I don't want to conquer witches anymore.

The reason she reached out and touched Stephanie's swimsuit was probably because she had never seen such clothing before and was curious—the person in question now regrets it, deeply regrets it. She knew perfectly well that humans were greedy and wicked, and that she shouldn't have stayed here after saving them, and shouldn't have approached them out of curiosity.

Oh no! I'm going to be made into grilled fish and eaten by those evil humans!

But just as the Little Mermaid trembled, Annie sighed and released herself from her soul's cage. She turned to Duke, her resentful gaze full of untold stories—her eyes seemed to say: It's time to use your charm. By the way, how many girls are you planning to woo this time, my sweetheart?

Duke's lips twitched slightly, and he returned her an unwavering gaze: I won't date a single one!

Anne: I believe you... I won't tell Amber. As long as you sleep with me first, I won't tell anyone.

Duke: ? Is your cannon... even legitimate?

After exchanging glances and flirting for a long time in front of the little mermaid, Duke finally turned around, gave her a beautiful smile, and asked softly, "Hello, we won't hurt you. What's your name?"

“...My name is Alice.”

“That’s a nice name.” Duke reached out to her and helped her up (though you don’t need to be helped up in the sea), then smiled and said in a bubble-like voice, “My name is Duke, Alice, and we just want to be your friends.”

Wow, so handsome...

Looking at Duke in front of her, Alice felt as if she were about to melt away, bathed in the smile of the handsome man before her. She nodded dazedly and said without much thought, "Okay."

Chapter 309 Fairy Tales and Reality

Alice swam happily at the front, her constantly waving tail unable to conceal her joyful mood, as if pink bubbles were constantly bubbling out, and she was completely immersed in this romantic fantasy.

Meanwhile, Duke and his group followed behind Alice, awkwardly swimming forward with their newly grown "fish tails." Led by their guide Alice, they pried open the door to the world of this witch game.

"This is my country!"

Alice, swimming at the front, gesticulated excitedly as she introduced the place. She seemed to have not seen friendly (and handsome) strangers in a long time, so she was clearly very happy when talking to Duke and the others. She opened her arms wide, showing everyone the distant view of this underwater kingdom.

Duke and the others' underwater vision was greatly enhanced due to their mermaid transformation. Although there was no light in the deep sea (these mermaids, who are essentially water elements, do not need any light), they could still see the scene in front of them clearly.

The scene before them astonished Duke and his companions—what greeted them was not an underwater palace resembling Atlantis, but a ruin, a ruin resembling a spaceship. This sunken spaceship had been transformed by the mermaids into a city that stretched as far as the eye could see. Large numbers of mermaids flitted in and out of the spaceship's cabins like butterflies in Duke's sight, and some of the mermaid residents even noticed Little Alice and waved to her.

"Hi! Hi!"

Alice waved back to them just as enthusiastically, then turned to Duke and said, "Would you...would you like to come over and sit at my house?"

"Okay."

Duke nodded in response to Alice's enthusiasm, but as Alice turned back to lead the way, he suddenly moved closer to Anne, leaned close to her ear, and whispered:

“Annie.”

Anne showed no disgust at Duke's approach; on the contrary, his initiative was like a pillow falling from the sky, exactly what she wanted. She even felt he wasn't close enough, so she pressed herself further, her already soaked and transparent clothes and the softness beneath them against him, before finally looking up and giving him a flirtatious wink.

"what happened?"

"Don't touch my divine body, it will hurt you." Duke pushed Annie away with a look of disgust, who was trying to get a close touch, and after maintaining a certain social distance, he continued, "Do you remember the story of 'The Little Mermaid'?"

So far, almost all the witch games Duke has experienced are related to stories he read in his previous life, mainly random adaptations of various fairy tales. Perhaps only the Turtle Soup Witch Game is based on the participants' memories. But even the Turtle Soup Witch Game, the gameplay of Turtle Soup itself comes from Duke's previous life. At least as far as Duke knows, the social game Turtle Soup has not been invented in this world of swords and magic.

After realizing this, Duke began to make it a habit to tell stories to his friends, especially fairy tales.

Duke wasn't a great storyteller, but he had enough stories, and they were novel enough, to pique the interest of his friends. Not to mention he had a skilled storyteller (a certain Guangbao) who could help him spread the tales. Before long, Duke's reputation as the "King of Fairy Tales" spread throughout his circle of friends.

However, Duke wasn't the type to tell the same story to different people repeatedly. Even when telling the same story, he would choose a different version, which led to some awkward situations. For example, Amber heard the story of Little Red Riding Hood from Duke, while Cecil knew nothing about it. Duke told Gretel the Disney version of Snow White, and then told Geyue and Natasha the Grimm's version of Dark Snow White.

If you were to pick the person among Duke's friends who heard the most stories and the most complete accounts, it wouldn't be Cecil, the excellent storyteller, but rather Annie, the eavesdropping fanatic.

This yandere still maintains her habit of installing listening devices to monitor Duke's daily life. She not only listens, but she also records it!

