TuxedoTranslations

Chapter 87

“Xiao Hei!” The white-haired boy in front of him broke into a radiant smile. “Long time no see—I’ve missed you so much.”

“Xiao Bai…” Blake’s entire body stiffened.

It was exactly the same—the boy before him, those words, even the soft breath in his voice when he spoke—all perfectly matched what Blake had imagined.

The training sword in his hand clattered to the ground, but he didn’t have the strength to pick it up.

He stared straight ahead without blinking, completely defenseless to everything around him.

Seeing this, the gray-robed man frowned.

Even when the nightmare beast slammed into Blake and sent him flying into a rock wall—where he slid down to the ground—Blake didn’t react at all, his eyes still fixed on the empty air.

The nightmare beast’s attack was mental, not a physical illusion that existed in the real world, so even the gray-robed man couldn’t see what Blake was seeing.

To him, Blake was simply muttering to thin air.

But just from what Blake was saying, he could guess.

“You’re hurt, Xiao Hei!” The white-haired boy ran to him in panic, light gathering in his hands as he cast healing magic. “Are you okay?”

Warmth spread through Blake’s body.

“I…” Looking into those red eyes, he spoke slowly, “I think I can’t move.”

He shouldn’t have said that—shouldn’t have made Xiao Bai worry.

But he was greedy. He wanted the other person’s attention to linger on him just a little longer.

Just like before—when he would deliberately train until he was covered in wounds before going back.

“That’s enough.” The gray-robed man snapped. “Blake, everything you’re seeing is a fabrication of your mind. Have you forgotten? You’ve been hit by the nightmare beast’s mental attack. Pick up your sword, ignore the hallucinations, and kill it.”

Blake didn’t look away.

But even the white-haired boy in front of him said, “That’s right, Xiao Hei. I’m just a hallucination in your mind. You’ve been attacked—defeat the creature first.”

And not only that—another figure appeared in his vision.

“Hey, Xiao Hei, that’s not how I taught you.” A gray-haired man clapped him on the shoulder. “Just like in training—bite it.”

Father…

“Xiao Hei, Mom believes in you.” A woman with long black hair embraced him from behind.

Mother…

Blake’s gaze trembled.

Of course he knew he had been hit—that was why he was seeing Albin, Yak, and his mother, who had died many years ago.

Every movement they made in this illusion matched exactly what he had imagined.

But…

He missed them too much.

Even if it was only an illusion, he wanted to see them alive again.

“No.” He lowered his hand, refusing the gray-robed man.

All he wanted was a dream just as real as this.

And if he killed the nightmare beast, he would lose everything again.

He was afraid of losing them once more.

Looking at the white-haired boy and the gray-haired man before him, he lowered his head and apologized. “I’m sorry… I want you to stay with me a little longer.”

The gray-haired man shook his head. “You really are…”

—

Coral Kingdom, Pearl City.

At the auction.

Barney continued explaining the characteristics of nightmare beasts to Albin.

“Besides their ability to enter dreams, nightmare beasts are also highly skilled in mental attacks. It’s said that anyone who fights one will lose the will to battle.”

The abilities and forms of magical creatures were usually related.

Snake-type creatures tended to have abilities related to devouring or poison; lion-types were associated with combat; leopard-types with speed; bear-types with strength; and nightmare beasts were tied to the mind and dreams.

Listening to both Barney and the auctioneer, Albin couldn’t help but wonder—after losing its partner, what kind of feelings would the remaining nightmare beast have?

The bidding had already begun. Seeing that Albin seemed interested, Barney raised his paddle and said, “I’ll take this nightmare beast as a gift for you—welcome to the Coral Kingdom.”

A nightmare beast wasn’t cheap, but Barney, coming from the Sea Temple, was immensely wealthy.

The Sea God’s domain of faith was second only to the three supreme gods. They controlled the entire ocean—without paying them and obtaining their permission, no ship could set sail.

The Sea God’s temperament was unpredictable, and there were also sea demons that occasionally attacked passing ships. As a result, large vessels often hired one or two priests from the Sea Temple to accompany them.

These costs were considerable, but for many merchants, sea routes—both in time and taxation—were far more economical for long-distance trade.

By contrast, land routes faced bandits and magical creatures, and every major city imposed heavy tariffs and transit taxes. Roads weren’t always well maintained either—lords were often reluctant to spend collected taxes on upkeep.

With maritime trade flourishing, even without counting tourism or other commerce, these factors alone brought the Sea Temple enormous income.

Every pearl embedded in the Sea Temple’s walls was genuine.

“Thank you for your kindness, but this beautiful ocean scenery is already the best gift for me.”

