139 Ch. 139 'Lady Geneviev'

The first time Niken watched a mermaid show with Kazuto and others, Niken did feel someone was trying to penetrate her mind. At first, she didn't realize it and didn't think too much about it. Niken also decided to leave and not watch it until the end because her heart was too disturbed and uncomfortable.

'Save us, please. Someone save us!'

Niken heard that voice in her head. The sound looked hopeless and hoarse as if it had cried. Thinking it was only the voice of a mermaid trying to trap her, Niken ignored the voice. Instead, she built a barrier in her astral dimension so that no one else tried to enter her mind.

But at night, who would have thought she was careless and without realizing the same voice again entered her mind's cell. Only this time, it was not a voice of despair or crying. But a lovely melodious voice made her lulled.

The voice managed to penetrate her mind and control her soul. The sound also managed to bring her to the lake and arrived at this place.

That voice was none other than Merylin's voice. Niken was sure of that.

"Is it possible that Princess Merylin called you here?" guessed Lady Genevieve looked at Niken, who was staring at the lake with a confused look.

"It seems so. I asked Merylin, but she said she knew nothing about the call."

"I can't help you. But if Merylin called you here, that means she needs your help. Maybe something that could help her in the future."

Future? Does she mean her real-time?

Niken remembered the mermaid was considered as an evil spirit that eats humans, so the barrier was created to prevent human death in her era. She also recalled that Merylin had said that someone had to kill the mermaid first to make mermaid scales soup while she remembered the restaurant in her time selling the soup well.

Does that mean humans in her time killed mermaids? Is that the reason Merylin called her here?

But that absolutely doesn't make sense. Isn't there a barrier between the land and the lake? So how can these humans get mermaid scales on their hands?

Moreover, how could she help if Merylin had called her to the place five hundred years before? The more she thought, the more ache her head become. 

"I think you should work with Merylin to find out the purpose of future Merylin calling you here. While you're here, don't ever use your time magic. We will never know when the Great Master will use his power to kill you. Do you understand?"

"Thank you. But why are you telling me all this? Why do you want to help me?"

"Because you are my sister's offspring."

Niken was baffled to hear this.

"If you are from the future and are a princess of the Nishian kingdom, you are the descendant of my biological sister."

"Sister?"

Genevieve looked sad while remembering her sister.

Niken closed her wide-open mouth with one hand. She remembered Lionel's story about a noble from Zeed who had been banished to be married to the land of Nishian. Is it possible that the lady was the sister of Lady Geneive?

In her whole life, she never thought she would meet her ancestor's family.

"Everyone made her their queen just because she had the blood of a pureblood wizard. Well, that's what I heard about my ancestors."

"That's true. At least, she won't be rejected or insulted there. People worshipped her and honored her. It's enough for me. Well, I never thought that her descendants would inherit her unique power."

"Is she a time traveler?"

"Yes. That's why she can go to the future and see what happens."

"Then why doesn't anyone believe her? Won't the mass murder be prevented if you listen to her?"

Lady Genevieve smiled sadly for the umpteenth time.

"Nothing will change even though we already know what will happen. The flow of time will still run and end in the same result. The Great Time Master had seen it and had searched for thousands of ways to prevent the assassination, but each time he tried to fight fate, the result was far worse than it should have been. That's why Great Time Master did not defend my sister and let the destiny of this world's life go on."

"That's..." Niken couldn't say anything to cheer her up.

"I'd like to remind you. If Merylin calls you to change the past, you must know that fate cannot be changed. They will meet worse misfortune."

"Then what's the use of a time traveler in this world?"

"I have no idea. It is possible to study history or see what the future looks like in order to prepare for all the possibilities that will occur. Every gift that every human had has a purpose, don't they?"

Niken lowered her head while pondering all the new information she had received. She had absolutely no idea what she had to do as if she met deadend and could not find a way out.

At times like this, she really wished someone was by her side. Not Merylin or Geneive, but someone from the same period as her.

Now Niken knew she was in place five hundred years before her time; she was sure she would not be able to find Kazuto and Lionel here. She felt lonely. She thought she could not do anything if she were alone.

"Lady Genevieve, it's time we go to the next place." one of the guards came to tell Genevieve about their schedule.

"Too bad, it's time for me to go. Give my best regards to Princess Merylin."

Niken nodded her head weakly and ushered the lady away. But before Lady Geneive got on the carriage, the woman rubbed gently onto the top of Niken's head as a mother would.

"You will definitely find a way out. Even though Merylin acted like a child, but she never did anything without reason. The fact that she called you here that means she trusts you completely. Don't give up, Niken."

Niken looked straight at a pair of red eyes that looked creepy but felt warm as they looked towards her. This woman's eyes reminded her of her late mother—warm, soft, and emanating from a mother's love.

Niken gave a grateful smile to the woman. She felt she gained new strength and courage. Niken, who was on a dead-end, suddenly saw a straight road in front of her.

At that time, Niken decided not to give up and would continue to look for ways to return to her era.

***

Niken began to change her search method. If her first thought she had to find another clue to get back to her world, now she focused on Merylin, who was the one who called her.

She heeded Lady Geneive's suggestion to tell Merylin that she was a time traveler, but Niken kept the fact that she was also a time master for herself.

There was only one Great Time Master in this world, so no one shall know that she was also a Great Time Master.

Although Niken was very curious about her unexpected identity and wanted to ask more questions to Genevieve, Niken held back and was more focused on finding a way back to her time. Therefore, Niken immediately told Merylin that she was a time traveler as soon as she caught up with the lake's mermaid princess.

"So, you're not from another world, but from the future?"

Niken nodded once firmly, answering her question.

"Wow, this is my first time meeting time travelers; your clothes are not much different from this era."

"Yeah, but that's not important. Now that we know I'm from the future, I think the only clue that can take me home is knowing why you called me."

Merylin took a deep breath to hear that. "I did not call you here. Even if I did, it means that I, from the future, is the one who called you. How can I know my reasons that I don't even know yet?"

"That's why I will tell you what will happen. Listen carefully. All of you will turn into an evil mermaid and eat humans, so the Lord of this place has set up a barrier to prevent humans from entering the lake. Not only that, but humans also sell mermaid scale soup. Now that I think about it, it's really doesn't make sense. How could a non-Elementalist human sell a mermaid scale soup while they cannot approach the lake?"

"You're right. So I guess I called you to change the future? Perhaps some rogues wanna pick fight with us and kidnapped us secretly."

"How about you leave here? Aren't you used to migrate to other places? Maybe you can move from this place and not have to be an evil mermaid."

"That ... that would be very difficult to do."

"Why?"

"Follow me. I want to show you something."

Niken followed her and swam closer to the castle of the ruler of the lake. There was a field full of grass and corals. Niken could see that there was a cave covered with giant seaweed.

Merylin and Niken stopped in front of the seaweed, and then Merylin used her magic and swirled the magic waves towards the plant. Once it felt Merylin's magic, the seaweed shifted to show an entrance.

Niken followed the mermaid princess swimming through the open door and was overwhelmed by what she saw.