Si Lu glanced at Lan Amber beside her and couldn't help but laugh softly.
He really was a little silly… but also incredibly cute.
She quietly let him hold her hand as they swam deeper into the ocean.
"Lulu, look over there! That's a jellyfish!" Lan Amber pointed excitedly toward a glowing area ahead.
He knew Si Lu had been overjoyed by the coral and colorful fish earlier—so when he spotted a swarm of jellyfish, he immediately wanted to show her.
Even mermaids loved watching jellyfish drift in great glowing groups.
Si Lu turned in the direction he pointed, and her breath caught.
Countless jellyfish floated like slow-moving stars, glowing with pastel blues, purples, and pinks. It was like stumbling into a dreamscape—mesmerizing and unreal.
She'd already been amazed by the vibrant corals and enormous clams, but this… this was something else entirely.
"I can't believe how beautiful they are," she whispered. "Your ocean… it's like a fairytale."
She looked over at Lan Amber, eyes full of wonder and envy.
How could anyone not want to live here?
Did mermaids ever get tired of seeing such beauty every day? Or maybe they just stopped noticing it…
"You're welcome to visit anytime," Lan Amber said, smiling. "I'll come pick you up whenever you want. Honestly, we sea beastmen grow up around sights like this—after a while, we stop being amazed by it."
"But today… seeing it all through your eyes… it feels new again. Like I'm experiencing it for the first time."
He looked at her with gentle eyes that seemed to glow brighter than the jellyfish around them.
Si Lu tilted her head, slightly confused by his tone. She understood what he said—but not quite what he meant.
Yet somehow… there was something in the way he looked at her.
So soft. So warm.
Was she imagining it?
"Lulu," Lan Amber said, his voice low and sincere. "I… I like you."
Si Lu blinked, stunned.
"I've liked you since the moment I saw you," he continued. "That necklace I gave you—it was my mother's. It means everything to me… but I gave it to you because you're important to me."
He took her hand and pressed it gently to his chest. His ice-blue eyes shimmered with emotion.
Si Lu stared at him, frozen.
He likes me?
He said he… likes me?
From the very beginning?
Her heart thudded, a strange warmth flooding her chest. She didn't know what to say.
It was too sudden. Too unexpected.
"Lulu… are you scared?" Lan Amber asked softly. "Or is it… you don't like me? You don't want me to be your partner?"
His voice wavered slightly, and the light in his eyes dimmed with sadness.
Si Lu's chest tightened.
"No!" she said quickly. "I don't dislike you. It's just… I already have five partners. And three cubs."
She said it directly—she didn't want to hide it. Lan Amber was kind and beautiful. He deserved to know the truth.
She didn't know if he'd still want her after that.
And if he didn't… she wouldn't blame him.
Lan Amber paused, then smiled.
"That's okay. I'll be the sixth. Is that alright?"
He held her hand a little tighter.
In the Orc Continent, it wasn't rare for a female to have many partners. And for someone as kind and gorgeous as Si Lu? Five was surprisingly few. He was thrilled she still had room for one more.
Si Lu stared at him, speechless.
Did he… not hear what she said? Or was he really just that okay with being number six?
"You're serious?" she asked, eyes narrowing slightly.
"I am. Sixth is perfect. I love it." Lan Amber grinned.
"But you're a mermaid. You live in the sea. I live on land. Can we really be together?" Si Lu asked, her excitement dimming with uncertainty. "My beastmen husbands hate water. What then?"
Lan Amber smiled reassuringly. "I can live on land too."
Si Lu blinked. "But… your tail?"
Did he just assume it would be that easy?
Could a mermaid really live on land? Wouldn't it hurt him? Would it affect his body?
Lan Amber chuckled at her worried expression.
"Mermaids can shift their tails into legs, like yours," he explained. "We just don't do it often because we don't like being on land. But it's not impossible."
"As long as I can be with you, I'm willing to try."
He reached out and gently stroked her head.
"But… I read in stories that mermaids have to pay a huge price to walk on land," Si Lu said, eyes clouded with concern. "Something about sea witches and forbidden magic… and how every step feels like walking on knives… and that it shortens your life…"
She looked up at him, worried. "Is that true? Please tell me you're not lying."
"I do like you… but I don't want you to suffer because of me."
Lan Amber stared at her for a moment—then burst out laughing.
"You… you really believe that?" he said between chuckles. "Where did you even hear something so dramatic?"
"I dunno! Storybooks? Fairytales?" Si Lu muttered, cheeks red.
Lan Amber grinned. "There are no witches in our sea, Lulu. No deals with devils. And no cursed transformations. That's all nonsense."
His heart swelled as he looked at her.
She was worried about him.
She liked him enough to care about his well-being.
That was more than he ever dared hope for.
"Really?" Si Lu asked, still a little doubtful.
"Really," Lan Amber said with a smile, eyes crinkling. "I wouldn't lie to you."
"You're such a silly female sometimes, you know that?" he teased, ruffling her hair.
Si Lu pouted. "I'm not silly…"
"You are," he whispered affectionately. "And you're perfect."
His gaze lingered on her, full of love.
The little female he liked not only accepted him—but worried about his safety, thought about their future, and wanted him to live well.
Lan Amber couldn't stop smiling.
She was too cute.
And she was his now—even if it meant being the sixth.
That was more than enough for him.