Chapter 209


    I sniffed, inhaling the strong sweet scent deep within my lungs even as the repressed sensation of


    disappointment swelled over my chest, and I felt bitter once again.


    Still, I forced myself to smile despite my pain as another thought upied my head: I was no more


    important than a descendant to Dicken, just like the crystals he had spread across variousnds.


    Though he searched for me and protected me, he did all that to protect his blood which flows in my


    body—I am one of his few descendants, and the most disobedient at that.


    That being said, I also wondered what reason there was for me to be dissatisfied, and I would have


    been long dead as a child if not for Dicken.


    And as the merfolk’s leader, his duty was to protect his people and to ensure the perpetuity of the next


    generation.


    F*ck! Why would my thoughts keep drifting away? What had it to do with me…


    “Linda.“


    Dicken suddenly called me, interrupting my thoughts. Turning his head so that his ear brushed against


    my cheek, he asked, “What’s on your mind?“


    “You, “ I blurted out as if bewitched, almost choking when I realized how straightforward I was being


    and hence added, ”I mean, how you’ve changed… and your identity. Uh, it really shocked me.”


    ”You’ll have all the time to find out.” Dicken turned to sh a meaningful grin at me, his voice echoing in


    the darkness of the sewers.


    Although I understood Merinish, I was still a little unustomed since the ent resembled some


    ancient mystical chant no matter how I tried to describe it. Moreover, Dicken’s unique voice, which


    seemed to reverberate powerfully and carried weight, always left me spacing out.


    All I could do was nod in reflex while I kept my hands tightly wrapped around his waist—he was now in


    his merman form once again, and sprinted through the waters like he did as he carried me through the


    ocean. Suddenly, the sewers seemed to turn vast and open, with the walls being distant from us as we


    dived deep beneath the canals.


    The lights around us were a warm yellow. As Dicken carried me rapidly through the pirs of various


    bridges, we would swim past the hulls of various boats floating above us, though the rain tended to


    cover it soon enough. No one would see us as we darted forward beneath the waters, as if we existed


    in a different world—a private space that only belonged to Dicken and I.


    I couldn’t help holding on tighter to Dicken then.


    Dicken started to swim towards the surface just then, and we soon arrived at the top of an underwater


    structure. Then, he extended his arm and firmly pushed, opening a steel te under a building


    with such proficient movement that one would think he was opening the door to his own house.


    It was a ssy tavern. Though it appeared that Dicken lived here, the front doors that faced a channel


    were locked with massive chains, virtually preventing entry. He clearly hadn’t acquired it by legal


    means as it was quite old, with police tape pasted over various objects. While there was a signboard


    hanging over the wall that read ‘Aquatic Organisms Research Lab,’ it had clearly been abandoned for a


    long time without anyone entering.


    That said, it was a ce that suited Dicken, and I couldn’t help feeling amused. ”Aquatic Organisms


    Research Lab? Hahaha! You’ re an oversized fish and the leader of your race, and yet you just nted


    yourself here. I never knew you had a ir foredy, Dicken… Perhaps you should stay at a fish


    market too?”


    Dicken narrowed his eyes as he studied me, as if wondering what I had meant by ‘fish.’ So, I exined


    by making a hook with a finger and pretending to bite it —I was aware that doing that most certainly


    challenged his dignity as the leader of the merfolk, but I couldn’t help wanting to tease him in spite of


    the possibility of punishment.


    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.


    And just as expected, he loomed over me in the next instant, pressing me over the underwater opening


    as he fixed his eyes.


    Then, his lips brushed against the bridge of my nose. ”Linda… You make me… ”


    He gulped, his eyes seemingly aze as his Adam’s apple bobbed and he spoke hoarsely, ”You really


    make me… ”


    He was still wearing his leather gloves, but it was already caressing my spine and heading slowly


    downwards to my tail bone. Then, he grasped my bottom as he pressed his lower body between my


    legs, and while we were both dressed inyers, I could feel him getting fully erect, his body burning hot


    even as he leaned on me.