In the beginning, Ning Busan was just inexplicably thirsty and wanted to drink water.
Although it was a bit strange, he did not take it to heart.
Within two days, a pale blue mucus began to seep from the surface of his skin, carrying a salty, briny odor.
Most strangely of all, he began to dream of the deep sea.
The sound of the tide echoed in his ears, and his nasal passages were filled with a salty brine, as if countless hands were dragging him down by his ankles.
Suspecting he had been targeted, Ning Busan stumbled over to find Leo. “I think I've been cursed.”
Leo said, “I don't sense any curse on you.”
“Then it must be a plague.”
“It's not a plague either. There isn't even a trace of dark element aura on you.”
“I can't just be sick, can I?” Ning Busan felt itchy all over. “Find me a large water tub! I can't take it anymore. I'm going to dry up and die!”
Leo took him to the palace hot springs.
The moment Ning Busan entered the water, four thin slits suddenly split open on the inside of his throat. Blood welled out, quickly forming trembling, bright red membranes—gills.
Ning Busan tried to breathe, but his gill slits snapped open, and he actually blew a mouthful of bubbles.
“Hahahahaha...” Leo's laughter was wild, and he even recorded the scene with a crystal ball. “Louis, you're blowing bubbles! You can actually blow bubbles!”
Ning Busan was suffering from both physical and mental torture, driving him nearly insane. “Damn it! What on earth is going on?”
“Since it's not a curse or a plague, it can only be poison,” Leo said solemnly. “A situation like yours is clearly related to the Siren Clan.”
Ning Busan was puzzled. “The Siren Clan? I've never even seen a siren before. Why would one poison me?”
Leo smiled meaningfully. “That depends on who you've offended.”
Ning Busan blew a bubble.
Had he offended anyone?
Hadn't he always been kind to others?
Surely it couldn't be because he ate too much seafood?
But he didn't even like seafood!
Soon, Novalia learned of Ning Busan's poisoning. When she saw him soaking in the hot springs, her expression changed drastically.
Leo asked, “Do you know what kind of poison this is?”
Novalia nodded gravely. “My mother passed away from this very poison.”
“At first, she was just like Ning Busan, extremely dehydrated and exhibiting traits of marine creatures. As more time passed, she would...”
Leo asked, “What would happen?”
Novalia said word by word, “She would lose her mind, forget her identity as a human, and turn into a sea monster that feeds on fish.”
Ning Busan blew a large stream of bubbles. “I don't like eating fish!”
Novalia said, “Alaphon must know who poisoned Ning Busan. I'll go and ask him.”
Ning Busan asked, “Who is Alaphon?”
Novalia said, “That was the former King's name.”
Ning Busan realized.
So the imprisoned King actually had a name.
After Novalia left, Ning Busan said to Leo, “Help me add some salt to the hot spring. I feel like I should be living in saltwater, not freshwater.”
Leo went to the kitchen, brought back a large vat of salt, and poured it into the hot spring.
He teased, “Maybe we should add some seasoning and simmer you on low heat. What do you think?”
Ning Busan said, “I think your thoughts are far too malicious!”
With that, he swam comfortably in the hot spring.
Despite soaking in the water for so long, his skin did not wrinkle at all, which was truly miraculous.
Meanwhile, Novalia went to the place where Alaphon was imprisoned.
In the empty hall, Alaphon's hair was as messy as withered grass, and his unkempt beard ran wild across his chin.
The once-mighty King now looked disheveled and pitiful.
Yet Novalia felt not a shred of pity for him, only deep disgust and hatred.
“Who poisoned Ning Busan? Is it the same person who harmed my mother?”
Alaphon's laughter was sinister and hoarse. “You want to know the truth? Well, I'm simply not going to tell you.”
A blazing fire of anger burned in Novalia's heart. “How can you be so cruel? My mother loved you so much, yet you poisoned her.”
Alaphon roared, “I told you, I wasn't the one who poisoned her!”
“Not you?” Novalia pressed forward step by step. “Do you dare claim you knew absolutely nothing? Even if you didn't administer the poison yourself, it certainly has everything to do with you.”
A flash of anger crossed Alaphon's muddy eyes. “Quina and I loved each other back then! If your grandfather hadn't interfered, what would that other woman have to do with anything?”
“Only when that woman died could Quina take her rightful place!”
Novalia sneered. “Don't make yourself sound so devoted. My mother liked you, which was why my grandfather tested your attitude. If you truly loved Quina, you could have rejected him back then.”
“You only married my mother to gain my grandfather's support so he would help you ascend to the throne.”
“Once your throne was secure, you banished my grandfather from the empire, murdered my mother, and installed Quina as the new Queen. You are the truly despicable one!”
“Hahahahaha...” Alaphon laughed loudly. “Even if I am despicable, I am still better than a mother-killer like you!”
Enraged, Novalia's eyes turned bloodshot. With a swing of her sword, she sheared off Alaphon's crown.
During that period, her mother's bedchamber had been filled with a foul, fishy stench.
Live fish, dead fish, rotting fish.
The once elegant and noble Queen had turned into a scale-covered sea monster, forced to soak in a water vat and feed on fish all day.
Novalia had tried every method, but she still couldn't save her.
Until one day, her mother finally regained her sanity for a brief moment.
But looking at the ugly monster in the mirror, she pleaded, “Living like this is too painful. It would be better to set me free...”
Novalia had the ability to stop her from committing suicide, but the sheer despair in her mother's eyes left Novalia without even the courage to do so.
Her mother drew Novalia's sword and slit her own throat.
From then on, Novalia carried the reputation of having killed her own mother.
“Are you going to kill me? Do you dare kill me?” Alaphon said, his hair disheveled. “Those who kill their fathers or mothers will go to Hell after they die.”
Novalia's voice was ice-cold. “I won't kill you, because that would be too easy on you.”
“I want you to be imprisoned here forever, dying a lonely death. That is the greatest punishment for you.”
Alaphon's eyes were filled with venom. “Fine, then I will stay here and curse you day and night. I will curse you and Ning Busan to die miserable deaths, to appease William's soul in heaven.”
This father and daughter had long since lost any trace of familial affection, leaving only pure, unadulterated hatred.
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