LSDWTWHA chapter 49

Chapter 48

Su Su found his medicine box and solemnly took out the third mermaid pill from inside.

As he swallowed it, a rare sense of tension washed over him. The dizziness that followed was familiar; when Su Su finally regained consciousness, four hours had already passed.

He was awakened by a strong feeling of suffocation. Opening his eyes from the bottom of the water, he discovered that he had transformed back into his human form. This time, he didn’t feel anything particularly intense; although he was a bit hungry and weak from the change, it was within tolerable limits.

Could it be that he succeeded?

A flicker of excitement welled up in Su Su’s heart, but he was also worried that he was getting too ahead of himself; perhaps the side effects were just not noticeable yet, and he hadn’t realized it.

The room was quiet; Qi Hanyi was not inside. A complete set of clothes that Su Su wore in his human form was neatly folded on the bed.

Su Su had already learned how to dress, avoiding the blunders of the last time. He buttoned his shirt one by one, mimicking how Qi Hanyi did it, and the white long pants were soft and fit well, perfectly outlining his straight and slender legs.

Just as he finished getting dressed, Qi Hanyi pushed the door open from outside.

Su Su turned around, and their gazes collided.

Qi Hanyi looked intently at Su Su. The person before him had long hair cascading behind him, still damp and dripping with water, standing barefoot on the clean floor. He wore a fitted white shirt and casual pants, the shirt half-tucked in, while the other half was left out, his belt undone, with one end hanging loosely from his waist, the other held by his slender fingers.

He stared blankly at Su Su, and in his eyes, joy suddenly flickered like a candle caught by fire. The happiness he felt was utterly transparent, and combined with his breathtaking beauty, it resembled the most lethal allure.

Qi Hanyi instinctively raised his arm but then lowered it. His Adam’s apple moved up and down restlessly, and the emotion hiding beneath his gaze resembled a volcano buried under ice and snow.

They could meet every day; even without the time when Su Su transformed into a shark, it had only been half a month since they last saw each other. Yet, longing intertwined with desire, silently taking root and growing in his heart.

Suddenly, Qi Hanyi realized that seeing Su Su did not satisfy this craving; the desire within him only grew more fervent.

He wanted to embrace the person before him, to hold him tightly in his arms, greedily absorbing the warmth radiating from him, comforting his heart, which felt frozen to the core. He longed to press his nose against Su Su’s delicate neck, inhaling the sweet fragrance of his body. He wanted to bite his soft lips, claiming even his breath as his own. He wanted to tear apart that clean shirt, wanting every inch of their bodies to press closely together, and wished to do something even more excessive, to see Su Su’s expression unravel, his brows marked with desire, his face flushed with intoxicating crimson, letting out a few broken whimpers, speaking in a hoarse voice that turned into fragments amidst their entanglement.

But he could only think about it; even thinking felt like a form of desecration.

He had no future with Su Su; even if there was one, it would only be after Su Su’s body recovered, when he had enough power to change the status quo between humans and merfolk.

If such a day would indeed come.

Oblivious to Qi Hanyi’s thoughts, Su Su lifted a carefree smile: “How did you know I woke up?”

“Your personal terminal is bound to mine, which informs me of your condition,” Qi Hanyi stepped forward, carefully scanning Su Su from head to toe. Although his voice was cool, his tone revealed a hint of concern, “Do you feel unwell anywhere?”

Su Su blinked: “Not at the moment; I just feel a bit hungry.”

Having not eaten dinner and having slept until nine-thirty, it was only natural that he was hungry.

“Dinner is in the dining room,” Qi Hanyi replied. To prevent a repeat of the last time when Su Su had a large appetite, he had specifically ordered a lavish feast to be prepared.

Just as Su Su was about to head out, he was stopped by Qi Hanyi and led to the bathroom: “First, dry your hair; don’t catch a chill.”

Su Su obediently dried his hair and went downstairs to eat. Without any side effects affecting him, he only consumed a normal person’s portion, and he was already too full to eat more.

Once satiated and letting out a contented burp, Su Su patted his round belly and got up to return to his room.

As soon as he entered, Su Su noticed that Qi Hanyi was behaving unusually; he was not conducting night training, nor was he working in the study, but stayed in the bedroom.

Qi Hanyi sat with his long legs crossed, leaning against the headboard, his posture unusually relaxed. Two buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing a glimpse of his collarbone. The warm yellow light from the bedside lamp cast a gentle glow over him, making him appear even warmer.

Su Su paused in his steps, his eyes flashing with concern as he cautiously asked, “Are you okay?”

