Chapter 26
The door opened, and Ning Zhixia, his heart pounding with nervousness and excitement, hid behind Popokula with Qu Banqing, both of them rather cowardly.
Instead of the bizarre deep-sea creatures they had imagined, several beautiful women in silk dresses appeared at the door, their long, flowing blue hair adorned with pearls and gold tassels, like holy nymphs from mythology.
Qu Banqing was stunned. He poked the octopus and asked suspiciously, “Your neighbors?”
Popokula said proudly: “Of course, Popo also has a house in the reef forest near the shore!” These were his beautiful neighbors from the land!
Ning Zhixia nodded as if he understood, invited the ladies in, and then nervously stood beside Popokula.
“Thank you for your invitation. It’s our first time seeing a shop that decorates nails.” The woman at the front, named Xinya, seeing his nervous demeanor, which resembled a small hermit crab searching for shells, stepped forward from her giggling companions and greeted him.
Ning Zhixia asked curiously, “Are you also sea monsters?”
“I suppose… something like that.” Xinya smiled, elegantly taking Ning Zhixia’s hand and explaining softly, “According to the customs of this world, you can call us sirens.”
Qu Banqing suddenly realized: “Oh, oh, oh! Mermaids!”
“Mer…” Several captivating pairs of eyes stared at him, their heads tilting slightly. “Maids?”
The sirens seemed to find something amusing and burst into laughter.
Ning Zhixia was confused. Xinya clapped her hands, and her companions gradually stopped laughing.
Countless fine feathers sprouted from their chests, spreading downwards. Under the light, a long golden-brown feather slowly drifted down, casting a dark shadow that enveloped the two of them as they looked up.
Small, metal wings suddenly popped out from the sides of Qu Banqing’s head, almost slicing off one of Popokula’s pink tentacles.
He choked, coughed, and avoided the curious gazes of the ladies, pressing his comparatively tiny wings back down.
These guests weren’t bird-headed creatures. At least their upper bodies were no different from human women.
Ha ha… not strange at all… ha ha… just a small scene…
Ning Zhixia put a hand on his friend’s shoulder and pressed his philtrum, taking a deep breath.
Calm down, stay calm, fainting now would be too embarrassing.
Only a few kitten heads eagerly squeezed between them, baring their little fangs, and staring intently at the sirens, chirping like sending telegrams.
Fatty Orange: Such big birdies!
“Oh dear, it seems…” Xinya said playfully, “We’re a bit different from the mermaids in this world’s fairy tales.”
Ning Zhixia: “Ha ha, just a little.”
He suddenly remembered that in the original legends, “sirens” were actually described as winged maidens.
Their weapon of seduction wasn’t their beauty, but their clear, sweet singing voices that lured sailors to their deaths on the reefs, so the flower-covered island where they sang was surrounded by terrifying white bones. It wasn’t until the 7th or 8th century AD that the image of these maidens merged with that of mermaids in bestiaries.
But no matter how their beauty was described in poetry and art, the appearance of these sea creatures was always associated with death.
Ning Zhixia was grateful that they only sniffed his cheek curiously, their attention mostly focused on the manicures.
The bird-women returned to their human forms, giggling: “Ning Ning, you’re so calm, not scared at all.”
Ning Zhixia, having recovered, nodded with a straight face. Indeed, there was no need to be afraid, after all, the clientele in this house had always been diverse.
Popokula was still playing with Qu Banqing’s hair, trying to see the small wings that had suddenly appeared.
Qu Banqing gently pushed away its tentacle and said to Ning Zhixia helplessly, “Let’s not delay any longer, aren’t they here for manicures?”
“Oh, right!”
Ning Zhixia remembered that time was limited and quickly invited the sirens to sit down. The sea creatures looked at each other, deciding to let Xinya and her youngest sister, Winnifa, go first.
“Do you have any preferred styles?” Ning Zhixia was looking for his previous works when two hands appeared before him.
Xinya raised an eyebrow: “Our hands are different from humans’, perhaps you should take a look first before deciding.”
Qu Banqing adjusted the lamp, the bright light illuminating a pair of unusually pale hands, slender and delicate, flawlessly beautiful.
Ning Zhixia looked down, his gaze fixed on the nails, and he paused.
Perhaps due to their half-bird forms, the sirens’ ten nails were all curved downwards. This might be convenient for tearing flesh, but it seemed to be a source of distress for these beauty-conscious girls.
“Don’t worry, we understand.”
Xinya looked at Ning Zhixia’s hands, also realizing their differences, and retracted her hand with her sister, slightly disappointed.
“No, no, no.” Ning Zhixia shook his head and quickly explained, “I can do it, it’ll just take a little longer. I’m afraid I can only serve two customers tonight.”
“Are… are you sure?” Xinya looked down at his designs, then at her own hands, and asked tentatively.
The other girls’ expressions were even more complicated, as if saying, Do humans think sirens are fools?
