Chapter 173: 109. The Legend of Life Creation
By the time Fisher returned to his rented room, it was almost half past ten. This was all thanks to the carriage driver who disappeared after dropping him off; Fisher ran quite a distance before he could finally get a carriage heading back to the city, not knowing how Anna managed to get back.
However, Fisher wasn’t worried about her safety. From the first time he met Anna at the Pink Pavilion, he sensed a dangerous aura around her. Although he didn’t understand her specific methods, there was no doubt she was not a weak woman to be bullied.
When he got home, Lady Martha was already resting, conveniently avoiding her questions about himself and Elizabeth.
Recently, however, Fisher felt there was something indescribable going on between him and Elizabeth.
Every interaction with her was shrouded in a subtle atmosphere, and he could easily tear down that veil if he reached out.
Just like earlier in the café, if Fisher wanted to, he could effortlessly lean down and kiss Elizabeth’s lips, tasting the essence of the Eldest Princess whom the Nali people revered.
But it was precisely because Elizabeth was the Royal Eldest Princess that dating her always meant immense responsibility.
Their most perfect moments were when they were at the Royal Academy.
At that time, Fisher was all alone, sincerely loving the princess sitting beside him, sharing books with him.
He was free from the disturbance of the Apocalypse Prophecy, had no emotional debts like those with Renee and Raphael, and was unaware of Elizabeth’s true nature; Elizabeth was quiet and good at hiding herself, like the most perfect lady in this world, endearing and cherished.
If both Elizabeth and Fisher had been a bit braver and more proactive back then, she might have realized her mistakes and been willing to take responsibility for her actions; Fisher might not have chosen to silently distance himself but rather approach her to communicate properly, and perhaps they would not be stuck in this awkward stalemate now.
The lingering feelings of youthful romance intertwined between them like a rope, preventing them from drifting apart, but when they genuinely wanted to draw near, reality pushed them to maintain a remnant distance.
Thus, Fisher and Elizabeth remained in their standoff, unwilling to let each other go.
Well, it sounds a bit like a tragic love story, but reality often lacks such dramatic emotions, leaving only a silent consensus between the two.
When asked about solutions, they both seemed to think there was no better response than “let’s talk about the future.”
Fisher shook his head, temporarily shaking off his thoughts and preparing to “talk about the future.”
At that moment, he opened the door to his room, only to find that the lights were off, and the sofa was empty, with no sign of Jasmine.
He frowned and looked toward the closed window, confirming she hadn’t gone out before he stepped towards the washroom.
In Fisher’s view, the washroom was dark, and the long dress he had made for Jasmine was neatly folded on a stool in the room.
So Fisher reached out and turned on the washroom light. Sure enough, the bathtub had been filled with water, and Jasmine was lying in it, completely bare, peacefully as if she were sleeping.
Although he had already heard the sound of the light turning on, it took Jasmine five seconds to open her eyes, as if there were a huge delay.
Fisher only took a glance before retracting his gaze from her body, also reaching out to turn off the washroom light to avoid any awkwardness.
“Jasmine?”
He softly called out, but all he received in return was silence.
“…”
Hearing Fisher’s call, Jasmine did not respond immediately.
Fisher thought she might be sick or something. Just as he was about to step closer, he noticed her whale tail and long ears glow ever so slightly.
Once that glow fully illuminated, Jasmine, as if waking up, hurriedly covered her body and sat up in the bathtub.
“F-F-Fisher.”
She spoke shyly and flustered, her tail splashing water slightly. Seeing that she was alright, Fisher stepped back several paces, all the way to the door of the washroom.
“What happened to you just now? I thought you were sick.”
She had been peacefully lying in the water, like a steam engine that had stopped operating, and even taking notice of Fisher’s voice and opening her eyes took her much longer than usual.
“Ah? No, I’m not sick! I just need to stay in the water for a while after being on land for too long. The longer I stay on land, the more time I need to spend in the water to recover.”
Fisher stood at the door, leaning against the wall connecting to the washroom, and asked,
“So that’s why you needed to go to the swimming pool so often back at Saint Nali University?”
“Mm.”
Jasmine nodded in response.
“Even though we can move freely on land, we can’t stay too long. If we don’t come into contact with water for a long time, we start to feel fatigued, and it feels like we’re suffocating, our reactions slow down.”
Slow reactions?
Fisher suddenly recalled that back at Saint Nali University, he had sometimes noticed Jasmine’s movements and responses were inconsistently quick and slow. He had thought it was just due to her clumsy personality, but didn’t expect it was a characteristic of the Whale Folk.
“So that’s how it is. I was wondering how you Ocean Subhumans could live normally on land.”
“Ah, actually, it’s because all life comes from a common source. All creatures have similarities and differences. When I was young, my mother once told me a legend about how Lord Ramastia created life.”
