At Finn’s birthday party, Daphne burst in with no clothes on. “My sister cut up my clothes and said I’m nothing but an adopted stray in the Carter family, unworthy of attending Finn’s birthday…” Finn believed I was being spiteful and sent me off to Mermaid Island to reflect on my actions. The next time we met, I was holding raw fish in my hand. “Sister, don’t you love raw fish? I’ll make sure you get your fill.” Finn tossed me into an aquarium, thinking I’d plead for mercy. Little did they know, I had already transformed into a mermaid; this was my realm. 01 Six months later, Declan Carter arrived on a lavish yacht with our parents and a host of friends to bring me back. They dressed me in a pure white gown. As I faced the crowd’s amazed and inquisitive stares, I blinked blankly, my pupils reflecting a peculiar blue-green hue in the sunlight. Declan scrutinized me with a probing gaze: “Nora Carter, I hope this time you’ll have learned your lesson and won’t let me down again.” I slightly tilted my head, instinctively licking my dry lips with curiosity. Declan paused at my gesture, then showed a hint of satisfaction: “It seems the island has indeed washed away your hostility. I’ve prepared a welcome party for you on the cruise ship to celebrate your return to the family.” He reached out to take my hand, but the instant his fingertips touched my skin, he quickly pulled back. “Why is your body so cold?” His words were complex, and I struggled to comprehend them. Cora Bennett came over and took Declan’s arm: “Declan, sister has been at sea for six months and has gotten used to the seaside climate, so her body temperature is naturally different from ours.” A warning alarm went off in my head, an instinctual sense of threat making me tense up. I instinctively backed away, a low, strange, dolphin-like sound escaping my throat, and my feet unconsciously came together. Cora covered her face, almost crying: “Sister… do you still hate me? I… I only wanted to care for you…” Declan immediately shielded Cora behind him, angrily scolding me: “Nora Carter! Cora is kind and pure, always thinking of you. Why can’t you learn from her tolerance and generosity?” Our parents also came over, looking at me with disappointment and heartache. “Nora, the Carter family doesn’t lack another mouth to feed. Cora just wants to fit into this family. Can’t you tolerate her? Don’t be so narrow-minded!” “Your brother sent you here for your own good. Why haven’t you made any progress at all?” The accusations and misunderstandings swarmed me like a tide. I felt extremely uneasy and scared, wanting only to find a place to hide. I saw a large decorative glass aquarium not far away. The clear water and swaying aquatic plants gave me an inexplicable sense of closeness and safety. Ignoring everything, I ran toward the aquarium, wanting to climb inside. “Nora Carter! What madness are you up to now!” Declan roared as he rushed over, grabbing my arm to pull me back. He pulled too forcefully, and with a rip, a patch of skin on my arm came off, revealing newly grown, pearl-like scales beneath! The intense pain made me cry out in a dolphin-like wail. I curled up on the ground in pain, rubbing my arm against the cold deck to ease the burning pain, then shrank in horror into a corner, my body curling up. Declan stared at the piece of skin in his hand, with bloodstains and strange scales, his pupils contracting as if struck by lightning. Disregarding his image, he squatted down: “Nora… what’s happened to your skin? What’s wrong with you? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?” Cora immediately interjected: “Brother! The UV rays on the island are so strong, sister’s skin is delicate, she must have gotten sunburned and peeled! It’s all my fault. If it weren’t for me, brother wouldn’t have been angry and sent sister to the island…” “Sunburn?” 