[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-baby-system-i-m-the-beast-world-s-only-hope":3,"chapter-baby-system-i-m-the-beast-world-s-only-hope-baby-system-i-m-the-beast-world-s-only-hope-chapter-185":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Baby System: I'm the Beast World's Only Hope!",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1362392,1802,"Chapter 185: Episode 185: I am alone.","baby-system-i-m-the-beast-world-s-only-hope-chapter-185",185,"\u003Cp>After that sweet massage, Caspian had found a new activity to disturb Roxy with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whenever he came close, with his gills fluttering, Roxy knew he wanted a massage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Roxy stood by the fire pit, wearing her royal silk robe, her hair tied up in a messy bun secured with a silver chopstick she’d found in the loot chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She looked less like a captive landwalker and more like the exhausted but fabulous manager of an exclusive boutique.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So,\" Roxy said, crossing her arms and looking at the three figures floating in the entrance of the cave. \"Let me get this straight. You told them.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I did nottellthem,\" Nimue corrected, flipping her impossibly glossy, vanilla-scented braid over her shoulder. \"I merely existed near them. They saw the changes in my hair, and they demanded answers.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nimue drifted further into the air pocket, looking smug. Flanking her were two other mermaids, both radiating power, danger, and intense skepticism.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To the left was Vespera. She was built like a tank, with broad shoulders, crimson scales, and a scar running from her ear to her jaw. She carried a trident made of black bone. She looked at Roxy the way a butcher looks at a particularly confusing cut of meat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To the right was Thalassa. She was the opposite, slender, with scales the color of pale sea-foam and drifting, translucent fins. She was draped in so many pearls she rattled when she moved. She looked at Roxy like she was a dirty smudge on a window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is the source?\" Thalassa asked, her voice airy and high, like wind chimes. \"This... squishy beige thing?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It is small,\" Vespera grunted, swimming closer to inspect Roxy. \"I could snap its spine with one hand.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hey!\" Roxy snapped, pointing a wooden spoon at the warrior mermaid. \"Stay back.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Roxy was so defensive. But when she was surrounded by fish that could eat her, she had to be cautious, a friend can turn foe in a matter of time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Vespera and Thalassa exchanged a look. They looked at Nimue’s hair, which was currently catching the light of the fire in a way that defied the physics of the deep. It was perfect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We desire the Gloss,\" Thalassa admitted, touching her own hair, which was frizzy and dull from the salt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Great,\" Roxy smiled, a sharp, capitalist smile. \"But here’s the thing, ladies. I’m not running a charity. Surface Magic costs money.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We have gold,\" Thalassa waved a dismissive hand toward Caspian’s pile of treasure. \"Take it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don’t want gold,\" Roxy said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She held up three fingers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The price is simple. One: Rare ingredients. I want those King Sturgeon eggs Nimue talked about. And Blue-Crabs. And those thermal-spiced kelp leaves.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Done,\" Vespera grunted. \"I hunt the Sturgeon daily.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Two,\" Roxy continued. \"Information. I want to know everything about the Trench. The currents, the politics, the safe zones.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Acceptable,\" Thalassa nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And three,\" Roxy looked at Vespera specifically. \"Protection. If Caspian goes crazy, or if a shark gets curious... You back me up.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Vespera narrowed her yellow eyes. She looked at Roxy’s fragile neck. Then she looked at Nimue’s hair again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If our hair turns out like that, then it works,\" Vespera vowed, slamming the butt of her trident into the sand, \"I will spear any beast that looks at you wrong.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Deal,\" Roxy grinned. \"Take a seat, ladies. The Abyssal Salon is open.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>****\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An hour later, the cave was unrecognizable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The terrifying silence of the deep had been replaced by the universal sound of a girls’ spa day: giggling, splashing, and ruthless gossip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Roxy was working on Thalassa, massaging the conditioner into the mermaid’s sea-foam green hair. Vespera was already done, sitting on the sand and admiring her own reflection in one of the mirrors, preening like a giant, deadly parakeet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So,\" Roxy said, working a knot out of Thalassa’s scalp. \"You guys keep talking about the males like they’re headaches. Are they really that bad?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bad?\" Thalassa scoffed, rolling her eyes. \"They are useless. All they do is fight and patrol. They have no conversation. You go to a male’s nest, and he just grunts and offers you a dead squid.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And the biting,\" Vespera added, inspecting her claws. \"Why must they bite the shoulder? It ruins the scales.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Caspian tried to bite me,\" Roxy chimed in. \"I hit him with a frying pan.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The cave exploded in laughter. Vespera threw her head back, her laughter sounding like grinding rocks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You struck the King??\" Vespera howled. \"And you lived?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He was confused,\" Roxy giggled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Typical,\" Nimue sighed, lounging on the clamshell bed. \"Males have no nuance. They think ’Protection’ means ’Prison’ and ’Courtship’ means ’Ambush’.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But...\" Thalassa lowered her voice, a sly grin spreading across her pale blue lips. \"Have you seen General Kaelor? The one who guards the North Ridge?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh, I have seen him,\" Vespera purred, her fins fluttering. \"He is massive. His dorsal fin... it must be three meters high.