Chapter 163: The Recognition And The Discovery!
Neve remembered what had happened the last time he was here by the waters.
He had almost drowned. He would have been sinking down into the dark depths of the shark territory with water filling his lungs if not for Maren’s help. If not for Maren’s sudden intervention, he would have lost his life that day.
He rubbed his small red panda palms together nervously, confused about how to summon Maren from the water. He could not go into the water or he was going to drown again. He did not know if the ability to breathe underwater would return without Maren’s help.
But then a thought struck him.
’Wait, what if I get into the water and I can breathe?’ he asked himself as he walked toward the shoreline. ’The last time I was here, Maren made it possible that I could breathe, right? Maybe the ability is permanent. Maybe I can go into the water without dying.’
The water just lapped against his legs and he stepped back nervously.
"Wait, what if I drown before I can get in?" he muttered loudly to himself, his fear winning out over his curiosity.
He stood there at the edge of the water, frustrated and uncertain.
But then he heard voices. Shark beastmen speaking in their language.
"Wait, what if we eat him?" he heard someone speak in shark beastman language. He could understand it, thanks to the system reward he had received in the past. The system had given him the ability to understand all beast languages.
But understanding what they meant, he frowned toward where they were floating inside the water.
"You’re not talking about eating me, are you?" Neve asked in their language, and they both shrieked, moving back quickly.
"H-how does he understand what we’re saying? Who is he?" one of them asked, clearly shocked that a land beastman could speak their language.
"Call Maren for me, will you?" Neve asked, trying to sound as polite as possible. He did not want them to see him as a threat. He needed their cooperation.
They exchanged glances before looking back at Neve.
"Why should we summon the king?" one of them asked.
"Please, it’s urgent!" Neve replied in their language, speaking with genuine desperation. "I need to speak with him right now!"
They exchanged glances again. They looked like they were not going to believe him. But Neve knew he had to hurry. Time was counting down. If Jereth found out that Neve was lying with the treatment, he did not know what Zyreth was going to do about it.
He did not know what was in Zyreth’s mind, but he could tell that Jereth was watching him mainly because Zyreth did not want Neve to get any closer to Maren. After all, that was what the conversation he had heard that day was all about. Zyreth had declared that he would kill Maren if the shark king tried to take Neve from him.
"If you don’t call him, his mother would die," Neve said desperately. "The treatment will fail without him. She might not survive."
Their eyes widened at the threat to their king’s mother.
"I’ll call him!" the second one said immediately and entered the water, swimming away quickly to find their king.
A small smile crept onto Neve’s face. He felt guilty using Maren’s mother to manipulate the situation, but that was the only way he could think of to get Maren to come to him quickly.
He waited as the air around the water changed. Something shifted in the atmosphere. The temperature dropped slightly.
And then Maren appeared almost directly in front of him as his head popped out of the water.
"What did you say about my mother?" Maren asked, his voice low and cold and filled with concern and worry. "What happened to her? Is she dying? Did something go wrong with the treatment?"
Neve fell back on his red panda butt as he looked up at Maren. His eyes went back to the two sharks that were floating behind their king, watching the interaction carefully.
"It’s not that urgent but can you tell those two to..." Neve started to ask, gesturing toward the other sharks.
"Huh?" Maren tilted his head, clearly confused by Neve’s request.
Neve shut his eyes before he parted his lips, his small panda hand clutching against his chest. He looked vulnerable and desperate.
"Please," he muttered softly, his voice carrying genuine emotion.
Maren’s eyes did not soften. His expression remained cold and indifferent. He just looked over his shoulder with a glare so sharp that it could cut through stone. And with that glare alone, the two sharks left immediately, disappearing back into the deeper waters.
He looked back at Neve and raised a brow, waiting for an explanation.
"Speak," Maren commanded. "Tell me what’s so urgent that you would deceive me about my mother’s condition."
Neve took a deep breath, gathering his courage for what he was about to do.
"Uh, so, where are you from?" Neve asked, his voice shaking slightly with nervous energy.
Maren was confused. He tilted his head, wondering what Neve was talking about.
"What the hell do you mean?" Maren asked. "What kind of question is that? Where am I from? I’m from the shark territory. I’ve always been from the outcast lands."
"No, before this world," Neve said, pointing at his small chest. "Before you became a shark beastman. Where are you from originally? What was your country?"
Maren’s eyes widened suddenly. His expression shifted from cold indifference to shock.
"You... You’re from earth?" he asked, his voice shaking as he recognized the possibility of what Neve was saying.
Neve nodded quickly.
"Yes, I am. Just tell me," Neve said urgently. "Are you from earth too? Are you a reincarnator like me?"
Maren’s eyes softened for the first time since Neve had known him.
"Yes, I am. The same as me?" he asked, his voice filled with wonder and recognition. "Does that mean you’re the same as me?"
"Yes, I am. Just tell me..." Neve started to say.
But then a voice boomed from behind them. A voice filled with rage and jealousy and possessive fury.
"FIND HIM!" Zyreth’s voice roared from somewhere in the distance, getting closer. "FIND NEVE! I want him back NOW!"
Neve tensed immediately. His entire body went rigid with fear.
Maren’s expression changed instantly from wonder to alarm.
"Fuck!" they both chorused, realizing they had been discovered.