When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)
Chapter 184: The Cursed Clan

Chapter 184: The Cursed Clan

The familiar sound of glass shattering echoed all around them, and they could finally get close to the Captain.

Seeing Gu Luoxin get close, Lucius let out a sweet meow and leapt into his arms, purring. Torn between laughter and tears, Gu Luoxin could only stroke the black cat’s fluffy head. How could it be so cute and deadly at the same time? It was so unfair! Nonetheless, it did not change the fact that Lucius had just saved all of their lives. Otherwise they would have been done for!

"Little ancestor!" Unable to contain his excitement, Gu Luoxin buried his face into the cat’s furry body and rubbed back and forth. "Who’s the best kitty in the world? Who’s the most powerful kitty in the world?! It’s you!"

"Mroow~" Lucius narrowed its beautiful emerald eyes in bliss and rolled over to present its soft belly, hugging Gu Luoxin’s head with its four meaty pink paw pads which had been licked clean.

Up ahead, Noir’s steps faltered for a split second before he swiftly regained his composure. It was so brief that nobody realized it, for everyone’s attention was focused on the mermaid.

Ariel was still stunned after witnessing a human being killed right in front of her eyes. While the blood that splattered onto her body was still warm, the person himself had already died. It made her recall the time when she had just been brought to this ship. Because of her presence, everyone began to hurt and kill each other. ’Daddy is right,’ she thought, tears welling up in her eyes. ’The outside world is dangerous. I shouldn’t have succumbed to my curiosity... I shouldn’t have snuck out to play...’

In less than twenty four hours, the pampered and beloved Princess of the merfolk clan suffered one devastating blow after another. From being confined in a cramped bathtub to flying through the air, she had experienced an overwhelming sequence of distress. Now, as the cause of her anguish approached, she recoiled in extreme horror. The once courageous and adventurous Ariel finally couldn’t help but burst into tears, pleading, "Wuwuwu... go away! Get away from me..."

Noir furrowed his brows, which only served to frighten her more. In truth, he simply did not understand why she was so afraid of him when he had just saved her from a fate worse than death.

He asked Shen Nianzu, "What is she saying?"

"She..." Shen Nianzu had just uttered that one word when Jin Jiuchi suddenly crouched down with a whoosh and cupped his palms beneath the mermaid’s chin, catching the pearls that formed from her tears.

"Wow..." he marveled at the round and dazzling pearls on his hands. "So beautiful! Why don’t you cry some more?"

Though Ariel did not understand this human’s words, she could deduce from his action that he was after her precious pearls. Grief and indignation washed over her, and she cursed Jin Jiuchi between sobs. "How can you be so heartless?! You humans will not end well! I will definitely tell Daddy to punish you all!"

Seeing that Jin Jiuchi was so fascinated by the pearls that he could not take his gaze off, the veins on Shen Nianzu’s forehead throbbed and a surge of anger rose in his heart. He had not expected Jin Jiuchi to be so easily swayed by the temptation of beauty and riches! What was so interesting about those pearls? He could buy a thousand of them if he wanted to! Just as he was about to twist the damned husky’s ear in reprimand, the man suddenly turned to him with sparkling eyes, catching him off guard.

"Nian’er, Nian’er, look! Aren’t these beautiful?" He stood up and showed the pearls to Shen Nianzu like a child showing off his new toy. Shen Nianzu scoffed in disdain, but then he saw Jin Jiuchi pinch a single pearl and bring it close to his ear. "Do you wear earrings? En, it will look very good on you..." he murmured with a soft smile on the corner of his lips.

Unprepared for such a comment, Shen Nianzu was stunned for a second before he quickly averted his gaze away. He cleared his throat and pushed Jin Jiuchi away, but only he and the devils knew that he did not put any strength on it. "Don’t mess around," he warned with a stern look. "We have to secure the core NPC’s safety first."

"Should I take her flying again?" Noir offered.

Flying seemed like the best option since it would keep her safe from harm. However, the moment Noir extended his arm toward her, Ariel reacted strongly with horror. "N–No, I don’t want... don’t get close to me!!"

Noir gave Shen Nianzu a puzzled look, to which the latter translated with a helpless sigh, "Looks like she’s traumatized by you."

"No problem," Noir shrugged indifferently. "I can just knock her out."

Perhaps sensing what Noir was going to do, Ariel immediately clung onto the most reliable human of all – Shen Nianzu – and refused to let go. She pleaded, her azure eyes large and moist like two pools of rippling water. "P–Please don’t let him take me away. He is going to kill me like he did to that human!"

