Hi Master, Little Mermaid Will Support You! 30

Chapter 30

“Just be the little mermaid you want to be.”

Hearing those words, MuMu made a wish to the raindrops:

If only I could always be this close to Master!

For the next few days, Wen Ming stayed home, preparing mermaid meals for MuMu and taking care of it meticulously.

MuMu began to wonder if “raindrops” were some legendary deity, its wishes were coming true too perfectly.

“Awoo?” Why aren’t you going to work?

MuMu’s face was full of worry: “!” Did you get fired!?

Wen Ming handed it the mermaid bowl: “Are you going to eat or not?”

“…Growl.” Don’t change the subject!

MuMu hugged the bowl angrily: I’ll talk after I finish eating!

Today’s mermaid meal had thin slices of conch mixed in with the soft fish meat, a delightful combination of textures.

As it ate, MuMu’s little brain raced:

After the milk incident, although it hadn’t eaten any live fish, its meals had been exceptionally delicious.

Master had been staying home every day, where was he getting the star coins for these ingredients?

Could these meals be their last, using up his savings…?

MuMu finished its meal with a heavy heart.

Wen Ming came to take the empty bowl, but MuMu held on tight, tugging at it.

Wen Ming: “Not full?”

MuMu slapped the padded pool wall angrily: “Awoo!” Do you think I’m a glutton!?

It caught its breath, smacked its lips reminiscently, and released the bowl:

“Woo.” Another bowl would be nice.

MuMu tugged at Wen Ming’s sleeve, gesturing the shape of a tie against its chest.

“Yes, working from home.” Wen Ming understood its meaning and explained, “My mental seascape is unstable, going to the company would affect others.”

MuMu nodded, looking at the injection marks on the back of his hand with concern, some fresh, some fading:

“Awoo?” Are you feeling better today?

Wen Ming didn’t understand, only stroking its head.

Ever since MuMu had cut its hair, these small interactions had increased significantly.

Whenever he found MuMu adorable, understood its coquettish behavior, or couldn’t understand what it was saying, Wen Ming would respond with a gentle touch.

As if trying to make up for all the times he hadn’t touched it before getting the mermaid.

MuMu was very receptive to this.

No matter what it had been about to say, Wen Ming’s touch would make it forget everything.

“Good.”

MuMu, praised for no apparent reason, preened, raising itself on its tail to be closer to Wen Ming.

“Splash!”

Its tail slipped, and the little mermaid fell into the water.

“Falling in the water while in the water,” this was considered the ultimate humiliation in the mermaid world, even more comical than a human tripping on flat ground.

MuMu surfaced sheepishly, its hair plastered to its face, itchy.

It wasn’t used to its shorter hair and tried to brush it back, becoming increasingly frustrated.

“Growl!” Why won’t my hair listen!

MuMu lost its patience and tugged at the unruly strands…

“Don’t move.”

Wen Ming stopped it sternly, his long fingers smoothing its hair back in a few swift strokes.

“Awoo!” You humans are really good at managing hair!

Wen Ming brought a comb and patted the edge of the pool.

MuMu immediately understood, leaning against the padded wall, waiting for Wen Ming to comb its hair.

Mermaids were rough with themselves, caring only about survival, not their appearance.

Left to its own devices, MuMu would just yank at its hair impatiently.

So Wen Ming had learned how to braid.

He gathered the strands that tended to fall in MuMu’s face, braiding them neatly.

He had become quite proficient, styling the braids and adding pearl hair ornaments.

“All done.”

MuMu quickly turned around and shook its head. No more annoying strands in its face, and it didn’t feel tight, just perfect.

“Awoo.” It wagged its tail, thanking Wen Ming.

Wen Ming stared at it, his hand hovering where he had been combing its hair, motionless…

“?” MuMu nudged him with its nose.

Wen Ming’s voice was husky: “Beautiful.”

Suffering from a cuteness overload.

…

Assistant Xu noticed something strange.

While his boss had been working from home, the employees’ workload had increased, but everyone seemed energized.

As if they had some kind of spiritual support.

To find out the reason, Assistant Xu “followed” two employees with a spring in their step, eavesdropping outside the break room—

“He posted again today!”

