Charles's unusual behavior had drawn the attention of others; a man with a swarm of mice was bound to be a spectacle, and the whispers and pointing fingers around him began to multiply.

  “Don’t panic,” Charles said, frowning as he led Lily down the street. “Are you sure that’s your home? Is that little girl really you?”

  “Of course I’m sure! That’s exactly how I looked! And that’s my mother!” Lily’s voice was tinged with sadness.

  “First, tell your friends to disperse; it’ll be hard to move if they’re all around.”

  Lily squeaked twice, and the surrounding mice quickly scattered, causing a chorus of startled female screams.

  After wandering the streets for a while, they returned to the small villa. Inside the yard, Lily’s mother had already left, leaving the “Lily” sitting there, engrossed in a book.

  “Wait, don’t say anything. Let me handle this,” Charles instructed.

  He glanced around to ensure there were no surprises before pushing open the wooden gate and walking straight toward her. “Lily?”

  The little girl looked up, confusion etched on her face. But upon seeing Charles, her expression changed; she dropped the book and rushed inside in a panic.

  “Hmm?” Charles raised his left hand, and three invisible tendrils quickly ensnared her.

  Just as he expected the girl to reveal her true form, “Lily” struggled desperately, shouting, “Mom! Mom!! Help me!!”

  Seeing this, a hint of confusion crossed Charles’s face. He had encountered many shape-shifting creatures, but this reaction was new to him. He pulled “Lily” closer and, drawing a black knife, made a swift cut on her arm. Crimson blood welled up.

  Licking the blade, Charles was surprised to find it was indeed human blood.

  At that moment, the door beside them swung open, and Lily’s mother emerged, trembling as she held a flintlock pistol. “Let my daughter go! I’ve already called the police!”

  Ignoring the harmless weapon in the woman’s hands, Charles calmly asked the girl, “Why did you run when you saw me?”

  The girl looked terrified but quickly answered, “Because you smell like the sea. Dad said that anyone who smells like the sea is a bad person.”

  “Liar!! That’s my dad!” White mouse Lily lunged toward the girl.

  Charles grabbed the mouse and, releasing the girl, began to walk away.

  “Lily” appeared completely normal, showing no signs of disguise, which only deepened Charles's confusion.

  “Don’t worry; we’ll investigate this first,” he said, holding the anxious mouse’s head gently.

  Charles took Lily back to the port area, navigating through twists and turns until they arrived at a secluded storefront.

  After checking that no one else was around, he knocked softly and said, “I’m looking for your boss, Big Ear.”

  The door opened silently, and Charles led Lily inside.

  The interior was a messy warehouse, where a group of tattooed men were playing cards. When they saw Charles enter with a swarm of mice, a scrawny man with a scar on his face stood up.

  “Captain Charles, long time no see. Want to move some goods again? I heard you got your hands on a big ship; you could carry a lot.”

  Charles was not in the mood for pleasantries. He pulled out a stack of echo coins and handed them over. “I need some information about Dr. Oliver.”

  Since he couldn’t discern the situation directly, he figured asking some local informants might yield other clues.

  The scarred man grinned, extending his hand, which was missing two fingers. “No problem; there’s nothing we can’t find out on Coral Island.”

  Before long, a piece of paper filled with writing was pushed through the door’s crack. Charles took it, reading it carefully before looking at the white mouse with a complex expression.

  “Lily, you were turned into a mouse after getting caught in a whirlpool while visiting your grandfather?”

  “Yeah, that’s right.”

  “But… according to what I gathered from those guys, your parents have been on the island for the last few years and haven’t gone to sea.”

  The room fell into a heavy silence.

  After three long seconds, disbelief filled Lily’s eyes as she spoke, “So… that means…”

  “It means that the other Lily is real. She is Dr. Oliver’s true daughter, not someone impersonating her.”

  Since Dr. Oliver hadn’t gone to sea, he couldn’t have encountered a shipwreck, and their daughter certainly wouldn’t have fallen into a whirlpool.

  “She’s real, then who am I?” Tears streamed down the white mouse’s face.

  Charles chose his words carefully. “Lily, as hard as it may be to accept, memories aren’t always reliable.”

  “No way!! I am Lily!! I’m not a mouse!! I’m the real Lily!!” The white mouse began to scream hysterically.

  Hearing her cries, the brown mice quickly surrounded her, chirping in concern.

  “Get away from me! I’m not one of you! I’m human! I’m human!!” The brown mice backed off slightly but remained close to the sobbing white mouse.

  Charles was at a loss for words. He had considered many outcomes, but never this one.

  Yet, upon reflection, it made sense; the world of the sea was indeed despairing.

  Half an hour later, surrounded by mice, Lily lay on the ground, motionless, as if her spirit had left her. “Mr. Charles, do you really think I’m just a mouse?”

  Sitting on a stool, Charles fell silent, unsure how to respond.

  The white mouse, devoid of answers, slowly got up and walked toward the door, the brown mice following closely behind.

  “Where are you going?”

  Lily’s voice was filled with a pitiful resignation. “I don’t know… but since I’m a mouse, maybe I should just live in the sewers. Thank you for taking care of me these days, Mr. Charles. You’re a good person.”

  The mice surged forward, easily opening the door handle and following the white mouse into the dim corridor.

  Watching them leave, a flicker of irritation crossed Charles’s face. “Are you really going to give up? Planning to live in the sewers eating garbage for the rest of your life?”

  Lily turned around, her ears drooping as she stared blankly at Charles.

  “Since you believe you’re human and that the sea transformed you into this, you should go back to the ocean and reclaim everything! Don’t run away!” His voice rose.

  “We can’t control our fate, but we can choose how to face our challenges. Come back! My ship needs a gunner.”

  Tears welled up in Lily’s eyes again, and the sobbing white mouse nodded repeatedly. “Thank you, Mr. Charles. Why are you helping me so much?”

  Charles wasn’t a particularly warm-hearted person, but seeing the desperate Lily walking away instinctively filled him with resistance. She was a fellow lost soul, and he feared that could be his future as well.