And Sold Souls

Mr. Xi had turned 69, according to the legal documents of his birth.

Of course, the party held at the rooftop of the villa was lavish as could be. People would be dressed in gowns and suits, and they all had prepared bikinis and swimwear for the afterparty held at the infinity pool area later at night. The buffet was full of gourmet dishes served in silver platters and tiny plates. Lobsters, caviar, Mediterranean hors d'oeuvres…. It has it all.

Everyone was too busy basking in this opulence and sharing fake smiles and laughter with each other. Everyone including the host of the villa and the birthday boy himself.

Roland made his way with a glass of champagne in hand. It was noon, and the sun shone over his alabaster skin. The glare would be damaging to his sensitive eyes, but he was now wearing sunglasses

"Mr. Xi. Happy birthday." He said with his usual well-mannered smile.

The man's green eyes lit up as soon as he saw him. "Ah, my godson! How have you been, Roland? Do you find the party enjoyable?"

"Very much so. It has everything needed for a perfect birthday bash." Roland said. "When shall we give our gifts, Mr. Xi?"

"Hahaha, you are looking forward to giving gifts already? That is usually at the end of the main party, before the afterparty. So you may have to wait until dinner time." Mr. Xi took a glass of champagne from a server too, picking it up gently due to his large hands. "Are you in a rush to leave? Is there an important place that you have to go to?"

"No, I just wondered. Since we would have to present the gift to everyone and deliver toast while we do it. I just want to prepare for my speech." Roland told him.

"Oh, you don't have to practice! Just say what you honestly wish for Uncle Jiaoshe!" Mr. Xi chuckled.

Roland nodded. "I will, Mr. Xi."

During this whole conversation, he never met his eyes. Thanks to the sunglasses it was now not as obvious as before. Roland and Mr. Xi talked some more, before Roland excused himself to talk to some familiar people and business associates of the Faust.

But he actually went to the bathroom, holding a walkie-talkie.

"Operate final shipment, over. We have approximately 6 hours."

------------------------

Harker saw the bodyguard before him receive the message on the walkie-talkie. The buff, bald man turned to him and gave a nod. Harker nodded back, and they went inside the limousine.

Inside, the bodyguard handed another ziplock bag, this time containing strands of hair.

"This is the DNA sample of the bank robber that escaped just 7 months ago. He is known for using explosives and keeping hostages with guns." The bodyguard told him.

Harker nodded. "And were you able to retrieve any DNA samples from Mr. Xi again?"

"I'm afraid not, Mr. Jones. Mr. Faust had decided not to attempt it anymore as he believed it was too dangerous for the operation." The bodyguard said.

Harker did not mind. "It's fine, I just gotta handle it myself. This fight is between me and Jiaoshe anyway."

The limo drove all the way to a factory, along with several Jiaoren Co. trucks. But the people in these trucks were hired men by Roland Fausts, and several of the workers and even guards that they have bribed.

They entered the area, covering all sides with guns in hand. One of them made an announcement at the intercom.

[Everyone hands the air and do as we order. We repeat. Hands in the air, we have several bombs placed under this factory that will detonate in approximately 6 hours.]

Many workers panicked, but they were successfully herded by the team to stay in their places and not let a single one escape. Due to the EMI from the devices inside the jiaorens, telephone calls inside the factory were not possible either or if any of them had a communications device.

There were some stubborn ones that tried to put up a fight and appear heroic, but as son as a certain peach blossom scent lingered in the air…..

These morons behaved and knelt on the floor with their hands behind their heads.

The voice at the intercom continued to speak.

[We demand all of you to bring the mermaids to tanks, in designated order and succession. Anyone who fails to follow these instructions will be shot.]

The men with guns have masks so none of them could be recognized. The only who who didn't have it seemed to be the mastermind of the operations: the notorious bank robber they saw on the news known as Jacob Blitz.

This criminal, Jacob Blitz, had this odd flower scent around him as he walked further into the factory past the distress crowd and towards a certain room. The guards of that room aimed their guns at him, but they all stopped and could not move.

"It's him! The prisoner that escaped the tank!" They exclaimed.

"I dunno what you're talking about, fellas." Harker broke the door open, still chewing on something crunchy.

The guards realized he was checking on a woman's delicate hands and fingers, and they almost pissed their pants.

It was a good idea that Harker had asked one of Roland's people to grab some of his 'Miss Lovette snacks' for this day. That way, some of the bloodshed would be avoided. They may be goons of the enemy, but they were simply doing their jobs and they were still humans.

Once entered the door to the room he was once imprisoned in….

Harker saw Princess Jinzhu's eyes lit up when she saw him. Even with a different face, she instantly recognized it was him from the aura alone.

"I almost thought you'd never come, Harker sir." She said, wearing that rare, genuine smile. "I'm just joking. I have always trusted that you would."

He gave his usual toothy smile at her.

"Sorry if it took so long. Let's go."

Harker had made the guards shoot the electrical screens on the wall, and disable the electroshock feature attached to the mermaids. Their bodies moved out of their own will to push the tanks one by one outside into the trucks to be shipped.

The process took a while because one tank needs at least 4 men to push it due to the weight. But by working efficiently together, they have shipped more than half of the mermaids by 3 o' clock.

It was doing so well. Harker said to the Princess: "We just have to wait for your turn. We will have you all shipped back to China in no time."

Princess Jinzhu nodded, but something seemed to be troubling her. Harker didn't like that since this was supposed to be a happy occasion for them, where they finally gain back their freedom. He asked her about it.

She replied. "I will miss you, Harker sir. Thank you for everything."

Harker's heart clenched. They have only known each other for a while, but he did find that Princess Jinzhu was a fun mermaid to be around. She may be a bit eccentric and strange, but he was too, and they play off each other pretty well.

But….. Well, she's a mermaid. She belongs to the sea, and he belongs on land. She and her sisters have a whole kingdom to take care of.

He will miss her too, though. They have developed a pretty good friendship over this incident. Maybe….

Maybe it could have developed into something more too if the situation was different. But he didn't tell her that, since it may make it harder for the both of them to be separated.

"You're welcome… Just promise to have a good life after this." Harker said. "You have many years ahead of you, I'm guessing. You can live peacefully now."

Princess Jinzhu shook her head. "No. We won't."

She admitted what's bothering her. "Actually, I wish I could stay. If only I could walk on land….. I'd be able to find that scum."

Harker furrowed his brows. "Find who?"

Her face darkened as she said:

"The one who sold us to Xi Jiaoshe."