Esther bowed to the "Goddess Hide" in return, and with Barney's puzzled gaze, Esther asked Christa, "May I ask now that we can enter this sea and get close to those mermaids?" ”

Krista nodded gently, "Please." But they are quite afraid of the living, and believers who are not goddesses may be unapproachable. May the Goddess bless you all. ”

When Krista drew a red moon in her heart, Esther did the same, and then Christa's body turned into a black mist again, and the gray-white jellyfish gradually became illusory.

The darkness receded into the depths of the fog, quickly hidden within, no longer visually captured.

Esther was vaguely aware of her presence, or because she felt that vague misfortune, considering that there was also the "Empress of Doom and Fear" in the name of the Goddess of the Night, it was normal for her to have this special perception.

Ksenia looked incredulously into the mist, then turned to Esther and asked, "Is that all right?" ”

"We'd better go slowly, and I'll change boats with Barney and go into the water when we're closer, so as not to alarm the mermaids."

Ksenia nodded: "I won't ask your identity, it doesn't matter, since it can be resolved peacefully." ”

Barney looked at Esther again and again, but didn't say anything in the end, because Ksenia's words made sense.

As long as she can help with the mermaid, does Esther's identity matter? All she wanted was to know some of the past, and Barney was the one who took advantage of it anyway.

No, when did I start trusting her so much? Barney was shocked, realizing that something was not quite right with him, and that the hidden influence was causing him to unconsciously change his attitude towards Esther.

Even if Barney would be grateful for Esther's help, she should never forget Esther's identity as a "thief", and she thinks she hasn't completely let her guard down......

Esther turned around, noticed Barney's eyes, and waved at her, "What's wrong?" ”

Barney smiled peacefully: "It's nothing, I'll leave the mermaid matter to you later." ”

Esther was stunned for a moment, and said "um" and didn't speak again, observing the situation with Barney and Ksenia.

A telescope was given to Ksenia, and she stared into the depths of the fog until she felt deep enough before telling the sailor to put down the boat and let the two go alone.

Barney grabbed the oars from the boat first, "I'll come, you'll have to negotiate with them then." ”

Esther tugged at the corners of her mouth: "Because you need some self-defense weapons?" ”

"I'm not very comfortable with you."

Esther touched the Night Emblem on her hand and sat down on the bow side, staring hard into the depths of the mist: "Your spiritual intuition gave you a hint?" I thought you were so suspicious that you kept your guard all along. ”

"No, my spiritual instincts are actually quite calm, and I realized that I had let my guard down against you." Barney pushed the gray-rimmed glasses on the bridge of her nose, "It's a terrible feeling, I have a sense of crisis that is out of my control." ”

"Yes." Esther didn't go into the nitty-gritty of the topic and didn't tell Barney why this was the case.

No need, Esther thought.

She didn't intend for Barney to be forced to be her "anchor" too, so she didn't plan to let him know her name, and she wouldn't try to build any long-term friendships. Behind Banabe is the Esoteric Society, and even if he disagrees with the Esoteric Society, he has restrictions that make him unable to break away from the organization.

Putting aside the pompous notions and caustic language, Banabe is a funny person, but Esther intends to see it as a transaction, not a favor.

Matteo and Vika, too, were just the result of an attempt for her.

Esther lowered her eyes and tapped her forehead slightly, and several points of light floated from her sideburns around the rowing boat.

Her left hand clenched the spell that communicated with sea creatures, and in her right hand she clutched the silver Night Emblem.

The dots of light swirled around and re-condensed, converging into a streamer swaying in the air, gently tilting to the left front.

"Follow it?" When Barney asked, she had already adjusted the direction of her paddle, turning the direction of the bow light band to row.

Esther nodded: "Follow first, the approximate range will not be wrong." ”

What she tried to sense was not the mermaids' position, but their singing.

The light emitted a slight hum that soon resonated with the song hidden in the depths of the mist, and the boat had only been on the road for ten minutes before entering a black reef, and both Esther and Barney heard a very ethereal sound, a language that humans could not understand.

Esther, however, could hear a certain message and directly "perceive" the meaning of the song, singing about the night and sleep, and the quiet night.

"Barni" had now regained her masculine appearance, and Banabe's rowing movements had become gentle, pricking up her ears to carefully discern the direction from which the song was coming from. His expression was sometimes in a slight trance, but he quickly regained his composure, and the mermaid's singing had the magic to make people lose their minds and become insane.

In order not to alarm the mermaids, Esther had already withdrawn the point of light overhead.

"You're ready to configure potions." Esther said this, throwing the spell that would enhance the affinity of the sea creatures at Banabe.