Had he been laid off? Was he sick? He wouldn’t have suffered a mental force collapse and given up on treatment, preparing to enjoy the last moments of his life, would he?

The more he thought about it, the more anxious he became, nearly spilling over with unease in his eyes.

“I’m fine.” Realizing that Su Su had misunderstood, Qi Hanyi found it amusing and said, “I just plan to take a break today.”

“Uh, that’s good.” Su Su sighed in relief, feeling at ease. His gaze wandered between the already occupied big bed and the clean, tidy small bed beside it.

Finally, with a hint of reluctance, he climbed onto the small bed.

After all, it was first come, first served; when he had previously slept in the big bed, Qi Hanyi had let him, but he couldn’t just take over when Qi Hanyi was sleeping there, right? He would have preferred to share a bed with Qi Hanyi, but Qi Hanyi always refused; every time he tried to snuggle closer, Qi Hanyi would move away, making him feel like a bully insisting on claiming territory.

Qi Hanyi knew that Su Su preferred to sleep in the big bed, and Su Su was rather well-behaved while sleeping, though he liked to toss and turn freely before drifting off.

Qi Hanyi waited for Su Su to make requests of him, but after a while, he noticed that Su Su had climbed onto the small bed and fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow.

Qi Hanyi’s gaze softened; it seemed that after a day of competition and medication, Su Su was truly exhausted.

“Good night.” He silently wished in his heart and turned off the bedside lamp.

The bedroom plunged into darkness, and Qi Hanyi listened to Su Su’s even breathing, closing his eyes.

When Su Su opened his eyes again, everything was pitch black around him, and he felt very dry, unlike the familiar seawater.

Hmm, who am I? Where am I? Su Su’s mind was blank; he only remembered hunting in a shallow bay, and today he had caught a few small fish, enough to fill his stomach.

But this place was unlike anywhere he knew. It was dry and soft.

Had he been pushed onto the beach? Su Su looked up. Where was the moon? The stars? Where was that particularly large and bright star?

Why couldn’t he smell the ocean or hear the sound of the waves?

How long had he been out of the water? He wouldn’t die of thirst, would he?

Confused thoughts swirled in Su Su’s head, unable to sort through anything useful. As he turned over, he suddenly found himself falling and landed with a heavy thud from the bed. “Thud!” The sound echoed.

Qi Hanyi was startled awake by the noise. He turned on the light and got up to check, only to see Su Su sitting on the ground with a dazed expression, staring vacantly at the direction of the light.

As he walked over, that dazed gaze shifted to him.

“You…” Seeing Su Su’s obviously abnormal state, Qi Hanyi’s mind flashed with some guesses: Was he still half-asleep? Had he had a nightmare? Or was it the delayed side effects of the medication?

Suddenly, Su Su, still sitting on the ground, sprang to his feet with a quick movement.

He didn’t stand properly, his legs dragging behind as if they were merely for decoration, and he used his arms to wrap around Qi Hanyi’s waist, hanging onto him, his silver head buried against Qi Hanyi’s chest, then looking up eagerly at his face.

“You’re so cute!” His dazed eyes lit up, “Are you human?”

Qi Hanyi froze suddenly in place: “Su Su, you don’t recognize me anymore?”

“Do I know you?” Su Su blinked his eyes: “Su Su? Is that my name? Did you give it to me? Hehe, it sounds nice.”

He didn’t even remember his own name. Qi Hanyi could nearly confirm that Su Su’s symptoms were indeed side effects of the medication, and this time the side effects seemed related to memory and cognition.

It was unclear why it hadn’t manifested immediately but had only changed after he fell asleep.

“Ah—”

A fine pain and itch on his neck interrupted Qi Hanyi’s thoughts.

He lowered his gaze and could only see Su Su’s silver head, but he could feel the other’s teeth pressing against the side of his neck, breathing warm air.

“What are you doing?” Qi Hanyi’s tone was heavy, pressed down like simmering fire. He pushed Su Su’s shoulders, trying to create distance but cautious not to let him fall.

Su Su hugged his neck with his hands, swallowed, and quietly explained, “I don’t eat humans; I just wanted to bite a little, just a small bite.”

He remembered being full after eating earlier; even if he hadn’t had enough, humans were not on his hunting menu. But the human before him was so cute, with skin glowing pale under the faint light, revealing faint blue veins through a thin layer of muscle.

So lovely, he wanted to bite. Su Su had just felt an irresistible urge to nibble and simply could not resist the urge.