“Oh?”
Fisher was very interested in the legend that circulated in Whale Folk society because from the beliefs and cultural practices of a civilization, you can often uncover many traits of that race that are difficult to notice otherwise.
For instance, the Dragon Race loves alcohol and flames intensely, which shapes their open and generous personality, giving a rough idea of why the ancient Feimabaha Dragon Court was so inclusive.
Fisher listened attentively, sensing the Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans in his arms beginning to emit a slight warmth, prompting his thoughts,
“The legend says that it was Lord Ramastia who created all forms of life. In the long and lonely slumber of Lord Ramastia, He thought of creating life to accompany Him, so He wouldn’t feel so lonely. With a single thought, countless vibrant lives appeared all over the world.”
“But at first, the lives created by Lord Ramastia had no self-awareness; the more He created, the deeper His loneliness grew. Thus, He began trying to create conscious beings. First, He created humans, but fearing they would fall into the same loneliness as He, He started creating other companions for them.”
“But Lord Ramastia was too compassionate; when creating life, He constantly reflected on the goodness of other creatures, leading to the lives He subsequently created becoming more complex, increasingly embodying many perfect traits of previously created beings.”
“My mother said that we Whale Folk were among the last few types of beings created by Lord Ramastia, heh heh, because He was too loving, He forgot that the original intent of creating life was to have someone to accompany Him, which is why the Ocean Subhumans were created later, often blending many traits of various creatures; that’s also why we can breathe on land.”
“I once asked Lord Ramastia, but He never told me about these things. I don’t know if this legend was made up by my mother because she loves to boast. However, Lord Ramastia once said that the greatest characteristic of life is balance; some creatures possess certain traits while discarding others elsewhere.”
As Fisher listened, he suddenly recalled what Eil had once said about the “Ranks of Life.”
From what she said, it could be inferred that humans occupy a very low position in the ranks of life; although she did not despise humans, Fisher sensed implicitly that her kin or some other creatures were indeed disdainful of humans.
If, according to Jasmine’s legend, the further back in the order of life Lord Ramastia created beings, the lower their rank would be, meaning that the later ones created would be of higher rank?
Logically, if Fisher were not able to use magic and lacked the assistance from the Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans, facing a mature Dragon Race one-on-one would probably lead to his death in under a round, as some Subhumans possess physiological advantages.
But upon closer reflection, it seemed inconsistent; according to the legend, Lord Ramastia should have created the land-dwelling Subhumans before the oceanic ones, so the ocean beings’ rank should be higher than those on land.
However, Bai Mu and Rena clearly did not match those land-dwelling Dragon or Demon races.
Hmm, it seems that relying entirely on legends to explain this doesn’t quite work either.
“Ah, I completely forgot to ask the teacher if he got any clues about the Healing Room, and I’ve been rambling on my own.”
Jasmine seemed to emerge from the bathtub, the sound of dripping water on the floor echoed. She gently reached for her skirt, and Fisher also moved to the door to turn on the light.
He briefly explained the clues about the Healing Room to Jasmine. Just as she finished changing into her skirt and came out, she listened to Fisher’s lengthy explanation, her lips pursed in thought, and finally nodded, summarizing,
“I-I understand. Anyway, I want to go out with Teacher Fisher too; I can help!”
Hmm, it was clear she didn’t quite comprehend those clues Fisher mentioned, but she figured as long as Teacher Fisher did something, she would just follow along.
Fisher found it both amusing and exasperating how easily Jasmine could be deceived. But recalling how she struggled to balance her own life-absorbing habits, he reminded her,
“The most important thing is that you need to find your own balance, right? Have you found a way yet?”
“Earlier, while you were engraving magic, I tried to control the curse inside me, but… there was too much of it, and it needs a long time to calm down; if it were a battle…”
Jasmine cautiously glanced at Fisher, but to avoid providing a negative example, she clenched her fists and cheerfully declared,
“But… but I’ll work hard!”
Seeing her adorable expression, Fisher couldn’t help but reach out to touch her blue hair. It was long and damp with a faint floral scent. After a light touch, he withdrew his hand.
But Jasmine blushed, squinted her eyes, and looked quite pleased, her ears flapping slightly.
“Let’s do our best.”
“Mm.”
Sigh… if he were to touch me like that, wouldn’t Teacher Fisher have agreed to be knocked out and dragged back to the sea by me?
Lost in those thoughts, Jasmine fiddled with the hem of her skirt.
Meanwhile, Fisher turned to head downstairs to make a phone call. It was half past ten at night; that younger student should still be awake.
This call was for Keken. Fisher still needed his help to gain entry to the charity gala this weekend.
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(The End of This Chapter)
