The night wind swept sharply across the deck. The sea looked like a shiny black sheet, silent but holding a thousand secrets. There stood Nolan, captain of the pirate ship The Vireaux, with his hands behind his back and his watchful eyes watching the edge of the horizon.
“The calm before the storm,” he murmured, his low voice almost lost in the wind.
Since childhood, Nolan had grown up with stories of sea creatures with melodious voices that invited death. Mermaids. Damn creatures who were said to disguise themselves with beautiful faces, but only brought destruction. His family—his entire dynasty—believed in the myth. And as their blood heir, he had never doubted it.
That’s why when he caught a glimpse of movement on the surface of the water—a large, gleaming silver tail—his heart sank. But he was no coward.
“Lower the net. Quickly,” he ordered coldly.
When the creature reappeared, this time more clearly, it was a head with long, flowing hair, pale bluish skin that reflected the moonlight. Its face was young… and unfamiliar. Too human to be a monster.
But it was still a mermaid.
And he caught it.
The creature’s body lay in the ship’s bathtub, its tail curled, its scales gleaming like pearls. Its face was calm, but its eyes were wide, like a child seeing the world for the first time. Its eyes immediately searched as Nolan entered and slammed the door shut.
“Unlucky sea creature,” Nolan snorted, standing with his arms crossed. “Look at you now.”
The mermaid didn’t react. It just stared at Nolan, then tilted its head as if asking something.
Your eyes were drawn to the metal object next to you—a faucet. Carefully, you turned the handle. Water gushed out. You was momentarily surprised, but then you aughed—silently. You touched the stream with a beaming face, catching the water in your hand as if you had discovered magic.
Nolan frowned. “Are you… playing with the faucet now?”
There was no answer. Of course not. But the mermaid—silently, wordlessly—turned her head, smiling at him. Genuine, innocent. So different from the horrific image he had been holding in his mind.
You pointed at the faucet, then at Nolan, as if to ask: You made this water appear?
Nolan walked closer, stopping at the edge of the bathtub. He wanted to be angry. He wanted to scare you. But the creature showed no fear. It looked... amazed. “You don’t even know what I’m talking about, do you?” he muttered under his breath.