"The route is wrong."

The shark-men leader, Yego, followed behind Rita, swimming eastward with the ocean current, and asked curiously, "Where are we going?"

Rita turned around and said, "Most mermaids choose to settle on the north shore of Waiheke Island. Now, I'm taking you to our settlement on the coast."

Yago was completely bewildered: "You live on the coast? You've abandoned the ocean? The sea, the pastures, the food—what are you going to do?"

Rita replied, "Apart from a few mermaid warriors who remain on the border to conduct reconnaissance, very few people are willing to live and herd livestock in the mermaid's territory."

Yego said with a hint of disdain, "Mermaids, lazy."

Rita said nonchalantly, "You could say we're lazy, but we've shifted our focus to trade and seafood rather than herding and farming."

"Trade? Seafood? I don't understand."

Rita swam her fishtail, looking towards the distant shore, and said softly, "When we reach the mermaids' gathering place, you will naturally understand everything I've said."

Yege glanced at the mermaid's retreating figure, then shut his mouth and said nothing more.

Half an hour later, Rita led Yago to the north shore of Waiheke Island, the mermaids' home.

Emerging from the water and looking at the hundreds of exquisite stone buildings constructed along the shore, Yege's eyes widened, and he exclaimed in disbelief, "You... live on land?!"

Rita did not answer Yego's question, but raised her arm and waved towards the mermaid village.

"It's the clan leader! The clan leader is back!"

Amid cheers, dozens of fully armed mermaid warriors swam to the shore and forcefully pushed open the wooden gate resembling a sluice gate.

After passing through the sturdy and massive sluice gate, Yege swam into a large waterway that was three meters deep and five meters wide, made of cement.

This long waterway leads all the way to the heart of the mermaid village, branching into countless smaller waterways that lead to every house.

As Yege was marveling at everything before him, the mermaids in the village also noticed this uninvited guest.

The shark-man's ugly and ferocious appearance immediately caused commotion and panic among the mermaids.

The mermaid children were immediately taken home by their parents and locked inside; the mermaid warriors, meanwhile, took up their weapons and began shouting at Yego and his people.

Rita raised her trident high and slammed it into the water. The splash and loud noise immediately calmed the mermaids in the village.

"Quiet!" Rita called out. "I invited these neighbors over! No one is to be rude!"

Seeing the mermaids' alarmed expressions, Yego wiggled his fins, bared his teeth, and said to Rita in a mocking tone, "Mermaids, cowards."

Ignoring Yego's provocation, Rita continued swimming along the village's waterways until she reached the largest building in the center of the village, where she stopped with her fishtail.

Yege stared at the building constructed on the water, his mouth agape involuntarily.

This elegant and beautiful building is entirely white, with windows made of transparent crystal and curtains made of pearl tassels.

In Yegna’s limited memory, this building was comparable to the temple of the legendary ancient sea god.

Two mermaid maids swam out of the room, drew back the tasseled curtain, and bowed respectfully to welcome Rita's arrival.

Rita handed the trident to the servant behind her and said to Yego, "My neighbor, we've arrived. This is my home."

"Your home, here?" Yego's words were full of surprise, but when he followed Rita into the building, that surprise turned into complete shock.

A wide, circular pond, resembling a swimming pool, is located in the very center of the room. Handrails and shallow pools are installed around the pond, allowing mermaids in the water to climb onto the floor of the room.

On the surrounding shore, there were custom-made water-filled sofas, roaring fireplaces, and exquisitely beautiful harps. Looking around, Yege began to feel that his eyes couldn't take it all in.

Rita swam to the marble sofa that was half submerged in water and half built on the shore, grabbed the armrests, and rolled over to lie down in it.

The smooth touch and cool temperature made Rita let out a satisfied sigh.

"Yege, do you still remember those days?"

Rita's question made Yego turn around, and he asked in confusion, "The past?"

“I still remember clearly that eleven years ago, the underwater volcanic eruption destroyed nearly 60% of the pastures of our two races. In the month that followed, merfolk and shark people experienced the worst famine I had ever known.”

"Among the merfolk, in order to save food for the children and young adults, large numbers of elderly people spontaneously formed groups and left the tribe. They never returned." Rita took a glass of freshly squeezed juice from the maid and said with emotion as she drank it, "Among those people was my grandmother."

Turning her gaze to Yago, Rita continued, "I've even heard of such tragedies within the shark-people clan. Families, facing food shortages, are forced to have their children draw lots. The chosen baby sharks are taken to the dark depths far from the clan. To prevent these children from swimming back, the parents would even tie their tail fins to rocks with seaweed, ignoring their cries, and cruelly leave. I heard that you did the same..."

"Enough!" Yego roared angrily, sliding his fins along. "I don't want to hear it! I don't want to talk about it!"

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