02 Mom came over, looking at the small, neatly arranged scales exposed on my arm, which, though tiny, reflected a strange luster in the sunlight, definitely not the appearance of sunburn. Her face turned pale, lips trembling, as if she wanted to say something but was choked by overwhelming shock. Dad also gasped, pointing at my arm, his voice trembling, “What… what is this?” Declan’s face instantly turned exceedingly grim. He grabbed my shoulders abruptly, forcibly dragging me out from the corner and exposing me to everyone. “Nora Carter! Are you playing the sympathy card again to make us feel guilty, even at the cost of hurting yourself?” The scales I had just grown were painfully abraded by the rough deck, even seeping with blood droplets. Declan remained indifferent, his eyes coldly fixed on me: “I just sent you to the island for six months to enjoy the natural scenery. Do you have to resort to self-harm to get back at me?” I didn’t understand his anger, and the weakness from blood loss and pain made me desperately need to replenish my energy. On the banquet table was a platter of fresh fish for sashimi, one of which, probably due to lack of oxygen, jumped onto the floor. The fresh, ocean-scented vitality instantly captured all my attention. A glimmer of desire flashed in my eyes, and almost on instinct, I lunged forward without hesitation. Under everyone’s horrified gaze, I bit into the struggling fish, tearing it apart in a few bites, then swallowing it with satisfaction, even leaving traces of blood and scales at the corner of my mouth. Mom let out a shrill scream, almost fainting, “Is this still my daughter? What did you go through on the island? How… how did you end up like this?” Declan’s face turned as white as paper, “Nora… I know you’re afraid of water. But apart from being remote, it’s just an ordinary island! Even if you’re mad at me, you don’t have to degrade yourself like this.” Before he finished speaking, Cora suddenly knelt on the ground with a “thud,” crying and slapping her own face. “It’s all my fault! I ruined sister! If it weren’t for me, sister wouldn’t have become like this! Brother, Mom, Dad, take sister back. Let me stay on the island, redeeming sister’s sins!” Mom’s cries stopped abruptly. She pointed at me, her voice sharp and scolding: “Nora Carter! Look at what you’ve become! To drive Cora away, you degrade yourself to this extent! Eating raw fish! Aren’t you disgusted? How could the Carter family raise a daughter like you?” Declan’s eyes were bloodshot, staring at me as if he wanted to pierce through me. He suddenly let out a low laugh, but it carried a chilling coldness: “Sister, don’t you like eating raw fish? Then I’ll make sure you eat your fill.” He snapped his fingers, and immediately, a servant brought over a large tank filled with ice and live fish, placing it heavily in front of me. His cold gaze cut through me like a knife: “Either apologize to Cora and promise never to bully her again, or I’ll throw you into this tank!” Seeing I had no reaction, only warily eyeing the tank, a fleeting hesitation crossed Declan’s eyes but was quickly masked by anger. “Throw her in! Let her out when she admits her mistake!” 03 The bodyguards ignored my struggle, lifting me up and throwing me into the icy water tank! The ice-cold water enveloped me, its biting chill making me shiver violently. However, as the water flowed over my skin, especially touching the more pronounced mutations on my legs hidden by the long dress, a strange comfort and sense of belonging emerged. Water… I really liked it. The fish in the tank, startled, scattered everywhere, their bodies brushing against my skin and bringing waves of tingling itchiness. Declan and everyone else stood outside the tank, waiting to see me scream in terror and beg for mercy. Cora nestled beside Declan, her eyes gleaming with pleasure. Once, I was indeed terrified of water, scared to death. But the six months of transformation on the island had long stripped fear from my bones. The research institute people, to enhance my underwater survival ability, had thrown me into deep seas filled with various aggressive marine creatures. Fish, in my eyes, were no longer things to fear but rather… kin, or food. In the stunned gaze of everyone, instead of screaming, I slowly relaxed my body, stretching out my limbs. The cold water brought me an unprecedented calm. I reached out and gently caught a small fish swimming to my mouth. Declan’s certainty and anger gradually turned into disbelief and shock. He didn’t know a small fish couldn’t satisfy my body’s energy needs. And this tank of lively fish was an unexpected gift for me. Under the almost tearing gaze of Declan and my parents, I suddenly opened my mouth and bit down hard on the fish in my hand! Blood spread through the clear water. “Nora! Stop it.” Declan roared, ignoring the icy seawater, reaching into the tank and pulling me out, snatching the struggling fish from my hand and throwing it away. He held me tightly, his voice trembling uncontrollably, “Nora, let’s not do this, okay? Stop hurting yourself like