Chapter 273: Chapter 0273: Ach at Forty-One (First Update)
“A sight too beautiful to behold!”

Facing the true form of Sea Sprite Ake, Li Si Te couldn’t help but express his amazement.

Of all the magical creatures he had encountered, the ones that had profoundly touched his soul were the Formless Dragon, composed of magic power, and the Tulip Great Sprite Xiang Xiang at Tulip Castle.

In terms of beauty, the Formless Dragon probably didn’t count, for it possessed the beauty of strange strength, or perhaps… fierceness.

Only Greater Elf Xiangxiang could compare with the Sea Sprite in beauty. But the Greater Elf did not have a human figure, just a human-like form; its beauty was a pure kind of beauty. The Sea Sprite, almost indistinguishable in appearance from humans, had a beauty that was more breathtaking.

It was the kind of beauty that resonated from the soul, devoid of any eroticism… At least Li Si Te was certain that at this moment he truly had no such thoughts.

He didn’t feel any disrespect, nor did he entertain any such ideas.

He even felt that the Sea Sprite’s beauty was surreal, or was a kind of beauty that should not be sullied by the mortal world. Any profane thought would be an unforgivable sin.

As they admired each other.

Sea Sprite Ake glanced again at Li Si Te, and he understood her look.

He slowly composed his emotions and showed a warm smile, then pushed the plate of fruits on the table towards the side closer to the seashells, “Eat whatever fruit you like, they are all washed and very clean.” Saying so, he himself picked up an apple and took a bite.

Eating alone is not as comfortable as eating together, and Li Si Te’s gesture was very considerate.

After seeing Li Si Te bite into the apple, Ake boldly reached out with her slender arm and picked up a raspberry with her long fingers. After another glance at Li Si Te, she placed the raspberry into her dainty mouth and began to eat.

“How does it taste?”

“Mm… delicious.”

“If it’s delicious then eat more, I have lots of fruits here. In my domain Flower Town, there are many fruit trees; you can eat fruit every day, just so you don’t get tired of it.”

“No… Ake likes fruits… likes them most.”

As they chatted and ate fruit, the atmosphere gradually relaxed.

The Sea Sprite seemed not to be very old and still possessed a pure innocence. Within a short conversation with Li Si Te, she opened up her heart simply and laughed away her previous tension and fear.

However, as they conversed, Li Si Te discovered a very awkward problem.

Although Ake’s key body parts were covered by water currents, she still seemed very exposed, hardly different from being unclothed. He had thought that he wouldn’t have any improper thoughts, but when he looked down, he realized that he had unintentionally pitched a tent, which meant that he did, in fact, have some respect.

“Ake, do you need to wear clothes?”

“Humans… wear clothes, Ake does not… Ake is a child protected by the spirit of the sea,” Sea Sprite Ake seriously replied.

Perhaps for Sea Sprites, clothing was merely a human thing, and they had no need for them.

They are the sprites of the sea, much like Minor Elves and Greater Elves; elves also do not need to wear clothes… Of course, elves neither have chests nor figures, nor reproductive organs, so it doesn’t matter if they wear clothes or not.

“Uh.”

Li Si Te paused for a moment.

He said nothing more; if she didn’t wear clothes, then so be it. He was planning to hide Sea Sprite Ake away from others anyway, so there was no need for her beauty to be concealed by clothes—not that he liked to see her unclothed, but he didn’t want to constrain Ake’s nature.

After Ake had finished a raspberry, he asked, “Ake, how old are you?”

Ake tilted her head, as if pondering, “I was born… not long ago… I have seen forty-one snowy winters… I should be forty-one years old, yes, Ake is forty-one years old.”

Forty-one years old?

Are you calling that not long after being born?

“So how long do you guys live?” Li Si Te asked, feeling uncomfortable without understanding this, “We humans have a lifespan of less than a hundred years, and I’m only seventeen this year.”

“Seventeen, so young, hee hee.” Ake first “mocked” Li Si Te’s age, then pondered seriously, “I don’t know… I haven’t come of age yet… Sea serpents… can grow legs when they mature.”

“Does that mean you truly don’t have legs right now?”

“Mhm.”

“That’s so magical, I can’t imagine how beautiful you will be when you grow legs.” Words of praise never tire a lady, even if she’s a sea serpent.

Ake was quite pleased.

She had a bit of a small appetite, seemed to really like eating raspberries, but stopped after only a few, “I’m full, Li Si Te.” Then she yawned comfortably.

“Are you tired?”

“A little.”

“Then you sleep for a bit. This vessel will dock at Black Horse Port to resupply, then head straight back to Fresh Flower Town. You can settle down in Fresh Flower Town for a long time, the town has a very beautiful beach, and calm bays.”

Li Si Te had many questions he wanted to ask.

But he didn’t think bombarding her with all of them at once was a good way to communicate.

Now that they had found the sea serpent Ake, there was no need to rush. Building a relationship takes time—it was different from the fiery passion he had with Duniko, and not the kind aimed at building the bonds of trust—Li Si Te hoped to keep the sea serpent Ake by his side forever.

“Mhm, Ake… sleep for a bit.” Saying this, the sea serpent Ake sat down, her body soaking in the seawater inside the shell.

This seawater was not ordinary seawater. In the vision of Li Si Te’s Eye of Magic, it emitted a faint Magic Radiance. It could be said that the entire seawater and shell were part of the sea serpent Ake.

It was similar to how cordyceps are part of an elf.

The shell and seawater were probably like the sea serpent’s cordyceps, similar to a personal magical treasure.

“Rest assured and sleep. In my domain, Dulu Miqita cannot harm you.” Li Si Te said with a smile, watching the shell slowly close and completely encase the sea serpent Ake inside.”

…

The Fresh Flower Vessel docked at Black Horse Port in the morning sunlight.

Li Si Te disembarked and quickly instructed Marcus on some matters before directly sailing back to Fresh Flower Town. He had no desire to linger any longer; he just wanted to return to the castle and settle down the sea serpent Ake.

The ship sailed on the vast sea.

Douson stood guard outside the cabin, while Li Si Te stayed in the room.

Looking at the pristine large shell, he pondered silently, “Where should I place Ake? Judging by Ake’s condition, she seems able to stay on land for extended periods, just needing to go into the sea regularly to replenish the shell’s seawater.”

Li Si Te definitely didn’t want to leave the sea serpent in the sea. Not to mention the sea monster Dulu Miqita, whose whereabouts were unknown—if someone were to scare off the sea serpent, he’d be devastated to the point of spitting blood.

But keeping the sea serpent in the castle felt like a form of imprisonment, and he couldn’t possibly stay in the castle all the time to accompany her.

“It’s a pity I can’t take Ake with me…”

Shaking his head, he decided to take off his shoes and lie down on the bed to rest as well. Staying up all night wasn’t too exhausting for an Elite Earth Knight, but since there was nothing to do: “When we get to Fresh Flower Town, I’ll ask Ake what she thinks before making arrangements.”