Chapter 53

◎United as One◎

Gany was oblivious in the pool; his remaining consciousness was focused solely on Regas. He walked straight toward the sculpture in the center of the pool. A soft voice in his hazy mind told him: Go over there, embrace Regas, and you can be together forever.

The Crown Prince, who was once out of reach for him, was now standing in the middle of the pool. If he walked a little further, he could reach out and hug him.

When Oser heard Céloë mention that the water in the pool was from the Salmasis spring, and then saw Ganesha wading towards the sculpture, he vaguely guessed Céloë's intentions.

However, such a perverse act, if done by Celoé, doesn't seem very surprising.

In ancient Greek mythology, Salmasis was a water nymph, while Hermaphrodites was the son of Hermes and Aphrodite. His face was very similar to his parents, making him extremely handsome.

When Hermaphrodites went out for a stroll, he came across a pond with clear water. He stopped by the pond to look at his reflection. The water nymph of this pond was Salmasis.

Sarmasis fell madly in love with the handsome young man, seducing him and very directly proposing to him, but was rejected.

She pretended to leave, but was actually spying on him. The boy, thinking she had left, took off his clothes and walked into the pool.

All of this was witnessed by Salmasis. As if bewitched, she jumped into the pool and embraced the boy, kissing him forcefully while caressing his chest. No matter how much the boy struggled, she clung to him like a snake.

In order to be with the boy forever, Salmasis prayed to the gods, and the gods granted her request. So they merged into one body, with the form of a young girl, but with androgynous physical characteristics.

Hermaphrodites then asked his parents to allow anyone who entered the pool to undergo the same transformation as he had. This pool is the water of Salmasis.

But this is just a legend. The waters of Salmasis do not turn people into hermaphrodites; their actual power is to unite the two things in the pool into one.

Oser found this in a book in his family's collection. At the time, he didn't pay much attention to it, assuming that in the ancient times when technology was underdeveloped, the ancestors of the Gamondon family regarded some strange legends as gospel in their pursuit of mysterious powers.

Although he still doesn't really want to believe these things, Celoé is a living example. He shattered Oser's previously unwavering belief in the so-called scientific claim that brainwaves are the human soul...

Now, Celoé says the water in this pool is from the Salmasis Spring, and Oser believes him. In fact, even though he hasn't yet seen any changes in Gani's body, he's begun to believe what he'd read in the family's archives.

"He really will..."

Oser didn't finish speaking, but Celoé already understood what he meant. "Just keep watching and you'll see. Besides, this is his own deepest desire, and I'm just fulfilling it for him."

Souls steeped in desire yet weak-willed are the easiest to manipulate and exploit. It's a pity that Regas and Lan Hua, though deeply driven by desire, possessed unwavering wills unmoved by external forces. Otherwise, he would have avoided much trouble.

Oser thought for a moment and then remained silent. Selloe's actions had no negative impact on him; their current requirement for Gani was simply to be an obedient tool. And his feelings for Gani were insignificant in the face of the enormous profits to come.

During the conversation, Gani had already walked to the center of the pool.

The statue in the center of the pool was a lustrous white. Gani's fingers first touched the statue's hand, then traced upwards along the hand, touching the statue's face.

The statue wasn't cold and hard as most people imagined. When Gani touched it, he felt as if it possessed human warmth, making him reluctant to let go. The statue seemed to truly have a soul; he could feel it gently watching over him, encouraging him to continue.

In Gani's eyes, the statue had completely transformed into a living person, possessing human warmth and color. He would smile indulgently at it and extend his hand to it.

Gani embraced "Regas", just like countless times in her dreams, tightly entwining "him", kissing "him", stroking "his" body, and feeling "his" warmth and heartbeat.

"Osei" watched as Gani clung to the sculpture, caressing and kissing it with an infatuated expression, a mocking smile on his face.

"Is it because you didn't satisfy your marriage partner? Making him so thirsty like a 'pervert'?" Séloë sneered.

This is a statue of Seloe, intended to bewitch Gani, but he never expected it to have such a far greater effect than he imagined. However, seeing this man like this, even though he has now left the statue, it was once the dwelling place of his soul, and it inevitably makes him feel uneasy.

"When you did this, didn't you think he would do this?" Osser retorted, unable to accept what Celoé said, his counterattack somewhat tinged with embarrassment and anger.

"I only aroused his desires, but I didn't expect him to be more interesting than I thought. He's practically a living Sarmasis." He lives only in his own world, cares only about his beautiful appearance, and has no sense of shame.

Osei: "..." He didn't want to talk to Celoé at all right now. He found it unbearable that Gani was acting purely out of her own desires; it was like a slap in the face to him.

Fortunately, no one else witnessed this, which was the only thing Oser was thankful for. His last remaining feelings for Gani vanished in the face of this immense shame.

This scene did not last long.

Gani felt himself getting infinitely closer to "His Highness the Crown Prince," as if they were about to become one. He felt very happy, both in his heart and body, and he wanted to be with His Highness the Crown Prince forever.