No matter where Duke is or to whom he tells his story, Anne will eventually hear it all.

“I remember, it’s the story of the Little Mermaid and the prince who were entangled in a complicated relationship, and how she even became mute and had to exchange her fishtail for human legs to go ashore, right?” Annie nodded. Although her version of *The Little Mermaid* sounded a little strange, it was generally correct. “You told several versions. The one you told Amber was the one where the Little Mermaid lived happily ever after with the prince, and the one you told Cecil was the tragic love story where the Little Mermaid turned into sea foam…”

Anne recounted the stories with great familiarity, clearly showing that she genuinely loved the fairy tales Duke told.

"Ah, at that time Amber and I had just started dating, and Guangbao's feelings for me were still friendly. We were in a preemptive phase," Duke said awkwardly.

"Oh? So what stage are you and Cecil at now?"

Annie raised an eyebrow.

“That’s not the point!” Duke abruptly changed the subject, then continued, “Anyway, in the different versions of The Little Mermaid, isn’t there one version that mentions the sea princess’s name?”

Anne paused for a moment, then frowned as she tried to recall. After a moment, she nodded uncertainly: "It seems so... Is it that important?"

"If I remember correctly, the sea princess's name is Ariel."

Disney's animated film, adapted from Hans Christian Andersen's famous fairy tale "The Little Mermaid," features a female mermaid named Ariel. The name of the little mermaid leading the way in front of them is only slightly different in syllable length.

As Duke spoke these words softly, his gaze fell on Alice. In this mermaid village, she seemed to be just an ordinary resident, but she had previously used magic to help all the adventurers who had strayed into the deep sea. And her name was the same as the protagonist of the fairy tale. What did that mean?

This means she is definitely the key figure in this witch game!

"Duke, do you think this witch game is based on the alternate dimension of 'The Little Mermaid'?" Annie's expression turned somewhat strange, and she asked to confirm, "Are you sure?"

"I'm not sure, and the connection between other dimensions and fairy tale archetypes may not be that great—the fairy tales of Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, those two witch games, have nothing to do with each other, do they?"

Anne reached out and grabbed Duke's divine body, stopping him from going any further.

Duke turned around, somewhat puzzled, and saw Annie looking worried. He then heard her reason for not letting him continue:

"In 'The Little Mermaid,' Princess Ariel paid the price of losing her voice in order to turn her fishtail into legs. What is the name of the deity residing within you now?"

Aphasic...aphasic?!

Chapter 310 A City Gifted by Heaven

Ida was mute and unable to speak.

Duke didn't know if she was born that way or if she lost her voice for some other reason, but this "special feature" that was so different from ordinary people became her sacred feature after Ida became a deity.

Imperfection can actually lead to perfection.

Duke can assert that there are currently no mute people in the floating city. No mute person can stay in the floating city. This does not mean that everyone who has similarities to Ida will die suddenly, but rather... even if there are mute adventurers who come to the floating city, they will miraculously learn to speak before long. Many mute people can not only learn the common language of the continent in a short time, but can even master multiple languages ​​in a short time.

In the floating city, such miracles are called divine miracles.

Duke certainly hadn't personally witnessed the medical miracle of the mute speaking, but the credibility of this information was extremely high, because it was Ida who said it. Her humanity as a mute was gradually merging with the divinity of the mute, and she was gradually acquiring His memories.

The gods themselves certainly know what miracles they have bestowed upon mortals over the past few hundred years.

He bestows such miracles not to squander His divine power, but because His own foundation for godhood is related to the defect of "aphasia" (silence). To become a saint or messenger of God who is aphasic, one does not need to be mute. Norton and Megan are both normal people who can speak fluently. However, the characteristic of "aphasia" is not such a simple matter.

The Road of Myths.

If Duke wants to replace the temporarily deposed mute and usher in the mythical era of the floating city, the first thing he needs to do is to acquire the defect of "muteness" himself. Normally, this is a very difficult thing to do. Duke's language ability is not damaged, and even if he has amnesia, he cannot forget how to speak (pronounce words). The spells that can achieve this effect are useless to Duke in his current state.

Duke's current body is a divine body, which not only makes him immune to the effects of most spells, but also has a certain ability to break magic (which is why he was able to shatter the protective spells that the witch had painstakingly set up with a single slap). His soul has also undergone a long period of tempering and training, becoming comparable to high-ranking professionals. It can be said that his current luxurious hardware conditions are completely incompatible with his actual software level.

It would be incredibly difficult to turn someone like Duke into a mute.

"But this witch game gave me a chance...?"

Duke frowned. He had initially thought their choice to hide in this witch's game was just a coincidence, but now it seemed that the coincidence was far too coincidental.

"In other words, is this another of Carol's schemes?"

"Does she want you to become truly mute?"

