Maggie looked speechless. She knew perfectly well that Spur was concerned about her, but his words sounded incredibly irritating, much like Ficklin's.
"He won't die."
She replied to Spur in an annoyed tone and walked out of the cave.
The strange changes within her body made Maggie very concerned, and she couldn't muster the energy to care about other people's emotions. Spoelstra felt a little wronged after being rebuked, but seeing Maggie's tired figure, he eventually kept quiet.
No one expected Maggie to resolve the matter in this way.
When the chieftain, who was waiting outside, saw Maggie emerge covered in blood, a complex expression appeared on his aged face. He already knew what had happened inside the cave, so his gaze towards Maggie now held a myriad of indescribable emotions.
Maggie looked up, simply nodded to the clan leader, and prepared to leave.
It's not that I disrespect the elderly; she was just too tired and wanted to rest for a while.
Unexpectedly, the clan chief swam towards her and bowed deeply to her.
"You deserve the gratitude of the entire merfolk. If it weren't for you, the merfolk might have faced extinction."
The clan leader was well aware of Ghost Shadow's strength and personality. If Maggie hadn't discovered this conspiracy and successfully thwarted it, the Merfolk would still be struggling in the quagmire of Ice Merfolk, no, Merfolk Puppet.
"...No need."
Maggie was silent for a moment, then uttered only two words.
While she did objectively save the merfolk, she had her own ulterior motives in doing so. She wanted to understand the weaknesses of the monsters, not simply for the sake of the merfolk.
In addition, she was really not used to being bowed to by elders, whether in the Elven race or now, it made her feel like it shortened her lifespan.
The chieftain should be the oldest mermaid in the tribe. Maggie noticed his kindness and affection for Xiu when they first met, even though the chieftain had previously opposed her participation in the Ice Mermaid's investigation.
But all of this is understandable, and it's normal to be wary of foreign tribes.
Maggie didn't dislike the chieftain, but she was even less adept at dealing with such an elderly person, so she didn't linger and chose to leave directly, even though it seemed very impolite.
Of course, it could also be because she has never been genuinely cared for by such an elderly person.
Because she was originally a child who had never experienced the love and care of her grandparents, she could only feel envy but didn't know how to respond.
Xiu followed closely behind and saw his most respected grandfather thanking Maggie. He felt a mix of emotions and didn't go forward for a moment.
However, he knew a little about Maggie's personality, and after Maggie left, he slowly stepped forward and walked to his grandfather's side.
"She doesn't dislike you."
Xiu spoke softly, looking at Maggie's retreating figure as he spoke to his grandfather.
"Yes, she's a... good girl."
As the clan chief spoke, he seemed to recall what had happened before, and paused for a moment before speaking.
"However, if you plan to stay by her side... you should still keep an eye on her."
He was worried about the unnatural fanaticism Maggie was displaying, her disrespect for life, her fearlessness, and her behavior that had gone beyond the standards of normal humans, becoming increasingly sinister.
Upon hearing his grandfather's words, Xiu's expression stiffened almost imperceptibly, but he still managed to say something.
“I will return to my tribe whatever my grandfather says.”
His bipolar disorder is now cured, the ice mermaid problem has been completely solved, and his reasons for leaving the seabed to go to human territory have been perfectly resolved. So all that's left for him is the 'Heart of the Ocean' that he hasn't retrieved.
Once he retrieves the 'Heart of the Ocean,' he will no longer need to live on human territory.
This was the result he had always longed for.
This is also why he made a deal with Maggie.
Xiu thought this way, and his words conveyed the same idea, but his throat inexplicably tightened, as if... he didn't expect this outcome.
The clan leader glanced at Xiu and sighed silently in his heart.
How could she not understand the personality of the child she raised? The slight trembling of his ear fins due to nervousness, and the unconscious clenching of his palms when he said one thing but meant another—all these reactions told him that Xiu had already fallen for that girl.
To be fair, Maggie is an outstanding girl by any racial standard.
However, her cold-bloodedness, indifference, and aloofness make her an unsuitable object of affection.
In the end, it's always your own child who gets hurt.
The clan leader felt a headache whenever he thought about this, but he was unaware of the situation he was in, and for a moment he didn't know whether he should point it out or not.
If the truth is revealed and no response is received, Xiu will suffer; if the truth is not revealed and unexpected things happen later, Xiu will still suffer.
This dilemma was something that Yu, an old man who had lived for hundreds of years, never expected.
In his eyes, Xiu was an extremely intelligent and outstanding child.
Unfortunately, love is a difficult hurdle to overcome.
"Never mind, child. The most important thing is to understand your own heart, otherwise you'll only regret it later."
In the end, the clan chief did not choose to confront the matter. If the budding love could die like this, it would be a good thing for Xiu, since that girl was not a good match.
But he couldn't bear it in the end and offered some words of advice.
"Um?"
Xiu wasn't very clear about his feelings either. He seemed smart, but he was actually clueless. By the time he wanted to ask, the clan leader was already preparing to lead the merfolk back to the settlement, so he lost the chance to ask.
...
Maggie was the first to return to the mermaid settlement, found her room, went back to bed, and fell asleep immediately.
When she woke up again, the mermaid settlement had become lively again. The moment she stepped out the door, she thought she had traveled through time.
The outside was decorated like a festival, noisy and bustling, with many baby mermaids floating in the water, blowing bubbles freely.
Their tails weren't fully developed yet, they were short and chubby, and their arms were more like those of a human baby, but they swam very freely in the water.
When they saw Maggie, some of them curiously approached, looking at Maggie's legs from a distance, seemingly not understanding why Maggie was different from them and didn't have a tail.
It turned out that the crisis of the ice mermaids had been resolved, and the entire mermaid settlement had returned to its previous relaxed and carefree state.
The mermaid babies kept indoors can also be let out to play without worrying about being stolen or lost.
Because of the victory celebration, the decorations today are very elaborate, it looks like a holiday.
Mermaids celebrate festivals differently than humans; their decorations consist of seashells, luminous stones, and pearls, creating a secluded and tranquil paradise in the deep sea.
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