CHAPTER 313: MERMAID’S BLESSING

(Author’s POV)

"How may I address you, Miss?" Finally seeing the opportunity, Dion inquired, his eyes expectant.

"Ahhh~ stupid me. I didn’t even introduce myself. My name is~ ... Wendy Mir~," she was in the middle of telling him her last name when she glanced at the wall clock and exclaimed, "Ohho~ ... I am sorry, but I really need to go now. My sister will get worried otherwise. Bu~ bye." She departed as she waved her hand.

"Wendy?" Dion uttered her name while seeing her disappear around the corner. "Why do I feel like I have heard this name before? But I don’t remember anyone with the last name Mir?"

’Her name does ring a bell for me as well. Maybe it matches one of your past girlfriends’ relatives’ names or something like that,’ Drey commented. ’By the way, now that you have confirmed your suspicions about her and satisfied your curiosity. Shouldn’t you call Elio? He would be thrilled to know that ’his friend’ is here as well.’

’Ahh~ ... in my own excitement, I almost forgot. Thanks for reminding me. Let me call him,’ Dion replied, and mind linked Elio right away, ’Eli~ ...... Eli~ ... Eli~ ... ELI~, YOU WON’T BELIEVE WHO I JUST SAW RIGHT NOW.’ His voice was full of exaggeration.

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Elio and Brave were browsing in a jewellery shop. All the accessories in the store were made up of authentic shells and pearls. It looked like an ordinary store on the outside, but it had all kinds and varieties of seashells. Some of them were so rare that they could only be found in Esteria and nowhere else.

The store manager was telling them about a custom made, rare powder pink shell earrings, praising it to the nines, "Sir, these earrings, this design~ this level of craftsmanship ~ ...... I guarantee you, there is nothing like this in the world. It is one of a kind, found only on a nearby remote island."

An old man, who was looking at a blue pearl bracelet, glanced at the earrings in Brave’s hand, adjusted his glasses and added some more information to it, "Young man~ ...... the thing in your hand, it is said that this kind of rare shells has the mermaid’s blessing. Take it. I assure you, your lover will like it for sure."

The word ’lover’ created a sudden, painful pang in Brave’s heart as he licked his lips, feeling awkward. Though he quickly adjusted his expression and didn’t let it show on his face. With a curt smile, he cleared his throat as he clarified, "Sir~ ... I am buying these for my little sister."

The old man clapped in delight and said, "What a great older brother you are. It would look lovely on your sister. She will be thrilled to have them."

Brave then shifted the topic by asking, "By the way, what were you saying about the mermaid’s blessing? Is that really true? Do these~ ..... have that?" He inquired out of pure curiosity.

The old man’s eye glinted. He got really excited as he said, "Ohh~ abso~lutely ...... it is one hundred per cent real. Just like some rare kinds of pearls that are made from mermaid tears. But this colour ~ ..... it is even rarer." His tone was like that of a child.

"But~ .... Aren’t mermaids like~ ... just some mythical creature mentioned in children’s story books?" Elio asked curiously. "How can you be so sure that they really do exist?"

"No~ no~ ...... people think they are just mythical characters, but mermaids are real life creatures. Someone from my village, my close friend, has even seen a merman with their own eyes when he was trawling in the sea," the old man was quick in correcting Elio. "As for the piece of jewellery in the young man’s hand," he pointed at the earrings once again and continued, "It really has mermaid’s blessings. I can tell it just by the aura it is radiating. Whosoever wears them will get abundance and good health. And in time of need, it will act as a protective charm."

Elio took the pair of earrings from Brave’s hand and started examining them like it were some research subject. He touched the delicate piece with his fingertips, checking every last detail, but found nothing uncommon. They looked ordinary to him, unlike what the old man claimed them to be. He then lowered his voice and leaned toward Brave, whispering to him, "Bro~ ...... I think~ .... this, sir~ ... has mild symptoms of Schizophrenia. He is making up stories."