“How would I know what she’s thinking?” Duke rolled his eyes. It wasn’t easy to figure out what Carol was planning. He just wanted to lie down and didn’t want to think about such a complicated mystery. “Let’s take it one step at a time. Besides, in fairy tales, it’s Ariel who lost her voice, and witch games aren’t necessarily exactly the same as fairy tales… On the contrary, I haven’t encountered a witch game that’s exactly the same as a fairy tale so far.”

Annie looked at Duke, sensing that the situation wasn't so simple. But since Duke had said that, it meant he either genuinely didn't care or didn't want her to worry. She nodded, but didn't let go of Duke's clothes, and whispered, "Don't worry, no matter what happens, I won't abandon you..."

Duke laughed: "Okay."

"...until you and I have cooked the rice into a tangible meal."

Duke: "?"

Duke decided it was better to ignore Annie.

Mermaids move swiftly in the deep sea, and Duke and his companions, led by Alice, quickly approached their realm. Warmly welcomed by the mermaids, they entered the high-tech spaceship that had sunk to the bottom of the ocean. This spaceship was clearly not designed for deep-sea exploration; long immersion in seawater had left it dilapidated and damaged everywhere, and the entire interior and exterior were covered in coral, resembling a giant coral garden.

However, at the same time, the technological sophistication of this spaceship was still so advanced that Duke and others couldn't understand it.

As the only researcher among them, Annie's eyes widened immediately upon seeing the spaceship's interior. She then murmured to herself in fascination, "It's a kind of magical technology, still powered by magic, but its operating mechanism is completely different from magical technology. If we bring this spaceship back to the floating city, it will definitely provide a whole new perspective on the city's future development..."

Duke glanced at Annie's fervent expression and asked the question she wanted to ask: "Alice, when did this spaceship appear and stay here? When did you mermaids start living in it as a city?"

"What is a spaceship?" Alice tilted her head and shook it in surprise. "If you're asking about Coral City, it has stood on this seabed since ancient times."

When technology develops to a certain level, it becomes no different from a baseless miracle to a backward civilization.

For the mermaids, this spaceship might be an important part of the creation myth, a gift from nature's divine craftsmanship. But it's not common for such a spaceship to sink to the bottom of the sea. Perhaps this is the only city the mermaids have.

Duke shook his head, but then he heard Alice continue:

"There are a few smaller cities nearby. Seaweed City was a gift from heaven more than ten years ago, and Lanternfish City was a gift from heaven only three years ago. Although the frequency of cities being bestowed by heaven is not fast, it will happen in about ten years. The population growth rate of our Mermaid Kingdom can't keep up with the growth rate of cities."

Duke opened his mouth but couldn't say anything, as if he had entered a state of "aphasia" beforehand.

Alice's "gift from heaven" is easy to understand. It means that good things on the surface of the sea sink to the bottom of the sea. For mermaids who have never left the deep sea, such a thing is like a treasure from heaven... But what's with the fact that on average one high-tech magic spaceship is destroyed and sunk to the bottom of the sea every ten years?

Leaving aside the smaller "cities," the technological level and size of this "Coral City" suggest that its combat power is probably not much weaker than that of the floating city itself (not counting the legendary witch and numerous spellcasters on the floating city).

In other words, the waters of this world may be much deeper than he imagined!

Just as Duke was deep in thought, Alice suddenly stopped swimming and spread her hands out towards one of the spaceship's magnificent cabins:

"Okay, this is my home."

"...Is your home the captain's cabin of this spaceship?"

Chapter 311 The Tide Singer

Duke had already guessed that Alice was no ordinary fish in this kingdom, but when he saw Alice skillfully sit in the captain's cabin of the "Coral City" and casually turn on the screen in front of her to start playing a mermaid drama, Duke was still captivated by the surreal reality.

"You actually know how to use this?" Duke pointed to the screen in front of Alice. It was like the captain's cabin in a science fiction movie, allowing direct control of the entire spaceship. But Alice was wasting its resources by using it to play TV dramas—but to put it another way, Duke was even more surprised that she could use the control center of the captain's cabin to play TV dramas. "You have the authority to control it? And it can even work?"

"I don't understand what you're talking about, Duke." Alice rummaged through a cabinet and pulled out a bag of dried fish, happily picking up a piece and mumbling, "No permissions or operating skills are required, I just need to speak... Coral, change the channel."

Alice's second half of her sentence didn't sound like speaking, but rather like singing, so melodious and smooth that it brought about an amazing change in the entire captain's cabin. The omnipresent lighting effects lit up one by one, giving the inexperienced Stephanie and Anne quite a fright.

Immediately afterwards, a synthesized female voice rang out from the spaceship control panel in front of Alice. At the same time, a blurry, glowing figure appeared on the screen. She nodded respectfully to Alice and then obediently operated the control center, changing the comedy drama that was playing to a love story.

"Want some?" Alice handed Duke a small dried fish, which he took instinctively. Then he heard her continue, "I'm the kingdom's best Tide Singer. I've been able to control this room since I was a child. In fact, before I awakened my Soul Song, no one could open this place."

"The Tide Singer? The Song of the Soul?"