Chapter 49: Lady Marine (2)

Rowing against the dusk, Sien cut through the currents of the canal.

Before he knew it, lemon-colored streetlights began to flicker on one by one, illuminating the city’s darkness. With every stroke of the oars, the fading light spilled over the rippling waves, creating a unique shimmer on the water’s surface.

However, his time lost in the atmosphere did not last long.

Crossing the canal, the boat soon reached the shore. He tied the rope to anchor the vessel and stepped off.

This was the Serpent Family’s villa in the capital, Veneto.

The person guarding the entrance was the same butler who had come to meet Sien earlier.

“Welcome, Don Sien.”

The fish tail Sien had glimpsed while swimming through the canal was nowhere to be seen. Now, the butler stood politely on two human feet to greet him.

“The Head of the House and His Excellency, the Duke of Nightwalker, are waiting for you.”

Sien followed the old butler into the mansion, where he was greeted by Laila, who was dressed in a pitch-black satin dress.

“Welcome, Sien.”

“Mother.”

“Now that I think about it, this is your first time showing your face at the Serpent Family’s estate.”

“Yes.”

“Since you are here, take a good look around.”

Laila took a sip of her blood-red wine and glanced to the side.

“See the majesty of the Sea Serpent, another pillar that supports this kingdom from upon the waves.”

The Serpent Family’s villa was not an ordinary structure one would typically imagine.

It was, quite literally, a floating mansion built upon the water.

Instead of corridors or courtyards, a massive hot spring, resembling a grand bathhouse, pumped out steaming water. The invited guests, also clad in robes, were submerged in the baths, sipping wine or sharing conversation.

“The hot springs and canals of this mansion lead directly to the sea beyond. The sewage treatment facilities are also perfect. Isn’t it truly beautiful?”

“Wow, I don’t know what to do with such praise.”

Just then, a man submerged in the bath rose to his feet. He wore nothing but a single bath towel wrapped around his waist, standing before Laila without a shred of embarrassment.

“Admiral Rafaello.”

“Since you’ve come all this way, why don’t you join us for a splash?”

“I’m well past the age for playing in the water like a 7-year-old.”

“Well, returning to one’s childhood once in a while isn’t so bad.”

He was a handsome man with hair as blue as the sea and sapphire-colored eyes. His well-toned physique was angular and elegant, looking as if it were an ancient sculpture.

From his head down to his human legs and feet.

“I don’t have a hobby of carelessly stepping into the ‘territory’ of the Serpent Family.”

“You make it sound as if we’re going to eat you.”

Admiral Rafaello, having walked out of the hot spring on two feet, chuckled.

“Neither of us came here just to play in the water leisurely, did we?”

“Oh, was that not it?”

Rafaello gave a bitter smile as he threw on the coat the butler brought him.

“Take Don Sien to my younger sister.”

“Understood, Your Excellency.”

The butler who helped him into his coat bowed respectfully.

“Contrary to her appearance, my sister is quite shy,” Rafaello said, watching Sien’s receding back. “In that case, forget the splashing. Shall we finish our talk about those investment stocks?”

“As you know, if I get tied down any further here, I’ll be one step away from actually measuring the Atlantic’s water temperature — “

Laila did not answer immediately and silently sipped her wine.

She had a worried look in her eyes, which was uncharacteristic of her.

***

“Lady, Don Sien has arrived.”

When the butler who brought Sien knocked politely, a clear and sharp voice soon rang out.

“Show him in with due respect.”

The butler bowed, and Sien stepped inside.

This place was also no ordinary room, but a massive bathroom filled with rising steam.

In the center of the bathroom, a statue of a Siren — a sea monster said to bewitch sailors — was spouting water from its mouth.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Marine.”

“Welcome, Sien Nightwalker.”

A voice as clear as crystal and incredibly bold reached him. *Splash.* The sound of a submerged silhouette sliding through the water followed.

From within the steam, the upper body of a woman, completely naked, revealed itself.

A mermaid, a race with a human torso and the lower body of a fish.

As she sat on the edge of the bath, she had no human legs. Instead, there was only a fish tail and fins below her waist.

It was at that moment.

Her lower half, which had been shining brilliantly under silver scales just a moment ago, mimicked the form of two smooth human legs and lost its luster.

“I’ve heard your name everywhere. I’m almost sick of it.”

“Those are flattering words.”

As Sien bowed calmly to show his humility, the Lady Marine hidden in the steam let out a mocking laugh. Soon, she walked out of the bath confidently on two human feet, closing the distance between her and Sien.

The naked body of a human woman, without a single thread on her.

Like Rafaello, her sea-blue hair trailed down to her feet, and her sapphire eyes shone boldly.

Yet, even when Lady Marine’s porcelain-white body came right in front of him, the steam covering her nakedness did not dissipate.

A person with enhanced abilities like Sien shouldn’t have been blinded by mere steam. And yet, he couldn’t see.

Because that steam was her dress.

Wrapped in a dress of vapor and mimicking two human legs, the mermaid Lady Marine spoke.

“Are you a eunuch?”

‘…What?’

She spat out words that forced even the great Sien to gasp in bewilderment.

“No, of course not.”

Sien replied, dumbfounded by the unexpected question.

“Then why is it that the humans of the Nightwalker Family do not birth children themselves?” Lady Marine, her body shrouded in steam, asked back. “It’s not as if you can’t have children.”