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Size isn’t everything,\" Roxy said sagely, rinsing Thalassa’s hair with warm water.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In the Trench, it is,\" Vespera corrected. \"A big fin means strong currents. And Kaelor... he has the stamina of a tidal wave. They say he can maintain the Mating Dance for three days without surfacing.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Three days?\" Roxy’s eyes widened. \"That sounds... painful.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if I was going through Ovulation I could never.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not even when I had a threesome with Kae and Zee, that didn’t happen. Oh wait, It did happen with Syris.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Roxy chuckled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It is glorious,\" Thalassa sighed dreamily. \"But he is so arrogant. He would never let a female touch his hair. He thinks he is a god.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They all do,\" Nimue agreed. \"My brother thinks he is the sun and the moon. He struts around shaking his tail, expecting the ocean to bow.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Speaking of tails,\" Vespera leaned in, lowering her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. \"Is it true what they say about the Surface Males? The Beast Kings?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Roxy paused. \"What do they say?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That they are... soft,\" Vespera said. \"That they bring flowers. And that they... wait for the female to say yes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The three mermaids looked at Roxy with wide, fascinated eyes. The concept of consent and romance was apparently an exotic fetish down here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They do,\" Roxy confirmed, smiling as she thought of her mates. \"They bring flowers. They cook food. They rub your feet when they hurt. And yes... they ask.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Scandalous,\" Thalassa breathed, fanning herself with her fin. \"Imagine. A male asking.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I would get bored,\" Vespera decided. \"I need a little bit of a chase. But... the foot rubbing sounds nice.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just then, the water wall rippled, and everyone’s laugh died instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caspian shot into the cave. He was carrying a massive, dead Hammerhead Shark over his shoulder, a trophy he had clearly hunted to impress Roxy. He was pumped full of adrenaline, his chest heaving, his eyes glowing with the fierce pride of a provider returning to his mate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Little Landwalker!\" Caspian roared, his voice booming off the walls. \"I have returned! I have slain the Beast of the Grey Ridge! Behold my—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He dropped the shark with a wetthud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stared at the scene before him. His cave was filled with steam, the smell of lavender and vanilla, and three high-ranking female mermaids who were currently looking at him like he had just walked into the wrong bathroom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Vespera, the General’s daughter, was braiding Thalassa’s hair. Nimue was eating a bowl of Roxy’s garlic-crab. And Roxy was standing there holding a comb.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What...\" Caspian stammered, his gills fluttering in confusion. \"What is this? Who are... Vespera? Thalassa?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Vespera looked him up and down. She looked at the dead shark. She looked at his messy hair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Your scales are dull, Caspian,\" Vespera critiqued flatly. \"You look dry.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And that shark is small,\" Thalassa added, wrinkling her nose. \"Was it a baby? Did you rob a nursery?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caspian’s jaw dropped. \"It is a Grey Ridge Hammerhead! It is twelve feet long!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Small,\" Vespera confirmed, turning back to Roxy. \"So, about this conditioner...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caspian looked at Roxy. He looked at the women ignoring him in his own home. He tried to summon his Alpha energy. He puffed out his chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"OUT!\" Caspian roared. \"Get out of my nest! This is my territory!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh, hush, brother,\" Nimue waved a dismissive hand, not even looking at him. \"We are customers. We paid. Go sit in the corner until we are finished.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Paid?\" Caspian sputtered. \"You paid the pet?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She is not a pet,\" Thalassa corrected haughtily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caspian looked at Roxy, expecting her to run to him, to be awed by his shark, to seek his protection from these intruders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Roxy just shrugged, holding up the bottle of oil. \"Sorry, Caspian. Unless you want a massage and a gloss treatment, you’re kind of harshing the vibe.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caspian made a sound like a deflating balloon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked at the wall of female dismissal. He knew, instinctively, that if he attacked, he would scare his mate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the females were using this to their advantage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Defeated, the King of the Pearl Garden walked over to the far corner of the cave. He sat down on a rock, pulling his tail in close. He picked up his bone spear and held it like a comfort blanket, staring sullenly at the dead shark he had been so proud of.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He watched Roxy laughing as she showed Thalassa how to use a mirror. He watched them touch and groom each other, a circle of warmth and connection that he was completely excluded from.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They took the cave,\" Caspian whispered to the shark carcass, his voice heavy with a new kind of loneliness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked at Roxy, who was glowing with happiness, surrounded by his own kind, yet further away from him than ever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Now,\" he murmured, resting his chin on his spear, \"they have taken my female too.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1653,"2026-06-05T21:18:01.894Z",1,"novelbin.me","f341cf137a3be38114bfd19c35f5bdb8511327bf96290f1c0d470bfd3e9c4cab","baby-system-i-m-the-beast-world-s-only-hope-chapter-186","baby-system-i-m-the-beast-world-s-only-hope-chapter-184",501,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fbaby-system-i-m-the-beast-world-s-only-hope-cover.jpg"]