“…” Qi Hanyi understood that Su Su meant no harm. When Su Su had leaned in to bite, he hadn’t used any force; it was more like he was lightly brushing his skin with his teeth. Rather than an attack, it was more like a flirtation.

Qi Hanyi looked down and saw the youth with silver hair cascading down, his earlier shirt replaced by a white velvet pullover pajama, revealing a little bit of collarbone, the hem reaching down over his legs, exposing the dark edges of his pants and two straight, slender legs.

His gaze was clean and innocent, completely unaware of how enticing he looked in that state.

His heart was tumultuous, not only with worry for Su Su’s condition but also with an indescribable happiness.

As if a dangerous voice whispered that Su Su had first provoked him, and even if…

“No.” Qi Hanyi resolutely shook off that dangerous thought. He lifted Su Su and placed him on the big bed, firmly wrapping him in the blanket: “You should sleep now; everything else can wait until you wake up.”

Su Su’s side effects from the medication had only manifested after he fell asleep; it might be related to timing or sleep. The best scenario was that when he awoke tomorrow, he would return to normal, but if not, they would have to think of other solutions.

Thinking of this, Qi Hanyi paused. He remembered the first round had a match set for tomorrow. If Su Su was still in this state, could he participate in the competition? Qi Hanyi could perceive Su Su’s anticipation for this competition and had seen Su Su’s hard work in the previous two rounds.

Su Su had originally planned to take the medication after the initial round, but he had taken it a day early to accompany Qi Hanyi to the banquet tomorrow. It would be a great disappointment if he missed the last match of the preliminaries because of this.

Qi Hanyi’s brows knitted deeply, dissipating much of his romantic thoughts.

Postponing the competition? A date that had long been set; if it were delayed now, it wouldn’t be fair to the other players.

But… if Su Su hadn’t returned to himself by tomorrow, he might not care about fairness for others.

Qi Hanyi opened his communicator, preparing to contact Jian Cheng to formulate a plan to postpone the competition, intending to discuss it with the game officials first thing in the morning.

However, just as his hand left the blanket, Su Su, who had been calm for barely two minutes, suddenly struggled up from the bed: “I can’t sleep here! I’ll turn into dried fish!”

While Su Su cried out in alarm, he dashed toward the nearby pool and dove in headfirst.

Gurgle, gurgle.

Humans couldn’t breathe through gills like fish, and as soon as Su Su entered the water, he choked on several mouthfuls. He flailed around in the water, nearly becoming the first mermaid species to drown.

Qi Hanyi had no choice but to jump into the pool as well, wrapping his arms around Su Su and pulling him back to shore.

“Cough, cough, cough!” Su Su spat out water, coughing awkwardly, completely soaking wet.

Qi Hanyi was not in a much better condition, not just wet from head to toe, but he also had some unwanted reactions. He didn’t bother with himself, instead helping Su Su catch his breath, and then took him to the bathroom to dry off and change into fresh clothes.

Throughout this process, Qi Hanyi remained silent as if he were a monk who had severed all earthly attachments, only the tips of his ears were flushed red and his thin lips tightened, revealing the unrest in his heart at that moment.

After a series of frenzied attempts, Su Su changed into dry new clothes, while Qi Hanyi remained drenched. Yet, he didn’t dare to release his hold, fearing that the moment he let go, Su Su would jump back into the pool.

With no other option, Qi Hanyi placed Su Su on the bed, took his tie that was lying on the shirt, and tied Su Su’s restless hands to the headboard.

Su Su dumbly allowed him to bind him, not resisting at all, as if he completely trusted the person before him, believing that he would never harm him.

Qi Hanyi’s heart softened. He ruffled Su Su’s hair and, in a rare gentle tone, said, “Be good; I’ll untie you once I change my clothes, okay?”

“Okay, okay!” Su Su nodded with a silly smile.

Qi Hanyi took his clothes to the bathroom to change, but halfway through, he heard intense struggling from outside.

He didn’t have time to button his shirt and rushed out of the bathroom, only to find Su Su half-rolled off the bed, vigorously trying to break free. The tie had pulled and twisted, forming a thin line, and his pale neck nearly showed signs of bruising.

“What are you doing?” Qi Hanyi approached to grab Su Su.

Su Su looked up, his eyes red and teary, big tears falling down. He was actually crying. He whimpered in panic: “I’m caught in a fishing net; I need to escape quickly. They! They are coming! They will catch me, and they’ll cut off my dorsal fin, then sell me in the market, piece by piece, by weight!”