this!” I looked at him blankly, not understanding why he took away my food. Under the piercing eyes of Declan Carter and my parents, I suddenly sank my teeth into the fish I was holding. Blood swirled in the clear water. “Nora! Stop.” Declan Carter shouted and, ignoring the frigid seawater, plunged his hand into the tank, yanking me out and tossing the struggling fish aside. He hugged me tightly, his voice shaking with emotion, “Nora, let’s not do this anymore, okay? Don’t hurt yourself like this!” I stared at him blankly, not understanding why he took my food away. At the research institute, they conducted all kinds of horrifying experiments on me to secure more funding, even trying to train me to lure certain targets with my “singing” for the entertainment of sponsors with peculiar tastes. I knew I had to meet their demands to survive. Maybe… he needed me to please him? So, I lifted my arms, slick and scaly, and wrapped them around Finn’s neck. I tilted my head slightly, emitting a low, melodious sound from my throat, like a dolphin’s song, as a signal to please. I nuzzled my cheek against his neck like a creature seeking solace. Declan Carter stiffened suddenly, gripping my shoulders and pushing me away, his eyes locked onto mine, his voice trembling with intensity: “Nora Carter! What did you learn on that island for six months?! Don’t you remember you’re the eldest daughter of the Carter family?” His face was filled with pain and disbelief: “How could you do something so shameless?!” He gripped my shoulders painfully, and I didn’t understand why he was angry. He had sent me to that island, where my body was altered to resemble a fish and my mind was twisted and trained. To survive, every part of me was forced to “please” others against my will. But now, he was blaming me for having no shame. As I looked at him in confusion, Declan Carter seemed unable to meet my gaze. He closed his eyes tightly, took a deep breath, and his voice trembled uncontrollably: “Investigate! Now! Find out what happened to Miss Carter during those six months on the island!!” The wait for the investigation results felt interminable. Declan Carter had someone wrap me in a clean blanket, holding me in his arms, trying to warm my cold body with his own. But he didn’t know, my circulatory system had been altered; no matter what he did, I couldn’t regain a normal body temperature. Half an hour later, two bodyguards dragged the woman responsible for my care in front of Declan Carter. “I entrusted Miss Carter’s daily life to you; now, don’t you think you owe me an explanation? How did she turn out like this in just six months?” Declan Carter’s voice was icy, carrying a weight of looming anger. The old woman trembled, kneeling on the ground, repeatedly pleading for mercy. “Mr. Carter, please have mercy! Have mercy!” “Speak! What happened exactly?” “It’s… it’s Miss Carter… she couldn’t handle the isolation on the island, her mind snapped… she kept running to the sea, saying she wanted to become a fish… then her behavior became more and more bizarre…” The old woman’s eyes flickered, clearly lying. Declan Carter’s gaze sharpened, and the bodyguards stepped forward. Terrified, the woman screamed, “I’ll tell! I’ll tell! It was Cora Bennett! She bribed me! She gave me a lot of money to hand… to hand Miss Carter over to those madmen at the island’s research institute!” It seems there is no text available for translation at the moment. Could you please provide the specific content you would like translated? “Research institute? What research institute?” Declan Carter’s voice was tense, each word forced out through gritted teeth. “The old abandoned marine biology research institute! There are still people secretly conducting experiments there… They’ve been trying to combine human and marine creature genes… Cora Bennett told them that Nora Carter was alone, and even if something happened to her on Mermaid Island, no one would come looking. She allowed those researchers to use Nora as a test subject—if they succeeded, she’d take the credit, and if they failed… they’d just get rid of her…” The elderly woman revealed everything, including how Cora Bennett contacted her, transferred money to her, and instructed her to cooperate with the researchers. She even presented threatening messages from Cora as evidence.
🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “296395”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #浪漫Romance #现实主义Realistic
Leave a Reply