"Maybe, he has some medical condition," Brave replied, in a hushed tone as well.

The store manager, after seeing both of them whisper to each other, got tense. To defuse the situation, he questioned to the old man, "Sir~ ... I think you have watched too many movies. Did you watch ’Lady In The Water’ or ’The Little Mermaid’? There are no such beings as mermaids or mermen."

"You don’t believe my words because you haven’t seen any," the old man clapped back. "But what they show in the movies is all real. Mermaids do exist."

"So, by your logic, vampires and werewolves must be real as well, because there are a lot of movies about them, hmm?" the store manager asked. "Have you or any of your village people seen them as well?"

The old man couldn’t answer him as he pursed his lips, but Elio’s and Brave’s mouths twitched at the store manager’s remark. After all, they were the very embodiment of werewolf kind.

The manager then shifted his attention to them and said, "I don’t know about the claim this customer is making, but I can guarantee you about its value with a certificate of authenticity. So, will you take them, sir?" A polite smile was plastered on his lips.

"WE WILL," both the brothers said in unison.

The store manager’s face lit up, and he said, "I will ring them up for you." Brave went with him to make a payment. Elio was about to follow, but that is when he got Dion’s over the top mind link. He halted his steps and was greeted with a loud, almost piercing voice, ’ELIO, YOU WON’T BELIEVE WHO I JUST SAW?’

The unexpected, overly excited voice caught Elio off guard as he answered, ’Calm down, Brother Dio. Calm down. Do you want my mind to burst open?’

’Oops~ .... I guess I got a little carried away,’ Dion remarked.

’By the way, what did you say earlier? I didn’t get it, huhh? Why are you calling me? Are you done with your meal already?’ Elio fired a series of questions.

’Ohho~ ...... This is not the time for having a meal. I have something interesting to share with you. I just saw someone you would be thrilled to know,’ Dion said, his voice loud and overwrought.

’Wait a minute~ ... What? ... Something interesting to share? You have seen someone I would be thrilled to know~ ..... What are you talking about, Bro? I didn’t understand a thing. Elio was confused by his sudden blabbering.

’Ohhhh~ goshhhhh~. You are so dense. Anyways, your new friend, the girl you were interested in~ ...... oops~ ... I mean the girl you were talking to, I just met her here, at the restaurant. And guess what, I just got her name for you~ ...’ Dion finally spilt the beans.

’Huhh, my new friend?’ Elio instantly recalled who Dion was talking about.

Dion then said, "Yups~ she is here, at the restaurant with her family ... anyways, come to the restaurant, the Haute Fork. It is down the street. I am waiting." Saying his piece, he disconnected the mind link.

Elio looked at Brave and saw that he was ringing up another item. It seemed like a beautifully embellished conch made up of gold. He approached Brave and said, "Bro, are we done?"

"Almost. I was thinking of looking some more. What happened?" Brave inquired.

Dion lowered his voice and said, "I just got Brother Dio’s mind link. He is calling both of us to the restaurant right now."

"He must be pulling one of the tricks out of his hat. You know how dramatically he behaves sometimes. So, what did he say this time?" Brave shrugged it off.

Although Elio agreed with Brave’s words, he wanted to meet Wendy one more time. But he didn’t want to tell the real reason. So, he then suggested, "Okay, let’s do this. I will go and see what he is calling for. And in the meantime, you can look for other gift options? What’s say?"

"I don’t have any problem with that. Go on," Brave, without much thought, gave his green signal.

Although Brave didn’t notice, Elio was delighted to hear the words. A genuine smile appeared on his lips. Without wasting any more time, he departed from the store. There was an extra spring in his steps as he hurried towards the place Dion had mentioned.

Seeing that now Brave was alone, the old man approached Brave once again, "Everything will be alright, young man. You don’t need to be heartbroken." He then pointed to the sky and uttered, "The god above~ ..... he is seeing everything. He will not let their child suffer."

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To Be Continued . . . . . . .