Chapter 21

After parting ways with Wen Yu and the others, Lansi didn't linger. He continued swimming westward, and after a full day, he finally reached the place known as Sunset Bay, nestled near the mouth of the jellyfish.

Lansi knew he had arrived because anyone with a sharp eye would recognize the sign immediately.

This was the graveyard of ships.

The defining feature of Sunset Bay was its shipwrecks.

Diving to the seabed, Lansi was stunned by the sheer number of wrecked vessels below.

He had imagined it before, thinking there might be a few large ships sunk at Sunset Bay and that their presence had been exaggerated by the jellyfish. But the truth far exceeded his expectations.

Large and small shipwrecks were scattered across the seabed, layered on top of each other. The ones buried deepest were rusted and falling apart.

The ships closer to the surface were more recent. Marine life had already begun to claim them—barnacles clung to the hulls, and seaweed swayed in the currents.

Some of the ships looked as if they had been violently dragged down, their midsections collapsed or crushed.

Fish swam freely among the wreckage, seemingly used to their strange environment. That was no surprise.

As Lansi drifted through the underwater ruins, an unshakable sense of unease crept over him.

A question suddenly came to mind.

With so many ships here, this place must have taken years to become what it is. How long had it been since that day on the cruise ship? The day he lost his memory and became a mermaid?

Had he merely fallen asleep and awakened later, or had countless years already passed?

A wave of nausea rose in his throat. The feeling of being abandoned by time crashed over him, filling him with fear and loneliness.

He needed to find out what happened on the cruise ship that day.

Forcing himself to stay calm, Lansi began his search, diving into the wreckage in hopes of finding the ship from his memory.

Fortunately, he still remembered what the ship looked like. More importantly, he remembered its name: Queen Mary. If he could just find the bow with that name, he would know he was on the right track.

But among this many wrecks, finding a single ship was like searching for a needle in the ocean floor.

Lansi searched from day to night, again and again, but never found it.

Once darkness fell, even his enhanced mermaid vision couldn't help him read letters obscured by barnacles. He had to stop.

Instead, he decided to find a cabin where he could spend the night.

Though most of the ships were old, many still retained their interiors. For Lansi, a former human, nothing was more comforting than lying in a real bed.

That's why he took his time picking the right wreck.

Even if it was a sunken ship, he wanted one that felt a little like home.

After rummaging through the graveyard for a long while, Lansi still hadn't found a cabin he liked. He swam toward the outskirts of the shipwreck zone.

That's when he spotted it—a small yacht, quietly resting on the sand.

It was cleaner than the other wrecks, and the surroundings weren't littered with trash or strange debris.

Perfect.

Lansi was thrilled and swam closer.

Just to be safe, he circled the yacht first, checking for anything unusual. He even peered through the windows for a long while.

Once he was sure it posed no danger, he approached the deck, found the cabin door, and tugged.

It didn't budge.

Huh?

Was the seal on this yacht really that tight?

Frowning, Lansi pulled harder. Still nothing.

Maybe it was the water pressure?

He glanced at the glass panel nearby. Deciding to try his luck with that instead, he swam upward, then around the side of the yacht in search of a rock.

After searching the seabed, he found a suitable stone, picked it up, and returned to the yacht.

Just as he was about to smash the glass—

Lansi paused.

Wait... was it just his imagination, or had the yacht shifted a little?

No, he was sure. The water nearby had grown murky, and there were signs of movement on the ocean floor.

But how could a sunken ship move on its own?

Lansi narrowed his eyes, stone still in hand, and approached the yacht again. After a moment's hesitation, he struck the glass.

A deep thud echoed through the water.

The rock fell away slowly.

The yacht remained still.

Lansi looked at the small dent he had made and clicked his tongue.

What a shame. It was such a pretty yacht.

But now that he had confirmed the yacht wasn't going anywhere, he moved forward again.

He was only five meters away when it suddenly rose and slid several meters to the side.

Lansi stared in silence.

Did... did the yacht just move?

As the water cleared, Lansi gave chase, curious.

Every time he swam close, the little yacht would rise again and scuttle away as if trying to avoid him.

After several attempts, Lansi didn't give up—but the yacht seemed to.

