Chapter 510 - 507: Do You Like Him?

Chapter 510: Chapter 507: Do You Like Him?

Jiao Yin stopped in his tracks, as if bound by invisible chains.

The struggle and anguish in his eyes eventually dissolved into an almost inaudible sigh.

"If Wanwan doesn’t want to see me, rushing in like this will only bother her and put her in an awkward spot."

Hua Han froze. He never thought Jiao Yin would stop, not when they had come all this way and were just about to see Wanwan.

"Jiao Yin, you need to open your eyes! Wanwan is already surrounded by so many powerful males, and every single one of them is completely devoted to her. When it comes to love, sometimes you have to fight for it, you have to seize it! If you just stand there forever without taking a single step, how do you expect an opportunity to just fall into your lap?"

Hua Han knew this principle well, because he himself had fought and clawed for his position.

Jiao Yin lowered his gaze. His thick eyelashes cast a small shadow beneath his eyes, hiding the complex emotions swirling in their depths.

"I know..." He knew that all too well. "But I can’t bring myself to force anything against her will. I never want to see her look even the slightest bit conflicted because of me."

He paused, his voice heavy with responsibility. "Besides, I’m not like you. I have the entire Merfolk Clan to protect. The ocean isn’t always peaceful; it’s fraught with danger. Other powerful sea beast clans could attack at any time, and our people already struggle to reproduce... I am their King. I can’t leave this deep sea. I can’t abandon the people who have depended on us for generations, who have lived and died by our side, just for my own selfish desires."

The weight of his responsibility wouldn’t allow him to abandon everything to pursue his personal feelings.

Hua Han fell silent.

He understood Jiao Yin’s position—the burden and responsibility that came with being a king.

And he was free of such burdens.

After a long moment, he finally sighed. "So you’ve really thought this through? I’ve done all I can to help; I’ve even created this chance for you. If you refuse to take this step yourself, then this lifetime... you might truly never get another chance. Once she leaves these waters, the distance between you will become insurmountable."

Jiao Yin lifted his gaze, his eyes piercing through the swaying water and past the crystal latticework. He looked toward the blurred, happy figures inside the palace, his ears seeming to catch the faint echo of her cheerful chatter.

A bitter ache spread through his chest, coiling around his heart like seaweed and nearly suffocating him.

He struggled to utter a single word: "Yeah."

The very moment the word left his lips, the grand doors of the palace, adorned with giant mother-of-pearl, slowly swung open.

Jiao Yue emerged, affectionately linking arms with Bai Wanwan, her face beaming with a radiant smile.

"Brother! You’re here too? Did you come to see Sister Wanwan?"

Upon seeing her brother, Jiao Yue greeted him cheerfully while frantically shooting him signals with her eyes.

Jiao Yin’s gaze instinctively fell upon Bai Wanwan.

Bai Wanwan saw him too, and the corners of her lips curved up into an impeccable but clearly distant smile.

That polite gesture was like a fine ice needle, precisely piercing Jiao Yin’s heart and bringing a sharp, minute pang of pain.

As for Jiao Yue’s winks and nudges, he seemed completely oblivious.

Seeing this, Jiao Yue was so anxious she stomped her foot!

She quickly tried to salvage the situation, saying, "Brother, Sister Wanwan said she wanted to see our most beautiful Seven-color Coral Group to the west, and I was just about to take her! Do you two want to come with us?"

She was doing her best to create an opportunity.

Bai Wanwan had only reluctantly agreed to go out for a stroll, unable to refuse Jiao Yue’s unusual enthusiasm and persistent coaxing. She never expected to bump into Jiao Yin the moment she stepped outside.

’If we go together now, won’t that just create more needless complications and entanglements?’

She hesitated, already trying to think of an excuse to politely refuse.

She had just parted her lips, not a sound yet escaping, when Jiao Yin seemed to read her mind. His gaze locked onto hers as he cut in, his voice steady but with an undercurrent of barely perceptible tension. "You go with Wanwan. I just remembered I have something urgent to take care of, so I won’t spoil your fun."

With that, he turned decisively and departed without giving Bai Wanwan a second glance. His retreating figure looked somewhat rushed and lonely in the shimmering water.

Hua Han immediately said to Bai Wanwan, "I’ll see him off." Then he hurried after him.

Jiao Yue stomped her foot again in frustration. She was practically beside herself with anxiety!

’Sister Wanwan is so wonderful, and she’s already surrounded by so many powerful, handsome males. If my brother keeps being this passive and unassertive, how will he ever win the heart of the female he adores?’

"Jiao Yue?" Bai Wanwan’s voice pulled her from her thoughts.

Jiao Yue quickly hid her frustration and forced a smile. "Oh! Sister Wanwan, my brother... he’s just so busy all the time. It’s fine, let’s go by ourselves! That coral group really is super gorgeous!"

Hearing that it would just be the two of them, Bai Wanwan finally relaxed and agreed, "Okay."

The two of them headed toward the coral reef, side by side.

Along the way, Bai Wanwan keenly observed that Jiao Yue seemed distracted, a faint shadow of worry clouding her features.

"Jiao Yue, what’s wrong?" Bai Wanwan asked, concerned.

Jiao Yue turned to look into Bai Wanwan’s gentle, concerned eyes. She bit her lip, then, steeling herself, blurted out, "Sister Wanwan, my brother... he really, truly likes you! You might not know this, but ever since you left, he has taken time every single day to linger at the boundary where the deep sea meets the land. He just waits there for a long time. I know he’s worried about you, wondering when you’ll come back safely... He’s just not good at expressing his feelings, and he takes his duty to the clan far too seriously..."

Bai Wanwan sighed softly and stopped walking. She looked at Jiao Yue seriously. "Jiao Yue, I understand. But I’ll be leaving here soon with my Beast Husbands to return to the land. He and I... one is a Land Beastman, the other a Deep Sea Merfolk. Our environments, our responsibilities—they’re completely different. We’re just not compatible."

Jiao Yue grew anxious and grabbed Bai Wanwan’s hand. "Why not? He doesn’t have to be the Merfolk King! We can just pick another Clan Leader! The position is too hard, too heavy a burden. My brother has carried the hopes and burdens of the entire clan since the day he was born; he’s barely lived a single day for himself. I just... I just want him to be happier, to be with the female he truly loves!"

She stared at Bai Wanwan, her gaze burning with a hint of desperate courage. "Sister Wanwan... just tell me. Putting aside all the outside factors, in your heart... do you like my brother? Even just a little? Even if you can’t be together in the end, can you please just tell me the truth?"

Faced with Jiao Yue’s clear, persistent gaze, Bai Wanwan fell silent for a moment.

The image of that powerful, handsome figure with the sad eyes flashed through her mind.