And that silver-tailed merman who looks like my grandfather, what does his strange words mean? He said I would be reborn fifty years later, so does that mean the current me is a reincarnation of myself after death in the past? This was so strange and terrifying, it’s like something that only happens in myths!
I was in a state of panic and confusion, desperately trying to piece together every word in my mind, wishing I could break down each sentence into tiny particles, one by one, using a magnifying glass to understand their connections and consequences. At this moment, they were more difficult for me to accept and comprehend than advanced physics.
Just as I was at a loss for an explanation, we had already passed through the stone forest and entered a larger cave. In front of us was a massive waterfall, with water rushing down at high speed, forming a glowing white curtain right before our eyes. The splashing water droplets created a translucent mist in mid-air. If it weren’t for the mermaid leader holding me tightly, I would have doubted whether I had arrived in this legendary paradise. Looking against the water flow, I saw the waterfall cascading down from a crevice in the ceiling above, and I could even spot various fish of different sizes being swept down with the water, leading me to speculate that we were currently beneath the ocean surface.
How incredible this was!
I marvelled silently at the sight. The mermaid leader had brought me closer to the bottom of the waterfall, and as the rushing water was about to engulf us, I instinctively covered my head. To my surprise, he leaped from the water and shot into the air. I couldn’t fathom how he could leap to such an astonishing height, almost as if he were aiming for the crevice in the cave’s ceiling, but then he descended again. I couldn’t help but scream in shock, but the moment through the waterfall was fleeting. Before I could fully grasp what had happened, I found myself back in the water again.
After I wiped off the water droplets blocking my vision from my face, I was immediately taken aback by the sight in front of me.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
——In the mist behind the waterfall, a blue halo-like sphere floated on the water surface, resembling a glass dome and a faintly discernible figure loomed inside.
“Xb, ub jcv ajxf j ibbx ja sbeg obgwfg rfio.”
The mermaid leader whispered softly in my ear. Surrounded by him, I slowly approached the edge of the blue halo. My former self? I couldn’t believe it and held my breath. As if drawn by an invisible force, I instinctively reached out and pressed my head against the thin, translucent layer, peering inside. In an instant, it felt as if my brain had been struck by a heavy hammer. I was as dumb as a wooden chicken, unable to comprehend what I was seeing.
Pcrlvf atf iluta megajlc, atfgf kjr lcvffv j qfgrbc islcu atfgf ktb ybgf jc fzagfwfis raglxlcu gfrfwyijcmf ab wf, bg wbgf qgfmlrfis, j “tjio-wfgwjc”. Lf ijs atfgf delfais klat tlr fsfr mibrfv, jqqfjglcu bivfg atjc wf, mifjgis jc jveia. P cbalmfv atja tlr “olrtajli” kjr rlinfg-ugfs, wemt ilxf atf wfgwjc ktb gfrfwyifv ws ugjcvojatfg, yea yfcfjat atf olrt rmjifr, P mbeiv mifjgis rff atf beailcf bo tlr ifur. Pa kjr jr lo tf tjvc’a oeiis agjcrobgwfv lcab j wfgwjc jcv tjv qjrrfv jkjs, qgfrfcalcu j obgw yfakffc tewjc jcv wfgwjc.
Is this really me? My gaze was fixated on this person, and my hand involuntarily reached out through the halo, reaching towards the “me” inside. However, my fingers encountered emptiness, and the figure of “me” flickered for a few moments, as if it were just a projection from a projector, only in three-dimensional form.
“That is the residual image of your body left in my memories, Desharow. It doesn’t truly exist.”
“What? Then how can I see?”
“When you died back then, I stored your life core within my body. What you are seeing is merely your past image reflected from my memories, or rather, your future appearance.”
“You mean I am currently touching your memories? Mermaid memories can actually transform into visible images? This is so miraculous!”
My gaze lingered on the “me”, unable to look away, and instinctively, I swam into the blue light sphere.
Suddenly, the image floated like a wisp of smoke, dispersing within the light sphere, transforming into countless tiny specks of dust, only to gather back together, enveloping me within them. It felt as if it was merging into me.
“Desharow…”
The mermaid leader’s call came from outside the light sphere, sounding somewhat ethereal. I lifted my head and looked at him. Through the translucent thin layer of light, his deep and mysterious eyes were fixed on me. His webbed claw was outside the light sphere, as if a glass wall separated us. This scene felt incredibly familiar, and though I couldn’t pinpoint where I had seen it before, my body reacted faster than my brain. I raised my hand, spread my five fingers, and in the blue halo, our palms met, our noses touching, our breaths intertwining.
“Agares?”
I chanted those syllables in a trance, even savouring the bittersweet taste as if I were carefully appreciating it. An indescribable and strange feeling surged within me. The fragments that had fleetingly passed through my mind a moment ago gradually assembled into a complete picture, rushing into my memories like a waterfall merging into the ocean. Suddenly, all around me, numerous voices began to echo, recounting moments of joy and sorrow that seemed familiar, yet they were hazy and indistinct, difficult to grasp clearly.