“Ahhh, let me see! Opening the Admiral’s StarNet Circle!”

Assistant Xu: ?

The Admiral’s StarNet Circle?

When Assistant Xu had first started working at Wen Corporation, he had curiously asked Wen Ming:

‘Why don’t you post anything on your StarNet Circle?’

At the time, Wen Ming had seemed to be hearing about “StarNet Circle” for the first time: ‘What should I post?’

‘Travel photos, daily life, or pictures of your pets.’

Assistant Xu still remembered Wen Ming’s bewildered tone: ‘Why would I waste time on such meaningless activities?’

So Assistant Xu hadn’t followed Wen Ming’s StarNet Circle, assuming it was an empty account.

“Oh my god, as adorable as ever~”

“These daily updates are keeping me alive!”

Assistant Xu’s curiosity was piqued. He pretended to be taking a break and entered the break room to get a cup of coffee.

The two employees lowered their voices, but their excitement was still evident:

“Pearls today, seaweed crown yesterday, the day before…”

“Seashell hair clips the day before!”

“Yes, yes, a different style every day, and each one suits it perfectly.”

What were they talking about?

Assistant Xu sipped his coffee, glancing at the image on the employee’s optical brain—

A large picture of a mermaid.

A blue-haired mermaid with a delicate face and intelligent eyes, its short hair styled meticulously.

“Pfft—” Assistant Xu sprayed coffee onto the wall.

Wasn’t that the Admiral’s mermaid!?

Assistant Xu had been splashed in the face by this mermaid when he had visited Wen Ming’s house and had a strong impression of it.

The two employees hesitated: “Assistant Xu, are you alright?”

Assistant Xu’s hand trembled, spilling coffee from his cup:

“The mermaid’s hair, did the Admiral… style it himself?”

The employees looked at him eagerly: “So Assistant Xu also follows the Admiral’s updates!”

“…He posts every day?”

“Yes, he just started recently, but he updates frequently, usually once a day, and sometimes several times a day when the hairstyle is particularly successful!”

Assistant Xu’s eye twitched: “So everyone is following this?”

“Such a cute mermaid, it’s become our company’s unofficial mascot.”

“Assistant Xu, didn’t you know? Everyone’s requesting that ‘cloud-raising the mermaid’ be added to our company culture!”

Assistant Xu strongly suspected that the mermaid wasn’t actually a mermaid.

It must be some kind of mystical creature with the ability to bewitch people, charming Wen Ming and the entire company…

Well, it wasn’t a bad thing if it boosted everyone’s morale.

Assistant Xu consoled himself and followed Wen Ming’s StarNet Circle.

…

A company as large as Wen Corporation couldn’t be run solely on “spiritual support,” and the leaderless state couldn’t last forever.

Wen Ming was soon called back to work.

The employees were eager to discuss mermaid-related topics, but the moment Wen Ming stepped into the company, those thoughts vanished.

The oppressive aura emanating from Wen Ming as he walked through the office made the employees shiver.

They didn’t dare slack off, staring intently at their optical brain screens, and only after he entered his office did they collapse back into their chairs, relieved…

The pressure shifted to Assistant Xu.

Alone with Wen Ming in the office, every breath was a struggle, as if the oxygen was being sucked into a black hole.

Fortunately, he was used to dealing with Wen Ming.

The reason for Wen Ming’s current state wasn’t a multi-billion star coin project going wrong, but his mermaid!

Assistant Xu expertly began: “Admiral, is there a problem with raising your mermaid…”

“Assistant Xu.”

Wen Ming interrupted him: “Which meetings require my presence?”

Assistant Xu was taken aback and explained instinctively: “The shareholders’ meeting, you’re the largest shareholder…”

Wen Ming tapped his fingers impatiently on the desk, radiating displeasure.

Assistant Xu suddenly found him relatable—

Wasn’t that exactly how he felt after a long holiday, dreading going back to work!?

The Admiral simply didn’t want to come to work, for no particular reason.

Wen Ming quickly dealt with the accumulated documents on his desk and asked absentmindedly: “Are the other attendees here?”