Banabe took the spell and looked at it suspiciously: "But we haven't seen them yet, shouldn't we go deeper?" ”

"The ancient Hermetic word 'storm,' lest they be run away by you. Don't go deep, I'll lure them over, you'd better use it first. ”

Strictly speaking, Banabe can be regarded as having more aura than ordinary people and better facial features than ordinary people, and it is of course Esther's intention to say that he is ugly.

"Ugly to my handsome face, you have no conscience at all, and you are a qualified 'thief'." Banabe, pouring spirituality into the spell in his hand, whispered into the ancient Hermetic language, "Storm." ”

A blue-blue flame rose from between his fingers, and a strange and invisible force enveloped Banabe, and he felt a little calmer under the influence of the mermaid's song.

But when Esther pulled out a harmonica, Banabe felt more and more unconfident: "Wait, you're going to use this thing to attract them?" Is this a music lover exchange tea party? ”

Esther glanced at Barnabe, and placed the Night Emblem in the middle of the boat, just where the two of them could touch as soon as they leaned over:

"What's the problem? After I started playing the harmonica, they could come near at any time, so you had better move fast. If they become emotionally agitated, you can instill spirituality into this badge, which should be effective in calming them. ”

Banabe felt that he couldn't keep up with Esther's train of thought, and it must be because of the strange reason in this woman: "Are you serious? ”

Esther didn't even bother to answer him, she just picked up the harmonica and played it to the sound she had just heard, imitating the melody of those mermaid songs.

When the harmonica sounded, Banabe didn't feel anything, and the singing in the gray fog was paused, and the mermaids seemed to be frightened.

But after a dozen seconds, the music played by the harmonica seemed to cover Banabe's body, and a feeling of gentleness and tranquility enveloped him, almost bringing him into it completely.

Standing on the other side of the boat, Esther saw Banabe's gradually immersed expression, and raised her leg to kick him in the knee, and instinctively dodged under the attack, allowing Banabe to quickly return to normal.

This time, he didn't hesitate anymore, quickly took out a few boxes from his backpack, unlocked the seal of the "Spirit Wall", and took out the materials from it, including a wide-mouthed pot with a handle, and thus carried out the configuration of the "Secret Puppet Master" potion on this small ship.

The boat shook slightly, and a pale, smooth hand stroked the hull and rested boldly on the eaves.

A slightly glamorous, pointed nose protruded from the outside, and the long dark and brown hair was soaked in water and stuck to the cheeks, which set off the bright red lips in a particularly bright color.

The "beauty" has fish-like gills on both sides of her jaw, and her nails are black and slender, and there are a few pieces of minced meat of unknown origin inside, which spoils the charm of her beautiful appearance.

Banabe had added all the ingredients to the pot, and obtained a black liquid with tiny worms that were constantly swimming rapidly, but could not be observed.

He flicked a coin for a divination test, and the tumbling plate fell into the palm of his hand, revealing the face, confirming that the potion had been configured.

The boat shook again, and on the black rocks that emerged from the water nearby, mermaids with beautiful faces and distinctive appearances gradually lay down, looking at the lady standing at the bow of the boat, listening intently to her playing.

The harmonica suddenly became soft, and Esther gave Banabe a look, and when she saw Banabe nodding, she blew the harmonica vigorously and made a high, sharp sound.

The mermaids seemed to understand her guidance, and they opened their mouths, revealing their black fangs sharp like shark teeth, and engaged in a chorus that was blended together as the next melody repeated.

Banabe, in the tugging of his spirit, tilted his head and poured himself the potion in the pot.

Esther guided the mermaids' songs, but her eyes fell on Banabe's body, watching as his face, neck, and hands turned shriveled and yellow, and countless twisted flesh buds rolled on the inside of Banabe's skin, some of which had even broken through the skin, twisting and extending.

Banabe gritted his teeth, tensed his mind and tried to fight against the alienation of his body, constantly calming himself with the meditation he had long been accustomed to.

The mermaid's seductive, maddening singing didn't make much of a difference to Esther, who played the harmonica with a calm look in her eyes that blended in with the mermaid's praise of the night.

Suddenly, Banabe raised his head, his expression clearly still enduring the pain of unstable promotion, but his blue eyes became deep, and he kept turning to the abyssal darkness.

Including the flesh buds on his body, they all suddenly began to surge violently, and Banabe's body swayed back and forth, as if it would shatter at any moment.

Esther's left hand held the harmonica, and she left her right hand free to grasp it at a time for Banabe.

It was just a knee-jerk move, and Esther didn't anticipate what she was stealing.

The black half-worm writhed, stabbing into her palm and burrowing into Esther's veins with a slight twist.

(End of chapter)