Mermaid Effect

"He's dying."

The man on the phone said to him.

"We've got to get that thing, before he dies, or nobody knows what his will will do with it."

Ray Ferrero nodded on the phone.

He took a breath silently, trying to let the cold air calm his boiling thoughts.

That person is dying.

It was unimaginable, he thought, that the man... Vincent Sievers was dying.

Ray Ferro walked along the long mountain path.

On both sides of the narrow road are lush plantains, cosmoses, and marigolds blooming luxuriantly. The sea breeze brings a salty and moist atmosphere, and the leaves tremble.Next to Lei's ear, waves of deep waves crashed against the black-brown rock wall, making a monotonous sound.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead and turned on the water mist attachment device he carried with him.The fine and cool water vapor immediately permeated the thin and pale boy's body surface, nourishing his skin which was too fragile in the land environment.A few drops of water trickled down his black, curly hair, across his temples, and the closed cheeklines behind his ears.

Of course, it's not just his gillline that's different from humans—there's also the tiny scales that spread from his ankles to the base of his thighs, and the translucent membranes between his fingers and toes, which are generally called "webs." ".The surface of his eyes has a layer of transparent eyelids that humans don't have, which can protect his eyeballs in sea water, but because of this reason, Lei's eyesight is not very good on land.He let out a long breath, and relaxed a little because of the physical comfort, then he raised his head, squinted his eyes and looked at his destination, which was a black stone house standing on the edge of the cliff.

He knew it as well as he knew the owner of the stone house—he had spent months researching information about him before diving into this silent and private realm.

People usually called the man "Old Man", occasionally "Mermaid Living History", or, "Old Man Miracle".

As a mutant mermaid, Vincent Sievers survived for an amazingly long time. In a sense, it may indeed be called a "miracle".Most of the modified mermaids (they are called "mutants" in historical records) have a very short lifespan. Even in the most ideal state, they can only have a lifespan of about 18 to 20 years.Considering that they were originally developed for the purpose of "weapons", they poured out their own life energy in order to increase their force value - in the era when Wen Sen lived, "Siren" was just a relatively cheap disposable item That's all.

However, Vincent Sievers seems to be one of the accidents. When he was young, he encountered a terrible mutation, which may have caused a certain gene in his body to go wrong, so he had a merman. Longer than humans, and longer than most mammals in this world.

There had never been a precedent in the world where everyone Vincent Sievers had known ended up disappearing, leaving him far behind.Lei didn't know if it was because of this loneliness that Vincent finally decided to close himself up. In short, according to the data, the ancient mermaid has been staying in the stone house with no people around it since 50 years ago.

He never communicated with the outside world, and he rarely left that tomb-like but tightly guarded house. He was still alive... but it seemed that he had no connection with this world.

Countless people have speculated that Vincent Sievers would die by suicide in the end, after all, he had shown signs of insanity a long, long time ago—although the biographer who wrote the unauthorized biography also died more than ten years ago because of Old and dead, Vincent Sievers, surprisingly, has always lived in this world.

Lei moved slowly. Like a cat, he avoided the detectors hidden in the weeds, climbed to the top from the path on the other side of the cliff that was almost taken over by weeds, and came to the stone house.

Thank God, his half-mermaid physique allowed him to complete this complex series of activities.

As has been said before, the stone house looked like a tomb in every respect-even after being so long baked by the sun, the stones were still cold and lifeless.Weeds densely surround the outside of the stone house, and under the golden-red sunlight, the narrow windows on the side of the stone house reflect a little light.

The chirping of insects echoed resentfully in the gaps in the grass blades, but it seemed that the black building was so silent.

Lei skillfully took out his tools and was about to unlock the door, but when the retainer touched the lock that was covered with copper rust, he immediately realized that the door was not locked.Lei's footsteps paused, and he couldn't help feeling some panic.

Could it be that the information was leaked?

Did anyone already know of his arrival?

There was fine cold sweat on his forehead, and his heart was beating wildly.