“Not yet…”

“Who’s late?” Wen Ming’s eyes sharpened. “Wasting everyone’s time, delaying our off-work time, whoever it is will be assigned the most difficult project.”

Assistant Xu wiped away a cold sweat.

Such anger just over potential overtime, the once ruthless “work machine” had crumbled.

It seemed it wasn’t that raising the mermaid was going badly, but too well, to the point that he didn’t even want the company anymore…

Assistant Xu adjusted his glasses and asked cautiously: “Admiral, do you want to raise your mermaid full-time?”

Wen Ming considered it seriously.

“Then what about Wen Corporation?” Assistant Xu said with a long face. “You can’t, at least not full-time, raise a mermaid.”

Unemployment benefits can’t be used for this reason!

“Snap!”

The pen in Wen Ming’s hand snapped in two.

Ink splattered onto the white paper, and the broken pen was casually tossed aside.

Assistant Xu stared, speechless, his breath caught in his throat:

Snapped a pen with his bare hands?

How could someone who couldn’t use his mental seascape do that?

Assistant Xu sensed the faint energy particles around him and thought hesitantly:

Or perhaps, the Admiral’s mental seascape energy is leaking uncontrollably?

“Sorry.” Wen Ming suppressed the turbulent energy in his mental seascape. Despite the splitting headache, his expression remained unchanged as he pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the ink from his fingers.

Assistant Xu, his face full of concern, said in a cheerful tone: “I saw your StarNet Circle posts, it’s the most adorable mermaid I’ve ever seen!”

Wen Ming’s expression softened: “Really?”

“Truly, several colleagues are completely smitten. From that perspective, raising a mermaid full-time might be feasible…”

Assistant Xu pondered: “If you started a livestream for your mermaid in the pet section, it would definitely be a hit!”

“Beep beep!” The home butler announced, “Your channel has been assigned to the ‘Pets’ section by the platform.”

“Pets!?”

MuMu’s face paled: “Did someone discover my true form?”

“The ‘Pets’ section refers to livestream content related to pets, not necessarily non-human streamers.”

“Oh, oh.” MuMu was relieved. “Then let’s see what other streamers in the Pets section are doing.”

The home butler’s green indicator light blinked.

MuMu focused its attention on the screen, clicking on a livestream with a mermaid on the cover.

It was a meticulously dressed mermaid.

Its long hair was braided into two pigtails, adorned with a flower garland necklace, and its nails had sparkly decorations.

“Oh my, so beautiful!”

MuMu exclaimed, picking up a dried fish and taking a bite.

[So pretty~ (chew, chew, chew)]

[When will the streamer translate? I finally caught the livestream, and he’s checking out other channels again?]

[I’ve seen this channel, “Yi Yi’s Mermaid Yi Yi,” a little princess of the mermaid world, haven’t seen a more beautiful mermaid yet.]

Yi Yi in the video swam around gracefully, occasionally letting out an “awoo.”

MuMu also “awooed,” then chuckled at the human-like sound.

[I knew the streamer was hiding his skills, he can definitely speak some mermaid language!]

[I’m dying of laughter, that sudden howl, what a strange mood.]

[Doesn’t seem like a mood swing, I think he’s just not paying attention to the comments.]

“Yi Yi’s Mermaid Yi Yi’s” livestream chat was filled with [The masked streamer is here!].

The streamer, Yi Yi, exclaimed happily: “Wow, welcome, masked streamer!”

“Cough! Cough…”

MuMu choked on the dried fish and only noticed after a while that the home butler’s green light was on, indicating it was livestreaming.

“Seriously, Little Butler!?” MuMu muted the microphone. “I just wanted to watch, I wasn’t planning to stream!”

The home butler displayed a series of emojis on its screen, “Leave it to me.jpg,” “Trustworthy.jpg”:

“This unit is fully functional, I’ve automatically activated the projector background for you, please rate me five stars…”

“I should be rating you zero stars, not five,” MuMu said angrily. “Why didn’t the Comment Assistant tell me I was live?”

“My friend, the Comment Assistant, is still upgrading.”

“You guys!”

MuMu’s vision darkened: “I finally understand what humans mean by ‘artificial stupidity!'”