Sirens

In the dimly lit cabin.

Lothar had finished telling the tale of "Comprehending Bodhi's True Sublime Principle, Slaying Demons and Returning to the Origin to Unite with the Primordial Spirit."

Fringilla, lying on the bunk opposite him, was still listening with sparkling eyes.

The story had been told in Chinese, so both of them could understand it.

The dialogue written for them in the game had been Chinese to begin with. In fact, Lothar's budget had never included hiring foreign-language voice actors.

"Keep going. What happened next?"

Prajna pursed her lips and said nothing, but Lothar could clearly sense a faint hint of anticipation in those usually aloof eyes.

The words at Lothar's lips—"If you want to know what happened next, tune in next time"—were forcibly swallowed back down.

"Fine, then I'll tell one more chapter."

"But let's be clear: after this chapter, you have to rest! Proper rest is vital for a warrior."

Fringilla said impatiently, "All right, all right, I know. Hurry up and start!"

Prajna pressed her lips together. That last sentence was what she had said on the first night she had slept with Lothar.

Lothar shot Fringilla an annoyed look, cleared his throat, and continued. "Now then, after the Handsome Monkey King returned gloriously to Flower-Fruit Mountain, he wiped out the Demon King of Chaos, who had claimed the mountain as his own—"

The notification for increased intimacy sounded from time to time.

But there had been no noticeable change.

Fringilla still had not reached "Friendly," though her attitude was clearly no longer as cold as before.

Like Prajna, she probably still lacked the right opportunity for a breakthrough.

Lothar did not have that many ulterior motives. He enjoyed spending time with them too, so there was no need to keep thinking about intimacy unlocking skills or anything like that.

Everything would happen naturally when the time was right.

Besides, rushing would not help.

It was not as if he could grab Fringilla by her pale, tender neck and demand, "Get friendly with me already, damn it!"

After finishing the chapter, Lothar yawned.

Stamina was not the same as mental energy. He could not go without sleep for an entire day and night.

If he could draw some potions in the future that altered his physique or increased his attributes, perhaps he could become like a high-quality retainer.

"If you wish to know what official post this monkey received after ascending to Heaven, tune in next time."

"That's it. I'm going to sleep."

"Mm."

Prajna nodded slightly.

Fringilla did not pester him further, though she said regretfully, "It's all because my strength hasn't recovered yet. Otherwise, if I gave you an Embrace, Lord, you wouldn't need to sleep every day."

Lothar was speechless as he lay down and closed his eyes.

If he grew old in the future and still had not drawn any medicine or item that could extend his lifespan, he might consider becoming a vampire.

But he had no intention of doing that now.

Vampires were another species entirely. Becoming one would turn a person's values and worldview upside down.

Who knew whether he would become some vicious monster that only knew how to raise "blood livestock," hiding in a dark, damp castle and devouring people at will?

Seeing Lothar lie down.

Fringilla looked utterly bored.

Like the ghost race Prajna belonged to, vampires also needed sleep, but their sleep was measured in months at the very least.

Short sleeps every day like humans had.

Were possible.

But unnecessary.

Fringilla wanted to say something, but when she saw that Lothar was already breathing evenly, she forcibly held it back.

She exchanged glances with Prajna, but that big fool ignored her.

Hmph.

She turned over and went to sleep.

Lothar was sleeping deeply.

Then a pleasant, gentle song suddenly rang in his ears.

The voice was so soft that it did not stir even the slightest irritation at having his sleep disturbed.

It felt as though he were resting his head on the soft lap of a beloved woman, almost able to smell her faint fragrance.

Milestone Activated: Encountered Sirens: You had an intimate exchange of bodily fluids with sirens and successfully survived their brutal mating process.

The system notification sounded like an annoying alarm clock.

Lothar woke up irritably, but immediately realized something was wrong—the singing had not vanished. He was not dreaming. A woman really was singing!

In the pitch-black cabin, Prajna gripped the ghost-faced shield in her hand and warily surveyed her surroundings.

Even the ghost-face relief on the shield had grown excited.

Fringilla's eyes glimmered with a dark red light.

"They really came."

There was excitement in her voice, as though some unexpected delight had appeared in her ordinarily placid life.

"Lord, I don't drink human blood. Can I drink siren blood?"

"Just listening to those slutty voices, you can tell their blood must be especially sweet."

Her fangs unconsciously pierced her lips.

Prajna frowned and shouted softly, "Wake up!"

The scarlet glow in Fringilla's eyes immediately dimmed. She said incredulously, "How? That's not right. My spiritual power is so much stronger than yours, so why was I the one affected?"

Prajna answered concisely, "Your desires burn too fiercely."

"Let's go wake everyone up. We can't let them continue losing themselves in the sirens' song."

Lothar threw on his coat and headed out first.

The scenes in the cabins were utterly disgraceful.

Lothar frowned deeply. "Good thing the settlers were assigned to separate cabins by gender. Otherwise, this would definitely lead to a series of ethical disasters."

He woke Hans, Ryan, and Moder first.

When the three men awoke, their faces were full of rage. Only after seeing that it was Lothar did they break out in cold sweat and fully come to their senses.

"Plug your ears and wake everyone up. Prioritize our settlers."

After hurriedly giving the order, he took Prajna and Fringilla up to the deck.

On the deck, the obese merchant stared into the distance with a blissful expression, muttering, "Selena, I'm back. This time, I brought you an entire ship of sacrifices."

"I know an ugly fat man like me is unworthy of your favor, but please, please accept this insignificant gift."

Selena?

That had to be the siren, right?

Lothar's expression turned cold. So this damned Jewish merchant was not only stingy and greedy, but had also intended to use them passengers as gifts to curry favor with the sirens.

Damn him!

Three figures rose into the night sky.

Their bright red lips opened and closed as they sang a beautiful melody.

Their upper bodies were no different from those of human women, except for a pair of fleshy wings like bat wings growing from their backs.

Colorful fins also grew from their waists.

Their lower bodies, just as in the legends, were long fish tails.

Soft golden hair draped over their shoulders.

Holding hands, they floated in the air and sang, their faces gentle and beautiful.

Lothar had to admit that even after spending so much time with Prajna and Fringilla, these three sirens still stirred something in his heart.

Beautiful. Noble.

Where was the terror and ugliness of the legendary sirens?

At that moment, one of the sirens slowly drifted down.

She reached out to the obese merchant and gently stroked his fat face.

The merchant said excitedly, "Selena, I knew it. I knew you wouldn't hurt me. You let me go last time—I knew you had special feelings for me too."

The corners of Selena's lips rose slightly, revealing a charming smile.

Special feelings?

If you had not been so strong that I failed to catch you, how could I have let such a huge chunk of meat escape?

Still, this foolish prey had actually delivered himself to me again, and even thoughtfully brought such abundant sacrifices. Should I spare his life?

Selena licked her lips. Her mouth watered furiously; the sight of all that fat made it hard for her to restrain herself.

But the merchant misunderstood her gesture and excitedly leaned his face closer.

The next instant, a shrill scream rang out.

Blood covered the siren's face as she viciously chewed through the merchant's lips and flesh. The merchant screamed and rolled across the deck, leaving behind shocking trails of blood.

The sirens still hovering in the sky could no longer restrain their hunger either. Beating their wings, they swooped toward the blood-covered merchant.

Fringilla sneered, "Creatures this stupid can't possibly compare to us vampires. They were obviously giving this merchant a taste of sweetness so they could reel in a bigger catch."

Lothar said in a low voice, "Enough nonsense. Kill them!"