“Do I have an obligation to answer that?”

“No, I already know the reason why your family ‘doesn’t have’ children.”

“Then what is your intention in asking?”

Sien, who had been flustered by the unexpected words, stopped being shaken and answered coldly.

“Your eyes have changed.”

Marine laughed as if she found Sien’s reaction interesting.

“What a wonderful gaze. I like it.”

The humans of the Nightwalker Family who have completed their baptism do indeed have reproductive capabilities. If they put their minds to it, having a child is not impossible.

However, they never increase their family ‘in that manner.’ Any family member who breaks this rule can no longer remain a part of the family.

No, it goes beyond just being exiled. An execution order is immediately issued to the entire family in the name of the Head of the House. They will be hunted down and killed without exception — including the person they joined with and the child.

That was their way.

Because the humans of the Nightwalker Family can never have a ‘blood-related family.’

“I happen to like the way your family does things.”

“And what would that be?”

Looking down at her human legs with disgust, Marine spoke.

“I really hate humans. To a horrific degree.”

Sien was not slow enough to miss the implication of those words.

“— But the moment a mermaid has a human’s child, she becomes human.”

“Mm, you’re quick to understand.”

Understanding her intention was not that difficult.

“The place where I belong, the place where I should live freely, is out on that sea. Just like my proud brother.”

Admiral Rafaello, the head of the Serpent Family and a pillar of this nation from the sea.

“But the family’s intention is otherwise.”

“An engagement with the Third Prince of the Charlemagne Kingdom has been finalized,” Marine replied. “It was a decision made selfishly by the elders of the family.”

A mermaid’s place is not on land. It is in the water. However, unlike Admiral Rafaello, who supported the country from the sea, she could not do the same.

That was the fate of a young lady born into a noble house, used like a tool for the family’s prosperity.

“I have no intention of becoming human, and I would rather die than have a human’s child.” Marine continued. “Especially if the alternative is being joined with that greasy, nauseating prince who acts like butter. I’d rather turn into sea foam.”

*Splash!*

Marine, who had turned her back, dove into the water.

Immediately, her lower body, which had been mimicking human legs, returned to the form of a fish, shining with silver scales once again.

“I really hate humans, and I have no intention of ever becoming one.” Swimming freely through the water, Marine spoke. “So, you — marry me.”

‘…What?’

“— The humans of the Nightwalker Family cannot have children. I wouldn’t have to become human either. And since it would be a union between the two greatest families in the Republic, there’s a certain justification. It’s not bad for either of us, is it?”

At Marine’s words, Sien asked back coldly.

“Why should I do that?”

To the humans of the Nightwalker Family, family is everything. Even if not a single drop of blood is shared.

And everything outside of the family meant nothing.

The mermaid girl standing before Sien, desperately wishing for the Nightwalker Family’s help, was no exception.

“Don’t worry. I’m not so shameless as to expect your family’s help for nothing.”

“Then what can you give us?”

“The sea.”

Lady Marine, the daughter of the Serpent Family, replied.

“In exchange for setting me free, I will give you all the oceans in this world.”

“You’ll give me the sea?”

At those utterly absurd words, Sien burst into laughter once again.

“I must have misheard you.”

“No, you heard correctly,” Marine answered Sien’s doubt. “I will give you every single sea in this world.”

“How can you be so sure?”

Her voice carried not a hint of hesitation or doubt.

“Because I will become the Queen of the Sea.”

At those following words, Sien took a low breath.

Back then, she had said the same thing.

Right here, in the same voice, with the same words full of certainty.

And even the current Sien did not know whether that promise would have truly been kept.

Because that was the last he had seen of her.

He hadn’t been able to take the helping hand she reached out with while refusing to become human. No, he hadn’t taken it.

To the humans of the Nightwalker Family, family was everything, and everything else was nothing. The mermaid requesting help before him was the same.

So, he hadn’t taken it.

And so, Lady Marine eventually turned into sea foam.

It was no different now.

“Then prove it.”

Despite that, Sien spoke.

“What?”

“The fact that you truly have the qualification to become the Queen of the Sea.”

*Shiver.*

As he spoke, Sien revealed the sharp, dark edge of a blade from beneath his sleeve. The surrounding air froze cold.

“Mm, alright,” Marine replied. She smiled, undeterred by the tense atmosphere. “But I can’t show you here.”

“Then where can you show me?”

“Take my hand.”

Submerged in the water, Marine reached out to Sien. It was a white, slender hand that looked as if it might break.

*Splash!*

As soon as Sien grasped Marine’s hand, an unimaginable strength from that slender hand pulled him right into the water.

In that state, Marine’s tail fin danced as if sliding through the water.

The hot springs and canals of this mansion were all connected to the sea. And there, the sea was where they truly belonged, the domain where they could show their true ‘power.’

“Phew!”

Having escaped the mansion through the underground canal led by Marine’s hand, he surfaced and took a deep breath.

Above the dark night sea, starlight poured down like a crumbling ruin.

Lady Marine had already vanished from sight.

Submerged alone in the pitch-black night sea, Sien silently looked around.

In the biting night air, the sound of the swaying waves felt distant.

Beneath his feet, the underwater darkness stretched endlessly, and it was at that same moment that something wriggled with malice.