QT Second Female Lead’s Counter Attack: Ch 242 There’s a Mermaid at Home (10.3)
XunMi finally relaxed. She emerged back on the water surface and looked around. Just as she was observing her reflection in the water, BaoBao suddenly chimed in.
[Madam Host, I know now. This body was originally meant for you. Your identity is the Empress of the Sea. You control the creatures of the sea. But because this little mermaid was dormant this whole time, the female lead took over. But since you came first this time, you naturally entered this body. But slowly this body will become you. Just like with your hair and tail, and your appearance. In the next one hundred years, your hair should turn completely blue. ]
BaoBao twirled around XunMi, seeking compliments. XunMi patted BaoBao’s head. “Then what happens when the female lead comes? Whose body will she go into?” Would she have to encounter a fight to gain control of this body?
[There’s another deep water mermaid about to be born. She will be the female lead’s new identity. Moreover, due to this, half of the female lead’s luck will be given to Madam Host. Isn’t that great? Aren’t you excited?] Having half of the fated one’s luck would definitely make up for her Fortunate Star’s incompetence.
XunMi only stared at BaoBao. Why didn’t she feel like this was anything worth getting excited about? To be honest, she didn’t want it at all. Having luck would make a few plans easier. On the other hand, it could also create more inconveniences.
“This body still needs a hundred years or so before it comes of age. Is the female lead coming after a hundred years?” She hadn’t received any mission relating to the female lead.
[That’s right, Madam Host. But I recommend approaching the female lead so that you can stop her from revealing the deep sea’s secret. Also, you have a castle here in the oceans. You also have countless citizens! When you woke up, they were already on their way to greet you. But then you went back into hibernation. ] His tone seemed to say ‘why do you sleep so much. How could you miss such an important thing?’
XunMi: ….rolls eyes.
“Basically, the mission about me investigating the harm that humans caused on merpeople indicates that there used to be numerous merpeople in the oceans? But they were all hurt by humans. Therefore, as a leader in the seas, I need to step forward? Got it. Then let’s go take a look at my sea castle.” She wanted to see if it was like the crystal water palaces in the fairytales.
When XunMi reached the seabed, she felt different wave frequencies coming from all directions. Under BaoBao’s guidance, she was able to understand most of what she heard.
“Your Highness, you’re finally awake. We’ve been waiting for you for over thousands of years.” A trembling old tortoise swam forward to greet XunMi.
XunMi tried to hide her confusion. Who was this elder? Why didn’t she recognize him?
“Your Highness, I am your subject. I am in charge of watching over the palace until you awake. The generals have already opened the castle gates for your arrival.”
“Elder Turtle, I’ve just come back. I’m not too well-versed in the current issues here at the seabed. Can you first catch me up to speed?” This elder definitely looked like he was knowledgeable. XunMi needed to first understand what was happening here so that she could plan her next steps.
“Your highness, no need to worry. You haven’t absorbed the inherited memories of the palace yet. When you accept the preceding king’s memories, you’ll be able to understand our distributed lands, our people, and our history.” Elder Turtle was a bit sorrowful. He had been at the side of three generations of kings. But every king ended in tragedy.
XunMi followed the elder to the palace and was shocked at the sight. The palace constructed from clear blue crystals resembled water congealed together. It was majestic and beautiful.
XunMi held the sphere that would allow her to inherit memories of the past. XunMi felt her entire body heave. Her energy once again grew and accumulated. She saw the beginnings of the energy that had created the big oceans. She also saw the humans that had first appeared to compromise with the merpeople. They had originally agreed on the freedom of intermarriage and to live in harmony together.
But avarice could not be stopped. Some humans began to capture deep water merpeople. They delivered them to powerful officials’ beds, auction houses, and laboratories. As the amount of modified humans carrying merpeople genes grew, there were those that grew ambitious about the deep water purebred merpeople’s lavish living conditions. Eventually, purebred merpeople could only live in the ocean. If they wished to step on land, they were met with countless restrictions. The mertail could only transform into legs for about 18 hours a day. After about a week, they needed to be submerged back into seawater. The lack of access to seawater would mean loss of energy as the body began to dry up.
Humans used this knowledge to send deep water merpeople onto land. Over time, the small group of merpeople were now close to extinction. To protect his subjects, the emperor of the sea was forced to step forward, leading into the war between humans and merpeople. But even the talented and powerful emperor of the sea was no match for the humans. The humans created mechs and upgraded their own genetic makeup. From all aspects, they were an even match to the merpeople.
In the end, the emperor of the sea had no choice but to seal off his sea area so that his subjects had their own area of safety. He warned the remaining merpeople against ever reappearing on the surface again.
The last war left the merpeople wounded. The merpeople eagerly observed the emperor of the sea’s orders and never stepped ashore.
However, as the ratio of human men was proportionately larger than human women, humans began to worry again. They thought of the deep sea merpeople again. They wanted to enter the deep sea to capture genes of the deep sea merpeople so that they could create more outstanding genetically engineered humans. Therefore, deep sea merpeople were captured and became true subjects in human laboratories. As time passed, that history was buried. Now, deep sea merpeople were seen as the empire’s valued class and were well protected. But that didn’t make up for the pain and catastrophe that the merpeople suffered through.
XunMi could empathize with the feeling of helplessly watching one’s own subjects suffer and meet their death.
Right after, XunMi received a hidden mission: have the deep sea merpeople gain the freedom needed to freely walk on land and live in water.