"Osei" coldly watched as Gani and the statue gradually merged into one. Gani seemed to still be the same Gani, while the statue seemed to gradually become transparent and disappear.

Finally, the statue that had stood in the center of the pool disappeared, leaving only a bas-relief base with swirling patterns. Gani stood on the base, as if she had taken the place of the statue.

Gani's obsessive and fanatical expression did not disappear immediately after the statue vanished. His empty eyes revealed that his personal consciousness was still in a state of chaos, with only instinct and desire controlling his body.

However, this fanatical, almost dazed expression gradually disappeared, and his original personal expression gradually returned, and his gaze gradually returned to normal.

A moment later, Osei heard Gani scream in terror: "What's going on?! How did I get here?"

At this moment, Celoé, perched on Ose's body, leaned against a tall stone pillar in the underground palace, looking at Gani. Hearing Gani's voice, he chuckled softly, "Have you really forgotten how you ended up here?"

Gani staggered off the pedestal and waded through the pool water to the ground. Because she ran so fast, the once quiet pool water suddenly splashed.

Standing on the ground of the underground palace, Gani, still shaken, finally felt a little safer and more at ease. He breathed heavily, recalling everything that had happened.

He had been in a daze, as if his mind was shrouded in a fog. But now, the fog was gradually dissipating, and he was beginning to remember what had happened.

From the moment Oser pinched his chin and guided him to say that he liked Regas, his consciousness seemed to be suppressed, leaving only instinct to guide his body's speech and actions.

He vividly recalled arriving at this mysterious underground palace with Ose, wading through the water towards the statue of Regas, and then embracing it, doing everything he had dreamed of. The immense excitement and joy of having his desires fulfilled filled his chest, allowing him to still feel the thrill and emotional turmoil he had experienced.

He knew this was what he had always wanted to say and do. The thrill and excitement that seemed to touch his very soul was something he had never experienced with Osei.

If things had remained at that moment, he might have simply thought it was a beautiful dream. Because in that daze, the sculpture felt so real, like human skin, soft and warm to the touch. But upon clearing his mind, he could discern that the sculpture was actually cold and hard.

As he recalled everything that had just happened, his breathing became rapid and heavy; he felt himself struggling to breathe. He felt his body growing heavier. The feeling was so real that he began to doubt whether it was an illusion…

He tried to raise his hand to see what had changed. But when he did, he clearly felt his movements become slow and stiff, not as agile and free as usual.

He wanted to glare at his suspected culprit, Osei, and demand to know what Osei had done to him. But when his brain gave the command, his head and neck no longer responded or coordinated as quickly as before; instead, they slowly lifted his head and slowly turned towards Osei.

What...did...you...do...to...me...?

To Gani's horror, he discovered that his mouth and tongue seemed to be stiffening as well, and he could no longer utter a complete sentence. After speaking, he was panting heavily, but it felt as if a huge stone was pressing on his chest, making his breathing extremely heavy and labored.

Aside from his brain still functioning as normally as before, he could clearly feel his body gradually stiffening. To be precise, he felt as if he were turning into a statue.

He pinched his skin with difficulty. He could feel his body stiffening, but his skin was still warm and soft when he pinched it.

"Osei" looked at the terrified Gani and a satisfied smile appeared on his lips. He walked towards Gani with a leisurely and unhurried gait.

"If you want things to return to normal, just behave and listen to me."

Gani, always proud, had never suffered such humiliation, but reality filled him with despair. He felt as if he could barely breathe; the lack of oxygen made him dizzy. This fear of having his life controlled by others overcame his arrogant nature.

He nodded with difficulty.

“That’s a good boy.” “Osei” laughed, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes; his eyes were cold and deep. He reached out and patted Gani’s head, casually as if teasing a pet dog.

As soon as "Osei" finished speaking, Gani felt that he could finally breathe smoothly again, and even his neck was no longer stiff. He suddenly looked up and glared at Osei, wanting to curse this bastard, and planned to tell his father and brothers when he got home.

He wants to teach Osser a lesson!

However, as soon as he opened his mouth, he found that he still couldn't move his tongue. Then he belatedly realized that only his torso had returned to normal, and he could breathe and turn his head smoothly, but his limbs were still stiff and sluggish.

“Your body is now one with the statue,” “Ose” explained softly. “And only I can control this statue. So you must behave and not displease me.”

After saying that, he "gently" picked up the paralyzed Gani and walked out of the underground palace. His expression was gentle and his lips were smiling, like the most tender and affectionate lover.

Gani's arms "obediently" wrapped around "Osei's" neck. But no one could see the look of terror and panic on his face, which was buried in "Osei's" chest.

Because his arms were not under his control to wrap around Osei's neck, but rather as if he were being manipulated, his hands took the initiative to hug Osei's neck!

A note from the author:

Note: Reference books

The Complete Book of Mythology, by Arturo Marcelo Pasqual and Theo Gomez

Ovid, author of *The Metamorphosis*