“Trust Ning Ning! If he says he can do it, he can!” Popokula waved its tentacles, practically holding up a cheering banner.
Xinya was amused by her neighbor’s cuteness, then heard Ning Zhixia say seriously, “Don’t worry, we humans have this nail shape too.”
Curved-down nails weren’t anything to be anxious about. Besides genetic factors, habitually using the first knuckle for applying force could exacerbate the downward curve, usually most prominent in the index finger.
However, people with this nail shape often had one characteristic: excellent nail beds. Even after trimming along the free edge, their nails wouldn’t look short.
The sirens naturally preferred long nails, which was easy to solve. Ning Zhixia briefly examined Xinya’s fingers and said casually, “Let’s do acrylic extensions.”
Xinya didn’t understand the terminology, but seeing the young man’s confident demeanor, she agreed to let him do as he saw fit, focusing on choosing a design.
So, after prepping her nails, Ning Zhixia applied nail forms and carefully applied the acrylic, blending it seamlessly with her natural nails.
This was a tool Popokula hadn’t seen before, and it and the other girls couldn’t help but gather around to watch curiously.
Engrossed in watching, their heads got closer and closer, blocking the light. Ning Zhixia looked up, annoyed, tilted his head, and nudged them aside.
Popokula, embarrassed, wrapped its tentacles around the other sirens and went to Qu Banqing’s side, and soon they heard Qu Banqing’s cries of protest.
Ning Zhixia couldn’t help him. He was carefully applying the acrylic, but after a few strokes, he realized he had applied more product to the tips than the base, making them look bulky.
Xinya didn’t understand, but her sister, Winnifa, was already getting impatient. Xinya smiled at her and gestured for her to wait.
After finishing one finger, he cured it under the UV lamp, using a pinching tool to shape the extension. It was crucial to align the tool parallel to the nail, otherwise there was a risk of the extension snapping after curing.
Xinya didn’t find it painful and asked with interest, “Do you always use these… clips? They look like torture devices.”
Ning Zhixia shook his head: “I use them for fan-shaped and upturned nails, but you can’t pinch too hard, or it’ll cause onycholysis. Gradual shaping can improve the nail shape over time.”
It seemed like pinching tools were useful, but Ning Zhixia didn’t think they should be overused. He remembered many salons exaggerating the slimming effect of stiletto nails and pinching the nails too hard, causing onycholysis and even nail detachment.
Xinya’s nail shape, apart from the downward curve, wasn’t bad, so Ning Zhixia only used the tool to slightly shape the extensions, which was enough.
For the filing part, Ning Zhixia turned her hand palm-up and used the e-file to create a natural C-curve, making the extensions look like they were naturally grown.
Xinya and her sister, Winnifa, finally understood why he had insisted on applying more acrylic to the tips.
With the extra product, filing was easier and allowed for adjustments.
After a series of steps, the acrylic extensions blended seamlessly with her natural nails, completely eliminating the downward curve.
Xinya was amazed: “Oh my god, it’s like magic!”
Ning Zhixia wasn’t a doctor. When her nails grew out, they would still curve downwards, but for now, he could achieve a completely natural look.
He honestly explained this to them, but Xinya waved her hand dismissively: “It’s okay, I’ll just come back when they grow out. Sirens’ hands are naturally like this.”
Ning Zhixia nodded as if he understood and started working on the chosen design.
He was creating a cat eye French manicure with an ocean theme. After applying a jade-colored base coat, he applied the same color cat eye polish to the tips.
The other sirens watched as he swept a magnet over the nails, the delicate shimmer shifting and gathering towards the free edge. When Ning Zhixia picked up a gel polish, a girl eagerly picked up a small magnet and examined it closely.
Ning Zhixia applied some gel to an acrylic board and let the curious sea creatures play with the magnet.
While he wasn’t being disturbed, Ning Zhixia quickly blended a thin layer of ocean blue and rose red cat eye polish, then used a striping brush with hard gel top coat to create a shell-like texture on the French tip area.
As for decorations, Xinya chose Swarovski crystals without hesitation. Ning Zhixia applied them along the French tip curve, then, finding it too plain, started rummaging through his tools.
He used to sculpt some special decorations by hand, but since Qu Banqing arrived, he had made several molds, and the cast decorations were even more exquisite than the store-bought ones.
Ning Zhixia chose feather and small seashell molds, mixed colored gel with fairy powder, poured it into the molds, and cured them. The finished decorations shimmered with a subtle, delicate glow, very cute.
The girls’ interest was piqued even more. They abandoned the small magnets and gathered around Xinya, chattering about how to arrange the decorations.
“Feathers on the right hand, small seashells on the left?” Ning Zhixia held the decorations with tweezers like a juggler, nervously confirming, “No more changes? Really?”
The girls nodded and urged: “Yes, yes, yes, no more changes! Hurry up, hurry up!”
Xinya: “…” Who remembered that these were her hands?!
Ning Zhixia quickly followed their instructions, then used marquise-shaped crystals to create tassels on her ring fingers, matching Xinya’s gold tassel hair ornaments.