Really experienced thieves can keep calm no matter what they encounter, but Ray has to admit that he is not a good rogue-oh yes, it seems that we forgot to introduce his profession before, he is a Thief for hire.

And his goal is the wealth owned by that legendary creature, Vincent Sievers.

Time goes by too fast, and people's lives are so short compared to Vincent Sievers, and few people would remember that a long, long time ago, he was once one of the richest human beings on this earth... Moreover, his treasures are said to be rare and unmonitored by any existing network.

After all, after he accumulated that amazing wealth, the regimes and countries on this continent have been torn apart many times due to wars.

The insiders will only pass on the news about Vincent Sievers in the dark, and they secretly call him "Solomon", implying the hugeness of his treasure.

Of course, Ray and the employer behind him are not greedy. All they want is the blue diamond called "Siren" - according to the fragmented information, it was given to his brother by Vincent Sievers A birthday present from Rand Sievers.

It is the largest, most beautiful and purest blue diamond ever seen on earth.

However, it only appeared for a moment - in the end, its existence was permanently sealed, and it never appeared in people's field of vision again.According to speculation, after the death of Rand Sievers, this diamond returned to Vincent's hands again. After all, the latter collected almost all the relics of the former, including this black stone house.

"He guards the dilapidated relics like a dragon guarding jewels. He seems to be crazy, but his madness makes me sad"... This is the last friend of the Sievers family dying Ex-evaluation of Vincent Sievers.

And Lei was the one chosen to steal the treasure under the claws of the old dragon last year.

Ray hesitated only a moment at the door, but soon he remembered the dire threats his employer had made against him.

He struggled for a while, but finally decided to go with the plan.

After all, Vincent Sievers is too old to be old. According to the information passed to him by his employer, part of his brain has begun to shrink, and his physiological functions have reached their limit.

Ray thought he might be better off than the hirer.

Then he sighed, held his breath, and gently pushed the door open.

With the breath of dust, a trace of cold air flows out,

He walked slowly towards the living room by stepping on the loose wooden boards. The air was filled with a decaying smell. He tried his best to lighten his steps, but the floor was still uncontrollably "creaking" and "creaking" under his feet. It sounded like some living thing was moaning in pain.

Ray Ferrell's heart clenched tightly, he was terrified, his nerves had already collapsed to the tightest point—however, tens of seconds passed, and amidst such an obvious sound, no one in the whole room did anything to his intrusion out response.

Out of an inexplicable compulsion, he walked forward step by step, and pushed open the heavy door of the living room. The next moment, Ray Ferro saw Vincent Sievers on the sofa in the living room.

He is still alive.

"Oh, damn it!"

He cursed subconsciously, trying to escape reflexively.

"Shh..."

However, the old man made a hoarse sound from behind the sofa, and a long, bony tail protruded out from the place of life.

It tripped Ray to the ground.

"listen……"

Vincent said to Lei with a pale face.

Ray Ferrell pressed his lips together tightly, his heart almost stopped beating with panic.

You know, he has seen those top-secret materials, and he knows the terrible things that Vincent Sievers did as a "monster" when he was young.

In the silence, the voice that swept into the living room became clear——

"Whoa..."

"Whoa..."

"Whoa..."

……

It was the monotonous splash of waves as they hit the rocks.

Ray Ferrell noticed that the windows in the living room were all open, and the salty sea breeze was blowing the discolored curtains...

The cabinets and carpets near the window have been obviously deformed and eroded. It is obvious that Vincent Sievers has always kept the window open, even if it makes the area where he stays less comfortable.

Vincent's body was sunken in the sofa, his face was facing the sea, staring at the small piece of blue like a sculpture for a long time.

Ray Ferret observed him carefully. Vincent was indeed old...he was skinny, with protruding cheekbones and sunken cheeks, long silver hair scattered behind his head, and eyes that were a strange red that Reminiscent of the charcoal fire that is about to go out but still has the last trace of heat, his body appears to be composed of bones and a white film—the long and deformed tail, the slender fingers, and the cold gaze, which look even more Like some kind of old, mad beast.