With a thud, it crashed back onto the seabed and stayed still.

Lansi raised an eyebrow. He began circling it slowly, watching for signs of movement.

Then, two massive red pincers suddenly shot out from beneath the yacht, snapping toward his tail.

Startled, Lansi dodged with ease, weaving between the pincers.

Thanks to his mermaid agility, he avoided the snapping claws, twisting and flipping through the water until the pincers nearly clashed against each other.

"What the hell is your problem?!"

Lansi's ear fins flared, and for a moment, he thought he was hearing things.

"This is my home, idiot! You smash my place, then hover around like a freak—what the hell do you want?!"

Lansi froze.

Wait, the yacht was alive?

No. The yacht was being used as a shell.

A second later, the entire yacht tilted slightly, revealing the creature underneath.

A hermit crab. A massive hermit crab, easily large enough to fill the interior of the yacht.

Its two pincers waved furiously as it shouted:

"You little punk—"

But the moment it caught sight of Lansi, its beady eyes locked on to the white-tailed mermaid.

Lansi gave a sheepish wave, his white tail swishing behind him.

"Sorry. I'll leave right away."

The hermit crab blinked, and its pincers slowly lowered.

Its voice shifted to something almost bashful.

"Such... such a lovely day today, isn't it?"

Then, in a deep, proud tone, it declared:

"As my fish, you never need to apologize to me!"

Lansi was speechless.

It was night. There was no sun.

The hermit crab rubbed its claws together awkwardly.

"You like the yacht, don't you? I knew I had good taste!"

It added shyly:

"My fish clearly has good taste too."

Lansi stared in disbelief. He'd met some strange sea creatures, but this one took the cake.

This crab had the attitude of a gangster and the delusions of a romance novel character.

"Sorry, but I'll go find somewhere else to rest."

"No way."

The hermit crab darted out of its shell and gestured gallantly toward the interior of the yacht.

"If you like it, it's yours. My fish deserves the best."

Only then did Lansi realize the yacht had been hollowed out. It looked intact, but inside, it was dark and empty.

"No thanks. I don't think it suits me."

The hermit crab seemed a little disappointed.

"You're so small. So refined. A cultured fish."

Lansi had the sinking feeling that if he stayed much longer, the crab might pull out an actual cannon.

He forced a polite smile and prepared to leave.

"Wait! I think I have something for you!"

The hermit crab scuttled back inside its shell, then began dragging the yacht around the seabed, stirring up clouds of sand.

"No need, really—"

"You're in my territory. Of course I'm going to take care of you!"

The hermit crab puffed itself up.

"My fish is my responsibility!"

This crab really thought it was some kind of underwater CEO.

Lansi hesitated, then swam behind it, watching the yacht move ahead.

"Have you always lived here?"

"Not exactly."

The crab began tearing through a pile of wreckage with its pincers.

"I used to be smaller. One shell was enough. But then I started growing. Every day, I got bigger. Damn it, where did I put it—"

It cursed under its breath, then suddenly stopped and glanced at Lansi.

"Sorry. Got carried away."

It cleared its throat and softened its voice.

"I had to keep finding bigger shells. Eventually, I found this place."

Lansi couldn't believe how fast the crab changed personalities. It was unsettling.

Suddenly, the crab pulled out another small boat from the wreckage.

"Here it is. What do you think? This used to be my old shell."

Lansi examined it. Though smaller, it looked more luxurious, and the interior seemed intact and livable.

"This one works. I like it."

He circled the boat. No plants, no sea creatures hiding inside. Clean.

"Of course it's clean. I take good care of my things. Even if I don't use them anymore."

Lansi smiled. Despite its strange behavior, the crab didn't seem dangerous.

He swam inside the boat and explored a little before returning.

"Are you the only one here?"

There was a pause.

Then, from inside the shell, the crab replied quietly:

"Yes. My brothers and sisters all died because of that strange glowing orb under the sea. I drifted with the current, and eventually stopped here."

"Do you know why there are so many wrecks here?"

Lansi's voice grew tense.

"Ask the octopus."

The hermit crab tapped its claws.

"That giant octopus drags the ships here. These wrecks are its trophies."

Trophies?

Lansi's pupils contracted.

That meant something out there was hunting humans.