My body seemed to be speeding through a tunnel, with a rushing wind brushing against me, leaving behind sensations of either pleasure or pain all around me. It was as if in this brief moment, I had traversed decades of time. Gradually, my heart grew heavy, and an inexplicable surge of emotions filled my chest, intensifying and becoming clearer. It felt as if the memories that merged into the ocean’s waterfall were stirring up waves deep within my heart, causing my heart to thump wildly. My brain felt like it was on fire, and I became dizzy. Everything around me became blurry.
“Are these all experiences I once went through? Agares…” I murmured dreamily, my body slumping forward, and he embraced me, holding me close.
“Yes, Desharow… Those are experiences you went through in another time and space, your future,” Agares’ lips pressed against my neck, his breath causing a warm sensation in my ears. “You met me in that time and died in this one. That’s why I’ve been waiting for you for fifty years, waiting for you to be reborn at the same point, waiting for you to come back to me. I could have waited until the end of the century—by then, the two timelines would naturally converge, and you would repeat the process of meeting me. But I couldn’t wait; I just wanted to appear in your life earlier, to watch you grow up by my side…”
He spoke softly, the affection revealed in his tone was as intoxicating as fine fermented wine.
Subconsciously, I tilted my head back and took a whiff of the smell emanating from his hair. Ah, it was simply delightful. I wrapped my arms around his neck, swallowed nervously, feeling a sense of embarrassment welling up inside me. However, a strong wave of drowsiness also engulfed my mind, and in a hazy state, I closed my eyes.
“Desharow?” I heard Agares calling my name tenderly, but I didn’t pay attention to him. I buried my head against his shoulder and smacked my lips.
As I was about to fall into a deep slumber, feeling dizzy and sleepy, I suddenly sensed something moist moving along my back, from the nape of my neck down to my tailbone, making my whole body feel unbearably warm. All of a sudden, I felt a sharp pain in my buttocks, as if a thick and slippery eel was wriggling there.
“Take it out…” I called out in pain, instinctively covering my buttocks and curling my legs up. However, that thing persistently tried to push inside. I opened my eyes, feeling dazed and saw Agares looking at me with an apologetic expression. His breathing was heavy, making a wheezing sound that reminded me of a bellows. Annoyed, I covered his mouth and shifted to a more comfortable position, leaning against him. My mind was a mess, and my eyelids felt heavy once again.
I don’t know how long I had been asleep, when a strangely familiar voice faintly drilled into my ears.
“Leave him… Desharow, come to my side…”
“Leave him…”
Even in my dazed state, I could recognize that the person speaking seemed like my grandfather. I opened my eyes and looked around, finding myself lying on a rock behind the waterfall. The voice seemed to come from the other side of the waterfall. I sat up and touched something slippery, which startled me. I discovered that Agares was lying beside me, eyes closed as if he were asleep.
Despite knowing that this might be an excellent opportunity to escape, my gaze seemed to be glued to him, unable to look away. Certain images that had settled in my mind resurfaced, now clearer than before.
“Peng peng… peng peng…”
The sound of my heart beating wildly in my chest was particularly loud, and even my eardrums seemed to be vibrating with it.
I realised that the desire to be close to him was much stronger than my desire to leave this place. My heart was filled with an impulse I had never had since childhood, as if my soul had escaped from my body, tempting me to do things I had never even thought of, things that were…
Secretive and shameful behaviour, like secretly masturbating in the toilet, but I want to do something more daring than that now. I was even a little intimidated by my own thoughts, but I knew I couldn’t stop myself from doing it.
TBC
Hi guys, I wanted to just tell you that my kofi account is finally working yayy. And now you can support me or request bonus chapters.
Yey! First 🥇
Also what’s going on? Why so complicated?
Hi if you don’t understand anything, you can tell me and I’ll try my best to explain it to you and yeah it’s complicated but it’ll probably get more complicated in future like superrrr complicated so might wanna re-read or read the chapter carefully.
Ok thanks 🙏
I just signed up so i could leave a message. Thank you so much for translating this beautiful gem of a story. Each time this story gets an update it brightens my day 🙂
I must admit the story gets a bit tricky with the timelines, but after absorbing each chapter you get the general idea.
I wonder about the real identity of the ‘grandpa’. Something tells me its desharow himself, but a little different somehow.
Thanks for the amazing chapter like always ❤️
Thank you for posting! You are a great translator!
Im sorryy but i havent heard “peng peng” as a heartbeat whahahah like, badump or thud, but not peng
Hahaha actually peng peng in English does mean badump or thud but I like to keep these Chinese sounds(I know sometimes they can be weird) but it’s to give reader full experience like wuwuwu or yingying for crying yk. But I totally understand you, it’s funny, half the reason why I don’t change them as these sounds funny yk. Hope you have a fun time reading!!
Lmao truee
EI cried
Actually are you allowed to join the war being only 14? Also did Desha get his 2x year old body back or is he still 14?
And it doesnt make sense when Agares said the two timeline would naturally converge, cuz the things that have happened are completely different. Like there’s WW3 in this timeline, and Desha had joined as a soldier, so he wouldn’t have been a biologist/scientist at all??