Albin declined Barney’s generous offer, a flicker of surprise crossing Barney’s face.

“It seems this gift doesn’t satisfy you.”

Indeed, it didn’t.

Albin didn’t like that the nightmare beast was being treated as a “gift.” Just as he wouldn’t want a day to come when his own family might be brought to a place like this—passed around as presents.

“Probably because I want to deal with it myself.”

Knowing Albin already had a reputation for being particular, Barney didn’t get upset. Still, when he saw Albin take the bidding paddle and raise it himself, he couldn’t help but feel a bit surprised.

“And how do you plan to deal with it?”

“Burn it.” Listening to the bids rising around the room, Albin raised his paddle a few more times and successfully won the nightmare beast.

Barney was stunned.

Spending such a large sum to buy a nightmare beast—not to collect it, but to burn it?!

But on second thought, fire was a means of purification for the Sun Temple. For the Sun’s chosen to burn the corpse of a magical creature was perfectly normal.

He could only conclude that this Sun’s chosen was even more fastidious and pure than he had imagined—so intolerant of impurity that he couldn’t even bear a specimen of a magical creature. No wonder he had been unable to tolerate those nobles who had poisoned themselves eating magical beast meat.

After that, more gemstones and paintings were auctioned, but Albin showed no interest, chatting idly with Barney.

Until the final lot was brought out.

The auctioneer’s excited voice rang out from the darkened stage. “Ladies and gentlemen, the final item of tonight—”

A mage illuminated the center of the stage, revealing a large object draped in black velvet. Light reflected beautifully off its surface.

Judging by its rectangular outline, it looked like a massive painting.

The auctioneer stepped forward grandly and grasped the velvet cloth. “Now, let me present to you—”

“A masterpiece from the deep sea.”

The cloth slid away, fully revealing the item.

Within a massive golden frame hung a young man with short, sky-blue hair—or rather, a sea demon.

His features were strikingly handsome. His upper body resembled that of a human, upright and elegant, save for his ears—blue, fin-like, speckled with tiny golden glimmers that shimmered faintly.

His lower body, however, was a magnificent fish tail, its dazzling blue and gold scales shimmering like a dream, swaying like tassels as he struggled against the chains binding him.

But his struggle was clearly weak—only enough to show that he was alive.

The entire auction hall erupted.

“A mermaid!”

“A male adult sea demon!”

“Incredible!”

Excited murmurs echoed through the shadowed private boxes.

As if by coincidence, the sea demon glanced toward their box.

The bidding began immediately. The auctioneer added, “As we all know, the song of sea demons is a form of mental attack to most humans, causing confusion. Capturing him required tremendous effort. For this reason, we have prepared a special poison that can silence his voice, allowing you to take him home without concern.”

Just as the bidding reached a peak, Barney was about to raise his paddle—only to realize Albin had already lifted his.

…Wait.

Thinking back to how Albin had handled the nightmare beast, Barney felt a jolt of unease.

Surely… Albin wasn’t planning to burn this sea demon too?

That would be such a waste!

He wanted to stop him—but for some reason, a certain letter from Zeman flashed through his mind…

Forget it. He already owned several sea demons. One more or less didn’t matter.

—

With the final strike of the hammer, the auction came to a successful close.

The male sea demon was taken backstage. Soon, his new owner would come to inspect the purchase.

After the staff left, the sea demon—Larimar—glanced at the nightmare beast’s severed head in the room and let out a cold laugh.

No doubt about it—this so-called new owner was a pervert.

On the way backstage, he had already heard: the private box that bought him belonged to the Sea God’s chosen.

Perfect.

If he could get close to someone of that status, it should be easy to find his missing kin.

When the time came, he would make his naive sister—who dreamed of peaceful coexistence with humans—realize that humans were nothing but scum.

Since they were already magical creatures, they should be wiping out humanity!

But first, he needed to figure out how to bewitch the Sea God’s chosen…

Twisting slightly within the frame, Larimar tried to strike a flattering pose.

The door suddenly opened. Maintaining his carefully arranged posture, he pretended to be weak and glanced toward the entrance.

???

Why is it a kid?!

What a waste of his pose.

Larimar returned to a stiff, upright position, hanging there like a dried salted fish.

“Did you just cramp your tail?” the boy who entered asked, puzzled.

“Your Highness, to prevent this sea demon from attacking, he has already been placed under a spell and cannot speak.”

“Your Highness?” Larimar sized up the young boy in front of him.

Not quite what the rumors described… Looks really can be deceiving. At such a young age, and already this twisted!

And he actually said my perfect pose looked like a tail cramp?!

What utter humiliation!

…Well, at least he insulted him properly. Keep it coming!

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