The scales refracted flowing halos underwater.

The man-made seawater carried a salty, fishy scent, with the temperature just right and the ion concentration precisely adjusted.

All of this was to ensure he wouldn’t completely weaken on land.

He swam freely and joyfully, as if he had finally broken free from restraints. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Selene stood by the pool, barefoot, fingers tightly clutching the hem of her dress.

Online, some people said he was a mermaid. Initially, it was just a joke, but it spread wider and wider.

Most people were drawn to those pointed ears.

Those long, smooth-lined ears, like those of an elf.

But they didn’t understand that what truly proved his identity wasn’t the ears, but his posture in the water.

He was most genuine in the water.

After a few laps, his fish tail became more lustrous.

The previously dull pattern now seemed reactivated, faintly glowing with a blue shimmer.

He swam to the edge of the pool, his long hand supporting the smooth rim.

Selene’s heart skipped a beat, her fingertips trembling slightly.

Just then, the system suddenly exploded.

"Go for it now! While he’s still wet and emotionally unstable! The mental defenses are easiest to break! This chance won’t come again!"

She froze in place, her face heating up.

"When I’m not around... do your legs turn back into a fish tail?"

As soon as she spoke, she realized her mistake.

Sure enough, Zane immediately deflated.

"I can feel it; my legs are about to give out."

His voice was as light as a sigh, almost swallowed by the sound of the waves.

"Caleb said... he’d come to take me to your side."

"He just returned from being with you, still carrying traces of your spiritual power. As soon as I sensed that wave, my legs stabilized, preventing the fish tail from appearing prematurely."

As he spoke, his defenses broke down, tears falling without warning, splashing into the water.

"But he won’t let me return."

The next second, he plunged from the water, his wet arms tightly wrapping around Selene’s waist.

Water droplets dripped from his hair, mixing with tears sliding down his jaw.

"Every time I feel like I can return, he’s just there, silent, turning away like a ghost."

Buried in her embrace, his voice was hoarse, tinged with stubborn despair.

"He knows... I just want to see you."

"I really don’t want him anymore."

"Just go!"

Go, while she could still control herself, before she softened.

Was it easy for him, a fish, to cross the ocean to seek her?

Cold currents, hidden reefs, predators’ sharp teeth, and the endless loneliness of the deep sea.

Through it all, he never backed down.

All because she was over there, at the end of that land, his destined Female Master.

He abandoned his tribe, the safety of the deep sea, just to follow the faint spiritual wave upstream.

He finally found an excuse to get close to his Female Master.

Yet, that annoying male always intervened at the crucial moment, carrying her calming power.

Lately, Caleb’s spiritual power had noticeably weakened.

He could feel that Selene no longer depended so much on that external calming force.

This sparked a glimmer of hope in his heart—

Maybe she could finally see who truly belonged to her.

Selene was stunned, completely unprepared for such a revelation.

She quickly released her calming spiritual power, instantly filling the basement with a gentle, serene aura.

Tiny points of light seemed to dance in the air.

Zane took a deep breath.

Just that hint of aura made him soften entirely, willing to submit.

His back arched slightly, and his tail swayed gently.

That aura was so familiar, it was the scent of his Female Master.

He closed his eyes, a nearly inaudible low hum escaping his throat.

"Female Master... your scent has changed."

He sniffed, although spiritual power had no scent.

But he felt it had changed from before.

Such a change shouldn’t happen.

The Female Master’s spiritual state directly affected the stability of the entire tribe and the instinctual sense of him, her male mate.

Could it be... that she was wronged while he wasn’t around?

His gaze darkened instantly, pupils narrowing into thin lines.

Selene herself felt nothing, but she knew this spiritual power actually came from the child in her belly.

She instinctively stroked her belly, still flat as ever, but she felt a subtle connection.

Ever since that incident with Heath Langdon, her spiritual power had indeed begun to change, no longer being purely calming.

Indeed, things hadn’t been the same after that encounter with Heath Langdon.

But now that it was like this, she chose to face it.

The child was innocent, and she would use all her strength to protect this little life.

She chuckled dryly, patting his head.

"In the future, let’s not rely on others’ leftovers, got it?"

So she told him in the most relaxed manner.

The past was over; she wouldn’t let anyone interfere between them again.

Zane grasped her hand, eyes fixed on her without blinking.

His palm was burning, fingertips trembling slightly, yet he firmly clasped her wrist.

"It’s not someone else’s leftovers. Everything of yours is the best."

In his eyes, she was never a fallback choice.

Selene paused for a moment, then couldn’t help but laugh, soft and relaxed.

The laughter flowed from the corners of her eyes and brows.

She said nothing more, just gently grasped his hand back.

"Zane, I really think... it’s wonderful to have met you."

"Female Master, me too."

He bowed his head, his forehead lightly resting on the back of her hand.

The water rippled, reflecting his flowing form.

He told her in the most primitive way.

I’m fine, I belong to you.

After he had enough fun and climbed ashore, dripping wet, she leaned close to his ear.

Her breath lightly brushed across his ear, her voice very low.

Zane’s face turned bright red with a "whoosh," his tail flicking, splashing large waves, shimmering with radiant light.

He didn’t dare look at her, yet couldn’t help but want to confirm.

Did she really say those two words?

His footing slipped, toes pressing down on the slippery stone edge of the pool.

A dignified marine beastman, about to drown in his own pool at home?

If word got out, the ancestors beneath the sea might turn over in their graves, too ashamed to even flick their fish tails.

"Why would you suddenly say that..."

He shrank half his body, quickly sinking back into the water, exposing only his eyes and nose.

He sneaked a timid glance at her.

"Saying that now... it’s too corny! Little fish and the like... who wants to hear that! I’m not a three-year-old child, easily hooked with a few words!"

He silently poked his head out again, wet hair sticking to his forehead, water droplets rolling down his cheeks.

But as soon as his gaze lifted, it met Selene’s smiling eyes.

He was just an honest fish, swimming in the sea since birth.