"Kazu, she's just a kid. After all, she's a girl." Niken coaxed the man resignedly.
"Oh, you don't know that we can change genders as we like?"
"What do you mean?"
Aqua's platinum hair swelled and then covered her body until her figure was no longer visible. The bluish light started to appear, causing them to squint their eyes. Then the hair fell, and now a handsome young male face was clearly plastered on Aqua. This made Niken gawked in disbelief.
"H... how come?"
"We are a spirit, we don't have a form, nor do we have a certain gender."
Even the voice changed! It's no longer sweet and melodious like the typical voice of teenage girls in general. But his voice was a little hoarse like that of a teenage boy had.
"We are free to choose our form and gender. But because my master doesn't want to accept me, my current state is like a teenager. Once the master takes me as his contracted familiar spirit, I can use my official adult human form. Be careful, maybe you will fall in love with me." Aqua teased while winking one eye, earning Kazuto growl while Niken was so shocked that she couldn't say anything.
Aqua promptly returned to change her form as a girl before the black knight went berserk and rampage this place.
"There is a wizard coming here. I better go for now."
Just as Aqua disappeared, the door to the house opened wide, and a young man with silver hair and green eyes walked in, producing an arrogant and intimidating aura.
"There are two options for you. You either want to leave here voluntarily or be disrespectfully kicked out. Pick which one?"
!?
***
"You were kicked out?!" Aqua couldn't believe what had happened to Niken's group.
Now they are all on the beach, a free zone that means it is nobody's territory. So Niken and the others decided to build a tent there and spend the night near the sea. After all, the ocean in front of them is the only seas closest to the Mermaid Lake.
"Yeah. I also don't understand the reason. Sir Zehell wasn't there when we were kicked out, so we had to leave without making a fuss."
"Hhh… Even though tonight there will be a full moon, a perfect night for purification. But we still need Zehell's help and mermaid blood. Looks like we have to postpone it if we can't do it tonight."
"Should it be done on a full moon?"
"Yes. The source of water and other cold energies comes from the power of the moon. We could have done the purification on an ordinary night, but with the help of the moon's power, our percentage of success would increase many times. Not only that, but the evil mermaids would also be attracted to the power of the moon so they would come surface. At that time, Zehell will use water cacoon to hinder their sensitivity to what is happening in the lake. That way, you can dive without worrying that they will notice you."
"That's our main problem. Currently, there are no more pure mermaids in this place, apart from the spirit realm. But… it is impossible for us to enter the spirit realm because only the spirit race could enter and exit that world."
"You can come in, right?" guessed Kazuto.
"I can at the same time I can't. The portal to the spirit realm only opens once a year, and this year the portal was opened seven months ago. That means we have to wait another five months."
Niken looked down gloomily while Kazuto massaged his temple, realizing he had to stay in this country for the next five months.
"You don't have to wait that long." suddenly, a husband and wife along with a child appeared over to them. "If you need to use mermaid blood, use mine instead."
"You are…"
"The mermaids of the spirit realm?" Aqua continued Niken's guess with a little surprise.
How could she not be surprised? She did not expect that the mermaids who lived in the spirit realm would come to the human realm.
"Yes, I'm from the spirit realm. Five hundred years ago, our king's brother sent a message regarding the mermaid kingdom's situation here. He also informed that there would be assistance from familiar spirits and time travelers in five hundred later, and they would need mermaid blood to return the evil mermaids back to normal." explained the woman. "That's why we came here to help you."
"Ah, I remember that kid. Didn't we meet on the sky train on our way here?"
The boy smiled broadly, appreciating that Niken still recognized him. "I'm so glad that Fairy still remembers me."
The mother stroked her son gently. "So, can we save the mermaid lake tonight?"
"Of course. If we can do it tonight, why postpone it?" Aqua replied in a cheerful and light tone. "But we still need water cocoon to block their senses of smelling Niken."
"I can do it. Leave it to me," the mermaid's husband notified, earning a smile from his wife.
Finally, they were all able to save the mermaid lake and restore the evil mermaid's condition to its original state. Niken couldn't wait to meet Merylin and see the mermaid princess's smile.
But there is one thing that makes Niken curious. Why had he heard her smell so good lately? She remembered Kazuto, and Flynn told her that she had a pleasant scent. And earlier, Aqua too?
What does her smell look like? She was sure she didn't wear perfume or any other fragrance.
She wanted to ask Kazuto but didn't want to risk letting that guy take advantage of this for another intimacy session. Niken decided to wait for nightfall, and as soon as they were about to get ready in their respective posts, Niken asked Aqua directly.