Xinya naturally noticed his thoughtfulness and smiled with satisfaction.
The once plain, curved nails were now completely transformed, showcasing the beauty and brilliance of the ocean. She dared say that even the starry sky of the gods would pale in comparison.
“It’s so beautiful, we’ll definitely steal the show at the sea monster gathering next month!” The sirens giggled excitedly, seemingly impatient.
A sea monster gathering, it sounded like a lively event. Ning Zhixia rubbed his sore neck and asked with interest, “Will there be mermen?”
“Mermen?”
The sirens paused, exchanged glances with Popokula, and shook their heads. “There are no mermen in our world.”
Ning Zhixia was a little surprised. Indeed, every plane’s civilization had similarities and differences.
Popokula asked, “Ning Ning, do you really want to see a merman?”
“Not really, I just heard a lot of fairy tales as a child, and after knowing you exist, I can’t help but imagine.” Seeing their curiosity, Ning Zhixia slowly told them the story of The Little Mermaid.
Everyone listened attentively, but just as he finished the story, large tears welled up in Popokula’s eyes, splashing onto the floor.
“Bubbles.” Two tentacles came together, then parted, and Popokula wailed, its eyes trembling, “Gone.”
The sirens comforted the sentimental octopus, sighing: “Oh dear, such a silly girl.”
“So that’s a mermaid.” Xinya pondered for a moment, then chuckled. “There are no such creatures in the underwater city, but I’ve heard that in a distant, ancient land and sea, there are mermen that fit your imagination.”
Ning Zhixia’s eyes lit up again: “Ancient land and sea? Where is it?”
Xinya answered decisively this time: “Perhaps another world, perhaps just a legend, but I’m afraid only their appearance would match the story.”
Ning Zhixia tilted his head in confusion: “?”
Xinya resisted the urge to pat the young man’s head, her voice soft but with a hint of mischief: “If it were the protagonist of a fairy tale, it would hesitate to rip open the prince’s chest, just like gutting a fish, then take out his heart and eat it before leaving.”
The sudden change in tone made Ning Zhixia’s shoulders instinctively hunch.
The other sirens were amused by his reaction and started singing—
“A throne of bones, a tombstone of blood,
This is the eternal resting place of lost souls.
Run, run, dear bird,
Once you sink into the deep sea,
You become its beloved plaything.”
Their ethereal voices were like nightingales singing, the lyrics sounding like a warning, but the cheerful melody was more like gloating over the lost souls being swallowed by nightmares.
Ning Zhixia realized that the stiffer his expression became, the more amused the sirens were.
Such mischievous sea monsters, he thought sincerely, “You’re so mean.”
The sirens stopped singing and blinked innocently: “Who said beautiful creatures have to be gentle and harmless?”
Ning Zhixia pouted: “Hmph.”
As they were chatting, Qu Banqing finished Winnifa’s manicure. She didn’t choose a French manicure. Her nails were all blended with blue and silver cat eye polish, and a magnetic ball was used to create a water ripple effect. A few nails were also decorated with watercolor jellyfish, looking shimmery and dreamy.
The sirens were extremely satisfied and excitedly discussed the order for their next appointments, suggesting various complex designs.
Ning Zhixia’s smile became increasingly strained, and he finally fell silent: “…”
Great, they really didn’t treat him like a human.
Time was almost up. Xinya, seeing this, didn’t delay any longer. She took out a pouch, placed two large, smooth pearls on the QR code stand, and a white light flashed—
[10,000 yuan received!]
Qu Banqing sighed: “That sound, tsk, tsk, I’ll never get tired of it, even after a hundred years.”
Ning Zhixia grinned: “Same here.”
“Okay, your turn, Winnifa.”
“Just use pearls as payment, it’s worth the price.”
Winnifa, the youngest siren, urged by her sisters, fumbled nervously, and as she took out her pouch, a few oddly shaped pearls clattered onto the floor.
The sirens had high standards, preferring round, lustrous pearls, which were rare and considered hard currency in the sea monster plane. Baroque pearls were like defective products.
Winnifa’s action was like pulling out trash from her pocket, and the sirens couldn’t help but laugh.
“Dear, you’re so cute, why are you still keeping these oddly shaped trinkets?”
“How rude, humans won’t like these ugly pearls.”
“There’s plenty of gold and silver in our nest, don’t be stingy, quickly find something else.”
Winnifa’s face flushed red: “Sorry, sorry, I didn’t mean to.”
She tossed the pouch aside, wanting to search her other pockets, but all the baroque pearls spilled out, scattering across the carpet like chicken feed.
“Holy crap!”
Ning Zhixia was startled and, along with Qu Banqing, immediately dropped to the floor to pick them up.
The young man’s face was lit up with a harvest-like smile, leaving the sirens dumbfounded.
Popokula, holding the eager Fatty Orange, couldn’t help but say, “So cute, so cute…”