"Hmm? She wants you?" Jin Jiuchi guessed. His eyes darkened and his lips hooked into a dangerous smirk. "What an eyesore."

Ariel shuddered, feeling a chill run down her spine as she became the target of his gaze.

Shen Nianzu rolled his eyes. He ignored Jin Jiuchi in lieu of reassuring the mermaid, "I’ve told you before that none of us intends to harm you. Everything we have done is for your safety. Did you think that Mr. Noir is a murderer? Well, he has just saved your life. Look," he pointed at the corpse of the Captain.

Ariel hesitantly followed his line of sight and her pupils shook when she saw the man who had died with his expression twisted ferociously and eyes wide open. At first, she had no idea what Shen Nianzu wanted her to see, but on closer inspection...

"H–He..." Shock coursed through Ariel’s body like a lightning bolt when she spotted the faint scales under the man’s skin and his fin-shaped ears, which would not be apparent unless one scrutinized him closely. "He is from the cursed clan too?!"

"The... what?" Shen Nianzu knitted his brows.

But before he could inquire further, the rapid sound of approaching footsteps filled the hallway. The four of them shared a knowing glance and sprang into action at once!

Jin Jiuchi kicked the Captain’s body away, Gu Luoxin pulled open the door to their room, and Shen Nianzu carried the mermaid inside. They entered the room just before Noir slammed the door shut. The series of movements were executed neatly without a single waste.

Once inside and away from prying eyes, Shen Nianzu asked again, "What do you mean by the cursed clan?"

Ariel began to explain, her voice trembling in fear. "B–Back then, we worshipped the Goddess of the Sea, and our entire clan prospered. However, a few mers with a greedy nature sought godhood for themselves. I’m not clear on the method they used, but they gradually transformed into creatures similar to the one outside. They gained legs to walk on land and initially subdued us. But soon... they lost their minds and became deranged, attacking each other without distinguishing friend from foe! Since then, my da— I mean, our king exiled them from the clan, referring to them as the cursed. But it was in vain..."

Her tears flowed freely, and Jin Jiuchi resumed his task to gather the pearls. "Since then, we lost our Goddess’ blessing, and dangerous creatures invaded our sea. It’s a struggle to remain alive because they hunt us relentlessly..."

After she finished speaking, Shen Nianzu relayed Ariel’s story to the others, and they fell into contemplation.

"We can’t just ignore what the core NPC said. Even though our task is to send her home, I have a hunch that it will not be the end," Shen Nianzu hypothesized. "Let’s summarize what we know so far. The creature in the mirror as well as the alienated players and NPCs, we’ll call them the cursed from now on. They are after the mermaid, and it’s our responsibility to protect her. Is that clear?"

The other three nodded in agreement.

"But Nian’er," Jin Jiuchi raised his hand to ask like a good and obedient student. "What about that giant cocoon downstairs? Does it have something to do with the cursed clan?"

"Judging from how the Captain tried to feed it using the NPCs, I suppose they’re indeed connected in some way. But I have no idea what—"

Shen Nianzu’s words were cut off as the entire ship jerked, causing everyone to lose their balance. Jin Jiuchi caught Shen Nianzu in his arms as his body slammed against the wall behind him. Gu Luoxin, on the other hand, staggered and stumbled towards Noir, who steadied him with an arm.

Gu Luoxin rubbed his red and aching nose that had crashed onto Noir’s solid biceps. With a gasp, he hurriedly straightened up and apologized, his face turning red in a blink of an eye. "I–I–I–I’m very sorry, Great God! I didn’t do it on purpose! Are you hurt?!"

Poor Ariel had no one to hold her, and her entire fish rolled on the ground, her tail thrashing in shock. She shrieked, "What... What is it now?!"

The ship’s speakers crackled to life, and the sound of chaos and heavy breathing filled the air. A man’s voice trembled as he spoke, "T–This is your crew speaking. S–Something is terribly wrong with the ship! We will start to evacuate everyone one by one, so please—AHH!!!" His voice abruptly morphed into a hysterical scream, sending shivers down everyone’s spines. "GO AWAY! GO AWAY FROM ME, YOU MONSTER!"

A loud crack resonated through the air, followed by eerie silence.

But not for long. Another turbulence shook the ship, and this time, the ground beneath their feet suddenly sank an inch! The lightbulb above flickered, and the entire ship slowly began to tilt at a precarious twenty degrees!

Gu Luoxin panicked, "It’s sinking, it’s sinking! The ship is going to sink ahhh!"

.

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A/N: Even a fish can tell that Nian’er is the most reliable lol