He once saw the appearance of Vincent Sievers in a historical documentary - he was such a handsome and majestic man like a king, it was difficult to connect him with the current Vincent.

"Don't you think it's beautiful?" At this moment, Vincent suddenly turned his head and said to Ray Ferro in a creepy and pleasant tone.

"Eh? What..."

"The sound of the waves, the sound of the waves always reminds me of the old days, Rand."

"..."

Ray Ferrell frowned. Looking at Vincent with a kind expression, he felt a strong sense of disobedience.

"Oh, why don't you talk? Are you angry again? Because I won't let you go to your little beast?"

Vincent stretched out his hand at this moment, and tightly grasped Ray Ferro's wrist.

Ray Ferrell almost felt like a fairy in the forest—he seemed to have no weight under Vincent's palm, and Vincent easily lifted his body and let him sit beside him.

Ray Ferrell's hairs stood on end at the approach of the white "dragon," his coat soaked in cold sweat, his teeth chattering.

It wasn't quite right—the mermaid blood in him was almost driving him down to the ground and kissing Vincent Sievers' withered tail fin.

He was forced to stare at each other with Vincent.

The blank mind brought on by fear made it almost impossible for him to look away.

A few minutes later, Lei suddenly realized that the monster in front of him was not really looking at him, but another phantom that had left.

Ray Ferro's face turned pale.

What he knew... yes, he had known for a long time, the real reason why the mysterious employer hired him to walk into this stone house was of course not his lame theft skills, but his resemblance to someone.

Ray Ferro has black curly hair, a thin figure and skin that is too pale for a man, and his eyes are a gloomy forest green. Because of health problems in his childhood, Ray Ferro's temperament is melancholy boring...

All this is so similar to another person in the distant past.

After seeing the photo of Rand Sievers on the information, even Ray himself felt an inexplicable fear.

His breathing became rapid and flustered.

"Uh, Si, Mr. Sievers, I'm sorry for everything I did, I, I was hired..."

"Please, Rand, don't call me that. I don't want our dispute to continue."

Vincent stood up unsteadily, interrupted Lei's flustered defense, and walked towards the closet.

"Actually, I didn't throw that thing away, so you don't have to fight with me..."

"..."

Ray Ferret looked at Vincent dumbfounded, he was very at a loss.

However, his silence seemed to lead the chaotic Vincent into another scene.

"Okay, I admit it's a bit childish—" Vincent turned to look at Ray Ferrell, "I'm just a little angry."

He took a box from the closet and showed it to Ray Ferrell in the palm of his hand.

Under Vincent's earnest gaze, Ray Ferro had no choice but to bite the bullet and take the box.

It's rusted and doesn't look like it used to.

Ray Ferrell twisted the lid with difficulty, but the moment he opened it, the contents inside spilled out.

"Damn!"

Ray Ferreau blurted out.

Some white things were scattered on the floor, and he squatted down in a panic to pick them up.

At first he thought it was a pearl, but after pinching it in his hand, he was surprised to find that it was one tooth after another.

Sharp, still gleaming teeth.

Ray Ferrell recognized it as the merman's baby tooth.

Vincent laughed on the sidelines (Ray Ferreau swore he had never heard such a hearty laughter), as he said himself, he looked very childish, childish gloating.

"It's not my fault!"

He looked at the scattered mermaid milk teeth and said with a smile, as if he thought the busy Ray Ferrell was very interesting, his eyes narrowed, and the red color in his pupils became brighter like burnt coals .

Ray Ferrell swallowed a mouthful of bitter saliva, he really didn't know how to deal with everything in front of him.

His near vision was not so good that picking up those mermaid teeth from the floor became a chore.

But it was absolutely impossible for him to just let them scatter on the ground like this—he probably guessed whose teeth these belonged to.

That was another legendary merman, a real merman.

Rand and Munster.

The savior of the mermaid.

They are always inseparable, and in the early days of the discovery of the mermaid species, they cooperated with Wen Sen to prevent them from being used by the human government at that time.

They were... true legends at the time.

Ray Ferrell's fingers trembled.

And another pale, bony hand pressed the back of his hand.

Vincent Sievers looked at Lei tenderly and sighed helplessly.

"God, are you really angry? You haven't always loved this shit, I really didn't expect you to lose your temper with it." Obviously, in Vincent Sievers's shriveled and rotting brain , what is constructed is another scene that happened in the past.

Ray dealt with all this absurdity tensely and flusteredly.

He didn't know what was wrong with him, but when he realized it, he found that he had already opened his mouth to answer the other party.

"I, I'm not angry."

Immediately he saw Vincent Sievers' face brighten a little.

"Come on, you're not without anger."

Vincent shrugged, and he helped "Rand" (actually Ray) pick up all the mermaid teeth.

He slowly raised himself up with his tail, and said to the imaginary Rand with a hint of affection that could not be concealed.

"Tell me, what are you doing here?" Vincent looked at the dark corridor and twitched his lips. "It's really rare that you didn't bring that idiot with you."

Ray felt his throat become dry and hoarse, and his heart beat like it could burst out of his chest in the next second.

He simply wanted to follow his instinct and leave this damned place, this inexplicable old man with a broken head.

But at this moment, a series of instructions came from the walkie-talkie embedded in his ear canal.

Lei's body stiffened instantly.

"Rand?"

Vincent quickly noticed that something was wrong with Lei, he stopped his movements, and looked at him with concern in his bright red eyes.

"Uh...actually..."

Ray said dryly.

"Actually, I'm here to get something..." Ray felt his voice tremble almost out of tone, and it was hard to imagine that Vincent Sievers could understand, "'Siren', I seem to send you to me The 'Siren' fell to you."

"'Sirens'?"

Vincent shook his head in confusion, then laughed dumbfounded.

"That diamond? You never brought that thing out, I remember you said it yourself, you don't like that thing."

As he said this, his tail slid gently on the floor.

From Ray's point of view, you can clearly see those lethal weapon-like organs on his body.

Ray almost collapsed.

"No, no, I just casually—"

He tried to change his words, but Vincent cut him off again.

"Forget it, if you like, you can get another piece from me. Mr. Sheriff sent a yellow one earlier, and the cut is not bad."

Vincent Sievers said casually.

Ray could hear the gasp of the group on the intercom in his ear canal.

Well, here's another stunning yellow diamond.

If he can get it, Ray can not only easily pay off his terrible debt, but also redeem his freedom.

He started to get anxious.

"Okay, okay, the yellow ones are pretty good too."

He said.

"However, as a thank you, should you agree to a small request of mine?"

However, at this moment, Vincent said to Lei unexpectedly.

After seeing Ray's eyes widen in horror, he laughed.

"For the sake of that stupid amphibian not being with you, have dinner with me. It's been a long time since we've been alone together."

Vincent said, patting Lei's stiff shoulder affectionately.

……

After a few seconds, Ray nodded at him.

"of course."

He said.

To Ray's surprise, it was a very simple dinner.And it's made by Vincent himself—and even someone as nervous as Thunder has to admit that the creamy pumpkin soup and eggplant pasta taste good.

A candle was burning in the center of the dining table, and the light was dim. Amid the sound of the waves, there was only the sound of the knife and fork in Lei's hand hitting the dinner plate.

This made him feel like he was sitting on pins and needles, but Vincent on the other side didn't seem to care.

There's even a sense in which he looks so jovial that he appears to be chattering.

"...I admit that I don't like Munster, your behavior becomes vulgar with him, God, don't always blame me for being too harsh on it, even if you look at it in the mermaid Low and vulgar, I'm afraid that one day you'll be as stupid as it is..."

Vincent kept complaining about the mermaid who had left this world long, long ago.

If it weren't for his whining, Ray probably would never have known that the legendary mermaid Munster was, in real life, a chocolate popcorn and shiny plastic...dumb (Vincentian).